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[Mejilan]

There's some guy that does ToS remixes. I found 2 of his remixes very good:


Tales Of Symphonia: Summoner's Pact Finale

That's an interesting reinvisioning of the song Fighting of the Spirits. It's even kinda pretty, but the song was MEANT to be a rock beat. It rocked in ToP, and absolutely owned when redone in ToS. Too jarring. Though pretty...

Thanks for the link. :-D

 

[Alex]

One and a half play throughs to find out how utterly dissapointing Mania is enough, thanks, not going to play through a game I find mostly mediocre to please someone on a forum. Here's praying Rebirth has decent character building, dungeons, and more admirable side content and narrative. Eternia quality this was not, I'm done bitching about the game for good though unless otherwise inclined, not going to become one of "those" people.

PS: I said Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together and Knight of Lodis were both disgustingly easy, game breaking in Knight of Lodis. Dunno who told you that, but it wasn't me. I'd par FFT with it, although FFT was pretty freakin' broken and easy to exploit (though there are some obvious gaping areas where you could say the same about TO)

 

[Sagitario]

I love ToS. I think it's my favorite game after TWW...

 

[slayn]

you told me Tactics Ogre was far far better than FFT... don't recall why so I assumed it was the difficulty which is what most people told me.

and my point wasn't that you should go play it again. It was that no rpg is going to be hard if you don't play with the intention of making it hard on yourself. if you want an rpg to be a challenge and requirity stratedgy, you have to play as such. Thats just the way rpg's work. If you sit in the first area until you get to level 99, the game ain't gonna be hard.

more games should used the old ogre battle system of penalizing being stronger than your enemies =\

"not going to become one of "those" people. "

but you already are! =P

 

[Alex]

I don't excess level, but I rarely penalize myself as well unless it's intuitive to do so (Fable, Baten Kaitos). Mania mode was a pretty sweeping dissapointment for me, they should've massively increased enemy parameters, or put a greater focus on character building, elemental/status properties.

It's an easy genre though, I agree there, not because of the leveling properties, but because of developers forcing their players through dick-holding cinematic trash, people want it though, so whatever.

One of the reasons I look forward to this wicked side content for SO3 Brandon F is rambling on about, and to Nocturne, which is susposed to be a genre high for difficulty.

I'm a masochist at times though, or as I'd like to put it "not a pussy". I believe in huge, endurance dungeons, and slapping the player should they fuck up.

I do consider TO to be a far better game than FFT though, yeah. Let us Cling Together and Fire Emblem are my favorite SRPG's.

 

[dark10x]

Alex, I've put quite a few hours into SO3 (can't remember the exact number). I've finished the main game as well as several of the bonus dungeons. I THINK I am heading towards another bonus dungeon where the character you named is located. Honestly, the bonus dungeons have been the best dungeons in the game. Kickass design all around.

Not sure if you mentioned it in another post yet, but how far are you in the game?

I greatly enjoyed the soundtrack and gameplay and characters.

Man, I'm not even going to bring up SO3...but damn, if you really DID enjoy ToS's soundtrack, you must have REALLY bad taste. Of course, I think you like Ys music a lot...so perhaps you just have partially bad taste. ToS has one of the most bland soundtracks I've ever heard. I've ended up playing a lot of the game with the sound off. I almost NEVER do that. The only game I can think of that I played with external music was f*cking Jak and Daxter. The music isn't THAT bad, but I'll be damned if it doesn't come close at times.

 

[Mejilan]

The Ys games have pretty much my favorite VGM ever. Lots of other albums come close, Star Ocean 2 is a great example. I was crushed by the music in SO3, by comparison. ToS had lots of standard generic tunes that I forget 10 seconds after the songs end, but even those manage to properly set the mood in the actual game. And as far as battle music goes (always my favorite part of VGM soundtracks), ToS really shines, imho. Lots and lots of different battle themes, and almost all of them kickass. Including one much beloved classic remix.

And just to throw in a random comment:

TO LUCT > TO KotL >>>>>>>>>>> FFT

 

[Alex]

Currently, about 10 hours. Brandon has me pretty interested in this item synthesis method (likening it to Vagrant Story, and apparently it's deemed nessicary for some of the harder side content). So I intend to grab the guide.

