Sakura Taisen

Sakura Taisen (Sakura Wars) is a cross-genre tactical RPG developed by Red Company and Sega, with character designs by Kousuke Fujishima. Set in an alternate 1920s Taishō era Tokyo, you play as Ensign Ichiro Ogami, who leads the Imperial Combat Revue's Flower Division – young women who pilot steam-powered mecha called Koubu to fight demonic threats. By day, they perform as actresses; by night, they defend the capital. Gameplay combines adventure/dating sim segments with turn-based tactical battles. The LIPS (Live & Interactive Picture System) gives time-limited dialogue choices affecting character relationships and combat performance.

Sega Saturn

Sakura Taisen was released exclusively in Japan for the Saturn on September 27, 1996. The game sold out immediately, becoming a massive commercial success and launching a multimedia franchise. The Saturn version spans two CDs and was developed by Sega AM7 with Red Company and Nextech. Anime cutscenes were produced by TMS Entertainment, and music was composed by Kohei Tanaka. The game features full voice acting, including Chisa Yokoyama as Sakura Shinguji. Sega classified it as a "Dramatic Adventure" rather than an RPG, as it lacks experience points and exploration. Minigames include cooking borscht with Maria, playing hanafuda with Kohran, and cleaning the theater. The Saturn version was later ported to Dreamcast and PC but never received an official English release. For Saturn collectors and fans of Japanese gaming history, Sakura Taisen remains an essential, groundbreaking title that pioneered the fusion of dating sims and tactical RPGs.