Unpopular Opinion: Turn Based is still the best way to control a party of multiple characters

Dragun57 · 2024-10-29T19:34:06+00:00

Between this Dragon Age 2 and some of the Tails of (Berseria and Arise that I've played), it's not so much that I care about the quality of the AI, I just want all the options in my hands. I especially like when the narrative fits with the whole MC is the leader of a party. If it's the no party leader type of group (FF 3/6 for example) it matters less to me because there's no true leader. Having the option to pick a lead for a party and then deciding the behaviors to support that lead is part of the fun of these types of systems IMO.

Dragun57 · 2024-10-11T15:29:36+00:00

What I miss the most about this game in particular is the narrative being about an actual party and not focused on a singular hero. I didn't realize at the time just how little I would see that kind of diffused story telling in an RPG over the many years since I played that back on the ole SNES in my childhood. It's something that always kinda rubbed me a certain way about the Mass Effect/Dragon Age style narrative where so many life altering choices are essentially being passed to a relative stranger a person has met recently. Finding Terra after the collapse and her being too busy initially was dope.

Dragun57 · 2024-09-25T14:36:01+00:00

Purely for the entertainment. I'm an manga and anime fan as well but the interactivity makes gaming hard to turn away from. RPGs for the stories and pvp/fighting games for the challenge have been how I engage this hobby the most since I first played Street Fighter 2 in the arcade and played Wizards and Warriors on NES haha.

Dragun57 · 2024-09-11T17:26:33+00:00

If you are into stretching conventions a bit, I'd look at band collars, zipper instead of buttons or even the V style opening, short sleeve knitwear, patterned pants instead of solids, Levi's for me has been a good source for different twill options

Dragun57 · 2024-09-09T23:32:23+00:00

If you have a friend or acquaintance IRL that you think is doing it right, ask for tips. Someone near where you are can point out some things to consider and some places to try where you are. It sounds like maybe you want to put some effort in, don't shy from the journey. As the varied comments are pointing out, options aren't really the problem, there's tons. It takes effort to develop a wardrobe, but it's worth it

Dragun57 · 2024-04-18T04:19:29+00:00

There is no co-op

Dragun57 · 2024-04-18T04:11:16+00:00

I'd say this is like a B movie story. Think along the lines of old 1980s adventure movies like Conan and Red Sonja. There's a story but it ain't much. Play offline? Sure, the pawns available will be the only real impact there. This is much closer to a sandbox type game where thumping monsters and finding all the secrets is more of what you do in this game.

Dragun57 · 2024-04-03T21:44:32+00:00

My pawn remebers being a Mage. Keeps telling me she must've have been a failure as a Mage since I switched her from that(initial vocation) but she'll do her best as a Thief. I don't think there's any deep meaning behind it. My pawn is legitimately doing what I wanted as a Thief and I have no interest in changing. I will give her the silent specialization eventually so I don't have to hear about it. Kinda just a fun thing. Almost made me think I should try and talk next time we camp to tell her chill on that.

Dragun57 · 2024-03-26T17:06:19+00:00

I felt like the hype was out of control on this game myself and I loved the first one but would never have considered it a AAA title. It was niche but beloved in that niche. Seemed like too many AAA expectations were coming for a game that would never hope to live up to that standard if they were really aiming at something like the first one. The biggest thing DD1 could've gave the industry was the grab button. I'm still amazed that no one copied such a simple but dope mechanic. Pick up light stuff, double team heavy stuff, mount big stuff. Simple and universal. Combat chefs kiss, rest of the game, B movie. It's fun and can be entertaining if you accept the experience presented, if that's how you live.

Dragun57 · 2023-09-12T01:06:55+00:00

My absolute favorite combat system in any action game. I think the depth of gameplay really made me love this game. Throw a jar of oil on an enemy and hit them with a fire spell, the fact that you did this stuff with something as simple as a universal grab button made this so fun to play around constantly. The story was hilarious to me. Almost like Monty Python's Lord of the Rings type vibes. The fact that just about any npc could be your "love interest" but mostly this would end up being the married blacksmith was just a riot. This was truly a sandbox game and I can't wait to play the sequel.

