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[Yuterald]

I am 27 hours in and on Standard Chapter 6. Most characters are in their early 40s and I have about 140/236 events completed. This is one of the first DS RPGs that I picked up and played that I could not put down. Usually I shelf a lot of portable games/RPGs I decide to start because either I get distracted by other games or just loose interest, but a day hasn't gone by since I bought it on release date where I haven't booted it up.

Oh, and the Celestia town track is probably my favorite track in the game now. Whenever I am in this town I HAVE to listen to it cycle at least once. So fucking good.

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Can't decide which path to take. I have a hard time getting into games with multiple endings/paths even though the game is good.

I'm stuck here when

Spoiler

Stocke has to decide whether to join Rosch or stay with Heiss. Does it matter which path I take?

 

[backlot]

Can't decide which path to take. I have a hard time getting into games with multiple endings/paths even though the game is good.

I'm stuck here when

Spoiler

Stocke has to decide whether to join Rosch or stay with Heiss. Does it matter which path I take?

You're going to end up taking every path eventually so don't worry about choices like that. It doesn't matter what you choose first.

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

You're going to end up taking every path eventually so don't worry about choices like that. It doesn't matter what you choose first.

Okay, thanks.

 

[Yaweee]

I think many people who simply say "I'll get it later" will regret it in the long run. I mean, TO is great, but RH is something special. I haven't felt this way towards an RPG since FFVI. You just want to keep playing.

No, TO is something special, too. At this point (around 80 hours in) I regard it as the best game in its genre, even with the completely fucktarded crafting system.

And they both have the commonality of a huge, branching tree through the game showing many different scenes and events that you can (eventually) freely skip around to fill in with all of the different possibilities! TO's is relegated to post-game content, but the post-game, is, like, 3x that of a single playthrough.

 

[sfried]

And they both have the commonality of a huge, branching tree through the game showing many different scenes and events that you can (eventually) freely skip around to fill in with all of the different possibilities! TO's is relegated to post-game content, but the post-game, is, like, 3x that of a single playthrough.

I think both of these games are top of the line, it's just I didn't quite expect RH to be THIS good. I was thinking more along the lines of Strange Journey in terms of experience...

Holy crap, I just got the Chapter 4 Bad Ending with

Spoiler

the Cygnus spy. You do not ever fuck with Marco. Ever

.

 

[chespace]

Just want to post and quickly say that I started playing this game during my trip down to GDC. Barely into chapter 1 I assume as I have just gotten through the intro parts after Stocke's first mission with the escort.

Excellent story so far and the combat seems promising. Haven't been this interested in a JRPG telling a STORY since the early days of FF I think. Characterization is believable, and sometimes endearing. Story has lots of intrigue and tease in the right places.

Looking forward to playing more. RH is exactly the kind of game I've been looking for on my (3)DS.

Thanks for the recommend!

 

[Oxx]

I'm going to have to try and get some time with this game later today.

With Mario Galaxy 2, Infinity Blade, and Dragon Quest 9 also on the go this is easily the greatest number of games I have been working on simultaneously.

 

[atomsk]

got in my copy from Gamefly and instantly selected "keep it"

wooo

now to find time to play it

 

[MechaX]

Bah hah, thumbs up to the translation team for infusing some really good dry humor into the game. Some slight Standard History Ch 3 spoilers ahead.

Spoiler

"If you'll excuse me, I'm off to set fire to my own city.

For some reason, these turn of events amused me.

 

[Dark Schala]

My friend and I picked this up together this week (our EB luckily had two copies) on my suggestion since it seemed like Chrono Trigger combined with FF6. We decided to compete to see who finishes the game first. (Aside: a bad decision on my part since I have four exams this week. He’s currently slightly ahead of me by being in Chapter 3 SH while I’m in Chapter 2 AH. But I’m trying to get all the “Bad Endings” too, and trying to complete the sidequests, while he isn’t.)

