Can someone seriously explain why... Options

[Raijinili]

I can't argue this without replaying the game again, so I'll let this one go for now.

Well, you could just youtube some videos.

I think I need to replay TotA too, I remember being able to chain attacks and gaining abilities rather early on.

You can only chain Artes into Mystic Artes for a long period of time. (as well as the obligatory XXX)

I dunno, I've never noticed much of a delay for Luke. Maybe it's because you play more action games than I do but I find the controls for Abyss just fine.

I suppose that's a valid point. I'm very used to instant reactions and canceling when it comes to action based games (DMC, Ninja Gaiden, God Hand, etc)

This infuriated me to no end in Abyss.

How is it absurd to judge? SO3 also requires practice if you want to master it.

It doesn't require as much tediousness to obtain a decent grasp of the system.

Symphonia's Hi Ougis were pretty much non existant, and as for overly flashy final attacks, two words: Dimension Door. Seriously, that move was freaking broken, and you could use it whenever you wanted.

I should think the very last moves you learn should be fucking powerful.

Dimension Door isn't particulary flashy either. And again, my main issue with them in Abyss and Symphonia is the lack of variety.

Problem being, I don't like it when a pool of stats that are required to use abilities with can also result in my death if I use abilities. You may say it puts more strategy, I say it's complete bullshit. It's not like HP where the only way you can lose it is through damage.

Early game, this can be an issue, but the bonus battle recovery negates this almost entirely in my experience.

Once you obtain regeneration symbols, you should never be significantly low on MP enough to not afford healing.

And yeah, I do think it adds strategy. It also makes using abilities like critical hit, increase MP/HP damage, and the like a valid strategy.

Had full active mode been available from the start or near the start of the game I would've definitely liked SO3 MUCH more over any Tales game. However the fact that you need fucking 95% of battle trophies is ludicrous, considering some of the requirements. By the time you get that many it's near the end of the game and you're pretty much completely accustomed to the normal battle mode, making it utterly superfluous. That was a horrible decision on their part.

I concur. I would have preferred if this was available from the start. I still don't consider the running up system to be that huge a problem, as it has only occurred very few times to me, and nearly never for others.

I found the delay from Abyss more negligible than the aforementioned point. The thing in SO3 happened to me far more times than I care to count.

I maintain that there are very few instances where your running around syndrome occurs. Unless you are constantly going for long range attacks with characters who can only attack at short range. And you can cancel into a skill during this anyway, thus ending it.

I don't recall anything about AI training. Elaborate, please?

Cleared up in the channel

They're Sakuraba. Sakuraba's shit has taken a nosedive since the PS/N64 era. SO3, Abyss, and Symphonia are no exception to this rule. Baten Kaitos was the last half decent soundtrack he threw out and even that was pretty crappy.

Preference I suppose. I thought Abyss and Symphonia were extremely subpar, but thought Star Ocean 3, Valkyrie Profile 2, and the like had brilliant music. And I thoroughly enjoyed his work on Eternal Sonata, he really needs to continue his orchestral side.


Anyway, like I said, preference. I doubt you enjoy most of Akira Yamaoka's work for example, but he's probably my favourite composer in VG music terms.

[Raijinili]

O.k, Abyss finally started being fun. (about 10 hours from the end of the game...)

Better than Symphonia too, but Star Ocean 3 is still better.

[Raijinili]

I beat the game.


It's still a horrible game, as is Symphonia, overrated to hell and back. Incredible disappointment.

[Raijinili]

I personally like both the Tales and Star Ocean series. They both have awesome battle systems and stories, as well as some of the best music I've heard in an RPG.
Personally, I tend to like the Tales series more as when I got to S03's final boss I got massacred, not that I was a bad player or underleveled or something like that. So I went back to the city, added a def+50 to Fayt, Mirage and Maria's weapons and proceeded to own the final boss. Though at least it wasn't like the final boss of TotA...cause he kinda died...really quick.

[Raijinili]

Motoi does better soundtracks for tri-Ace than he does for Namco~

[Raijinili]

I personally like both the Tales and Star Ocean series. They both have awesome battle systems and stories, as well as some of the best music I've heard in an RPG.
Personally, I tend to like the Tales series more as when I got to S03's final boss I got massacred, not that I was a bad player or underleveled or something like that. So I went back to the city, added a def+50 to Fayt, Mirage and Maria's weapons and proceeded to own the final boss. Though at least it wasn't like the final boss of TotA...cause he kinda died...really quick.

Abyss has fucking terrible music.

If you got massacred on SO3's final boss you clearly actually suck. He only has about 3 attacks that have a wide hit range, and Dimension Door and Side Kick allow you to dodge and penetrate most of these, not to mention even if you were using, say, Cliff, Fists of Fury has MASSIVE hitstun.





I ALMOST want to try doing all the extra stuff in Abyss, but I'm too pissed off at their "time based sidequests" in the game, meaning I can get all of what I want (who the hell finds out all this stuff on a first playthrough with no guide?).

I still seriously question why the developers wouldn't give you access to AD skills like Turnless, Canceller, Add Combo, etc, actually IN THE FUCKING MAIN GAME, because it takes literally fucking years of grinding in the main game to get these.

