Every time "general gaming" is lit up I get excited, but then it's always this thread.
SV seems to want General Gaming Discussions... so...
Anyone else played FF13 yet? What do you think of it?
Having seen the 360 and PS3 versions (although not side by side) I'd say the PS3 version is a lot more polished. It's higher res, too.
I'm not too far in yet (Chapter 3, I've been too busy to play) so I can't say much except for:
Not keen on 'leave battle fully healed' mechanic.
Hope is a whiny little goit. Strongly dislike him.
The Crystarium confuses me. Come back, Sphere Grid, all is forgiven!
Enjoying the story, love the little Chocobo chick!
[quote]Every time "general gaming" is lit up I get excited, but then it's always this thread.
SV seems to want General Gaming Discussions... so...
Yay!
I am wondering if this is worth buying a PS3 for. I bought a PS1 for FF7 and a PS2 for FF10, mostly because I loved the SNES ones as a kid. I think I am over it, but I'm interested on some level.
Honestly, there are about five games I'd buy a PS3 for.
Final Fantasy XIII
Disgaea 3
Star Ocean: The Last Hope: International
Metal Gear Solid 4
Cross Edge
There are a few more that I think are good, but wouldn't make me buy the console if I didn't have it already.
Heavy Rain is good, but doesn't really warrant more than renting it if I'm brutally honest. Not seeing a whole lot of replay value in that one. White Knight Chronicles is a half-arsed RPG that tries to be an MMO while at the same time not being an MMO.
FFXIII is a bit too different from previous games. I like it, don't get me wrong - and the 360 version is not worth buying - but I think once I've completed 13 I'll just go back to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8 again. And Dragon Quest 8.
Honestly I don't like Japanese games much at all outside Final Fantasy and the old platformers. I have never once completed a JRPG without the FF name on it other than Secret of Mana, and that was just for the coop.
If I get a PS3 it will be for FF13 and maybe some of the other RPG/Shooter exclusives, like Demon's Souls, Killzone and Uncharted, but honestly I hate playing shooters with analog sticks so much it's almost like those don't exist.
Hope gets better, it takes a while but it does get better.
What is confusing about the crystarium, it's linear except for a few branches. This lets you choose between some stats or some abilities first.
Grind Grind Grind. You don't need to, but I did.
I like healing after battle, its something I would have to do manually otherwise. And since there is a major Gil shortage in this game (unless you sell items) you can't really buy items to heal out of battle anyway. Also in previous games you could use healing magic out of battle, but since there is no MP this wouldn't really possible.
PUSH X TO WIN THE FIGHT. I both like and dislike this.
EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20
SV - Disgaea is awesome. Strategy RPGs are just... amazing. Cross Edge appeals to me mostly because it's a huge crossover of other games I like. I, too, hate shooters on consoles. I suck at analog sticks...
Mobster - Crystarium spins around as you change levels - just makes me motion sick, which is weird. Disorienting. I've come to the conclusion that the game was going to be seriously Gil limited already. I've not needed to grind so far - as long as you pick the right Paradigms for the different characters, it's almost impossible to fail a battle. At least so far for me. I don't think Lightning has even been below 50% health yet.
My big compaint is the battle system (and the auto-heal thing) just seem to feel "dumbed down"... it doesn't make me think about what I'm going to do, how I'm going to attack, when I can only control one character.
Actually, on that front, I think I'm gonna go play FF2 again...
You definitely don't have to grind yet, but did because I like having my characters maxed out the second new abilities and stats are available. Also around chapter 10 those things get way more expensive, so the grinding I did before definitely paid off. I'm on the fence about being able to only control the leader of the party as well, but one thing that can be said about that is that it makes more sense because you are playing the leader of the party and the NPCs are actually NPCs.
I do miss the sphere grid, I loved it so much! Honestly, I think this is pretty close to that and it's the closest we'll ever get again.
<#3 Afro Chocobo
EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20
Mobster - yes, I do have a tendency to grind, I've got all the Crystarium grids completed for all characters right now. No sign of any extensions for the grid yet, so... *shrug*
The Sphere grid was something I was so dubious about when I first got FFX, but by the time I was ten hours in, I restarted so I could use the expert grid. It was a great idea by Square. :)
SV - yes, Disgaea is like Final Fantasy Tactics, but better. It can be argued that Disgaea is essentially impossible to complete, as items have randomly generated dungeons in them. The story can be completed by characters around level 100-150, but the maximum level is 9999. The storylines are humorous while at the same time having an element of seriousness to them. 'Normal' items have a 30-level dungeon, 'Rare' items have a 60 level dungeon and 'Legend' items have a 100 level dungeon in them. Disgaea 1 and 2 are available on the PS2, and have remakes available on the PSP. They're all awesome. I admit, for characters and storyline, Disgaea 1 is my favourite, but 2 and 3 are not exactly shabby either. :D
Abram - I doubt we'll see a PC version, although I suppose it's possible. I loved FF7 and FF8 on the PC, but Square are rather slow to port stuff at the best of times.
Velvet, haven't you mentioned you have an X360? It's also being released on that.
My console history is extremely complicated, I tend to buy them and then sell them because I never use them. I got a Wii and sold it because I never turned it on for months. I actually got a PS3 for blu-ray at one one point and then realized I don't care about blu-ray and sold it.
It deserves mentioning that I sold both for more money than I paid for them, due to the Wii's rarity at the time and the PS3 being an early backwards compatible model.
All that said, I never bought a 360 ever, the exclusives when you have a gaming PC are extremely trivial. My girl does have a 360 though, and we live together, so I guess to be technical I do own one? Yeah, I suppose. I can't play FF13 on it though because it's the inferior version, and I am super psycho about that kind of thing.
