Interdimensional Observer

@Armagon You've spoken of the need for this country to have more rail? https://apnews.com/article/high-speed-train-vegas-los-angeles-brightline-595913ff2fa3d9001fb89bfab4e6c4d2 Betting this is a positive sign of things to come?

The Break Soul(?) Therion mode thing?🤔 -I haven't used it once. Depleting her HP nonstop? Not a fond of a risk like that. Feels odd they'd give that to the main character, who you'd think wouldn't have such a risk-reward gimmick assigned to them. Velvet should've instead gotten stomachaches if she ate too many bad guys, and suffered stat debuffs if she didn't eat enough.

-I never tried Xillia 2. Got the impression that it's kinda like Dawn of the New World- an in-world sequel that's wasn't exactly given full resources during development. Plus, I have seen Jude's redesign, and I don't think I could stand seeing my Tales boyfriend looking like that. Considering Armatization, it wouldn't surprise me with Zestiria at least. Armatized attacks feel heavy and slow, not exactly conducive to fluidly chaining hits.

I suppose it'd be being betwixt a more free-flowing action RPG and a turn-based one? The flowing action of the former, but the casting times on spells and the fixed arenas feel like traces of the latter. And of course, the anime attack-shouting, the flashy spells, the general descent of the battlefield into a grand parade of liveliness. On some level, Xenoblade is the same (once the battle system opens up, early on things can be slow). It's decidedly different from say, Shin Megami Tensei, where being turn-based with generic demons as allies in a generally-bleak world don't imbue such vibrancy to the fighting. It's also different from TMS, which does have magnificent flair, but being turn-based I feel inherently keeps it from feeling so free as Tales. The technical level? -Well there, I never do master things.😅 I don't need to if I'm not playing on the highest difficulty level, which I don't. I do appreciate Namco's attempts to change things up every game, the things that if learned, would allow one to create unending combos of big damage while taking as little possible. -And I know you've a keenness for this stuff.- But I've the brain of a goldfish and the reflexes of a dead cat in this regard.😆 I will also say I approve of Berseria's choice to follow Zestiria in ditching TP as Graces had. Symphonia might've been my first, but it's liberating not to have to worry about TP consumption and keeping well-stocked on Orange/Pineapple Gels, watching my casters go pathetically whack things up close when their TP hits 50%. The fun of Tales battle is in Artes, even for physical attackers, as the basic hits of old alone can hardly a lot of fun make. I could see Lavos beginning its life as a pest gnawing away at the Tree of Mana, perhaps. Otherwise... well I don't see anything from CT's future originally being SoM material, that slightly narrows it down. Everywhere else seems like fair game for reuse, however.

A little under four hours logged into Berseria now, saved at the end of the sea fortress. I'm slooooowly easing into it, not quite there yet.😅 Sadly failed to properly screenshot the symphly phantastic skit, wasn't expecting a reference so soon.😆 -Although I could do without the occasional severe lag, even momentary total freezing. I don't remember having these technical issues at all with Zestiria. With Edna's older brother joined (it was strange that resolving the matter of him was entirely optional in Zestiria) and the playable cast now at four, the usual Tales explosion of sounds and colors in hectic battle has gotten underway. I do think I find Tales to be comforting 😄, in a way that the other major JRPG franchises aren't for me (no offense to them, each has their own distinctive personal vibe). Likely a combination of the aesthetics, the skits, the gameplay, everything adds up. You'd have to get the original producer/writer on board for a "radical", true-original remake, which does sound incredibly unlikely. Also, losing upwards of 40% the intended game with a major shift in the story? Sounds as bad as Vagrant Story- where more than 50% of the story had to be cut.