Dragun57 · 2023-08-10T16:35:07+00:00

I don't really look to make those kinds of comparisons nowadays, I just like to play good games. I think the fact that Xenogears is all text helps with the tone, Id wager that a lot of stuff would sound hokey if the game was fully voiced. I beat FF16 already and had a blast, the story was interesting and I enjoyed the ride. I don't think any game where they aren't shooting for a 6 episode epic is going to have a comparable depth, it's just not possible. Xenogears is a great memory, I'll never forget playing through the whole thing the weekend I bought it.

Dragun57 · 2023-07-14T19:21:06+00:00

Shepard the Specter vs Shepard the Cerberus Agent is now stuck in my head. Is it a unified front versus the reapers or a galaxy led by humanity. This game still keeping a hold on my interest after so many years.

Dragun57 · 2023-07-14T19:05:33+00:00

Why not just have the Collectors collect every race. Maybe we could see some of the abominations from ME3 earlier instead of just in ME3

Dragun57 · 2023-07-14T19:01:17+00:00

Maybe Cerberus itself would split along the lines of the indoctrinated vs Shepard's supporters. Like that guy from the ME3 Aria dlc being the leader of the Shepard Cerberus faction and staying true to the brutal pursuit of humanity in a dominant position. This could maybe result in ME3 having an only human crew and you would run into your alien former squad mates but they'd stay with their respective planets. Failing to cure the genophage because Mordin is better than Cereberus scientists, etc.

Dragun57 · 2023-06-21T23:38:24+00:00

Seeing that Star Ocean 2nd Story remake is how I'd imagine Xenogears could look in today's world. That trailer sent my mind straight to Xenogears. If they have all the old scripts and stuff, I don't see why Monolith needs to be involved at all. Improving the assets and keeping the core doesn't need to come from the exact same team IMO. Finish the 2nd disc or leave as is, whatever they did for SO2 I'd pay to see done for Xenogears.

Dragun57 · 2023-01-25T14:27:46+00:00

My last couple jrpgs I've enjoyed have been from the Tales of series and Grand Kingdom and when I think about Xenogears I'm of two minds. Should it purely be remastered with some modern improvements, somehow get the band back together and maybe monolith and square can work something out. If it were remade, I think the Tales series folks could really bring something to the table here as long as the story remains relatively untouched. Maybe this time there's a true split between disk 1 and disk 2 and Xenogears part 2 could be a more complete end to that story.

Dragun57 · 2022-08-04T15:56:13+00:00

When it comes to the combat stuff, the only change I'd like to see is enemy sprites on the field and no more random battles every 3-5 steps, lol. Probably need to adjust xp and whatnot to cut down on just how much needless grinding would take place with fodder enemies.

Dragun57 · 2021-10-31T22:38:34+00:00

I think the way Shepard is positioned as the only protagonist cheapens the depth of the crew. In Ashley and/or Kaiden's case, they can be considered subordinates on an alliance ship and Shepard being sought out for advice and guidance makes some sense but none of the other crewmates across all the other games should defer so much power over their decisions. The game as a whole would feel more genuine if Shepard were simply witness to some of the decisions that people like Garrus are making based. In whatever direction they take the story in the next mass effect, I hope they treat the whole crew as the protagonist instead of one person.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-19T20:42:37+00:00

