What Video Games Are You Playing Right Now?

[Lucius]

24 minutes ago, Kurisu-Chan said:

I think you should play the game first then watch the anime.

I don't know how you're gonna react to persona 3, the story is better, but you prolly won't like the characters. 

Does it contain massive spoilers? I mean, I know that the first movie only covers the first few months of Persona 3's timeline, from April to around June or July, so would it be okay if I just play P3 till the June/July part while watching the anime at the same time? Or does the movie skip ahead by showing events that occur later in the game (say August), thus revealing spoilers earlier than you would have encountered in the game?

So far, you're kinda right about the characters, and I'm not talking about the anime which I haven't watched yet, but the game itself. I played it, and I found the characters to be kinda blend so far, not as engaging as P4's characters (aside from the part where they shoot themselves in the head). I feel like P4 ironically picked up its pacing much faster than P3. Even though the P4's prologue is just a bit longer than P3's, I think that P4 more effectively established a familiarity and kinship between the audience and the characters than P3 did by giving the main characters these little interesting quirks (like Chie with her martial arts fetish). Then again, I've only just started playing the game. I'm still at early May in the game, short of heading towards the second full moon soon, so maybe the game picks itself up later on much better than P4 did in its entirety.

Anyway, despite what I said earlier about missing Persona, I think I'm gonna put it to rest for a while, or I might get burnt out again. Think I might pick up Trails of Cold Steel first. Although, I'm watching the first hour of ToCS on YouTube, and it doesn't really seem any more interesting than Trails in the Sky, so I'm beginning to be on the fence about spending money on it too. It's a shame there's no demo of it on PSN so I could feel for myself if it's worth buying.

[Kurisu-Chan]

The game cast clearely picks up better by late, but keep in mind, they are mostly people teaming up for one reason : to defeat the shadows, and nothing more.

 

It's a general rule, someone who starts with persona 3 will prefer persona 3, and who starts with persona 4 will prefer persona 4, it's not bad. 

[Lucius]

6 minutes ago, Kurisu-Chan said:

It's a general rule, someone who starts with persona 3 will prefer persona 3, and who starts with persona 4 will prefer persona 4, it's not bad. 

I agree. I feel like that's a general rule for just about everything, from Pokemon vs. Digimon and Marvel vs. DC. It makes sense as a rule to me, even though you do see a lot of people commenting that he played A first but still prefers B in the end. Personally, I've always ended up being more attached with the first thing I played or watched rather than the second.

Anyway, I do feel their motivation is kinda weird. Transfer student moves in and is spontaneously asked to risk his life to fight some supernatural creatures, and he just agrees with no questions asked. There's none of that usual 'characters acting surprised that the world is not as mundane as they thought' routine, just straight away jumping into fighting Shadows. I can see how that can be a good thing because you wouldn't have expository scenes where the characters act the exact way you would expect a normal person to act in a very predictable (and boring) manner, but at the same time, it does throw me off a little bit. Compared to something like Persona 4, Yosuke and Chie were literally freaked out and had all sorts of questions and doubts about fighting Shadows at first, while I feel that the MC was more calm about it.

Then again, the movie did hint on how the MC is fighting Shadows for a special reason, when Akihiko asked, "Why is he doing this? Why is he fighting Shadows with us?" in that trailer I posted, so his calmness might just be a facade for something bigger for all I know.

[Kurisu-Chan]

The P3 protag is a "0 fucks given guy" he basically doesn't care about anything.

The game is pretty much better at it.

And female protag > Male protag.

[Lucius]

4 minutes ago, Kurisu-Chan said:

And female protag > Male protag.

I feel like the experience of playing P3P wouldn't be as nice when the cutscenes in the game were replaced by static VN CGs. The cutscenes in P3 FES were actually one of the more engaging parts of the game, so I wouldn't want to trade that off.

I mean, I guess I could always look up the cutscenes on YouTube as I'm playing the game... but it just wouldn't feel the same, you know? Not to mention that I wouldn't know which static CGs were originally cutscenes in the first place.

[Kurisu-Chan]

I get what you mean, it's really sad, though. 

[Lucius]

2 minutes ago, Kurisu-Chan said:

it's really sad, though. 

Yeah, I know. The female protag really intrigues me for some reason.

[Kurisu-Chan]

It gives a very different point of view from the same story, after all. 

[Lucius]

20 minutes ago, Kurisu-Chan said:

It gives a very different point of view from the same story, after all. 

Well, if I ever replay P3 again in the future, I guess I could always play the P3P version just for that.

[Jun Inoue]

Checked out Dragon Quest Builder's demo since it came out today, and must say I'm pleasantly surprised. I'm not too big on Minecraft (although I love Terraria), but the addition of a story/missions and the context/content of DQ gives the game a nice charm. I might even buy it.

[Soulless Watcher]

Picked up the console version of Xcom2 and I'm disturbed by how well my first play-through is going. 

[Kurisu-Chan]

Carthage is now rulling over the whole african region, has footholds in Italia and Iberia, and basically Roma is fucked. 

