In a gaming era increasingly defined by hyperrealistic graphics, open-world sandboxes, and live-service economies, the Lunar Remastered Collection stands as both a beacon of sincerity and a reminder of what video games once were. It revives two of the most emotionally resonant RPGs of the 1990s—Lunar: The Silver Star and Lunar: Eternal Blue—and brings them back not merely as nostalgic curiosities, but as testaments to storytelling, artistry, and design philosophy that remains deeply relevant today.
More than just a visual upgrade, this remaster is a cultural excavation: a lovingly restored window into the soul of JRPG history. Released across PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and PC, this definitive collection delivers a unified experience that merges old-world charm with thoughtful modernity.
🌙 Revisiting the Moonlit Legacy with Lunar Remastered Collection: Why Lunar Still Matters
To understand why this remaster matters, we need to look back to the early 1990s, when RPGs were just beginning to evolve from dungeon crawlers and menu simulators into narrative-driven art forms. The Lunar Remastered Collection didn’t just tell a story—it pioneered how games could feel. In an age when video games were still shedding their arcade-born roots, Lunar took a cinematic, emotionally resonant approach to storytelling that was virtually unheard of.
Released in 1992 on the Sega CD, Lunar: The Silver Star introduced players to a world filled not just with magic and monsters, but with laughter, loss, and longing. The protagonist, Alex, wasn’t an armored warrior or destined demigod. He was a boy with a dream, thrust into a journey not of vengeance or conquest, but of growth, compassion, and love. In 1994, Lunar: Eternal Blue built upon that emotional foundation, taking a more mature and philosophically introspective route. Where the first game was bright and idealistic, the second delved into existential themes—free will, faith, and the cost of sacrifice.
For many Western players, the Lunar games were their first exposure to fully voiced characters, anime-style cutscenes, and real character arcs in an RPG. They helped redefine the emotional potential of video games at a time when few were even asking that question.
💎 What the Remaster Brings to the Table
With the Lunar Remastered Collection, these landmark titles are no longer shackled by the limitations of aging hardware. And yet, this remaster doesn’t seek to overwrite history—it seeks to refine it.
✨ Visual Restoration, Not Reinvention
Rather than a wholesale visual redesign, the developers opted for high-definition 2D enhancements that preserve the original aesthetic while elevating its clarity and polish. Backgrounds are richly redrawn, character sprites are more vibrant, and subtle animations breathe new life into once-static environments.
The anime cutscenes, which were once compressed to fit on the tiny storage of a Sega CD or PlayStation disc, now play in full HD. Seeing these sequences with modern fidelity is more than a cosmetic delight—it’s a reclamation of their emotional impact. Facial expressions, gestures, and dramatic framing that once had to fight through pixelation now land with the resonance they always deserved.
🎧 Sound: From Bitrate to Ballad
Few RPGs of the era had music as moving as Lunar. The Lunar Remastered Collection soundtrack, now featuring full orchestral arrangements, is a revelation. Noriyuki Iwadare’s compositions—soaring themes, melancholic interludes, playful village songs—have never sounded more lush. And for purists, the original tracks are still available with a simple toggle, a nod to those who cherish every chiptune from their childhood.
Voice acting, too, has received thoughtful treatment. Some lines are re-recorded with clearer audio fidelity, while others remain untouched for authenticity. What’s notable is the developers’ restraint: rather than overwrite the past, they enhance it where appropriate and leave well enough alone elsewhere.
🛠 Thoughtful Modernization
The games now support features that today’s players expect as standard: autosave, speed-up functions for combat and traversal, adjustable difficulty settings, and interface redesigns that suit both controllers and handhelds. These improvements don’t detract from the core challenge of the game; they remove friction, not depth.
A new codex system provides optional background information on lore, characters, and terminology—ideal for new players or those returning after decades. It’s clear that this remaster was crafted with respect for both the franchise’s legacy and its accessibility to new audiences.
🧭 The Power of Simplicity: Narrative that Transcends Generations
The stories of Lunar Remastered Collection are deceptively simple. In The Silver Star, the journey of Alex may follow traditional fantasy beats, but its emotional center is tender and genuine. It’s not about saving the world—at least, not initially. It’s about proving yourself, protecting what you love, and finding your own voice in a world filled with legends.
Eternal Blue dares to go further. Hiro and Lucia’s arc—one a grounded, free-spirited adventurer, the other a divine being learning human emotion—is a subtle meditation on empathy, mortality, and connection. The final hours of the game deliver a poignant payoff that remains emotionally devastating even decades later.
In both games, it’s the relationships that drive the experience. Friendships feel earned, betrayals sting, and reunions matter. The supporting cast—whether it’s Nall the flying cat-dragon, the roguish Ronfar, or the fiercely principled Lemina—each bring heart and humor that keep the narrative grounded.
This is storytelling unburdened by cynicism, and in a modern context, that makes it feel almost radical.
⚖️ A Balanced View: The Beauty and the Blemishes
The Lunar Remastered Collection is not without its imperfections. Combat remains relatively simple and repetitive compared to the deep tactical systems of modern RPGs. Grinding can still be a chore, even with speed-up functions. And some design elements—such as backtracking or invisible triggers for progressing a quest—reflect their 1990s origins.
Yet these flaws do little to diminish the overall experience. If anything, they serve as reminders of how far game design has come—and how much the Lunar games contributed to that evolution.
What’s more, the choice to preserve rather than overhaul means that fans are given something authentic. This is not a “reimagining” that dilutes the original tone; it is a restoration in the truest sense.
🎮 The Audience in Mind: Who Is This For?
This Lunar Remastered Collection is not designed to win over every player. It won’t appeal to those seeking fast-paced, open-world exploration or deep mechanical complexity. But for players who value narrative, character, emotion, and artistic identity, Lunar is a revelation.
It’s for the lifelong RPG fan who grew up playing Final Fantasy IV or Chrono Trigger.
It’s for the modern player curious about gaming history and narrative craftsmanship.
It’s for anyone who’s ever believed that games, like literature or cinema, can move the soul.
🎇 Final Reflections: A Legacy Reaffirmed
The Lunar Remastered Collection is more than just a beautiful revival. It’s a statement. A reminder. A resurrection of a forgotten classic not just for nostalgia’s sake, but because these stories still matter.
In an industry obsessed with the next big trend, the next blockbuster title, or the next monetization model, Lunar invites us to slow down. To care. To laugh with our party members. To cry when they fall. And to feel, even for just a few hours, like we’re part of something magical and meaningful.
The Lunar Remastered Collection is not a perfect remaster game. But it is a sincere, artful, and deeply human one. And that, in today’s world, is something truly rare.
