Serenes Forest's Teehee Thread

[GuardianSing]

Civ 7 actually has an Indian kingdom instead of the usual of giving a generic united India civ led by no one who actually led the modern state of India.

This gives me hope for Mexico.

[BrightBow]

Oh cool, the Japanese version of Dawn of Sorrow doesn't allow you to skip cutscenes.
Thought we learned not to do that sometime during the GBA days, but I guess not. US version it is then.

On the bright side, the "magic circles" should be quite painless with the new QTE system. That's a relief.

Honestly, the fact that sub weapons don't get their own button is just... why?
B is Jump. Y is Attack. Then X is... loadout swap. Okay.
Don't see this helping all that much since most of the time you are probably just gonna swap a single piece of equipment anyway. And since the game keeps throwing new junk at you every 5 steps, it's too much of a hassle to keep both loadouts updated all the time.
Then A is "Critical Attack". Which the game does virtually nothing with. It's practically a wasted button.

Edited August 28 by BrightBow

[Benice]

I love how I made a fanfare of coming back and then proceeded to post like twice KSDJFKJSDFHKJ

Also Serenes isn't letting me quote, so

Quote

This gives me hope for Mexico.

mfw the Mexico civ "progresses" from Aztec to New Spain

[BrightBow]

Then Order of Ecclesia has two attack buttons, which are terribly used.

They are basically just an excuse to wail on enemies by mashing two different buttons.

It would have been nice to equip two complimentary weapons so you can smoothly deal with a variety of threats, but the way they set this up you effectively always want to have the same weapon in both slots, unless you want your attack rate turn to shit. So it doesn't actually do anything for you.

This also means that if you do want to swap your weapon, you have to modify two separate slots.
It's basically completely backwards. Instead of making the gameplay smoother, it's just more a hassle.

Edited August 28 by BrightBow

[Armagon]

1 hour ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Wouldn't surprise me. Curious if they're going to make the villain characters less one-dimensional this time (not that I have any real problem with RF doing the minimum for story).

Also makes me wonder how long the plot is. At a guess:

Act 1: reviving the seasonal gods

Act 2: dealing with the bad guys

Much like RF4.

RF5's plot can be blitzed and it kinda needed to be because you can't marry until you beat the game. Not so the case in 4.

 

[BrightBow]

The story of Order of Ecclesia is still just amazing. 2 minutes in and they completely destroy their main character by robbing her of her emotions and memories. Amazing that someone thought this was a good idea.
If they had at least let her keep her memories, she would have had some kind of context for her loss. But she doesn't, so she is a complete non-character for the whole game.

The stories of Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin are bad in a tiresome, predictable fashion. But this is impressively bad. "So bad it's Good" at it's most entertaining. A true work of art.

[Interdimensional Observer]

Well that was... abrupt. Really abrupt. A letdown.😑 

Felt like there was enough material to work with for a full-fledged direct sequel -but Level 5 hadn't the resources to waste on that (they've been struggling for a while now). Instead of getting a satisfying finish, the final battle is a tease, with a post-credits "To Be Continued" to address the matter of surviving bad guys. The game would've been better without this epilogue-ish bit tossed on, and the resources spent enhancing what's earlier in the story. They could've then used what they threw in this game as material for the (perhaps very unlikely given L5 ain't Bamco) sequel.  Also, I don't quite understand, what was THAT?😵

...Setting this iffy ending aside, I greatly enjoyed Megaton Musashi W: Wired.😄 A review:

• You have to be mecha fan to like Megaton Musashi, and the combat can be at times easy (on the lower difficulties at least) and button-mashy. Yet, I do like giant robots, and I don't mind action-mecha gameplay that can be a tad Musou-ish.
• Plot was acceptable. Had a nice number of spectacle moments, Level-5 really put their souls of steel into it.😀 While generally serious, things are very much on the bright side of mecha, fans of Tomino's depressed works will find nothing here😜. The themes and whatnot are pretty simple. Level-5 does like going family-friendly having superficially seen though not played their other works.
• The characters... I need to go back and do the character side stories.😅 The cast is not the deepest, but on the whole I like them. They tried to give everyone of slightest significance in the crew a little attention.
• Music- mostly ambient, nothing worth remembering other than the opening theme.
• Visuals- Quality 2D artwork for the town. 3D graphics were acceptable for the battlefields. And for the giant robots- good. On the chunkier and more-rounded side, but some slimmer models too. -But I'm not picky.😆

@Acacia Sgt Not only did Level-5 get the rights to slip in MaZ/Gren/Get, list as the second or third credit- Mech Design Assistance- Go Nagai. (I got up and stretched so I didn't see who was actually the lead mech designer.😅) A rather vague accreditation that could mean very little, but still.😛

Now, having seen everything, I need to finish writing out some ideas of how Megaton Musashi could be worked into SRW.

