Serenes Forest's Teehee Thread

[ping]

9 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

...Well, except for Zevran. I'm not entirely sure what Zevran's deal was. Maybe he was an avid reader of the Ugly Bastard tag growing up and decided not to pass up on a chance to make his dreams reality even when the other party roped him into committing genocide.

Well, your companions forgive you a lot of crap as long as you give them shiny gifts and tell them they "might have a point" about everything.

Plus, my first impression of Zevran was "omnisexual fuckboy", so his libido might just not care about looks. And my second impression was Zevran was "evil omnisexual fuckboy" (like, seriously, he tells a rousing tale about his youth where he banged a woman he was supposed to assassinate, and is annoyed if you think that's kinda fucked up), so who knows how much he cares about genocides in his partner's CV. I might be unfair to him with this assessment, but I honestly stopped caring about his character pretty quickly.

[Saint Rubenio]

6 hours ago, Armagon said:

Behold

the turducken. A (deboned obviously) chicken stuffed into a duck stuffed into a turkey. Because we didn't ask if we should.

So like... meat, inside of meat, inside of mean?

ngl that sounds like it'd be way too much lol

33 minutes ago, gnip said:

Well, your companions forgive you a lot of crap as long as you give them shiny gifts and tell them they "might have a point" about everything.

Plus, my first impression of Zevran was "omnisexual fuckboy", so his libido might just not care about looks. And my second impression was Zevran was "evil omnisexual fuckboy" (like, seriously, he tells a rousing tale about his youth where he banged a woman he was supposed to assassinate, and is annoyed if you think that's kinda fucked up), so who knows how much he cares about genocides in his partner's CV. I might be unfair to him with this assessment, but I honestly stopped caring about his character pretty quickly.

Frankly, I only gave a crap because he was the only one I could fuck and I really, really wanted to fuck someone with my character and see how that'd turn out. Sten wouldn't be swayed so Zevran it was.

He was an enjoyable enough character. Blatantly evil, but in a fun way.

[Lightcosmo]

After being so dedicated, Nintendo had better do a nod of thank you to Mario's old VA in their next game, would be tacky as hell otherwise. 

Edited August 22, 2023 by Lightcosmo

[Armagon]

8 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

So like... meat, inside of meat, inside of mean?

ngl that sounds like it'd be way too much lol

Mind you, it's not a common meal. I only knew about it cause of the JonTron video and I thought for sure he was bullshitting but nope, it's real. A quirk of Thanksgiving.

[Interdimensional Observer]

https://mynintendonews.com/2023/08/22/monolith-soft-director-next-xenoblade-will-be-vastly-different-from-what-came-before/

Rather than playing on defense, going on the offense; change rather than maintain. This is a stance that I have continued to hold for thirty years. If there is another “Xenoblade,” it will likely be something vastly different from what came before. In style and in music, I would like to make my next goal something that will betray everyone’s expectations, in a good way.

"If there is another"? WE NEED RESOLUTION!

[Codename Shrimp]

I think Symphony of War would've benefitted greatly of not having so many mechanics at once, or that's my impression at ch.10 anyway.

I feel like they don't mix quite well like they should.

[Acacia Sgt]

18 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

https://mynintendonews.com/2023/08/22/monolith-soft-director-next-xenoblade-will-be-vastly-different-from-what-came-before/

Rather than playing on defense, going on the offense; change rather than maintain. This is a stance that I have continued to hold for thirty years. If there is another “Xenoblade,” it will likely be something vastly different from what came before. In style and in music, I would like to make my next goal something that will betray everyone’s expectations, in a good way.

"If there is another"? WE NEED RESOLUTION!

Too late, next Xenosomething will be next project.

[Saint Rubenio]

Being reminded of Covenant's existence led to the obvious conclusion of picking up the ol' Seraphic Gate save file where I left off. Just a bit of casual fun, blowing up Ailyth with my all-mage team. Will do a few battles just for shits and giggles.

This game has such awesome animations, I swear. Between the wonderful spritework and the badass voice acting, every battle is so much fun to watch. Obligatory Fauxnel mention so I don't go one Covenant post without bringing up its best boy.

26 minutes ago, Shrimpy -Limited Edition- said:

I think Symphony of War would've benefitted greatly of not having so many mechanics at once, or that's my impression at ch.10 anyway.

