tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post8258164004496254904..comments2024-02-26T20:52:27.680-08:00Comments on Thinking Inside the Box: Annual Summary 2018The RPGeniushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-72278192354023347892019-01-06T19:47:15.354-08:002019-01-06T19:47:15.354-08:00Ah, well. Looks like I'll only ever get DQs u...Ah, well. Looks like I'll only ever get DQs used, then. When I look back, I'm sure I did that for DQ9 anyway (as it was played during my long SquareEnix ban), so I at least feel less guilty for that. I appreciate you letting me know, though, that's definitely not the kind of person I want to support in any way, and SquareEnix's mere use of him makes me suddenly consider going back to boycotting the company.The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-2218911672421031722019-01-06T02:45:03.336-08:002019-01-06T02:45:03.336-08:00Did I just say Nintendo? I meant Square Enix. Whoo...Did I just say Nintendo? I meant Square Enix. Whoops.<br /><br />Okay, so I just went back to do some research again. Apparently, all of the DQ games released outside of Japan have their OSTs changed from orchestral to midi. DQ 8 on PS2 is an exception, where its soundtrack was redone by a different orchestral band but still conducted by Sugiyama himself.<br /><br />The bastard believes that giving out his orchestrated music to the fans will prevent them from attending his live orchestral performances, which is a really stupid reason. Furthermore, he still receives royalties from the licensed soundtrack regardless of how neutered they are. That is, unless you buy your DQ games used. Sorry for getting your hopes up, mate.The Dango Witchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03997695084371152526noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-12092247724397483212019-01-05T18:33:20.495-08:002019-01-05T18:33:20.495-08:00Ah, I see. Did they do that with Dragon Quest 8 a...Ah, I see. Did they do that with Dragon Quest 8 and/or 9? I'd feel much better if that were the case.The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-90531403877206734712019-01-04T11:16:36.170-08:002019-01-04T11:16:36.170-08:00Assuming I’m getting my facts correct, Sugiyama ow...Assuming I’m getting my facts correct, Sugiyama owns all the rights to his music. He receives most of the revenue earned from them as well. Because of this, licensing his music is notoriously expensive for Nintendo, which is why they avoid doing so for most of the DQ games that are brought over to the west, instead replacing the music with at times goddawful synth.The Dango Witchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03997695084371152526noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-29689173494791602552019-01-04T09:28:10.218-08:002019-01-04T09:28:10.218-08:00Mario Rabbids almost passed entirely by my notice,...Mario Rabbids almost passed entirely by my notice, but someone else I know has mentioned that it's surprisingly enjoyable, so I might just have to experience it myself.<br /><br />You can find Seberin's Calfree Trilogy mods here: https://www.nexusmods.com/shadowrunhongkong/users/5028023?tab=user+files&BH=0<br />I certainly recommend playing them all if you have the ability to, but the better ones are Caldecott Caper and Calfree in Chains, so you can skip (or come back to) the Antumbra Saga if you want. I definitely think you'll be impressed with them all; I certainly was.<br /><br />Oh wow. Reading up on Sugiyama makes me deeply regret having actually purchased DQ8 and 9 (even if 9 was on a big sale). Yeah, uh, looks like I'll have to take the hardest of passes on DQ11 after all. What do you mean that they can't afford the music rights?<br /><br />As far as Tales of goes, I've done Phantasia, Destiny 1, Eternia, Symphonia, Legendia, the Abyss, and Zestiria. I'm planning on doing Beseria this year, at several friends' recommendations. I can plan to pursue the Xillias afterward, though, provided I can locate them for a reasonable price, so perhaps in 2020?<br /><br />To 2019! I, too, hope you'll get a chance to devote time to them. Thanks for reading and commenting! Have a great year!The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-17343160102288423462019-01-03T02:05:28.740-08:002019-01-03T02:05:28.740-08:00Yeah, this year was a goddamn trainwreck. Thank Ar...Yeah, this year was a goddamn trainwreck. Thank Arceus it's finally over. =.=<br /><br />It's great that you finally got to play NA and the Bravely games! I have yet to play them for myself, and I should really remedy that but it's become increasingly harder to play rpgs lately. Heck, I didn't finish any I started from last year (although I'm a world away from finishing Mario Rabbids - that game is more fun than it has any right to be).<br /><br />A Shadowrun mod nearly won your best of the year? Huh. Considering I actually have the base game, I should get that mod pronto. Where can I download it?<br /><br />If you're not already aware, I recommend that you're careful about the Dragon Quest games you purchase. The composer for the franchise, Koichi Sugiyama, is wretched scum that uses the money he gets from his music rights to fund anti-gay and anti-lgbtq propaganda. Luckily, most of games that come over to the west can't afford the music rights, but you might already know that first hand if you get what I mean.<br /><br />What games from the Tales of series have you played? I know most of them are rather mediocre, but I wanna mention that Tales of Xillia 2 is fantastic. It's not only my favourite in the series, it's my favourite rpg of all time, and one of my GOAT games. I would like to recommend it, but it comes with the unfortunate (but necessary) stipulation of playing the first Xillia, a game I have rather mixed feelings about.