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Night10194 posted:I generally like Koudelka (plotwise; gameplay wise Koudelka is terrible) and the first game better than this one, because I liked the more serious overall tone. But Covenant is still a drat good game and the high moments (like the ultimate punch) are still real high. See, I kind of found the opposite. Koudelka's crew was well-written, but each of them were varying degree of angry jerk and they barely seemed to tolerate each other. They softened up a bit towards the end, but having to deal with a group that dysfunctional taken dead seriously makes it feel like a chore to get to that payoff where they're all at least tolerable. When everyone's a dick, it's kind of hard to care what happens to them let alone empathize with their plight. Shadow Hearts didn't ever have that problem since the first crew were only mildly less wacky than the current one. It was held back mostly due to technical limitations making it harder to know exactly what the characters were meant to be feeling at a moment. For the most part, the situation was significantly better for them than it is with this group. I feel that going a little two hard into the gothic aesthetic went against them. Since very area was the same sort of dingy, depressing cramped dump it was hard to tell if you were supposed to feel an area was safe or if this particular wreck was supposed to be worse than the last ten. If everything looks uniformly awful, you don't get any sort of contrast, which only makes things harder when you're trying to set a scene. Here, you get the a likable party, an engine that can do a facial expression or two, a variety of locals that do seem like places somebody would willingly live in, and some very strange and stressful situations to make you feel for the crew. It may lean a little hard on the zany side, but I think it handles tone and, in general, emotional scenes better than them outside of a few exceptions.
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Feb 12, 2020 18:38
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The thing about Koudelka is everyone in it isn't a dick; everyone is dealing with some really awful stuff, but even James redeems himself by the end and has pretty understandable reasons he's a stuck up rear end in a top hat in the first place. I also think the much shorter plot helped it hang together a lot better. It could have a more abrasive or oppressive tone because it was only 12 hours long, as opposed to 60. I also tend to like smaller scale in stories, so 'a hosed up wizard tried to bring back his wife, screwed it real bad because the book was only ever meant to create mindless labor slaves for the fomors, and now three bickering protagonists have to fix it' was more my speed.
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Feb 12, 2020 19:02
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I never played Koudelka so I can't compare it. The original Shadow Hearts was more fun to play than this one, but plotwise the back half is just not quite there. This game has much stronger writing overall (with some weak parts here and there) but the sheer length of it would keep me from playing it again even if I had the means.
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Feb 12, 2020 19:16
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achtungnight posted:And he doesn’t need to add a catchphrase before or after it either. Nothing like “Dragon Slave!” or “You are already dead.” One punch man.
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Feb 12, 2020 22:19
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Shitenshi posted:One punch man. "Consecutive Normal Punches" "Serious Series: Serious Punch" Saitama's whole deal is that he desperately wants to be a hotblooded shonen hero, but he's so overwhelming that nobody can last long enough to make him care.
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Feb 12, 2020 22:45
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Episode LXV: The Third Devilman.jpg) Following recent explosive events, the gang has reconvened back in Anastasia's room in the Winter Palace. I cannot help but notice the trio of stuffed animals on her bed also having a heated discussion. .jpg)  Looks like the castle of Satan himself. It's unbelievable! Ehh... I've seen it before. Of course you have..jpg)  Well, are we going in there? What else?! Hold on! We can't afford any mistakes with this guy. We need to prepare. Okay... I guess now is a good time to do some sidequests, huh... That isn't really what I meant. I can't stop progress. Music: Town of Twilight ~ European Town .jpg) We are not quite done with our Petrograd Part 2 chapter of the game. There is still a number of cutscenes lurking about before we can leave town. But before we get to that, there are some points of interest in the Winter Palace now that the Emperor is back and Rasputin is chilling out in a floating doom castle. First up is talking to that guard wandering the halls. That one. Right there. .jpg)  I don't wanna let it go, but you gotta take it off me. Don't tell anyone about it, though! What the heck are you going on ab—oh... Crud... One of these again... There are more out there?! Unfortunately..jpg) This is a VERY specific fetish on display here... Well, I suppose we'll have to hit up the Magimel brothers and acknowledge Gepetto's sidequest tomfoolery again. Before we get on that, let's return to the throne room and see how the rest of the royal family is fairing after the assassination attempt and the shonen anime battle over their city. .jpg) By "stand and fight" he means he'll just stand in this room and fight the urge to do anything useful. .jpg)  And devoutly trusting the man who tried to kill our