I saw my girlfriend playing an older Etrian Odyssey game and it got me interested in the series. Saw that IV and Untold are on sale for $14.99 on the eSHOP and want to get one (already have a lot of games to get through, so only one). Which is the better one?
I know IV is easier and shorter but received well. How much deeper is the class system vs Untold?
I've read that people prefer playing classic mode in Untold vs the story mode. Any reason why other than party customization? And how long is the story mode for me to be able to do that, unlock the two classes (highlander), then restart on classic?
Untold (Classic mode) is a good introduction to the Etrian Odyssey world, with elements of lore that are touched upon in later installments (since it is a remake of the first game), though it's nothing major, but otherwise IV is superior to it on almost every front.
IV has a better class system as well, in particular due to the possibility of subclassing your characters. Untold's alternative, the Grimoires, offers a wider range of skills, but relies far too much on luck and tedium, which makes it clunky at best.
Story mode is generally reviled because in addition to the inability of making your own party, it completely butchers the story of the original game, features some rather bland characters, and railroads the game. Concerning its length, I'd say it'll last you around 50 hours.
I saw my girlfriend playing an older Etrian Odyssey game and it got me interested in the series. Saw that IV and Untold are on sale for $14.99 on the eSHOP and want to get one (already have a lot of games to get through, so only one). Which is the better one?
I know IV is easier and shorter but received well. How much deeper is the class system vs Untold?
I've read that people prefer playing classic mode in Untold vs the story mode. Any reason why other than party customization? And how long is the story mode for me to be able to do that, unlock the two classes (highlander), then restart on classic?
I really like EOU (for the polished classic mode, not for the story mode) and I think it is a good place to start on the series, but IV is probably what I'd call the better game. The EO class system is at its best in EOIV, but I am also a big fan of "pure" classes like in EO1 and EO2 (and grimoire system really lets you make some super characters if you invest the time).
How long you take to finish Story mode in EOU will depend mostly on what difficulty you play on. If you play on Expert, like you should, you should expect random battles as you explore to challenge you, you should expect to spend some time thinking about how to spend your skill points, you should expect to spend some time paying attention to little nuances in battle like turn orders and the effects of enemy attacks, and you should expect a few game overs. To clear story mode on Expert I'd say probably 60+ hours and more if you do all the quests as you go.
If you play on easier difficulty, most of the stuff you need to actually think about and pay attention to stops mattering as much or at all. If you play on Normal mode you can probably knock 10 hours off that, and another 10 off that if you play on Picnic (you can probably zoom through the game skipping quests and using autorun and automap and clear story mode for a New Game plus in 20-30 hours). Honestly I do not recommend doing this on your first time through. Save the ezmode for after you've experienced the game the way it's really balanced for.
What I did was Classic Expert mode first, then NG+ for story mode (picnic, to go through it quickly), then NG+ again back to Classic (picnic until postgame just to run through the early parts, then back to Expert) to combine my original party with story party and finally clear the postgame boss on Expert difficulty.
Take my advice with a little grain of salt, though, because my total EOU playtime is over 200 hours.
If you are not familiar with EO1 already I really recommend you play classic mode first because story mode will trample all over the more subtle story of classic mode (and also ruins the best twist in the entire series).
As for being unable to customize the story mode party...well, that does suck, but frankly as far as balanced parties go it's probably the best party the game has to offer. Story mode party can easily beat expert mode, including postgame superboss with the right prep (and the right grimoires but that goes for any party facing off against postgame superboss).
Grimoire criticism is, I feel, often overblown, especially by people who didn't understand the system. Looks like it got some nice improvements in EO2U but the system in EO1U is not bad for what it is once you understand how it works. It really only adds any tedium to the game when you're at the postgame on expert difficulty trying to clear the last boss (because before that point there is really no need to ever go out of your way to farm specific grimoires), and if you're that dedicated then a couple hours of grimoire farming is probably not going to bother you.
-don't listen to what others say. The ideal EO experience is the one that balances fun and frustration. If Expert IS too difficult for you, don't be afraid or ashamed to lower it to normal.
Expert mode is close to how the game was originally.
Normal is toned down and is really easy, though some boss fights and FOEs can still be challenging on normal. Picnic is just boring. The difference between modes is that you do additional damage and healing and monster attacks get weaker on easier difficulty settings.
I don't know, but if Expert is too difficult for you, don't be afraid to lower the difficulty. The ideal EO experience is the-
-don't listen to what others say. The ideal EO experience is the one that balances fun and frustration. If Expert IS too difficult for you, don't be afraid or ashamed to lower it to normal.
Her front hair piece can be a bit finnicky to got over the ears, and be very careful when you put the halves of her legs and arms together as well as the two halves of her torso.
If you put in anything wrong it can be a bit difficult to separate her parts again and some of the connecting rods might snap if you do.
Other than that she was a pretty easy build and looks great even unpainted!
Her front hair piece can be a bit finnicky to got over the ears, and be very careful when you put the halves of her legs and arms together as well as the two halves of her torso.
If you put in anything wrong it can be a bit difficult to separate her parts again and some of the connecting rods might snap if you do.
Other than that she was a pretty easy build and looks great even unpainted!
Her front hair piece can be a bit finnicky to got over the ears, and be very careful when you put the halves of her legs and arms together as well as the two halves of her torso.
If you put in anything wrong it can be a bit difficult to separate her parts again and some of the connecting rods might snap if you do.
Other than that she was a pretty easy build and looks great even unpainted!
There's a pic of unpainted Sniper on the side of her box. I'll see if I can't find a scan of it somewhere.
It doesn't look very good, though, so I've been holding off on building my copy her until I get into painting.
Here's Imperial though!
Not really, more that I was waiting for my backlog to have a few things out of the way XD
And actually the MH DS isn't even for me; I might get the game, though.. Got it for a friend who couldn't make it to gamestop today that wanted it (MM ones were already gone or I would have preordered that for myself instead).
