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Yuri is pretty bad at first impressions, and the second ones aren't much better.
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Jun 23, 2018 06:23
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Idk, in a way I kinda like Urmanov as a name. It's so delightfully serious, exotic, and old-school, but then you see the person who it belongs to is a dumb and awkward young person. I dig it.
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Jun 23, 2018 07:21
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I'm one of those people who loves to read through item/enemy descriptions, and this game definitely delivers on that front. Glad you're showing them off. Must've been a fair amount of effort to draw art for literally every item and piece of equipment too.
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Jun 23, 2018 10:12
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Malachite_Dragon posted:He really isn't; it almost never comes up again, other than one or two spots where it's much less awkward. I agree with other posters, I think this section of the game was made a lot earlier to pitch it/as part of a demo, and then they just didn't bother/forgot to go back and change it once they'd figured out what they wanted to do with his character. Yeah. Yuri is much more of an awkward dork around people (especially Alice,) not a creep like this scene suggests. If anyone's really turned off by this scene believe me you won't feel that way by the end. Yuri is a really likable protagonist overall and the reasons should be apparent in an update or two.
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Jun 23, 2018 12:39
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Everything gets a profile in the series - not only it's a nice way to kill time to calm down after doing with a more frustrating boss, but it really adds onto the world building.
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Jun 23, 2018 16:32
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Episode IV: Ghost Dad Music: Sphere -qu- .jpg) We now have our second party member in Alice Elliot. Before we continue our journey of err... finding a place to sleep for the evening and maybe bumming some food, let’s take a closer look at our new companion. .jpg) Surprising to nobody, Alice has a stat bend suited more towards magical abilities than physical strength. Unlike in Koudelka where beginning stats were more of a suggestion and characters could be built in any way, the folks in Shadow Hearts must very much stay in their lanes with their archetypes. Alice is very much the healer of the group and will remain so. The only exception is kinda Yuri because... well, you’ll see eventually.  You might notice Alice has a big Light in her status screen. That is because characters (and enemies) in Shadow Hearts all have elemental affiliations. The elements from Koudelka have all returned -- Fire, Water, Earth and Wind. But this time around Light and Dark have been upgraded from vague vestigial elements that exist in the pile of overly complicated mechanics but functionally had little purpose to full on Elements. Yuri is Dark Elemental if you didn’t catch his status screen earlier. Each element has an opposite which they’ll do more damage against but also receive more damage from as well. They’re fairly easy to guess: Fire >< Water Earth >< Wind Light >< Dark .jpg) Alice naturally comes with her own set of equipment. Let’s take a closer look at her gear... .jpg) Our heroine’s weapon of choice is just beating people over the head with a thick Bible she’s carrying around. Indeed, Ms. Elliot’s weapons of choice are all hardcover holy texts. I suppose that’s a bit less awkward than having the white mage wandering around with a big staff or rod all the time. .jpg) Alice also comes equipped with a blouse. Unlike Yuri’s equipment, I suppose it’s reasonable she could be wearing this under her weird button-up jacket... thing. .jpg) By default, Alice comes equipped with the bandanna accessory which adds +5 to her defense stats. Seeing as she currently only has 20 HP total, we should probably just keep that equipped on her for now. Also, this thing was totally just made in the back of some sweatshop in under five minutes for about fifteen cents material cost. .jpg) A new Valuable is also added to our inventory once Alice joins -- her magic pendant that stopped Roger Bacon from blasting Yuri back on top of the train. That does seem kind of valuable... .jpg) That’s about it for Alice’s equipment chat for now. Getting back on our task, it seems there is a stream in our way we just simply cannot pass at this time. Ignore the part where Yuri leaped like a hundred feet while carrying Alice earlier. He forgot how to do super jumps past the prologue. Also nobody wants to get wet so swimming is out of the question. So we’ll just need to find another way around. .jpg) Music: Brain Hopper .jpg) .jpg) Not that the local wildlife is going to make it easy. Out stalking the Manchurian Plains are hungry wolves, vicious vampire bats and just straight up the Webspinner giant spiders from Resident Evil. Sure, why not? That sort of poo poo is probably hanging out in the countryside of China back in the early 1900s. .jpg) Of the three enemies in the area, only wolves are somewhat threatening in that they get to bite multiple times instead of just once. So Yuri is best off just kicking any wild dogs he sees to death immediately. .jpg) Alice’s unique ability is White Magic and right now her only spell is Cure. Yuri is down some health thanks to the assorted Chinese spiders and bats having taken a liking to biting his knees of late. So we can give that a quick go to top his health back off. .jpg) .jpg) It’s a Cure spell. It restores a respectable bit of HP. That’s about all there is to it. It’s also the reason Alice will be in our party for the bulk of the game. Having a healer is kinda important to have around in an RPG where 999 is the maximum HP and we’re starting barely in the mid-double digits.  