Random thoughts on whatever JRPG you're currently playing?

[flyingjohn]

Started the original Sega Master System Phantasy Star again and is it just me or is this more brutal than the PS2 remake? I have died numerous times already which is hilarious, some random battles are pretty much an automatic loss on sight with Alis less than Level 3 and I am finding enemies don't exactly pass on much gold per encounter (and from memory I need to buy the Secrets from the Port shop so I can at least get another party member?). This is not say I am not enjoying it, just that I may need to take it a bit slower than first thought....

Oh the gold bullshit in this game.You are gonna need gold for a lot more plot related stuff later in the game.In fact i think that by the end of the game i spent 30+ percent my gold just on buying stuff to progress further.
I would recommend playing any version with x2 gold and maybe x2 experience to save you the hassle.

As for dying early,well that is the game.Farm until you get your first weapon upgrade so you can farm more quickly for the money needed to progress.Armor in the game is nice but thanks to random damage happening frequently you can't count on it to survive.And turn order is completely random as well for no good reason.
And only farm areas close to your startling town and around the fence until you are get the heal and then you are pretty much set.

 

[Thac0]

Started the original Sega Master System Phantasy Star again and is it just me or is this more brutal than the PS2 remake? I have died numerous times already which is hilarious, some random battles are pretty much an automatic loss on sight with Alis less than Level 3 and I am finding enemies don't exactly pass on much gold per encounter (and from memory I need to buy the Secrets from the Port shop so I can at least get another party member?). This is not say I am not enjoying it, just that I may need to take it a bit slower than first thought....

The original difficulty of Phantasy Star gets a lot easier when you quire your second party member. When you are only Alis the game is rough, since spending a turn to heal usually means your enemies can take a good chunk of the recovered hp away in a few swings.

Spoiler

For the first party member, the cat, you need to fly to the desert planet and exchange your starting item for him there.

 

[Puukko]

Damn, I didn't expect Xenosaga to provide me the longest boss fight I've ever done. There's an optional boss that I wouldn't have known about had I not checked the walkthrough just as I was in the area where she first becomes available. The boss has 7777 hp which is roughly equal to the total Tiamat had, but the reason she takes so long is that only Jr could deal any sort of meaningful damage (MOMO, my weakest character was mandatory) and the boss hates men so she counters with a drain after every attack by a male character that drains current HP-1 which means I have to get Jr to 1 HP to offset the drain to 0 and then deal roughly 200-300 damage per round since the boss has fairly high evasion and defense. If the boss plays nice, I can quite easily keep up with the damage coming in since I have two support characters, but if Jr takes a hit and dies, I have to do the whole setup again. On top of that, the boss would rarely do the drain on a random member which meant 400-500 HP drained, which would take two turns from Jr to make up for... you get the idea. Took 1h36m for the winning attempt.

The rewards were a tech and weapon for MOMO, which is eh, but I suspect I will still have use for her at some point.

 

[Ysaye]

Started the original Sega Master System Phantasy Star again and is it just me or is this more brutal than the PS2 remake? I have died numerous times already which is hilarious, some random battles are pretty much an automatic loss on sight with Alis less than Level 3 and I am finding enemies don't exactly pass on much gold per encounter (and from memory I need to buy the Secrets from the Port shop so I can at least get another party member?). This is not say I am not enjoying it, just that I may need to take it a bit slower than first thought....

The original difficulty of Phantasy Star gets a lot easier when you quire your second party member. When you are only Alis the game is rough, since spending a turn to heal usually means your enemies can take a good chunk of the recovered hp away in a few swings.

Spoiler

For the first party member, the cat, you need to fly to the desert planet and exchange your starting item for him there.

Yes once I got Myau I then easily got Odin and things are now a lot easier.

