Magnvs' RPG Journey
LightNews LightNews
banner
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Magnvs' RPG Journey
@magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
21 followers 22 following 60 posts
I love researching RPGs from various periods, platforms and geographical contexts in order to glimpse their history and evolution. You can find me at https://magnvsrpgjourney.substack.com/
Posts Replies Media Videos
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
RPG availability and preservation efforts in 2025, between remasters, remakes and fantranslations

#rpg #jrpg #wrpg #gaming #gamedev #videogamehistory #nintendoswitch #steam #ps5 #suikoden #talesofgraces #trailsinthesky #lunar

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
RPG availability and preservation efforts in 2025, between remasters, remakes and fantranslations
This past year hasn’t just been a treasure trove of interesting videogame RPG releases, but also a landmark of sorts for RPG accessibility and preservation, with a number of key efforts, some of which...
open.substack.com
January 3, 2026 at 9:40 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Live A Live, Tokita's anthological struggle against Hate

#rpg #jrpg #livealive #superfamicom #squaresoft #nintendoswitch #pc #steam #ps4 #videogamehistory #rpghistory #gamedev #gaming

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Live A Live, Tokita's anthological struggle against Hate
Developer: Squaresoft (Super Famicom original), Historia and Square Enix BD2 (Remake)
open.substack.com
December 27, 2025 at 11:47 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Baldur's Gate's PS1 misadventure and other unlikely RPG ports in the age of hardware separation

#rpg #wrpg #crpg #baldursgate #ps1 #runecraft #videogamehistory #rpghistory #gaming #gamedev #pc

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Baldur's Gate's PS1 misadventure and other unlikely RPG ports in the age of hardware separation
Developer: BioWare (PC original), Runecraft (PS1 port)
open.substack.com
December 18, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Reposted by Magnvs' RPG Journey
bonoko.dev
I've ran three full playthroughs, two of which were cheated to speed up the process. I've triggered as much of the generic and story dialogue as I could, but there is a minor chunk of both I was unable to trigger the scenarios for.

But for now, I think it's ready for a first release...tomorrow.
a close up of a man 's face with the words `` it 's done '' written on the bottom .
ALT: a close up of a man 's face with the words `` it 's done '' written on the bottom .
media.tenor.com
November 25, 2025 at 1:45 AM
Reposted by Magnvs' RPG Journey
romhack.ing
Progenitor - English Translation (PC98) Added
Progenitor - English Translation - Content
This translation was started on September 22nd, and just after two months later it is finally playable from start to end (and some in between). I've documented as much of the controls and gameplay as...
romhack.ing
November 25, 2025 at 1:56 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
The art of Hitoshi Yoneda, a leap into the world of watercolor sci-fantasy

#rpg #jrpg #videogameart #videogamehistory #rpghistory #phantasystar #sorcerian #hitoshiyoneda #gaming #retrogaming #gamedev

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
The art of Hitoshi Yoneda, a leap into the world of watercolor sci-fantasy
Alongside sword and sorcery, the sci-fantasy genre was one of the cornerstones of pulp literature, building its own unique aesthetic with countless different works like Schoonover’s cover arts for Bur...
open.substack.com
November 24, 2025 at 11:11 AM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
How Gamefaqs changed RPG consumption: an history of RPG walkthroughs, from clue books and hearsay to the digital age

#rpg #wrpg #jrpg #crpg #gamefaqs #walkthrough #nintendopower #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev #rpghistory

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
How Gamefaqs changed RPG consumption - an history of RPG walkthroughs, from clue books and hearsay to the digital age
Writing about the history of videogame RPGs doesn’t just mean discussing titles, franchise, developers and game design trends, but also their audience and how the way it engaged with this genre change...
open.substack.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Reposted by Magnvs' RPG Journey
bonoko.dev
November 17, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Reposted by Magnvs' RPG Journey
bonoko.dev
It's over...well there's still a lot of generic dialogue to finish, but the story dialogue is complete from start to end.
November 17, 2025 at 3:55 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Prisoner, Feycraft's PS1 top-down dystopia

#rpg #jrpg #ps1 #retrogaming #videogamehistory #feycraft
#gamedev #gaming #rpghistory

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Prisoner, Feycraft's PS1 top-down dystopia
Developer: Feycraft
open.substack.com
November 20, 2025 at 7:01 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Joe Dever's Lone Wolf, an Italo-British tribute to the world of Gamebooks

#rpg #wrpg #gamebook #lonewolf #JoeDever #rpghistory #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev #switch #steam #ps4

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Joe Dever's Lone Wolf, an Italo-British tribute to the world of Gamebooks
Developer: Forge Reply
open.substack.com
November 3, 2025 at 7:13 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Found in translation: how the first Sword World JRPG adaptation got two English localizations after three decades

#rpg #jrpg #swordworld #retrogaming #gaming #videogamehistory #fantranslation #pc98 #superfamicom #supernintendo #gamedev

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Found in translation: how the JRPG adaptations of the Sword World system got two English localizations after three decades
While Western RPG fans are used to videogame RPGs adapting Dungeons & Dragons rulesets and settings, not to mention more esoteric takes like German RPGs retooling their own Das Schwarze Auge system, J...
open.substack.com
October 30, 2025 at 10:45 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
To celebrate Fallout Day, I wrote a piece about this series' crosspollination with card games, from the Tragic the Garnering parody and New Vegas' Caravan to Magic the Gathering's own Fallout adaptation.

