BrightBow

I don't see how any issues Sothe may have as a unit are related to the topic. And like I said, his role as a major character was heavily foreshadowed in PoR. So I don't see any issues with that either.

Some say the glass is half empty, others say it's half full. Might as well say that rather then having no beer, you are going to have beer.

Anyway, back on the subject of Sothe. Am I the only one who after his revelation as the Jagen for Radiant Dawn, everything actually fell right into place? So that's why he couldn't promote. He gets his next level and new class after a growth spurt in a timeskip, after having outgrown being a weak tag-along kid. So that's why we never found out who that mysterious person was, that he was looking for. Because that new person was going to be the new protagonist. So that's why he was the only non-main character who retreats when he is defeated. He was already decided to play a major role in the next game.

Man, I could swear we just got one last week or so. Maybe it's because they have finished that whole Nintendo Line Streetpass thing.

I finally got my copy of New Mystery of the Emblem. Particular BS Emblem map 1 was just such a pleasure to play. I also got cake.

Anyway, least favorite female to me is definitely Lissa. The first two chapters don't seem to serve much of a purpose but to make her look as bad as possible. Everything she says is whiny and painful to listen too. Then during battle, she figures her sibling rivalry with Chrom is more important then saving the townspeople. "I am not delicate but I have messed up priorities." Be proud, Lissa... Her absolute master stroke has to be, when she whines about having to camp during the night... in front of someone for who all we know lost his loved ones and got his house burned down. Truly the "most loveable of the Shepherds".... Her only saving grace is that I would be pissed off too, if I would be expected to run across forests and battlefield while wearing a metal ring with lots of pointy spikes around my waist. Or maybe the ring is just some obscure sort of s/m gear, that she wears deliberately. And I am quite upset that her character is such a waste. Even though she is supposedly a main character and has actual story appearances, as a result of Emmeryn's death she merely screams for one line and then sobs for one line. Then she immediately snaps back to her old self with no marks left: Lissa: You can count me in! I'm tired of crying all the time. It's time to start punchin' stuff! Considering how well this was handled with Mist in PoR (starting with the fact that she got right after Greil's dead an entire scene devoted to her, featuring only her and Ike), this is just a complete joke. But hey, the game told that Emmeryn's death was soooo tragic. So no need to actually show it in some fashion. *sigh* Otherwise, her actual contribution as a main character merely seems to be, to jump out of nowhere into a scene, deliver a single line and then disappear as if she never was there to begin with. Like in chapter 13. Supposedly the scene features only Lucina, her mother, Marth and Avatar. And then suddenly... Lissa. No introduction. She just talks as if she had been there the whole time. It's so irritating. Well, at least that one line confirmed after 11 chapters, that I was not the only one seeing the fireworks in chapter 2. Given everyones lack of reactions, I could have sworn it was just my imagination. As for the best, i find it difficult to find a single character that isn't a complete joke. Cherche may not have to many issues with her personality but it's difficult taking someone seriously who wears a frigging french maid headdress. Fetish pandering doesn't get much more blatant then that. At least a bright red clowns nose would have been somewhat funny. And the rest of her outfit (what the hell is this thing?) doesn't help matters, as does her "Minerva says" routine. (Though admittedly her final line is the only time I smirked to a line that was actually supposed to be funny) I guess it's Say'ri then. With this cast, a lack of negatives is as positive as it gets.

They would just need to be not so speedy that they can double attack just as easily as the speed specialists. And they simply shouldn't be so durable that the difference to Armored Knights doesn't matter. And they shouldn't be so strong, that they can obliterate a target in the same number of hits as a Fighter.

Well, there is also Tear Ring Saga. The tier list thread puts all the Cavaliers Rook Knights (Except for Narron. But that is because he has Elite and even promotes into Gold Knight.) into mid tier or lower. Just barely above the archer who literally cannot kill anyone. Not sure about the lists reasoning but it matches my experience that they aren't that great. Eventually I dropped both of Christmas Knights. So ignoring the abilities of individual units, they seem actually fairly balanced there. It probably helps that doubling requires an agility advantage of 5 points, making it harder for an all-rounder to trivialize speedier characters.

Hehe, well Walhart would probably have succeeded in conquering the world. I mean the guy gives Skrimir a run for his money. Walhart is the guy who said with a straight face that he had no need for strategy. God help us all, if he actually uses his brain to direct his power. Of course, the guy who really would have been screwed without assistance is Ike. Ike's success depended entirely on Soren's intellect and Titania's experience and wisdom. He is just the guy who can get the two of them working together, since Soren's selfish pragmatism conflicts with Titania's chivalry. And Leaf would probably have gotten himself killed rather quickly. He is way too impulsive to survive unless someone can keep him in check. Remember, he refused to escape to southern Thracia even when it was the only option, since he could not accept the help of a country who brought down his own country. And the one time even August couldn't keep him on the leash, resulted in him loosing half his forces and almost Lenster's capital. This was only avoided because someone more competent came to save him. Edit: Oh, yeah Gaiden... erm, did someone finish it? I thought the two of them traveled separately. So how could Celica have influenced Alm's actions?

