Lurker > Strife2

Paxuzu'Miasma that does double damage per turn he's left on screen. Fucking hell. Glad I survived that.

Anyway, game is starting to pick up story wise. Ringo continues being awesome. Imagine that, an SMT game is better with an actual talking, wisecracking character instead of a silent protagonist. Using her as a full fledged healer to balance out the party. Helps in fights like above.

No wonder she's called Turbo

Ancient Magus Bride is coming back
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pb8O8SKcb94

They covered for it on commentary and how Sheamus sold it. Gunther spent a little the working on the lower back as an on the spot change up. If shit goes wrong, just make the best of it. I overlooked them because it helped the story of the match by NOT being pretty.

SockoressKnight posted...

Yeah...How are you liking it otherwise? Isn't Kon adorable?

I need another episode of her and Kabane hanging out to judge. I kinda figured she would have joined the group by now.

Got to that really fucked up thing in Kemono Jihen someone mentioned. Yeah...it's uh, something all right.

I looked up the cast list.

Ringo (Megan Taylor Harvey; Sophia from P5S)
Arrow (Zack Aguilar; Ota from Somnium Files)
Milady (Erica Lindbeck; Futaba, Jessie, Miriam, Magilou; enter 50 million recent roles)
Saizo (Griffin Puatu; Dohalim from Arise)
Figue (Erica Mendez; Raphtalia, Megumin, Eleanor from Berseria)

As far as Kametz, I believe he is Archangel. Because of that, I'm going to guess he's other random characters here and there.

Between this game and Somnium Files 2, I feel awkward hearing Billy Kametz again posthumously after he passed away. It shows just how much VA stuff he was still doing (even bit parts) up until his diagnosis.

Fucking hell. Still not fun thinking about. He was so damn good.

Ringo is great. She's kinda snarky for a "super AI from on high". She balances out Figue being super nice and supportive by kinda taking no shit. It's always refreshing to have a main character with a spine and willing to not sugarcoat or hide away from character drama and bullshit. She also does it with a sort of distance, rather than being, "OOH life fucking sucks donkey dick, buzz off" llike Milady does.

6.5/10

I enjoyed it, but there's only so much you can do with "Gods and demons, you're your own guy, make your own guy the god above them all." sort of deal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VkyADt4XZk

Ariel not shying away from asking some inner working questions. HHH doing his best not to denounce Vince's tenure, but working aound it as, "This is my way of doing things, but it's not "better." It's just "different."

4/10

Vincent Valentine, you're aware your game sucks right? If you would inquire as to Square Enix stop adding layers of stupid on top of FF7's story, that would be wise.

At least they waited another 15 years before doing it again.

Also, I guess I should say "good on them"/yay for progressiveness that a character who is totally a girl and designed as such is classified as male and I guess they are sticking with it...Ranpo Kitan also pulled this shit. I'm fully expect the cliche shower scene now.

Japan, why do you always do this shit? Stop confusing me....

Started something called Kemono Jihen today. Wasn't sold on it until I saw how gory the action scene was. It's not quite yokai related, but has that "Japanese myth/folk creature" vibe I can be a sucker for. I'll see where this goes.

Heard some people comparing Mimi to Navi. I can see that, but given the ambush mechanic, I am ok with it.

Two hours in, initial thoughts

• Game is flashy as fuck. It's got its own vibe that sets it apart. Ringo and Figue are greatly designed characters. It does so much more with the visual flair than SH1 could ever dream of.
• Some cool new ideas for exploration at play: Demon's explore dungeons, acting as treasure chests, rest stops, and even getting demons for you to contract with in battle. Pretty neat.
• Sabbaths being "All Out Attacks," but every turn is pretty neat.

I don't know enough yet to completely go apeshit, but this is up to par with Atlus goodness so far.

Aecioo posted...

Do you also still get Netflix dvds?

No, but I'm sure they still offer them. Gamefly nets me an extra game or two a month without fretting over $70 going to a game I don't necessarily like. If it's something I know I do (like an SMT game), I can get a guaranteed copy if I send a different game disc back with the week of release.

Yes

Hoo boy. The words, "tonal whiplash" always leads to leeriness. Sacred Beasts already pulled this shit, going from monster dudes at war to revenge narrative in one ep.

