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My summer RPG queue list - I need some advice.

D

Drakken

Member
So, I've made a list of games I want to play during the summer. It's mainly RPGs, since I have a lot more time to devote to games during the summer. I'd like to get absorbed in a single RPG and play all the way through it, then play through another one, and so on. The last RPG I played was Tales of Symphonia back in July...I loved that, btw.

The things that are most important to me in RPGs:

1) Music - If the music isn't good; it's not worth playing to me.
2) Character development - I like getting attached to the characters and their plights, as I did with ToS.

Does Lunar: SSSC's music compare to Lunar 2 Eternal Blue's? I love EB's music, and if SSSC's is on the same level; I think I'll play that first.

Here's my list, kind of ordered by priority/when I think I'll play them. I haven't touched any of them except the FFs, so I don't really know much about their gameplay. Opinions/impressions would be appreciated.

Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete (PS1)
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (GC)
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (PS2)
Skies of Arcadia Legends (GC)
Final Fantasy III (SNES)
Suikoden III (PS2)
Xenogears (PS1)
Final Fantasy Anthology: Final Fantasy V & VI (PS1)
Final Fantasy Chronicles: Final Fantasy IV & Chrono Trigger (PS1)
Final Fantasy Origins: Final Fantasy I & II (PS1)
Illusion of Gaia (SNES)

If a game has random battles every few steps, as I've heard Skies does, then I'm most likely not going to play it.

I'm sure a lot of you have a lot of games you want to get through during the summer as well. Feel free to post your 'queue.'
 
Skies of Arcadia Legends has much lower random battle frequency than the DC version. It wasn't every few steps certainly from my recollection.
 
I actually liked the music in SSS:C better than EB.

I would recommend dropping Illusion of Gaia. The music is average, and the characters are throwaways.

Nathan
 
gblues said:
I actually liked the music in SSS:C better than EB.

I would recommend dropping Illusion of Gaia. The music is average, and the characters are throwaways.

Nathan
Click to expand...

Thanks. I think I'll play SSS:C first then. Illusion of Gaia was last on my list anyway, so yeah, I probably won't play it.

Azih said:
Skies of Arcadia Legends has much lower random battle frequency than the DC version. It wasn't every few steps certainly from my recollection.
Click to expand...

Really? I'm really interested in playing it, since I've heard so much good stuff about it. I let my friend borrow it, and he really enjoyed it. I'll move that up the list then.
 
Lunar was great. You should definitely play it. The story isn't that great but the characters and music are great.
 
Drakken said:
So, I've made a list of games I want to play during the summer.

Xenogears (PS1)

If a game has random battles every few steps, as I've heard Skies does, then I'm most likely not going to play it.
Click to expand...
Throw Xenogears right out then. I wasted a year of my life playing that game on and off to completion.
 
Father_Brain said:
Is there anything wrong with skipping Lufia I and just playing the sequel?
Click to expand...

Nothing at all. Lufia II is far superior to its predecessor.

In fact, if you want to play both, I'd play Lufia II and then Lufia; Lufia II is actually a prequel.
 
Yeah, FF III/VI is a must-play.
Lunar was great. You should definitely play it. The story isn't that great but the characters and music are great.
Click to expand...
Lunar:SSC is a real classic, huh? I have it sitting on the shelf too. Will it give me that "Ah, so this is why the game is so revered" feeling that I got from playing FFVI and FFVII long after they came out? I mean, I know it's 2D and all, but that never matters to me.
 
Teddman said:
Yeah, FF III/VI is a must-play.

Lunar:SSC is a real classic, huh? I have it sitting on the shelf too. Will it give me that "Ah, so this is why the game is so revered" feeling that I got from playing FFVI and FFVII long after they came out? I mean, I know it's 2D and all, but that never matters to me.
Click to expand...

If you're a good person, and you like good games, and you're all about goodness and not badness, then, yes, you'll love Lunar. Otherwise, well, you're just a bad person.
 
Wow, that’s a heck of a list! Aren’t you worried you will get burnt out with all those RPG's? I mean I LOVE RPG's, they are by far my favourite genre. But after a finish one like say, Suikoden III, as much as I enjoyed it, I'm pretty much RPG'd out. I have to play a different game, doesn’t matter what it is, FPS, RTS, Racing, that kind of thing, and when I’m done then I feel ready for another RPG.

If you can grind through all of those, then you have a lot of dedication!
 
