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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 4, 2019 10:16:02 GMT
Just finished up the Sega Ages version of Phantasy Star. It was pretty neat to explore this corner of the JRPG landscape I'd ignored up until now. I'll have to try II, III and IV at some point.
Nothing amazing by today's standards, but I can see why people would have really liked it when it first came out. I'm sure glad I had that auto-mapping for the 1st person dungeons though.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 12, 2019 9:31:36 GMT
Finished up Octopath Traveler after grinding for the last area for a while. My opinions are mixed.
The presentation of the game is wonderful, from the great enemy sprites, to the great pop-up book feel, to the excellent soundtrack, there's a lot to love.
However, like many reviews might suggest, the similar beats presented in every chapter can make it a bit tedious, and it can get pretty grindy. The characters barely interact, and their stories don't intertwine until the end of the post-game content.
That said, I wouldn't spend 70+ hours with a game I didn't enjoy, and I definitely think the good outweighed the bad.
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stratogustav
Supreme Overlord
Warrior with Bandana
Posts: 7,647 
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Post by stratogustav on Jan 12, 2019 14:23:57 GMT
Finished up Octopath Traveler after grinding for the last area for a while. My opinions are mixed. The presentation of the game is wonderful, from the great enemy sprites, to the great pop-up book feel, to the excellent soundtrack, there's a lot to love. However, like many reviews might suggest, the similar beats presented in every chapter can make it a bit tedious, and it can get pretty grindy. The characters barely interact, and their stories don't intertwine until the end of the post-game content. That said, I wouldn't spend 70+ hours with a game I didn't enjoy, and I definitely think the good outweighed the bad. How does it compare with I'm Setsuna? |
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 12, 2019 23:00:21 GMT
I would say I liked it more than 'I Am Setsuna', but I did invest a lot more time in it.
Setsuna has a lovely score as well, and I do like its winter aesthetic. Its characters definitely interact with each other more.
I will say I liked Octopath's visual style more, and the score is definitely more varied. It also feels like a more rich and vibrant world. I could easily see setting other stories there.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 13, 2019 5:09:05 GMT
Finished the Secret of Mana remake on the PS4 tonight.
I really liked it. It was definitely much like the Adventure of Mana remake (of Final Fantasy Adventure) on the Vita. Pretty much a straight port with some new music and polygons instead of sprites. But, the remixed music was nice, the characters and world were colorful and expressive, etc. I replay Secret of Mana every few years anyway, so I didn't need them to re-invent the wheel.
The added dialogue scenes between the girl, the boy and the sprite when staying at the inns were nice, and it was cool to have the elementals, Watts, etc drop in as well. The character development in the original is pretty bare bones, but this all fit with my idea of the characters' personalities that I've had in my head for the last 25 years.
That said, one...very minor gripe.
I know a lot of folks were hoping Square would take the opportunity to add some of the planned content that was going to be in the original when it was being planned as a CD game. That didn't happen, but there is one thing I wish they would correct.
If you've played Secret of Mana, you know that almost all of the weapons have 8 orbs to be collected via chests and boss fights in the world, with the exception of the Axe and the Gloves, which only have 7.
(There are actually 9 levels of weapon upgrades, but the last orbs are rare drops in the Mana Fortress/final dungeon from certain enemies, except for the Mana Sword which was only upgraded to level 9 during an end-game story event or via a glitch/trick.)
However, there are two mini-bosses in the Mana Fortress (The Vampire King and the Dark Slime in the remake, or Buffy and the Dream Slime in the original) that don't give you any orbs. Would have been a good place to add a Gloves Orb and an Axe Orb in the remake.
(The Dark Lich and the Mana Beast also don't give weapon orbs, but there is no opportunity to leave the fortress after fighting either of them.)
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stratogustav
Supreme Overlord
Warrior with Bandana
Posts: 7,647
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Post by stratogustav on Jan 13, 2019 10:28:01 GMT
Finished the Secret of Mana remake on the PS4 tonight. I really liked it. It was definitely much like the Adventure of Mana remake (of Final Fantasy Adventure) on the Vita. Pretty much a straight port with some new music and polygons instead of sprites. But, the remixed music was nice, the characters and world were colorful and expressive, etc. I replay Secret of Mana every few years anyway, so I didn't need them to re-invent the wheel. The added dialogue scenes between the girl, the boy and the sprite when staying at the inns were nice, and it was cool to have the elementals, Watts, etc drop in as well. The character development in the original is pretty bare bones, but this all fit with my idea of the characters' personalities that I've had in my head for the last 25 years. That said, one...very minor gripe. I know a lot of folks were hoping Square would take the opportunity to add some of the planned content that was going to be in the original when it was being planned as a CD game. That didn't happen, but there is one thing I wish they would correct. If you've played Secret of Mana, you know that almost all of the weapons have 8 orbs to be collected via chests and boss fights in the world, with the exception of the Axe and the Gloves, which only have 7. (There are actually 9 levels of weapon upgrades, but the last orbs are rare drops in the Mana Fortress/final dungeon from certain enemies, except for the Mana Sword which was only upgraded to level 9 during an end-game story event or via a glitch/trick.) However, there are two mini-bosses in the Mana Fortress (The Vampire King and the Dark Slime in the remake, or Buffy and the Dream Slime in the original) that don't give you any orbs. Would have been a good place to add a Gloves Orb and an Axe Orb in the remake. (The Dark Lich and the Mana Beast also don't give weapon orbs, but there is no opportunity to leave the fortress after fighting either of them.) I recently got Secret Of Mana. It came with the SNES Classic. I'm looking forward for playing it. Thanks for the review. |
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 13, 2019 11:33:31 GMT
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centipede
Off-Brand Transformable Robot
It was just one soy latte, I swear!