I feel like they don't mix quite well like they should.

Mechanic bloat, huh? I believe I've heard things to that effect about this game, yes. It's not what has kept me hesitant to start it, though.

I hear there was an art revamp some time ago. Send a pic of beardman, if you please.

[Saint Rubenio]

This is not what I was expecting to run into when I booted Covenant on a whim.

Fuckin' Seraphic Gate, man.

[Interdimensional Observer]

31 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

This is not what I was expecting to run into when I booted Covenant on a whim.

Fuckin' Seraphic Gate, man.

If I didn't know better, I'd think this a fan edit.

Rosea is leaving me unexpectedly perplexed. Is being called a "miserable excuse for a masochist" an outright insult, or is it actually the highest praise a masochist can receive? Being denigrated = feeling joy paradox.

[Acacia Sgt]

The biggest tragedy of VP not getting more mainline games is the loss of the Seraphic Gate.

[Sooks]

21 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

It's one of my favorite games. Period. Would you like to hear more?

What you said about it before (a while back) was enough to get me interested, I just kinda forgot about it.

21 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

A run lasts somewhere between 10-12 hours. Except, there's three routes, and the natural progression, in my opinion, is to do them consecutively as you improve at the game and need to rely on the titular plume's powers less. So the shorter length lends itself really well to three consecutive runs, leaving you with just the right amount of fulfillment by the end of them.

Is it like a big obvious route split ala Fates?

[Acacia Sgt]

4 minutes ago, Sooks said:

Is it like a big obvious route split ala Fates?

As in, menu with choices? Not quite.

It's more on how much you use the titular item, and it's on a slider. Can go from one route to the next, but not back to the one you left.

[Codename Shrimp]

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Mechanic bloat, huh? I believe I've heard things to that effect about this game, yes

Kinda yes, but imo the problem i have it is how they don't really mix together well, atleast imo.

Take the squad system for example, you have some fun stuff like Armors being frontliners and protecting squishies, Thiefs being able to backstap, mages needing to cast first, etc. Some fun stuff going on...

But then it's coupled with

a) lack of battle previews

and

b) random unit behavior in battle

and it can get quite annoying to plan stuff ahead. Sure you can guess stuff or think "yeah these mage will get eviscerated by the thief", but it's never 100% sure and you don't even have battle previews to know your chances, nor are the calculations obvious.

Then there's the perma death option (which affects squad units/generics more than anything else) - needless to say, i disabled it pretty fast because managing squad members every chapter to replace dead ones combined with the stuff above is not my idea of fun.

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Send a pic of beardman, if you please

he commited suduku in ch3

Edited August 22, 2023 by Shrimpy -Limited Edition-

[Codename Shrimp]

Other than that, the game gives me  FE4 vibes, just with less walking slog

Even the plot beats lol

Edited August 22, 2023 by Shrimpy -Limited Edition-

[Saint Rubenio]

1 hour ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

If I didn't know better, I'd think this a fan edit.

Good ol' Seraphic Gate. Where the devs meme on their game so you don't have to.

1 hour ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Rosea is leaving me unexpectedly perplexed. Is being called a "miserable excuse for a masochist" an outright insult, or is it actually the highest praise a masochist can receive? Being denigrated = feeling joy paradox.

The dialogue reads to me like a perfectly mutually-agreed, consensual sub-dom dynamic. Relationship goals, if you ask me. Y'know, disregarding the uh, age gap. Still a Japanese game at heart, with as much as it does so, so right.

49 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

The biggest tragedy of VP not getting more mainline games is the loss of the Seraphic Gate.

And Hrist. Being Hrist is suffering.

19 minutes ago, Sooks said:

What you said about it before (a while back) was enough to get me interested, I just kinda forgot about it.

Well, I do praise it every chance I get.

Here, have a couple refreshers. This is what I wrote when I finished the game, way back when:

On 11/23/2022 at 8:37 PM, Saint Rubenio said:

That was an absolutely amazing game and it breaks my heart, once more, that it is relatively unknown. In comparison to recent games I've tackled, I don't know if it beats Mario XCOM 2 in gameplay - Sparks of Hope combat is way too good - but it's up there, with a deceptively deep combat system that rewards timing and planning and a rich, varied cast of playable characters - except the sorcerers, who all work similarly... but then, sorcerers themselves are so customizable that it compensates for that.

