Square Enix Dropped a Switch 2 Version of Star Ocean: The Second Story R and Nobody Told You

I was scrolling the eShop yesterday, looking for something to play while my coffee cooled, and there it was. Star Ocean: The Second Story R, Switch 2 edition. No announcement. No countdown. Just a listing at $49.99, sitting there like it had always been there.

Square Enix did the same thing with Octopath Traveler 1 & 2 earlier this week. Same price point. Same lack of upgrade pathway. Same save data that won't carry over.

Let me say that plainly so it lands: if you already own the Switch version of The Second Story R, you cannot pay a reduced fee to get the Switch 2 version. You cannot bring your save file with you. You must buy the full game again at full price, start over, and pretend the last however-many hours you spent in that world didn't happen.

This is a choice.

I'm not going to pretend I'm outraged. I've been playing games long enough to know that when Square Enix smells a new platform, they smell new money. But I am going to say that this feels different from the usual cross-gen nonsense. The Switch 2 version isn't a port. It's the same game with performance improvements and presumably some visual tweaks that take advantage of the new hardware. That's it. That's what you're paying $50 for a second time.

And here's where my brain goes: this reminds me of when Capcom released the HD remaster of Resident Evil 4 on Xbox 360 and PS3, and then later released the Ultimate HD Edition on PC with all the improvements baked in. But that was a one-time purchase. This is a double dip that asks you to leave your progress behind.

I think about the person who put 80 hours into The Second Story R on Switch. Who recruited every character, saw every ending, maxed out their crafting. That person is being told their save file is a relic of the old system. Start fresh or don't play.

Now, the game itself is excellent. The Second Story R is one of the best remakes Square has ever done. It takes the original PS1 game — which was already a cult classic with its skill system and branching paths — and updates the visuals to a gorgeous 2.5D style that feels like a moving painting. The writing is still charmingly weird. The music still slaps. If you've never played it, the Switch 2 version is probably the definitive way to experience it.

But who is this for?

It's for people who didn't buy the Switch version. That's the audience. New Switch 2 owners. People who skipped the original release. Maybe someone who played it on PS5 and wants a portable version that doesn't run like the original Switch version did in crowded areas.

It's not for the people who supported the game on Switch. And that stings, because those are the people who made the remake a success in the first place.

I'm not going to tell you not to buy it. If you want the best version of a great game and you don't own it yet, go ahead. But I am going to ask Square Enix a question they won't answer: why treat your most loyal customers like they're starting from zero?

The answer, of course, is money. But the cost is trust. And the weird thing is, this didn't have to be the story. A $10 upgrade fee and a save transfer tool, and this would have been a feel-good announcement. Instead, it's a reminder that the relationship between publisher and player is transactional, and Square Enix is comfortable keeping it that way.

I'll probably still buy it eventually. I'm weak. But I'll be thinking about that save file I left behind the whole time.