Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2011 15:14:18 GMT -5
I seriously want to pick this game up when its released in North America. The visuals look absolutely gorgeous for a Wii game Xenoblade and Skyward Sword are the two RPG's I will be looking forward to this year. What's everybody's opinion on this game? Has anyone played it yet?
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Post by Varion on Jan 28, 2011 16:51:30 GMT -5
I seriously want to pick this game up when its released in North America. The visuals look absolutely gorgeous for a Wii game Xenoblade and Skyward Sword are the two RPG's I will be looking forward to this year. What's everybody's opinion on this game? Has anyone played it yet? Few hours off the end of the Japanese version (can't remember what distracted me now), but it's an excellent game. Great music overall (although the field music peaks with the first area), battle system is enjoyable if not exceptional, but the real highlight is the environments, and especially the size of them. I always worked to complete the map and they're huge. Exploration is definitely the game's strongest point. The story is quite interesting too. That said, did they confirm it would be released this year? The English release seemed to disappear off the map after it appeared on some E3 release list before the game came out in Japan. Hopefully it'll come out though, it'd be a real shame if it didn't.
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Post by schlagwerk on Jan 28, 2011 17:11:55 GMT -5
Yeah, I'd be looking forward to this and Last Story if they get US releases
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Post by Raison D'etritus on Jan 28, 2011 19:52:20 GMT -5
Considering Monolith Soft is my all time favorite developer (who has yet to disappoint Square me), this has probably been my single most anticipated game since first hearing of it.
I've been continuously surprised by the enduring lack of an NA release date.
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Post by Ashurei on Jan 28, 2011 19:56:17 GMT -5
Considering Monolith Soft is my all time favorite developer (who has yet to disappoint Square me), this has probably been my single most anticipated game since first hearing of it. Sounds like somebody didn't play Xenosaga Episode II.
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Post by AllenSmithee on Jan 28, 2011 20:05:38 GMT -5
I watched my brother play through Xenosaga Episode II and I like it and he likes it.
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Post by Raison D'etritus on Jan 28, 2011 21:13:31 GMT -5
Considering Monolith Soft is my all time favorite developer (who has yet to disappoint Square me), this has probably been my single most anticipated game since first hearing of it. Sounds like somebody didn't play Xenosaga Episode II. You mean the game with the fantastic story, some of the best cutscenes ever, and the deep strategic battle system? Yes, it was damn linear and the battle system made you think more than most RPGs (and albeit in a very restricted manner), but I felt it was III that fucked the series to death by butchering the story. The rush job done it didn't help either. I've actually considered replaying them several times (2 as well), but the plot mutilation alwasy dissuades me.
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Rhyanna
Zinoyd
Looking for something to run into just slightly off center
Posts: 260
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Post by Rhyanna on Jan 28, 2011 21:14:53 GMT -5
I watched some Xenosaga.
Wait.
That wasn't a remote control in my hand, that was a controller!
That was a game...?
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Post by Raison D'etritus on Jan 28, 2011 21:21:02 GMT -5
I watched some Xenosaga. Wait. That wasn't a remote control in my hand, that was a controller! That was a game...? Compared to Metal Gear Solid 4 it was. 1/2 game; 1/2 plot I don't mind. 4/5 cut scene; 1/5 game is pushing it. But yeah, Xenosaga is definitely one of the best games I ever watched.
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Post by schlagwerk on Jan 28, 2011 21:28:38 GMT -5
It's a shame ep.1's cutscene to gameplay balance was off and ep.2 had a needlessly complicated battle system (interesting but regular encounters don't need to take 5 minutes!) and poor plot pacing 'cause ep.3 was an excellent game that most people got scared off before they could even play
The best feature of ep.2 is that no plot development happens between the cutscenes. Watch all of them on your own and you're all caught up for ep.3!
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Post by Raison D'etritus on Jan 28, 2011 21:51:19 GMT -5
Except you're not. . . The game picks up two games worth of storyline later, and you have to read a wall of text from the start menu to find out what all they cut by hacking a 6 part series into a trilogy. It starts in media res and then various parts of the thematic flow are obviously rushed in order to squeeze the last two games into one and tie up all the plot threads that had been introduced but never developed.
Yeah the story was still Xenotastic, but considering how much was lobbed off, you might as well just play the third one without either of the former games. (Like Xenogears, which was actually episode 5 or 6 from a series timeline)
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Post by Peytral on Jan 28, 2011 21:53:20 GMT -5
I stopped playing Xenosaga once I reached that one early-game boss. The one with the two enemies that fired lasers that hit your whole party.
I forget his name... >_> Inside a Gnosis, I think?
