Just finished PoR for the first time; My thoughts

[Armaada J]

Well first of all, HOLY CRAP!!!! I am absolutely in love with this game, I honestly think it might beat out Sacred Stones as my new favorite FE game. I had high expectations going in, given the amount of praise the Tellius games get, and I can say without any doubt that PoR deserves all of it. I loved how multi-dimensional the characters were, and I especially found the portrayal of Beorc-Laguz relations to be poignantly accurate. The gameplay was great as well, as it provided a challenge without constantly making me want to tear my eyes out. 

Things I liked/loved: The way that the game showed that there were good, innocent people on both sides of the conflict. Humanizing Daein not only makes Ashnard seem more evil, but it makes the war seem more realistic. Ike is my all time fave now because his character is 50% beating up racists and 50% pissing off idiot politicians by calling them on their BS. Soren's objectiveness is both infuriating and refreshing considering how many people have sudden cases of "idiot hero syndrome" throughout. I also really liked the way the game balanced Cavs and Paladins by only giving the former one weapon. It's something I'd like to see more of. Bonus EXP was great too.

Things I disliked: I wish the Laguz units had been more viable but the transformation gauge made them into time bombs and I hated having to wait for them to transform before I could use them. If there had been more than one Demi Band it would have been fine honestly. Also, I HATE HATE HATE HATE the Black Knight battle with a burning passion!!!!!! Seriously the fact that I have to hope and pray that Ike's skill triggers and that BK's don't is such a pain. And I was unlucky as well, Ike constantly triggered Aether multiple times within a chapter for most of the game, but he gets to the BK? Nah bruh, I'm just gonna let him hit me. So I ended up escaping and getting stuck with Ena. I'm honestly tempted to replay the game JUST so I can do the fight properly and recruit Nasir. 

Also I'm really glad that I can go play Radiant Dawn now because theis games leaves a shit ton of plot threads open (which makes sense since apparently there was always a plan for a sequel).

TL;DR: Everything was great except for Laguz units and CH 27.

[Anacybele]

Glad you love the game and Ike! They're one of my top favorite games and characters of all time for a reason, so I'm glad you can see how great they are too. ^^

But yeah, fuck the BK battle. I hate that it's entirely luck-based too. It kills the point of the game, which is strategy and stuff. I was fine with the laguz gauges though... I guess they could be a bit better, but oh well.

RD isn't quite as well written as PoR though, imo. Don't get me wrong, the story is still pretty good and the gameplay is EXCELLENT. Just don't go into it with really high expectations on story. Or pairings or endings... Oh yeah, and while Ike is still a godly unit in RD, he's not as well written either...poor guy didn't get anymore development. :( His entertaining personality is still there though.

Edited February 10, 2017 by Anacybele

[Armaada J]

10 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

But yeah, fuck the BK battle. I hate that it's entirely luck-based too. It kills the point of the game, which is strategy and stuff. I was fine with the laguz gauges though... I guess they could be a bit better, but oh well.

My gripe with it is that the whole point of the battle is that Ike has grown enough to finally challenge him, but in the gameplay it relies on RNG. Really, the whole "Goddess' belssing" thing was overdone with Ashnard and BK. Like I get that they needed to be tough to beat, but doing less than 10 damage per hit that late in the game shouldn't be happening to anyone, let alone Ike.

[Anacybele]

3 minutes ago, Forged Thoron said:

My gripe with it is that the whole point of the battle is that Ike has grown enough to finally challenge him, but in the gameplay it relies on RNG. Really, the whole "Goddess' belssing" thing was overdone with Ashnard and BK. Like I get that they needed to be tough to beat, but doing less than 10 damage per hit that late in the game shouldn't be happening to anyone, let alone Ike.

Yeah, I totally agree. Thankfully, this is one thing RD does WAY better. The BK fight there is not luck-based at all. Rather, you just have to have Ike strong enough to deal him enough damage. And if you've gone one handy for Ike, a hammer can squish the dude. That's right, the blessing doesn't even apply anymore, it wore off! So Ragnell isn't a requirement!

Edited February 10, 2017 by Anacybele

[Loki Laufeyson]

BK battle is stupidly luck based. I dont even bother with it most of the time. Ill just escape and press on. Nasir and the added dialogue and stuff in the end is nice, but theres no actual reliable strat to win the BK fight. Believe me, ive tried. The only times i was able to do it, Aether procc'd more than once in the fight. 

If you didnt like Laguz units much in PoR, you may not be a fan in RD. Cat gauges are the worst. 

[ping]

Nice to read that you liked the game. =)

Tiny little advice for the BK fight: As far as I know, Adept+Wrath actually gives Ike a better chance to win than Aether does. But even with that (and with fully maxed stats on Ike), it's still luckbased.

