Serenes Forest's Teehee Thread

[Acacia Sgt]

Dude thinks he's Dark Fact taking the floor like that.

AHAHAHAHAHA, it's done! Now to just reach the end...

[Armagon]

3D Land really is the only sauceless 3D Mario game. But it's also the only 3DS game that actually makes use of the 3D effect i think.

4 hours ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

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.🙏 

But how will they make money?

[Lightcosmo]

Oh, ice makes you fall through the floor with too much speed. That's unfortunate.

Edited yesterday at 02:59 AM by Lightcosmo

[Acacia Sgt]

Well, that was fun.

I'm tempted to start Secret of Mana already. Hmm...

[Acacia Sgt]

Well, I did, reaching up to the Mantis Ant.

Crono, is that you!? I'm aware of a few tidbits of the game's development. Quite fascinating. Shame a whole lot had to be axed, and any chances of seeing some of that stuff in any official capacity seem slim. A remake, like this one, would aim to be faithful to the original finished product than restoring some of the original aspects now that it'd be possible. Ah well, it happens, I guess.

Found this place long ago:

https://manaredux.com/

Containing quite a bit of info. Fascinating stuff.

Okay, stopping for now. Will continue tomorrow.

Edited yesterday at 04:50 AM by Acacia Sgt

[Acacia Sgt]

 

[Interdimensional Observer]

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.

 

13 hours ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Quite fascinating. Shame a whole lot had to be axed, and any chances of seeing some of that stuff in any official capacity seem slim. A remake, like this one, would aim to be faithful to the original finished product than restoring some of the original aspects now that it'd be possible.

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.

Edited 23 hours ago by Interdimensional Observer

[Lightcosmo]

5 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Likely a combination of the aesthetics, the skits, the gameplay, everything adds up

What about it do you enjoy most? Gameplay-wise.

[Acacia Sgt]

8 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

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.

Yeah, it's quite a bummer. Even just knowing what were the original plans would be nice, but even that can become lost forever. Either through being forgotten, or jut plain never revealed on purpose. With SoM we know at least some of the axed elements would be used for Chrono Trigger. Though I can't recall if it was revealed which exactly.

[Interdimensional Observer]

9 minutes ago, Lightcosmo said:

What about it do you enjoy most? Gameplay-wise.

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.

 

Just now, Acacia Sgt said:

Yeah, it's quite a bummer. Even just knowing what were the original plans would be nice, but even that can become lost forever. Either through being forgotten, or jut plain never revealed on purpose. With SoM we know at least some of the axed elements would be used for Chrono Trigger. Though I can't recall if it was revealed which exactly.

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.

[BrightBow]

The addition of Delta to 30xx is pretty great. Finally someone with a Megaman Zero-like playstyle.

Never been a huge fan of the way X4 and beyond handled X and Zero. One guy shots, the other slashes. That feels more like splitting a single moveset across multiple characters.
Idk, I would rather have a single character with a deeper movepool.

[Saint Rubenio]

I gotta ask though, IntSys the heck did you do with Engage? While there are major improvements, Ryujinx still struggles to run it in certain situations. For instance, the blizzard pastlear map (where I left off) chugs immensely.

Meanwhile Sparks of Hope throws me into this absolute clusterfuck of particle effects and it runs without a hitch. Or, at least, negligible enough hitch that it's not really noticeable. How? I had very little expectations for Sparks of Hope...

[Acacia Sgt]

Time to resume Secret of Mana.

[Lightcosmo]

7 hours ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

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.

Xillia 2 you dont have to worry about TP even though it exists. But I understand what you mean. 

That system core is lacking something for me, in regards to Zestiria/Berseria. The comboes feel... Lacking? Not just in gameplay but in display as well.

[Interdimensional Observer]

9 minutes ago, Lightcosmo said:

Xillia 2 you dont have to worry about TP even though it exists. But I understand what you mean. 

-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.