While Alice is mostly going to be focused on keeping everyone healed for the most part, enemies early on in the game have such low HP that having Alice bible thump ‘em to death isn’t a bad strategy. She’s very enthusiastic with her book bashing. Music: Results .jpg) One particularly annoying bit about Shadow Hearts is Leveling Up. There is no allocating stats. All attributes just automatically increase on level up. The annoying bit is HP and MP always will increase when a character gains a new level but... their current HP and MP will not increase with it. .jpg) In other words, when our character’s HP/MP increase, they’re now missing the amount of health between the level up value and the value they had at the end of the battle. So Alice has gone from missing 3 HP to 13. It’s a minor nuisance but annoying either way. Especially if you’re the type who likes to have their characters’ HP topped off most of the time. Music: Sphere -qu- .jpg) .jpg) Enough about random battles. We need to either find another way around that stream. Or maybe just get rid of the stream entirely... Alice and Yuri stop to discuss their situation. .jpg)  Um… maybe if we do something with this sluice gate, we’ll be able to cross the river.  Huh? The HELL is a “sluice”? Ergh... I mean... <turns to Alice> Ah, of course! Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing. ...  Er, anyway, let’s have a little search, then. Hah! We’ll be sluicing it up in no time! <shakes head doubtingly> .jpg) Here’s a big change from Koudelka. In that game the party immediately started stuffing every single key item they ever come across into our pockets until two-fifths of their belongs were puzzle pieces to problems they’d yet to even encounter. Seriously they had some dead Saint’s severed arm in their backpack for like a third of the game before finding any importance to it. This time around, we need to actually find the problem before we can go grab the solution. Which is reasonable but somewhat annoying gameplay wise. .jpg) .jpg) As an aside, Shadow Heart’s first save point is here in the burnt out ruins of some shack. No fighting a boss before earning the right to save properly this time around. Just step onto the weird glowing glyph (I think it’s a Judgment Ring rune but you never really get a close look at one.) .jpg) The party needs to go to the northeast corner of the area to discover one of the sluice gates, particularly the one allowing that stream to flow, is missing a handle. NOW we can go retrieve one from the derelict gates we passed. .jpg) There is a gate to the north and southwest of the area. It doesn’t matter which we grab a handle from other than a reward that doesn’t matter too much. .jpg) We need to use the Judgment Ring in order to yank off the Sluice Gate Handle. This is a Normal Ring which just means we need to tap three points on the Judgement Ring. So it’s basically like using any normal attack. No big deal. .jpg) .jpg) There is no immediately evident drawback to failing the glorified QTE. Other than Yuri looking like kind of a chump and embarrassing himself in front of a girl. We can just try again until we get it right. .jpg) .jpg) Now we have a Sluice Gate Handle added to our Valuables. There is a wee issue with the Valuables tab. You see, once a key item gets stuck into the Valuables community chest it... never leaves. Even when it’s already been used. So this Sluice Gate Handle? We’ll be holding onto it from now until the credits roll. Just in case! (There will never be a case.) .jpg) Some time later... .jpg) In any case, all we need to do is return to the handle lacking Sluice Gate (sluice is a fun word to say) and the situation will sort itself out. In time... As soon as we walk to the south, Yuri chimes in with... .jpg) Hey, I say we take a rest over there. R-Right.Music: ENDS .jpg) She’s asleep. <waves hand> What’s that all about?! She’s got some nerve… She didn’t even find anywhere comfortable. Just plopped face first in the dirt and was out. Who does that...?  Yeah, to hell with it. I’m just gonna... Unh, uhhh…  Chill! I’m just going to go out behind the shed and take a— Father... Wha… you talkin’ in your sleep!? Don’t scare me like that!Yuri stands up. .jpg) Zzz... Zzz... <bends down next to Alice> Oh, please. Don’t tell me she’s dreamin’ about her DAD. Wait, that old dick in top hat wasn’t her dad, right? They both have whitish hair. Ehh... I guess hers is more silver and his was more ancient geezer. Probably not related... Probably. How did she even end up with hair like that? That’s kinda weird, right? I’m overthinking this... Whew... I’m getting’ a bit sleepy myself....jpg) The campfire flares up as soon as Yuri turns his back. Spooky. .jpg) New Music: Destruction - Noise of Fangs .jpg)  <warps into existence and laughs>.jpg) F-father! What… What are you doing here?! Being disappointed as usual. I’ve come to visit, boy. The souls of the monsters you’ve killed are quite lonely, you see… Souls of the… monsters…!? <turns to Alice> What a lovely face. Stop staring at her butt, you perv old man. You are one to talk lately... And yet, I must show proper courtesy. It is thanks to this woman’s power that I am even here. Her power?! What?! <turns back to Yuri> Haven’t you noticed? This world overflows with the ghosts of the monsters you’ve slain. Yeah? I’m good at my job. Nothing wrong with that, old man! The gate of eternal darkness was closed until now, you see… this woman is causing it to open! The ghosts sealed inside the darkest depths of your heart… they call to me, boy. And they demand that I devour your very soul!.jpg) The incredible Mr. Fox Face begins teleporting around the area. Yuri doesn’t seem to appreciate his ghost dad warping around. .jpg) <laughs> Or....jpg) ...you’ll....jpg) ...what?.jpg) New Music: Dirty Nails .jpg) .jpg) Time for another boss battle. Maybe this one will go better than the one against Roger Bacon. Alice is going to be very confused if she wakes up from sleep to find Yuri in a fist fight with his ghost father. .jpg) Before Yuri gets a chance to do anything, Fox Face immediately performs a short combo halving his son’s Sanity Points. I suppose we can touch on the Sanity Points mechanic. Sanity Points are effectively a time limit for battles that is constantly ticking down. Each turn a character takes uses one Sanity Point. Additionally, some special moves