Honestly, I don't see how it suits Tharja at all. Not even any better then Olvia. In terms of personality, she is not sexually expressive at all. Even when she chases after Avatar, she never tries flaunting her body. She just wants to be left alone with her particular flavor of studying and wants to stay out of harms way. Something practical and comfortable would suit her personality way more. And it doesn't get much more impractical and uncomfortable then her outfit. (Seriously, that thing looks painful. And a fully bod stocking in a desert? *Shudder*)

My favorite is probably Henry. He is cruel, murderous and has a sick sense of humor. But unlike everyone else in the cast, he is actually intended that way. Because of that, I actually think he is less disturbing then the rest, It's also neat that he has his unique laughing animation. It's just a bit of a shame that he is one of the characters who gets dropped into the army without any explanation but he makes more then up for it. On the other hand of the spectrum is Virion. This guy just makes my blood boil. He is definitly quite full of himself for an archer with a negative speed base. Undead? Massive earthshifts? A rain of fire? A giant eyeball in the sky? No shit is given by the great Virion. Heck, he even thinks that it is appropriate to waste the time of a knight who is on her way to actually help people. Who cares if people get their brains eaten as long as Virion gets to hump a girl's leg. And even in a game where everyone's battle quotes are indistinguishable from the actual sociopath, Virion stands out as particular inhuman. In particular "Die! With Magnifigance!" has to be one of the most disgusting lines I ever heard in a media uttered by a supposed hero. It also doesn't occur Virion, that he might want to warn Chrom about Wallhart sometime during the timeskip. Because that would mean that Virion would actually care about anyone but himself.

I still remember that I cried during the opening of Ocarina of Time 3D, if that counts.

Best: FE5 Worst: FE10 Well, FE5's version always activates. This is highly valuable in a game filled with uber weapons and skills. FE10's version is absurdly unlikely to be of any help at all. You need to have luck to even trigger it and you need to have even more luck for it to be a strike that prevents the enemies counterattack.

Fighting games are just so well suited for pick up and play. So I would go for the 3DS version even if I had a Wii U.

Nintendo Entertainment System (NES): Castlevania I wonder why so many people seem to say that the game is hard. It's the only NES game I could ever beat. People always seem to talk with dread about the Medusa Heads or the path before Death. But to me everything seemed beatable as long as I kept my eyes open. Compared to let's say Ninja Gaiden, where after a while it seems like the game just throws random crap from all directions at me Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES): Mega Man X I just keep coming back to this game for some reason. I think it's because that I am still stunned just how bad the Zero and ZX games are compared to this one. What's better? To find an upgrade and then farm for 30 minutes so you can actually use like in Zero. Or just find an upgrade and use it, like in X? What's better? Walk aimlessly for ages until you find a stage entrance like in ZX? (And then go all the way back to the next savepoint and select the mission and then back to the stage.) Or just immediately select a stage like in X? Nintendo 64: Starfox 64 The reason I was no longer satisfied with just PC games. I just had to own this game. Nintendo Gamecube: Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance Obviously. I had played Blazing Sword and Sacred Stones but this is the game that made me fall in the love with the series. Masterful writing and worldbuilding as well as a tight atmosphere make this my absolute favorite in the series. Nintendo Wii: Sin & Punishment: Successor of the Sky Man, they don't make them like this anymore. None of this crap that artificially increases game length. No farming after random drops or levels. Just 100% gameplay. And the game works just sooo well with the Wii Remote and Nunchuck. Gameboy/Gameboy Color: Pokemon G/S/C This game absolutely masterfully surpassed it's predecessor in any way. Gameboy Advance: Golden Sun: The lost Age As did this game. Admittedly, the nostalgia is strong in this one. Still, Golden Sun did a lot of small things I miss in other RPGs... and it's DS sequel. Nintendo DS: Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 days Sort of a Monster Hunter Light. Still fun for the most part, though. Heartless have to be the enemies that are the most satisfying to whack. Nintendo 3DS: Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance I just wish the skill system didn't rely so badly on Dream Eaters. They are such a pain. Playstation: Tear Ring Saga I think I played enough PS games by now that I can choose one. Tear Ring Saga is an absolute joy to play as long as you aren't on Holmes' route. PC: Gothic II: Night of the Raven Plays quite a bit better then it's already awesome predecessor. And NotR is an awesome addons. Definitely my contender for the best RPG ever.

