Famitsu 14th May: Phoenix Mode and No More Weapon Uses

[arvilino]

really? with what they put Camilla in?

I don't think you need to assume that the developers are insane to not conclude that they're hiding some secret change to the weapon system that will make everything all hunky-dory. All we know is that durability is gone. That's it, and I see no reason to make any other assumptions about how the game will function.

From the screenshots we also know that the Iron Sword likely has 8 might(unless D-rank gives weapon rank bonus) and the Iron Bow has 9 might which could suggest they expect weapons are intended to be used for a longer amount of time in the story. Also guarantees some kind of adjustments to the other weapons in the game from Awakening since the Iron Sword/Bow now have the might the Steel Sword/Bow had Awakening.

I think it's silly that people act as if everything else will be kept the same when they're getting flustered over the changes. From what we know already they've been changing quite a lot of mechanics. If they're going to change a lot of things it's not out of the ordinary to expect them to change other things related to it.

Edited May 13, 2015 by arvilino

[Robert Stewart]

I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that they would make balance changes either.

but "IS will make some balance adjustments to the game" =/= "IS is hiding some major overhaul of the game to complement the removal of weapon durability."

From the screenshots we also know that the Iron Sword likely has 8 might(unless D-rank gives weapon rank bonus) and the Iron Bow has 9 might which could suggest they expect weapons are intended to be used for a longer amount of time in the story. Also guarantees some kind of adjustments to the other weapons in the game from Awakening since the Iron Sword/Bow now have the might the Steel Sword/Bow had Awakening.

Sure, it could mean that. It could also mean that weapons just have higher might overall in this game. Not like the stats for weapons haven't been adjusted in the past without a major overhaul of how the system works.

[Jacien]

All I care about is if I can give Kamui a good red color. If not, I wonder if the ram hacking for codes will work again like in Awakening.

[BlizzardWolf95]

So after looking at the full scans (which I found on Tumblr. Would link, but Im on my phone right now, sorry), I noticed something that could have a few implications.

On the attached picture, you can see what is obviously a different look for Kamui, which may seem like just a hairstyle change at quick glance, but there's also some armor differences. The picture that is shown to follow it, with the blue arrow, shows the previous Kamui ON A HORSE.

The map seems to be one of the earlier maps in the game that we saw from the January reveal, so it's doubtful this is a promotion class for Dark Prince, but if it is, it could mean that character portraits change on promotion. If it's not a promotion, it could mean that class changing, or maybe deciding on your class before the game starts, will be a feature. And changing your class could decide your armor!

EDIT: It's possible that the horse unit may just be the pair-up character, as the hair shade is a bit different, and Kamui's sprite seems to be on foot, and paired-up, but the armor is still slightly different, so take that as you will.

Edited May 13, 2015 by BlizzardWolf95

[Aekenon]

but "IS will make some balance adjustments to the game" =/= "IS is hiding some major overhaul of the game to complement the removal of weapon durability."

As someone with some insight into the PR process, it wouldn't be them hiding it per se. Balance specifics just tend to not be 'hot news items' for magazine articles. The fact that they mentioned weapon durability at all is a weird exception to common practices, and I believe they only did so because it's something they could spin as a concession for casual players. It's no accident that most of these news items have had the theme of "LOOK HOW UN-INTIMIDATING THIS GAME IS," because that's just how video game PR kinda rolls. I'm not saying this is right, because it's really kinda frustrating, but the medium is for publishers to try to reach out to the widest group possible -- not the fans. They don't need to talk to the fans. They already have them. It's super myopic and dumb, but if you're a big company, you're probably employing "experts" who believe very much in the numbers game.

Anyhoo, I should probably stop airing my grievances about the state of video game developer outreach. Point is, whatever balance tweaks they may or may not have in place to offset the durability change, they're not the kinds of things you'd talk about in the news. Sad as it is, no magazine publisher wants to use up ink on "well, to offset our new gameplay redesign, we altered damage values and item availability to blah blah blah..."

I'm biased though, because that's totally the crap I'd like to read.

Edited May 13, 2015 by Aekenon

[Book Bro]

On the attached picture, you can see what is obviously a different look for Kamui, which may seem like just a hairstyle change at quick glance, but there's also some armor differences. The picture that is shown to follow it, with the blue arrow, shows the previous Kamui ON A HORSE.

Actually it seems that's a different character paired up with Kamui. You can see a name right above Kamui's that's mostly obscured. At first I also thought it was a different build until someone pointed it out. :P

[BlizzardWolf95]

Actually it seems that's a different character paired up with Kamui. You can see a name right above Kamui's that's mostly obscured. At first I also thought it was a different build until someone pointed it out. :P

I noticed that too, and edited my post just before you posted haha

However, it seems Kamui is in the main attacking space, so shouldn't Kamui be getting the bonuses instead of horse-dude? It's possible that FEif is really changing pair-up hard, but still...

Edited May 13, 2015 by BlizzardWolf95

[Sock]

I noticed that too, and edited my post just before you posted haha

However, it seems Kamui is in the main attacking space, so shouldn't Kamui be getting the bonuses instead of horse-dude? It's possible that FEif is really changing pair-up hard, but still...

Cavalier-dude is the character being moved.

Kamui is two spaces away from the enemy, and cavalier-dude is moving right inbetween which allows for the dual system.

[Florete]

You are almost never strapped for cash in RD, though. Every team has a money dump and the GMs have Ilyana. You can have up to like, 50k by 3-4. Actually, I think RD is more excessive with its gold than most titles. A better example would be FE12. Resource management is strict as hell in that game.