This game is really great to play in bursts. I commute to school, and it’s great to play on the train and bus. The placement of Save Points in the game truly facilitates its great “pick-up-and-play” nature. Grinding doesn’t feel like a pain in the butt because it feels like you’re levelling up easily, and because the battle system is extremely fun. The dialogue is also pretty witty (but I expect no less from Atlus), and Stocke is beginning to turn into one of my favourite RPG protagonists. The characterization is quite believable. I expected Marco to behave goofy like some of the Kobolds from the Suikoden universe, but he definitely isn't. I really like him.

The story feels like a mix of Fire Emblem, Suikoden, Chrono Trigger and stuff by Matsuno thrown into a blender. The music is excellent. My boyfriend listened to it and said it reminded him of some old SNES/PS1-era stuff, and I agree. It doesn’t try too hard, and it fits situations perfectly. It’s a shame that the actual soundtrack consists of only 25 tracks. The footsteps were a little distracting at first, but I ended up ignoring them after a while. In addition, I really like the animations of some of the characters. Marco's animation in battle is great, and I loved that, when going into the army's pub, I was greeted with six soldiers quickly chugging away at what I suspect is beer (I don't know if it's "cider" or "soda pop"). Stuff like that made me smile.

I should be studying for an exam tomorrow (and for another exam on Monday), but I really want to scratch the “Radiant Historia itch”. But I know that when I pick it up, expecting to play for only 20 minutes, I’ll look at the clock again and notice that I’ve been playing for an hour. It’s incredibly soul-sucking and addictive. I haven’t been sucked into an RPG like this since Persona 4. I was in the middle of Dragon Quest VI and Tactics Ogre, but I dropped both to play this.

I definitely think it’s one of the best RPGs I’ve played this generation, and a perfect way to send off the DS. So good.

 

[JEKKI]

omg I'm so confused at this game!!

I'm at dead ends!!

at the beginning prolog of the game, I stay with my current employer and

Spoiler

the informant I needa meet is dead

so I'm at dead end.

go back to the choice node, take the other route and join my friend's army and

Spoiler

the merchant who's supposed to bring me explosives is dead

so another dead end.

I have no more nodes to go to!!! what do I do?!?!?!

 

[hypersheep]

omg I'm so confused at this game!!

I'm at dead ends!!

at the beginning prolog of the game, I stay with my current employer and

Spoiler

the informant I needa meet is dead

so I'm at dead end.

go back to the choice node, take the other route and join my friend's army and

Spoiler

the merchant who's supposed to bring me explosives is dead

so another dead end.

I have no more nodes to go to!!! what do I do?!?!?!

Go back to the first dead end and choose to wait, something may have changed

 

[JEKKI]

sweeeeet thanks that worked!!

but dang that's confusing! I cant figure it out on my own,

and apparently if I go back AGAIN to the other node it causes even more new story things to happen.



this freaking game man...

 

[Tizoc]

Has it been mentioned that the higher your level, the less EXP you'll get from enemies...

Spoiler

especially bosses?

If not, then this is something to make note of. Of course this isn't such a bad thing- I'm in A. History Chapter 6, and my main 3 characters are nearing Lvl. 55 and can hold off on their own.

EDIT: Oh yeah I wanted to add...while I like the game's story, I feel that the dialog and translation could've been a heck of a lot better.
One main gripe is that I can't decide on an 'accent' for the characters; at times I think of a British accent when reading Stocke and co.'s lines, but then they start using words and the way the dialog is written makes me switch to an American accent.
It also doesn't help that in one cutscene an NPC actually says 'dude'. I shit you not, one NPC actually says that .
One could say this is because of how the DQ games have made it so certain areas in their games have a specific accent the NPCs speak in, but I personally like that touch.

 

[Dark Schala]

Has it been mentioned that the higher your level, the less EXP you'll get from enemies...

Spoiler

especially bosses?