will drain Sanity as a source of energy to perform. And as we can see, enemies can straight up attack Sanity instead of health with special strikes. If a character falls to 0 Sanity they’ll enter a Berserk state where they can no longer be controlled. Berserk characters will behave like right assholes until the status is negated -- attacking allies or using restorative spells/consumables and buffs on enemies. We REALLY don’t want anyone going Berserk. Yuri has the highest overall Sanity score in the game, despite being a man who readily claims to hear voices in his head and has gotten into a fist fight with a bat within the last thirty minutes. Alice, the pure white mage maiden carrying a bible around, meanwhile has the lowest Sanity stat of anyone we’ll encounter. Read into that what you will. As a final note: unlike HP and MP, Sanity Points are restored at the end of every battle. No need to waste consumables to restore it outside of fights. .jpg) .jpg) But we don’t need to worry too much about Yuri’s Sanity dropping to zero during this bout. It’s more of a mirror match against Fox Face, who comes packing the same exact fighting style as his son. Except for a couple unique moves... .jpg) .jpg) .jpg) You know, like an attack that reduces Yuri’s HP to one hit point. I don’t think Yuri knows how to do that. .jpg) .jpg) Fox Face can also just turn into a Devilman. That one? Yuri can actually do that too! Here, lemme show y— .jpg) .jpg) Oh... Huh... Maybe next time...    Video: Episode 4 Highlight Reel The Dark Id fucked around with this message at 16:15 on Jun 25, 2018 |
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Jun 24, 2018 03:49
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Yuri gets his rear end kicked a lot in the game's early bits.
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Jun 24, 2018 04:02
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For a minute I thought Yuri was part furry, but it's just a mask. The devilman seems new.
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Jun 24, 2018 04:07
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I always figured that Alice's crappy sanity bar was mostly cause she was a non-combatant who had never really been in a fight ever. As such, she is more inclined to lose her cool and do stupid things while panicking. Yuri, on the other hand, has Seen Some poo poo and is mostly used to the horrors the world throws at him. Later characters are better than Alice in keeping calm likely due to having at least some experience with violence and/or unpleasant supernaturals.
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Jun 24, 2018 05:11
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I am inclined to believe that, though leaning more towards 'having not really deal with monsters until Bacon tried to kill her'.
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Jun 24, 2018 06:01
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Most anyone can wear a green overcoat so I wondered why Yuri even thought this guy was his dad without seeing what's under the goofy Halloween decoration. Part of me wonders if this joker has a stereotypical goofy dumb dad voice, or if he sounds like a crazy rear end in a top hat dad, loud and ready to beat the poo poo out of him. Or a mix of both. But you figure most axe murderers living out in the wilderness can do that, so come on man, demand proof of identity before you start having flashbacks to the one time daddy "bet" you a hundred dollars to see if you'd run headfirst into a brick wall. I mean Yuri is now the guy who can reattach his severed arm no problem. All this shitstain can do is teleport around so he can sneak up behind you and give you a noogie. Then again, Yuri hears voices in his head that it just so happens tell him to pick fights with evil old British men and save pretty girls, and the mask only comes off when Fox Face turns into a winged skeleton monster. Of course he'd think this hell spirit is his dad at first sight. The Dark Id posted:
1. This word should be removed for better sentence flow. 2. Should be "an."
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Jun 24, 2018 06:44
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I hope you'll show off the combat tracks which play when you run out of sanity points because they're really uh, something else. I think each combat theme has its own berserk variation.
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Jun 24, 2018 09:57
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"Hi, my name is Yuri. I hear voices in my head and sometimes my ghost dad comes and kicks my rear end. But only when nobody is looking." *increasingly concerned Marge Simpson grunt*
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Jun 24, 2018 14:19
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I hope cutscenes of Yuri will stop making him look like Dream of the Endless because it's very disconcerting. They don't even look like the model on the cover art, which seems to have normal Alice and Dapper Bacon renders. Okay, so cranking up the volume, that Mysterious Voice lady says "darkness and light have reunited. Protect her, and find your reason for living," which gives me the sense our protag... shouldn't be alive? or living? Or is just Not Quite Human, considering Roger Bacon calls him a 'foul beast,' which doesn't seem very dapper unless he is one, Yuri no-sells injury like a champ (when he's not looking like Dream and/or uh, fighting fox ghost dad), and doesn't bleed when his arm's cut off. I do love his little 'ta daaa' shrug though  Oh man, in making this I realized he wasn't just stepping back awkwardly, he was stepping over his severed arm  That intro really is something. I'm going to be looking forward to seeing more of this game.Also, speaking of, The Dark Id posted:Just gotta glue this back on real quick. Spoilers: At no other point in the game can this guy just reattached limbs and regenerate like that. I mean, not that he is ever in a situation that warrants it again either. It’s just odd. Like if Piccolo in Dragon Ball Z just did the regrowing a limb technique exactly once ever out of nowhere and nobody spoke on it or mentioned it ever again.
