Random thoughts on whatever JRPG you're currently playing?

[AdamReith]

Finished up with Trails in the Sky Second Chapter. Overall I found it a very strange beast, listening to some guitar wailing in the credits music right now.

There's definitely enough good in there to make it worth playing, not really like anything else I've played in terms of story telling style.

I do find the generic environments and monsters a bit of a shame though. I think it's kind of cool how much they reuse everything in the story but the areas themselves could have been a bit more compelling. You do get the sense that there is quite a nice formula at work though and it was a pretty consistently satisfying journey.

The themes actually got quite dark and interesting but honestly there wasn't much depth to them or any character growth to speak of sadly. If you didn't like somebody in FC you won't learn to love them in SC. They're both the same game really.

Will definitely be a while before I return the trails series but I definitely finish this game with a higher esteem for it.

 

[Blaza]

Playing through Bravely Default 2, probably about 1/3rd into the game I think.

It's pretty fun, though I do find some mechanics like Counter bullshit. Counter as a concept I'm fine with, but my issue is sometimes bosses have multiple counters they will occasionally switch between with no indication of which one they are on. I think it is based on damage but I'm not entirely sure, but it leads to essentially doing hit confirms. "Ok lets do a weak magic spell to see if they are in Magic counter mode. If yes then hit with magic once or twice then hit confirm with a weak physical attack unless you want to get countered with an AOE that does half your party's hp or entirely one shots another"

Grinding is so-so, I haven't done a lot of it (may be why I get one shot by counters..) and there is a system to help out where you can have a ship explore islands while the Switch is in sleep mode. This yields items that give exp and job exp to help with the leveling grind alongside some stat boosting items. I find myself starting a new exploration before I go to sleep, then grabbing the items and starting another before logging into work.

The weight system is also interesting, makes you have to make some choices because when you're overweight your stats are affected. So you run into some situations where you need to determine if you really want to have a specific weapon or armor, as you'll have to cut down weight elsewhere.

Story is serviceable. It gets fairly dark occasionally

Spoiler

like the character that killed a kid just to make the people who cared about her vulnerable enough to get brainwashed

which is welcome.

 

[newtmonkey]

Final Fantasy VIII (PSX)
My third attempt at this game (first when it was first released, next maybe 10 years ago) and it's finally clicked. The junction system is amazing; you can play the game as a regular JRPG, break it just by paying attention to how the junction system works... or break it beyond recognition if you do stuff like spend time with the card game, get the half and no encounter abilities early on, etc.

The story loses some steam the minute it goes from warring military schools to time compression, but it's not bad. I hated the characters the first two times I attempted to play this one, but this time around I really like some of them. Squall got a lot of hate back in the day for acting like a moody teenager, but who wouldn't act like that if you were stuck with buffoons like Zell, Selfie, and Rinoa? I remember being dumbfounded that Squall would turn down his hot teacher, but now it makes him a more interesting character—he really takes this whole thing seriously and seems to see it as a sign of weakness for her to be attracted to one of her students.

This game is the apex of Square pre-rendered backgrounds. They're very detailed without being busy; in contrast, the pre-rendered backgrounds in FFIX and Chrono Cross were sometimes too detailed for such a low resolution. However, the polygonal characters do not look good at all—they look like stick insects most of the time. I prefer the flat-shaded polygonal graphics of FFVII or the much more detailed textured models in FFIX and Chrono Cross.

One thing that is very annoying is switching between parties. I'm definitely not gonna draw enough magic for everyone, so each time this occurs I need to swap guardian forces, magic, abilities, etc. It's a pain especially in sections where you need to swap back and forth between parties frequently.

 

[Puukko]

I had a very fun and memorable time with FFVIII and a major part of that was that I played it modded (Ragnarok mod) which made way less easy to exploit and break and turned up the difficulty a lot, which was the right choice for me since I really don't care for games being easy to break. After 80+ hours I ended up not actually beating the final boss after a couple hours' worth of attempts but that was because I had just beat a lot of challenging bosses and Ultimecia was a very unengaging antagonist anyway. You could've assigned her motivations to some cosmic force or other non-character and it would've changed nothing.

