Yeah. Especially when the Break Gauge reached down to 100% again when he almost staggered it just because he used two Blasters without realizing that continuously using spells is a bad thing without an Attacker to hold down the fort. It's weird because he's fine in the other battles. It's still nice to see him using Defenders well.
This boss theme is a hell of a lot better than when I heard it in the E3 footage. Probably because of the mixing.
The solid amount of good reuse of XIII's OST makes me realize why Hamauzu didn't compose as much as he did for the XIII-2 OST. Well, that and he's a busier man now.
40-ish hours into FF13, only got a few Cie'th stones to complete.
Will spend some hours grinding CP and Gil to upgrade my weapons to third tier, then go fight those friggin' Zitrvinandiansdhsdg;lk whatchmacalthem and take on the secret boss and a Leonardo.
I hope someone upload it on the internet in glorious HD resolution!
Anyway, the first town/zone is really pretty and the atmosphere very warm. I'm really digging into it. Love it for now. I just hope they didn't spoiler us every single area of the game before the release. What I'm seeing though is definitely good.
I have to wonder if the Synchro Drive stuff adds to the timer or if it freezes the timer to wait for your input, now that I'm back looking at the stream... The animations are lengthy.
Edit: Heh, Desperate Struggle. A lot of the old music really is being used appropriately.
So I can read some Japanese but not at the speed at which these 4 choice dialogue options come about. What kind of impact do they have on the gameplay/story?
Stream is ballin' though. Good way to start your morning.
Yeah I am digging the reuse of old tracks.... Based on the fact that there is a full soundtrack, I feel that they really are doing it appropriately, because the tracks rule...... and nostalgia and all that...
I don't know about everyone else who's watching this stream, but everything I'm seeing gameplay wise is making me smile, and my hype level is increasing by the minute. One of my favorite parts so far is the environments, and some of the details to certain aspects. Actually, I laughed out loud when
Noel and Serah had to raise their hands to show they were not armed to the soldiers, and our little moogle friend did the same. Kupo! Haha. So cute.
I'm feeling a little tempted to import because I want to play around with the battle system tweaks a little bit. I see a few things I want to experiment with already...
But I should resist. I didn't budget for it, and I have a few other games to clear anyway. I have a clear save from the JP version, but... ehh... we're going to get this soon so it mightn't be worth the money.
So I can read some Japanese but not at the speed at which these 4 choice dialogue options come about. What kind of impact do they have on the gameplay/story?
Seem to affect just event dialogue so far (ie: dialogue trees). I dunno if I've missed anything when I wasn't paying attention to the stream, but there are likely decisions that affect certain outcomes or events. Actually, iirc, one of Kagari's writeups discussed that. Link. It's a bit towards the middle.
I'm feeling a little tempted to import because I want to play around with the battle system tweaks a little bit. I see a few things I want to experiment with already...
But I should resist. I didn't budget for it, and I have a few other games to clear anyway. I have a clear save from the JP version, but... ehh... we're going to get this soon so it mightn't be worth the money.
With the holidays coming up, time is going to fly, and it'll be January before you know it. I mean, if you think you'll enjoy the Japanese version more, then it would probably be worth spending the extra money to import, but otherwise I would wait. My plan is to keep myself as busy as possible and to resist my urges to play now by living vicariously through Kagari
I can't give you an actual number considering I haven't beaten the game, but based on the stream most of the story events/a fight here and there have had XIII music and the in-game normal stuff XIII-2 music.
I would say more than anything that it's not one of the extremes, but it definitely lands at a healthy balance between the two numbers I posted.
With the holidays coming up, time is going to fly, and it'll be January before you know it. I mean, if you think you'll enjoy the Japanese version more, then it would probably be worth spending the extra money to import, but otherwise I would wait. My plan is to keep myself as busy as possible and to resist my urges to play now by living vicariously through Kagari
And if I order it, then it'll take time to actually get here... maybe the holidays will be over by the time it arrives.