Posts: 2,809 
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Post by centipede on Jan 23, 2019 13:40:41 GMT
I finished my second playthrough of Shadowrun Returns tonight. This time with a Troll Adept (with a slight amount of 'Spellcasting' added,since that and 'Chi Casting' were dependent on one's 'Willpower'). I might finish SR: Dragonfall with my Ork Decker/Rigger, one day before I buy SR: Hong Kong.
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centipede
Off-Brand Transformable Robot
It was just one soy latte, I swear!
Posts: 2,809
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Post by centipede on Jan 25, 2019 10:57:10 GMT
I finished my second playthrough of Shadowrun Returns tonight. This time with a Troll Adept (with a slight amount of 'Spellcasting' added,since that and 'Chi Casting' were dependent on one's 'Willpower'). I might finish SR: Dragonfall with my Ork Decker/Rigger, one day before I buy SR: Hong Kong. Ah! Speaking of Shadowrun Returns, it's having a sale on Steam right now. 50% to 75% off! Get in quick! |
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fsfsxii
Space Striker
What to believe...
Posts: 916
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Post by fsfsxii on Jan 26, 2019 12:26:31 GMT
RE2 on Hardcore with claire. This game sucked me in this weekend.
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Post by Imperial Khador on Jan 31, 2019 13:59:27 GMT
Finished up Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology on the 3DS.
I'd definitely say this game gets all the praise it deserves. A likable cast of characters, and jumping back and forth through time across multiple timelines. Definitely a Chrono Trigger vibe in some ways, but it has its own identity. The voice cast was excellent as well.
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dschult3
Off-Brand Transformable Robot
The true heir to the Monado.
Posts: 2,887
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Post by dschult3 on Feb 2, 2019 19:31:47 GMT
I just beat a game called the Legend of Zelda. I've heard it is popular. Maybe it will get some sequels? I don't know. Without a map, this game would have been a complete pain in the ass. People might not like that. I wonder if people will make communities to help others beat the game?
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stratogustav
Supreme Overlord
Warrior with Bandana
Posts: 7,647
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Post by stratogustav on Feb 3, 2019 1:36:31 GMT
I just beat a game called the Legend of Zelda. I've heard it is popular. Maybe it will get some sequels? I don't know. Without a map, this game would have been a complete pain in the ass. People might not like that. I wonder if people will make communities to help others beat the game? That's a life experience man. Congrats! |
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Post by Imperial Khador on Feb 18, 2019 6:14:01 GMT
Finished up both Gravity Rush 2, and Yakuza Kiwami on the PS4 this week.
Gravity Rush 2 was pretty enjoyable overall, but I found a lot of the side missions boring/tedious. After deciding to just focus on the main narrative, I had a great time.
Yakuza Kiwami feels like an extension of Yakuza 0, which makes sense. It is a more-stripped down experience, given that it is a remake of the first entry, but I like the opportunities they took to rework the narrative. Also, contrasting with GR2, side stories never feel like a drag.
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stratogustav
Supreme Overlord
Warrior with Bandana
Posts: 7,647
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Post by stratogustav on Feb 18, 2019 16:31:32 GMT
Finished up both Gravity Rush 2, and Yakuza Kiwami on the PS4 this week. Gravity Rush 2 was pretty enjoyable overall, but I found a lot of the side missions boring/tedious. After deciding to just focus on the main narrative, I had a great time. Yakuza Kiwami feels like an extension of Yakuza 0, which makes sense. It is a more-stripped down experience, given that it is a remake of the first entry, but I like the opportunities they took to rework the narrative. Also, contrasting with GR2, side stories never feel like a drag. Excellent man. Gravity Rush 2 and Yakuza 0 are some of the best games of this generation. Kiwami was an important remake for that reason. In terms of the topic I finished Mega Man X on the Mega Man X Legacy Collection for PS4. The game looks great on a 4K TV. I don't think the PS4 Pro helps to that because upscaling the game from the SNES Classic gives you the same result. Since I already finished the SNES Classic version last year, I wanted to give the PS4 version a chance too, which is a good version because it gives you the trophies for the 100% completion. Although I did encounter 1 or 2 minor almost unnoticeable background glitches in the PS4 version that the SNES Classic didn't have, but unless you have played the game more than a couple of times, you probably won't even see them. Plus they didn't reappear when I tried to look for them a second time. |
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