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 Star Ocean is a fairly long running series of games, going back as far as 1996. They're typically games that blend fantasy and sci-fi elements, with stories that involve characters from some backwards podunk planet interacting with ones from a Star Trek style federation of planets. Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope is something of a prequel to the entire series, beginning before the Federation comes into existence and exploring a story about humanity's first foray into galactic events. While it is set before the other games in the series, there will still be a number of nods and hints at the content of said games. Funnily enough, I am not really much of a Star Ocean guy. Star Ocean 4 is the only game in the series I've played to completion. I've played a teeny bit of Star Ocean 1, Star Ocean 3, and quite a bit of Star Ocean 5, but nothing else. As such I may be less equipped to notice all the subtle references they may have in this game. I know much of the obvious by googling it, but I may miss a thing or two. I should note that this game was released a few months after Infinite Undiscovery, with Undiscovery coming out in September 2008 and this one coming out in February 2009. It is likely that the games spent time being developed concurrently. Wait, why does that matter? What the gently caress is Infinite Undiscovery? Infinite Undiscovery is the last game I LP'd on this forum, for starters. It was made by tri-Ace, which of course made Star Ocean 4. It was not a great game, and showed telltale signs of a lacking budget. I don't know for sure, but it's a solid guess that money that may have otherwise gone to Infinite Undiscovery may have made it's way to the team that made Star Ocean 4, especially since Star Ocean is tri-Ace's biggest title and carried the biggest chances of success. While Infinite Undiscovery was hoped to break ground in the industry, it would have been an unknown factor and a potentially risky investment. But the question is, did it pay off? Well, I'd say Star Ocean 4 was probably the better performing game, but in terms of quality...I personally preferred Infinite Undiscovery. And if you've read my LP of that, you know what that says. Or perhaps you don't think much of my opinion, and that's fine. Anyway, just remember  no spoilers. Although I'll permit anyone to talk about anything from other Star Ocean games that WON'T spoil this one.Table of Contents Update 1 - Launching into the Star Ocean Update 2 - Troopers vs Bugs Update 3 - An Alliance of Elves and Men Update 4 - The Calnus' Continuing Mission Update 5 - tri-Ace likes little girls, they make them feel so good Update 6 - Dragon Suicide Bomber Update 7 - Medieval Disease Control Update 8 - Rock Breaks, Lizards Die Update 9 - Recruiting an Orphan Update 10 - The Mothership Update 11 - Domo Arigato, Mr Roboto Update 12 - Godslaying Update 13 - The Black Hole of Cringe Update 14 - We are the UFO Update 15 - Ni Hao Nyan Update 16 - Galaxy-Brain Edge Update 17 - Crawling in Edge's Skin Update 18 - Star Ocean 1 was a pretty cool game, right guys? Update 19 - 'Memberberry Update 20 - Nomadic Bunnylords Update 21 - When a Stupid Man Does Nothing Update 22 - Saint Maverick Did Nothing Wrong Update 23 - Bunnyhop Across the Desert Update 24 - Eleyna the Holy Cow Update 25 - Close Shut the Jaws of Oblivion Update 26 - Farewell to Roaka Scotia Update 26.5 - Cat Cringe Festival Update 27 - The Phantom Pains Update 28 - The Most Uncomfortable Tsundere Update 29 - These Grigori are really bugging me Update 30 - Orders for Dummies Update 30.5 - Rehashing Old Cringe Update 31 - The Nature of the Universe Update 32 - Kokablyat Update 33 - And so we shall go to war Update 34 - Big Goddamn Hero Update 35 - The Calnus Crew's Big Vacay Update 36 - Through Gray Fields and Pallet Swaps Update 37 - The Very Quintessence of Stupidity Update 38 - The End, Bad Moral Update 39 - Gabe Celeste and the Cave of the Seven Snores Update 40 - The Wandering Tedium Addendum - Random Stuff LJN92 fucked around with this message at 22:34 on May 26, 2023 |
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Mar 3, 2023 21:49
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Update 1 - Launching into the Star Ocean  Now Playing - Cosmic Voyagers Like all tri-Ace games, it prompts us to pick a difficulty. Unlike Infinite Undiscovery, they're all space themed. We're going with Galaxy, since you'd have to beat the game to unlock anything higher, and I couldn't be assed playing on those anyway.  Click here for the game's first cutscene.  We begin with a narration of the Earth's relevant history building up to the start of the game. Yes, OUR Earth, with the USA and Russia and all that, just in the Star Ocean universe. There's a pre-game intro that details much of the same stuff, but with no narration and a few extra scenes. The narration is told by our main character, but we have yet to see his face.  ???: "Weapons of mass destruction, deployed with complete impunity, razed the land in the blink of an eye."    ???: "However..."  ???: "Those who survived the conflict lived a confined existence, trapped in underground cities.        Why would that need to be a secret? Are there some batshit terrorists left that would sabotage the only hope of space travel?   And there's our protagonist: Edge Maverick. No, I'm not kidding. That's his name. He doesn't look all that edgy, but time will tell if he's that and/or a maverick.  Edge cracks his neck and prepares to leave.   And this is Reimi Saionji. You can see she is wearing a girl.jpg uniform, designating her as a girl in a military setting. She has these weird slat/dongles that function as a pointless skirt, and you can even see her boots have high heels. You know, there was a girl.jpg in Infinite Undiscovery. Her name was Faina, and she was voiced by Laura Bailey.  Well whaddaya know?   "How long do you think we've known each other? I know all your hiding places, Edge." "Yeah, you've been hangin' on to me for as long as I can remember."  "As long as you're so quick to flare up like that, I guess."   "Anyway, there's still some time left until we take off. I'm gonna work out a few kinks in the battle simulator." "Yeah, well...I thought I was gonna be able to meet a real hero. I might have gone if Commander Kenny was there, but Shimada's pontificating would just put me to sleep." "That's USTA Deputy Director Shimada to you!"   Reimi walks out.  Now Playing - Blood on the Keys   This is our battle tutorial. I'm going to summarize it my own way, especially as doing the whole simulator can take a bit of time. The battle system in this game is mostly the same as the one from Star Ocean 3, although I didn't exactly play that one too much. We have free movement and can attack as we please, but we're in a fixed battle area. This is distinct from Infinite Undiscovery, where you could just walk around as you pleased within set world spaces, even when fighting enemies. Another way this game is distinct from Undiscovery is that blocking is not achieved by the press of a button, but instead by random chance based on stats and other factors, more like a turn based game.  This game also has the Rush Gauge, which when filled allows you to activate Rush Mode at the press of the button. This heightens the character's stats and makes them nearly invulnerable to being staggered by enemy attacks. It builds up with every hit you land and take in battle, and can also be charged by holding down the Jump button. This also applies to any enemy you face, so you can end up causing your opponent to get more powerful if you can't kill them quickly enough. This is basically guaranteed to happen every few seconds in boss fights. Star Ocean 3 had "Fury" but this acted as a limiter on your ability to act rather than giving you a super mode.  We have our typical special attacks which see you perform more hits and sometimes have special effects and what have you. The game makes a big deal of "Chain Combos" where you perform regular attacks and then link a special art, but I honestly thought that was pretty typical for these kinds of games.  They also combine the two prior features into "Rush Combos", allowing you to perform multiple special arts in a row with your whole party, basically freezing the battle and letting you wail on an opponent. You do this by pressing the Rush Mode button and the Chain Art button at once. With a full Rush Gauge, of course.  Incidentally, the tutorial spawns a holographic Edge whenever it needs to teach you party member moves.  "Blindsides" are a feature that lets you avoid enemy attacks and creates an opportunity to cause them some pain. Basically, you wait until the enemy is about to attack while holding the Jump button, then move the left stick, causing your character to instantly run behind the enemy. While they have the !? mark on their head, every hit will be a critical one. The window to perform a Blinside is so stupidly wide you can abuse them to your heart's content. Although I should warn that holding down the Jump button indefinitely will stun your characters, to avoid them constantly charging for Rush Mode I guess. However, some enemies will be immune to Blindsides outside of a very narrow frame. If you don't get the timing right for them, they'll counterattack and critical you. You can also learn how to do a "Double Blindside" later on, allowing you to avoid being countered. Also, Blindsiding at "long range" basically just has you dodge and doesn't give you the opportunity to crit them.  The "Bonus Board" lets you earn better rewards in battles for accomplishing certain feats. The Blue tiles increase EXP gain by 10%, earned by finishing an enemy with a critical hit. Yellow tiles give 10% more money, earned by killing multiple enemies with one attack. Red (the game calls them that, I think they're pink) tiles replenish 1% of your max HP and MP upon victory, and are earned by killing enemies with skills and "symbology" (magic) only. Green tiles increase your Party SP gain (SP being a currency that can be spent on special skills, and you get a pool for each character and one for the whole party), and are earned by getting ambushed by enemies. Yeah, they reward you for getting ambushed. Getting a bunch of the same tile bunched together helps because every time the enemy lands a critical hit, you lose bonus board tiles. If some are bunched together, you only lose half, but if they're all jumbled and of different types like above, you'll lose them all at once. Given how easy it is to abuse Blinsides, it is very easy to stack EXP boosts and power level. And since Blindsides make battles way easier, you'll probably be abusing them all the time.  This is an odd one to me. You can only have four stat boosts active at any given time, and any new ones bump off the oldest one you have. Some stat boosts can be stacked, others can't, and when they can't the new one will replace the old one. Anyway, that's about it for the parts of the tutorial that I wanted to mention. Once you end the tutorial, you are immediately sent into a cutscene. Click here to see who's running this clown show.   These NPCs deliver unsubtitled lines about the spaceships preparing for launch.     The arrival of the two prior characters causes the sitting NPCs to stand up.    "Moonbase Commander Stephen D. Kenny, reporting from Earth, sir."We can presume this is the "real hero" that Edge mentioned earlier. Anyone that's played enough Star Ocean will know that there are a bunch of characters with the last name "Kenny". It started with some blokes in Star Ocean 1, but this guy is, in universe, the first Kenny to exist.   "It hardly bodes well for the commander of such an important mission to miss his own departure ceremony." "My apologies, Deputy Director Shimada."That makes fatso here the Shimada mentioned earlier. Someone Edgey boy is not fond of.  It is clear neither Kenny nor Shimada are fond of one another either. "...Very well. I leave the rest to you." "In any case, the guests seemed pleased. It made for a fine dawn to the age of space exploration!"Shimada bellows with mocking laughter as he leaves, which is repeated by his three stooges, trailing behind him.   "The presence of the commander would've just been a distraction. I'm sure that was his concern."Implying that Shimada deliberately kept Kenny away? "It doesn't matter. The ceremony is just a formality, anyway. We'll celebrate their departure from here." Oddly specific emphasis.  