16 minutes ago, Lightcosmo said:

That system core is lacking something for me, in regards to Zestiria/Berseria. The comboes feel... Lacking? Not just in gameplay but in display as well.

Considering Armatization, it wouldn't surprise me with Zestiria at least. Armatized attacks feel heavy and slow, not exactly conducive to fluidly chaining hits.

[Lightcosmo]

12 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

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

Jude is embracing his sexy side! 

12 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Considering Armatization, it wouldn't surprise me with Zestiria at least. Armatized attacks feel heavy and slow, not exactly conducive to fluidly chaining hits

This was better than Velvets gimmick single-handedly. That was just not enjoyable for howl insane that was lol

Edited 14 hours ago by Lightcosmo

[Interdimensional Observer]

18 minutes ago, Lightcosmo said:

This was better than Velvets gimmick single-handedly. That was just not enjoyable for howl insane that was lol

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.

[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?

[Acacia Sgt]

I'd say, outside the whole waiting for the charging bar to get the full power of the attack, it's such a fun ride so far.

I ended up going to Gaia's Navel before Pandora, but it seems it wasn't too much of a hassle. Outside not recruiting Primm earlier, I guess. Made it to the dungeon area of the witch's castle. Will continue tomorrow.

Edited 12 hours ago by Acacia Sgt

[Lightcosmo]

7 hours ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

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.

If I recall, she cannot be killed during that state, instead if she reaches 1 HP it just ends, so its free death prevention on top of insane range and combo/damage potential.

Using those gimmicks makes refilling your Break meter easier, I believe?

[Eltosian Kadath]

On 4/23/2024 at 1:35 AM, Venger_06 said:

I finally started what take my leave for: Persona 3 Reload. Still, kinda feel bad for not starting a series replay before it. I'm currently in July but I can already say that it's a practically perfect remake. They fixed all the problems of the original without changing the core of the game, and to boot in general Reload is more difficult and better designed than 5 Royal.

OOoh, have fun. Persona 3 is by far my favorite of the Persona games, and it sounds like it is going well for you! I haven't gotten around to getting the remake yet (and will probably wait til a Steam sale to do so), but it is nice to hear good things about it, which will hopefully encourage other to experience its fantastic story.

 

On 4/23/2024 at 2:22 PM, Interdimensional Observer said:

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)

Nice to see you get past that apathy barrier to actually start a game. I know I have been putting off a game or two for no real reason myself as well...

plus I should probably get around to updating the TeeHee madness linked ironman LP...

 

On 4/23/2024 at 2:22 PM, Interdimensional Observer said:

 

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.

I know I have a tendency to mute games as well, usually so I can put some other audio on in the background (like a video essay, or pod cast or something). Plus I would feel bad if the game audio bothered anyone else in the house.

 

On 4/23/2024 at 2:22 PM, Interdimensional Observer said:

 

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.

When a JRPG's story is failing to catch your attention to the point you are mashing through text, that tends to be a bad sign for the story... Although perhaps I shouldn't over generalize like that. I know there are games where the gameplay is what shines so you mash through the story, or it is a story you know like the back of your hands, so you can mash through the duller parts.

 

On 4/23/2024 at 8:33 PM, Acacia Sgt said:

Well, that was fun.

I'm tempted to start Secret of Mana already. Hmm...

I know I love the original back in the day, although it was funnest when I could talk my brother into playing it multiplayer (tragically I never had the adapter to play it three player...). It is the game I think of first for the Action RPG subgenre, and it is a great example of it at that.

The SNES really was a golden age for RPGS.

 

[Interdimensional Observer]

2 hours ago, Lightcosmo said:

If I recall, she cannot be killed during that state, instead if she reaches 1 HP it just ends, so its free death prevention on top of insane range and combo/damage potential.

Now this is a detail I don't think I was aware of. Thanks for the clarification.

