Serenes Forest's Teehee Thread

[Acacia Sgt]

You know, I'm having an itch to play again some of my City Builder games. In particular I have fondness to Zeus+Poseidon. Mostly since before buying the others on Steam, that one was the only one we (by brother also plays it) owned in actual CD-ROM form years ago. I long planned to go Caesar first, then Cleopatra, and then Zeus, but eh, I'm not picky for the order on this. Though it's too late to start now. Tomorrow, perhaps.

[Eltosian Kadath]

8 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

 

...They really dropped the ball with this difficulty at the last minute, didn't they... This is just terrible. Possible, yeah, but terrible. Now cue the four paragraphs proving why I'm wrong and this is actually brilliant difficulty. I'm hoping for the four paragraphs, actually. Someone please explain to me how "Inevitable End ninja spam" is remotely okay and why I shouldn't just lower the difficulty for the last four maps and actually enjoy a fair challenge.

Probably not going to be 4 paragraphs, but I do think people complain about it more than it deserves. Inevitable End is more about getting you to cycle through the troops you are using mid-map, being careful not to overuse (thus over debuff) your units, encouraging having built a well rounded team, over having a few units carrying you through.  This is also one of the maps that really encourages careful planning and resource management, as certain skills and staff make it a lot easier to deal with if you have prepared for it. Finally, worst comes to worst, you have a clear out available for you.

Also random question completely unrelated to this little bit of Fate's talk, but I am curious if you have played, or plan on playing the Phoenix Wright, Professor Layton crossover game?

[Saint Rubenio]

10 hours ago, Ghost_06_ said:

I mean, yes, Tobey does the job, but Andrew is a much more skilled actor. I recommend you watch Hacksaw Ridge to see how well he performs (he was nominated for an Academy Award for that role btw). The movie itself is excellent and worth watching.

Ehhhh still not a movie guy, but thanks for the suggestion.

Quote

Weak.

Hey, I beat Nuibaba. I was just so sick of the game by then that I quit immediately afterwards. Didn't help that I was playing on my 3DS, unironically for once. I quickly regretted my decision, my eyes burned after a while of staring at the microscopic screen.

7 hours ago, Sooks said:

Weak.

Ah yeah, I did love this moment too. I didn't make as big of a deal of the T-posing because I was distracted by his beard. I remember my first impression (well, after laughing out loud, but that goes without saying when it comes to Garon) being "why is his beard made of solid concrete?" Hold on, lemme see if I can find the post with my first impressions...

...Well, I couldn't, but yeah. It happened. Seriously, that thing looks fucking rock solid, what the hell Garon?

I did find this gem while I was looking at older posts, however.

On 12/29/2020 at 12:28 PM, Saint Rubenio said:

There's capture in SGW. I bet there's no capture in Conquest.

...Okay, I know Fates has capture, but it's not the good kind of capture.

 

 

5 hours ago, Eltosian Kadath said:

Probably not going to be 4 paragraphs, but I do think people complain about it more than it deserves. Inevitable End is more about getting you to cycle through the troops you are using mid-map, being careful not to overuse (thus over debuff) your units, encouraging having built a well rounded team, over having a few units carrying you through.  This is also one of the maps that really encourages careful planning and resource management, as certain skills and staff make it a lot easier to deal with if you have prepared for it. Finally, worst comes to worst, you have a clear out available for you.

Hmm... To be honest, I don't really like FE games encouraging "careful planning and resource management", because that easily leads to stuff like Reunion at Dawn, where you get softlocked if you've strayed from the meta. Why give more options if you're going to punish the player for not using the specific options you wanted them to use? The freedom to use any units (and classes, when reclassing is an option) you like without dooming yourself to failure is one of the highlights of FE as a whole for me, and this stuff undermines it.

I'm not saying Conquest is entirely like this, mind. Ryoma at least gives you an out. You need to have a really, really shitty Corrin to not be able to kill Ryoma in 20 turns. That's pretty nice of them, at least. But it doesn't change my opinion that they went way overboard with his map.

Quote

Also random question completely unrelated to this little bit of Fate's talk, but I am curious if you have played, or plan on playing the Phoenix Wright, Professor Layton crossover game?