[Lucius]

Tried playing the demo of another Atlus game, Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir, after I heard about its multiple endings. Things didn't turn out the way I expected, as it turns out to be one long and linear hack-and-slash experience. I get that it's a demo, but even after looking up the "first hour" of the the non-demo game on YouTube, it looks like it just has more hack-and-slash in a side-scrolling perspective that I'm not very fond of (the side-scrolling more so than the hack-and-slash).

Boy, I'm running out of Vita games to download already, and it's only been one and a half month since my purchase.

Anyway, I'm also downloading the Tearaway demo and also the Toukiden: The Age of Demons demo. I highly doubt they would surpass my low expectations for them, but who knows.

Think I'll just buy Danganronpa 2 eventually and call it a day for the Vita.

[kyrt]

I in a sleep deprived state decided to randomly buy a PS4 and pre-order FF15, Persona 5, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Fate Musou (whatever it's called)...I have also upon receiving it and leading up to delivery have been regretting the decision as none of the games are actually available at this time. Sony has been sickening me as a company recently (no modding, discontinued support for vita/ps3 despite games receiving both versions elsewhere) and if it were not for P5 and wanting to play FF15 before major spoilers ruin it I would have no reason to buy the system. The games catalog of games only available on console relevant to my interests is pretty much non-existent as most of the games also have a PC version or a PC version in the works. I might play uncharted 4 since it came with but really I need some games that have not been butchered via censorship, poor localization, or crappy  gameplay. That said been playing some overwatch occasionally and hyping myself up for multiple games including pokemon sun/moon, ff15, persona 5, and xenoverse 2 (although recently revealed reports on dlc content/roster/and possible DRM on PC version make me immensely sad).  Anyone have suggestions of games on PS4 that are not also on PC?

[Jun Inoue]

7 minutes ago, kyrt said:

I in a sleep deprived state decided to randomly buy a PS4 and pre-order FF15, Persona 5, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Fate Musou (whatever it's called)...I have also upon receiving it and leading up to delivery have been regretting the decision as none of the games are actually available at this time. Sony has been sickening me as a company recently (no modding, discontinued support for vita/ps3 despite games receiving both versions elsewhere) and if it were not for P5 and wanting to play FF15 before major spoilers ruin it I would have no reason to buy the system. The games catalog of games only available on console relevant to my interests is pretty much non-existent as most of the games also have a PC version or a PC version in the works. I might play uncharted 4 since it came with but really I need some games that have not been butchered via censorship, poor localization, or crappy  gameplay. That said been playing some overwatch occasionally and hyping myself up for multiple games including pokemon sun/moon, ff15, persona 5, and xenoverse 2 (although recently revealed reports on dlc content/roster/and possible DRM on PC version make me immensely sad).  Anyone have suggestions of games on PS4 that are not also on PC?

How about Bloodborne / Dark Souls 3? You could also play Ratchet & Clank, since they made a remake of one of the first games (or was it the first game?) for the PS4.

[kyrt]

 

1 hour ago, Jun Inoue said:

How about Bloodborne / Dark Souls 3? You could also play Ratchet & Clank, since they made a remake of one of the first games (or was it the first game?) for the PS4.

While I appreciate the suggestion I've never been a huge fan of Ratchet & Clank or Dark Souls (which is why I also likely would not care for bloodborne). 

[Vokoca]

Guys, I finally did it. Only took me 90 hours, but I've got a waifu in Persona 5. 

Wait... that doesn't count as finishing the game? O-oh... 

[Jun Inoue]

On ‎29‎/‎09‎/‎2016 at 3:42 AM, kyrt said:

 

While I appreciate the suggestion I've never been a huge fan of Ratchet & Clank or Dark Souls (which is why I also likely would not care for bloodborne). 

Hum. Valkyria Chronicles? Disgaea? Just mentioning random ones, since I don't know what you like

Dragon Quest Builders comes out within 2 weeks, in case you like that sort of thing (I'll give it a chance, myself).

[Kurisu-Chan]

so, new sitrep about my situation.

Carthage was able, with the help of it's numerous slaves allies, to conquer the mediterranean region and now has a stronghold deep in Gallia and Germania...that would've been fun if not for the rebelion and the traitor who subjugated half of my conquests and most of my armies, and decided to go full civil war...but now, that guy is basically feeding my elephants...so, what's the lesson from all this? NEVER BETRAY BAAL-AMMON!

[Riku]

I did it! After almost two weeks, I finished Trails in the Sky SC!!!! So almost three weeks for the two. Damn, those who had to wait five years to play SC must hate me.

In the end, I really liked the game, the characters, the world and all. I regret doing the games now, because I have to wait for the 3rd now... The good news is that it's not a cliffhanger like between FC and SC, and the main story of Estelle and Joshua is over to let place to Kevin as the protagonist of the 3rd. (Key words being 'main story', as Estelle and Joshua still appear in the 3rd. They still have things to do, as mentioned at the end of SC)

Anyway, if Sora no Kiseki (Trails in the Sky) is that good, I really want to play Zero and Ao no Kiseki which are reputed to be the best of the series. (And, no, I won't play Sen no Kiseki (Cold Steel) before Zero and Ao)

[Jun Inoue]

2 hours ago, Riku said:

I did it! After almost two weeks, I finished Trails in the Sky SC!!!! So almost three weeks for the two. Damn, those who had to wait five years to play SC must hate me.