LOL, living through Kagari and the other importers/JP players might not be a bad idea; however, I think I might have to bail from the thread when importers get closer to the final boss or if they're discussing battle mechanics. I like figuring mechanics of battle systems out myself and getting input from others later. Narrative stuff isn't really a problem for me, I think, considering I've spoiled quite a bit for myself by watching this stream, lol.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 Soundtrack’s Descent Into Self-Parody is Audio Metaphor for Series
Oh hey, there's a new Chocobo song in Final Fantasy XIII-2! I do so love hearing the new arrangements of Nobuo Uematsu's whimsical theme that arrive with each new iteration of the series. Let's give it a listen! Oh. Oh god.
While I've been a bit more forgiving than most concerning the quality of recent entries in Square Enix's celebrated role-playing franchise (I still like XIII and X-2!), I have to admit that one aspect of the franchise that's definitely on the decline is the music. I had thought that it was just me; that the classic music was so ingrained in my being that I couldn't accept say, lyrics in the Chocobo song from Final Fantasy XIII.
And then I heard this.
At first I thought it was a fan creation, something a clever group of metal-minded Final Fantasy players had mocked up on a lark. But no, this is "Crazy Chocobo", a real track from Final Fantasy XIII-2. The lyrics are a little hard to make out, but here's a little of what I can make out:
"Saddle up if you think you can ride in this rodeo / Are we in hell? I don't know..."
Yes. The answer is yes.
The rest of the soundtrack isn't quite so bad, with the possible exception of "Invisible Invaders (Lake Bresha Rap)", a seven minute long lyrical nightmare as written by a thirteen year-old torn between her love for fresh rhymes and JRPGs.
"Waking up in a world where the warriors reign / The pressures of life drive you literally insane"
You know, as opposed to figuratively insane. The pressures of life do not simply make you drink from a cracked teacup or wear a silly hat. That shit will fuck you up. Not sure if I should add "yo" there or not, so I'll play it safe.
This hasn't broken me. I'll still play Final Fantasy XIII-2. I'll just play it with the sound turned down and the Chrono Trigger soundtrack playing in the background.
It does, however, bode ill for the direction the series is heading in. At this rate we'll wind up with Final Fantasy XV with a soundtrack by Justin Bieber and Sepultura.
Aside from Edenhall: What's a good place to grind for CP in FF13?
Also what're the startegies you used to defeat the Cie'th Swordman and the hidden Cie'th boss?
Another streaming video here, closer to the start of the game: http://ja.twitch.tv/leta_jp
I see this player keeps the videos saved, I hope to find the opening in there sometime later.
Aside from Edenhall: What's a good place to grind for CP in FF13?
Also what're the startegies you used to defeat the Cie'th Swordman and the hidden Cie'th boss?
Where are you, exactly? As a rule of thumb, don't grind for CP because the CP will come to you anyway (especially through grinding Adamantoises). Grab the Growth Egg from the Neochu mission, keep fighting and you're peachy.
Adamantoises give you 40K CP. Double that with the Growth Egg. You can try the Death Strategy, or you can take them down head-on. I wrote this up a few months ago, but I think it should still work. Edit: D'oh! You were talking about this. I usually stuck to Pulse because they spawned faster there. :O
Another place to grind is in Northern Pulse where the Behemoth and the other thing are fighting. You get a pre-emptive strike all the time, and you can just run back and forth through. But it does get boring after a while. They took out the Ochu method in the English version, I think. I used that one for most of my Crystarium in the JP ver.
There's also another one that's on a particular path in the Titan's Trials. For one, you're getting Bomb Cores and Fragments, which are nice for synthesis. You will also get Chocobo Feathers and Chocobo Feathers. You aren't just grinding for CP, but it'd be nice to get your hands on some synth items upper-level weapons (especially if you're trying to platinum the game). Also, equip the Growth Egg. I used a Fang/Vanille/Snow party (and sometimes a Fang/Light/Snow party).
1) Accept Mission 35 (Gurangatch). Kill it, and have Fang wear TP boosting gear (Energy Sash, Champion's Badge) + Sprint Shoes/Aurora Scarf.
2) Accept Mission 36 (2 Amams). Fight in Fang's TP boosting gear, turn around and fight the 2x Borgbears.
3) Accept Mission 38 (3xVerdelet, 1xAdroa). Switch to Fang/Light/Snow. Fight in Fang’s DPS gear + Atk/Atk/Atk. Clear out the Bugbears with Atk/Bla/Bla -> Atk/Bla/Atk.