 

[InD_ImaginE]

I give up trying to get to the last stage of SRW 3 Complete BOX under 350 turn. The game is already long and this 2nd playthrough is also a bust. Heck without severe cheesing I don't even think it is remotely possible to do so. Even when I pool my upgrades money on the stronger units (Getters, Mazinkaiser, Daitran 3, Combatler V, V-gundam) you barely have enough energy to kill enemies just by way of nuking them with stronger attacks due to energy limits. Restoring energy in White Base doesn't work because it reduces Ki which unlocks your nuke to begin with. And even with pooling upgrade point to Response (which governs Robot Accuracy and Evasion in addition to Pilot Stats) the Super Robot accuracy still sucks balls and misses like 50% of the time. Maybe if I save state scum every single action of the Super Robot to hit (and they evaded enemies attacks) I might be able to get close to under 350 turns but at that point might as well do memory hack edit because it is cheating all the same. Or maybe you need to abuse ZZ Gundam Mega Buster and abuse the ai to line up just fine every turn or something like. Regardless probably not worth it trying to do this manually.

I'll just memory cheat edit and fight the final true boss just to know how strong he is and get the ending then move SRW EX or continueing SRW R on GBA as a change of pace.

 

[jungl]

quit playing wizardry empire princess not a fan of the game mechanics. Summoner trivializes shit practically forced to use him. Trading system takes forever. Races system is really dumb. Had a half elf thief who I used refused to swap till late in the castle where she died of disease. Hilarious she only had 56 hp at level 13 and died on every trap practically or someone sneezed on her. Mondot questions are really gay. Original and gothic are a lot better games.

Playing wild arms F now. I played the original lot when I was a kid though never beat it. Idk which is superior heard the bad thing about F that there is no equipment to equip.

 

[Lincolnberry]

Been playing the original Ni No Kuni.

I have to say, I'm not altogether sure how much I'm enjoying it, but I am enthralled. I'm at what I think is the final dungeon (scary castle) and probably around 40 hours in.

The first few hours were verryyy rough with incredibly slow pacing, and the game never speeds up all that much. But the art, the music, the different flavor on the monster collecting genre (albeit with some strange design decisions = why do my not-pokemon reset to level 1 with an upgrade?) come together to make an experience different than any other I've had.

Feels like I'm playing a high budget dragon quest crossed with Tales.

If you're curious about it as I was, I think I'd easily recommend giving it a couple of hours (ideally until you can catch your own monsters). Presentation is A+, ideas and execution unfortunately aren't quite as good but felt pretty unique to me and maybe that's why I'm sticking with it.

 

[oasis789]

So I played Drakengard 3.

Don't play this game.

 

[Thac0]

Been playing the original Ni No Kuni.

I have to say, I'm not altogether sure how much I'm enjoying it, but I am enthralled. I'm at what I think is the final dungeon (scary castle) and probably around 40 hours in.

The first few hours were verryyy rough with incredibly slow pacing, and the game never speeds up all that much. But the art, the music, the different flavor on the monster collecting genre (albeit with some strange design decisions = why do my not-pokemon reset to level 1 with an upgrade?) come together to make an experience different than any other I've had.

Feels like I'm playing a high budget dragon quest crossed with Tales.

If you're curious about it as I was, I think I'd easily recommend giving it a couple of hours (ideally until you can catch your own monsters). Presentation is A+, ideas and execution unfortunately aren't quite as good but felt pretty unique to me and maybe that's why I'm sticking with it.

I was always hoping for a new Ghibli cutscene in that one. Those were by far the biggest source of charm, but they were awfully scarce.

I felt the combat got much better as soon as you get the second party member. But my enjoyment took a dive as soon as I got the third, because he is a cunt and looks like a hobo.

 

[Dishonoredbr]

Just started playing The Worlds Ends with You , so far , really good game.
Combat is simple but fun , feels good to throw a car , slash a enemy while your partner is combing with you.

Music, is amazing. Best OST, there isn't a single bad song. The character design is Nomura/10. The character are enjoyable, with their own quirks (also it helps that everyone has a catch phase or something like Yo , zing , ''like'' , Zetaslow etc) and story is really interesting so far , there's ton of questions.
It's one the most stylish game i ever saw/played. Sometimes is kinda cringe but it's part of the humor.

 

[Puukko]

Xenosaga Episode I beat, going to move straight onto II. It was a rather typical 8/10 PS2 JRPG, decent customization, pretty good difficulty with occasional spikes to spice things up. Seven whole hours of cutscenes in a 40-45 hour game. I think my favorite aspect is the marriage of scifi with religious elements.