Is that FF4 on ps1 compilation, hard type or still watered down usa one? I think its latter as people still recommend snes translations.
 
I'd avoid doing Lufia II -> Lufia because Lufia II will spoil you. Also, IMO, the impact of the second game is much greater if you have an understanding of it and future events (kind of backwards but it does work this way).
 
Oracle Dragon said:
Wow, that’s a heck of a list! Aren’t you worried you will get burnt out with all those RPG's? I mean I LOVE RPG's, they are by far my favourite genre. But after a finish one like say, Suikoden III, as much as I enjoyed it, I'm pretty much RPG'd out. I have to play a different game, doesn’t matter what it is, FPS, RTS, Racing, that kind of thing, and when I’m done then I feel ready for another RPG.

If you can grind through all of those, then you have a lot of dedication!
Click to expand...

If I get RPG'ed out; I have these games to play in between the RPGs:

Kirby Super Star (SNES)
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (Xbox)
Beyond Good & Evil (GC)
Panzer Dragoon Orta (Xbox)
Project Gotham Racing 2 (Xbox)
Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance (Xbox)
P.N. 03 (GC)

Thanks for the advice, everyone. Lunar it is.
 
All are good, but:

Lunar is good, but its battles are very repetitive and bosses boil down to using Alex's power-up and then Sword Dance over and over again. Late battles are very long, but not actually challenging.

FFIV is based on the original Japanese version, not the easy type, and features a wonderful new translation. It is by far the best of the PSX SNES Final Fantasy ports, aside from the crappy FMV, especially since the slowdown from the early PSX japanese version is now gone and the game has virtually no loading delay.

Dragon Quarter is quite wonderful, as I love non-standard RPGs. It can get a little oppressive and your limited resources make it fairly intense for an RPG, but those can be either pros or cons.

I played Skies for DC. Every moment out of battle was pure joy and every moment in battle was pure tedium. I barely finished due to the soul-sucking boredom the fights inspired, but I found a book to read while I hammered the A button over and over again.

Xenogears may be my personal favorite RPG due to its deep story and excellent characters, but it is a very long, slow game.

I'm still playing Paper Mario. So far it has been almost exactly like the first, but much more creative.

Suikoden III has a great story and cast, but it does have random encounters and the battle system, while fast, is not the most user friendly.
 
Diomedeskun said:
All are good, but:

Lunar is good, but its battles are very repetitive and bosses boil down to using Alex's power-up and then Sword Dance over and over again. Late battles are very long, but not actually challenging.

FFIV is based on the original Japanese version, not the easy type, and features a wonderful new translation. It is by far the best of the PSX SNES Final Fantasy ports, aside from the crappy FMV, especially since the slowdown from the early PSX japanese version is now gone and the game has virtually no loading delay.

Dragon Quarter is quite wonderful, as I love non-standard RPGs. It can get a little oppressive and your limited resources make it fairly intense for an RPG, but those can be either pros or cons.

I played Skies for DC. Every moment out of battle was pure joy and every moment in battle was pure tedium. I barely finished due to the soul-sucking boredom the fights inspired, but I found a book to read while I hammered the A button over and over again.

Xenogears may be my personal favorite RPG due to its deep story and excellent characters, but it is a very long, slow game.

I'm still playing Paper Mario. So far it has been almost exactly like the first, but much more creative.

Suikoden III has a great story and cast, but it does have random encounters and the battle system, while fast, is not the most user friendly.
Click to expand...

Wow, thanks. It looks like it will be:

Lunar
Paper Mario
BoF V

No loading in FFIV means I would probably play that after I play FFIII (SNES version).
 
Diomedeskun said:
FFIV is based on the original Japanese version, not the easy type, and features a wonderful new translation. It is by far the best of the PSX SNES Final Fantasy ports, aside from the crappy FMV, especially since the slowdown from the early PSX japanese version is now gone and the game has virtually no loading delay.
Click to expand...
Is there a ton of leveling-up required in the hardtype version? I've been wanting to play this classic, but I don't know how much random battling/leveling up I can take for an old-school style game nowadays. I hear it's actually pretty challenging?
 
My RPG backlog looks like this:

Star Ocean 3 (I'm in the process of this one right now)
Paper Mario 2
FF: Crystal Chronicles
KOTOR 2
Ys Ark of Napishtilan
Shadow Hearts Covenant
Baiten Kaitos
SMT: Nocturne

Not to mention non rpgs like Zelda: Four Swords (GC), God of War & Metroid Prime 2.

