The story follows seven characters as they explore mysteries connected to the Seven Wonders, artifacts left by an ancient civilization said to be capable of triggering a golden age.

Several staff members returned from earlier entries including series creator Akitoshi Kawazu as producer and director, designer Kyouji Koizumi, and composer Masashi Hamauzu.

The characters were designed by newcomer Yusuke Naora, with veteran artist Tomomi Kobayashi contributing promotional art.

In English reviews, the music was met with general praise, while its graphics and unorthodox gameplay saw mixed to negative reactions.

Unlimited Saga is a role-playing video game where players take on the role of seven different protagonists, playing through the narratives in a nonlinear style.

[5] Moving into a new part of the map can trigger an event such as a battle or trap, or hold an item the party can search for and retrieve.

Scattered across the world are the Seven Wonders, giant structures from a time called the "Golden Age" linked to an ancient battle against chaotic forces.

Kurt is a former noble knight who defies his family to find adventure and discover the truth behind a curse gauntlet he wears.

[15][14] In Ruby's scenario, the party includes the now-immortal Iskander, who became an omnipotent being through learning the Creator's secrets from Arcanian survivors.

[14] A key event in the game is the Festival, a celebration in memory of Iskander and his immediate successors Lord Dixon and his wife Regina.

[13] Each scenario reveals the antagonists to have been tempted, directly manipulated by, or be intent on using the manifested Chaos, which the chosen protagonist defeats and banishes once again.

Series creator Akitoshi Kawazu produced and directed, Kyouji Koizumi returned as battle designer from the Romancing SaGa games, and recurring staff member Jyunichi Shinomiya acted as lead writer.

After completing his work there, Naora was considering leaving Square and going overseas to study art to keep up with other artists coming into the industry, but was unable to for unspecified reasons.

[23] Regular series artist Tomomi Kobayashi created character art for the game based on Naora's design.

[18] The style of the opening movie, which featured the lead characters depicted using cel-shaded graphics like a "moving watercolor", was suggested by Naora.

[26] The use of Adobe tools managed to cut down on production time for the visuals and opening, as the layers and effect filters made previously labour-intensive aspects of animation easy.

[18] When designing Unlimited Saga, Kawazu wanted to go back to the mechanical roots of the early portable titles, deciding to create a game that focused almost entirely on its battle system.

[23] The board game-like gameplay and progression was intended by Kawazu as an evolution of his work on Wild Card, a role-playing game for the WonderSwan.

[27] The basic narrative structure of seven major threats facing the world was created by Kawazu early in production, with the finer details being included later.

Live recording of ensembles of tracks such as "Feel Uneasy About the Wonders" and "Battle Theme IV" pitted solo instruments against one another to create what Hamauzu considered a Latin sound.

[32] Due to tensions between the United States and Iraq at the time and the consequent risks of a terrorist attack, the campaign was cancelled.

[36][37] Unlimited SaGa was Square Enix's first release in South Korea, published on June 19, 2003, by the local branch of Electronic Arts.

Hamauzu did not have Pak imitate or emulate the original song, but worked with her to adapt it into Korean, changing its tone and allowing her to sing at a comfortable pitch.

[43] A full guidebook containing gameplay tips and staff interviews, Unlimited: Saga - Book of Disassembly, was released by Studio BentStuff on March 28.

[49] To promote Unlimited Saga in North America, Square Enix held the "Hall of Valor" contest beginning on the game's release date and ending on July 27.

[51][52][53] Unlimited Saga Collector's Edition was released in Europe and included a bonus DVD titled Eternal Calm Final Fantasy X-2: Prologue.

[62] Christian Nutt of GameSpy was extremely negative about the game, calling it one of the worst RPGs he had played in many years, faulting almost every element of the title.

[65] Nich Maragos, writing for GMR, felt that the game had promise, but was undermined by poor execution on several of its mechanics and concepts.

[66] Prior to its release, Unlimited Saga was recognized by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association in its Game Awards Future category at the organization's annual event.

[75] In 2012, 1Up.com would include Unlimited Saga on its list of "Underwhelming RPGs with Overwhelming Soundtracks", with writer Bob Mackey calling it "a shame" that the music was likely neglected due to the game's divisive mechanics.