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Jun 24, 2018 14:45
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Kanfy posted:I hope you'll show off the combat tracks which play when you run out of sanity points because they're really uh, something else. I think each combat theme has its own berserk variation. Yup, they all do in all three SH games. Soundtrack-wise, all of them were quite memorable.
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Jun 24, 2018 14:46
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Our protagonist is dark elemental? My, how edgy.The Dark Id posted:upgraded to vague elements that exist in the pile of overly complicated mechanics but functionally had little purpose to full on Elements. Upgraded from.
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Jun 24, 2018 19:22
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GimmickMan posted:Our protagonist is dark elemental? My, how edgy. It was still the 90s.
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Jun 24, 2018 19:38
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ultrafilter posted:It was still the 90s. Coulda sworn this games was early 00's...
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Jun 24, 2018 19:43
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GimmickMan posted:Our protagonist is dark elemental? My, how edgy. What else is he going to be, the healer main chick obviously has dips on light and the rest are pleb elements?
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Jun 24, 2018 19:50
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Junpei posted:Coulda sworn this games was early 00's... It was released in late 2001. The 90s as a cultural period don't line up exactly with the decade.
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Jun 24, 2018 19:53
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E-flat posted:Okay, so cranking up the volume, that Mysterious Voice lady says "darkness and light have reunited. Protect her, and find your reason for living," which gives me the sense our protag... shouldn't be alive? or living? Or is just Not Quite Human, considering Roger Bacon calls him a 'foul beast,' which doesn't seem very dapper unless he is one, Yuri no-sells injury like a champ (when he's not looking like Dream and/or uh, fighting fox ghost dad), and doesn't bleed when his arm's cut off. Can't say I agree with that interpretation. To me, 'find your reason for living' has everything to do with his raison d'être. He was either placed on this earth to protect her mini-skirted rear end, or at least will figure out what he should be doing with his life as he travels with her. As to the foul beast line? That should be made clear in the next episode.
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Jun 24, 2018 20:18
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GimmickMan posted:Our protagonist is dark elemental? My, how edgy. Shadow hearts is the least edgy RPG Even though it does look the part
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Jun 24, 2018 20:19
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Yeah, despite the Goth-Punk trappings, it's really not a cynical game at all.
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Jun 24, 2018 20:32
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I don't know, Yuri is a very 90s edgy anime protagonist on many points. Thankfully the one key feature they decided to run in counter was his personality.
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Jun 24, 2018 20:41
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Yuri is edgy in the way that Dante is edgy. Meaning basically not at all.
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Jun 24, 2018 20:47
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I just finished this Game today. I did not disappoint, but I couldnt get some Triggers to activate for optional Stuff. I hope the LP will explain what I did wrong in time.
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Jun 24, 2018 21:24
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Vauron posted:Can't say I agree with that interpretation. To me, 'find your reason for living' has everything to do with his raison d'être. Yes, it's find a reason to actually care about your life. Someone/something that makes you go "This is why I get out of bed every morning.", rather than just going through the motions because you have nothing better to do.
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Jun 24, 2018 21:43
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ultrafilter posted:It was released in late 2001. The 90s as a cultural period don't line up exactly with the decade. Yeah, cultural decades tend to be more like the 10 years between X3 and Y3 than the way the naming convention works. The Dark Id posted:That sort of poo poo is probably hanging out the countryside of China back in the early 1900s. First should be "hanging out in the" and second should probably be "Yuri's" since he wasn't mentioned in the previous sentence or earlier in the highlighted one.
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Jun 25, 2018 04:53
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It wouod have been funny as hell if Yuri's shirt and coat didn't heal and he just spends the rest of the game minus a sleeve, and his stupid coat just gets progressively dirtier and more shredded.
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Jun 25, 2018 05:16
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Screaming Idiot posted:It wouod have been funny as hell if Yuri's shirt and coat didn't heal and he just spends the rest of the game minus a sleeve, and his stupid coat just gets progressively dirtier and more shredded. That's how the Wolverine game worked. Good thing for him his pants were indestructible.
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Jun 25, 2018 05:56
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Between Hulk, Wolverine, and everyone else, I have come to realize the first supervillain to craft his armor entirely out of pants will be invincible.
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Jun 25, 2018 06:27
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Speedball posted:That's how the Wolverine game worked. Good thing for him his pants were indestructible. Batman Arkham Asylum/City as well, (Perhaps the later games as well, but I haven't played them) Batman's suit got progressively dirtier/more ragged as you played the game.
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Jun 25, 2018 08:27
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Jagged Jim posted:Batman Arkham Asylum/City as well, (Perhaps the later games as well, but I haven't played them) Batman's suit got progressively dirtier/more ragged as you played the game. Yeah, also happens in Origins and Knight.
