Memory is a funny thing, linking recollections of our past experiences inexorably to specific times, places, sounds and states of mind. Lost Sphear's narrative seems to understand this, weaving a tale about the connections each person and place forges with everything around it, and what's left behind when they're gone.

Unfortunately the game's design is not quite as astute.

Aiming squarely at gamers' nostalgia for mid-90s roleplaying games and hitting nothing but a vast white void, Lost Sphear is a fun game bogged down by a muddle of throwbacks and a cacophony of unoriginal, competing ideas.

As nostalgia for the 16-bit era of video games hits its zenith — with straight throwbacks like the SNES Classic alongside new 90s-inspired fare like Sonic Mania — Square Enix is hoping to recapture its youth (at least, the Square half of it) with role-playing games that echo the look, feel and sound of masterpieces like Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana and Final Fantasy VI.

In this respect Lost Sphear is successful. The modern graphics aren't as charming as the classic pixel art, but the music and narrative are very evocative of the era, and probably the game's strongest points.

Set in a world where objects, people and whole cities are mysteriously vanishing, the game follows Kanata — a young man who, of course, finds he has the power to restore these lost items by collecting memories — and a rag tag party of children, monsters and soldiers he collects along the way. Through forests, mountains and industrial cities they unravel a lunar mystery and save the world, hitting many beats along the way that warmed my heart with feelings very close to those provoked by SNES and PS1 favourites.

The turn-based combat that makes up a lot of the game takes its cues from Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger and Grandia, letting characters move around the screen on their turn to position themselves for maximum impact depending on their specific skills. It has its moments, and is great at keeping players engaged throughout instead of merely waiting and managing, but it gets messier as the game goes on. From the convoluted magic system and over-abundance of loot, to the wildly different character options and squandered mech transformations, there's simply too many ideas crammed into this 20-hour game.

For example, the magic system has you using found materials to forge items that give your spells special effects. Use it for long enough and that effect becomes permanent, allowing you to equip something else. It's a great idea taht allows for a lot of flexibility in battle, but as the list of characters, spells and items grows it becomes impossible to know if you're making smart decisions or wasting hours of your time. The weapon upgrade system and food-crafting system suffer the same fate, and all clang together uncomfortably.

Playing through Lost Sphear made me appreciate just how excellent many of the mid-90s roleplaying games produced by Square were, but not always for the right reasons. While occasionally it does all click together for moments that seem polished, charming or exciting, it's more often clumsy and unwieldy as it tries to emulate every beloved RPG at once. By contrast Chrono Trigger stands out for its grace and focus.

Of course you might argue that Lost Sphear is aiming for an impossible goal, as a small-scale RPG hoping to live up to a game that was a collaboration between some of the greatest game designers and artists in their field at the time, making what was then a cutting edge and high budget affair. But the truth is Chrono Trigger was fresh and followed its own course, and that was a big part of its success.

For all its reverent borrowing, the thing Lost Sphear lacks most is anything to call its own.

Lost Sphear is out now for Switch (reviewed), PC and PlayStation 4.