I know. I own it.😑 (Unfinished, owing to me going real slowly with it.) ...I get Atlus doing this back in the PS2 era, when DLC wasn't possible yet. I get them doing it -to an extent- with Radiant Historia, SMT: Strange Journey, and the Devil Survivors, since adding voice-acting to a DS game wouldn't exactly be easy. But please, let Vengeance be the last of this practice.🙏

Forbidden knowledge must be earned. Simple as that. -Don't question the video game logic. Is it that much of a surprise? Did not England seek to rule Britannia, despite being the best speck of dirt on the island already? -And Thracia was once united, unlike Northern Romeland. -Again, don't overthink it. Genealogy's writing was burnt out with Belhalla. They all have 4 Luck, must be the common Japanese homonymic wordplay. "Four" and "death" in Japanese are both pronounced "shi", though their kanji are different, obviously. 4 is thus an unlucky number in Japanese. Learning about feudal Japanese banquets- you would be served three sets of three dishes. Sometimes a fourth set would be present -but you never called it the "fourth dish", to avoid accidentally calling it the "death dish" -you don't want to taint the banquet with death- you would say "additional/extra dish" instead. More appropriate on some level, methinks?

I mean, you probably should even if it wasn't. Await Similelite edition. Sorry to say it.

FINALLY began Berseria. Could've started in the morning, but let it pass me by and began sometime after 2 in the afternoon.😅 I played only for an hour-forty (stopping at the first inn). Not long. Did I enjoy the game? No. -But I wasn't expecting to, and I know it's all my fault.😆 That bizarre issue of mine- initializing on a new, big, story-heavy RPG. It was present, and it was strong.😑 The entire time outside of the opening, I had the volume set to 0. Voice-acting... it doesn't unnerve me, not sure what word I'd use, yet when a story is only beginning, for some reason, it's easier to get into things if everyone is muted than not. -Not that I should do this, but I do, sometimes. At a point during the prologue/flashback stuff, I went a step further and started mashing through text, only sometimes catching the gist of what was said. Now, the flashback is pretty short, I was done with it in 50 mins, this wasn't Graces's child arc, which was a tad overlong. Nonetheless, even on the scene that ends this prologue, I was doing semi-furious skipping through text. Which sounds... utterly insane. Why would I do that, when this establishes the lead and what drives them forward?🤨 -Well, I just did. Although, I can kinda get what Berseria is. Zestiria was too straightforward Good Light vs. Dark Evil with a fairly mild cast (by Tales standards), people didn't like that. So, Namco made a distant prequel with Evil Light & Good Darkness and an edgy Tales's First No-Sharing Female Lead. Very simple.😛 As for breaking out of the prison, well since Velv' was alone, I chose to avoid fighting when possible. Wait for the team to fill up first. I didn't exactly pay much attention to the tutorial explanation of any new combat intricacies that Namco invented for this game, which isn't a big deal, since I never fully exploit those minute combat details anyhow. Tales is easy enough- melee attack using whatever works, guard or evade if possible, let the AI stagger the baddies with spells and heal you, pop items occasionally, win. That's all I need to know.😀 Even through the prison, I was totally scene fast-forwarding. Sorry to Witch Girl and Samurai Man, but I rushed through your intros, and every skit up to this point featuring you.😅However, it's not like a 50-hour journey doesn't lay ahead, during which there will be many more skits and cutscenes to behold thee in all thy splendor. I can't maintain this strange behavior forever, with a few more hours, it'll all recede and I'll get to enjoying this like any other Tales.😀 And yet, there are still those who think this is still Too Persona. Especially since Re-Me-Fa-Ta-Se-Do! was looking like vaporware for years and I think Atlus claimed at the time they were trying to experiment and create something new. Yet they ended up returning from the wilderness of possibilities with something not too different from what they've made before. Curious how the sales will be. Atlus seems to be trying to make this game into a third pillar of comparable standing to SMT and the P', but I'm not sure if Atlus gamers will buy into it.

@Acacia Sgt I happened to notice the Grendizer game is 40% off on Steam right now. -Which means that were you to get it at some point, you should wait for a sale. I played Suiko II in its entirety years ago. I will say that it was a bit of a letdown from all the praise it gets, for me personally. -But, Luca was undeniably well-executed.😉 Re-fanslation, remember. It wasn't the first. And the first generation of video game fan translations was... juvenile in ways. Thankfully, regardless of any Strict vs. Spirit translation battles (an eternal war), the fan translating community as a whole has matured.