Nah, I don't think so. I think I'll take a break from Layton, because I haven't been enjoying the second game as much as the first. Partly because I remember the plot twist from when I played it as a kid, partly because I haven't been having as much fun with the puzzles. Not to say they're bad, but I haven't enjoyed them as much as the first game's.

Edited September 1, 2021 by Saint Rubenio

[Armagon]

7 hours ago, Sooks said:

How big a wall of text would I get if I asked what goes down in that ending and why? I have zero interest in those games, but that is interesting.

So the SparkNotes version is that

(Neptunia 2 spoilers)

Spoiler

Nepgear hears about a way to take down the big bad for good with a cursed sword but the only way the sword will even work in the first place is by claiming the souls of the goddesses a.k.a her friends and her sister. All of them decide it's fucked up but Nepgear sees no other choice and duels each of them to the death. But when all is said and done, the sword still requires more power and Nepgear makes the ultimate choice but sacrificing her sister to it. Although Neptune willingly goes along with it here, as opposed to everyone else who is just killed.

The remake adds a variant to this ending where after the first duel, they decide not to kill anyone and instead substitute the power with some really powerful crystals or some shit.

 

28 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Didn't help that I was playing on my 3DS, unironically for once. I quickly regretted my decision, my eyes burned after a while of staring at the microscopic screen.

[Punished Dayni]

52 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Hey, I beat Nuibaba. I was just so sick of the game by then that I quit immediately afterwards. Didn't help that I was playing on my 3DS, unironically for once. I quickly regretted my decision, my eyes burned after a while of staring at the microscopic screen.

Not gonna lie, I was considering asking if you should consider a return. Nuibaba may have not been the worst on my first playthrough, but then again when I did a playthrough this year I found Duma tower much easier (Valbar as a DF might have been part of it).

Also, if there was a 2017 3DS game that caused "my eyes!" reactions it was US when I was playing it earlier on this year. I ended up seeing it divided into bars when I was first looking at it, making it painful to actually look at. Never had that with a 3DSFE. And keep in mind I've been playing on small screens since the GBC.

52 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

On 12/29/2020 at 11:28 AM, Saint Rubenio said:

There's capture in SGW. I bet there's no capture in Conquest.

...Okay, I know Fates has capture, but it's not the good kind of capture.

Character growth!

Edited September 1, 2021 by Dayni

[Armagon]

5 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Also, if there was a 2017 3DS game that caused "my eyes!" reactions it was US when I was playing it earlier on this year.

US?

Edit: oh Ultra Sun.

Edited September 1, 2021 by Armagon

[Saint Rubenio]

28 minutes ago, Armagon said:

So the SparkNotes version is that

(Neptunia 2 spoilers)

  Reveal hidden contents

Nepgear hears about a way to take down the big bad for good with a cursed sword but the only way the sword will even work in the first place is by claiming the souls of the goddesses a.k.a her friends and her sister. All of them decide it's fucked up but Nepgear sees no other choice and duels each of them to the death. But when all is said and done, the sword still requires more power and Nepgear makes the ultimate choice but sacrificing her sister to it. Although Neptune willingly goes along with it here, as opposed to everyone else who is just killed.

The remake adds a variant to this ending where after the first duel, they decide not to kill anyone and instead substitute the power with some really powerful crystals or some shit.

Is there fanservice in the creepypasta ending too? Tell me they at least had the restraint not to go there.

28 minutes ago, Armagon said:

Damnit Armagon, quit judging me. My eyes really fucking hurt! And my hands, too. They've gotten too big for that tiny 2011 3DS model.

6 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Not gonna lie, I was considering asking if you should consider a return. Nuibaba may have not been the worst on my first playthrough, but then again when I did a playthrough this year I found Duma tower much easier (Valbar as a DF might have been part of it).

Ehhhh I dunno, maybe at some point. It's not a FE that fills me with confidence, exactly.

6 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Also, if there was a 2017 3DS game that caused "my eyes!" reactions it was US when I was playing it earlier on this year. I ended up seeing it divided into bars when I was first looking at it, making it painful to actually look at. Never had that with a 3DSFE. And keep in mind I've been playing on small screens since the GBC.

Yeah, I too get a "my eyes!" reaction from the United States.