If not, then this is something to make note of. Of course this isn't such a bad thing- I'm in A. History Chapter 6, and my main 3 characters are nearing Lvl. 55 and can hold off on their own.

EDIT: Oh yeah I wanted to add...while I like the game's story, I feel that the dialog and translation could've been a heck of a lot better.
One main gripe is that I can't decide on an 'accent' for the characters; at times I think of a British accent when reading Stocke and co.'s lines, but then they start using words and the way the dialog is written makes me switch to an American accent.
It also doesn't help that in one cutscene an NPC actually says 'dude'. I shit you not, one NPC actually says that .
One could say this is because of how the DQ games have made it so certain areas in their games have a specific accent the NPCs speak in, but I personally like that touch.

For the first part, it seems that like in Suikoden, XP is scaled with regards to your character's levels. For instance, I grinded a lot in SH Chapter 1, but when it came time to do AH Chapter 1, my characters barely leveled up in that timeline while Rosch leveled up more often. That isn't a bad thing, imo.

For the second part, I think that's part of its charm. I don't think the game would be as well-recieved had the characters been voiced; I wouldn't be taking the game as seriously as I do right now. Deciding for the classic RPG presentation-style of silence was probably the right choice. In many ways, it adds to the "retro" feeling that the game provides. I like coming up with voices for each character in my head. Beats hearing Johnny Yong Bosch, Yuri Lowenthal and Laura Bailey all the time, despite the fact that they are very very good voice actors.

As for minor dialogue gripes, while it is jarring to see characters say "dude", I personally don't mind it since it still works in context (ex: "For Gilgamesh...It's morphing time!" and references to Homer Simpson's "I am so smrt" song in FF5 Advance, and "PREPARE 4 TOTAL PWNAGE. WOOT! WOOT! WOOT! WOOT!" in Partners in Time). You could just think that in one town people have this dialect of the language, while in another town, people have another dialect of the language. ...Or they come from the future or space or another dimension. I dunno. I have a wild imagination. :/

 

[Amir0x]

This game just consistently impresses me. I genuinely think this would be considered one of the best RPGs on PS2, or PSOne or SNES. It's just a fantastic concept with extremely strong (albeit a bit easy) core gameplay and a phenomenal sense of progression and just the right mixture of side quests and story driven gameplay.

I daresay it might be one of the top twenty jRPGs of all time.

It's just wonderful. What a gem.

 

[Wichu]

Is this game out in Europe? If not, has a EU release been confirmed?
It looks pretty interesting; I'm a fan of DS RPGs.

And before I forget, what's the difficulty like? I quit playing FFIV probably about half way through because I keep dying

 

[Oxx]

Atlus don't do Europe. They would have to team-up with another company to release it officially.

Given how easy it is to import from Canada/US they don't usually bother.

Maybe the 3DS region-lock will force their hand with future games.

 

[Spwn]

Is this game out in Europe? If not, has a EU release been confirmed?

No and no. I'd be optimistic about an European release if 3DS wasn't right behind the corner. Now I'd say the chances of it getting an European release are very slim.

 

[Peff]

Is this game out in Europe? If not, has a EU release been confirmed?
It looks pretty interesting; I'm a fan of DS RPGs.

And before I forget, what's the difficulty like? I quit playing FFIV probably about half way through because I keep dying

Nope, and it probably won't be released like the rest of Atlus DS games. I've only played the prologue myself but it doesn't look like the game is hard from what I've been reading, as long as you "get" the battle system.

And now Ami has made want to keep playing, if he's liking it then it must keep a constant quality level throughout, and I really liked the Prologue. I just need to find a way to juggle it with Tactics Ogre...