Now Playing - A Place for Reflection With that cutscene over, we jump back to the star of the show, and can now explore the vessel we're aboard. It's called the Calnus. Again, the name Calnus is used a lot in Star Ocean, notably in the first game. But this is chronologically the first Calnus to exist.  Downstairs, we find fellow crewmembers to talk to. You may notice everyone seems to be wearing a different outfit than Edge. Mr. Maverick must of course stand out from his peers as the protagonist.  In some conversations our characters will have something to say. Not that noteworthy except that the animu portraits don't have to be the ones used.  You can have the "modern" look on that not only changes the UI but uses a more realistic (if only slightly) portrait for their dialogue. I'll stick with the animu stuff  Sometimes, interacting with objects will get us little lore entries in the in game encyclopedia. They're not overly important to have, but some can be interesting. Incidentally, Edge has this to say after looking at it:  Our protagonist is an awful shot. Golly. I'm not gonna go over all the entries, but there's something interesting in Edge's: 'His SRF spacesuit is sleeveless because he apparently volunteered to test a new, heavily armored prototype; he removes its special arm guard for indoor work to make it easier to move around.' Which means they actually bothered explaining why he doesn't wear a regulation uniform. More effort than I expected, honestly. Unforunately, there's no good explanation for Reimi's girl.jpg outfit.  Speaking to Reimi on the bridge prompts us to start the next sequence. There's really nothing else to do now anyway. Click here to see the Calnus launch into space, among other things.  We are launched into a cutscene, with Edge tapping away at a console.   Oh god, it's terrifying! Edge jumps back in fright. Now Playing - Good Morning, Miss Vineyard   And here's another Star Ocean mainstay: Welch. There is a Welch in every game, as far as I know. They're not physically related, at least I don't think so, but they're all quirky inventor girls who support the protagonists with item crafting. Yes, there will be item crafting, we'll get to that later. Usually, Welch is a blond, and found on the backwards podunk planets, but here she's purple/pink and is an Earthling. I can say with some certainty you will all come to loathe Welch in due time. Perhaps you even loathe her already. EDIT: I have been informed Welch was only added to some of the earlier games via remake, with her first appearance being Star Ocean 3.  "As you can see, I'm a bashful little girl. I'll be the one supporting you from Earth, okay? This'll be fun! Looking forward to working with ya! Cheers!" "No, I, uh..." Yes, she makes poking gestures at Edge through the screen. "Hey, hold up a sec!...Ugh, man, I heard each ship would be getting support from Earth, but I never imagined anything like this..." "Ha-haah, didn't think your support would be so cute, did you? Anyway, from here on out, I got your back man-straight to the fiery depths of hell!" "Uh...that's really not the kind of thing I want to be hearing before takeoff?" "Fortunately, the unmanned exploration craft didn't report aything dangerous out there, like "giant outer space bugs" or whatever." "...Is this the kind of "support" we're to expect, ma'am?" ""Ma'am"? What am I, your mother? We're gonna be together for a while, kid, so let's dispense with the formalities. Ah-looks like you got another call. Oh well, enough lovers' patter for now. Talk to you later!"Rather disturbing, calling someone "kid" then using "lovers' patter" in the next breath. It's also strange because Welch is 18 and Edge is 20.  We immediately cut from Welch to this guy, who decided that since his hair was red he would make red his entire life.  Edge closes the call without responding. It is at this time that you can hear Welch annoying some other member of the crew in the background, carrying on for a while in the scene to come.  "This channel is not for communication with the captain of the Calnus, sir. Or is there something a common crew member can do you?"Spoken with a mix of a formal and snide tone.   "Pretending to be all dutiful doesn't suit you, Edge. You skipped the departure ceremony, didn't you?" "Who cares? It's got nothing to do with you." "Reimi was upset. You really can be a pain sometimes, you know that?" "...You done?" "We're not actually fighting. And would you quit with the theatrics, already? It's really irritating." "Yeah, yeah. Hey, come on, Edge...Does it really bug you that much that I made captain?" "...Actually, no, it doesn't. In fact, I think it's only natural you were promoted. It's just...You're getting so far ahead of me..." "...You really haven't changed at all. Still the same kid you were back in school and at the Academy." "I'm not as far ahead as you might think. There's no need for you to rush yourself." "Goodbye." "Wait a second!"Edge does indeed wait a second. "Edge, you realize just how important our duties are with the SRF, don't you?" Now Playing - Cosmic Voyagers (Peace & Love Mix) "Everyone shares the same responsibility, captain or not. Look, we're all in the same boat here. I'm just as nervous as you are." "Captain Almedio, nervous? What, we expecting meteor showers tomorrow?" "This isn't a joke. Look, Edge...how should I put this. Let's both give it our all, huh?" "...Yeah. Let's." "Great! Well, that's all I got for now. Looks like it's almost time. Bon voyage!" "...Oh, well. I suppose I can't stay mad forever. All right, then. Let's get this show on the road!"   This dude is our captain. SRF captains seem to be either barely out of their teens or dudes with awful facial hair.  "SRF-003 Calnus, initiate launch procedures!"Everyone: "Roger!" They all get to work on their consoles. We then cut back to Kenny and his aide, whose name is Heinz.  "Indeed it is. We've charged these children with the future of our species..." Random NPC Lady: "001 Aquila, launch preparations complete! 002 Balena to follow!" We then cut back to the bridge of the Calnus.  We get a shot of more console action before AGAIN cutting to Kenny.  "Brave pioneers, charged with the destiny of mankind, about to depart for space unknown...I pray for the success of your journey." And then we cut to the ships.    "002 Balena, preparing to launch!"A brief pause as Edge hovers his hand over the launch controls. "002 Balena, launch confirmed!" "SRF-003 Calnus...engage!"    The ships briefly join in formation before all rocketing off.  Off over the moonbase.  Kenny looks on approvingly.   Then we cut inside hyperspace/the warp/whatever.   Bawles: "Gravity balance, ship functions, all normal." The first speaker is called Van, the second is the bald man behind him. "Prepare for warp-out."  "You really are just a big kid, Edge."  "...Yeah, just ignore me, why don't you..." And then we cut to this...rock, cutting its way through the warp.  Bawles: "There's a...meteor-like object crossing our planned trajectory! But from this dsitance I can't confirm any gravity wave interference..." "...Meteor...? That's technically incorrect, because something is only called a meteor when entering Earth's atmosphere."Bawles: "Um, okay, sir."  The rock goes under the Calnus and exits the warp. Bawles: "The unidentified object has passed us. I'm detecting some minor fluctuations in the gravitational field."  "Yeah..." "Also, you totally jinxed us by mentioning meteors to Crowe." "Jinxing isn't real, moron! And it's not even a real meteor!"Van: "Calnus, commencing warp-out." Some sounds blare on the Calnus. Van: "10 seconds to warp-out. 9, 8, 7, 6..." Suddenly, the ship shakes.  Now Playing - Arrhythmia "What's going on!? Status report!"Bawles: "There's a fluctuation inside our wormhole, sir...! An abnormal gravity wave is spreading fast! It's producing an error in our subspace flight tracer!" "...Too late! We can't avoid it!" "What!?"Van: "Captain! Interference from the gravity wave is spreading throughout the wormhole! Our planned warp-out point has...disappeared!? We're gonna lose our navigational coordinates!" "drat! What about the other four ships!?"Bawles: "No idea, sir! I'm not detecting them in subspace!" "Input a new coordinate axis! We've got to initiate an emergency warp-out!" "You take the rest!"...so Reimi has to do 1, 2, 4, 6, 7 and 8? And possibly more? Van: "Coordinate axis input complete!" Bawles: "Warp-out preparations complete!" "Edge!" "Everything's ready! Captain!" "Emergency warp-out! All hands, brace for impact!"  Everyone screams as the Calnus rocks and shakes.  The Calnus exits the warp above a purple-hewn planet.  The Calnus crashlands on the planet, breaking off a wing in the process. I guess the purple was just the upper atmosphere. I would go on, but this update is pretty hefty as is. Would have liked to have made it shorter, but I didn't have many good places to cap it off. So many drat cutscenes... Join me next time, where we finally play the game for real. LJN92 fucked around with this message at 22:19 on Mar 4, 2023 |
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Mar 3, 2023 21:49
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Ah, another game I played more of than it probably deserved. Though I have it on PS3, not 360.LJN92 posted:Given how easy it is to abuse Blinsides, it is very easy to stack EXP boosts and power level. And since Blindsides make battles way easier, you'll probably be abusing them all the time. This is true but I still stopped using them about a third of the way into the game because it was easier to just hit things than take the time to set the blindside up.
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Mar 3, 2023 22:45
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Polsy posted:Ah, another game I played more of than it probably deserved. Though I have it on PS3, not 360. This is still sitting on my shelf. I (an idiot) bought it when it came out, sold it when I got about halfway in, forgot about it for what feels like ages, then (remember: I am an idiot) re-bought it used for, like $6. I don't think I even touched the thing since I picked it up again. I had the thought of attempting to tackle the entire Star Ocean series, but this and Integrity & Faithlessness always made me balk at doing it.
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Mar 3, 2023 22:49
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I've had a horrible last few days, I briefly forgot which one was The Last Hope, thinking maybe it was the SO1 PSP remake or something. Then I saw the rest of the OP. RIP you. Also Welch didn't exist in the first 2 until the PSP remakes. And she wasn't vile in 3 either, just very Anime at times. Here, she's horrible. I feel that we're going to run out of synonyms for horrible before the end of the
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Mar 4, 2023 01:13
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Are our protagonists Tidus and Yuna?
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Mar 4, 2023 03:04
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LJN92 posted:
I remember Yahtzee and a couple other people did a mini MST thing on this game back in the day, and this line is delivered with such fury and comes out of nowhere that they mocked it to all hell just because of how dumb it is. I can't really take someone seriously who the first you see of her is a literal rear end shot. Also definitely didn't get into this one because of what a colossal stupid clusterfuck Star Ocean 3 turned out to be, from the awful gameplay to that really stupid plot twist. And after watching some stuff of this game up on Youtube after disappointed by it's predecessor, I definitely know I dodged a bullet. loving names like Edge Maverick. And drat, these character models haven't aged well. For being PS3/Xbox level fare, they're so goddamn uncanny valley in how they all only have this one note expression on their faces at all times. Shitenshi fucked around with this message at 07:06 on Mar 4, 2023 |
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Mar 4, 2023 04:45
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I remember quite a lot about this game, most of which being awful. Good luck.
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Mar 4, 2023 04:48
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Man, the US Tennis Association got seriously hardcore in the future.