Well, to be fair, I am not used to tiny screens. The only tiny screens I've played on are the 3DS, which I hadn't used for years when I played Echoes, and the Wii U's gamepad, since the TV was permanently taken by my dad. And even then the Wii U gamepad's screen isn't all that small.

6 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Character growth!

Fates capture best capture.

...Okay, no, not quite to that point. Thracia capture is excellent. But Fates capture lets me play as throwaways. That's just... so fuckin' good. Honestly, it beats Berwick's annoying-ass RNG fest of a capture system. Even as satisfying as those red crosses are.

[Lightcosmo]

I am SO glad i made a save right before the route choice. i really don't wanna do all that share grinding again. The Lily Ranks is gonna be bad enough (Getting everyone high with Nepgear, i guess?)

It took a few hours just to do the Shares, and that was a pain.

[Lightcosmo]

Just now, Saint Rubenio said:

Is there fanservice in the creepypasta ending too? Tell me they at least had the restraint not to go there.

No, it's taken very serious, at least the way i read it.

[Armagon]

1 minute ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Is there fanservice in the creepypasta ending too? Tell me they at least had the restraint not to go there.

Nah, it's completely serious all the way through.

Neptunia is actually pretty good at not showing fanservicy CGs when it's a serious moment. There's a time and place for the horny.

2 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

They've gotten too big for that tiny 2011 3DS model.

Ok that's understandable. When I got the New 3DS XL in 2015, I never looked back.

.....the fuck do you mean the New 3DS XL is six years old....

3 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Fates capture best capture.

...Okay, no, not quite to that point. Thracia capture is excellent. But Fates capture lets me play as throwaways. That's just... so fuckin' good. Honestly, it beats Berwick's annoying-ass RNG fest of a capture system. Even as satisfying as those red crosses are

Ruben saying an FE game did something better than Berwick is the best character development I've ever seen.

[Saint Rubenio]

5 minutes ago, Armagon said:

Nah, it's completely serious all the way through.

Neptunia is actually pretty good at not showing fanservicy CGs when it's a serious moment. There's a time and place for the horny.

I would argue the time and place for the horny is porn, and not a story that wants to be taken even remotely seriously, but I digress.

5 minutes ago, Armagon said:

Ok that's understandable. When I got the New 3DS XL in 2015, I never looked back.

I considered the XL model a couple times, but I'm afraid I just didn't play enough 3DS games to justify the investment. And now I've got a computer that can run Citra pretty amazingly, so I no longer need it.

5 minutes ago, Armagon said:

Ruben saying an FE game did something better than Berwick is the best character development I've ever seen.

Hey, to be fair, even at the peak of my Berwick fanboyism I never praised the capture system. In fact, I've always regarded it as one of the game's few flaws. I endure it, there are ways to make it a little more reliable, and the enemies you might really want to capture generally have the hidden skill that makes them much more susceptible to cripplings, but even so, it feels tacked on and it requires way dealing with too much RNG.

Thankfully you never absolutely need it. The one time you need to capture someone to progress, the game hands you a guaranteed way to cripple them. So that's nice.

[Saint Rubenio]

What the hell, Dream Team!? Why did you just give me the option to admit defeat during a boss fight!? No, you can't do that! I don't need to go and level up! Let me continue the fight!

Boss one-shots me

...Okay, maybe I do, but like hell's that gonna stop me!

[Spara]

7 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Thankfully you never absolutely need it. The one time you need to capture someone to progress, the game hands you a guaranteed way to cripple them. So that's nice.

Yeah, and the other times it's optional there's either just a free capture command or you get multiple chances.

Also, hey all! I've been getting started with school, which is why I've been inactive for so long. Not like I was all that active to begin with, but eh.

22 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

...Okay, no, not quite to that point. Thracia capture is excellent. But Fates capture lets me play as throwaways. That's just... so fuckin' good. Honestly, it beats Berwick's annoying-ass RNG fest of a capture system. Even as satisfying as those red crosses are.

I think Berwick's capture system is fine later in the game, but early-game... yeah, it sucks. The player has few tools to expand cripple rates beyond I guess capturing a Gore Fork or forging the Apeiron ASAP, along with Arthur's Flourish. Not counting Sylvis's Maim because that shit is so unreliable and doesn't even affect the cripple rates on injured enemies, thanks Kaga for lying. And getting crippled early on before you get Izerna's promotion or the first Panacea doesn't really have counterplay outside of "haha you got bad luck, now reset." If the player character is injured and then gets crippled, meh, but it's stupid when it just happens out of the blue and your only real recourse is resetting. 