 

[Dark Schala]

And before I forget, what's the difficulty like? I quit playing FFIV probably about half way through because I keep dying

I don't think it's that hard. It's more along the lines of using the qualities of the 3x3 grid to execute attacks efficiently and strategically. For example, if an enemy is at the front of the grid, they'll hit your party harder. If you use an attack called "Push Assault" to move them to the back of the 3x3 grid, they won't hit you as hard. Comboing efficiently will also make battles end faster. The game explains this in the tutorial and makes it sound less complicated and jargony than I am. Just know that you'll be using MP a lot, but that doesn't hinder progress. Items are also plentiful (good drop rate and a ton of money in this game; a heavy contrast to Final Fantasy XIII).

My friend who has only played a few SNES-era RPGs (and can't seem to figure out the complexities of the "newer" ones) seems to find it okay, and not too difficult.

Oh wow, Mr. Amir0x likes this game! That's great! How far in are you Amir0x, and what was your "I effing APPROVE of this game!" moment if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Oxx]

I want to play the game more often, but it's one of the few handheld games that I want to sit down with headphones and immerse myself. Stuff like DQ and Pokemon I can mess around with with the sound muted while watching TV.

 

[semiconscious]

This game just consistently impresses me. I genuinely think this would be considered one of the best RPGs on PS2, or PSOne or SNES. It's just a fantastic concept with extremely strong (albeit a bit easy) core gameplay and a phenomenal sense of progression and just the right mixture of side quests and story driven gameplay.

I daresay it might be one of the top twenty jRPGs of all time.

It's just wonderful. What a gem.

if nothing else, radiant historia is but one more confirmation (as was, for me, anyway, resonance of fate) that turn-based rpgs, when done well, can be every bit as interesting & enjoyable as they've ever been. along with other genres, there's been mostly 'okay but not great' stuff this gen, which can tend to make it look as tho the genre itself has nowhere to go anymore. what rh clearly demonstrates is that there's nothing fundamentally flawed about turn-based combat - combine some imaginative mechanics with some quality writing/storytelling, & you can even today end up with a turn-based rpg that's as much fun to play as any that've come before...

the turn-based rpg / jrpg isn't dead. it's just, for the most part (unfortunately), been missing a very critical element: imagination...

 

[Tizoc]

For the first part, it seems that like in Suikoden, XP is scaled with regards to your character's levels. For instance, I grinded a lot in SH Chapter 1, but when it came time to do AH Chapter 1, my characters barely leveled up in that timeline while Rosch leveled up more often. That isn't a bad thing, imo.

I don't think I've intended my post to mean that it is a bad thing, but

Spoiler

it can really be a bit irritating when you beat a boss, who isn't very tough and isn't very easy and only get 90 or 200 EXP from them and you're well into your mid Lvl 40s or higher, and 200 EXP is the average you get from NORMAL battles XD

For the second part, I think that's part of its charm. I don't think the game would be as well-recieved had the characters been voiced; I wouldn't be taking the game as seriously as I do right now.

I wasn't talking about the game needing voice acting, but I'm used to reading character dialog while envisioning a voice for that character. I've been very weary of the game's translation since the first few hours I've played of it, as it seemed to leave much to be desired. Seriously, there are times when I read Raynie's lines with a british accent then I suddenly find that I'm reading it with an american accent.
Now if you find this gripe, silly, then yeah I can understand that, I wish this didn't bother me, but like I said; the game's translation makes me question it and that after playing numerous RPGs, you'd think that dialog would try to fit and match with the setting, despite how fictitious it'd be

As for minor dialogue gripes, while it is jarring to see characters say "dude", I personally don't mind it since it still works in context (ex: "For Gilgamesh...It's morphing time!" and references to Homer Simpson's "I am so smrt" song in FF5 Advance, and "PREPARE 4 TOTAL PWNAGE. WOOT! WOOT! WOOT! WOOT!" in Partners in Time).

