Board 8 > Giving FFXII another shot.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Hey now she was also Jihl Nabaht and Laughing Octopus!

That does not change my statement <_<

Yeah, I confused Lulu's VA with someone else. But a lot of them are still fairly prolific. I mean, friggin' Spongebob's VA is in this game!

The performances not being up to their usual standard even when they're prolific is what I mean though!

Again, John Dimaggio. One of the most well known VAs of our time. Universally praised for his talents. Bender, Jake the Dog, Marcus...of War. A+ stuff.

Wakka has a good performance by the standards of FFX, but in general? It's waaaay below his usual work.

Again, it's direction. A great modern example is the Netflix dub of Evangelion. The voice actors themselves are totally fine, but the direction from Khara makes it a mess.

Also, fuck, I didn't even think about it, but Tara Strong? Tara fuckin' Strong? She's a damn legend and her work as Rikku here is like, whatever. Better than most of the cast but still not her standards.

It's just a very unnatural dub, like the Skyrim script reading fiasco.

I think they tried way too hard to match up their lines to the Japanese lip flaps and that results in a lot of awkward readings.

KingButz posted...

I think they tried way too hard to match up their lines to the Japanese lip flaps and that results in a lot of awkward readings.

This is absolutely it. Yuna honestly isn't that bad when the camera isn't on her face, but when it is, it's a struggle.

KingButz posted...

I think they tried way too hard to match up their lines to the Japanese lip flaps and that results in a lot of awkward readings.

i agree. i've noticed this pattern in a decent number of japanese games, anime, and movies. awkwardly long pauses between statements, and characters repeating themselves in odd ways

i used to think it was purely a translation issue. but when i watch, say, korean stuff there's never that sort of problem. it almost feels like there's something specifically about japanese and english that doesn't match up very well. or they just aren't paying for the best localization teams

Literal, stilted translations were rampant until somewhat recently. Old anime subs had people convinced Japanese to English translations had to sound like shit in order to be accurate.

Laughing scene is good

I read somewhere a while back that Square's overseas localization team actually complained to the Japanese side about the rampant awkward pauses. Apparently it's a 'thing' in Japan dramas?

It's been a thing in JRPGs for forever. It just became more noticeably awkward when you actually had to voice them out instead of merely write them.

This is hours later but

Leonhart4 posted...

Auron is considered one of the best voice jobs

KingButz posted...

I think they tried way too hard to match up their lines to the Japanese lip flaps and that results in a lot of awkward readings.

You know there may be a connection between these two statements.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

This is hours later but

You know there may be a connection between these two statements.

There actually is. Another anecdote I read a while back is that the translation team had the easiest time with Auron because his mouth is covered half the time.

Yeah, Auron's VA had the benefit of not having to try to match lip flap most of the time.

Wait.

Wait a minute.

Do they seriously want me....to walk all the way back to the beginning of the game...for these Auron overdrives?

Also the more I play the more utterly confused I am about XIII getting a bunch of guff for being a hallway.

If you wait a while, you'll be able to use the airship to fast travel to other locations, so I wouldn't worry about doing it right now.

also the way FFX does "hallways" and the way FFXIII does "hallways" are different

people have complained about FFX just being a straight line since the day it came out but the way FFXIII does it is still worse

FF10 was a hallway but it didn't feel like one because it took time to engross you in the world and locations. FF13 did...not.

You can't backtrack in FFX until near endgame so don't worry about stuff until then.

pjbasis posted...

You can't backtrack in FFX until near endgame so don't worry about stuff until then.

I mean technically you can walk all the way back to Besaid, it's just...not recommended

LeonhartFour posted...

If you wait a while, you'll be able to use the airship to fast travel to other locations, so I wouldn't worry about doing it right now.

The guide is saying that even when you can travel later you will be blocked from the Jecht Spheres by "Dark Aeons"

UshiromiyaEva posted...

The guide is saying that even when you can travel later you will be blocked from the Jecht Spheres by "Dark Aeons"

oh right, the Dark Aeons are a thing in the HD versions, I always forget that

so yeah you won't be able to get those until endgame anyway

but Auron's Overdrives are low tier anyway, Shooting Star is all you need

Ah, the Macalania trial. This is where I quit playing originally.

LeonhartFour posted...

so yeah you won't be able to get those until endgame anyway

Or you go back with Yojimbo and keep trying until you get lucky.

I swear the Tidus overdrive timing is fucked up somehow.

I'm literally famous amongst my friends AND family for being good at this kind of thing, whether it's a game or an arcade machine.