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Mar 4, 2023 05:45
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Edge Maverick... is not a good name. For anybody, but especially a bog-standard JRPG protagonist. Debatable if it's worse than Fayt Leingod, though.
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Mar 4, 2023 05:55
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I just noticed and have to ask, what is with these trenchcoat rear end military uniforms? It seems so anime and video gamey, I don't think I've ever seen any real life armed forces use them. And I mean, I know this game is just a big old anime cliche, but loving still. It's like announcing that your game is gonna suck even before it comes out. Though not as much as having a name like Edge Maverick.
Shitenshi fucked around with this message at 07:13 on Mar 4, 2023 |
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Mar 4, 2023 07:11
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I... don't remember a Welch being in my playthrough of First Departure R, but this series is notorious for having mutually exclusive and esoteric character recruitment requirements. Also for several games in the series completely forgetting they're sci-fi games for 3/4ths of their runtime; I suppose we'll see if that's the case here. We did just crash-land on a presumably uncharted planet, after all. All I know about this game is EDGE MAVERICK and like one or two individual scenes from... some point in the game, though.
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Mar 4, 2023 12:37
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Hey OP, I hate you a bit for the thread title, just so you know. It's going to take weeks to get that drat song out of my head...
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Mar 4, 2023 13:48
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So this is essentially Thanks, I Hate It: The Game? Because oh lord, going by the first update, it doesn't look like there's a single redeemable feature to it. Everything is just awful. Bookmarked.
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Mar 4, 2023 14:08
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FeyerbrandX posted:RIP you. Also Welch didn't exist in the first 2 until the PSP remakes. Noted, edited that in. Torrannor posted:Are our protagonists Tidus and Yuna? I can see Tidus in Edge, but not Yuna in Reimi. inscrutable horse posted:So this is essentially Thanks, I Hate It: The Game? Because oh lord, going by the first update, it doesn't look like there's a single redeemable feature to it. Everything is just awful. Yeah, that's basically my MO on this website. I'm not sure there'll never be anything anybody likes, but I can assure you things are gonna get worse.
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Mar 4, 2023 22:25
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Well, it's not the worst Star Ocean game(that would be 5), but it's not great either. Fun fact: in the original English release of this game, you could only use the "Modern" portraits and UI. I hated it. Looking forward to the rest of the LP, though. Hasn't been terribly long since I played this, but I still managed to forget a bunch.
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Mar 4, 2023 23:29
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LJN92 posted:Yeah, that's basically my MO on this website. will we find an RPG so heinous even you wont LP it youre pretty high on that scale already with this one
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Mar 4, 2023 23:54
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I look forward to this because I always hear every Star Ocean fan insisting that Star Ocean IV is the worst one. I know the core reason why they hate it, too, but I'm pretty sure that would be spoilerposting at this early stage, so I'm just gonna hang in there to see what happens.
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Mar 5, 2023 00:46
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Rigged Death Trap posted:will we find an RPG so heinous even you wont LP it I played Ephemeral Fantasia, I think I'm even higher than this game already. I think I'd have to really go dumpster diving to find something worse than Ephemeral Fantasia. Of course the other half of my MO is LPing games I played as a kid/teenager, so I don't think I'd really want to go hunting for trashy fangames or what have you just for material. I also generally go for games I consider entertainingly bad. People mentioned Star Ocean 5: Integrity and Faithlessness already, which I've played, and considered LPing. But I consider it more boring bad than entertaining bad.
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Mar 5, 2023 00:56
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Edge loving Maverick lmao obviouslyevil.jpg
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Mar 5, 2023 03:27
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PurpleXVI posted:but I'm pretty sure that would be spoilerposting at this early stage, so I'm just gonna hang in there to see what happens. I know what you're referring to specifically but... wait no, there's more than one specific thing that is the worst thing of the game. It can't be narrowed down, it's just everything Especially immediately coming after SO3's twist, "gently caress it, we made anything going forward in the series moot... hey what's Star Trek Doing lately? Well the last thing they did was Enterprise, and that seemed to be cool from what we saw of the first one or two episodes I'm sure everyone loves that show..." The series should have ended with SO3.