Well, to me Awakening is the absolute bottom of the barrel. PoR is my favorite but I do admit it is mostly because of story and worldbuilding and the way it intervenes story and gameplay. But the gameplay is rather lackluster. Thracia and TRS beat it by miles. Still, PoR tries it's best to keep the game varied. Chapter 8 has three choke points attacked by entirely different kinds of units. Chapter 11 has a lot of stuff going on. Recruiting Zihark without killing the members of the vigilante group, beating the thieves to the houses and seizing the harbor. If you don't get these things done fast, you have the Black Knight after you. Chapter 12 has you fighting on a small ship against an entire army of fliers. Chapter 14 has fog of war, so careful movement is neccesary. Chapter 15 allows you to take advantage of the enemies transformation gauge. Use it to kill the enemies while they are weak or use it to outmaneuver them and collcect tons of BEXP. Your choice. Chapter 17 is an endurance round of several skirmishes. ... Well, let's just stop it here. It doesn't get any less varied for the rest of the game. Some of those designs suck (chapter 10. Avoiding being spotted is soooo not worth it.) but there is definitely a lot of effort there to keep things interesting. And I can respect that. A lot of them fall apart because of weak enemy stats but since the highest difficulty was removed during localization, I won't blame it for that. Awakening merely resorts to deploying random enemies all over the place. There doesn't seem to be much of a pattern to it. Heck, the game even applies random skills to enemies every time you reenter the map. All of them will then begin charging from all directions, forcing you into the defense. Sure, you could charge yourself but since enemies are everywhere, the result is the same: Random enemies charge at you from every direction. It makes me feel like I am playing the same map over and over. just with higher stats on both sides. So the game goes extremely repetitive in a very short time. It kinda reminds me of facing armies in FE4. But that game got repetitive for the same reason. Still, at least the armies had a theme to them and weren't entirely balanced. Then of course, there is the emphasis on instantly moving reinforcements. Announced or not, you do not know when, where they arrive. You don't even know what arrives. Every class can spawn, they can have every possible skill and every possible weapon. And that's kinda important, since you can never entirely safely approach spawning points because of that. And after Gangrel, the game stops giving you new units to replace death ones. And because of state inflation, you can neither use the old ones or the kids. Normally, I would just restart anyway. But dying to those unfair reinforcements feels very undeserved, so I would rather progress. And I just leave it at that for now. There is a lot more I would like to say but this are definitely the main reason that Awakening was such an unpleasant experience.

So what? Olivia is at least just as "Kawai". She is just the moe type. Edit: Sorry, nevermind that is off-topic. Anyway, it's hardly comical. Just nonsensical.

The assumption that the quality of the characterization revolves along gender lines isn't something I can subscribe. I mean, I was sure hoping that males would be more interesting when I choose a female Avatar. The males make up for being less fetishy by being more random. But that doesn't make them worse or even more repetitive. "I'm tripping. I'm such a klutz, sorry." isn't much better then "No one can see me. I didn't mean to startle you.". and whatnot.

Personally it reminds me more of the day/night system of Battle for Westnoth. Units are weak at night and strong at day or vice versa. The affect is actually noticeable there, since it actually affected attack power. Charging Orcs at night playing Loyalists is a horrible idea. It's better to work at a strategy that prevents them from gaining much ground until daybreak. Still, even if the affects were actually noticeable, since Fire Emblem has not much use for conquering checkpoints, I don't see much use in such a system. Besides, keeping track of all the biorhythm in every single turn is a massive pain.

Not to mention that characters like R.O.B, Game & Watch and the Ice Climbers add quite a bit of diversity to the cast. Roy is just another guy with a sword.

Most: Lekain Least: Excellus Lekain, because there are few things that send chills down my spine like a guy who considers the life of everyone but himself and his own "kin" without any value. He might not kill people for fun. But if it benefits him in the slightest, he will nonchalantly commit genocides. Like he did with the Serenes. It doesn't even occur to him that his goddess might consider it blasphemy to create a false apostle or that she might not approve of mass murder. Despite all of his actions, he never doubts that he has Ashera's favor. He even ends up thinking he is her chosen. But his delusions don't make him less competent. He is very skilled at getting his way. And he is not cartoonish clown like certain other villains with gray skin and dark robes. He is just a normal old man who just so happens to lack a conscience. Speaking of cartoonish clowns, there is Excellus. A single look at his face shows that he is not to be taken seriously. While he did maintain a certain degree of order in Valm, he never realized how his pathetic shenanigans were dependent on Yen'far. So he only succeeded through dumb luck, the sheer coincidence that the only guy who feared his treats was the guy that everyone else was afraid off. Not only that but when he lost Yen'far and with him almost half his forces, he figured it was the right time to gloat. In fact, he showed quite a few times how out of touch he is with reality. And while Lekain's delusions are a danger for everyone but him, Excellus delusions just endangering himself. He even thought he could kill freaking Wallhart, for crying out loud. Besides, merely threatening people is pretty pathetic when you try to be the evil counterpart to the person who cheerfully burned and drowned thousands of people like mere rats.

Well, I didn't say it would be easy. Anyway, is it already known who will voice Cell? Oh, wait it is. Still need to get used to Youtube's new layout. Dammit. So ehm... Senzu Bean!

I think that English is extremely cool. Of course, given that I obviously suck at using the language, it's evident that I don't know what I am talking about. But hey, at least it's not German.

Of course nobody is forcing me. I just felt like trying to talk about the episode, rather then just saying a quote and then letting this thread fall into obscurity again until the next update. Though, I admit I suck at that.

Episode 35 actually kinda bored me. But I enjoyed this one massively. I think it was quite outstanding. I don't feel like quoting "mine" though. It's just Vegeta repeating the same joke he already did with Ginyu in the very same context.