We first mentioned back in May that the classic Dreamcast JRPG Grandia II was headed to Steam in the form of an HD remaster. If that gave you the urge to revisit the original game on your Dreamcast, or you simply have an old save and don’t feel like starting over again, there’s actually a solution for that.
The Dreamcast may be old enough to get a driver’s license, but that doesn’t mean your saves are left in the dust. The remastered version of Grandia II — available on Steam as of today — is actually able to use saves from the Dreamcast version of the game, Kotaku reports. You can even transfer them back to the Dreamcast’s VMU and use them with the original game.
“The VMS file format is the same file format used by the original Dreamcast console. Because the Anniversary Edition is based off the original Dreamcast code, we also write and read to the VMS save file format within the data/save file directory,” a representative from publisher GungHo Online Entertainment told Kotaku. “This allows the player to import their own VMS save files that can be downloaded from any Dreamcast community website like Blue Swirl.”
“Also, since Dreamcast emulators also use VMS save files, they can also bring any of their personal save files over from their emulator and continue on within the Anniversary Edition,” the representative continued. “Any Grandia II VMS save file will work. This allows the Grandia community to share VMS save files easily between their friends & fanbase regardless of platform.”
Of course, in order to use old saves with the new versions of the game, you’ll first need to get them on to your PC. Luckily, this can be done without much trouble, assuming you still have your old Dreamcast around. Tutorials explaining the process can easily be found online.
In order to celebrate the return of Grandia II, the game is currently available for $15 on Steam and GOG. After the end of the month, the price will rise to $20. The game supports Steam Achievements and Cloud Saves, and features built-in gamepad support.