4) Accept Mission 42 (Borgbear Hero + 4x Borgbear). Fight the group of 5 Flowering Cactoids in Fang’s TP gear (and do not let them run away). Summon Bahamut, skip animation. Gestalt, skip animation. Mega Flare = Instant kill + TP restoration. You can imagine Optima choice doesn't matter.
5) Skip the group of 3 Flowering Cactoids. Kill both groups of Borgbears, and the mission boss. In the last 4 battles (5x Cactoid/ 3x Borgbear/ 3x Borgbear/ Borgbear Hero + 4x Borgbear) you should have gained 3 levels of TP; turn around and Mega-Flare the other 3 Cactuars.
6) The final mission doesn't matter, but Mission 51 - Atticus is probably the best one to pick since it's easier than some of the others, to me anyway.
By the end, I had 10 Ribbons in my inventory, and I got a TON of Chocobo Plumes/Tail Feathers, which are great for synthesis if you’re short on cash for certain multiplier items (like Barbed Tails and Vibrant Oozes). Sure, it may not be as much (800K/hour) as the Guis or the Behemoth+Megisto per hour (1.3 million CP), but it's resourceful for raw materials as well. Plus it's more fun than spending 30 seconds of every minute turning around and running away, then back towards the same two guys you've been killing forever.
Maybe it's because I'm tired that I don't really remember... which hidden Cie'th are we talking about... I think I have an idea of what it is, but is it attached to a mission, and which mission is it attached to?
And for the Cie'th Swordsman... do you mean Mission 51: Atticus in the Titan's Trials? I wrote something up for that a few months ago too. Here, just look for Mission 51 in this post.
the player doing this is irritating me a little. It doesn't seem like Cait Sith can keep up with the healing at all.
Actually, now that I think about it, he should really try
staying in the DEF/DEF/HLR optima for longer than required to get his HP back up with items and stuff. Since he's sticking to an ATK/BLA/HLR optima, the break gauge won't deplete very rapidly. Or he could try using ATK/DEF/HLR as a backup. There are so many things he can try and he's not doing them. :/
Edit: LOL, that was pretty great. Barely scraped by!
1) Accept Mission 35 (Gurangatch). Kill it, and have Fang wear TP boosting gear (Energy Sash, Champion's Badge) + Sprint Shoes/Aurora Scarf.
2) Accept Mission 36 (2 Amams). Fight in Fang's TP boosting gear, turn around and fight the 2x Borgbears.
3) Accept Mission 38 (3xVerdelet, 1xAdroa). Switch to Fang/Light/Snow. Fight in Fangs DPS gear + Atk/Atk/Atk. Clear out the Bugbears with Atk/Bla/Bla -> Atk/Bla/Atk.
4) Accept Mission 42 (Borgbear Hero + 4x Borgbear). Fight the group of 5 Flowering Cactoids in Fangs TP gear (and do not let them run away). Summon Bahamut, skip animation. Gestalt, skip animation. Mega Flare = Instant kill + TP restoration. You can imagine Optima choice doesn't matter.
5) Skip the group of 3 Flowering Cactoids. Kill both groups of Borgbears, and the mission boss. In the last 4 battles (5x Cactoid/ 3x Borgbear/ 3x Borgbear/ Borgbear Hero + 4x Borgbear) you should have gained 3 levels of TP; turn around and Mega-Flare the other 3 Cactuars.
6) The final mission doesn't matter, but Mission 51 - Atticus is probably the best one to pick since it's easier than some of the others, to me anyway.
Maybe it's because I'm tired that I don't really remember... which hidden Cie'th are we talking about... I think I have an idea of what it is, but is it attached to a mission, and which mission is it attached to?
Sorry I mean Mission 64 the one flying Cie'th that can only be fought after defeating all the other Cie'th bosses.
And for the Cie'th Swordsman... do you mean Mission 51: Atticus in the Titan's Trials? I wrote something up for that a few months ago too. Here, just look for Mission 51 in this post.
The method I used in my first playthrough for that battle was to inflict Poison on the boss and then have Vanille cast Death-->Switch to COM role (Van) for extra damage.
I'm only 2 trophies away from a Plat; get all equipment and defeat a blue turtle, hopefully I can fufill both by next week =D