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Mar 5, 2023 04:54
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LJN92 posted:I played Ephemeral Fantasia, I think I'm even higher than this game already. I think I'd have to really go dumpster diving to find something worse than Ephemeral Fantasia. "Not as bad as Ephemeral Fantasia" is damning with extremely faint praise. Is this game really that bad? No spoilers, obviously, I can wait for the trainwreck to get started in earnest. Sum Gai fucked around with this message at 05:44 on Mar 5, 2023 |
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Mar 5, 2023 05:37
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Update 2 - Troopers vs Bugs Last time, the Calnus crash landed on an alien world. Click here to find out what happened after the crash.  Edge comes to first, with the ship's electronics sparking from the damage.  Edge taps on the keys. Which you'd think would be dangerous, given all the sparking electricity.  Whatever he tapped in, the previously blackened windows now show the outside world.  We get some shots of the Calnus' wreck. The ship's been hosed up, as expected.  We then get a brief controllable segment. We can check on the other members of the crew, but they're all out for the count. Clicking on Reimi is the only way to proceed.  "Reimi! Wake up! Yeah, I'm pretty sure the SRF First Aid Manual recommended yelling at and shaking unconscious people..." "Oh good, you're awake. Now I'll go yell at and shake everyone else..."A brief cut ensues.  "At least no one's critically wounded. Let's be grateful for small mercies."  "However, based on my analysis of the data...I can say with confidence that we've arrived on planet Aeos."Bawles: "All right, we made it after all!" Van: "Yeah!" "...Please, continue." "We're not the only ones who crash landed, sir. I've detected other ships in the vicinity that probably encountered the warp anomaly."   "First, let's join the Balena and Dentdelion crews. Once we're back in operating condition, we'll request further instructions from USTA headquarters. Any questions?"Van: "Captain, what do you think happened to the Aquila?" "It appears the Aquila attempted an emergency warp-out as well, but...I'm afraid that's the only information we currently have." "Well, there's your answer on the Aquila. It concerns me, but there's nothing we can do right now. We have to concentrate on the task in front of us. The repair crew should prioritize subspace communication functions. We can't do anything without comms. I need those repairs completed double-time, understood?"Bawles: "Yes, sir." "Mr. Maverick." "Sir." "I'd like you to scout the area around the ship and make sure we're safe here." We then cut outside. Now Playing - Silk Road in the Sky I  "Well, we'd better get this show on the road!"We get to move around again. This time, we're basically just talking to people in the immediate vicinity of the Calnus. Some have items to offer, but most have banal comments to make.  The only way out of the area is blocked by this hunk of junk.  "What's this, some kind of weird pod?" "Oh cool, blackberries! I'm sure nothing could go wrong eating these."For those that don't know, berries are Star Ocean's standard healing items. Blueberries for HP, Blackberries for MP. You can find these on every planet in the galaxy. Anyway, to proceed we must talk to all the nearby NPCs, then Reimi. Click here for a re-enactment of Starship Troopers.  That's Edge talking to her.  "Edge...do you think Crowe is okay?" "...I do. He's not the type to let something like this do him in." "Yeah, you're right...I'm sure he's fine." "Anyway, how are things looking out here?" "It's just like the exploration craft reported.   "The Jurassic? Think we'll run into any dinosaurs?" "Come on! The exploration report didn't say anything about any large-scale life forms." "Oh look, a large-scale lifeform..." Now Playing - Arrhythmia   "Some kind of...bug!? Like a giant outer space bug..." "...loving Welch, she jinxed us!"     The bug turns and advances on the firing soldiers.  It slaughters them offscreen, as Edge and Reimi look on in horror. "No...!" "Railguns have no effect!?" Another bug creature is seen slaughtering troopers further away.  One of the high-frequency cutting blades is flung away. Golly, what a thing to focus on...  The first bug returns to attack Edge and Reimi.  Both of them get clear, but in different directions.  Edge opens fire to distract them from Reimi. Sure would have sucked for her if Edge didn't overcome his Stormtrooper syndrome from training.  "B-but..." "I'll be fine! Run!"     The game goes into a sudden slo-mo as Edge dodge rolls his way to the blade.   Second game in a row with glowing glyphs that give people power. Only this time the protagonist has one.  "Good. So they're not totally invincible...And that means...I can do this."Now Playing - Blood on the Keys The bugs restart their advance on Edge.    Here we are in our first proper fight.  And that's how much damage you can do blindsiding the little fuckers.  I kill both of them abusing blindsides, earning myself 20% more exp in the process. Didn't even take a scratch. Course, it's the first fight outside the tutorial.  Now Playing - Golden Goal Naturally we have a victory screen detailing what we got, as well as whoever landed the killing blow saying something like "Yeah, we won!" or "Nice job!" or whatever.  We get a brief free segment. We can talk to nearby NPCs, some are dead, some are wounded, none have anything useful to offer. To proceed, we return to the flight deck of the Calnus. Click here to see how everyone reacts to the onset of bugs.  As the cutscene begins, you can hear Captain Grafton arguing with someone, claiming they're in no condition to explore the planet. And apparently Reimi is mad.  "...I said not to do anything stupid. I'm not letting you off for this..." "Okay, next time I'll just run and let the bugs eat the wounded..." "We never heard about any dangerous life forms here!" Ah, the obviously corrupt and sinister Shimada. "These are part of the SRF's duties as well, are they not?" "At this point, we have no choice but to request aid from the military and strengthen our-" "Don't be ridiculous! Do you think I'd let those blockheads meddle in this?" Edge evidentally doesn't say this loud enough to interrupt. "Edge..." "What we need here are results. Danger, sacrifice-it's all part of the process. In any case, I don't have time to sit here listening to your petty complaints."Edge clenches his fist and advances.  Reimi stops him.   ""Them"...you don't mean the-!?" "You'll be receiving their assistance shortly. Until then, I expect you to follow standard SRF operating procedure. Over and out."Shimada disconnects the call. ""Them"? Who's "them"?" "Hmm..." "I'll explain everything in due time. For now...Well done, Mr. Maverick." "Thank you, sir...It was just luck. May I ask if we've been able to contact the other ships yet?" "I'm sorry to say the Aquila remains a question mark." "Sir, what about the Eremia? We know it's here on Aeos."   "The possibility certainly exists, but let's not jump to conclusions yet. First, we must discover what became of the Eremia. Mr. Maverick. I'd like you to search for the Eremia." "Me...sir?" "It will undoubtedly be dangerous, but at this point..." (I'm sure if I give him a vague concerned look, he'll know to refuse-) "Edge Maverick, reporting for reconnaissance duty." We then cut to the exit corridor of the Calnus.  "And now you say you're going out there alone?" "I can't just leave our people alone out there." "I have to get going, Reimi." "Yeah, let's." "Yeah."  "Are you kidding!? You were just going on about how dangerous it is!" "And that's why I'm coming. To make sure you don't do anything else stupid." "What!? Th-that...has been known...to happen..." "I said I wasn't letting you off, remember?" "...so you're going to punish me with your company?" "Yes....hey!"   Golly, I wonder why they chose to mount her bow there? "Well, I guess you were at the top of your archery class."Yeah, Reimi's a master archer. As per her entry in the big book of lore, she has mastered Western and Eastern archery styles. Hmm. She's a girl with a bow...and she's kind a tsundere with all that being mad over Edge putting his life in danger, but really just being concerned...why does that...  Oh please god no Jokes aside, I don't recall Reimi being anywhere near Aya's level of gigatsundere. And for those that don't understand, this is a character from Infinite Undiscovery, widely loathed by the thread.  "That's more like it."The two of them open the door to the ship.  "Let's go!"And once again we are free to move.   It's a bit hard to see due to how zoomed out I am, but Reimi interacts with a glowing green patch to harvest us items. Star Ocean 4 is full of resource patches where you can get items. They are always harvested by characters with the relevant skill, but this just involves a brief animation. Other resource types exist, and will be harvest by characters we have yet to acquire. Every harvest type has a relevant skill, obviously owned by the character that harvests from them, and improving that skill with SP gets you better stuff.  You also earn EXP and SP just from using the harvest points. It's not much, but it's something.  Now Playing - Eureka At this point in the story, the Item Creation interface has unlocked, previously being broken. We can't really do anything with it right now due to a lack of useful items. This is how Welch here "supports" us. By facilitating item crafting. It means you have to listen to her every time you do it. Yay. Anyway, when you want to move on, just leave through the area previously blocked by debris. Click here to be informed of Reimi's usefulness.    Reimi fires before Edge can reach the insect.    Reimi giggles in affirmation, they both walk on, and the scene ends. I guess the game just wanted to ram home how medieval-style weapons of any origin can pierce these bug's hides. Now we can finally move around in a traditional RPG-dungeon setting, encountering enemies and fighting battles.  Aside from the Adephaga bugs, we have these Killer Wasps. Flying enemies, hard to hit normally, but Edge can perform upwards attacks. Naturally they can poison you.  And here is Adephaga Drus...literally just stronger Adephaga. Usually, a game waits a dungeon to introduce pallet swaps.  "Hey Edge, don't you think the camera angles in this game can be a bit weird?" "What do you mean?" Anyway, getting "ambushed" in this game isn't the same as being back attacked or surprised or what have you, like in other titles. Ambushes are where nearby enemies on the map join a battle after defeating the first batch. I think you might need to overworld sprites chasing you to make this happen. There is, of course, such a thing as being "surprised" in this game, which typically involves the enemy sprite touching yours from behind. All it does is put your dudes in weird positions, I barely even notice the difference. You can of course do it to the enemy, and it will start off with them not having you directly targeted. I've never found it particularly useful myself. It will, however, reduce the number of enemies you have to fight in a given encounter.  Now Playing - Memories in the Earth Eventually you'll have to enter this "Urd Falls Cave".  "And those designs on the sides look like some sort of lettering. Whatever it is, it's definitely artificial."  The caves are also home to the uncreatively named Giant Bats. They have equally uncreative attacks like sucking your blood and sonic waves.  I should probably mention we can swap to our other characters, something notably absent from Infinite Undiscovery. They all have their own blindside manoeuvrers, with Reimi flipping around in the air. But all it does is get her behind the enemy to crit like usual.  And I'll also mention the BEAT system since it's relevant now. It's basically like a second means of leveling up, where your characters gain ranks in it that translate to stat boosts. There's three BEATs you can assign to your characters, either BEAT:B, BEAT:S or BEAT:N. B increases defensive parameters and aids Rush Mode, S improves offense and blindsides, and N gives you even bonuses to all parameters. However, you can't earn ranks in BEAT:N. As for what BEAT stands for, depends on where you get your info. According to the Wiki, it means "Battle Enhancement Attribute Type", but some say in Japanese it was "Battle Exalted Action Type". Not actually sure myself, because when I tried to confirm it, all I could find was an Ebay page calling it that.  These slime creatures called Gerel predictably have the ability to split into more enemies.  Inside this cave, you'll also find holes in the wall that have items. Check them more than once, however, and they'll release a damaging gas. Seeds are Star Ocean's version of stat boosting items.  Exiting the cave, we encounter Polyphaga, even bigger and beefier enemies than before. Nothing we can't handle, of course.  That green, shiny thingy is one of those convenient full healing spots many RPGs have. As most people know, that indicates something nasty coming up. And as I've stuffed enough content into one update, I think I'll have to end it here. Join me next time, when we find out who "they" are and why the Eremia exploded. LJN92 fucked around with this message at 21:37 on Mar 6, 2023 |
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Mar 5, 2023 22:23
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I am probably just a buzzkill, but I totally hate it when someone explores an alien world and doesn't wear a helmet or rebreather of some kind.
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Mar 6, 2023 00:07
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PurpleXVI posted:I am probably just a buzzkill, but I totally hate it when someone explores an alien world and doesn't wear a helmet or rebreather of some kind. One of the things I actually liked how Mass Effect applied it. Yes, you had full-head helmets, and yes, you could turn them off for the visuals.