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Jun 25, 2018 15:10
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Episode V: Malice New Music: Graveyard Moon .jpg) Yuri, you really need to stop getting your rear end kicked by every guy that crosses your path. It’s getting embarrassing... If you couldn’t guess, the fight against Fox Face is an unbeatable boss battle. Even if he didn’t reduce Yuri’s health to 1 HP and punch his lights out, Fox Face would have unleashed an attack in his demon form that does around 200+ HP of damage. That’s a little bit out of Yuri’s league forty minutes into the game... And so we’ve ended up here... .jpg) What’s goin’ on…? <steps forward> Where am I?! This is just like in my dreams!! <looks down> Okay... My pants are still on. So it’s not ENTIRELY like my dreams. But... Wait, wasn’t I fighting—OH CRAP! RIGHT!.jpg) Where’s...!? Where is he?! I won, right? Yeah... Definitely... If anyone asks I kicked his rear end and he ran away... That’s probably what happened. Probably... So why isn’t he here...? <puts guard down> Heh heh, so he didn’t come with me, eh? drat! I can’t believe this. Honestly, this is a pretty lame illusion. If… it is an illusion. A spooky graveyard? Really? What is this Halloween? Is a gargoyle going to pop out of a hell portal and fight me next?Yuri steps forward and looks around. .jpg) …Yup, this is it all right. The graveyard from my dreams. Aw, man, I don’t want to be remembering this! Now’s the part where I get lost, then wake up in a cold sweat just as a monster’s about to eat me. And my pants are gonna be gone and my junk is going to be flopping out and everybody laughs at me. Man... I’m wearing FOUR belts, you stupid dream! My pants are staying ON! No, no, NO! Nothin’ but trouble ever since that freakin’ voice showed up! Maybe I’ve lost it completely. First, Dad jumps out of my nightmare and shows up right before my eyes… and now I’M in the dream! I feel like that stupid voice didn’t properly prepare me for this one... Like it tells me to go beat up a bear... I like KNOW what I’m getting’ into walking into that a cave that night... But this... Man... This sucks. I save that girl and don’t get so much as a SMILE. C’mon, aren’t they supposed to get all dewy-eyed, “Ooh, Mr. Yuri! Thank you ever so much! SMOOCH!” …Ain’t that how it’s s’posed to go? … What if everything I know about girls is a lie and I’m doing it all wrong... Oh man, now I’m all depressed..jpg) We’re now free to explore the graveyard. But there’s only one point of interest that will progress things. So let’s take a look at that neon green headstone... .jpg) Ha ha! Wouldn’t it be hilarious if all the monsters I’ve killed started crawlin’ out of these? Heh heh... Watch the ghost of that haunted chair I punched into splinters pops out... That’d be somethin’... heh. <inspects grave> This one’s glowing. Seal of Earth, huh...?The gravestone flashes and grows. What!?.jpg) Music: Brain Hopper .jpg) Time for a throw down against Tony the Tiger’s gaunt pissy cousin – Raging Tiger. For once, we’ll be facing a “major enemy” and Yuri won’t be getting his rear end handed to him. Indeed, Raging Tiger is extremely easy. But Yuri really needs to save face with his track record so let’s finally take a look at his hidden technique. .jpg) Yuri’s special ability is “Fusion” which is a low key term for “he can transform into a goddamn monster.” We’ve actually been able to do this the entire time. But, you know... Any fight that would have warranted it so far would have resulted in the Fusion immediately getting its poo poo kicked in. .jpg) .jpg) But no longer! Yuri’s only Fusion at the moment is Death Emperor -- the same exact Devilman that Fox Face transformed into before knocking his son the gently caress out. It’s worth noting that using Fusions drain Sanity Points, not Magic Points. It costs 16 of Yuri’s current 24 Sanity Points to bring out the Death Emperor. But there’s no penalty after that beyond normal Sanity drain. Yuri can remain in his Fusion state for the duration of the battle as long as he isn’t KOed. .jpg) Fusions come with their own variety of Special Attacks in addition to just a flat increase of Yuri’s stats across the board. Special Attacks do use MP as their fuel source like you’d expect. Drain Wave is a spell that steals MP from an enemy. Curse Attack is a buff that raises Special Attack Power for five turns. Dark Messenger is just a big ol’ gently caress-off super attack.  But ehh... that’s not really necessary here. Two rounds of Death Emperor’s default combo is enough to send this kitty to bed. .jpg) .jpg) The poor thing didn’t even get a chance to attack. Its only turn was desperately hollering at the sky to restore a meager 9 HP as a devilman whipped his rear end. .jpg) ...It was not enough. Music: Results .jpg) .jpg) But that’s alright. Raging Tiger will get his chance to shine another day. Just not in the way it was anticipating. Defeating this enemy in the Graveyard yields a Fusion Soul meaning Yuri now has the ability to transform into his own Music: Graveyard Moon .jpg) Huh?! What the...? Suddenly I feel... awful...!! <kneels over in pain>There is a brief flash of light and a piercing sound. .jpg) You’ve received the Soul of Tigerion! A new spirit to fuse with... Is this... my power? Wha...!? I could have been getting new fusions this entire time...? Why doesn’t anyone tell me these things!?.jpg) We can now equip different Fusion Souls in the equipment menu. Obviously, only Yuri has access to this tab. No turning Alice into a tiger lady or anything like that. .jpg) .jpg) Yuri can equip up to three Fusion Souls at a time. Equipping a Soul will show how it will buff Yuri’s stat if he fuses with it in a fight. Death Emperor is:
.jpg) .jpg) Our new toy, Raging Tiger, grants:
.jpg) We’re now free to explore the Graveyard further. There’s a door to the north which we cannot access. That definitely won’t ever become relevant and some key moment later on. .jpg) What we do want to want to take a gander at is the ominous door with the four spooky evil rear end looking masks floating around it. I dunno, that seems like it could be kinda important. Just a vibe I’m getting... .jpg)  We are pleased to see you, boy… The detestable young Harmonixer who damned us to eternal hell… He he, no need to thank me. But to be honest, I really haven’t missed you guys at all. That glowing after effect you’ve got going is giving me a headache. Ho ho ho… Your pathetic bravado can’t hide your fear. <puts up fists> Keep laughin’!! I’ll slice that stupid mask in two!! Ho ho... Like you did the warlock on the train? Or that familiar spirit at the bonfire? Shuddup! Neither of those fights were fair! Stupid magic using jerks... Besides, I just kicked that tiger guy’s rear end! I ain’t no pushover. Ha ha ha! Your mind may not comprehend this place, but your heart understands it full well. Yes. This world is a reflection of your own mind’s darkness, darkness you have created yourself. <looks around> ... I think my mind would have created something a little more exciting... Ho ho ho… The more of our brethren roaming about the world you strike down, the more you shall become saturated with venomous Malice, born of their bitter vengeance… And when the limit is passed, so then shall HE be reborn into the world of the living. Ho ho ho… The man, the very thought of whom make you shrink in terror….jpg) <laughs and vanishes>.jpg) You think I’m scared!? Don’t make me laugh! I’ve been huntin’ monsters for over ten years. I’ve been carving them up all across the world, pal. Oh my... A monster hunter for generations, are we? I bet you have some stories. Heh heh. Tri me! <kicks dirt> I can handle one or two of those guys with the flick of a finger! You got that, you bodiless freaks! Ha ha ha… Don’t get so excited. You loved your father so much, that now you’re wandering aimlessly in search of him. Stay out of this! Look, I’m just out for revenge for my parents. It’s none of your concern! Your revenge keeps killing our comrades and that is, as they say in the living world, “not cool.” Heh. Strange words for someone who still desperately wants to believe his father is alive somewhere… <clenches fists> You... Now you’re really starting to piss me off! Say another word and I’ll smash your smirking faces in!! Are all of your solutions punching things, boy? It’s worked alright so far! C’mon, I’ll show you! Ha ha ha! Slow down, boy. Worry not, we have a proper opponent for you! To sweep away the accumulation of Malice, you must do battle!.jpg) Music: Brain Hopper .jpg) Fight time once again. This time we’re facing a malevolent spirit with the very unoriginal name of “Evil 4.” We’ll back-up and watch the prequels The Evil, 2 Evil 2 Malice and Evil 3: Manchuria Drift another day. For now, we need to kick this ghost skeleton’s rear end. .jpg) .jpg) And well we did just get that new Fusion. Let’s take it out for a test drive, eh? Much like the Death Emperor, Raging Tiger costs 16 SP to bring forth. There’s a reason why Yuri starts with six times the Sanity of Alice.  .jpg) Yeah, this is pretty much just a stomp match. The most Evil 4 can accomplish is bonking catboy Yuri on the head for all of 1 HP of damage. Hang in there, skeleton. .jpg) A final issue to bring up in the Graveyard: since we’re in some weird spectral... dream realm... thingie, no experience points are earned fighting any enemies here. Same with the Raging Tiger. Items still drop, though. So that’s nice. Music: Graveyard Moon .jpg) Ho ho ho… Well done. Your victory has swept aside the vengeance of our brethren. And it appears that the reactions of that cursed talisman you hold have vanished as well. It’s as though there is some mechanical system in place to track the Malice you’ve accumulated. How convenient for you... Ho ho ho... Heh heh heh… It’s too early to get cocky, boy. This purification is only temporary. What’s that supposed to mean?! Ho ho ho… When you return to your world, killing our compatriots will only result in increased Malice. Then you will come back here to lower it. No matter how many you slaughter, this hell will continue. So you’re saying I should just start breaking monsters’ legs and leaving ‘em alive? Wait... Can he do that...? No... I think that still counts as Malice. Are you sure...? No, this never came up. Ergh... Quiet! He doesn’t need to know that! NO! This too will accumulate Malice and yield the same results! Aww... dang. Ha, ha, ha! Then, in due time, HE will be resurrected… The man you fear more than Death itself! Tee hee hee… Do you intend to keep running forever…? Ho ho ho… How much easier it would be for you if you’d simply come here in death. At the rate he is going, I don’t think he will have much of a choice. Ho ho ho! <turns and starts walking away> Enough! Shut up!.jpg) And that’s the end of our lecture on the Malice mechanic. We’ll dive more into that when we get back to the real world. .jpg) Once again we have control of Yuri. The Masks will just dunk on him again and tell him to leave. So let’s head back to where we began this segment and see if anything changes... Music: ENDS .jpg) …Huh? That voice…? Yuri…! Please, open your eyes! <falls to his knee> Aargh! …My head again!! Stop screaming in my ear! Geez!!.jpg) Wake up! Wake up, please!Music: Sphere -qu- .jpg) I’m