Yeah well
1- It's Gilgamesh, and FF5 was meant to be more funnier than the other FFs which were more serious in tone. I mean heck, the turtle sage references the TMNT cartoon, and Bartz and Galuf make jokes about puns.
2- This game takes place in a steam-punk-ish medi-evil era, much like FF6, so I'd expect them to, though not necessarily ye olde english, speak in a manor that reflects the era. ...and there is no context to saying the word 'dude' in this game. To take matters further, they use the word 'aplomb'. Yes that is a word, I had to check an online dictionary to be sure. Atlus published Demon's Souls which had a very good translation and the way character spoke was fitting for the game's setting; how come this game didn't get the same treatment?

Anyways I'm now in Ch. 7 of the Alt. History

Spoiler

time to take on Heiss! ...but first I might grind to Lvl. 60 cuz the boss I fought is driving me nuts @_@

@D. Schala- Yeah drops are better than FF13 and DQ series overall...almost too good. I recall grinding at one area and found that I've collected nearly 70+ of the 200 HP recovering potion XD. Also I find that enemies provide more money than you may ever need.

 

[Amir0x]

Oh wow, Mr. Amir0x likes this game! That's great! How far in are you Amir0x, and what was your "I effing APPROVE of this game!" moment if you don't mind me asking?

Honestly, the game impressed me pretty early on, but I liked how even seemingly tiny things can be changed utilizing abilities or altered timelines you get elsewhere in some other moment in the game. It's all very intricate, feels very open ended and rewarding. The thing that really sold me was such a simple thing in the context of the game - the

Spoiler

getting the explosion ability

, and then

Spoiler

finding that soldier dead

and then

Spoiler

going back to save that soldier at an earlier point in the timeline

even though it wasn't really mandatory to the story or anything. It was just a neat, perfectly implemented handheld friendly sidequest which utilized the concept of the game well and didn't feel superfluous.

There's tons of little moments like that. I don't think Radiant Historia changes my opinion about stories in jRPGs - it's still completely absurd and frequently poorly written - but with a concept this finely executed, it really doesn't matter much. It's so much fun. The battle system can get real exciting when you're doing high combos, switching enemies left, back,up, thunder... crazy combo shits.

 

[schlew]

I'm pretty early in the game (closing in on 6 hours), but I've encountered an enemy that's been giving me a difficult time. It's in the mission that takes you to

Spoiler

Judgement Cliff

, and it's a

Spoiler

rock monster with a mushroom coming out if its back

. Now, it's weak to poison attacks, but letting the poison kill it is very time consuming. What's the best way to defeat it? Thanks.

 

[Crash Station]

Game is starting to get a bit more non-linear than I would like, but I'm still enjoying the hell out of it. My only real complaint is it seems to be easy to get overleveled, but I'm still relatively early in the game so that might change.

 

[Luigi87]

I'm pretty early in the game (closing in on 6 hours), but I've encountered an enemy that's been giving me a difficult time. It's in the mission that takes you to

Spoiler

Judgement Cliff

, and it's a

Spoiler

rock monster with a mushroom coming out if its back

. Now, it's weak to poison attacks, but letting the poison kill it is very time consuming. What's the best way to defeat it? Thanks.

The poison. Time consuming yes, but just keep healing or on your guard, and it will eventually decimate its health, then you deliver the final blow (as poison will not kill anything in the game, only take it down to 1HP).

Holy crap, I just got the Chapter 4 Bad Ending with

Spoiler

the Cygnus spy. You do not ever fuck with Marco. Ever

.

I just got that one... Yeah, holy crap will suffice @_@

 

[Luigi87]

Dammit, DP...

 

[Nemo]

The take on the battles is pretty cool, plus you can never get enough RPGs on DS

Think I'll be importing this if I can find it at my regulars

 

[Dark Schala]

I wasn't talking about the game needing voice acting, but I'm used to reading character dialog while envisioning a voice for that character. I've been very weary of the game's translation since the first few hours I've played of it, as it seemed to leave much to be desired. Seriously, there are times when I read Raynie's lines with a british accent then I suddenly find that I'm reading it with an american accent.