[Busterman64]

I glad you liked it! It's my favorite game in the series, and for good reason! There is a lot of depth to a lot of things and people. It makes everything more vibrate, alive, and above all, relateable! (And it make you actually think about certain things as well!)

Not only that, but gameplay wise, it's really enjoyable! It's the game I've played the most and feel like you could use pretty much anyone if you wanted(and this is probably the only game where I can actually name almost EVERY character in it! It's that memorable for me)!

 

I must say this now though...RD makes some tweeks and really improves gameplay(it's a freakin' blast). Skills can be token off and they won't disappear,(you keep them and can put them on someone else...THANK. GOD!), the forge can make as many weapons as you want(no longer restriced to once a chapter! Oh, and now knives are forgeable), as well as a couple other things, but I'll let you see them for yourself!  

However...writing takes a bit of a step back(it has some issue here and there). It's still good mind you, but it doesn't stand as tall like in PoR. (It doesn't drop the ball thankfully.)

I think you'll still enjoy it though! 

(If you need any tips, let us know!)

 

1 hour ago, Forged Thoron said:

 

Things I disliked: I wish the Laguz units had been more viable but the transformation gauge made them into time bombs and I hated having to wait for them to transform before I could use them. If there had been more than one Demi Band it would have been fine honestly. Also, I HATE HATE HATE HATE the Black Knight battle with a burning passion!!!!!! Seriously the fact that I have to hope and pray that Ike's skill triggers and that BK's don't is such a pain. And I was unlucky as well, Ike constantly triggered Aether multiple times within a chapter for most of the game, but he gets to the BK? Nah bruh, I'm just gonna let him hit me. So I ended up escaping and getting stuck with Ena. I'm honestly tempted to replay the game JUST so I can do the fight properly and recruit Nasir. 

Don't blame ya in the slightest! Not only is RNG against you, you actually have a time limit to that fight! Yeah! After 10 or so turns(maybe 15), the fight ends and you end up with Ena! So if Aether doesn't happen even once, your boned! I've been lucky enough to never lose and get Ena, but I've had close calls. And let's not forget that it's connected to chapter 27(which is already a pretty long chapter...without a moment to save(something I wish they at least gave you! Could've called the save "Chapter 27: Part 2)! It's one of the few glaring things that kinda stain this nearly flawless game(if this game ever gets a remake, I pray to God it does, they should fix that somehow)!

Oh, and Laguz get a somewhat better in RD(the gauged is increased from 20 to 30 and it fills up a bit faster. The fill varies for different species like how cats fill by +10 per turn, +15 if attacked. [EDIT:You also have more ways to fill up their gauges faster and/or keep them in their forms longer...or keep them in their transformations for the whole battle...that last item is only really available when closer to endgame though . Royals as always have skills, not bands this time, to keep them in beast form at all times]). Not by a large margin, but noticeable enough!

Edited February 11, 2017 by Busterman64

[Radiant Dragon]

If Ike has max Strength, attacks every turn and never misses, he will defeat the Black Knight within the time limit without needing any skills to activate. Obviously, equipping Aether or Adept/Wrath is good to increase your chances, but the fight isn't as luck-based as you might think. You do need Mist to be able to hold off the enemy Bishops while healing Ike, though, as he doesn't have time to pop an Elixir if he doesn't activate something. 

[Radiant head]

just finished this game for the first time in a while, holds up so well.  felt so gutted because of the ending...without spoilers, a certain character's mount.   

i had pretty much the exact same reaction as the op when i first played this.  i played awakening first, but this is the game that made me a big enough fan of the series to sign up here and stuff.  'world building' has become kind of annoying cliche, but i think it really is something that the writers of this game did extremely well.  they really made tellius come alive, and i don't think i feel similarly emotionally invested in the fire emblem continents.  this also helps radiant dawn, where despite the writing not being as strong, it's building off here.  

[Fly_or_Die]

As others have mentioned, RD improved some things you complained about (laguz units, BK fight), although it neutered support convos.

Writing in RD is hit-or-miss, in my opinion: it has its great moments, and it has its less-than-great moments, whereas I found the writing in PoR more consistently high quality. Both games do a great job of worldbuilding, as you noticed, and the characters are written nicely.

I actually have to admit I'm not a big fan of BEXP. While I enjoy seeing rewards for completing 'secondary chapter goals' (like finishing quickly, having units escape, not killing laguz, etc), it feels a lot like a massive level-up engine for you to quickly raise units you gained late without any of the pain that normally comes with raising latecomers. I also always felt like the actual EXP in the game was lower than it should have been because the game expects you to get and use BEXP.