This post has been edited by Irysa: May 6 2008, 09:14 PM

[Raijinili]

Abyss has fucking terrible music.

I disagree with this statement. I personally enjoyed the soundtrack

If you got massacred on SO3's final boss you clearly actually suck. He only has about 3 attacks that have a wide hit range, and Dimension Door and Side Kick allow you to dodge and penetrate most of these, not to mention even if you were using, say, Cliff, Fists of Fury has MASSIVE hitstun.

I was using Maria if you must know, not that it mattered as the AI tended to bum-rush the guy and get themselves killed. It may have helped had I used Item Creation more than once prior to going to fight the final boss. Probably should reword what I said, I generally got the final boss down to 20,000 health before I died...then I just got fed up with it and leveled up a little for the HP and MP and customized my weapons a little.

Ironically, I was able to beat Lenneth and Freya with little to no trouble at all.

I ALMOST want to try doing all the extra stuff in Abyss, but I'm too pissed off at their "time based sidequests" in the game, meaning I can get all of what I want (who the hell finds out all this stuff on a first playthrough with no guide?).

I have to agree with you on this. It is VERY annoying.

I still seriously question why the developers wouldn't give you access to AD skills like Turnless, Canceller, Add Combo, etc, actually IN THE FUCKING MAIN GAME, because it takes literally fucking years of grinding in the main game to get these.

Not really, I had 2 Add Combo's by the time I beat the game. Plus, do you really even need those skills during the first playthrough? Game's easy enough on Normal and Hard as it is.

[Raijinili]

Not really, I had 2 Add Combo's by the time I beat the game. Plus, do you really even need those skills during the first playthrough? Game's easy enough on Normal and Hard as it is.

I never said you needed them. I only had one add combo on Luke when I beat the game, since I balanced stats.

I wanted them because they'd add some damn variety. The game could easily have been made more challenging as a result.

I was using Maria if you must know, not that it mattered as the AI tended to bum-rush the guy and get themselves killed. It may have helped had I used Item Creation more than once prior to going to fight the final boss. Probably should reword what I said, I generally got the final boss down to 20,000 health before I died...then I just got fed up with it and leveled up a little for the HP and MP and customized my weapons a little.

Ironically, I was able to beat Lenneth and Freya with little to no trouble at all.

Because you clearly hadn't bothered AI training either of your other two folk.

I beat that fight as Faty, Maria, and Sophia, and the only person who actually died was Maria, because she accidentally got caught in his ENTIRE FIELD attack thing.

I disagree with this statement. I personally enjoyed the soundtrack

HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH











No, just...no. The only songs worth anything in the game are the theme song, and the pianized version of the theme song. (which both aren't even by Sakuraba) Everything else is atrocious garbage that I wouldn't believe was from the same composer who worked on Phantasia, Valkyrie Profile, etc. If you honestly LIKE it, you have either not heard ANY of the rest of Sakuraba's good stuff, or you have some of the most horrific taste in video game music ever, let alone all music. Every non battle theme is uninspired and incredibly repetitive, and every battle theme is at the totally wrong kind of pace suited for the game. Not to mention the incessant wankery that is used to try to cover up the washed up and near nonexistant percussion and bass, and the insultingly out of place choice of synth/orchestrals.



I mean for fucks sake, even if you NESified the music in this game, it would be just as bad.

This post has been edited by Irysa: May 7 2008, 05:33 AM

[Raijinili]

Because you clearly hadn't bothered AI training either of your other two folk.

I had level 6-8 attack and defense for them, I put more points into HP & MP for Maria though(once I got her she was the character I used the rest of the game).

No, just...no. The only songs worth anything in the game are the theme song, and the pianized version of the theme song. (which both aren't even by Sakuraba) Everything else is atrocious garbage that I wouldn't believe was from the same composer who worked on Phantasia, Valkyrie Profile, etc. If you honestly LIKE it, you have either not heard ANY of the rest of Sakuraba's good stuff, or you have some of the most horrific taste in video game music ever, let alone all music. Every non battle theme is uninspired and incredibly repetitive, and every battle theme is at the totally wrong kind of pace suited for the game. Not to mention the incessant wankery that is used to try to cover up the washed up and near nonexistant percussion and bass, and the insultingly out of place choice of synth/orchestrals.

I've played Phantasia and Valkyrie Profile 2. They had good soundtracks. I like most of the battle themes in Abyss over the other themes though, and is generally the case when I listen to an action RPG's soundtrack.

[Raijinili]

Good, you've stopped posting in blue. Because that's highly inconsiderate to people who aren't using your skin.

[Raijinili]

Actually...I just forgot to change the color.

Guess it's my monitor, but it looks perfectly fine on all the skins to me. Probably cause I keep it at the brightest setting.

If it's that bad though, I'll stop and use another color. ...I dislike using white for a text color

This color show up better?

[Raijinili]

Stop using color altogether. If you want to be special, do it in your sig, your name, and your avatar.

[Raijinili]

(It's what you say, not how you say it)