Perhaps Raynie could be code-switching (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code-switching)? (Again, I have a silly imagination. Forgive me.) Your feelings aren't silly; I understand it pretty well. I think it's awesome that we all read games and texts differently. Ex: I read my textbooks in Professor Farnsworth's voice. It's unfortunate that it's quite jarring, but I guess it's the way of the Woolseyism.

there is no context to saying the word 'dude' in this game. To take matters further, they use the word 'aplomb'. Yes that is a word, I had to check an online dictionary to be sure. Atlus published Demon's Souls which had a very good translation and the way character spoke was fitting for the game's setting; how come this game didn't get the same treatment?

If it makes you feel better, "dude" is a word that originated in the 1880s. It literally meant "fastidious man", "tourist" or a guy concerned about his appearance. "Aplomb" originated in the 1820s. What I meant by "context" is more along the lines of the immediate speech situation and circumstances of the speech act (in terms of the sentence). I didn't mean context in terms of what we know about the world. Sorry if that was ambiguous. I get the feeling that localization teams don't necessarily look up the etymology and borrowing dates of lexical items when incorporating their uses in-game.

Yeah drops are better than FF13 and DQ series overall...almost too good. I recall grinding at one area and found that I've collected nearly 70+ of the 200 HP recovering potion XD. Also I find that enemies provide more money than you may ever need.

Trying to Platinum FFXIII at the moment is making me feel incredibly grateful to this game for liberally giving me money and items. It's pretty refreshing! XD

There's tons of little moments like that. I don't think Radiant Historia changes my opinion about stories in jRPGs - it's still completely absurd and frequently poorly written - but with a concept this finely executed, it really doesn't matter much. It's so much fun. The battle system can get real exciting when you're doing high combos, switching enemies left, back,up, thunder... crazy combo shits.

I agree. The turn-based gameplay mechanic isn't passé, but rather, it's what you do with the rest of the game to make it more presentable and fun. Oftentimes it's the little things that uses the game mechanics to its benefit that make the game more memorable rather than the overarching story arc or obvious game mechanics. Not gonna lie, sometimes the 2D/3D presentation in this game is a little jarring, but I can easily ignore that because I am enjoying the game enough to look past the little gripes I have.

 

[hypersheep]

I'm pretty early in the game (closing in on 6 hours), but I've encountered an enemy that's been giving me a difficult time. It's in the mission that takes you to

Spoiler

Judgement Cliff

, and it's a

Spoiler

rock monster with a mushroom coming out if its back

. Now, it's weak to poison attacks, but letting the poison kill it is very time consuming. What's the best way to defeat it? Thanks.

Actually the monster in question has so little health that poisoning it takes it straight down to 1 hp, so not time consuming at all.

In other news, stupid broken secret boss

 

[7Th]

Game is starting to get a bit more non-linear than I would like, but I'm still enjoying the hell out of it. My only real complaint is it seems to be easy to get overleveled, but I'm still relatively early in the game so that might change.

Radiant Historia's non-linearity isn't different from the non-linearity of a Megaman game: you're going to have to beat all the available scenarios before moving forward, they're just letting you choose which scenario you want to beat first.

 

[JEKKI]

lol! sweetdiculous!

my new favorite word!

 

[Amir0x]

why'd you all artsy Polaroid filter that pic :<

 

[Crash Station]

He just lives in a limestone cavern.

Radiant Historia's non-linearity isn't different from the non-linearity of a Megaman game: you're going to have to beat all the available scenarios before moving forward, they're just letting you choose which scenario you want to beat first.

Yeah, starting to realize that now. Still not a fan of disjointed story-telling.

 

[Luthos]

So the general consensus on this game is good, right?

It looked good from some preview videos I've seen. And I barely use my DS as is. So I was looking into getting this.

 

[The Return of]

I don't think Radiant Historia changes my opinion about stories in jRPGs - it's still completely absurd and frequently poorly written - but with a concept this finely executed, it really doesn't matter much.