And CotP most certainly beats Mario XCOM 2 in every other category. It and a lot of other games, in fact. I am impressed. This game is really, really good.

The story, despite its breakneck pace, is really good, with plenty of tragedy and bittersweetness for the enjoyers of that. The game also does something that not many others games that I can think of do - the difficulty exists for a narrative purpose. The difficulty and the mechanic of reaping sin are there to push a first timer towards using the plume and get a worse ending. Going one route or the other feels natural, rather than a conscious choice on the player's part, and for that I cannot praise it enough. Well, unless you game the system and punish yourself by trying to go the best route on your first attempt. I wouldn't recommend it. It really feels a lot more organic to let loose on your first attempt, learn the ropes of the game as you go, and then try to do better and better in the subsequent runs.

The characters are all super fun. They stop getting lines once they become plumable, which might (negatively) remind you of FE, but all of them get at least one full chapter worth of development, and save for the two who join in chapter 1, they all get different versions of that chapter to develop further. Everyone goes through little arcs, which differ from route to route, which gives them a nice little bit of depth you might not expect going in. And then there's the death scenes. A couple of them are mundane, but for the most part, they add to the character - and in at least one certain case I can think of, even turn the character on their head entirely!

The game's shorter length helps it to not overstay its welcome, which immensely benefits the branching paths, as a single run doesn't really feel fullfilling. One run may be only 10-12 hours, but this only incentivices playing all the routes in a row, bringing the number closer to regular JRPG numbers and granting a complete experience without ever becoming tedious. Like certain other games with routes.

Lastly, the music is masterful - but you don't need me to tell you that - and the graphics are... well, I want to say they're gorgeous, but I don't know how much of it is emulator upscaling working its magic. One thing is for sure - the sprites and animations are wonderful. That is not affected by the upscaling.

For the record, it's had greater staying power in my heart than Mario XCOM 2. Loved that one, I remember it fondly, but Covenant just hit me differently

I also wrote this more condensed overview just yesterday on a Reddit post. Contains a couple things I neglected to mention there.

Quote

One of the best games I played in 2022, and I played a lot of good games in that year. The plume and sin, one-of-a-kind mechanics that brought gameplay and story together to a degree rarely seen in videogames, were probably my favorite thing about it. They set the game apart. I also loved the combat system, with its combination of strategy and action RPG. Made for a super fun and satisfying game.

I also loved the excellent, beautifully dark writing; the wonderful, varied cast of characters that (for the most part) make the most of their limited screentime; the perfect length that encourages consecutive replays to see all the routes, the postgame shenanigans, the pretty visuals and the voice acting, some of the most fun bits of VA I've heard in any videogame.

All in all, an incredible game that's become perhaps one of my favorites ever, period. Seriously a shame it doesn't get more recognition.

Fauxnel best character.

If you've any more questions, I'd be giddy to answer them.

19 minutes ago, Sooks said:

Is it like a big obvious route split ala Fates?

Not quite the same. There are two different route splits. The main one depends on how much you use the titular plume. It's not a hard split, as you can switch routes midway if you use the plume. The split first happens at the end of chapter 2, as you don't have an opportunity to use the plume in chapter 1. The devs likely realized having two whole chapters be the same in every run would be detrimental to the replayability they wanted to encourage (a lesson certain other games should've taken to heart), so they made three separate versions of chapter 2 that are unrelated to the main split.

All in all, as I said in my original review, the most fulfilling way to experience this game, in my humble opinion, would be to do all three routes in three consecutive runs for a solid, 30~ hour package where you explore all sides of the story and get to know all the characters. Still, one run is only 10-12 hours. You can give it a shot, see how you like it, play more if it grips you.

11 minutes ago, Shrimpy -Limited Edition- said:

Kinda yes, but imo the problem i have it is how they don't really mix together well, atleast imo.

Take the squad system for example, you have some fun stuff like Armors being frontliners and protecting squishies, Thiefs being able to backstap, mages needing to cast first, etc. Some fun stuff going on...

But then it's coupled with

a) lack of battle previews

and

b) random unit behavior in battle

and it can get quite annoying to plan stuff ahead. Sure you can guess stuff or think "yeah these mage will get eviscerated by the thief", but it's never 100% sure and you don't even have battle previews to know your chances, nor are the calculations obvious.