Personally, I think Star Ocean sounds to have mastered the alter-end of the difficulty spectrum pretty well. Brandon's also been talking about the excess ammounts of trophies and the such you can rack up, building OBSCENE weapons and killing bosses in two hits, comedy gold. He advises me to take it calmly if I don't to break the game, but eh, I don't care. It's one thing if the game is easy by nature, another if I can turn my characters into demi-gods through non-level based nonsense. Wheee.

Part of my enjoyment of Till the End of Time stems from it's superficial aspects. Not that I would slam anyone for an alternate opinion, that's one thing I just don't believe in, but I clicked with it quite well. Such pretty and epic feeling enviroments, and probably my favorite non-VP Sakuraba OST.

 

[Virgin Wii]

dark10x:

Because someone likes a soundtrack you can't stand, they have bad taste? :rolleyes Ever consider that maybe you aren't the best of persons to judge the quality of a soundtrack, or are you too stuck up for that?

 

[dark10x]

dark10x:

Because someone likes a soundtrack you can't stand, they have bad taste? :rolleyes Ever consider that maybe you aren't the best of persons to judge the quality of a soundtrack, or are you too stuck up for that?

First of all, Mej and I have been slinging back and forth at each other for a while now (he hates SO3's soundtrack as much as I hate Tales). It's all in good fun. In all honesty, I really don't think he has bad taste in general (how could a Ys music fan have bad taste, really?), just in this case.

I am quite a huge fan of VGM and it just so happens that Motoi Sakuraba is one of my current favorite composers. I have always been very disappointed in his work on Tales.

The thing is, music is a very subjective thing to discuss...but the general consensus is that ToS has a very bland soundtrack (overall). It seems that Mej was able to acknowledge that fact while pointing out the brightest aspect of it; the battle themes.

Have you ever considered that maybe, JUST MAYBE, you shouldn't step into conversations that clearly have nothing to do with you? I don't appreciate that. Too stuck up? What on earth does that have to do with anything?

Wait, you're probably too stuck up to answer that.

 

[Dez]

dark10x:

Because someone likes a soundtrack you can't stand, they have bad taste? :rolleyes Ever consider that maybe you aren't the best of persons to judge the quality of a soundtrack, or are you too stuck up for that?

dark10x slams the ToS soundtrack as much as he slams the framerate in TTS.. it's quite funny actually

although i do agree with him partially on both accounts.

 

[Mejilan]

In all fairness, dark, our SO3 vs BK vs Tales of rivalry (which really is all in good fun now, at least from my point of view) spilled over to and from GFF as well. So he'd not necessarily have any way of knowing, and if I didn't know better, I'd have been put off a bit as well, by your post.

An idle curiousity. Which Ys game has the best music, in your opinion?

 

[Alex]

In all fairness, most RPG music sucks altogether nowadays. None of the old-school composers seem to be in top-form. And the former game music god, Mitsuda is apparently a hack now. Sad times.

Either way. It'd be nice to see a game that wasn't composed by Sakimoto or Sakuraba, jesus,

 

[Brandon F]

Yea, the item creation totally breaks the game, particularly if you use faqs/guide to cut out the bullshit(and there is a lot of it to wade through without a chart) and get right to the fun of crafting serious equipment. A smirk of delight made the occasionally tedious process of refining stuff worthwhile the moment my new instrument of death completed. I really got into it.

Nevertheless, it does remind me of Vagrant Story in that you can directly transfer properties or parameters of ANY item in the game directly onto your weapons, even fuse old weapons into new ones. It really isn't -nearly- as complex or maleable as VS with all the affinity adjustments and stat upkeep and whatnot, but you really are given almost free-reign to build a weapon however you deem fit with some minor limitations. Unfortunately, you can't do the same for armor.

The bonus dungeons are great. The first one can be played early on in the game(20 or so hours in), dark10x posted pics of it in the old SO3 impressions thread. Make sure not to pass it by Alex!

