Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and Nintendogs, and completely selling out in some stores. The game sold enough copies to qualify for Sony's Ultimate Hits label, and was re-released in May 2006 at a budget price. As of January 2006, the game had sold 500,000 units; 450,000 were sold in Japan, and 50,000 in North America. Famitsu was generally positive, noting the battle system's unconventional mechanics compared to other RPGs and enjoying the remake's faith to the original. While Minstrel Song met with positive reviews in Japan, in the West it saw a mixed response. The game holds a score of 58 out of 100 on review aggregate website Metacritic based on 23 reviews. The gameplay met with a mixed response, with praise going to the world's open-ended nature and battle system, but faulting many design elements and battle mechanics. The reworked character designs were often questioned, with a few critics calling them unsettling or ugly. The music and voice acting divided opinion, with some critics enjoying it, and others faulting it as poor quality. Jane Pinckard 1Up.com praised the environments, but faulted many other elements from art to mechanics as poorly or confusingly designed, feeling it did little to improve on the mixed reputation of Unlimited Saga. The three reviewers for Electronic Gaming Monthly saw potential in its battle system and world design, but generally faulted it as a poorly-constructed RPG. Game Informers Joe Juba was highly critical, saying there were too many faults and unusual design choices to make the game worth playing. Andrew Reiner, in a second opinion, was still less positive and called the game "a measureless disaster". GamePro praised the art design, but faulted the soundtrack, and found the progression system and design confusing and difficult to enjoy. GameSpots Greg Mueller called Romancing SaGa "a role-playing game without any substance", faulting its lack of narrative and confusing mechanics. Meghan Sullivan of IGN said the game would appeal to fans of the series, but thought that its unorthodox style and design would likely put off many gamers. By contrast with many reviews, RPGFans Patrick Gann called it a refreshingly original RPG compared to the majority of titles on the market at the time. Reviewing the remaster, Chris Shive of Hardcore Gamer noted that several elements of its design once innovative now appeared dated, additionally noting some outdated features such as the fixed camera angle that had