family. When you're back safe and sound, I'd love to hear all about your travels. I'll be waiting for you!We are never coming back here to talk to the mother of the year. .jpg)  Mother said I'm not supposed to leave my room. It's so boring... But you almost never leave your room. Yeah, but at least I had a choice!And thus ends any and all relevance to the royal family outside Anastasia. Though to be fair, Alexei never had relevance. .jpg) So now that Rasputin has been evicted from the Winter Palace and Veronica is dead, we can finally go check out Rasputin's bedroom. Which contains two items of note. .jpg) A box of Tissue right next to the bed which umm... I am just going to hope Grigori just had allergies. But we all know in our hearts the truth... .jpg) .jpg) And also Veronica left behind a spare suit of Purple Bondage gear. She won't need it since, you know, we killed her and all. You'll notice this is a Key Item and not a questionable piece of armor for female characters like the similar one in the first game. Well... umm... you know how we just got a Stud Card out of the blue just down the hall from here...? Yeah, well... You are not going to like where this is heading... .jpg) Speaking of Veronica, if we return to the rooftop where we murdered her and check in the very corner depicted here, we find... .jpg) Anastasia has been with us a number of hours and has yet to gain a sidequest involving going out of our way collecting some bullshit/fight extra crap to upgrade her specific character. Guess what this is tied into? If you go back to Edgar the watchmaker's profile it specifically mentions Silver Angels. We might need to return to him to see what that's all about. Assuming he's been freed since Rasputin was found to be behind recent plots. I personally could see the Tsar just forgetting they locked the guy up for treason and he is still rotting in a cell somewhere. .jpg) Prince Yusupov, having served his purpose of letting everyone into a sewer level, will return to his chosen path of standing around doing nothing. .jpg) .jpg) Prosperous Gorby, on the other hand, has decided to make himself useful and has opened up Gorby's Shop. Sorry, Magimel Brothers. You've broken into the Winter Palace twice and have failed to produce any new goods. Gorby, meanwhile, has all new inventory with a full complement of weapon and armor upgrades. And since we are approaching the end of the first disc, it's a good time to upgrade everyone. I'll even buy something for Gepetto! Lucia is getting left out since she is actually getting a free weapon in the next dungeon. .jpg) I don't know if clawed gloves with a direct line to the Blood Dimension are the most hygienic thing imaginable... but they do provide +85 Physical and +74 Special Attack Power. .jpg) The fastest-known attacking speed until the next sword we find our purchase. Also, I am uncertain what the hell a "Harque Foil" is meant to be. The Japanese name for this weapon is Wanderfalke which is German for a Peregrine Falcon. In any event, +81 Physical and +79 Special Attack Power. .jpg) I almost forgot Anastasia rolled with weird Faberge eggs as her weapon. Her first upgrade comes with +75 Physical and +84 Special Attack Power. .jpg) A superb file! We do need to keep Blanca competitive. After all, we have one final Disc 1 Wolf Bout to take care of coming up soon. +79 Physical and +81 Special Attack Power for this one. .jpg) No blade can cut this string we're buying off some rando hanging out in a hallway. Fine, Gepetto. We'll buy you a weapon upgrade for you. Enjoy your +72 Physical and +87 Special Attack Power that will go to waste. .jpg) I don't think we need to worry about anyone getting shot anytime soon. We are going to grab three of these for Yuri, Karin, and Joachim. As they are the only characters that can wear it and enjoy +76 Physical and +68 Special Defense. .jpg) Meanwhile, Anastasia and Blanca both get one of these to protect themselves from ghosts for a nice +69 Physical and +75 Special Defense. Lucia and Gepetto can have hand me downs. .jpg) Now that we're stocked and kitted up, we can leave the Winter Palace and I do not believe there is a reason for us to ever come back here. But as soon as we depart the royal home, events transpire elsewhere... Music: ENDS .jpg) Oh hey, look who actually decided to show up to work today after calling in sick for his boss getting revealed to be at the heart of an assassination conspiracy in the middle of a public forum and then his rear end kicked by a Rude Hero Devilman. .jpg) Speaking of devil men... Rasputin has somehow managed to look even eviler now that he's gone through with the whole Soul Pact fulfillment thing. The bone throne is a nice touch. Really adds to the aesthetic. .jpg)  ...What do you want? Veronica is dead. I see. You may leave now. Unless you would like to tell me of more events I was present for....jpg) By morning, Petrograd will be reduced to ashes. Do you have plans after that? It appears as though you triggered all of our standby backup plans last night. Quite literally all of them. Sapientes Gladio's staff is now down to... well, you and I. Should we discuss a recruitment campaign of some sort, or...? No, I couldn't care less. Soon, my demon servants will bring death to all of Europe. After that, Asia, then finally we will destroy America. Africa has it coming too, but that is further down on the priority list. Those dreadful penguins in the Antarctic must also be purged as well. Have your goals changed so much, Master? Goals?.jpg) <laughs> I have no goals. There's no longer any need to rush. One hundred years, two hundred years... It doesn't matter at all. Time doesn't matter at all. I have only had it for a day but immortality is delightful. <looks to the floor> ...... What's wrong? You should