awake... I’m AWAKE! STOP YELLING!! GEEZ!!Yuri picks himself up off the ground. .jpg) <looks around> So... he’s back. Are you all right? You were having a nightmare… Mumbling about masks… And “Malice.” You were also meowing like a cat. That must have been quite the nightmare... …None of your business. My head’s really starting to hurt. That’s all. Also there wasn’t a guy in an army uniform in some kind of mask hangin’ around while I was out, was there...? Err... no? <looks around> Good... good. Just askin’... Ya know, you never know what kinda creeps are around... ... Whew… How long was I out? Only two or three minutes since I found you. But you seemed to be in such pain. Nothin’ to worry about. I always have nightmares. Ever since I was a kid. Was that before or after the voices started in your head? Long before. And it’s voice! Singular. Just the one in my head. I... see... …C’mon, let’s go..jpg) I’m sure that whole sequence was nothing to worry about. Now then, it’s been some indeterminate amount of time since we opened the sluice gate. Alice seems like she could sleep through a bomb considering Yuri and his ghost dad having a brawl didn’t stir her in the slightest, so it could be hours later for all we know .jpg) .jpg) Whatever amount of time it was, it’s long enough that the entire stream has dried up from the water being diverted. And wouldn’t you know it, there was a sunken treasure chest in the water. The item in this chest is actually determined by which of the two broken sluice gate handles Yuri acquires and how many tries it took him to tear it off with the Judgement Ring prompts. Since we went to the top gate and it only took the one try, Yuri receives a second Bandanna which we’ll go ahead and equip on our protagonist since Alice already has one and we’re not allowed to double up on Accessories. .jpg) Now that we’ve encountered the Graveyard for the first time a new system has unlocked in Shadow Hearts -- Malice. You see, all these random trash mobs we’re encountering on our journey are none too thrilled about getting murdered by our punch boy. As a result, Malice accumulates after every fight. .jpg) The current amount of Malice is indicated in the menu by the color of Yuri’s talisman. Blue is the bare minimum of Malice, we don’t need to worry about that. Green means Malice has begun to accumulate in problematic amounts. Yellow means Yuri is getting lousy with Malice and should really sort it out. A red Talisman glow means you done hosed up and Fox Face will start appearing. Any random battles can be replaced with a solo fight against Fox Face until the Malice is cleared up. Unlike the first encounter, Fox Face is technically beatable but it’s highly unlikely for a good chunk of the game. Being beaten by Fox Face at maximum Malice results in a Game Over. So we wanna avoid that! In order to reset the current Malice level, Yuri needs to return to the Graveyard via any Save Point (the World Map also works) and return to the Four Masks to go beat up a spirit like Evil 4 earlier. Naturally, the level of Malice will result in stronger enemies to take on. So early in the game it is best to sort out Yuri’s Malice as soon as it gets to the first warning level. .jpg) In addition to Malice, enemies now begin dropping Soul Energy. Soul Energy accumulates according to the monster’s Element. This Soul Energy is tied to Fusion Souls. Once one of these elemental meters is filled, a corresponding grave in the Graveyard will light up and Yuri can do battle with a monster to gain a new Fusion. We may do some grinding at some point just to gain additional Soul Energy to unlock useful new Fusions for our Harmonixer. Edit: There are story gates for Level 2 and 3 versions of elemental Fusions. I felt no need to bring that up just yet because we're still on the first hour of the game. But some people just cannot shut up... .jpg) Back to the task at hand, now that the stream is stopped there is no threat of Yuri getting his coat wet. So we’re free to cross to the west, where we find... .jpg) There’s actually some civilization out here. What do you know? Surely there will be a comfy inn and no further complications. The duo have already been through enough this evening. .jpg) Why the long face? We’ll have food, and a bed to rest on! We’ve both taken a dirt nap tonight and that’s not really my kinda scene..jpg) Yuri begins walking toward the village but is stopped by another flash of light and an ear piercing sound. .jpg) <looks around confused> Pant, pant... It’s... gone...?Yuri stands back up and swats at the air. .jpg) <kicks the dirt> I’m not a drat marionette, you hear me?! Use a post card or something, you drat voice! I don’t care if I don’t have a home address! I’m OVER this! <steps forward> Um, Yuri... That voice..jpg) <turns and glares> Yeah, what about it? I heard it, too… Yeah, yeah... I bet you thi—wait, WHAT!? Really!? You’re not just humoring me, right!? You ACTUALLY heard that stupid voice? A low whisper female voice that sounded very far away with subtitles that implied parts were blocked out even though you can clearly hear it all, it’s just quiet? Huh... Well then... I’ll be damned. Wait, “subtitles”? Yes. A bunch of ellipses and parts of words blanked out with periods? “Pu.gato.y” is clearly just “Purgatory.” I don’t know who it is trying to fool....Yeah. The voice never had “subtitles” for me. That’s weird... How did you make this even weirder? Bah! Don’t matter! You heard the voice and I ain’t a crazy person! There really is some jerkface lady screaming into my head in the middle of the night! <nods> Yes. I don’t think it means us any harm. I didn’t sense anything evil about it. I think… It feels like it just wants to tell us something. ... ... ...Oh yeah? <nods> Let’s head for the village.Alice begins walking toward the village. .jpg) ... <notices Alice walking away> Hey, wait up! Don’t leave me here!.jpg) And that concludes our adventures on the Midnight Plains. Tune in next time as we enter our first proper town of Shadow Hearts despite the fact a voice yelling at our protagonists said there’s some kind of man-eater trap waiting there. I’m sure it’ll be just fine as Shadow Hearts continues!  