...Nice to be able to exhale, if sad at the same time. As I'd take more of Yamato's eager hot-blooded madness. I don't want to leave this immaterial world.😆 (I can keep playing it for gameplay though, plenty of replayability in that.)

 

59 minutes ago, Armagon said:

Also makes me wonder how long the plot is. At a guess:

Act 1: reviving the seasonal gods

Act 2: dealing with the bad guys

Much like RF4.

-FYI, while multiple story acts are a thing that are here and should stay, they weren't around in any RF4 game prior to 4. ...I could go into a little more detail if you wanted it, but I don't feel it right now.😆

 

1 hour ago, Benice said:

I love how I made a fanfare of coming back and then proceeded to post like twice KSDJFKJSDFHKJ

Not a problem, no need to be a blabbermouth like some of us.😉

[BrightBow]

Oh you gotta be kidding me. Seems the Japanese version of all three DS games won't let you skip cutscenes.

Well, Ecclesia lets you skip the opening text scroll at least. Doesn't seem anything else can be skipped, though.

[Saint Rubenio]

1 hour ago, BrightBow said:

The story of Order of Ecclesia is still just amazing. 2 minutes in and they completely destroy their main character by robbing her of her emotions and memories. Amazing that someone thought this was a good idea.
If they had at least let her keep her memories, she would have had some kind of context for her loss. But she doesn't, so she is a complete non-character for the whole game.

The stories of Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin are bad in a tiresome, predictable fashion. But this is impressively bad. "So bad it's Good" at it's most entertaining. A true work of art.

First female protagonist in the series, by the way.

...You know, I always found the whole "she has no emotions" thing pretty weird because like... she clearly does have emotions? She shows anger and sadness multiple times. It's just joy that she never shows over the course of the game. I wonder if that's a mistranslation or if they just didn't think being angry is an emotion.

Anyway, I still felt the story in this game was fine, but... Eh, if you stop to think about it for more than two seconds you realize that everything could've been solved after the first boss if Albus had just not been an idiot and tried communicating. Still, props for trying something new instead of just relying on the exact same structure every other Metroidvania goes for.

This is all moot though because Barlowe is in this game therefore it's the best story ever made

[Dayni]

5 hours ago, Acacia Sgt said:

For its worth, almost every game does take place in or around the same Kingdom. RF4 has a set of Easter Eggs where you can spot the different locales through the town's various binoculars/telescopes.

Ooh, neat.

4 hours ago, Codename Shrimp said:

this looks pretty good

  Little convinced so far by this, but I assume there'll be a bunch more to it.

29 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

First female protagonist in the series, by the way.

Sonia getting decanonised is an unfortunate statement on the part of Iga

[Saint Rubenio]

31 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Sonia getting decanonised is an unfortunate statement on the part of Iga

I was so ready to argue my position from any propositions of playable female characters, as I had meant singular protagonist that heads the plot, in the same way people like Alucard or Soma are. IE how Charlotte has to share the spotlight with Jonathan.

...But you got me lol, she fits the bill. My Casltevania knowledge doesn't extend that far.

[BrightBow]

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

First female protagonist in the series, by the way.

Not exactly. That would be Sonya from Castlevania Legends on the Gameboy. Sadly wasn't included in any of the recent collections for some reason. They had the other two Gameboy games.

Iga also banished her from his continuity. I think he had a problem with the concept of a Belmont and Alucard having a child or something. ...and then he went and created Juste Belmont who is just Alucard with a whip. Doesn't even have a humanoid skin color. Just the same grey skin.

You could also count Carrie from Castlevania 64 too. She and Reinhardt Schneider are mutually exclusive protagonists, so neither can really claim top billing.
But she is a much cooler character. I thought at first she was gonna be a goofball like Maria, but she is a complete badass. She's here to kill vampires and if you are not a vampire or trying to stop her from killing vampires, she has no time for you.
...still got that goofy Maria slide, though.

Iga also decided this game was not part of his continuity either. Guy has no taste.

Edited August 28 by BrightBow

[Saint Rubenio]

1 minute ago, BrightBow said:

Not exactly. That would be Sonya from Castlevania Legends on the Gameboy. Sadly wasn't included in any of the recent collections for some reason. They had the other two Gameboy games.