be happy. You no longer have to toil in the dark like a thief. You'll soon have revenge. No more dealings with grotesque foreigners and their monstrous chins. Direct destruction and gleeful laughter are all we need..jpg) After my mother died and I was orphaned, it was you who had the Vatican accept me, Master. I have done my best since then to try to repay that debt. I robbed the Vatican, got excommunicated and cursed the Godslayer. That was a pretty big deal... Is that so? A sad story. But what of it? I saved you to use you as my tool, not because I had any love for you. I am your employer, not your father, Nicolai. Do well to remember that. ...... So you have no desire to rebuild Russia... after all the effort you spent... in destroying her?.jpg) Irrelevant. Why would I ever concern myself with such paltry matters? It is what you have been plotting for the past decade... I told you. Time has no meaning to me anymore! You were to succeed to the throne of Russia and become king of all Europe. What about those plans? The King of Europe title was to come later... You always said one step at a time. You really are dense... I've disposed of such petty human concerns. For me, snuffing out human life is nothing more than an amusement. Seeing those bombs fall on the city really did it for me. I could use an encore performance... once I figure out the controls to this fortress.Music: Suffocation ~ Grim Atmosphere .jpg) You've been possessed by Asmodeus..jpg) <leans forward and growls> Huh? Why did you come here? Was it to anger me? Your little plan, I've known of it for a long time. To kill me after I become Emperor. You were planning on making yourself the new Tsar instead, isn't that right? Always the coattail rider, eh?.jpg) <nods> Yes. It is true I am merely a bastard son, but it is still my right to inherit the kingdom. <laughs> Who will believe you? My father. The man is remarkably dense. I won't even need to provide a strong case..jpg) <leans forward> ...... So it's revenge for your mother, eh? Yes. Rasputin is LOVING this poo poo! .jpg) You're a fool. <stops laughing and glares> Eh?! I came here to tell you something that you should already know. <leans forward> What is that? <turns up the smug by closing his eyes and smiling> I'm more certain now than ever. I ASKED WHAT IT IS!.jpg) Nicolai should point out it is only Disc 1 of 2 and Rasputin has managed to accomplish pretty much gently caress all compared to his Disc 1 predecessor, Dehuai. As easy as it was to clown on that dipshit sorcerer, he did have a fairly high body count, including Yuri's parents, and a not-insignificant number of named, portrait possessing characters during his tenure as first half villain. And Dehaui already had a swanky doom tower he was chilling in the whole time and was the de facto ruler of the city he was based within. Meanwhile, Rasputin I guess has bombed some civilians and managed to get most of his forces killed. .jpg) <leans back annoyed> ...... Huh?! Very well. And what makes you say that?.jpg) He's just a human. A human, but he conquered Amon's soul. Meanwhile, I am looking at you with your newly blue complexion, milky eyes and face tattoos and... hmm....jpg) Do you understand what that means? ...... His willpower is simply extraordinary. Extraordinary, you say?.jpg) The willpower of a human, and the destructive power of a demon..jpg) It's those two things that make him worthy of his name "Godslayer.".jpg) You may have the power of a demon, but your will is weak. And that is why... you cannot win. <strokes beard> Interesting... And you think that you can win? <nods smugly> Yes. Unlike you, I am not... a bitch. Excuse me?! You heard me. A bitch. You're a mid-level fuckboi, at best. We all saw the Godslayer punch you so hard it could be seen all the way in Siberia. And he is going to come here and he's going to do it again. And that will be that for you. Meanwhile, I'll still be standing. <angrily sits up> Why are you so sure? What do you really think a PUNY HUMAN LIKE YOU CAN DO, EH...?.jpg) Oh, hey... Remember that whole Astaroth thing that's been brought up as the third of the big tough Soul Pact demon trifecta with Amon and Asmodeus? Guess what Nicolai was doing in that dungeon they added to the Shadow Hearts 2 Director's Cut. .jpg) Oh, I see... So that's it! <nods and smirks> So you finally understand? <laughs and flops back into his chair> Good. So my true enemy was right here with me all along. Perhaps it is you who are dense... You can consider this my resignation. We'll settle things between us later. <walks away> You're going to do another pompous speech and I no longer feel obligated to indulge you. But first... we'll have the Godslayer as a blood offering! <continues walking away> He is going to beat you again next time. No he is not! Keep telling yourself that..jpg) OK. In summary, Rasputin is just a full-on Demon Lord now possessed by Asmodeus and has gone full JRPG, destroy the world because of Bad Guy. Nicolai is the bastard son of Tsar Nicholas II, which would technically make him Anastasia's half-brother, and has a Soul Pact with Astaroth and that will likely be a problem in the future. I am sure this will all work out well for everyone involved. Tune in next time where Nicolai very confusingly pivots to getting horny on main as Shadow Hearts: Covenant continues...    Video: Episode 65 Cutscene (Click for scenery chewing and smugness.)    Rasputin-Asmodeus Concept Art - This isn't even my final clearly evil form! The Dark Id fucked around with this message at 07:26 on Feb 14, 2020 |
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Feb 13, 2020 22:44
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"Stand around and fight the urge to do anything useful." Thanks for an awesome political insult. 