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Post by Ashurei on Jan 28, 2011 23:35:06 GMT -5
Sounds like somebody didn't play Xenosaga Episode II. You mean the game with the fantastic story, some of the best cut-scenes ever, and the deep strategic battle system? Yes, it was damn linear and the battle system made you think more than most RPGs (and albeit in a very restricted manner), but I felt it was III that fucked the series to death by butchering the story. The rush job done it didn't help either. I've actually considered replaying them several times (2 as well), but the plot mutilation alwasy dissuades me. I do not cite linearity as a fault in game except int he case of FFXIII where they took the concept to it's logical extreme. Episode 2 took a fun battle system and weighed it down with a measure of 'strategy' that consisted almost entirely of biding one's time for several minutes, unleashing a string of attacks, and then repeating the process if, god forbid, that wasn't enough. I had no qualm with the zone-weaknesses. The fault in the game lied with it being terribly executed. What else? Oh yeah, the writers left the team. It shows. Half of the English cast was replaced. WHY. And you know, I'm even gonna pull the graphics card, here. I loved how flashy the ep1 battle system was, I really did. That was severely lessened in episode 2. What of Episode 3? I couldn't even finish it. The battle system was reduced to traditional menu combat, which, honestly, is a cop-out of the highest order. I fully understand that people seem to think that 3 makes up for 2. I honestly went into 3 hoping it would, but I couldn't bring myself to get over all of they changes they insisted on making. Xenosaga 1 is my favorite PS2 RPG, there's no questioning that. I played it several times, I loved every minute of it, and it's one of the few RPGs I sought to 100%. I was hyped beyond measure for the sequel and it was such a massive let down that I've never really gotten over it. I have no idea how I trudged through Ep. 2. I guess I was forcing myself to so that I could justify starting up 3; and then ep3 happened. I still look at Ep. 3 on my shelf and wonder if I'll ever go back and give it another go. Anyways, sounds like you and I are about half in agreement, half not.
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Post by Raison D'etritus on Jan 29, 2011 1:01:23 GMT -5
I'm definitely with you on the first one being the best. I'm just one of the rare people who thinks the story in the second one made up for any flaws and that the mutilated story in the third one brought down any improvements.
I think the biggest problem was all the media at the time always bitching that a sequel wasn't a sequel unless everything about it was innovative(which, of course, they still do). They had too much pressure to introduce something new, and it screwed 'em.
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Post by AllenSmithee on Jan 29, 2011 1:11:37 GMT -5
I recognize all the chopping up they did for the third, but I REALLY enjoy it.
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Post by SkyeWelse on Jan 29, 2011 1:14:00 GMT -5
Xenosaga II catches a bad rap, but I throughly enjoyed it and after mastering how the battle system works, it ended up being my favorite battle system in the trilogy. Also, the overall pacing in II was great. Although, I am happy that we did get an ending to the series in III, the difference in pacing and the mind-numbing battle system in III over II was was like night and day. Or maybe it's just me, since it seems like most people like Xenosaga III's battle system. I just thought it was too simple and kind of disgraced the type of involved combat systems found in Xenosaga I, II and even Xenogears.
-Thomas
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Post by Mutagene on Jan 29, 2011 2:20:56 GMT -5
Xenogears has my favorite non-action battle system, definitely. I really need to get around to beating it.
Don't hate me for it, but I haven't played any of the Xenosaga games yet. I almost picked up Ep 1 a while back but opted for a rechargable battery for my 360 controller.
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Post by Raison D'etritus on Jan 29, 2011 4:48:09 GMT -5
What the hell have you been doing with your life?! Get to it! Xenogears is only the best thing since. . . THE BEST THING! And Smithee, I'm not surprised you loved the Xenostory. It's more steeped in philosophy than any other game. And steeped in gnostic mythology (which is steeped in philosophy). And steeped in Jungian (pseudo )psychology (which is steeped in philosophy and gnostic mythology)! Theres more steeping than a cup of Earl Grey, and more crosssteeping than a redneck family! AND you get to have Jesus in your active party! So that really answers the whole WWCD question! . . . I seriously laughed when reading Jung's Aion, and he mentioned the syzygstic duality of chaos and kosmos. Can't imagine how he'd played the game back in the fifties.
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Post by Mutagene on Jan 29, 2011 6:15:48 GMT -5
I've gotten far enough through Xenogears before that I actually spoiled the ending for myself... oops. But I still want to finish it sometime, when I have waaaay more free time. I just haven't been in the mood for RPGs lately.
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Post by AllenSmithee on Jan 29, 2011 13:07:21 GMT -5
And Smithee, I'm not surprised you loved the Xenostory. It's more steeped in philosophy than any other game. And steeped in gnostic mythology (which is steeped in philosophy). And steeped in Jungian (pseudo )psychology (which is steeped in philosophy and gnostic mythology)! there's more steeping than a cup of Earl Grey, and more crosssteeping than a redneck family! AND you get to have Jesus in your active party! So that really answers the whole WWCD question! . . . I seriously laughed when reading Jung's Aion, and he mentioned the syzygstic duality of chaos and kosmos. Can't imagine how he'd played the game back in the fifties. Honestly it is one of the big reasons I got interested in philosophy. I had watched my brother play through them before my Quest For Knowledge (TM) but they were a driving force behind the interest in that stuff. What got me first were the characters, and voice acting. Episode III regardless of condensing way too much worked as a good first game in the series for me (I'd seen my brother play the other two, but never watched them extensively like I did with III) just because of that information overload. I remember staying up reading the entire encyclopaedia and getting spooked at that girl who was only half sodiumized by the gnosis (That's not SODOMIZED, hoho). And man... I'm getting my love on for the URTV bros, Mr. Rubedo and Mr. Albedo again. Oh man, and Ziggy! OH and MOMO (because of Ziggy). And chaos. And Allen! And pretty much everybody but Shion. Jiiiiiiin~ Man, I love the cast to those games. ERDE KAISER
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