And I've got Guild Wars preordered and I'm still hooked on WoW and Pirates!
 
I played the beginning of Lufia I and it seemed like an utterly generic JRPG with a dull story, shitty random battles, and no other real gameplay to speak of. I've played the beginning of Lufia II, and the story is more interesting - but more importantly, the dungeons are actually really fun, and the battles, while still dull and generic turn-based JRPG stuff, are thankfully non-random and much faster-paced. So anyway, Lufia II>>>>>>>Lufia I. I have no idea what Neverland was thinking by making the dungeons in Legend Returns random.
 
I'd go through them in this order personally. Start with the short, build up to the epics, end with the short again. This order should keep the gameplay diverse so each rpg will feel fresh and very different from the previous one. All the unlisted ones can pretty much be skipped IMHO unless you beat all the below and have time. Music-wise, the high points will be Xenogears, BoF, and FFVI.

Drakken said:
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (PS2)
Final Fantasy III (SNES)
Xenogears (PS1)
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (GC)
Final Fantasy Anthology: Final Fantasy V
Chrono Trigger
Click to expand...


My queue isn't really a summer queue, it's a 'when you quit your job and are unemployed for a month or two' queue:

Valkyrie Profile
Shining Force Neo
Persona 2 Tsumi
Persona 2 Batsu
Phantasy Star II PS2 remake
SMT1
SMT2
SMT...If
Tengai Makyou II GC remake
Tales of Phantasia PS remake
Tales of Destiny
Popolocrois I
Popolocrois II
 
My list for the next few months.

Ogre Battle 64
Atelier Iris
Stella Deus
Growlanser II
Growlanser III


Is Dragon Quest 8 a summer release? That would move to the top of my list.
 
jiggle said:
My list for the next few months.

Ogre Battle 64
Atelier Iris
Stella Deus
Growlanser II
Growlanser III


Is Dragon Quest 8 a summer release? That would move to the top of my list.
Click to expand...

I think it's scheduled for the ever-so-vague "Fall" like all the other huge games left this year. Sigh... I too am eagerly awaiting this game.
 
I'm anticipating dates for some Square-Enix games at E3...no clue if it'll happen, but it'd help so I know how much money I'll have to drop late in 2005.
 
Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete (PS1)
Final Fantasy III (SNES)
Final Fantasy Chronicles: Final Fantasy IV & Chrono Trigger (PS1)
Xenogears (PS1)

Those you must play. There's not even an argument possible here. Those are the cream of crop and they need to be in your rpg knowledge. If you don't like those games, your taste is none.


Final Fantasy Anthology: Final Fantasy V
Final Fantasy Origins: Final Fantasy I & II (PS1)
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (PS2)
Skies of Arcadia Legends (GC)
Illusion of Gaia (SNES)
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (GC)
Suikoden III (PS2)

As for the end of this list, it's my order or preference. The FF are a must if only for the history of the genre. Suikoden 3 is pretty sucky, i hope you played the first and second.
 
Teddman said:
Is there a ton of leveling-up required in the hardtype version? I've been wanting to play this classic, but I don't know how much random battling/leveling up I can take for an old-school style game nowadays. I hear it's actually pretty challenging?
Click to expand...

It's been a while, so I can't really remember, but I don't think its any worse than the easytype version, at least until the moon. The game isn't so much harder as it is more complex. Most bosses have more attacks and require some strategy and almost all the characters have some ability that was cut, like Cecil's Dark Wave. I don't remember the rest of the differences, as I haven't played the SNES FF2 in about 10 years, but the translation is quite good (unlike FF5 in Anthology) and makes the story deeper with much better characterization. Kain in particular is much more interesting.
 
AeroGod said:
Dont pass up Skies of Arcadia. Its amazing.
Click to expand...

It was amazing for its time. I haven't played it in years, but thinking back about the slow dungeons and slow battle system make me think the game hasn't aged all that well.
 
More support for Lunar here. Thinking about it, I think it's the first RPG I played all the way through without getting bored (for the some reason I tend to get sick of them and then continue or restart them a long time later with more determination). For me it has the most memorable music ever, along with Final Fantasy VIII and Betrayal at Krondor for some reason. The characters are very likable; not exactly Shakesperean but a lot of fun.
 
Skies of Arcadia Legends is awesome, if you're an RPG fan you need to play it.

Paper Mario 2 is a great alternative RPG from your usual swords and dragons and shit, with a nice sense of humor and a great interactive battle system.
 
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