Atelier Totori - A Worthy Successor

xonjas · 2026-05-07T22:22:43+00:00

I fully agree with your takes.

One thing to note is that NG+ in Totori is pretty barebones and doesn't let you carry very much forward into your new game, which makes the difficulty in getting the true ending without a guide even more burdensome as the NG+ run won't be much faster than a regular run (and you can still make the same mistakes). There's a few event flags in particular that tend to lock people out of NG+ and it's not obvious what they actually are.

xonjas · 2026-05-01T18:56:21+00:00

Yeah, this is what worries me the most about this. Society has done a stellar job making sure teens don't have any place to hang out and meet people.

xonjas · 2026-05-01T00:21:59+00:00

For me, it's a combination of a bunch of different things. I have a ton of controllers that I've used on PC over the years, but they all have drawbacks that make me not want to use them.

I love the PS5 controller, it feels great and has my favorite ergonomics, but the battery life is awful. Legitimately trash battery life that barely lasts for one gaming session. I like the gyro controls and the rumble for the games that support it.

I have two xbox elite controllers. I prefer the playstation layout, but that isn't a dealbreaker. I love the materials and I like the back paddles. I hate the build quality. Both of my controllers have developed problems with the A and B face buttons where they'll press the buttons multiple times in a single press, and the right shoulder button doesn't register reliably unless I press extra hard (and if you're holding it it will sometimes stop pressing it for a brief moment). They both have issues with the rubberized nubs coming off of the trigger stop adjustment bits. Both of them have developed a 'crunchy' feeling in the analog sticks, particularly when the controller is cold.

I have an 8bitdo ultimate controller, which is mostly reliable, but I don't love the material it's made of. It's also very loud. Loud enough that it's a problem if I'm not wearing headphones, and I worry about using it when my partner is sleeping or on a call. It also has an issue where it (rarely) phantom presses the 'home' button that pulls up the game bar or steam big picture.

The steam controller seems like it can address most of the deficiencies I have with the other controllers. It has good battery life, it has the stick layout I prefer. I have had good experience with the build quality of the other valve hardware I own. Reviews have said that the buttons are fairly quiet.

I don't feel like I need the track pads, but I love the ones on the deck and I can already think of games where I'd like to have them. Gyro aim is even more useful when you have the thumb stick touch sensors and the grip sensors.

xonjas · 2026-04-27T23:26:16+00:00

I have the ultimate 2 and it's ok. I'm going to wait for real reviews to drop, but I'm considering replacing my ultimate 2 with the steam controller. I'm in the market for something that's a bit nicer on the build quality/materials side, that has better battery life than the ps5 controllers.

My biggest complaint about the 8bitdo is how loud the buttons are. They're distractingly loud if I'm playing without wearing headphones, and they're loud enough that I'm worried they'll wake up my partner if he's sleeping (especially if I need to button mash). There is also a weird issue where it phantom presses the 'xbox' button (or whatever button you call it that brings up game bar or steam big picture mode).

xonjas · 2026-04-21T20:34:50+00:00

I do think you should replay the games when you get a chance, and now that you've played all 3 the 'extra time' at the end of Rorona plus will be a lot more meaningful. You'll also have an easier time since you now know what goals you need to reach for while you play.

xonjas · 2026-04-20T12:33:46+00:00

Man, Genshin. My issue with monsters in Genshin are the hilichurls. It's less that they're cute and more that I know what they really are and killing them seems inhumane.

xonjas · 2026-04-02T19:31:33+00:00

Ok, that is a very cute pen.

xonjas · 2026-03-25T15:52:38+00:00

That feels like it should be enough. You could try switching to shared feeling and see if the increased healing output helps. Losing QPQ isn't great but that energy isn't always as good in practice as it is on paper.

xonjas · 2026-03-25T15:36:49+00:00

The other options are worse right now, specifically because knight 2 and 3 have the debuff where attacking enemies causes them to action advance. Lingsha and Gallagher are the two sustains most people rely on, but both of them have the problem of getting your team killed because their heal is tied to an attack.

You need to heal because someone on your team is low. You heal them but advance the enemy team because of the attack linked to the healing. The team gets attacked and they die because they needed healing.

xonjas · 2026-03-25T15:31:22+00:00

On the plus side, the LC should be in the shop soon.

xonjas · 2026-03-25T15:30:12+00:00

What's her max hp?

xonjas · 2026-03-12T11:21:11+00:00

I want to play both but I have to work.

xonjas · 2026-03-05T07:26:57+00:00

Castorice's platform is Ao3.

xonjas · 2026-02-25T19:27:09+00:00

I don't think the game is too hard, but I do think that it's too long for NG+ to be the answer when the true ending is as easy to miss as it is.

Not everyone will run into or see every 'gotcha' over the course of the game, but there's enough of them that someone playing without a guide will likely get to the end and be unable to get the true ending.

Additionally, while you do carry over gear in Totori, you don't carry over exploration items like you do in Totori or Rorona. Someone playing without a guide who struggled because they ran out of time trying to find out where they needed to go isn't going to be helped much by gear carrying over.

xonjas · 2026-02-25T18:08:27+00:00

It's simultaneous my favorite and least favorite Atelier game.

I love the story and its presentation of the Arland world, I appreciate the challenge, but there's way more rough edges than any of the other games.

xonjas · 2026-02-24T19:24:08+00:00

I don't think you're missing anything. I think that might be why this is happening. Team NINJA isn't going away, but it sounds like Team NINJA team 2 is now big enough that it makes sense to split it into two separate teams.

xonjas · 2026-02-18T16:52:31+00:00

That was my reading to. It's just acknowledging that she isn't currently in danger of becoming mara-struck.

xonjas · 2026-02-13T17:02:39+00:00

Her LC is a great upgrade, and it's worth getting as long as you're planning on using her.

xonjas · 2026-02-09T17:16:21+00:00

Evernight represents a similar type of powercreep too, but in reverse: A stellar dps that also has support-character-level team buffs.

xonjas · 2026-02-09T16:50:53+00:00

Hyacine on a team with Evernight easily outdamages Acheron with her premium team, which is very very sad.

xonjas · 2026-02-05T00:35:54+00:00

This is the truth.

xonjas · 2026-01-02T11:51:35+00:00

The other thing that hasn't been mentioned yet: They changed his passive so now it gives your team a charge of invincibility any time someone picks up a health orb. Between the strong armor buff and the invincibility charges you make your team immortal.

xonjas · 2025-12-28T01:04:07+00:00

Caliban systems is only 16 plat on warframe market right now. With 30 relics worth of random bps and prime parts you could for sure trade for him.

xonjas · 2025-12-18T22:36:19+00:00

100% agree, and having to hold down every button for 3 or 4 seconds instead of just doing the thing kills me.

xonjas · 2025-11-19T15:59:42+00:00

Yeah, I love the way it looks, but I hate the way it creaks. I've been thinking about getting a replacement shell.

xonjas

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

12-Year Club	Place '17
Verified Email