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Feb 13, 2020 23:03
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Feb 13, 2020 23:03
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Nicholai being the bastard son of the Tsar who wants to claim his kingdom is why I always kind of wanted to know the intended plot from when he was going to be the main character. I love Yuri, but there could have been some real potential there.
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Feb 13, 2020 23:07
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So this is more or less how SH2 is gonna try to sell us on Albert's retcon: it turns out binding your soul to a demon is a bad time and isn't especially great for your mental well being or long term goals. Raputin here spends decades getting into a position to become the puppet ruler of Russia, then pretty much the second anything goes wrong in his plans he panics, fires off every contingency at once, then ends up fully possessed about an hour later. So Shadow Hearts plays fast and loose with the Ars Goetia stuff, but one domain assigned to Asmodeus is Lust. So our boy the Mad Monk got within spitting distance of his goal, was thwarted at the last minute, and completely lost his poo poo trying to attain the target of his lust until finally the demon took over. Amon meanwhile is described in this game as the God of Wrath. So when good ol' Albert Simon signed his soul over to Amon to fight Rasputin... well wouldn't you know, he just got to thinking about all the lovely, lovely things those in power had been doing to him over the centuries, and y'knooooow maybe humanity didn't really deserve to live? I dunno that they really do a good job of establishing this as actually part of the story, but as a bit of fan wankery I've come to really like it over the years.
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Feb 13, 2020 23:31
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That would've worked so much better for what they were trying to do with Simon than what we actually got.
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Feb 13, 2020 23:46
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 I had this shitpost idea the other day and had enough free time at work to make good on it.
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Feb 14, 2020 00:01
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Nohman posted:
I hate this on multiple levels. Mostly remembering Chaos Wars. Good job.
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Feb 14, 2020 00:28
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I'm still not over that crazy-rear end cutscene. Motherfucker clotheslined a zeppelin and punched Rasputin the Mad Monk so hard that he blew up his airship, by God. I know lust refers to an excess of desire for something non-material, but when I read about Asmodeus being a demon of lust, I think of all those rumors about Rasputin having a giant dick.
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Feb 14, 2020 01:10
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I mean, Rasputin did keep Veronica around for a reason.
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Feb 14, 2020 01:48
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She was his hairdresser.
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Feb 14, 2020 01:52
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Someone's got to inspect all those back of the head spikes, after all. You'd need a number of mirrors, otherwise.The Dark Id posted:A that is why... you cannot win.
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Feb 14, 2020 04:57
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it is a matter of historical record that rasputin loved to gently caress and did so with great frequency.
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Feb 14, 2020 05:18
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gimme the GOD drat candy posted:it is a matter of historical record that rasputin loved to gently caress and did so with great frequency. he was stabbed by at least one woman who was pissed that he kept loving around.
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Feb 14, 2020 05:29
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It was a shame how he carried on.
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Feb 14, 2020 05:33
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Nohman posted:
Dear god, I can actually hear it in my head with the Chaos Wars VA and all.
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Feb 14, 2020 05:38
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Robindaybird posted:he was stabbed by at least one woman who was pissed that he kept loving around. That's how you start to build up the immunity to being stabbed.
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Feb 14, 2020 05:39
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gimme the GOD drat candy posted:it is a matter of historical record that rasputin loved to gently caress and did so with great frequency. There's a reason they call him Russia's greatest love machine.
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Feb 14, 2020 06:33
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Hwurmp posted:She was his hairdresser. Now that's a full-time job.