 

[HydrakeLogistix]

Been playing the original Ni No Kuni.

I have to say, I'm not altogether sure how much I'm enjoying it, but I am enthralled. I'm at what I think is the final dungeon (scary castle) and probably around 40 hours in.

The first few hours were verryyy rough with incredibly slow pacing, and the game never speeds up all that much. But the art, the music, the different flavor on the monster collecting genre (albeit with some strange design decisions = why do my not-pokemon reset to level 1 with an upgrade?) come together to make an experience different than any other I've had.

Feels like I'm playing a high budget dragon quest crossed with Tales.

If you're curious about it as I was, I think I'd easily recommend giving it a couple of hours (ideally until you can catch your own monsters). Presentation is A+, ideas and execution unfortunately aren't quite as good but felt pretty unique to me and maybe that's why I'm sticking with it.

Do you mean the DS version or the PC version? Really need to try out the DS version someday, at 512 mb its probably one of the biggest ds game cartridge.

 

[Lincolnberry]

I played the PC version thru steam. Played w a gamepad, absolutely no trouble whatsoever but can't speak to DS or M&K.

 

[cosmicray]

Been playing the original Ni No Kuni.

I have to say, I'm not altogether sure how much I'm enjoying it, but I am enthralled. I'm at what I think is the final dungeon (scary castle) and probably around 40 hours in.

Oh, I just realised that I'm talking about Wrath Of The white Witch. So it doesn't concern original DS game. But I'll leave it here.
One of the few JRPGs where I decided enough is enough. I was 20 hours in, I think. The whole dynamic that small town contained same characters from the fantasy world pissed me off. I know gameplay is paramount, but you need to have some purpose to continue on. And the whole big epic adventure is JRPGs' big appeal for me.
Although, come to think of it, it was the last "classic" JRPG I played. Persona 5 and Nier: Automata are somewhat different. So maybe I was simply tired of the formula.

 

[Lincolnberry]

I should clarify, I did indeed play the Wrath of the White Witch version thru steam. Can't speak to the earlier DS version of the same game.

 

[Vorark]

Been playing Tales of Berseria thanks to a very generous sale on PSN, of all places. Not far into the game but I've been wondering if it's inspired by or is some sort of homage to Berserk. The prologue is suggestive of a certain world changing event that happens in the manga, the protagonist shares similarities with Guts, group gets stuck in a boat and so on. Regardless, the story has been entertaining and Velvet's machiavellian outlook on the events and pragmatism is refreshing compared to ye auld jrpg protagonist archetype. Out of the support cast, Magilou steals the show whenever she interjects, her antics are priceless.

Of note is the excellent English VA, much superior to the Japanese audio with its oneeeee-chans, high pitched voices and recurrent verbal tics.

Aside from the mediocre action gameplay that barely improved since the Tales of the Abyss days and uninspired dungeons, it's been an enjoyable ride.

Just started playing The Worlds Ends with You , so far , really good game.
Combat is simple but fun , feels good to throw a car , slash a enemy while your partner is combing with you.

Music, is amazing. Best OST, there isn't a single bad song. The character design is Nomura/10. The character are enjoyable, with their own quirks (also it helps that everyone has a catch phase or something like Yo , zing , ''like'' , Zetaslow etc) and story is really interesting so far , there's ton of questions.
It's one the most stylish game i ever saw/played. Sometimes is kinda cringe but it's part of the humor.

It's a fantastic game, even more so if you consider its 2007 NDS origins. Don't forget to play the "Another Day" episode after beating the main campaign.

 

[Dishonoredbr]

It's a fantastic game, even more so if you consider its 2007 NDS origins. Don't forget to play the "Another Day" episode after beating the main campaign.

It's another day avaiable for the android version ? I didn't want to pay $40 on the switch version because i heard the controls are not the best.

And totally. There's literaly no game with such gameplay. Again , it's unique and artstyle feels like a i'm playing a Manga/Comic.

 

[Vorark]

It's another day avaiable for the android version ? I didn't want to pay $40 on the switch version because i heard the controls are not the best.

Yes, it's present in all versions and will be available once you beat the main storyline. Don't skip it!