The rest unlock after beating the game, but are very long and involving. One is a 110-floor beast that doesn't have the same personality or tricks as the others, but it holds the best weapons in the game, the best abilities in the game, and a unique boss every ten floors. It's basically a total hack.

The other two dungeons are almost extensions of the main game, offering weird new cutscenes, bosses, and puzzles. VP and SO2 fans can expect a few strange cameos to pop up randomly within.

 

[dark10x]

In all fairness, dark, our SO3 vs BK vs Tales of rivalry (which really is all in good fun now, at least from my point of view) spilled over to and from GFF as well. So he'd not necessarily have any way of knowing, and if I didn't know better, I'd have been put off a bit as well, by your post.

An idle curiousity. Which Ys game has the best music, in your opinion?

Yeah, I suppose it was a bit unfair to expect him to know. I also see how he could have mis-understood. I simply didn't appreciate the attitude he brought to the thread.

As for my favorite Ys soundtrack, I'd have to go with Ys IV, actually. For an arranged album, I still love Ys Healing. Beautiful. Believe it or not, I also like the Ys VI soundtrack a lot as well. I suppose that it was the first time I had played a Ys game prior to hearing the soundtrack (usually it was the opposite).

Oh, and I think BK can officially be dropped from the argument since we both love it. Of course, I made an MP3 CD for my car today that included tons of SO3 and BK songs...and there were times when I had to glance at the tag in order to remember which game it was from. They sound SO similar at times...

Totally off topic, but I have my random playlist I use for sleeping and "The Lowest Layer Area" from Breath of Fire V just started up. Yeah, it's more Sakimoto...but damn, some of that DQ music was amazing.

 

[Brandon F]

Electricity Supply Building is the best track on Dragon Quarter. Man, what an amazing tune.

Speaking of SO3, I think the music is a bit overrated. I mean most every town track is stunning, and the opening tune is nice, but the dungeon tracks I found pretty grating. Lots of hit and miss material.

 

[dark10x]

Electricity Supply Building is the best track on Dragon Quarter. Man, what an amazing tune.

Speaking of SO3, I think the music is a bit overrated. I mean most every town track is stunning, and the opening tune is nice, but the dungeon tracks I found pretty grating. Lots of hit and miss material.

Oh yeah, I could see people feeling that way. The variety is one of the reasons I really liked it, though...but it also seems like one of the things that could prevent people from enjoying it. The calm, almost sad sounding town music is offset by energetic blasts from the dungeons (though not always). The only songs I hated on the OST are, thankfully, used in a very limited fashion (such as "What's up") and actually work well in the context of the game.

My favorite battle theme wasn't used nearly enough, though. The song title is "Influence of Truth Appearance" and it can be heard during a few battles later on

Spoiler

when you fight the first executioner on moonbase and during the first two battles you fight after trying to use the uninstaller"

. So good!

Oh yes, and Electricity Supply Building is godly.

 

[Mejilan]

Good choice. Ys IV is BY FAR the most varied. But I think the crazy rock tunes of Ys III pulls at me a bit more...

Dark, if you get a chance, hit up Strange Wind and The End of the Passionate Feeling (songs 3 and 7) of the Phantom Brave Arrange Album, if you have it. Insanely great stuff (though the rest of the songs left me a bit cold, I'll have you know.)

Well, off topic?

 

[dark10x]

Good choice. Ys IV is BY FAR the most varied. But I think the crazy rock tunes of Ys III pulls at me a bit more...

Dark, if you get a chance, hit up Strange Wind and The End of the Passionate Feeling (songs 3 and 7) of the Phantom Brave Arrange Album, if you have it. Insanely great stuff (though the rest of the songs left me a bit cold, I'll have you know.)

Well, off topic?

Yep, I have the PB Arrange Album. That is a great song, I must agree. It's even better now that I've heard the original version in game. I'm not really a huge fan of the soundtrack overall either, though...but some of the songs have grown on me. I also kinda like the first track on the album (Angel Breath). It isn't amazing or anything, but it is enjoyable.

Oh, and with Shadow Hearts II and SMT III coming out soon...have you heard those soundtracks? From the SHII soundtrack, my two favorite songs have got to be "Suffocation" and "The Past". Have you heard them? Very cool sounding (though pretty downbeat). SMT III is kind of a strange one, though. I think I will appreciate it more in game...so I can't really judge it just yet.