FFT is a more serious game with a lot deeper mechanics to it. There's far more strategy involved with it.
Disgaea may be better for you if you like childish storylines and a simpler game overall. Disgaea has more content with the committee, voting, item world, etc., but they don't really add any extra depth or strategy to the game itself.
FFT is a more serious game with a lot deeper mechanics to it. There's far more strategy involved with it.
Disgaea may be better for you if you like childish storylines and a simpler game overall. Disgaea has more content with the committee, voting, item world, etc., but they don't really add any extra depth or strategy to the game itself.
OK, you can't tell your characters which way to face, but there is still direction-based damage adjustment (more likely to hit from behind, etc). The basic gameplay is still the same between the two. FFT has 'bravery' and 'faith' and the zodiac and sexes issues when entering any battle (male characters charmed more easily by female ones, etc...) but I've been through FFT several times now and only encountered one situation where Bravery or Faith played a role in my winning or losing.
The plot of FFT reads like a fantasy novel. The plot of Disgaea reads like... a fantasy novel. Just different types of fantasy novel. I wouldn't say the storyline of Disgaea was childish, just overall more lighthearted.
But whatever; SV, find a copy of Disgaea 1 or 2 and give them a shot since you've got a PS2. I'd send you a copy of Disgaea to try, but the PS2 was region locked so it won't be much use.
...
I like the Disgaea games, and Final Fantasy Tactics. Hell, I even quite liked FFT Advance, although I will admit that it was nowhere near as good as FFT. FFTA2 was very poor indeed.
The thing is, there aren't many SRPGs around. They're not all that popular. They attain a 'cult' status but I know that most of my friends (even the serious gamers) cannot understand why I like them as games. FFT has a storyline that drew me through the game, even though I could see the plot twists coming a mile off, and the ending made me very annoyed, particularly when I saw it happen just as I expected it to. Let's face it, the ending was obvious from the minute Delita went off on his own. But Disgaea has a charm all its own. Makai Kingdom isn't half bad, but it's pre-Disgaea so is a little rough around the edges.
Holy C**p, a thread about my console :p (that is after my 360 died and died and died ...)
Many nice titles, but best reasons in my opinion would be a bit different.
Metal Gear Sold 4, ofc you cant leave that peace of art out - its just awesome, better story telling then anything before and a great finish to solids story and metal gear online is just fun!
Demons Souls, as it is the most brutal and unforgiving game in a long time, a dungeon crawler made perfect with a totally unique online mode and a real sense of achievement.
valkyria chronicles, the best (period!) srpg out there - just try and be amazed.
ratchet and clank future trilogy, action ,adventure, a hero in tight spandex, robots, clocks and wormholes - what more could you want?
Folklore, feels like pokemon with a really dark mood to me with a great story.
ff13 i wouldn't put on that list, as it has so many flaws on the gameplay side and i'm not even talking about the towns. i have played almost all parts there have been and by far the best were 6 and 12 in my opinion. 7 had some upsides but 8 felt more mature and 9 had really likable characters. but the problem in my opinion is, that most jrpgs have a strong start with a bang that throws you right into the middle of hell, but slow down afterwards. same happened in part 10. if you're willing to dive into the games depths then 12 is most likely the best game so far. many people criticized its differences, but they only made the whole genre feel fresh, especially the western type characterdesigns and storytelling with the steady pace keeping up through the whole game, and especially the missing bang just a few hours before the game ends, changing the evil mastermind behind the plot whatsoever. i hated those "revelations" in the older parts. 13 i've seen so far on my brothers 360, and i know ill get it, but as far as i've seen aside from the graphics it doesn't have much to offer to me, since the combat and all seems to be too easy .... again, and maybe by now you can tell that i like my games punishing hard. i'm a masochist when it comes to gaming, i guess and ff13 doesn't turn me on at all.
On Disgea i cant say much. Only played a bit of part 2 i think it was, and it didn't get to me ... but try yourself i guess
Metal Gear Sold 4, ofc you cant leave that peace of art out - its just awesome, better story telling then anything before and a great finish to solids story and metal gear online is just fun!
I despise Metal Gear Solid... well, 1, 2 and 3 I did anyway, I doubt this one is much different. More movies than gameplay, insanely stupid storyline and cumbersome controls and mechanics. Not for me.
Demons Souls, as it is the most brutal and unforgiving game in a long time, a dungeon crawler made perfect with a totally unique online mode and a real sense of achievement.
This one is definitely on my list, one of the games that makes me want a PS3.
valkyria chronicles, the best (period!) srpg out there - just try and be amazed.
ratchet and clank future trilogy, action ,adventure, a hero in tight spandex, robots, clocks and wormholes - what more could you want?
Folklore, feels like pokemon with a really dark mood to me with a great story.
Don't really know much about these. Ratchet is more a kids game isn't it? Googling Valkyria it looks really, really Japanese... not usually my thing, but I can't really say. Folklore looks neat.
MGS has some of the worst writing I've ever seen in a supposedly story-driven video game. That goes for all four MGS games, and the GBC spinoff too. Even in the critically beloved and certified classic MGS1, the entire plot is driven by people telling Snake to do stuff, which he does, and then it turns out someone was lying, and his efforts simply cause bad stuff to happen. AND HE KEEPS DOING IT AND ACTS SURPRISED AT THE RESULTS. Thing is, there is some gaming greatness, some really high production values, and potentially brilliant storytelling techniques, but it's buried underneath mountains of twaddle and nonsense.
I'd say the best PS3 games at the moment are Ninja Gaiden Sigma (Ninja Gaiden Black on the original XBox is better, though), Resistance: Fall of Man, Uncharted 1&2, and God of War Collection (haven't played GoW3 yet but I'm sure it's just like 1&2 and therefore one of the best games on the platform).