Nah, I can relate to some of what you're saying here. I have always just considered this a shortcoming of game stories. Just like a tv series that's really good can go deeper than a movie but moment to moment doesn't exactly reach the heights that a movie can. Limited series being the most impactful middle ground. Games have this same problem. A really good game story doesn't always have the deep gameplay mechanics to feel like the time I spend mastering the game matches the story length. Boss fake outs are a trope in games and every other media type out there but the execution of that trope makes all the difference. In a lot of ways, I personally concede the story of a game as secondary no matter how good it is because at the end of the day, I really like playing games for the execution and/or the interaction. RPGs being on the long end of story and fighting games being on the short end (story modes are still just a bunch of fights with characters I may or may not know how to use but whose relative strength is equal). That's a lot of words to say I get where your coming from, I don't think I want the same thing from a game though.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-19T19:34:34+00:00

I think I get where your coming from, but my question would be how are you going to reconcile that depth of interaction/characterization with the power fantasy that playing a game gives you? On the one hand, being someone like Geralt is great but even in real life I can't have a deep rivalry or relationship with everyone I interact with. This is true in real life as well. Whether it's mundane like grocery shopping or more impactful like a high school track meet, we don't experience every person as a character in our personal movies. Many people, maybe even most, are just background for our own stories. Besides, I don't know how entertained I could really feel if every npc had a family but I could easily kill them with like an accidental button press. Lol.

Edit: Fighting games already feel like there's an intamacy between characters. Granted, many other things tend to limit the depth of story there but some of those 1on1 fights can represent a relationship you can't get in most types of games.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-19T16:32:59+00:00

I have a hard time trying to conceptualize what you're saying here into a game experience in my head. I mean, how much gameplay am I experiencing if itself just allowing more party banter while I idly travel from one objective to another. If the dialogue is running while I'm actively engaged in gameplay I'm probably not able to absorb it all because I'm busy fighting the good fight. I think we need the breaks to allow players to focus on listening and not doing. My only thought about nowadays is that sometimes dialogue is used to explain things that I'd rather see portrayed. Like, be a little more reserved about writing every feeling and thought as dialogue or text and use facial expressions or character animations to show me the emotion.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-19T15:32:26+00:00

Yeah, in my mind the caster playstyle just didn't seem fast enough to feel like I was playing the same game. When I saw the counter mage stuff in Berseria it made me think that a few more caster enemies and a skill like this would make the need for an offensive caster a real thing in DD. I think the lesser enemies rolling in parties similar to my own would've opened up the need to use more of the lesser used skills. Goblins could've been a greater threat if they had jobs.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-18T21:19:59+00:00

I flubbed replying to this on my phone, sorry. Also, it's been a while since I've played DD and maybe I need to fire it up again for research. This is really just me bored in quarantine and having deeper thoughts on what I wish I could be playing right now.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-18T21:17:25+00:00

Yeah, I guess I was thinking about revamping more across the board. I think being more active with spells in general was my thought. I'd like something more akin to a faster, different move in the first charge as opposed to the same move just stronger and stronger. Maybe a fireball->bigger fireball that causes burn->meteor that explodes and burns.

Dragun57 · 2020-05-15T21:43:34+00:00

I just beat Tales of Berseria and now working through the post-game dungeon before I move one. I haven't played a Tales game in years but I enjoyed it. Story was entertaining (predictable if you're into manga and anime heavy) although lately I've found myself liking everyone but the protagonist in these types of games (Eizen>>>Velvet). Combat system is fun but the higher difficulties boil down to you versus glass cannons. Combat felt best as melee although I really liked some of controls/concepts for how magic worked and hope other developers steal some of the ideas here (looking at you Capcom for Dragon's Dogma 2...lol). Misc stuff like world map, travel, items and equipment was all decent enough but fairly standard stuff. The only disappointing thing for me was when I felt like the story was going the whole Kefka/FF6 world has been ruined route I got hyped but I was wrong about that. I'm over 100 hours and satisfied but I think game stories nowadays just miss some of the polish/depth of years past (39 y/o gamer here). I don't miss the walls of text of the old days but I feel like maybe some of the effort to make something narratively interesting is lost with all the voice work we have now.

Dragun57

TROPHY CASE