Oh yes, I always pimp it, but you do have the Soukaigi soundtrack, right? If so, what did you think of that? One of the songs just started up for me.

 

[Mejilan]

Hmm, I listed two PB Arrange songs, you reacted as if I listed one. For a reminder, the two I listed are the predominantly violin ones. And yes, I'm not a fan of the soundtrack either (though PB smears Disgaea and La Pucelle, imho.) I have the SH soundtracks, and I like 2 more than 1, but honestly, neither have really clicked. Too moody and ambient most of the time. I do listen to 2 every once in a while, but I'll do so again tomorrow, singling out those two tracks.

SMTIII I do not have and never heard (I'll just wait for the game at this point as well, I have it preordered.) And that last one, Soukaigi? I've never even heard of it. Don't recognize the name at all.

 

[dark10x]

Hmm, I listed two PB Arrange songs, you reacted as if I listed one. For a reminder, the two I listed are the predominantly violin ones. And yes, I'm not a fan of the soundtrack either (though PB smears Disgaea and La Pucelle, imho.) I have the SH soundtracks, and I like 2 more than 1, but honestly, neither have really clicked. Too moody and ambient most of the time. I do listen to 2 every once in a while, but I'll do so again tomorrow, singling out those two tracks.

SMTIII I do not have and never heard (I'll just wait for the game at this point as well, I have it preordered.) And that last one, Soukaigi? I've never even heard of it. Don't recognize the name at all.

Whoops, you're right. Ha ha, I must have mis-read as I totally didn't notice that you listed two tracks. Strange Wind is pretty good as well, actually. You're right.

Your SH comments are interesting, because in general, that's how I felt. I didn't really care for most of the music in either game, but there were a few standout tracks.

SMTIII is really...unique, I suppose. You'll see...

As for Soukaigi, it's one of my favorite soundtracks. It was composed by Hiroki Kikuta (of Seiken Densetsu 2 & 3/Secret of Mana fame) and is stands well above those efforts (it is very different). It was performed entirely with live instruments and is really quite unique. There aren't many soundtracks it could be compared to. I'd love to send it to you, if you're interested. I think you might enjoy it...

Oh, and a side note, you did remember to vote in the current GFF contest right?

 

[Mejilan]

Actually, I've been offline most of this past week, so I haven't visited GFF in over a week. I'll have to check it out this weekend. I like really "active" music. So while I do occasionally enjoy the subleties of well composed ambient or moody/atmospheric music, I much rather listen to something with strong melodies and themes. That's why I've always loved Konami and Falcom's music, and Koji Kondo was probably one of the first musicians to really stand out in my mind when I was a kid (even though I didn't know who he was at the time.) As for the Mana games, I thought all four had absolutely brilliant music. I'd love to hear something more recent composed by the guy who did the first two!

 

[Virgin Wii]

Have you ever considered that maybe, JUST MAYBE, you shouldn't step into conversations that clearly have nothing to do with you? I don't appreciate that. Too stuck up? What on earth does that have to do with anything?

Nothing to do with me? You said somebody had bad taste because they liked a game's soundtrack. A soundtrack that I happen to like. So tell me how that had nothing to do with me?

I see now that it was an inside joke kinda thing, but your attitude is appalling.

 

[GermanOfficer]

I love the game.
After I have beaten it I immediatley started a new game to reach >3000 Grade.
In a year so I'm planning to play it again with the 10x EXP bonus....bosses beware

 

[dark10x]

Actually, I've been offline most of this past week, so I haven't visited GFF in over a week. I'll have to check it out this weekend. I like really "active" music. So while I do occasionally enjoy the subleties of well composed ambient or moody/atmospheric music, I much rather listen to something with strong melodies and themes. That's why I've always loved Konami and Falcom's music, and Koji Kondo was probably one of the first musicians to really stand out in my mind when I was a kid (even though I didn't know who he was at the time.) As for the Mana games, I thought all four had absolutely brilliant music. I'd love to hear something more recent composed by the guy who did the first two!