 

[Sentinel]

Finished Final Fantasy VI (SNES) for the first time.

I liked the game up until the World of Ruin. Then I felt the game turned into an excuse to grind esper magic on characters to go confront Kefka.

I really hated the Esper system, and it made me gain a new appreciation for how FFIX dealt with the same concept - in that game, when you equip the equipment/esper, you can use the ability, and the ability points you gain go towards giving you that ability permanently. Instead, in FFVI, you have to grind ability points by fighting dozens of battles to even get access to the abilities. It's a very binary progression and I hated it.

The character balance is also shit. Cyan, Celes, Strago, Setzer, Mog, Shadow, Umaro, Locke fucking suck compared to Terra, Edgar, Sabin, Gogo & Relm. The required grinding to get magic and me being stubborn and giving the game a middle finger essentially meant that I went into the final dungeon with 1 underpowered as fuck party, 1 strong one, and 1 okayish. Judging by the bosses before Kefka, I was expecting to be destroyed, but Kefka didn't even last 5 minutes.

Characters and story didn't click for me. Wide as an ocean, deep as a puddle. They should have cut 70% of the cast, it would've solved almost every issue in the game.

Meh, 5/10.

 

[newtmonkey]

TheSentinel
I actually really liked the World of Ruin in FF6, it began to feel sort of like a nonlinear exploration RPG than a story-based one. I had a lot of fun searching for all the dragons, exploring to find optional story stuff, etc.

The characters are indeed completely unbalanced. I can't see anyone not using Terra, Edgar, and Sabin whenever they get the chance, unless they are purposefully handicapping themselves or they really like the sprites of the other characters.

I didn't feel like you really needed to grind at all in the game, though that might depend on how much of the World of Ruin you skip. I didn't go out of my way to grind battles to earn APs, but I did thoroughly explore the WoR. Kefka indeed goes down easily, he's more of a spectacle boss than a true hard last boss; like you said, bosses before him are much more difficult.

The game definitely has its flaws but I'd still rate it within the top 5 of FF games.

 

[Deflowerer]

I had a very fun and memorable time with FFVIII and a major part of that was that I played it modded (Ragnarok mod) which made way less easy to exploit and break and turned up the difficulty a lot, which was the right choice for me since I really don't care for games being easy to break. After 80+ hours I ended up not actually beating the final boss after a couple hours' worth of attempts but that was because I had just beat a lot of challenging bosses and Ultimecia was a very unengaging antagonist anyway. You could've assigned her motivations to some cosmic force or other non-character and it would've changed nothing.

Did you play the normal Ragnarok or the Lionheart difficulty of that mod? Been meaning to check it out, just wasn't sure if going with Lionheart from the get go is fine enough (and not autistic as I've heard Requiem being).

Also, what is the best difficulty mod for FFVII these days?

 

[Puukko]

I had a very fun and memorable time with FFVIII and a major part of that was that I played it modded (Ragnarok mod) which made way less easy to exploit and break and turned up the difficulty a lot, which was the right choice for me since I really don't care for games being easy to break. After 80+ hours I ended up not actually beating the final boss after a couple hours' worth of attempts but that was because I had just beat a lot of challenging bosses and Ultimecia was a very unengaging antagonist anyway. You could've assigned her motivations to some cosmic force or other non-character and it would've changed nothing.

Did you play the normal Ragnarok or the Lionheart difficulty of that mod? Been meaning to check it out, just wasn't sure if going with Lionheart from the get go is fine enough (and not autistic as I've heard Requiem being).

Also, what is the best difficulty mod for FFVII these days?

I used base Ragnarok and found it to be very much adequate but this was my first time playing the game. I remember comments asking for an ACTUALLY difficult version of the mod. I'd rank it about the same as Nocturne Hardtype.