Then there's the perma death option (which affects squad units/generics more than anything else) - needless to say, i disabled it pretty fast because managing squad members every chapter to replace dead ones combined with the stuff above is not my idea of fun.

Ahhhh yeah, I can see how lack of control would undermine such a mechanic. Seems like it'd lead to a lot of menu management and too little combat strategizing.

Damn, this does worry me. Gives me flashbacks to Rondo of Swords, a quite unique game I was really enjoying, until its massive interface and information obfuscation problems made it too much of a chore to play.

11 minutes ago, Shrimpy -Limited Edition- said:

he commited suduku in ch3

...What? C'mon.

[Sooks]

21 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

If you've any more questions, I'd be giddy to answer them.

On a scale of visual novel dating sim to Omori, how much depression is there?

21 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

You can give it a shot, see how you like it, play more if it grips you.

It sounds exactly like my cup of tea. I’m so close to finishing the first AA I really need to (damn the last case), and then there’s the matter of when I return to totk or play fe10. We’ll see.

[Saint Rubenio]

5 minutes ago, Sooks said:

On a scale of visual novel dating sim to Omori, how much depression is there?

Not the kind that hits close to home like Omori, but quite.

5 minutes ago, Sooks said:

It sounds exactly like my cup of tea. I’m so close to finishing the first AA I really need to (damn the last case), and then there’s the matter of when I return to totk or play fe10. We’ll see.

Play this first, then the rest

[Codename Shrimp]

@Saint Rubenio

How bout that one?

[Sooks]

1 minute ago, Shrimpy -Limited Edition- said:

@Saint Rubenio

 

I got so excited when I saw the shine on the nose because I thought it was a nose piercing.

Alas.

6 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Not the kind that hits close to home like Omori, but quite.

Omori hit close to home to you? Did you grow up with an older sister and a flight of stairs?

6 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Play this first, then the rest

Pluming my backlog smh

[Sooks]

 

[Saint Rubenio]

6 minutes ago, Shrimpy -Limited Edition- said:

@Saint Rubenio

How bout that one?

There he is. Yeah he looks a lot better now. The new art is pretty sick.

3 minutes ago, Sooks said:

Omori hit close to home to you? Did you grow up with an older sister and a flight of stairs?

Well, no, but it's a more... everyday sort of horror, so to speak. That's what I mean by it hits close to home, it feels more real than your usual grand epic of war and sorrow.

And well, I guess I did grow up with suicidal tendencies, so in that regard it did hit close to home.

3 minutes ago, Sooks said:

Pluming my backlog smh

That sin ain't gonna reap itself.

[Sooks]

Just now, Saint Rubenio said:

Well, no, but it's a more... everyday sort of horror, so to speak. That's what I mean by it hits close to home, it feels more real than your usual grand epic of war and sorrow.

I think I get it. I like my sad epics tho, Banner Saga.

Just now, Saint Rubenio said:

And well, I guess I did grow up with suicidal tendencies, so in that regard it did hit close to home.

Still glad that’s mostly a nonissue now from what it sounds like.

[Codename Shrimp]

10 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

There he is. Yeah he looks a lot better now. The new art is pretty sick.

I thought you meant another beard guy, not him lol.

He is alive, dw

[Saint Rubenio]

7 minutes ago, Sooks said:

I think I get it. I like my sad epics tho, Banner Saga.

Of course, I do too! Covenant is a sad epic to be sure. Doesn't seem that heavy on the surface, with its more vibrant visuals, its more action-y soundtrack and its more colorful characters. Certainly doesn't have the heavy, oppressive atmosphere Banner Saga nailed so well, but it wasn't going for it anyway, and make no mistake. While the framing may not be as dead serious, the story is quite a fair bit darker than other similar-looking games that are familiar to us (read, FE) and has no shortage of gut punches.

7 minutes ago, Sooks said:

Still glad that’s mostly a nonissue now from what it sounds like.

Yeah, like I said the other time we talked about this, I haven't had such thoughts in many years.

Just now, Shrimpy -Limited Edition- said:

I thought you meant another beard guy, not him lol.

He is alive, dw

Barnabas is the only beard guy I know of in this game lol