I wasn't saying the staff spam was impossible to overcome, Seliph and likely Ares provide guaranteed bypasses. Almost feels like the Wall of Edda was placed there to highlight the Tyrfing more, since Arvis was one enemy and Seliph didn't have it earlier in C10. Just that -unless you do as ping did and bear with the status staffs by throwing overwhelming manpower at them- you don't have very much flexibility about who you can use for liberating the dukedom.

One thing I would've liked- mention of these rebellions in the prior chapter, at least on the villains' side. -But somebody then assures the other villains "but if we win here and kill Seliph, they'll all fall effortlessly overnight". Likewise, for this the final chapter, I'd like some villain grunt to tell Julius or the like "Our surviving forces withdrawn from Silesse and Agustria have been reorganized for this the defense of the imperial heartland.". To which Julius or Manfroy would respond- "May the worthless lots regain a shred of honor here or die failures to the end.". Merely little scribbling-ins to make the Empire feel more under pressure. As I once heard this nicknamed- "the Wall of Edda". Do ya think they went a little overboard with the "Have Res Or Stay Home!" messaging? -Although, it is Edda, dukedom of the Holy Staff. Have to represent staffiness. All... three... ...of these feel out of place. They're the REBEL ARMY THAT SWEPT HALF THE CONTINENT! Bounties? Feeble foes? Senility is the most plausible excuse. All I remember of the Dozel phase of this battle is that Seliph, effortlessly methinks soloed the eastern group. And that otherwise... the Dozels are just Prologue barbarians dressed a little fancier and with horses. The easiest part of this final battle, for axes are a joke in Genealogy. Fun fact- eminence grise is an actual term. Meaning "grey eminence", it's a synonym for things like "manipulator", "puppet master", and "power behind the throne". "Entrap" is the word you're looking for I think? Did Fates traumatize you into forgetting it?

I'm not exactly fond of it either. Hardin got the better emperor battle theme. First note of Arvis's theme is fine, the rest, it's not a bad boss theme, I'd be fine with it being used against almost anyone else, but indeed the notes are too airy for fighting Arvis. I feel like it'd be fine if Seliph was shedding tears for his parents as he dashed through the flames steadying Tyrfing as he prepares to strike down the man he hates -but I don't know if Seliph can cry or hate. Although, again, my real musical nitpick for Genealogy, is Gen 2 sharing a normal battle theme with Gen 1. It's laziness in a game with a glut of music elsewhere, and the normal battle theme is clear and uncluttered, which is fine for one generation, but too generic and sterile to suffice for two.

I played a bit of Secret of Mana once, the iOS version to be precise. Though a vibrant 16-bit oldie it was, I felt the combat was clunky with its age, stuck unhappily between turn-based and action. While the Trials remake still has a pinch of excessive mid-combat menuing, I did appreciate its shift to purer action. (And I've heard the 3D remake of Secret wasn't received very well.) Do enjoy though!😀 Ought to be a good change of pace from Trails?

-That one. They conveniently had the Hiryu's gravity cannon undergoing maintenance during that battle, otherwise we would've needed an edited CG and a new cut-in. Lefina kept her captain's composure through it, that's praiseworthy. Yurika would possibly not.

It's not so much gameplay that keeps me from starting a new game in a familiar genre, it's not like I'm a XenoNewb or Tales novice.😆 It's almost entirely a matter of overcoming cold feet, worries about focusing and fearing I won't get into the groove right away. (Maybe I'm too harsh on myself for having distracting thoughts while doing story-heavy gaming.😅) With SRW, and I suppose mecha in general (I did disproportionately enjoy E.S. combat in Xenosaga), the alarm could go off while I'm in the shower, and I'd feel comfortable sprinting to the hangar without a towel.😛

For Leif, b/c Thracia!, we certainly know it wasn't. For Seliph? Blame... something!?! ...for threadbare writing that doesn't give us so palpable a feel for how Seliph has lived. Or thinks and feels for that matter.