 

[Puukko]

I started Maken X and man, there's a lot to unpack here after just the first hour. This is the Dreamcast first person action slasher by Atlus that later got remade for the PS2. The main appeal of this game these days would be that Shoji Meguro made the soundtrack while Kazuma Kaneko made a ton of his most outlandish designs for the game:



This game is jank central right from the start. You'll be treated to a cutscene combining a lot GITS style scifi tropes with C tier 90s voice acting. This game could make for great streaming with friends solely for the quality of its voice work, to get reactions out of people. The delivery is hammy, the lines are silly and intonation is all over the place. Funnily, the PS2 version opted for original JP voices.

The combat is simple and most of the time you'll be fighting the controls since all movement happens with one thumbstick, essentially using tank controls, but you also backpedal to parry. You lock on to an enemy, jump over them and hit them in the back for a critical. I couldn't tell you what all these pickups do either. The levels are fairly short, enough so that you don't get checkpoints, and I assume the idea is that you will eventually have enough brainjacked characters to choose from for different playstyles.

That's not to say I'm not having fun. I'm certainly intrigued to continue even if I couldn't recommend this game based on early impressions.

 

[spekkio]

Sup, BROs.

Since I'm currently halfway through Banner of the Maid (great for every Fire Emblem / Advance Wars fan, but with some serious flaws), I somehow got interested in grabbing artworks for this game. Nut sure why...

Anyway, after some unsuccessful googlan, I've decided to DIY, since the game uses Unity engine, and extractors for diso shitto are aplenty.

What can I say except - greato succeso!

Artworks used in the Gallery are 1024x2048 png textures with transparent backgrounds, so they look gorgeous. Some examples resized to 50%:

SIS Bonaparte:

Everyone's favorite artillery officer:

Ze Evil German:

Citizen Capet:

Bonus for the ladies trannies - Mr Murat:

You can find 40 artworks in the file + texture with headshots, which can be used to create avatars:

Originals are 179x159, and BRO Nostaljaded already uploaded resized ones to the 'Dex last Thursday.

Hot bitches are one thing, but "mission backgrounds" in this game are even more glorious:

Stuff & thi(n)gs:

https://www.mediafire.com/file/0gctg8q2gkaep4s/Banner+of+the+Maid+-+Character+Textures.rar/file

 

[Cromwell]

I want to start last remnant since its cheap right now. I have read you could potentially fuck yourself by grinding to much but thats the same that was said about saga and if I remember correctly that wasnt true? So is there anything I should know before I start to not fuck myself over and not being able to finish the game properly?

 

[Hyperion]

That's for the x360 version. The PC, and remastered versions don't allow for that to happen.

 

[Fluent]

I want to start last remnant since its cheap right now. I have read you could potentially fuck yourself by grinding to much but thats the same that was said about saga and if I remember correctly that wasnt true? So is there anything I should know before I start to not fuck myself over and not being able to finish the game properly?

Last Remnant is great! I played the original on 360 and the remastered version on Android (yes, the full game is on Android ). Anyway, as a newb it took me some time to learn how to properly do larger scale battles. Make sure u use the minimap effectively as to not get yourself attacking halfway across the battlefield and getting flanked. Attack units close to you and take them out early so you have less to worry about. Also, when someone asks for an item to use, give it to them. It's a great, great game, very detailed systems and a ton of customizability. Cool story, too. But the gameplay really shines here, with tons of secrets to find and optional bosses to slay. Hope u have fun! <3

 

[Cromwell]

with tons of secrets to find and optional bosses to slay.

is the game in the "you need to explore" or rather in the japanese "without a guide to know when the stars are correctly aligned and when you need to press x twice and then dance your name at the exact spot you are fucked" category?

 

[Reinhardt]

tons of secrets to find and optional bosses to slay

Half of the secrets to find is optional bosses who don't spawn for 50 runs through location.

 

[Fluent]

is the game in the "you need to explore" or rather in the japanese "without a guide to know when the stars are correctly aligned and when you need to press x twice and then dance your name at the exact spot you are fucked" category?

mostly u just have to pay attention. all the optional bosses as far as i know are listed at the respective guild (although u may run across one earlier than u accepting the quest for it, so you can complete the quest possibly if u defeat the monster early). The one issue is, they tell u where the optional bosses are but u do have to run through areas sometimes many times until they spawn. U can usually run right to the spot and avoid the monsters since it's a real-time "you see the monster on the map and can avoid it" type system. If the monster doesn't spawn, come back again and try. That's it. U can discover the other intricate systems on your own. Good luck! <3

 

[Nostaljaded]

Per spekkio's post, Banner of the Maid's artwork & even game's UI are very well-done.