In the end, I really liked the game, the characters, the world and all. I regret doing the games now, because I have to wait for the 3rd now... The good news is that it's not a cliffhanger like between FC and SC, and the main story of Estelle and Joshua is over to let place to Kevin as the protagonist of the 3rd. (Key words being 'main story', as Estelle and Joshua still appear in the 3rd. They still have things to do, as mentioned at the end of SC)

Anyway, if Sora no Kiseki (Trails in the Sky) is that good, I really want to play Zero and Ao no Kiseki which are reputed to be the best of the series. (And, no, I won't play Sen no Kiseki (Cold Steel) before Zero and Ao)

Why won't you play Cold Steel before them?

[Riku]

Because even if each arc can arguably be played without playing the others, if story really matter to you, you should play all the game in their release order.

It's not just reference to the previous games for the fans, it's actual story that happened. You may enjoy the game on its own, but it's far more enjoyable if you have everything you need.

Example: Spoiler, but not really, if you look at the character presentation

Spoiler

Olivier, one of the main characters of Trails in the Sky, being an Erebonian Prince, appears in Cold Steel. The character's depth is totally different depending on if you played the Trails in the Sky games.

Because I didn't play Cold Steel, it's one of the only things I know, but that's mainly because Cold Steel is more related to Zero and Ao as they happen at the same time, unlike the Trails in the Sky games which happen before. But what happened in Trails in the Sky affect the things in Zero, Ao and Cold Steel. Everything is related.

I will say it one more time, you can enjoy Cold Steel on its own, but if you played the games before, it must be even better. That's why I don't want to play them in the wrong order.

[Lucius]

Because I haven't really experienced the Trails games before, I have no emotional attachment to it to really care about the story. My mind is just rigid like that. i.e.: I wouldn't even consider playing the older SMT/Persona games if I never played Persona 4 before. There's a 'give-and-take' relationship, in which only after I feel like I could enjoy exploring the world this franchise has to give me then I would spare my own precious and limited time to the other installments. And yes, it's very limited, with the amount of unfinished VNs I have in my library. For me, whether if I'm going to enjoy the experience or not > how good the story is going to be. And for those older Trails games, with their dated 8-bit graphics and isometric gameplay, I don't think I'm gonna enjoy it at all, even if the story might be good. And that's a big "might be", because fantasy settings are a big turn-off for me. I prefer urban settings, or at least, sci-fi settings.

If I'm gonna play a game that I might not enjoy for the story, the equivalence of that experience would be watching the entire story on YouTube. There wouldn't be any difference for me, because I wouldn't be enjoying the gameplay either way.

So yes, I would happily, ignorantly play Cold Steel before all the other games. And that's only after I've confirmed that the third Cold Steel isn't a PS4 exclusive, even, so my relationship with the Trails games is pretty much at a large distance.

[Jun Inoue]

42 minutes ago, Riku said:

Because even if each arc can arguably be played without playing the others, if story really matter to you, you should play all the game in their release order.

It's not just reference to the previous games for the fans, it's actual story that happened. You may enjoy the game on its own, but it's far more enjoyable if you have everything you need.

Example: Spoiler, but not really, if you look at the character presentation

  Reveal hidden contents

Olivier, one of the main characters of Trails in the Sky, being an Erebonian Prince, appears in Cold Steel. The character's depth is totally different depending on if you played the Trails in the Sky games.

Because I didn't play Cold Steel, it's one of the only things I know, but that's mainly because Cold Steel is more related to Zero and Ao as they happen at the same time, unlike the Trails in the Sky games which happen before. But what happened in Trails in the Sky affect the things in Zero, Ao and Cold Steel. Everything is related.

I will say it one more time, you can enjoy Cold Steel on its own, but if you played the games before, it must be even better. That's why I don't want to play them in the wrong order.

Oh no, to anyone wishing to play the games I always recommend going Trails in the Sky, then Cold Steel. Even if it's a few references, the world-building from the Sky games helps make Cold Steel even cooler.

My question was mostly cuz, with that answer, it leads me to ask you this: The Crossbell arc got released about 6 years ago and there are not even rumours about it coming to the West, ever. Will you just drop the whole franchise, then?
I'll also add that the Crossbell arc is even more unrelated to the Sky/Cold Steel. With those 2, you see some connections. Like the character you mentioned, or when in Cold Steel they discuss the new technology for making airships that the queen of Liberl gifted to Erebonia and Calvard. But Crossbell is quite the story apart that we might not even ever get.

[Kurisu-Chan]

This is when total war becomes boring, when you have the best units, and you just play until you can finish the game.

Yeh, sure, annihilating your enemies with tons of war elephants is cool, but meh, not challenging, i'm just pushing until i conquered everything, but other than that...