 

[Dishonoredbr]

Just finished The Worlds Ends with you...
Holy shit. What a game.
The Ending is amazing even if bit confusing.
It's a game with powerful theme and one few medias that made feels really connected with everything. 11/10 Game. I would recommend everyone to give a try at least once. I spend all my day beating this game because i was so hooked on it that feels like i kinda goes against the point of entire game lol. But Oh well.

Oh the final boss is ass tho. I had to spam velocity pin and heal pin to win.

Spoiler

 

[GhostCow]

I tried to play the world ends with you when it first came out on DS but I just couldn't play two characters at once. I blame it on the fact that I only have one eye. Or maybe I'm just retarded. Either way I hear the mobile version is easier so maybe I'll give it a shot some day

 

[Dishonoredbr]

I tried to play the world ends with you when it first came out on DS but I just couldn't play two characters at once. I blame it on the fact that I only have one eye. Or maybe I'm just retarded. Either way I hear the mobile version is easier so maybe I'll give it a shot some day

Oh the mobile version is very acessiable. There's easy mode if you just want to see the story and all.
Also i really love the updated graphics. It looks youre playing a comic/manga.

 

[MpuMngwana]

Finished the neutral route of SMT: Strange Journey. It was great, and felt strangely hopeful and optimistic for such an infamously dark series. It's all gloom and doom, than suddenly it goes full Pacific Rim "fuck you demons, we're nuking hell". Not that I'm complaining, "humans are awesome" (or, at the very least, "humans have the potential to be awesome", while also acknowledging the potential to screw up monumentally) is a great message, and one which is unfortunately pretty rare.

The difficulty curve is one of the best I've seen in an RPG. It starts fairly simple, both in terms of combat/bosses and dungeon layout, but it keeps ramping up throughout the whole game; I'm pretty sure I've found every major boss tougher than the last.

Spoiler

Mem Aleph was a bitch. First time I encountered her she slaughtered me effortlessly. It took a bit of grinding and fusing, and a whole lot of mitama abuse, to finally prevail, and even then it took like three tries. I also sold most of my inventory to afford as many healing items as possible. The MVP was definitely Thor, hitting quite hard with Chargeortal Jihad, and keeping the party buffed up with Luster Candy. Lakshmi provided support with Salvation and Invitation, while debuffing with Debilitate, and Kama didn't do much except protect the party with Tetraja and using Bufudyne for pitiful damage. I also filled up the slots I could spare with reflect/absorb skills, to cover up for some of the weaknesses. It worked alright at the end, but it took quite a bit of preparation.

I'm not sure how I would compare it to Nocturne (the other standard SMT I've completed) - SJ had better story, dungeon layout and difficulty curve, while I prefer the setting, music, visuals, atmosphere, and fusion mechanics of Nocturne. Combat I'd rate about the same. I'll probably give a slight edge to Nocturne, since I'm a sucker for atmosphere, but both are great games.

-------------------------------------------------------

I'm also about halfway through Valkyria Chronicles 4. It's pretty much the same thing as VC1, which is fine by me, as I enjoyed that game. There is good mission variety, the protagonists (aside from the main character) are alright. Unfortunately, the AI is braindead (it seems to be unable to account for interception fire), and the villains are, with one exception, underwhelming. Still, the game's pretty fun.

 

[Puukko]

I assume this wasn't Redux? Redux has additional difficulty options as well as the optional "OP" commands that allow you to tweak it to your liking. I really liked the difficulty provided by expert.

I believe I beat Mem Aleph on my first attempt as I got very lucky with her MA missing four times in a row. Shekinah was a notch more difficult and possibly the most memorable SMT boss for me.

Spoiler

 

[MpuMngwana]

I assume this wasn't Redux?

Yeah, I played the original. If and when I decide to replay it I'll probably go for Redux, but from what I've gathered before playing the new art style is divisive and the difficulty is lower (it does have that expert mode but I'm usually not a fan of how harder difficulties are handled in jRPGs, I prefer a reasonably challenging normal difficulty).

 

[Puukko]

The new art is not bad by any means, just more generic and a lot of people (myself) included are diehard Kaneko fans. As far as I know, if you play on normal without any of the new commands, it should be 1:1 to vanilla normal.