#rpg #wrpg #fallout #magicthegathering #gaming #gamedev

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
From screen to tabletop: how Fallout met Magic the Gathering
While we already had a chance to discuss Shandalar, MicroProse’s attempt to bring Magic the Gathering to the videogame RPG space back in 1997 by mixing Richard Garfield’s magnum opus Trading Card Game...
open.substack.com
October 24, 2025 at 10:01 AM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Let's discover Tales of Rebirth, a tri-linear journey to acceptance

#rpg #jrpg #talesof #namco #namcotalesstudio #ps2 #fantranslation #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev #psp #retrogaming #talesofrebirth

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Tales of Rebirth, a tri-linear journey to acceptance
Developer: Namco Tales Studio - Team Destiny
open.substack.com
October 17, 2025 at 4:36 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Thirty years of Tactics Ogre: how the Valerian civil war forever changed tactical JRPGs

#jrpg #rpg #tacticalrpg #tacticsogre #tacticsogrereborn #yasumimatsuno #quest #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev #superfamicom #ps1 #psp

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Thirty years of Tactics Ogre: how the Valerian civil war forever changed tactical JRPGs
Developer: Quest Corporation (Super Famicom), Artdink (PS1), Riverhill Soft (Saturn), Square Enix (PSP, Reborn version)
open.substack.com
October 11, 2025 at 6:19 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Ecsaform, Bandai Visual's hymn to overreach

#jrpg #rpg #tacticalrpg #ps1 #retrogaming #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev #bandai

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Ecsaform, Bandai Visual's PS1 sci-fantasy hymn to overreach
Developer: Bandai Visual
open.substack.com
October 6, 2025 at 5:42 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Triangle Strategy, Asano and Artdink's 2D-HD tactical epic

#jrpg #rpg #tacticalrpg #artdink #asano #gaming #videogamehistory #gamedev

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Triangle Strategy, or how Asano and Artdink balanced lore and tactics
Developers: Square Enix - Team Asano, Artdink, Netchubiyori
open.substack.com
October 5, 2025 at 10:48 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Carpe Fulgur, or how Dice and Light-Williams pioneered indie JRPGs to the Western PC audience and ended up changing the industry

#rpg #jrpg #carpefulgur #recettear #videogamehistory #gaming #indiegaming #indie #steam #gamedev

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Carpe Fulgur, or how Dice and Light-Williams pioneered indie JRPGs to the Western PC audience and ended up changing the industry
Nowadays, most people expect Japanese RPGs to have day and date PC releases alongside their console ones, with whole teams like Clouded Leopard or Peter “Durante” Thoman’s PH3 building their business ...
open.substack.com
October 1, 2025 at 1:08 AM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Pentiment, Sawyer's Holy Roman Adventure

#rpg #wrpg #obsidian #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Pentiment, Sawyer's Holy Roman Adventure
Developer: Obsidian
open.substack.com
September 27, 2025 at 8:34 AM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
How a Dutch MSX2 celebration could end up as a landmark for home PC JRPG fantranslations

#jrpg #rpg #msx2 #gaming #gamedev #videogamehistory

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
How an upcoming Dutch MSX celebration could end up as a landmark for home PC JRPG fantranslations
From the mid ‘80s to the early ‘90s, Japanese home PCs like NEC’s PC88 and PC98, Sharp’s X68000, Fujitsu’s FM Towns or the MSX line, born out of the partnership between Microsoft and Kazuhiko Nishi’s ...
open.substack.com
September 25, 2025 at 7:06 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Found in translation: Growlanser VI, a localized, if precarious, world

#jrpg #rpg #growlanser #ps2 #gaming #gamedev #fantranslation

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
Found in translation: Growlanser VI, a localized, if precarious, world
Since the first time I had a chance to tackle Career Soft’s Growlanser franchise thanks to Working Designs’ PS2 Generations collection, I always found this series uniquely fascinating due to its stori...
open.substack.com
September 25, 2025 at 9:51 AM
Reposted by Magnvs' RPG Journey
bonoko.dev
Opening cinematic done, on to the actual game now... #Progenitor #PC98
September 23, 2025 at 10:50 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
To celebrate the first anniversary of my Substack, it's time for some musings about discussing videogame RPG history from an holistic perspective and the state of Substack for videogame publications.

#rpg #jrpg #wrpg #videogamehistory #gaming #gamedev #substack

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...
A Substack in a bottle: my experience on this platform after one year and sixty-four pieces
Today marks the first anniversary of my Substack, which I finally started last September after procrastinating for a few years.
open.substack.com
September 24, 2025 at 5:45 PM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Before Clair Obscur: the history of French RPGs - Part III: the rise of Franco-Japanese RPGs

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...

#rpg #frenchrpg #jrpg #France #videogamehistory #rpghistory #retrogaming #clairobscur #expedition33 #gaming #gamedev #sandfall #lizardcube #fuga #edgeofeternity
Before Clair Obscur: the history of French RPGs - Part III: the rise of Franco-Japanese RPGs
In the first two parts of this retrospective about the history of French videogame RPGs, we had a chance to discover the first pioneeristic effort of the mid ‘80s, the lull of the ‘90s, the disruption...
open.substack.com
July 12, 2025 at 10:28 AM
magnvsrpgjourney.bsky.social
Found in translation: after thirty years, The Hybrid Front on Mega Drive is finally available in English

open.substack.com/pub/magnvsrp...

#rpg #jrpg #tacticalrpg #sega #megadrive #genesis #oniro #retrogaming #segamegadrive #fantranslation #nebuloustranslation #gamedev #gaming #videogamehistory
Found in translation: after thirty years, The Hybrid Front is finally available in English
Considering this substack’s focus on videogame RPG history, I think it’s appropriate to start spotlighting select fantranslation efforts related to this genre, given how, since the mid ‘90s, they play...
open.substack.com
July 8, 2025 at 6:48 PM