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Feb 14, 2020 17:25
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Sterski posted:Now that's a full-time job. Give her two minutes with a comb and a container of engine grease and she works wonders. She knew just the way to help Rasputin keep his corpse-like glow. Geostomp fucked around with this message at 19:33 on Feb 14, 2020 |
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Feb 14, 2020 19:30
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Episode LXVI: Sliding Into Your DMs Music: Town of Twilight ~ European Town .jpg) Back to it in Petrograd. For essentially the last time. We may need to return here for a sidequest or two. The city's relevance to the plot is being put to bed. They'll be calling it St. Petersburg again by the time we get back. A few NPCs in the square do acknowledge that a fortress across the river turned out to be some flying ancient alien doom citadel. Let's see what the common man thinks... .jpg)  Oh, have mercy...!You know someone out there is claiming they just KNEW Rasputin had a doom fortress the whole time and feel vindicated that they "called" it. .jpg)  The monsters are attacking! <looks around and raises eyebrow> The end is nigh!OK, maybe talking to the locals aren't a good use of our time. Let's go make further mistakes by speaking to the Magimel Brothers. Specifically, Pierre. Since, you know, we do have another Stud Card to trade... .jpg)  You don't spend your evenings alone, dressing up and acting out scenes and stuff, do you?  No! What are you talking about? That Purple Bondage suit! It still smells of the queen! I hate this already... I mean... Well, if I had it, I'm sure it would help me think up some new dress designs. You want this? Oh, I get it! You just wanna get dressed up in it, right? What a perv. ...Oh, well, why not? Live your best life.  Thank you! I'm so happy! Okay, I'll get sketching right away! Like this... a bit here... a bit there... Done! See! It's superb! Very regal, with a touch of naughtiness! I'm a genius for sure, even if I say so myself! That really perked me up! Phrasing... Now that I've got a new design, I'll sew you a dress any time you want! Of course, there's the usual S-t-u-d Card exchange! Hmm?!.jpg) ...Welp. We're all on a list now. The police are on their way. I don't think the best way to honor the dominatrix dark lord Rasputin's girlfriend's memory is dressing up a magic animated doll of a six-year-old child in her outfit. But here we are. In the Bad Place. This is the Non-Elemental dress for Cornelia although it boosts Air and Dark Crest Magic elemental damage for some reason and it has a unique attack "Passion" (I don't like that name either even if it's just dropping a giant pumpkin on an enemy) which is Gepetto's second strongest unique technique. .jpg) Since we are in the Bad Place already, I may as well mention that, much like the Wolf Bouts, in Gepetto's profile we can get a direct line into Pierre's head for a descriptive blurb on each dress we've acquired. Remember those halcyon days where Cornelia was just a weird magic doll that something like Lulu FFX would carry and Gepetto got to participate in battles? .jpg) The mushroom, however? 100% actual fungi. .jpg) Neckerchief... A human came up with that article of clothing and term at some point and I'm glad they're dead. .jpg) Bold. .jpg) If one of these loving things says "refreshing vulnerability" I am abandoning this LP. .jpg) Modern colors of 1915 were gaudy as it came. .jpg) No! We're done here! .jpg) Let's get back to wholesome content instead of this degeneracy. For instance, it has been a hot minute since Joachim last received a new weapon. And I am planning to tag him back in for a while to the main party, so... There's this giant tuna here next to the Winter Palace... Let's see what that is all about. Music: Gathering God ~ Thrill .jpg) Hmm. Nice tuna...  T-tuna?! What's a tuna doing here?! We're in the middle of a city! No doubt about it. This tuna swam its way through the violent waves of the Tsugaru Strait to make its way here! W-Where the heck is the Tsugaru Strait?! It's an ocean...river thing in Japan between Honshu and Hokkaido. We are a LITTLE far off from Japan! Yeah, tell him that. <looks to the sky> A fine tuna! A tuna among tuna! I too have been called a fish out of water. This fish is perfect for me! What the hell is he talking about?  What is he going to do with it?!.jpg) And thus did Joachim hoist the Frozen Tuna over his shoulder, discarding the Earthen Pipe in favor of his new bounty. .jpg) You just thought the tuna was frozen because it's winter in Russia? How early we are to judge. Joachim's final Disc 1 weapon grants +87 Physical and +72 Special damage. We may need to return and defeat Great Gama with this tuna. As the fated match of destiny was intended. .jpg) For we... are men... of the sea! I'm a girl! Knock it off, you're going to get us sued by Square-Enix! You're not going to eat it, are you? You're going to use it as a bludgeon, right? <silently walks off with the Frozen Tuna>  .jpg) Yeah... He... just kind of does that sometimes. Walk off with giant fish? No, he just steals things and starts hitting people with it. Steals?! Yeah, you know... the occasional mailbox or gym locker. You get used to it. ......Music: Town of Twilight ~ European Town .jpg) The Romanovs might be hugely incompetent rulers but you've got to admit the Petrograd public works system is on point given I'm FAIRLY certain we saw this city street get bombed to pieces during