Am now envisioning a vampire harem military action comedy....

Found something called MARS RED. I'm not completely sold on it yet, but being a 1920s period piece does give to a unique setting and audio/visual flair. Gonna need another episode or two before I stick with it though.

One more week hee-ho. Must send my Gamefly back to ensure a copy ho. If the game is shorter, that's fine. Persona 5 clocked in at 100-120 hours, with SMTV probably 60-80. That's still some massive wiggle room for a long enough game. Strikers was still 50 after all.

I'm perfectly content not selling my soul for an entire month to any game for once, even Atlus.

The Suou season's been available on Prime I think. I MAY have seen S1 on Hulu once or twice, but not for a long ass time. I have no idea what kind of copyright hell that and Hell Girl are in. Those are the two shows I know I can't access practically anywhere without forking over a fortune.

5 years or so. Fucking shame too, because it was one of my top 10-15...but NO. Not gonna spend $200 some bucks on a DVD. Fucking hell.

Anya gonna go on an ooting with Mickey Mouse, while Loid spies on and accelerates Warner's continuing dumpster fire. Yor? Probably killing the person who came up with the idea for live action remakes.

Beating Austin? Oh hell yeah

A few shows didn't grab me, but "The World's Finest Assassin: Insert Isekai Bullshit Title Here" started off decent. I'm not sure if I like the old assassin dude turning into typical teenage dude is a good trade, but I guess that's the tradeoff for the premise.

I liked what little of Taken: Anime Version I got.

No Guns Life finished. Kind of a limp ending considering the few episodes scattered around that didn't mean a lot to the main plot. I get the feeling they completed the arc they wanted, but left stuff open if a sequel happens...but there's only so much they left on the table really. Kind wish they'd used 2-3 episodes for a better finale. Kinda preachy and dialogue heavy for the film noir shooty shooty "people with guns for heads" premise. Still decent enough.

Time for the "look for a new show phase" Hoo boy.

Problem is that poorly written dialogue and poorly acted dialogue can affect the overall enjoyment and effectiveness of the story a game is trying to tell. The audio balancing is also really wonky too. We should be grateful they provided subtitles. Sure, an RPG should be held to way higher standards than say a Sonic or Mario game. Even Castlevania stories are just, "Find a guy, talk to them for 20 seconds, keep killing stuff," but the storytelling and video game mechanics surrounding the story telling should at least be competent.

3/10

I'm rewatching this game on YouTube, and....ew. the dialogue is the most bland janky crap. It doesn't help the actors aren't the Generations-Boom era where they can overcome the dialogue. For a game series people seem to like, nothing about this game seems to be executed properly.

*Falls off cliff - OH*

ragtagbagmag

Went through a few different random shows looking for something to watch (Gosick, Tomodachi Game, Haganai, Assault Lily Bouquet, and whatever). Everything felt off for one reason or another. Finally hit on something called No Guns Life. I'm never going to say no to a pulpy noir crime show, no matter how weird. Even has a Deus Ex feel to it with all the crazy machine enhancement shit going on. I might like this, but who knows.

That is true. It was...inoffensive at best until the twist.

It really is amazing how two specific things (one about face Act 4 scene and the ending crunch) can utterly destroy a game's narrative. I don't think anything other than SO3's plot twist completely sucked me out of an experience faster. Maybe Star Ocean 5's Star Trek scene or Eternal Sonata's "FLASHBACK TO A FLASHBACK OF THE SAME SCENE," but that would be charitable.

I wanted Velvet or Shionne to somehow cross time and space and smack whoever wrote this. "You're better than this. Stop being stupid."

7/10

It was going so smoothly. The "5 Worlds" idea was simple, it slowly developed characters along the way, and it was so good...until the ending grinding everything to a stupid sci-fi halt.

FF6

lol

Tokyo could have been something, but the animation change and weird romance storyline/weak mastermind villain never grabbed me. The 1st and 3rd movies were ok-ish. Everything else seemed like crap.

Muyo and Universe was required viewing though.

Got through Love After World Domination (held up and was a quick watch). Turned off a few things, but then happened upon WorldEnd. The second half of the first episode was a bit goofy, but the overall tone of the first half was pretty serious and sad drama stuff that carried me. That or I was just a sucker for that cover of Scarborough Fair. Either way, I'll see where this goes.