Yeah, you'd love Soukaigi then...it's a very active soundtrack. The offer still stands, I'd be happy to hook you up with it if you want.

Nothing to do with me? You said somebody had bad taste because they liked a game's soundtrack. A soundtrack that I happen to like. So tell me how that had nothing to do with me?

I'm sorry about that, I was a little agitated last night (about something external to GA, obviously).

When I first read it, I found your post to be rather insulting and nasty...which is why I replied in such a fashion. However, I can see why you might have felt that way in the first place (as you had no idea what was really going on). It was just a mis-understanding. Forgive me, I did not mean to insult you.

 

[aparisi2274]

Hey I just beat the game and I have a question about the ending:

Spoiler

when lloyd and Collette are speaking with Martel at the great tree and she tells lloyd to rename the tree, and he says "I've got it... The new name of this tree is..., and then the scene ends. Does any of the endings say the name of the tree?

I looked on several faqs on gamefaqs, and none give an answer. Anyone know?????

 

[Scott]

Hey I just beat the game and I have a question about the ending:

Spoiler

when lloyd and Collette are speaking with Martel at the great tree and she tells lloyd to rename the tree, and he says "I've got it... The new name of this tree is..., and then the scene ends. Does any of the endings say the name of the tree?

Nope, that scene isn't altered in any of the endings. Instead, the answer is given in Tales of Phantasia:

Spoiler

Lloyd names the tree "Yggdrasil."

Since Symphonia is a prequel to Phantasia, it makes sense, but I still wish they finished the sentence. I mean, I'm sure it's pretty obvious to those who have played Phantasia, but seeing as how it hasn't seen a US release, this line is going to leave a lot of people hanging.

 

[Ramirez]

I just visited Hima,on my way to the Wind Temple I believe,do I have a long ways to go or what?

 

[Go Go Ackman!]

Bought it. Played it. Beat it. Fun, but not a keeper. Great graphics in the towns, likeable characters, really fun battle system, and persea was cute.

But the music wasn't anything special, the aptmosphere just wasn't "there", usually felt like I was going from one place to the next with nothing significant really occuring.

But what do I know, I've only been playing JRPG's since the NES era.

 

[Virgin Wii]

Wow, I had forgotten about this thread.

I'm sorry about that, I was a little agitated last night (about something external to GA, obviously).

When I first read it, I found your post to be rather insulting and nasty...which is why I replied in such a fashion. However, I can see why you might have felt that way in the first place (as you had no idea what was really going on). It was just a mis-understanding. Forgive me, I did not mean to insult you.

It's cool. I was being a bit bitchy myself.

Regarding the game... I played into it about 5 hours or so (I don't own it). I'm not a big time RPG player, but I found the game to be subpar. I like Grandia and the Lunar series much more (even Breath of Fire 3 has this game beat IMO). Those games have similar (younger) characters and lighthearted quests, but done much better. The Angel threw me off... he was just goofy. The whole scene with him and Colette was really akward.

I really liked the battle system, though. And the music... when you enter the temple at the beginning of the game, the music there reminded me of a Castlevania soundtrack.

 

[Sagitario]

Nope, that scene isn't altered in any of the endings. Instead, the answer is given in Tales of Phantasia:

Spoiler

Lloyd names the tree "Yggdrasil."

Since Symphonia is a prequel to Phantasia, it makes sense, but I still wish they finished the sentence. I mean, I'm sure it's pretty obvious to those who have played Phantasia, but seeing as how it hasn't seen a US release, this line is going to leave a lot of people hanging.

I REALLY NEED TO PLAY PHANTASIA NOW :'( .

 

[Mashing]

Nope, that scene isn't altered in any of the endings. Instead, the answer is given in Tales of Phantasia:

Spoiler

Lloyd names the tree "Yggdrasil."

Since Symphonia is a prequel to Phantasia, it makes sense, but I still wish they finished the sentence. I mean, I'm sure it's pretty obvious to those who have played Phantasia, but seeing as how it hasn't seen a US release, this line is going to leave a lot of people hanging.

Oh, thank you... that's been bugging the heck out of me. Makes sense that he would call it that though.