Video: Episode 5 Highlight Reel (You should watch the Harmonixer monster mash.)   Raging Tiger Render – There was specifically a character design note demanding washboard abs on this catman.  Shadow Hearts includes a vast Library of Monsters and NPCs that have appeared in the game. Monsters get unlocked as soon as they’ve been defeated, for the most part. NPCs are... a bit more sporadic. We’re done with the first two areas of the game, so let’s see what we’ve gotten so far. I’ll be adding this to end of chapters here on out (mostly because I forget it exists until after I’ve recorded a whole area worth of footage for the LP.  )MONSTERS: .jpg) All of the enemies get a fun little blurb of lore. Also their elemental affiliation, which is probably the more important part. I can’t believe Roger Bacon has weaponized vaping. He’s truly an evil man. .jpg) Much like the item descriptions, there are no enemies that are just an average animal or insect. They’ve all been punched up with absurd edginess that wraps around to being kind of hilarious. That’s no mere dung beetle! It’s a dung beetle that feasted on the excrement of those sent to the executioner’s block for only the most heinous of crimes and has been filled with their evil energies! .jpg) That’s a visual I didn’t need, Shadow Hearts... .jpg) I think this is the closest we’ll get to something being relatively normal – Battle Wolves. .jpg) You may notice the number of the enemy jumped up to the hundreds. That’s because all the Graveyard enemies and sidequest involved monsters get shuffled off toward the end of the listings. All other enemies are usually in order of appearance. ****** NPC: .jpg) Dude is looking pretty nice for being 699 years old. .jpg) Turns out Mr. X was an honorary member of Imperial Japan. Makes sense... The Dark Id fucked around with this message at 03:44 on Jun 28, 2018 |
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Jun 25, 2018 19:29
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Just a correction: not all random encounters are Fox Face at max malice. It's like a 80% chance tho, I was farming him in the midgame and had 4-5 fights in a row without him
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Jun 25, 2018 19:48
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Jack-Off Lantern posted:Just a correction: not all random encounters are Fox Face at max malice. It's like a 80% chance tho, I was farming him in the midgame and had 4-5 fights in a row without him Regardless, for a good while yet we want nothing to do with Fox Face because for like half the game he's a one-shot ticket to reloading the game. Best not to tempt fate.
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Jun 25, 2018 19:58
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Because the Sacnoth staff really loved needlessly convoluted hidden mechanics, the item the Evil drops when Yuri purges the malice isn't actually randomised - all enemies have a hidden value seperate to whatever value they contribute to the current malice level. There's a range between 1-100, and it's basically impossible to determine ingame without tedious trial-and-error. It also resets after Yuri purges the malice. Thankfully, they didn't stick any bullshit 1-of-a-kind items behind it - some rare ones - but nothing you wouldn't find later on, and it's completely ignorable as a feature.
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Jun 25, 2018 20:33
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Just for the record, while you could grind to get the first level Fusions you're missing (Fire, Water, Wind and Light), you do have to go past certain points in the plot to unlock the second level and third level fusions.
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Jun 25, 2018 20:36
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I appreciate the transformation mechanic is a buff to your stats instead of setting your stats to whatever the monsters stats are supposed to be. That always sucks
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Jun 25, 2018 20:57
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The Dark ID posted:Might not be a good idea to shift elements if we’re up against something that dunks on the current alignment. Junpei posted:Just for the record, while you could grind to get the first level Fusions you're missing (Fire, Water, Wind and Light), you do have to go past certain points in the plot to unlock the second level and third level fusions. I've only read a handful of threads on the LP forum after a gap of a couple years but you've done this in every single one of them, so I'd like to ask you personally to not mention literally anything that hasn't already been shown in the LP because that's 95% of your posts and it's awful every single time. If you want to say something, please wait until TDI goes past it without mentioning it. The quoted post is a minor example but with your help it can be the only post of its kind! You can do it!
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Jun 25, 2018 21:21
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