Rasputin's panicked hissy fit with his airship. In any regard, we COULD just leave Petrograd right now and continue on our way. But if we return to Edgar's shop at any point before the end of Disc 1, we get a rather lengthy optional scene and an upgrade for Anastasia. .jpg)  And you, Princess! I didn't fold, even when Rasputin tortured me. I didn't tell him anything! Thank you. It must've been awful! Pfft... whips and heated rods? That's vanilla weak sauce torture. My wife, God rest her soul, could pull that off on a dull Tuesday night. ...Huh? Ergh! I mean... <nods> I might be over the hill, but nothing could break my loyalty to the emperor! Not even being blamed for treason falsely by the emperor! Are you going to try to take on Rasputin now? Well, you'd better have this, then. A lot of sweat went into making it! It's my very best work. Lord knows the emperor is not going to do anything. That doesn't sound very loyal to me. Loyalty and faith are different things, my child..jpg) Edgar hands over an Anastasia only accessory that allows her photography skill to scan all enemies at once instead of having to burn a turn on each individual foe. I reckon that is nifty even if most dungeons only have like... three enemy types. .jpg) Are you sure you have enough beds for us? Haha! I don't own a bed. I sleep standing up, like my father and his father before me! ...... ...Are all the adults I know like this...?Music: ENDS .jpg) .jpg) Karin... Karin...Music: The Real Intentions .jpg) .jpg) Karin wakes up in a church. Indeed, this is the Domremy church where our adventure began... This likely doesn't bode well. .jpg) Karin... ...... Karin.Karin gets to her feet and faces Nicolai. .jpg) Nicolai... I have come for you. For me...?! <extends his hand> Please come with me. ...... ...I'm good? Karin, please. If you continue on with this foolishness, you and Yuri will end up being killed by Rasputin's assassins. Yuri will never lose. He has beaten all of Rasputin's assassins. Including you... No, you are wrong. I have put in my two weeks' notice to Sapientes Gladio. That doesn't matter. Yuri has already beaten everyone Rasputin has thrown at him. Including Rasputin himself once already. I'm good....jpg) <steps forward> You believe in him? <nods> Yes. <ponders> Huh. I see you truly care for him. ...... <shakes head> You're right. He won't lose. So I guess you don't need me, then, eh? Wh-what do you mean? <looks around> Wait... is this Domremy...? Is this a... a... dream...? A-Are you invading my dreams right now...? I like to prefer calling it a direct message to you. Karin, listen....jpg) I don't want to kill you. If you would only join me, you could achieve anything. What do you want? Fortune, fame... Anything you desire! Karin, my love! You could even... bring back your dead family! Th-that's crazy... W-where is this all coming from...? This is the absolutely the most insane thing I have heard come out of a man's mouth in a very long time and Yuri keeps telling me random no context bits of his previous adventure... You need to stop... whatever the hell all this is right now!.jpg) <looks dejected> ...... But why? Don't you understand how important you are? That's what I am trying to explain to you. ...... By... trying to... bribe me so you didn't have to kill me...? And... a-and... offering to bring back my dead family...? How do you even know about them?! I never told you that! A man in my unique position hears things. That sounds a lot like stalking....jpg) <points behind Karin> What exactly has that boy done for you, anyway?!.jpg) Yuri? He has... saved my life multiple times. Mostly from you and your goons. Again, I am no longer affiliated with Sapientes Gladio. Rasputin and I have parted ways. That... doesn't change all times you already tried to kill me and my friends. It is an unfortunate business... the conduct of my former comrades. I was a respected Germany Army lieutenant! You killed ALL of my men and turned me into an army deserter! Yes, well... You ordered Lenny to kill me and tried to stab me with that weird mistletoe relic! And you cursed Yuri! ...I was a different person back then... You shot at me and my friends with an airship! It was just business... You drugged us and left us in a prison to get tortured by Veronica! Yes... I... look, mistakes have been made, but... Yuri... No matter how much you love him, his heart belongs to another woman! What are you saying?! It's obvious, don't you see? He'll never be able to give you what you need! <shakes head> Don't! Now, you see. It is *my* turn for truths....jpg) Warmth! ...... Comfort! Love! <covers ears and shakes head> Ugh! The Friend Zone, Karin. You thought it was only for insecure men...? Look deep into your heart. You know it to be true... And you are trapped within it.Karin sinks to the floor. .jpg) .jpg) .......jpg) Nobody in this room actually realizes why Yuri and Karin cannot be. And it is not him only being hung up on Alice Elliot. Nobody in this room is even close... Nicolai walks past Yuri and slides in on the dejected Karin. .jpg) Karin, come with me. I'll give you the love you want. Please stop... Don't fight it.Nicolai helps Karin to her feet and grabs her by the shoulders. .jpg) A woman needs love to be fulfilled. ...... Whatever you wanted out of Yuri I can provide. I can even transform into a devil man now, if that is what initially got you going... I need you... Let's be together. Karin... I love you. ...... Oh, eww... No. No, what is this?! This is the... NO! Nope. No!.jpg) Karin finally snaps out of it and pushes