MS Saga: A New Dawn is an RPG based on the Gundam anime series. A gadget called the “G System” is constructed far in the future, allowing energy and materials to be converted into items. The Great Fall occurs shortly after civilization is practically destroyed by the machine. The game’s story begins after The Great Fall, when what remains of humanity has already started to reconstruct and consolidate a new society. One day, a mysterious mobile suit appears and launches a series of random attacks on numerous places, including an orphanage, which is devastated, leaving only Tristan and Fritz as survivors. These two survivors will then set out on a journey to exact revenge for the destruction of their orphanage, only to discover that the mobile suit responsible for the collapse is part of a larger scheme to take over the world.
You control Tristan and Fritz at the start of the game; as the story unfolds, other individuals will join and depart your team. Each member of your team has a mobile suit that they use to fight in battles and explore the various regions of the planet. You’ll also come across towns where the protagonists can leave their mobile suits; in the cities, you can talk to people, visit stores to buy stuff, relax to recoup health and save the game, and learn about new missions to carry on. In most areas, except towns (such as exploring the lands or dungeons), you will encounter battles in both random and set locations; glowing crystals indicate the brutal location battles on the screen and are usually strategically located, blocking an area you need to get to or advance the story.
The battle system in the game is turn-based. Various attacks are accessible; hand-to-hand attacks are more powerful but leave you vulnerable to counterstrikes, whereas ranged attacks are safer but cause less damage. Each member of your party is allocated a limited quantity of energy to use for attacks on each turn; different attacks require different amounts of energy. Lower-powered assaults often consume less energy than the turn’s energy allotment, allowing you to conserve the unused power for a more powerful attack in a later turn. Each character also has a limited number of technique points that can be spent on additional skills such as healing, armor enhancement, special attacks, etc. Up to three characters can be in the front line at any given time and take action in fights; any more characters remain in the rear bar and cannot attack; however, you can shuffle them around on each round. Experience points are acquired as you win battles, allowing your characters to level up and become more powerful.