With a Suiko-sized cast, you could make an altar-worthy triptych dedicated to the theme of resurrection and change, an entire Sistine Chapel ceiling!🤩 A minuscule 8-playable crew couldn't embody as much.😝 ...But Michelangelo has been dead for centuries. Who on Earth could possibly pull it off?😆 *Searches this topic* ...February 13th. Thought it was later than that.🤣 Honestly, FoM feels less intimidating to start than Berseria (still didn't today😅) or XC3 (I've been meaning to since around the 4th of this month). Not sure why, maybe I'm simply more chill with giant robots? Like, there's no need to hold my breath and shove all other thoughts to the side in order to become immersed, because I know I'll slide right into it?

Shortly after writing that, I remember another question.😆 In Arc Rise Fantasia (a Wii JRPG), Cecille and Dynos are siblings. Cecille looks like she could be 10, Dynos looks like he's ~18, yet he is the little brother.😕 The reason for this, is that both had gone into stasis. Yet the stasis was caused by a millennia-long sleep spell, not a freezer or time cage. The Lullaby wore off on Dynos a few years before it did on Cecille, and, because of the physical toll it puts on the body, one can't have the Lullaby reapplied right away, you need to wait a while. Then, while he was awake, stuff happened and Dynos chose not to go back to sleep. -So, the additional question- if some heroes resurrected well before/after others, how could it possibly affect the relationships between them? What if a -in a situation that requires a decade or more between resurrections- a child became a grown parent before their own parent -a Star of Destiny- could start becoming grandparent age? Let's say the child goes from 13 to 35, while the parent remains stuck at 35. How would years of separation affect two fierce rivals? How long can one be a top athlete in something physically demanding? The rivals would cease to be equally-matched if one was 40 and the other still 25. Lovers are another, obvious situation. We could complicate this by having the first lover -not knowing if/when their lover would resurrect- ending up marrying/starting a family with someone else. If death does one part from romantic existing obligations, then would resurrection make those abandoned vows binding again, no matter how awkward they might now be? -Keep in mind, the vows would still be fresh in the heart and mind of the second lover, even if they've faded in the first. I don't think both character in the different situations above would need to both be Stars of Destiny or whatever they are, just the one who remains the same would have to be. But, with a cast of 108, you would easily have room for both characters to be heroes. --- ...There are enough possibilities here that I think I could write 54 distinct small tales (108/2, putting all the Stars into groups of two, though you wouldn't even need that many if you had some cliques of 3-5. Although single-star situations would also almost certainly exist) using the resurrection concept.😅 The devil is in the deciding what the details will be. And then figuring out how to create from the individual stories (or at least some of them, lighthearted third-rate-importance characters don't need to be so carefully woven in) a cohesive whole.😵 The worst that could happen, would be not doing enough with the concept. If the heroes went about too much like nothing serious happened, nothing between each other, nothing between themselves their world.🥱 -Or, in earnest attempts to make death, resurrection, and the passage of time all-important, you end up with a mush of nice ideas that don't gel together. It's not time travel potentially bad, since the arrow of time is only able to move forward here (and I'd avoid re-killing heroes only to re-resurrect them, that'd cross one serious red line), but I'm afraid of how it could all collapse.😵‍💫 I was maybe thinking of starting FoM soon. Maybe, I did download it a day or two ago. I do like mecha -but is too soon from finishing GC? And I do have a very not-mecha backlog.😆 And even with mecha, there's a non-zero chance I could pick up Megaton Musashi soon. That'd possibly complicate the mecha picture if I did.🤔

I'm sure SRW could use it. I like the loss & resurrection idea, partly because it's nebulous with lots of potential.: When does the main story begin? Within one year of the heroes' defeat? Five years later? Thirty? One-hundred? The further we go from the great defeat, the more the world changes. Yet the heroes, being dead all that time, won't change. How do they handle any dissonance between the world they knew and the world that now is? More specifically than "mwahaha evil rules the world!", how does the failure of the heroes affect the countries and peoples of the world? For instance, imagine the heroes during the unseen initial journey had struck a delicate compromise between two warring factions in a country. This compromise depended on a future of international peace, and one of the heroes serving as a long-term leader of said country. Without global harmony, without that one hero to guide the country, how would that compromise crumble? How could the resurrected heroes rebuild it? Does the main hero die? Or do they end up buried-but-alive, and somebody accidentally digs them up? If we make an exception to "everyone is resurrected" for the lead hero, then what of others? If exceptions, how many? Do some heroes come back to life independently of the lead hero? Do some spend months awakened again, getting busily immersed in affairs somewhere else in the world? Do the villains resurrect anyone and subject them to mind control or general captivity? Do some heroes willingly defect seeing the aftermath of the catastrophe? Are there some of the 108SoD (or whatever you want to call this big hero group) that end up beyond the power of resurrection? If there are some prematurely stuck in the grave forever, then is there someone else who takes their place? Are they related in some way to said deceased, or is it random destiny? These are some musings I've had. Alas, I have no writing skills to experiment with them. Suikoden Tactics is Masoukishin.😝 Begins as a prequel for the first half, *Suikoden IV happens*, second half of Tactics picks up afterwards.