[Anacybele]

PoR's ending, while my favorite ending in the series, is also a bit saddening for me as well because that Ike and Elincia cutscene is so sweet, but they can't...get...together. :(

[Busterman64]

9 hours ago, Anacybele said:

PoR's ending, while my favorite ending in the series, is also a bit saddening for me as well because that Ike and Elincia cutscene is so sweet, but they can't...get...together. :(

Hoping...for a Tellius remake...with that ending...I want it so much! 

[Anacybele]

1 hour ago, Busterman64 said:

Hoping...for a Tellius remake...with that ending...I want it so much! 

I know, me too! Even if it's actually platonic, I'll take it!

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

On 11.2.2017 at 1:28 AM, Radiant Dragon said:

If Ike has max Strength, attacks every turn and never misses, he will defeat the Black Knight within the time limit without needing any skills to activate.

That's true, but the possibility that he hits all ten times is like 20% with 85% hitrate against BK. Not all that much.

[Radiant Dragon]

15 hours ago, Magillanica Lou Mayvin said:

That's true, but the possibility that he hits all ten times is like 20% with 85% hitrate against BK. Not all that much.

Yes, but that's also assuming that Ike doesn't proc any skills whatsoever. The chance of Ike missing once and never activating anything is much lower.

[Cute Chao]

On ‎19‎/‎02‎/‎2017 at 5:51 AM, Radiant Dragon said:

Yes, but that's also assuming that Ike doesn't proc any skills whatsoever. The chance of Ike missing once and never activating anything is much lower.

Believe me, it happens -.- And it was annoying as hell, especially since, if I remember correctly, you have to fight through the whole map again just to get to that. I tried it three times and no joy. My friend tried it once and aethered several times -.- I never really bothered again.

[cloudstrifex]

On 2/18/2017 at 11:51 PM, Radiant Dragon said:

Yes, but that's also assuming that Ike doesn't proc any skills whatsoever. The chance of Ike missing once and never activating anything is much lower.

You seem to be forgetting that if Ike isn't proccing Aether at all then the battle will progress to where the BK starts getting healed, and Mist either has to heal Ike or kill the bishops (or neither if you didn't train her). Combine that with the fact that BK can proc Luna multiple times (I think he got it 3 or 4 times during the battle in my last playthrough) which means you can't always attack with Ike and need to waste a turn to use an Elixir. I had a battle where Aether did not proc a single time and there was absolutely no way for me to win due to the things I just mentioned so I had to restart, which goes back to the point that it really IS entirely luck based.

Back to the OP I agree that it's a great game! I bought it years after playing through FE7 and didn't know what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised. I'll add a few of my own personal gripes to the list:

1. Battle animations are really tacky and the graphics look pretty terrible when you compare them to other big Gamecube games. But it was IS' first attempt at full 3D version so I guess they get a pass (and most of that was fixed in Radiant Dawn).

2. I do think Ike has an entertaining personality for sure and he's written to be a nonchalant badass depending on how you view him, but I have a hard time believing his character progression. He went from a kid who could barely fight to commanding an army almost overnight (which is touched on many times but never truly explained other than "he must have gotten it from his father"). He also seems to be WAY more mature than anyone else and is objectively correct in his viewpoint about almost everything despite being so young. So yeah he's pretty cool but seems to be portrayed as a Mary Sue in my opinion (I'm sure other people disagree with me). Also why did he not get with Elincia??

3. Laguz should have been incorporated better, I fully agree. They are ticking time bombs as you said and generally experience hogs. There is no real reason to use them at all during a playthrough except to save your butt in situations where you don't want to restart (which makes them sort of equivalent to pre-promotes, but most of them fall off pretty fast). Also it takes away from that feeling of watching a unit progress because they do take so much XP to level up and you'll only see them gain maybe a few levels during the entire playthrough, if that (I don't think any of them gained a single level in my last playthrough). So that combined with not being able to promote seems to be counter-intuitive to the feeling of progression you get when raising units that holds true for almost every other FE game. It's the same reason I never use pre-promotes if I can avoid it.

4. Some missions are pretty annoying. Like having to use Volke/Sothe to get all the items in the map where you recruit Stefan (and the method of recruiting him is just plain stupid). I had high luck characters walking around and I think after 10 turns I managed to find an item with someone other than Volke.
BK fight sucks as others have mentioned.
The mission where you need to not get seen if you want all the BEXP is also really stupid. Their range of vision doesn't seem to make sense (I'm sure the logic is explained in a FAQ somewhere but I can't be bothered to find it). You're pretty much forced to use a turn by turn walkthrough if you want to get the BEXP for that mission while recruiting everyone and getting all the items.

But all that being said I did really enjoy the writing and think it was a great game overall. I loved the art style in Tellius and was really disappointed with the art in Awakening (and the character models... no feet?). RNG abusing BEXP is kind of fun too, but it makes the game super easy...

Edited June 1, 2017 by cloudstrifex