Re: 'My-Turn-then-Your-Turn' SRPG Game Mechanics
Been more than a while since I'm tired of 'my-full-turn-then-your-full-turn' for >4 playable units tactical/SRPG gameplay, aka Fire Emblem style.
Dropped Banner of the Maid at Chapter 9; the worst offender by far is the Super Robot Wars series, will usually dropped by Chapter 4/5.

This 'I have to gangbang before being gangbang' large-group tactical turn-based game mechanic also has its limits with:
- Enemy group size/composition/placement
- Player's aggro approach
(I assume readers do know what I'm referring to if they have played a few of these games before.)


What other developers have done (which I very much prefer):
- initiative/speed based turn order, e.g. Dungeon Rats, Rance IX
- time-based actions with delays/prep-time/rest-time, e.g. Trails series (Sky & Crossbell series for square grids, Cold Steel series for gridless), Utawarerumono series [more apparent with 'timed combos' disabled]


Hopefully those veteran developers that (stubbornly?) stick to 'My-Turn-then-Your-Turn/gangbang' large-group tactical mechanic for so many released SRPGs can at least adopt/experiment with the above-mentioned approaches in their future SRPGs.
I'm looking at you: Intelligent Systems, Eushully & Heluo Studio

 

[spekkio]

^
Try Vandal Hearts 2 on PSX if you want a different system in your japtactical (simultaneous turns). Der Langrisser for Snes (and newshit remake) uses "classic" turn formula, but other systems (commander+units, promotion tree, non-linearity) make it a different beast than FFT/Tactics Ogre clones or Fire Emblem clones. Same with Valkyria Chronicles series (AP system - you can use one unit multiple times per turn).

 

[Endemic]

What other developers have done (which I very much prefer):
- initiative/speed based turn order, e.g. Dungeon Rats, Rance IX
- time-based actions with delays/prep-time/rest-time, e.g. Trails series (Sky & Crossbell series for square grids, Cold Steel series for gridless), Utawarerumono series [more apparent with 'timed combos' disabled]

See my signature. Another game using a similar system is FEDA, but I haven't played much of it. Shining Force uses alternating turns but the rules are a bit different (based on a speed stat IIRC).

 

[Abu Antar]

God Wars: Future Past is based on character speed. It isn't my turn/your turn.

 

[Gamezor]

I finished 13 Sentinels a few weeks ago. I enjoyed a lot, especially because of the gorgeous art. Gorgeous art goes a really long way with me. I liked the story, although it maybe was one twist too many for me by the end. The girls are cute. I felt like the story might actually have been more effective with a more traditional narrative structure than the sometimes hard to follow character and time jumping story. But overall, loved the story, the characters, and the art in the VN segments.

I'm not totally sure how good the gameplay was because I put that shit on easy once I realized that you get more points to unlock story stuff if you get the best score on every combat encounter, and I didn't want to have to replay any of them to get S+. This was probably a mistake by me, because it made the combat bits trivial and boring. The extra points don't actually buy you anything interesting in the story. So it's possible the gameplay is fun on normal or hard, where this is some actual risk of failure, but maybe not. I kind of doubt that it's anything amazing at any level. But even if you do what I did, it's worth playing just for the VN bits.

Started radiant historia: perfect chronology on 3ds. So far VA is not great but story is interesting and graphics are good enough. The combat system is something different than what I've played before, and at hard I'm finding a good level of tension and enjoying the combat and story. The girls are cute. I'm going to try to drip feed this so I don't get burned out, but so far so good about 5 hours into it.

 

[Nostaljaded]

Only played Vandal Hearts 1 till about mid-game then dropped due to high difficulty. Setting aside the simultaneous turn in VH2, I've the impression that VH1 is overall better than VH2?