I watched Tierkreis from start to end. It's sooooo not Suikoden VI.😛 Separate world with no recurring characters, no Runes True or otherwise ("Marks of the Stars" instead for hero magic and Chronicles for macguffins), no Godly Tactician, no highly-scripted SRPG battles, and the cast is palpably more... anime in a way that's not how the other games quite are, but I can't think of a single word for it. While Tierkreis ultimately went with a multiverse approach to explain its crew, I do like the scrapped original plan for the story. That being- the story starts in media res, all the 108 Stars of Destiny confront the big bad, and lose. The few survivors receive the power of resurrection and presumably that would've been how you most of the 108 back. -I wish there was an RPG that actually used this idea.😆 Also, Tierkreis had heavy quantities of voice acting for a DS game. Possiblybecausetheywerelimitedonspacethevoicestalkratherfastwhichgotevenfunnierwhensettingthevideotodoublespeed.😝 Certainly sounds like were being safe. Again, hopefully this already-announced sequel feels freer to become something of its own, and refine what people now see as aged kinks in the formula. Spiritual successors and Kickstarters sure have had a mixed record, Armed Fantasia and Penny Blood are next in the firing line. Curious how Konami's 1&2 rerelease will do then. If they skimp on the QoL updates, and quite possibly a new translation, then I can see some reviewers not so nostalgic giving the old games tepid scores.

Well they devs have already announced plans for a sequel. Maybe they'll get to... Either adding a random encounter slider, or ditching them altogether. Adding a list that keeps track of potential recruits once you meet them the first time and what they're asking for in order to join. And, adding a way to change somebody's equipment without putting them on the active team first. -Three little flaws the reviews mention that, if given some simple modern QoL updates, would help alleviate the jank from yesteryear. If I got the game -which I wouldn't at least for a very long while since I was lukewarm about Suikoden myself- then I'd likely be willing to forgive it in my abundance of understanding, because Suikoden has been dead and there isn't anything exactly like it. But, I would be more critical of a sequel that didn't address issues consumers had with the prior title, the resurrection excuse wouldn't hold up so well.

@Saint Rubenio Eiyuden Chronicle reviews have been rolling in today. Generally positive scores, 7-8 on average, through Eiyuden is not without criticisms, namely the game is being described as dated in ways. ...And the Switch version is a loadfest wreck that's torpedoing the score on that particular system (please don't schadenfreude-laugh too loudly🙄).

Agreed. Renewal, this late, really? Should've been a Recover Band. What terrible ghost parents they are.🤨

I've been feeling like a long, immersive game lately.... Do I start this today at last? When did I even buy it?😅 It's been more than a year since I last played a Tales. I should be plenty recharged for enjoying one. -Honestly, this is actually in second place on "JRPGs I want to begin". I've spent the entire month of April thinking of another instead, but I've squandered every good opportunity to do so. I'm feeling like Berseria will be easier to initiate, the other one can be began like a week-and-a-half from now, hopefully. I'm not sure what's harder for me nowadays- starting a J/S/ARPG, or completing one.😆 It's not the stuff in-between that's troublesome, it's diving in and finishing the laps. It also feels wrong to pick a Steam game to play, since even factoring in emulation stuff, I know I've been doing a lot of PC gaming of late. My Switch backlog hasn't diminished all that much in comparison.