the creeper dream invasion Nicolai away. He seems genuinely surprised this tactic he's taken of being a giant weird gently caress that is suddenly really horny for a lady he was coworkers with for about a week and change during a stretch a half year ago. .jpg) ...But I love you! ...... <smiles and walks forward> Yes, I love you. ......Nicolai reaches out to stroke Karin's hair like a creep. .jpg) I feel sorry for you... ......?!.jpg) You manipulate people's hearts. But what is it you really want...? Uh... You are putting me on the spot here. Could I have a moment to answer that...? You... barged into my dreams and declared your love for me out of nowhere. Are you for real, right now?! Uh...Nicolai slowly backs off from his advances and slowly backs up as Karin gets heated. .jpg) You think you can hide your true self behind your smooth talk and good looks? You still think I'm handsome, though, eh...? Yeah, you are a good looking man and otherwise a terrible person I want nothing to do with. What, are you going to do? Flash a toothy smile and stroke your hand through your hair and think I am just going to swoon from just that? Is that how you've been able to get to where you are now? ...... <looks away> Well, it won't work. You can't manipulate me..jpg) Can you truly say you don't care for me at all? Yes. Easily. When we met you had me help rob the Vatican under false pretenses. I just remembered that one... The only thing I care for you is the impressive amount you actually suck. Goodbye, Nicolai. You and I were never meant to be together. .jpg) Ka-Karin... Karin...Watch this, you can actually pinpoint the second where his heart rips in half! .jpg) .jpg) Naturally, Nicolai pivots straight from awkwardly trying to put the moves on Karin and getting shot the gently caress down to attempting to strangle her to death due to his rejection in all of three seconds like the MRA motherfucker he is... .jpg) Fortunately, he is not Freddy Krueger and doesn't actually have that much dominion over the Dream Dimension and is thus cast out of Karin's psyche before he can act on further pervy insane person impulses. Karin immediately faints. .jpg) KAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRIIIIIIINNNN!!Music: ENDS .jpg) .jpg) A dream?!Karin finds herself back in the waking world surrounded by a maddening din of clocks ticking with none of them in sync. Edgar, I get it you're a clockmaker and all but you live in a nightmare room. That's like being a soldier and having random firing and explosion foley in the background at home to stay on brand. .jpg) Also, I wasn't making a goof earlier. Edgar owns zero beds. Who the hell knows where he even dwells at these hours. Probably in a comically sized grandfather clock. Everyone in the party had to just pass out on the floor. Nothing says loyalty to the emperor like making his daughter sleep on the bulging bicep of a Romanian vampire. .jpg) Karin notices Yuri sleeping and scoots over to him and starts stroking his hair as he sleeps. .jpg) A dream...Music: Town of Twilight ~ European Town .jpg) Well... that was a loving weird way to spend the night! I feel like Nicolai just managed to gently caress-up so hard in hitting on Karin like a weirdo out of nowhere that he made her actually be into Yuri whereas they'd just been kind of just platonic friends up to this point. Much like Rasputin loving everyone up at once, his disciple, Nicolai, has accomplished a similar feat in a different field. .jpg) With that done, we are now finished with Petrograd and firmly at the End of Disc 1 wrap-up territory. I know earlier Nicolai mentioned Idar Flamme would be ready to raze Petrograd by morning. But Nicolai also quit Rasputin's service and flipped him the bird on the way out. He seems like the type that would throw his keys to the business into the woods, steal a bunch of office supplies and glue a door or two's lock shut. And then get drunk and text his ex. Oh, whoops... That kind of happened, huh? So we are in all likelihood OK taking a final lap around Europe to mop up outstanding sidequest content as Shadow Hearts: Covenant - Part 1 begins to come to a close.  Well a WHOLE lot went down that chapter and thus we have a modest Library entry update. Monsters: .jpg) Learned nothing from experiences. Still sucks. Yep, that sounds like a rich person. .jpg) That's getting a little too real. .jpg) I have a lot of questions about this ghost child who constructed an animated skeleton. .jpg) Excuse me? Then what the hell are they doing in Russia?! .jpg) Veronica Vera, she lived as she died... with big old titties. More than expected, even! Characters:  Caim would kill this jerk just for lacking conviction in doing all the murder. .jpg) Yes, he is unbelievably concerned with his family. You know, if we just ignore one of the main villains being his bastard son as a plot point.  Video: Episode 66 Cutscene (Delete your account, Nicolai.)  Shadow Hearts II Promotional Poster - Nicolai, your game is weak. The Dark Id fucked around with this message at 01:37 on Feb 16, 2020 |
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Feb 15, 2020 00:43
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So weirdly enough absolutely nothing prevents you from leaving Petrograd and going elsewhere before the big sleepover at Edgar's, meaning it's entirely possible to miss this scene with Nicolai. Threw me for a loop when I finished the game and had a big ol' blank spot in my "rewatch cutscenes" mode. Also makes some later scenes feel like a much bigger leap than they should.
