Star Ocean (スターオーシャン Sutā Ōshan) is an action role-playing video game developed by tri-Ace and published by Enix for the Super Famicom. The first game in the Star Ocean series, it was released only in Japan in July 1996, and was the first game developed by tri-Ace, consisting of staff that had previously left Wolf Team due to being unhappy with the development process for Tales of Phantasia with Namco in 1995. The game required a special compression chip in its cartridge to compress and store all of the game's data due to possessing graphics that pushed the limits of the aging Super Famicom. Additionally, the game had voice acting for the game's intro and voice clips that played during the game's battle gameplay, a rarity for games on the system.
The story involves three friends who, while searching for the cure to a new disease, come into contact with a space-faring federation that is locked in a war with another galactic power. Using advanced technologies and time travel, the group attempts to uncover the cause of the war and to find a cure for their planet. The Super Famicom version was never released outside Japan due to Enix closing its American branch shortly before the game was finished, as well as Nintendo's focus on supporting the then-upcoming Nintendo 64 video game console. However, the game was later remade by Tose for the PlayStation Portable under the title Star Ocean: First Departure, and released in English-speaking regions in North America, Europe, and Australia in October 2008. The game was the start of the entire Star Ocean series, featuring five games, two remakes, and a manga comic.