Iga also banished her from his continuity. I think he had a problem with the concept of a Belmont and Alucard having a child or something. ...and then he went and created Juste Belmont who is just Alucard with a whip. Doesn't even have a humanoid skin color. Just the same grey skin.

You could also count Carrie from Castlevania 64 too. She and Reinhardt Schneider are mutually exclusive protagonists, so neither really can claim top billing.
But she is a much cooler character. I thought at first she was gonna be a goofball like Maria, but she is a complete badass.
She's here to kill vampires and if you are not a vampire or trying to stop her from killing vampires, she has no time for you.

Dayni just told me about Sonia but yeah, you're right, Castlevania 64 did have a female protagonist. Though I guess I could still dash her out just based on the technicality that you were given the option of playing as a man in a way you don't really get with the likes of Alucard, Soma et al. Kind of like how the story of Dishonored 2 is blatantly written around Emily but then they threw Corvo in for no reason beyond "hey it's the last game's protagonist, you liked the last game remember?"

1 minute ago, BrightBow said:

Iga also decided this game was not part of his continuity either. Guy has no taste.

I guess he did eventually create a female protagonist without the strings attached in Miriam. Only took him... checks notes 22 years.

[BrightBow]

11 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

I guess he did eventually create a female protagonist without the strings attached in Miriam. Only took him... checks notes 22 years.

It's also noteable that Shanoa seems to be portrayed as kinda weak. Not only can her own power not defeat Dracula, but Dracula doesn't even transform against her. Even when he starts walking, he really doesn't come across like he is taking this seriously.
And then he oneshots her with Demonic Megido, which is a normal attack in other games. But Shanoa apparently just can't handle it.

Meanwhile Carrie completely wreaks Dracula's shit. Even tells Actrice how stupid it was to get in her way when even Dracula himself fears her.

Actrice is a pretty cool villain too. By Castlevania standards anyway. Just a friendly, polite lady who sacrificed 100 children to Dracula for immortality.

Edited August 28 by BrightBow

[Sidereal Wraith]

4 hours ago, BrightBow said:

The story of Order of Ecclesia is still just amazing. 2 minutes in and they completely destroy their main character by robbing her of her emotions and memories. Amazing that someone thought this was a good idea.
If they had at least let her keep her memories, she would have had some kind of context for her loss. But she doesn't, so she is a complete non-character for the whole game.

The stories of Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin are bad in a tiresome, predictable fashion. But this is impressively bad. "So bad it's Good" at it's most entertaining. A true work of art.

1 hour ago, BrightBow said:

It's also noteable that Shanoa seems to be portrayed as kinda weak. Not only can her own power not defeat Dracula, but Dracula doesn't even transform against her. Even when he starts walking, he really doesn't come across like he is taking this seriously.
And then he oneshots her with Demonic Megido, which is a normal attack in other games. But Shanoa apparently just can't handle it.

[Codename Shrimp]

Yeah, let's clean the heresy in the thread

Heresy gone

[Sidereal Wraith]

19 minutes ago, Codename Shrimp said:

Yeah, let's clean the heresy in the thread

Heresy gone

Dammit Shrimp-kun I’m not going to let you relinquish your soul to the fiery pit!!!

Edited August 28 by Sidereal Wraith

[Sidereal Wraith]

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

[Codename Shrimp]

Ok, Odin.

 

[Sidereal Wraith]

Deprecare Deum pacis, ut conterat Satanam sub pedibus nostris, ne ultra valeat captivos tenere homines, et Ecclesiae nocere!

[Codename Shrimp]

Bla bla bla

Tidal wave!

[Sidereal Wraith]

Nunquam draco sit mihi dux. Vade retro Satana! Nunquam suade mihi vana! Sunt mala quae libas. Ipse venena bibas! Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis legio, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica. Ergo, omnis legio diabolica, adiuramus te…cessa decipere humanas creaturas, eisque æternæ perditionìs venenum propinare…Vade, satana, inventor et magister omnis fallaciæ, hostis humanæ salutis…Humiliare sub potenti manu Dei; contremisce et effuge, invocato a nobis sancto et terribili nomine…quem inferi tremunt…Ab insidiis diaboli, libera nos, Domine. Ut Ecclesiam tuam secura tibi facias libertate servire, te rogamus, audi nos.

Edited August 29 by Sidereal Wraith

[Venger_06]

I spent these last few days in bed because of the cold (I fucking hate winter) and my foot that still hasn't healed, so I took the opportunity to focus on finishing some books and VNs since Persona 5 failed to scratch an itch (now I remember why I dropped Persona 4). And it was through this that I renewed my love for Gotoubun.