Yeah, if you know what you're doing. This has been my point all along. Ilyana? You literally can't know how to use her in this way unless you've played the game through or heard about it from elsewhere. What about the stat boosters available from Aimee's Bargains? Even skilled players will be tight on cash if they go buying those.

People are having a lot of hindsight bias here when it comes to talking about how "useless" weapon durability has been. It's easy when you know all the inner workings, not so much when you don't.

[Ownagepuffs]

In don't disagree but

Even skilled players will be tight on cash if they go buying those.

That's the part that confused me. Do you mean a skilled player going in blind? As in someone who has experience with the series but is playing RD for the first time?

[Florete]

That's the part that confused me. Do you mean a skilled player going in blind? As in someone who has experience with the series but is playing RD for the first time?

No, I mean a player who knows the game. Have you seen the prices on that stuff? Let me paste some notable ones:

1-4:

Beast Killer 1200

Ellight 2240

Mend 1000

1-5:

Iron Longbow 2000

Elthunder 1470

Spirit Dust 8000

Arms Scroll 8000

1-7:

Iron Longbow 2000

Secret Book 8000

Arms Scroll 8000

1-8:

Wyrmslayer 3600

Olivi Grass 1600

1-9:

Shine 2600

Statue Shard 8000

Master Seal 10000

Arms Scroll 8000

1-E:

Iron Longbow 2000

Master Seal 10000

Olivi Grass 1600

Arms Scroll 8000

Arcfire 2500

Arcthunder 2550

Recover 2250

You're not handed that much funds. Sure, you're not going to want to buy all that, but 1) newer players won't necessarily know what is good and what isn't, and 2) if even skilled players can't afford it all, and can have trouble affording what they do want, my point should be clear.

And that's just part 1.

[BlizzardWolf95]

Cavalier-dude is the character being moved.Kamui is two spaces away from the enemy, and cavalier-dude is moving right inbetween which allows for the dual system.

But the character attacking's name is カムイ, so Kamui is the moving one.

EDIT: UNLESS, there ARE two Kamui's, but one is passed over from the Avatar Log! I mean, this is mostly a joke, but the possibility is there. We'll never really know until late June.

Edited May 13, 2015 by BlizzardWolf95

[VincentASM]

But the character attacking's name is カムイ, so Kamui is the moving one.

EDIT: UNLESS, there ARE two Kamui's, but one is passed over from the Avatar Log! I mean, this is mostly a joke, but the possibility is there. We'll never really know until late June.

No, Kamui is the supporting unit; the attacker's name is obscured by Famitsu's text.

Good eye though : )

EDIT: We kind of have another thread for new observations, since this topic is mostly about Phoenix Mode and weapon durability (although mostly the latter now ^^).

Edited May 13, 2015 by VincentASM

[Aekenon]

No, I mean a player who knows the game. Have you seen the prices on that stuff? Let me paste some notable ones:

1-4:

Beast Killer 1200

Ellight 2240

Mend 1000

1-5:

Iron Longbow 2000

Elthunder 1470

Spirit Dust 8000

Arms Scroll 8000

1-7:

Iron Longbow 2000

Secret Book 8000

Arms Scroll 8000

1-8:

Wyrmslayer 3600

Olivi Grass 1600

1-9:

Shine 2600

Statue Shard 8000

Master Seal 10000

Arms Scroll 8000

1-E:

Iron Longbow 2000

Master Seal 10000

Olivi Grass 1600

Arms Scroll 8000

Arcfire 2500

Arcthunder 2550

Recover 2250

You're not handed that much funds. Sure, you're not going to want to buy all that, but 1) newer players won't necessarily know what is good and what isn't, and 2) if even skilled players can't afford it all, and can have trouble affording what they do want, my point should be clear.

And that's just part 1.

That just goes to show how weirdly broken/unbalanced the shops are in RD. Basically, the crazy prices are a potential hazard for new players, and something you basically ignore as an experienced player (because if you're on top of things you almost don't even need the shop except for the cheap items). Essentially, this makes the shop balanced for no one, and it's another reason why I'm hopeful that they're taking a fresh look at weapons and their value this time around.

Edited May 13, 2015 by Aekenon

[goodperson707]

^ it all depends on the type of player though, some people might not even touch the shop or even know it has rare weapons and items and only buy from the armoury when they need weapons and therefore might have enough cash to get the best non-rare equipment and also might check the shop but only once they get farther in the game.

Edited May 13, 2015 by goodperson707

[Florete]

That just goes to show how weirdly broken/unbalanced the shops are in RD. Basically, the crazy prices are a potential hazard for new players, and something you basically ignore as an experienced player (because if you're on top of things you almost don't even need the shop except for the cheap items). Essentially, this makes the shop balanced for no one, and it's another reason why I'm hopeful that they're taking a fresh look at weapons and their value this time around.

What the hell are you trying to say? This is a really bad counter argument. Plenty of those items can be useful depending on who the player is using and how they play. The only items from there I could never see a knowledgeable player buying are the Statue Frag and a second Iron Longbow. Maybe the Master Seals, as well.

[Aekenon]

Of course they're useful. They're also wholly unnecessary. I never actually want any of the specialty items from the stores, because the game is already nice enough to provide me plenty. I'm not even what can be rightly called a 'skilled player,' because frankly, I suck. But if even I'm playing efficiently enough to never need expensive gear, then something's broken with the system. All I was saying was that it's flawed. Which admittedly was a useless statement.

Also, I'm not trying to counter-argue you, because I'm not sure what your point was to begin with. Since I kinda showed up in the middle, I couldn't tell if you were citing RD as a good or bad example, and I just chimed in because I had some thoughts. I shouldn't have butted in though, and I apologize for offending you. That wasn't my intent.