Not to get too Off topic, but what are some well written jrpgs you've played and liked?(just curious because I'm picking up more games soon.) Don't name Mother 3 either lol, that seems to be an obvious answer.

 

[Luigi87]

The way some of the Bad Ends happen actually amuse me.

Spoiler

Such as Liese in that if you don't get her together with her loved one, the chain of events leads to the world ending.

 

[Amir0x]

Not to get too Off topic, but what are some well written jrpgs you've played and liked?(just curious because I'm picking up more games soon.) Don't name Mother 3 either lol, that seems to be an obvious answer.

If I can't name one of the only jRPGs ever to have a well written story then I'm out of ideas for you

 

[Elfforkusu]

:lol at the title change. Very nice.

(still waiting on ups)

 

[The Return of]

If I can't name one of the only jRPGs ever to have a well written story then I'm out of ideas for you

None of Matsuno games? I hear praise for those a lot, but I've yet to get to Tactics Ogre, FFT, Vagrant Story, or FF12.

 

[Little Green Yoda]

How many save slots does the game have?

 

[Amir0x]

None of Matsuno games? I hear praise for those a lot, but I've yet to get to Tactics Ogre, FFT, Vagrant Story, or FF12.

Well, I love Matsuno's games, and they tend to have the right idea - the political intrigue and, when translated right, solidly written dialogue that is leaps and bounds beyond what we find in normal Final Fantasy games and jRPGs. But if you actually look at the plot outline, it's still can be pretty bizarrely unfocused with a lot of weird plot issues. Even FFXII, which was easily the best written Final Fantasy main game, can't escape the problems of all FF games... which is to say a broken third act and a penchant to slip back into awkward over the top black/white villains.

Vagrant Story is quite good, although it's sorta half-way between the long winded jRPG and action games, being over in around 15 hours without slipping often into endless cutscenes. So its outlet to tell a story is easier, I think, more focused. It's definitely one of the better written games, as far as games go. Tactics Ogre as well.


Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door (and the original Paper Mario) are genuinely funny, well written jRPGs.

 

[Crash Station]

None of Matsuno games? I hear praise for those a lot, but I've yet to get to Tactics Ogre, FFT, Vagrant Story, or FF12.

Which other ones have you played and enjoyed? It's a pretty big genre, so there's bound to be others you enjoy the writing of.

A lot of people say Nier is well written. Didn't really do anything, but neither did Mother 3, so what do I know.

 

[The Return of]

How many save slots does the game have?

3.

Well, I love Matsuno's games, and they tend to have the right idea - the political intrigue and, when translated right, solidly written dialogue that is leaps and bounds beyond what we find in normal Final Fantasy games and jRPGs. But if you actually look at the plot outline, it's still can be pretty bizarrely unfocused with a lot of weird plot issues. Even FFXII, which was easily the best written Final Fantasy main game, can't escape the problems of all FF games... which is to say a broken third act and a penchant to slip back into awkward over the top black/white villains.

Vagrant Story is quite good, although it's sorta half-way between the long winded jRPG and action games, being over in around 15 hours without slipping often into endless cutscenes. So its outlet to tell a story is easier, I think, more focused. It's definitely one of the better written games, as far as games go. Tactics Ogre as well.


Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door (and the original Paper Mario) are genuinely funny, well written jRPGs.

I hate that about the FF games, some of villains seem to have good reasons(somewhat) for doing what they do, then near the end of the game they basically get all crazy. I guess that's the charm of the series. I should check out Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door, it's the only Mario RPG I haven't beaten and I really can't say I gave it a chance. Thanks for letting me know about the games.

Which other ones have you played and enjoyed? It's a pretty big genre, so there's bound to be others you enjoy the writing of.

A lot of people say Nier is well written. Didn't really do anything, but neither did Mother 3, so what do I know.