The best thing about it is, of course, being able to see what it would be like if Fuutarou chose another Quint. The confession scenes hit hard (with a few caveats, like Itsuki's) and there's a genuine desire to explore the characters' dynamics in each route. Speaking of routes, the ALL Route (where none of the Quints are chosen) is surprisingly the best in the game. If I were to rank it, it would be like this:

ALL>Nino>Ichika>Itsuki>Yotsuba>Miku

Miku's route, while a realistic portrayal of what it would be like to date someone with low self-esteem, gets boring really fast with Miku avoiding everyone and still failing to dig deep into the root of the problem. Yotsuba's route is basically an expansion of what we saw in the final chapters of the manga, it's okay overall, although I find the conflict forced. Ichika and Itsuki's routes are different in the sense that the former focuses on wholesomeness and the latter focuses on drama, but they are equal in quality. I put Ichika in front because I'm biased. And Nino's route focuses on both, forming a cohesive whole, but Itsuki was the best heroine/MVP overall.

Now, what happened when I was away? Linkin Park trolled the world with a countdown? Good, can't believe people were expecting something. Shadow is voiced by Keanu Reeves now? I hope they acknowledge some memes. Sky is getting a remake? Excellent, with Kuro's gameplay 90% of the games' problems are fixed. I hope CS1-2 are next, it's graphics have aged as well as Final Fantasy 7's. There's still no news about a Genealogy remake. Well, I'm not even mad, I don't have a Switch to play it anyway. I hope to have a job when a remake is announced, I intend to buy the best possible version.

Well, now I'm going back to my books, I have one about a masterpiece waiting.

 

[Acacia Sgt]

11 hours ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

I get that.

Though skipping Firesome the outright destructive one is an oddity indeed for an evil empire. Perhaps being buried deep beneath the earth is what keep the deadliest dragon away from their ambitions? ...Maybe an RF2 remake could add an NPC who happens to be an undercover Sechs agent investigating oddities that may bear fruit for the Empire (-and doubles as a husband for Alicia to "fix" the oddity that she stays single without Kyle). Not exactly an imperial stooge, the investigator after the events of RF2 chooses not to report back to their country, realizing one best not play with Firesome. -Just an idea.😅

Could be. Or perhaps they're still cautious after what happened with Terrable. But yeah, a scout or sorts would not be bad fit to include in a remake, if only to address the question.

9 hours ago, Benice said:

mfw the Mexico civ "progresses" from Aztec to New Spain

Well, that'd already be proto-Mexico, at least.

So Mexico proper by Civ XIV?

7 hours ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Not only did Level-5 get the rights to slip in MaZ/Gren/Get, list as the second or third credit- Mech Design Assistance- Go Nagai. (I got up and stretched so I didn't see who was actually the lead mech designer.😅) A rather vague accreditation that could mean very little, but still.😛

Now, having seen everything, I need to finish writing out some ideas of how Megaton Musashi could be worked into SRW.

...Nice to be able to exhale, if sad at the same time. As I'd take more of Yamato's eager hot-blooded madness. I don't want to leave this immaterial world.😆 (I can keep playing it for gameplay though, plenty of replayability in that.)

Well, congrats on finishing!

Throw it in with Dancougar and Layzner, for a start.

Now SRW V when.

5 hours ago, BrightBow said:

Iga also banished her from his continuity. I think he had a problem with the concept of a Belmont and Alucard having a child or something. ...and then he went and created Juste Belmont who is just Alucard with a whip. Doesn't even have a humanoid skin color. Just the same grey skin.

Yeah, I don't think those two points are related. As much Juste is design-wise based off Alucard, that still doesn't make him be related to the guy.

5 hours ago, BrightBow said:

Iga also decided this game was not part of his continuity either. Guy has no taste.

Well, according to an interview, he said it was at request of the games' directors, who felt they were more like side stories.

Same for Circle of the Moon. Contrary to popular opinion, Iga didn't banish it from canon either out of a whim. The developers themselves didn't consider CotM part of the timeline to begin with, and so Iga just respected that.

https://web.archive.org/web/20070927215534/http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=4&cId=3152109

Quote

"These games were taken out of the timeline," Igarashi says, "not because I didn't work on them, but because they were considered by their directors to be side projects in the series, especially Legacy of Darkness and Circle of the Moon." he explains. "The only exception to this trend is Dark Prelude (Castlevania Legends) - I intentionally redacted it from the timeline so that it doesn't conflict with the timing used in other titles."

 

Edited August 29 by Acacia Sgt

[Lightcosmo]

2 hours ago, Codename Shrimp said:

Bla bla bla

Tidal wave!

Has Rita gotten to you?