Grandia was initially released in 1997 on the Sega Saturn in Japan, and then later in 1999 on the Sony PlayStation.

Only the later PlayStation version received an official English translation (although the Sega Saturn version does have a fan translation, using the same text as the PlayStation version, but was not available in English until the patch was released in March 2019).

Grandia is Game Arts‘ attempt at breaking into the Japanese Role-Playing Game market and it is a very successful one.

It’s a level-grinding adventure starring a young boy called Justin, on a path to uncover a mysterious lost civilisation. The focus of the story is on exploration, technology and magic. The focus of the gameplay is on exploration and combat, based in a simple 3D world populated by 2D characters and enemies.

Visually, Grandia looks a little dated by today’s standards, but the gameplay has definitely lasted. Grinding levels and using magic is a lot of fun, and although Grandia does have a relatively simple story and dialogue the game contains enough charm and content to please both the casual gamer and the hardcore RPG fan.

A HD remake is also due relatively soon. Grandia definitely has a following, and deservedly so.

See also: Grandia II and Grandia III

More: Grandia on Wikipedia