Hmm, I mostly like the SMT series. I'm not THAT picky on JRPGs or games, I just don't like when games act as if the player playing is an idiot or when JRPGs continue to shove characters emotions down your throat. I love games that are subtle. I thought Nier was alright, I personally liked the way it handled multiple playthroughs, but beating the game 4 times is just too much especially when I didn't enjoy Nier's gameplay that much lol.

 

[Dark Schala]

Well, I love Matsuno's games, and they tend to have the right idea - the political intrigue and, when translated right, solidly written dialogue that is leaps and bounds beyond what we find in normal Final Fantasy games and jRPGs. But if you actually look at the plot outline, it's still can be pretty bizarrely unfocused with a lot of weird plot issues. Even FFXII, which was easily the best written Final Fantasy main game, can't escape the problems of all FF games... which is to say a broken third act and a penchant to slip back into awkward over the top black/white villains.

Vagrant Story is quite good, although it's sorta half-way between the long winded jRPG and action games, being over in around 15 hours without slipping often into endless cutscenes. So its outlet to tell a story is easier, I think, more focused. It's definitely one of the better written games, as far as games go. Tactics Ogre as well.


Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door (and the original Paper Mario) are genuinely funny, well written jRPGs.

So, basically Mother 3, Vagrant Story (which I have not played yet, unfortunately), the Paper Mario games (but not the Mario and Luigi games) are the better JRPG stories for you personally? I can't argue with that. None of those games take themselves too seriously (well, Vagrant Story might, but I haven't played it). I'm a little surprised you didn't mention any of the Genso Suikoden games, but I guess some of the titles slip into the "broken third act" that you're referring to, yeah?

I think it's one of the trends I don't like about JRPG narratives lately-- quite a few of them seem to take themselves too seriously, try to develop overly complex plots and the plot itself is lost in development. It's almost like the writers forget that they're writing a game rather than an interactive movie, but that's a general descriptor. I'm not saying all JRPGs are like that. I love them to bits and I've played a ton of them, but I don't know whether I'm looking through nostalgia glasses, but I liked the older ones more. Mother 3 was a huge exception because I loved the way the story was told: not through elaborate pretty cutscenes and character speeches, but through textless "cutscenes" using the sprites and flashbacks. It was a very beautiful and evocative game (ex: the beginning of Chapter 4 in Mother 3). Dragon Quest V employed a similar mechanic.

Radiant Historia doesn't seem to be getting lost in the void yet from what I've played, of course I'm trying not to count my chickens. I love Matsuno games, Fire Emblem and Suikoden, so this feels like it's right up my alley.

On-topic: Does anyone know what I have to do with these scrolls I keep finding? Also, for the first Prologue node,

Spoiler

there is a third branch leading off of it

. Did I miss something, or will the solution come later on in the game?

 

[Crash Station]

Hmm, I mostly like the SMT series. I'm not THAT picky on JRPGs or games, I just don't like when games act as if the player playing is an idiot or when JRPGs continue to shove characters emotions down your throat. I love games that are subtle. I thought Nier was alright, I personally liked the way it handled multiple playthroughs, but beating the game 4 times is just too much especially when I didn't enjoy Nier's gameplay that much lol.

I guess the Fire Emblem series might be what you're looking for? Possibly Glory of Heracles as well. Idk. You're an SMT fan, so you're clearly not new to the genre. Melodrama is a big part of it since it channels a lot of anime tropes. More subtle stuff does exist, but it's not common. Can't really help you much since I'm more into the over the top stories and find the subtle ones boring.

 

[JEKKI]

why'd you all artsy Polaroid filter that pic :<

coz it's the new camera Im using

but yeeaaaaayyyy finally made it to Chapter 2!

and it took 8 hours!! wtfreek man this game is loooong!

and what's worse is I kno theyre gonna make me go back to the other events in chapter 1 that I didnt do!!

freakin megaman historia!