[Armagon]

8 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

I would argue the time and place for the horny is porn, and not a story that wants to be taken even remotely seriously, but I digress.

If Gustave Courbet could unironically paint a close-up of his girlfriend's vagina and have it be taken completely serious to the point where it's shown in Art History class centuries later, an anime JRPG story with some fanservice can also be taken seriously.

13 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

And now I've got a computer that can run Citra pretty amazingly, so I no longer need it.

Just don't play Kid Icarus: Uprising on Citra. You will have a horrendous time.

[Saint Rubenio]

3 minutes ago, Spara said:

Yeah, and the other times it's optional there's either just a free capture command or you get multiple chances.

Yeah, true. It doesn't ruin the game, it's just not very well thought-out.

3 minutes ago, Spara said:

Also, hey all! I've been getting started with school, which is why I've been inactive for so long. Not like I was all that active to begin with, but eh.

You sensed I was dissing Berwick and you had to come and correct the timeline.

3 minutes ago, Spara said:

I think Berwick's capture system is fine later in the game, but early-game... yeah, it sucks. The player has few tools to expand cripple rates beyond I guess capturing a Gore Fork or forging the Apeiron ASAP, along with Arthur's Flourish. Not counting Sylvis's Maim because that shit is so unreliable and doesn't even affect the cripple rates on injured enemies, thanks Kaga for lying. 

Later in the game it's... slightly better, but you're still liable to have to reset once or twice, even with the almighty bolt knife + lightning combo.

3 minutes ago, Spara said:

And getting crippled early on before you get Izerna's promotion or the first Panacea doesn't really have counterplay outside of "haha you got bad luck, now reset." If the player character is injured and then gets crippled, meh, but it's stupid when it just happens out of the blue and your only real recourse is resetting. 

This, I feel isn't as bad. Crippled characters aren't instantly dead. There's the possibility to adapt and keep them safe without compromising the entire mission. You lose the guy for the entire chapter, which is not great, but it doesn't instantly spell a loss if you don't want it to. And there's rumors that force-deployed units get hidden Robust, so that's not a concern either.

Still, it just feels like the mechanic was tossed in there for the heck of it. It doesn't flow as well as the rest of Berwick's mechanics do together, if you know what I mean.

1 minute ago, Armagon said:

If Gustave Courbet could unironically paint a close-up of his girlfriend's vagina and have it be taken completely serious to the point where it's shown in Art History class centuries later, an anime JRPG story with some fanservice can also be taken seriously.

I don't know, I feel like that's different. A painting doesn't require you invest hours upon hours in it, following a story and growing fond of characters and such. All too often in anime characters are (best case scenario, temporarily) reduced to jokes for the sake of making them walking eye candy so more copies can be sold to otakus. It's really blatant in its intent and it destroys my immersion every single time, because 99% of the time it's clear that the sexy fanservice serves absolutely no purpose beyond getting money from horny people.

I don't know, just my opinion. And don't get me wrong, for as much of a big deal as I make of it, I can look past it if the story's otherwise great enough to warrant it. I've done it before, in fact. For example, I quite enjoy Ace Attorney, and that series has plenty of... questionable moments. But that doesn't change the fact that dumb sexual scenes coming out of nowhere and serving no real purpose makes me facepalm every time, and for a precious few moments, it takes me out of the action entirely. If you're going to have fanservice, at least do it in a way that doesn't feel completely tacked on. Please.

1 minute ago, Armagon said:

Just don't play Kid Icarus: Uprising on Citra. You will have a horrendous time.

Never planned on playing that game, so that's okay.

[Lightcosmo]

2 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

This, I feel isn't as bad. Crippled characters aren't instantly dead.

They are a wasted deployment slot though. And in my case since i had Deen crippled during the chapter where you need to escape in 12? turns, it was true hell placing units to abuse the "1" move negative, lmao.

[Sooks]

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Ehhhh still not a movie guy, but thanks for the suggestion.

That’s okay, Ruben, TV shows are where it’s at.