(I forgot to mention before on the matter of life draining powers- the first time I played Final Fantasy IV on GBA. I was still a JRPG newbie back then, I think Tactics Advance was the only other FF I had played. Anyhow, I think didn't understand that Cecil's HP was his HP, and began the game using Darkness until he killed himself.😅)

 

1 hour ago, Eltosian Kadath said:

Nice to see you get past that apathy barrier to actually start a game. I know I have been putting off a game or two for no real reason myself as well...

"Apathy" wouldn't be my word of choice. I had been wanting to, but I always found some reason to say I'm not yet ready. It's a (foolish) sense of elevating certain kinds of video games to a level demanding... austerity perhaps? Treating video games like the long-destroyed Temple in Jerusalem, and continually questioning if I've done enough ablutions to purify myself for it to be proper for me to walk into the hallowed edifice.

1 hour ago, Eltosian Kadath said:

I know I have a tendency to mute games as well, usually so I can put some other audio on in the background (like a video essay, or pod cast or something). Plus I would feel bad if the game audio bothered anyone else in the house.

Same. I try to be subdued with my gaming and the noise, thankfully I have the best hearing in my abode, so I can enjoy even at low volume.

1 hour ago, Eltosian Kadath said:

When a JRPG's story is failing to catch your attention to the point you are mashing through text, that tends to be a bad sign for the story... Although perhaps I shouldn't over generalize like that. I know there are games where the gameplay is what shines so you mash through the story, or it is a story you know like the back of your hands, so you can mash through the duller parts.

It's not that I think the story bad or anything. It's way too early to say on that. (Although, how Berseria makes a revenge-centered story -at least to begin- last the typical Tales 50-60 hours is a question I'm pondering.)

It's more... something about the startup process in a JRPG. I'm not sure how to describe it. And I wouldn't say Berseria was even all that bad about it, the "start in a tranquil village, before stuff happens that overturns the protagonist's life", was over in an hour. That's reasonable enough, there's been worse. Getting a full combat team without any major restrictions was happening in three, not bad either.

It's... the "calm before the storm" and "the storm clouds begin rolling in". Not just any peacefulness and silliness that eases one into things narratively and gameplay-wise, it's anything ominous, any scenes where you're thrown in media res with no idea what's going on, any scenes stuffed with mysterious people saying mysterious things about mysterious plans. It's how everyone friendly has to prominently announce their entry into the story and showcase themselves. -I'm not specifically talking about Berseria here. I get it- video games need an intro, not a great idea to do without one and leave people completely lost. But for some reason... I wouldn't say I dislike introductions.

Yet, I might phrase it like this- introductions tell me things, but I feel integration into the narrative/characters through playing. It's not the staged moments that kick things off that end up making me appreciate a character let's say. It's them being their casual selves, the same person, but not blatantly "acting" for the sake of making the player know who they are. (Exceptions to this always exist, of course.) And story-starts, so staged, create an air of formality that makes these very beginnings seem unapproachable unless (metaphorically) I'm dressed to the nines. Which is ironic to a degree.

(Speaking of voice-acting again. Well, I suppose my problem it at the beginning is that it does feel more like voice-acting. The dialogue, the delivery, like everything else around it -including the surrounding music- it's all stilted, at least in a JRPG. Later, it becomes "voiced-conversation" and "voiced-yelling-in-battle". Removing early VAs removes one stifling element amid many others.)

...Am I too introspective?😅

Edited 4 hours ago by Interdimensional Observer

[Acacia Sgt]

Oh, the Vestaria rework seems to be available for download now.

https://ci-en.net/creator/11872/article/1127420

@Saint Rubenio But, you probably knew already.

[Acacia Sgt]

Just one month away, huh.

 

[Lightcosmo]

20 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Now this is a detail I don't think I was aware of. Thanks for the clarification.

(I forgot to mention before on the matter of life draining powers- the first time I played Final Fantasy IV on GBA. I was still a JRPG newbie back then, I think Tactics Advance was the only other FF I had played. Anyhow, I think didn't understand that Cecil's HP was his HP, and began the game using Darkness until he killed himself.😅)

To clarify: it forces her to use the finisher of whatever type she absorbed.