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Feb 15, 2020 01:16
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The Dark Id posted:
Is that the puppet? What the actual gently caress.
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Feb 15, 2020 02:01
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So if Amon is Wrath and Asmodeus is Lust, which Deadly Sin is Astaroth? So far, Envy or Pride seem like the best fits. And whoever predicted a tuna weapon for Joachim earlier, your prophecy has been fulfilled!
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Feb 15, 2020 03:04
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My impression back then was that Nicolai was supposed to be the villainous love interest rival to Yuri for Karin's affections, which didn't seem that odd to me since they did Seymour a few years back with FFX. Back then I thought Nicolai was a pretty respectable villain simply because snide anime pretty boys are always trouble, but even if this rear end in a top hat wasn't chump change following in everyone's footsteps, nothing can compete with Yuri who is a literal Godslayer that saved the earth, curse of the Mistletoe be damned. Also, did you forget to include the entry for Necros? Shitenshi fucked around with this message at 04:16 on Feb 15, 2020 |
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Feb 15, 2020 04:12
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CmdrKing posted:So weirdly enough absolutely nothing prevents you from leaving Petrograd and going elsewhere before the big sleepover at Edgar's, meaning it's entirely possible to miss this scene with Nicolai. Threw me for a loop when I finished the game and had a big ol' blank spot in my "rewatch cutscenes" mode. Also makes some later scenes feel like a much bigger leap than they should. I also missed it as well because I just went right on into the dungeon  . It''s kind of a big cutscene to put in a spot that most players will probably never go at that point in the story.
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Feb 15, 2020 05:57
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ultrafilter posted:Is that the puppet? What the actual gently caress. This is the correct reaction to just about everything involving Cornelia.
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Feb 15, 2020 08:08
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EggsAisle posted:This is the correct reaction to just about everything involving Cornelia. There's something even worse with the puppet, that they removed for the western releases which I'll be covering in due course. And add me to the people who completely missed the Nicolai dream cutscene thing, and literally only found out about it during kethryveris' LP of it.
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Feb 15, 2020 08:25
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I guess Nicolai and Karin did spend a few weeks together at the beginning of the game - traveling from Domremy to the Vatican (in a week!) and back - but the game elided that travel time so completely that the player is mostly surprised Karin remembers his name. 
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Feb 15, 2020 09:13
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So, I mostly recall Shadow Hearts, not just from the old LP, but from the two Penny Arcade comics they did about the game, the first was regarding the dresses and doesn't really hold up now beyond a single line, but this one. I always remembered this one.
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Feb 15, 2020 09:30
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Night10194 posted:The thing about Koudelka is everyone in it isn't a dick; everyone is dealing with some really awful stuff, but even James redeems himself by the end and has pretty understandable reasons he's a stuck up rear end in a top hat in the first place. I also think the much shorter plot helped it hang together a lot better. It could have a more abrasive or oppressive tone because it was only 12 hours long, as opposed to 60. I agree with you here. The smaller cast of characters and tighter story really helped Koudelka shine. Much as I like Shadow Hearts' more lighthearted tone and cast, about half the party stops being relevant in the plot sooner or later
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Feb 15, 2020 09:44
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achtungnight posted:So if Amon is Wrath and Asmodeus is Lust, which Deadly Sin is Astaroth? So far, Envy or Pride seem like the best fits. Astaroth is the mistranslated and genderbent version of Astarte, ancient goddess of love, fertility and war. In pop culture (none of these demons are officially keyed to any of the deadly sins, it's all pop culture) he's often associated with lust, just like Asmodeus.
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Feb 15, 2020 13:05
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"Hey, babe, your name ain't Kriemhild, but I still want to put a ring on that." "Get the gently caress out of my mind palace, Nicolai."
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Feb 15, 2020 16:28
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"Your name must be Li Li cuz u make me wanna shloop-shloop-shplat"
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Feb 15, 2020 16:36
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GimmickMan posted:Astaroth is the mistranslated and genderbent version of Astarte, ancient goddess of love, fertility and war. In pop culture (none of these demons are officially keyed to any of the deadly sins, it's all pop culture) he's often associated with lust, just like Asmodeus. Incidentally, Astarte is probably also where Aphrodite came from (and Ishtar is probably where Astarte came from). She even kept the war aspect in a couple places, like Sparta, and her depictions are armored up. The Dark Id posted:and flipped him the bird on the bird on the way out. Dunno if this was intentional or not, and the mental image is interesting, so up to you.
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Feb 15, 2020 17:06
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