This is the first thing to actually make me chuckle.

https://youtu.be/l94_m-Km8qE

UshiromiyaEva posted...

I swear the Tidus overdrive timing is fucked up somehow.

I'm literally famous amongst my friends AND family for being good at this kind of thing, whether it's a game or an arcade machine.

There is an input lag if you don't switch to Game Mode on your HDTV. I learned this lesson the hard way with lightning dodging and learned it very late.

I assume you are playing the HD Remaster.

Indeed.

And yeah I'll have to try switching modes, because I've never once landed the OD.

Always have your tv on game mode

I don't know why the laughing scene is the most famous bad VA example when this Summoner's Fate reveal scene is like...wow.

Tidus sounds constipated.

That is enough, Trommell. Must I always endure such praise?

Maaaan Seymour was one lame fucking villain.

They didn't have the decency to show him doing even one of the things they throw at you to make you hate him.

Well....alright.

I can't say it was a bad game but it was pretty mid. I get why it was such a big deal when it came out, but there are quite a lot of much better jRPGs on the PS2. This has the distinction of being super early I guess so it was pretty mind blowing for the time.

At least it was way better than XII!

Don't take much for an FF to be better than 12!

UshiromiyaEva posted...

but there are quite a lot of much better jRPGs on the PS2.

Such as? Not being facetious - I can't think of any off the top of my head. The PS2's JRPG selection was more quantity than quality. Dragon Quest 8 and maybe Shadow Hearts are in contention, but I'd say FFX beats both of those.

EDIT: Oh, right, Persona.

Tales of the Abyss
Suikoden III
Persona 3/4
. Hack//GU series
Shadow Hearts: Covenant

And there are a few that I am too far removed from to be sure and would need to play again since I'm less confident, like Xenosaga (not 2, never played 3) and Wild Arms 3.

But all of those listed, especially TotA more than anything, I would take very easily over FFX without question.

P4, SH2, and KH2 are the only ones close to FFX's league.

Oh, KH2, thanks for reminding me.

I've become so disenfranchised with the KH brand that since then that it slipped my mind.

PS2 RPGs better than FFX:

Persona 3 + 4
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter
Mana Khemia 1 + 2
Ar Tonelico 1 + 2
Shadow Hearts 1 + 2
Xenosaga 3
Valkyrie Profile 2
Tales of the Abyss
KH2

PS2 had some pretty good RPGs.

I need to play Dragon Quarter. I remember it got a lot of bad press in gaming magazines back in the day, which as a middle school youth who was almost exclusively supplied by my parents trips to Blockbuster was enough to stop me from ever trying.

And Xenosaga 3 I'm desperate to play, I hope Monolithsoft can get off that Xenoblade crap long enough to at least put out an HD release. Hell I'll settle for a straight up port.

I like Abyss but I'll never take Tales writing over FF, at least in that era.

Dragon Quarter must be 100 times better than the rest of the BoF series if it can even sniff top rpg

UshiromiyaEva posted...

And Xenosaga 3 I'm desperate to play, I hope Monolithsoft can get off that Xenoblade crap long enough to at least put out an HD release. Hell I'll settle for a straight up port.

Xenosaga re-releases were straight up deconfirmed not too long ago.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

I can't say it was a bad game but it was pretty mid.

Also I am envious of your ability to finish a game you'd just call mid that fast. I can't even get through games I'm really enjoying as quickly.

KamikazePotato posted...

Xenosaga re-releases were straight up deconfirmed not too long ago.

UGHHHHHHHHH

pjbasis posted...

Also I am envious of your ability to finish a game you'd just call mid that fast. I can't even get through games I'm really enjoying as quickly.

Outside work from home I've got nothing going on right now, lol.

Also I didn't start burning out that much until I got near the end, Calm Lands is when I stooped really feeling it at all.

But I did finish XIV through Shadowbringers in somewhere around 350 hours I think, and that was like...5 to 6 weeks?

pjbasis posted...

I like Abyss but I'll never take Tales writing over FF, at least in that era.

I consider Abyss to have straight up the best JRPG story, so era is kind of irrelevant on that one.

As for FFX I honestly kind of actively dislike the story? At least the presentation failed it. It's not so much the story but more that I actively dislike or do not care about any character in this game.

Pros are the gorgeous backgrounds, decent music, and the battle system is not my style nowadays but it's good for turn based, at least at the time. Unskiippable summons are unforgivable though.

Cons are...well I didn't really like anything else all that much. It's definitely a more than the sum of its part situation since I still came out thinking it was OK.

KamikazePotato posted...

Xenosaga re-releases were straight up deconfirmed not too long ago.

Good