That was my first ever anime. It holds up surprisingly well for being 30 years old.

"Now...I want your balls please!"
"No! They're mine and I intend to keep em!"

Started up Love After World Domination. This is one of those shows where I would probably normally hate it if I picked it apart piece by piece, but everything it puts together works somehow.

A doofy super sentai show? Meh
A romance comedy? Meh
A "Forbidden Romance?" Meh

But for some reason, the show just works well enough that I'm intrigued after episode 1. I gues those kinds of shows just kinda happen. I'll see where this goes.

Leonhart4 posted...

"Too KH" is just code for "it isn't turn-based"

FF's problem today is that it's too FFXII

Yes. If it stayed like X, the company wouldn't have keep trotting out that," FF for old and new fans alike" tagline they use to cover up their tracks. It is codeword for, "We kinda don't know what FF is supposed to be right now, buy it anyway."

The Whisper thing certainly could be a harbinger of things to come, which is what does scare me a little. Every PSX era story kinda fumbles at or after Disc 2-3 (8 and 9 more than 7 does, but 7 still doesn't grab me with the sciency explanation of Cloud's bullshit). That tells me that even though the Whispers strike me as a Nomura thing, it's not like Kitase is above goofy shit either. I mean, it could have been Sakaguchi's call too. FF7 isn't some holy impressive masterpiece. It does some good things (all of Disc 1), but falls flat when going way too fucking hard into the wonky science schlock.

I think a lot of that does have to go with how FF7 was limited in its storytelling options. What helps Remake is Cloud's weird psychotic visions almost seem like horror movie presentations now. It helps add a layer of "What is real, what is old fairy tale bullshit, how can we take advantage of this?" What I DON"T want is something like a full on Kingdom Hearts or Dragon Quest V movie meta-narrative that ends up going way too fucking far. The Whispers already 'kinda' do, but you know what I mean. Imagine Red XIII winking at the camera, or the fight scenes devolving into a DMC/Bayonetta style parody where none of it has any weight or context and just "looks cool." Like...Advent Children on crack or something.

7.5/10

I've heard a lot of bitching (not really here, just around the internet) about the story not being a 1:1 retelling of FF7 both gameplay and story wise. It sounds like a whiny minority, but it is noticeable regardless. However, of all people, Jim Sterling gave me an interpretation that made me like it. "Think of it like a comic book movie adaptation or new Batman movie 20 years down the line. Nothing is replacing the original FF7. This is trying something different, and now you have both games. If you want to play the first one, this isn't trying to replace it."

Outside of some of the weird phantom bullshit which justified some of the weirdness, I loved how ballsy they were at reinforcing Biggs Wedge (and especially) Jessie's roles. Cloud's crazy mindfuckery plays way better with full on PS4/PS5 era presentation. Midgar is wholly represented, and you really get the vibe of this shitty, downtrodden city and Shinra's bullshit. Aerith returns to feeling her old sweet yet super snarky self.

The ending is fucking weird, but again, I'm happy they are going all in with retooling this story. OG FF7 is a story that honestly gets worse the more I replay it. I want them to take chances and take a risk. We HAVE FF7. It's not going anywhere. It doesn't have to go anyhere. Let this have a chance to fuck around with the formula and have the potential to surprise.

If nothing else, the graphics and story, the "FF7ness" of this game holds it aloft as some of the best stuff Square's done with the franchise in years. I even managed to deal with the combat's weird quirks because I wanted to be rewarded with more of the story beats.

Soul Hackers 2 Where?

Very much so; it's a seriously weird mix of funny harem/romance stuff, until it says, "Yeah...ahahahahhah...you wish."

Does it come with a pop-up saying, "Would you like to uncensor this content? Please sign up to receive our FF7 NFT!"

A
B

Halfway through Sacred Beasts, and yes, it is "very okay." Also heard a phrase on Discord "aggressively average." Gets to that tier, because it's all the story is just an excuse to get to a giant monster punch up. But hey, at least it tries to have a story...somewhere.

Damn. Was hoping to be the one to do it.

Only if new allegations don'r say, "He killed a guy."