<br /><br />Here's to 2019 and some more great games and rpgs! And hopefully more time for me to actually play and finish them ^^;The Dango Witchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03997695084371152526noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-69267009496813081882018-12-22T08:34:03.038-08:002018-12-22T08:34:03.038-08:00I've only just gotten to the ship, which isn&#...I've only just gotten to the ship, which isn't that far, but DQXI is indeed the successor to DQVIII that many have been waiting for.Ecclesiastesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-4477874051943511802018-12-20T10:17:45.384-08:002018-12-20T10:17:45.384-08:00Man, it really is sounding like, from your descrip...Man, it really is sounding like, from your description, a repeat of DQ8 and FF12. I suppose I'll have to give DQ11 a go, then, at some point. Thanks for the advice.The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-86842313243914472752018-12-20T09:34:53.724-08:002018-12-20T09:34:53.724-08:00Dragon Quest XI is a lot like VIII, with a more co...Dragon Quest XI is a lot like VIII, with a more complicated plot and more fleshed-out characters. It's exactly the game I wanted them to make after VIII (and pretty much the opposite of what IX gave me). I enjoy comparing Dragon Quest XI to Final Fantasy XV, as it's so weird to me how much better the latest Dragon Quest is than the latest Final Fantasy; I never would've expected that based on the two series' games that came out in the 90s.<br /><br />Nier is a strange title because it has extreme strengths and extreme weaknesses. While almost all of the sidequests in Automata tell interesting/depressing stories, most of the sidequests in the original game are a total waste of time (there are a couple like those in Automata, but they are the exception in Nier). The main story of Nier is good, though, enough to make up for its dull action gameplay, I think.Adam E.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15301656119538410691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-18304341787630975242018-12-19T16:09:21.471-08:002018-12-19T16:09:21.471-08:00Thanks for reading, btw!Thanks for reading, btw!The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-59608470960188934172018-12-19T16:09:09.078-08:002018-12-19T16:09:09.078-08:00Hmmm, I dunno, I may be willing to give SquareEnix...Hmmm, I dunno, I may be willing to give SquareEnix chances now, but I'm very, very cautious of anything with the title Final Fantasy, after every single thing that's happened to the series in the past 18 years. You're sure ths one's alright?<br /><br />I had no idea Mario vs. Rabbids was an RPG. Maybe I'll have to check that one out.The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-71054025587969339862018-12-19T10:32:31.520-08:002018-12-19T10:32:31.520-08:00A second Dragon Quest game that's not awful? ...A second Dragon Quest game that's not awful? You <i>lie</i>, sir! It's simply not possible!<br /><br />Yeah, I'll have to check out the original Nier sometime. Even if it's not as good as Automata, just being in the same ballpark would make it a winner.<br /><br />BD's repetition IS a little annoying, true. But as an overall product, I was really pleased with it.<br /><br />Thanks for reading!The RPGeniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02752937839502693108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-9409022823525447822018-12-19T10:11:10.985-08:002018-12-19T10:11:10.985-08:00You should play World of Final Fantasy now that yo...You should play World of Final Fantasy now that you have agreed to buy from Square-Enix: It is wonderful, really fun and completely fucking insane. It also has a lot of weird and humorous descriptions for the monsters you collect--use transformations to speed up the process. I also played Ever Oasis and Mario versus Rabbids: Kingdom Battle this year, and now those three games are on my list of the best R.P.G.s. Ever Oasis and Mario versus Rabbids are strange and fun even by the standards of Nintendo and Rayman.<br /><br />I also beat Bloodnet this year, which I have been playing on and off for years but always got stuck. It is also one of my favorites: Much more flawed than the above games but really fun and creative.<br /><br />I said it before and I will say it again: Bethesda can go fuck itself after E3 and everything that followed it, just Microsoft after 2013 and E.A. after it used Origin's name as a front for its shitty games. Bethesda has been going downhill since Daggerfall, and even that was not as good as Arena.Obdurate Hater of Rhythm Gamesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-268660459652553228.post-82978386489896415662018-12-19T09:06:26.749-08:002018-12-19T09:06:26.749-08:00I played some games I really liked this year, star...I played some games I really liked this year, starting with Zelda: Breath of the Wild (a series which, personally, I don't count in the RPG genre). I think my favorite RPG I played this year was Trails to Azure, the finale to the arc after Trails in the Sky in Falcom's confusingly-named Legend of Heroes sub-series. I liked Dragon Quest XI almost as much, and it was probably my favorite RPG actually released in 2018 that I played (I think it was the only one released in 2018 that I played, though). Enix finally made another Dragon Quest like VIII; it only took them like 13 years.<br /><br />Nier: Automata was definitely a standout among the games I played last year (I liked it and Persona 5 around the same amount, for different reasons). The first Nier is worth checking out; its gameplay and visuals are weak, but its story gains surprising depth and becomes excellent in the second half, in particular. I don't think the first Nier is as good as Automata, but it has its moments.<br /><br />I liked Bravely Default, although I was someone who got annoyed with the repeated chapter beats in its second half. I've been meaning to pick up Bravely Second ever since it came out but have never gotten around to it.<br /><br />As for Tales of Eternia, I liked it almost exclusively for its fighting-game style battle system. I think pretty much every other aspect of the game ranges from bad to mediocre, which is what I've always told other people. I've never given it a strong recommendation, as there are probably over 10 other PS1 RPGs that I think are better than Eternia.Adam E.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15301656119538410691noreply@blogger.com