So the DX9 version is now the default for PC, and... I think even on integrated Intel with Hardware Vertex Shader on it might be performing better and more consistently? And much like nVidia will fuck up with HVS off, probably says that Intel was slacking with proper DX8 support too.
Might be ironic that depending on how recent/high end your Intel GPU that the update needed to make it work properly with nVidia GPUs ends up making them nigh-irrelevant in favor of just going with the Intel one for the best borderless full screen experience (there's a fix here but it seems to cause stuttering.) But if it crashes with Hardware Vertex Shader on like it used to then it's definitely best to stick with nVidia or DX8 if you don't have a discrete GPU option.
Well, it's good the DX8 version hasn't been completely phased out since DX9 reacts badly on my computer, it introduces framedrops during gameplay and lag when calling up menus unless I untick hi-res art assets. Worst DX8 did was stutter a bit when scrolling through a map.
I finally finished the Sky trilogy! This series deserves more love so I figured I'd bump this dead thread to gush over it! As soon as I finished SC I needed more, because obviously 200 hours of Estelle and Olivier wasn't enough, so I immediately jumped into the 3rd. It felt more like a super long epilogue to the previous games but I loved it and it gave me the closure I needed even though it still teased future events. I actually liked that it wasn't filled with npc's to talk to with something new to say every 2 seconds because I was burnt out on that after SC, since I'm a crazy person who usually feels compelled to talk to every single one of them.
I didn't think I could like a Trails duo as much as the perfect display of love and beauty that is Estelle and Joshua, but Kevin and Ries came pretty close. I really enjoyed their story, and I loved the sad music that played during their flashbacks, which somehow might be better than the sad/nostalgic song used in FC/SC. I didn't care much for Kevin in SC, but his character development in this game was amazing and felt so realistic. And Renne's story... there are no words.
She had me in tears at the end when they were all saying their goodbyes. You could really feel her desire to connect to Estelle and Joshua mixed with her fear of letting someone in and getting attached, allowing herself to trust and risk losing it all again. I love how Estelle is the Cassius to Renne's Joshua. Really shows how much Estelle has grown and how much closer she is to surpassing her old man and becoming the Divine Staff.
Oh yeah and I've gotta mention Erika, who is absolutely hilarious and became one of my favorite characters after like 2 lines of dialogue.
Probably going to move on to CS I and II sometime soon, since they've been sitting on my shelf for forever. I'm itching to play the Crossbell games as well but I'm sure it'll be quite a long time before those come out here, if they ever do. This series has really snuck up on me and become one of my all-time favorites. The amount of detail put into the characters and story is incredible and really makes their world feel so alive. I can't give it enough praise.
- Any quick way to check how many battles I've done? A door has a requirement of 400 battles but I don't know how close I am to that...
- They keep talking about the "final battle" up those stairs. But knowing Kiseki games that's not the final battle right? Still, am I close to a point of no return? I still haven't found the tournament invitation for the nightmare mode arena...
- Not always knowing in advance who I'd encounter as guardian, I didn't bring Josette to fight the images of her brothers, nor Agate for Cassius (I had Joshua and Estelle but apparently Agate "really wanted to be there"? hmph), Shera for Luciola, etc. Am I missing on anything important, or just some additional flavour dialogue?
- They keep talking about the "final battle" up those stairs. But knowing Kiseki games that's not the final battle right? Still, am I close to a point of no return? I still haven't found the tournament invitation for the nightmare mode arena...
You're not at the point of no return, and when you get there it'll be made abundantly clear.
- Not always knowing in advance who I'd encounter as guardian, I didn't bring Josette to fight the images of her brothers, nor Agate for Cassius (I had Joshua and Estelle but apparently Agate "really wanted to be there"? hmph), Shera for Luciola, etc. Am I missing on anything important, or just some additional flavour dialogue?
I had been sorta spoiled (thanks to very poor spoiler-tagging in the community thread) about Star Door 15, so I expected something like that... but fuck, it still punched me right in the gut. I wanted to cry.
Star Door 14 had me intrigued, though. [3rd/CS2]
Are we supposed to know the identity of the Anguis other than Vita by now? And maybe the Steel Maiden or whoever, the one Duvalie worships, though I can't remember any details. I played CS1 and 2, but not the Crossbell games. It's been a while since I played FC and SC, but I think the only Anguis we saw in those was Weissman, right?
One of them was called "Professor" and runs the Thirteen Factories. Hmmm
I had been sorta spoiled (thanks to very poor spoiler-tagging in the community thread) about Star Door 15, so I expected something like that... but fuck, it still punched me right in the gut. I wanted to cry.
Star Door 14 had me intrigued, though.
Are we supposed to know the identity of the Anguis other than Vita by now? And maybe the Steel Maiden or whoever, the one Duvalie worships, though I can't remember any details. I played CS1 and 2, but not the Crossbell games. It's been a while since I played FC and SC, but I think the only Anguis we saw in those was Weissman, right?
One of them was called "Professor" and runs the Thirteen Factories. Hmmm
Hey, be careful about your own spoiler tags. Now that 3rd is out, late-comers that start from the beginning will probably play 3rd before they play Cold Steel.
I had been sorta spoiled (thanks to very poor spoiler-tagging in the community thread) about Star Door 15, so I expected something like that... but fuck, it still punched me right in the gut. I wanted to cry.
Star Door 14 had me intrigued, though. [3rd/CS2]
Are we supposed to know the identity of the Anguis other than Vita by now? And maybe the Steel Maiden or whoever, the one Duvalie worships, though I can't remember any details. I played CS1 and 2, but not the Crossbell games. It's been a while since I played FC and SC, but I think the only Anguis we saw in those was Weissman, right?
One of them was called "Professor" and runs the Thirteen Factories. Hmmm
Are we supposed to know the identity of the Anguis other than Vita by now? And maybe the Steel Maiden or whoever, the one Duvalie worships, though I can't remember any details. I played CS1 and 2, but not the Crossbell games. It's been a while since I played FC and SC, but I think the only Anguis we saw in those was Weissman, right?
One of them was called "Professor" and runs the Thirteen Factories. Hmmm