Langrisser & its siblings have too many (generic) units in the 'classic' format for my liking.

Valkyria Chronicles series is pretty good at innovating turn-based combat, probably is their writing that lose my interest/repeatedly doing the real-time component.

Gungnir also comes to my mind for their 'not-classic/not-gangbang' combat.


God Wars IIRC, like Fell Seal: Arbiter's Mark, need to gain Job XP to unlock job classes/skills.
It's good for CRPGs players on its open character progression but my autistic nature would have the urge to make all main characters do this merry-go-round job hopping to unlock the skills/abilities firsthand before coming up with good job combinations to make a desired party composition. Just the thought of doing it = not fun/time chore (to me).

So in terms of character progression, I prefer the Fire Emblem simplicity of fixed starting class with 2-3 class upgrades routes or even no class upgrade at all.
If certain character/class is weak/boring, then will not field them in battle/just park them in a corner. Again my autist will try to have most characters, if not all, at around the similar levels.

If you don't believe

Rance Quest Magnum (Jap version, before existence of TADA mode) after losing interest in post-game
Top 64 characters by Lv

Unless it's not mentioned in Codex before/new upcoming game, I've probably tried most that were recommended by members on this site.

 

[CryptRat]

What other developers have done (which I very much prefer):
- initiative/speed based turn order, e.g. Dungeon Rats, Rance IX
- time-based actions with delays/prep-time/rest-time, e.g. Trails series (Sky & Crossbell series for square grids, Cold Steel series for gridless), Utawarerumono series [more apparent with 'timed combos' disabled]

Just play Voidspire Tactics, on top of that it's a great cRPG overall with very good active exploration additionally to the great combat and character systems.

 

[AdamReith]

Credits rolling on Thousand Arms. I really loved the sense of humour, pacing and art style in this game.

It all ended up feeling a little half finished however, the combat was just... Bizarre.

You only have one "active" fighter and the remaining two party members can only cast support magic.

So, in a game where the gimmick is raising intimacy levels with girls to unlock new abilities in the forge you are encouraged to just invest in a single character. a character you'll be only auto-attacking with outside of boss fights.

You could feel the love in the one, a nice play though if you don't mind hammering the action button for a couple of hours to get to the next story beat. Dating mini game was pretty fun despite there being very little incentive to actually engage with it.

 

[Vorark]

Been chugging through Persona 5 Royal lately, about to finish the first palace.

I gave up on vanilla P5 soon after the painter guy joined, couldn't stand the clunky sneak camera or that cat constantly telling me to go to bed, eating away my precious evening slot. Thankfully both issues were addressed and it's been smooth sailing. Too smooth, maybe.

Encounters are easy even on Hard; they already were on vanilla but changes to gameplay exacerbate the lack of difficulty. Ammo fully restocking after every fight is bonkers, there's no need to manage your resources adequately, just empty your guns on the enemy. Would have been better if ammunition was refilled only after a visit to a safe room and for a limited time.

Baton pass is another game breaker because being able to manipulate turn order should be its own reward, there was no need to buff every single character on the pass chain. If you ever played a SMT or Persona game before, then it's really easy to exploit the system and give enemies no fighting chance from the get go. Efficient yet boring. In truth, the only limitation imposed upon the player is how much SP the party has left and, if Persona 3 and 4 are anything to go by, it won't be a problem for long.

Overall, turn based gameplay flows really well and is a blast to play. People over at Atlus, however, either never balanced this re-release with those tweaks in mind or were too timid in their changes. Hard should have been renamed Normal+ because it offers no challenge whatsoever. Neither 3 or 4 were this easy right from the beginning on Hard.

Not much else to comment, I guess. Shorter loading times, sharper visuals, menus are still ridiculously stylish and characters tend to repeat plot points over and over. A grappling hook was added but its use is heavily scripted and seems to be there just to open new areas for exploration. Then there's the obligatory token new girl Atlus always add in these enhanced editions. Thought she would be more involved during the first story arc, what about being an athlete and all, but so far she barely appeared.