Part of it is that the characters in each of the teams (generally) have really good chemistry and play off each other well that it makes the games a joy to play through.
Franchise was huge back then and the glory moments were between the musicals (Benitokage etc), Kouhei Tanaka's music mastery and Hiroi Ouji's mind of crazy love. These days I've really warmed up to ST4 considering the background (Sega going third party, money and talent drying up quickly).
Because of that, I think any new team would be difficult to transition to after the Ouji/Fujishima/Matsubara/Tanaka combination so I'm not that hopeful for a revival.
My only regret was not jumping on the STxGBF train early :/
The 'steampunk' setting that ST has is one of the best out there, and the writing there is in a way that is actually terribly cheesy and occasionally falls into the same mud as other similar games where it's one guy surrounded by girls, but the team chemistry and team melodies won me over.
As an aside, I really enjoyed Gravity Rush settings and themes and can't wait for its sequel, but some of the setting did overlap and I can't help but hear a lot of Sakura Taisen in Kouhei Tanaka's score. Pleasure Quarter sounds like something that'd come out of ST3 - Chattes Noire
The characters chemistry was a huge part of what made that series so great for sure. The way that gets built up through each games is brilliant. Especially in Sakura Taisen 3 with the way the Pari Kagekidan gets shown what teamwork means in that second disk especially. It really is a joy to play through. Not to mention also the great way that it presents in its own way the world of the takarazuka. Without Sakura Taisen I wouldnt have ever really taken a notice of that real life theater at all.
Plus it has that wonderful 90s anime feel which is just perfect. It and and Geppy X are the two best titles that replicate the feel of playing an anime perfectly. Character design that doesn't just completely go full moe thankfully, and some of the best music you will ever find in gaming history.
Those glory days were amazing. Seeing one of the musicals live, the Sumire retirement one, was one of the highlights of my first year in Japan. An amazing show, only slightly harmed by the fact that Maya Okamoto wasn't there so the full teikokukagekidan was missing sadly, but such amazing fun and so full of great memories for me. And lots of crazy stories as well.
But I think you're right, if they were to bring it back, you would need to original team. Without it it wouldn't feel right. That production team was so perfect, and they created a masterpiece. 1-4 is all great. And yeah I also enjoy 4. Its just too bad that the dreamcast's quick death, plus most likely the retirement of Sumire's voice actor, most likely hastened the grand finale. It would've been so great to have gotten a grand finale on the level of 1-3.
I think what makes Sakura Taisen successful iis its bizarre theme. Sega and Red managed to incorporate Taisho era + Takarazuka Revue + Mecha + Dating Sim + Episodic structure like anime into this truly unique series, so unique that there is nothing similar to it. As you have mentioned, the games' quality is also very high that some of them are classics in the SRPG genre. IMO, Sakura Taisen 3 is one of the best games created by Japanese, so I hope that Sega revives the series or re-makes the first four games so that relatively young gamers can appreciate it.
Yes agreed. It took a little bit of everything and made something completely special. wrapped all together with that 90s anime goodness and you had perfection. Remakes of 1-4 would be awesome but I wonder if Sega would ever do it. They already remade Sakura Taisen 1 and I think 3 for Playstation 2 and Im not sure how big those were. Not to mention the psp version of 1 and 2. Still if its possible, I would certainly ask for them so that newer gamers can check them out. Not to mention the fact western gamers still have not gotten to play them at all in english.
That also reminds me, my one gaming regret is I have never played Sakura Taisen V. At the time I didn't have the funds to get it at its original release and I always keep putting off getting it used whenever i see it, and its super cheap too always. Maybe Its cause the character designs bug me or something. Either way I need to fix that and finally play it.