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Mar 6, 2023 03:02
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PurpleXVI posted:I am probably just a buzzkill, but I totally hate it when someone explores an alien world and doesn't wear a helmet or rebreather of some kind. Actually, you do have a point. Not every planet has a breathable atmosphere, so better safe than sorry, I think.
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Mar 6, 2023 03:03
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PurpleXVI posted:I am probably just a buzzkill, but I totally hate it when someone explores an alien world and doesn't wear a helmet or rebreather of some kind. Edge Maverick is too stupid to know he can't breathe.
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Mar 6, 2023 03:05
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NVTrainee posted:Actually, you do have a point. Not every planet has a breathable atmosphere, so better safe than sorry, I think. It's not just a matter of breathable atmosphere, this place has a biosphere. Do you want your lungs colonized by alien spores that human medicine don't know how to deal with? Or maybe some of the local pollen triggers a fatal allergic reaction in humans, or hell, since this place is in the "Jurassic Era," if my memory serves, the Earth atmosphere back then had a ton more oxygen in it. Maybe not enough to be toxic, but potentially enough to make you feel loopy, slightly high, a little bit drunk. And hell, even if all of that isn't an issue... what if you trip and fall and smash your dumb face open? Or an alien pineapple falls on your head? It's a matter of workplace safety, people! Space OSHA will have your rear end if you forget your PPE!
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Mar 6, 2023 03:50
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PurpleXVI posted:It's not just a matter of breathable atmosphere, this place has a biosphere. Do you want your lungs colonized by alien spores that human medicine don't know how to deal with? Or maybe some of the local pollen triggers a fatal allergic reaction in humans, or hell, since this place is in the "Jurassic Era," if my memory serves, the Earth atmosphere back then had a ton more oxygen in it. Maybe not enough to be toxic, but potentially enough to make you feel loopy, slightly high, a little bit drunk. Considering how nasty Earth-based spores and pollens can be to our lungs when we've co-evolved with them and have appropriate defenses, alien ones would have the potential to be horrific.
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Mar 6, 2023 04:34
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I never got into the Star Ocean games, and what I saw of this one makes me suspect I didn't miss much. But I'm always up for an LP of an anime game.FeyerbrandX posted:Edge Maverick is too stupid to know he can't breathe. I will very happy if we eventually learn this is a nickname he insists on. "Edge what? No, his name is Edward. Edward Martin."
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Mar 6, 2023 04:47
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PurpleXVI posted:And hell, even if all of that isn't an issue... what if you trip and fall and smash your dumb face open? Or an alien pineapple falls on your head? It's a matter of workplace safety, people! Space OSHA will have your rear end if you forget your PPE! You don't earn a name like ~Edge Maverick~ by complying with health and safety regulations! 
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Mar 6, 2023 04:58
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LJN92 posted:
Isn't BEAT an acronym for "Battle Exalted Action Type" or somehting equally silly like that
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Mar 6, 2023 05:31
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I have several things to say: 1. SO4 is not a good game for a variety of reasons, BUT I love playing it anyway. The gameplay/crafting system just scratches a certain itch for me and I'm not sure how else to put it. 2. Keep the anime portraits; the lifeless/uncanny valley-ness of the "realistic" ones hurts my soul. 3. Having played SO3, the way this (and subsequent) games butchered Welch's character (well, what little she had of one) is staggering. Ditzy inventor => lol monkey cheese fangirl.... yeeeeeeah.
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Mar 6, 2023 06:04
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Item Getter posted:Isn't BEAT an acronym for "Battle Exalted Action Type" or somehting equally silly like that "Battle Enhancement Attribute Type System", actually. More relevant to what it does, but still pretty hamfisted.
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Mar 6, 2023 07:01
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"Hmm, we want girl.jpg to have ranged attacks, because rangers are sexy. But guns are way too manly, we can't possibly let her use a gun even though this is a futuristic sci-fi setting. I know, let's staple a longbow to her rear end! I am a genius."
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Mar 6, 2023 14:30
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Tbf, they just established that rail guns are useless against these monsters. Presumably the bugs are using Stargate force fields, where it blocks anything moving faster than X, and bows and swords move slower than X.
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Mar 6, 2023 15:02
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Maybe it's the same reason why arrows can penetrate kevlar. High-mass, low(er) velocity is a different thing to defend from than low mass, high velocity.
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Mar 6, 2023 15:24
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Commander Keene posted:Tbf, they just established that rail guns are useless against these monsters. Presumably the bugs are using Stargate force fields, where it blocks anything moving faster than X, and bows and swords move slower than X. Oh hell yeah, if we're on Dune rules I can't wait until they find the local drugs.
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Mar 6, 2023 15:39
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PurpleXVI posted:I am probably just a buzzkill, but I totally hate it when someone explores an alien world and doesn't wear a helmet or rebreather of some kind. Presumably the 'exploration craft' is supposed to cover this and related issues, though, we've already seen it's clearly not perfect. LJN92 posted:"Battle Enhancement Attribute Type System", actually. More relevant to what it does, but still pretty hamfisted. Allegedly it is Battle Exalted Action Type in the Japanese version, though I'm not sure what the source is for this in either language since it's not in the (PS3) manual or the battle simulator explanation.
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Mar 6, 2023 16:15
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PurpleXVI posted:Oh hell yeah, if we're on Dune rules I can't wait until they find the local drugs. By Dune rules local bugs are local drugs!
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Mar 6, 2023 16:21
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