Quote

Ah yeah, I did love this moment too. I didn't make as big of a deal of the T-posing because I was distracted by his beard. I remember my first impression (well, after laughing out loud, but that goes without saying when it comes to Garon) being "why is his beard made of solid concrete?" Hold on, lemme see if I can find the post with my first impressions...

Ah yes, his beard has a tendency to do that.

I laughed in this scene a little later (or maybe it was before?) when Corrin runs out of frame towards the exit of the room after Ryoma dies and Azura goes “Corrin! Corrin!” and also runs out of frame, implying she’s chasing him, and then the camera turns around and shows them both leisurely strolling out of the room. It’s hilarious.

[Armagon]

7 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

A painting doesn't require you invest hours upon hours in it,

?????????

Paintings absolutely required hours upon hours of investment. Especially in ye olden times like the 1700s.

I know what you're trying to say here but i saw some small paintings that took the artist years to make yeah, paintings definitely required an intense amount of time.

9 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Never planned on playing that game, so that's okay.

Ruben's missing out on the best 3DS game smh.

[Spara]

9 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

This, I feel isn't as bad. Crippled characters aren't instantly dead. There's the possibility to adapt and keep them safe without compromising the entire mission. You lose the guy for the entire chapter, which is not great, but it doesn't instantly spell a loss if you don't want it to. And there's rumors that force-deployed units get hidden Robust, so that's not a concern either.

That is true, it can be played around. You saw the lengths I went to in order to keep that one magic level in 12-1 of MinRec (hey, now that I have a finally good upload speed, I can upload the ending of that run). It just feels really stupid at times. 

12 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Still, it just feels like the mechanic was tossed in there for the heck of it. It doesn't flow as well as the rest of Berwick's mechanics do together, if you know what I mean.

Yeah. To be honest, the only Berwick mechanics that I feel don't fit in very well together are capturing and durability. Everything else does a really good job of fitting into the flow of the gameplay.

[Saint Rubenio]

31 minutes ago, lightcosmo said:

They are a wasted deployment slot though. And in my case since i had Deen crippled during the chapter where you need to escape in 12? turns, it was true hell placing units to abuse the "1" move negative, lmao.

Yeah, that's true. Again, I don't feel it's bad to the point where it ruins the game, but it is a rather iffy mechanic.

25 minutes ago, Armagon said:

?????????

Paintings absolutely required hours upon hours of investment. Especially in ye olden times like the 1700s.

I know what you're trying to say here but i saw some small paintings that took the artist years to make yeah, paintings definitely required an intense amount of time.

You misunderstood me. I meant paintings don't take hours of investment from the viewer. I was talking entirely from the viewer's perspective here. I never meant to undersell the amount of effort and talent painting requires. Far from it!

25 minutes ago, Armagon said:

Ruben's missing out on the best 3DS game smh.

X to doubt.

21 minutes ago, Spara said:

That is true, it can be played around. You saw the lengths I went to in order to keep that one magic level in 12-1 of MinRec (hey, now that I have a finally good upload speed, I can upload the ending of that run). It just feels really stupid at times. 

Playing around cripples would definitely feel better if they weren't entirely random.

21 minutes ago, Spara said:

Yeah. To be honest, the only Berwick mechanics that I feel don't fit in very well together are capturing and durability. Everything else does a really good job of fitting into the flow of the gameplay.

My thoughts exactly.

[Venger_06]

[Saint Rubenio]

Okay. Here we go again. Ryoma time.

Wish me luck. Maybe this time I'll get past the first room.

[Sooks]

2 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Okay. Here we go again. Ryoma time.

Wish me luck. Maybe this time I'll get past the first room.

Good luck, especially with the hallway of death.

[Codename Shrimp]

13 hours ago, Benice said:

Gah, sorry...

...why apologize?

13 hours ago, Armagon said:

Although did you ever finish Tears to Tiara 2?

on hold atm because i met a giant ass map and was like ''nope, not now'' 

And then i discovered the CQ Hoshido patch and decided to play it

 

 

Also Berwick capture is the worst tbh

Edited September 1, 2021 by Shrimperor

[Saint Rubenio]

Aaaand there we go. I bend over backwards in a desperate attempt to beat the first room, I almost make it... And then I make one misclick and it's over. Time to redo everything.