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Comments
So, some thoughts on Dragon's Dogma after playing the demo:
The flaw I see with the combat system is that it's not quite deliberate or focused enough, lacking the kind of pacing and caution that defines the likes of Monster Hunter and Dark Souls. This is no great surprise given that the combat is more influenced by Devil May Cry than anything, but I personally prefer combat systems that emphasise carefully-placed strikes over raging flurries. For all that, though, it's done pretty well. I didn't notice any hit detection issues, although the Fighter abilities seem a bit gimmicky compared to the Strider ones, and I found myself largely ignoring the special moves.
The boss monsters are beautiful, although they lack the sense of danger that comes with bosses of the aforementioned games cited as influences. While the Chimera battle was a bit slapdash -- I pretty much just hacked my way through it -- the Griffon battle was superb, especially given the transition to night and the way my hampered visibility altered the conditions of the battle. The Strider special abilities are a lot of fun, but sort of inverse to the Fighter ones. Where the latter's abilities were overshadowed by their general combat utility, the Strider's special abilities (especially for the bow) so intensely overshadow regular attacks that I found myself thinking about my stamina consumption and general approach a lot more. Boss monsters also seem to deal a good amount of damage, although in the chaos of battle the impact of it can get a bit lost. Another mitigating factor is how intelligently a mage ally appears to be able to heal you, so I was rarely at much real risk as long as I didn't fight foolishly.
What this all really comes down to is how fast and forgiving the combat mechanics are. That one change alone would bring a greater sense of urgency to combat, especially given how difficult it is to access the dodge mechanic, which on the PS3 is X while holding R1. While I understand the need for a generalised jump mechanic, I think it would make sense in such a combat-oriented game for the dodge to be the more easily-accessible option because this way I had to jump some cognitive loops to get there. Another troubling factor is the lack of a dodge mechanic for the Fighter. Presumably, this is too ensure that they use their shields to block, but given what I see as the Fighter's current lack of depth, it would probably do that class well to allow them access to a dodge mechanic. There is a Fighter dodge, technically, but it only goes straight backward, removing the potential for it to be used to gain a better position and therefore be used as a simultaneous means of offense and defense.
All in all, I had a good time with the demo but "fantasy battles against horrific monsters" is a special love of mine and I suppose that makes the flaws in this more apparent. All the same, I'll be picking this up because it was fun. If the Griffon battle is the stronger indicator of how boss fights go, then this should by all means a good "fights against monsters" game, even if the mook battles are a bit unfocused. I'm also pretty interested in making use of the job system, which should provide some interesting options for tackling the various nasties that populate the world.
Stay tuned for the adventures of Siegfried and Roy; the young warrior and his sagelike mentor.
Oh, I meant, on a deeper level.
Sure, Fire Emblem will always be a turn-based tile-based SRPG set in a fantasy world. But does a person who enjoys it enjoy it for the SRPG aspects? Or for the broader resource-management aspect, especially for its permadeath feature? Or for the characterization, setting, and/or plot? Or for the artwork, soundtrack, and/or general atmosphere?
That's what I mean by a game meaning something different to different people.
For example, one of my oddest experiences relative to mainstream opinion is that I enjoyed FFV...for its plot. I'm not really the kind of super-optimizer that comes up with really insane character builds, which is what people usually enjoy FFV for. On the other hand, people usually find the plot annoyingly cliché, but I actually found it enjoyable in its clichéness, as everything just fell into place just right in my opinion, such as Exdeath actually being damn strong when you do get to meet him in battle, which backs up his hamminess, which is itself supported by the soundtrack.
In short, I played the same game, but my experience was very different.
Apart from the control scheme, which I'm having to readjust to.
^ I played it for the first time on the Wii, the controls there are great.
Also I started Prime 2 recently, it's a bit depressing having only the Morphosphere and missiles after being the killing machine you are by the end of Prime.
Also how many IJBMers have Brawl? None of my friends have it so I can't play with anyone online ;_;
I do. I've played it like twice. Shouldn't have bought it.
I have it, but I haven't played it for at least a year and all of my Gamecube controllers are pretty much busted.
I have it
Man, I'm surprised by how goddamn slow the older Tekken games are. Its slow in that you'll take a nap after knockdown, but some attacks take off so much goddamn health that it's kinda too fast too.
Yeah, I remember Corruption at least having great controls. Never finished it, though.
I'm playing the Gamecube version of Prime. My intent is to try to play through all three, but we'll see how long it takes me to get distracted by something else.
and fuck yeah, varia suit get
Anyway, my FC is 5113 5423 8751
While it is true that everyone enjoys different aspects of the game, fact of the matter is that those aspects are always the same, even for different people, you know? They don't change, the dialogue, gameplay and so on remain the same.
> I personally prefer combat systems that emphasise carefully-placed strikes over raging flurries.
I don't see how this doesn't describe Devil May Cry because running headfirst slapping the sword button is a good way to get a vaguely homoerotic katana through the chest.
>That one change alone would bring a greater sense of urgency to combat, especially given how difficult it is to access the dodge mechanic, which on the PS3 is X while holding R1.
This is especially weird to me since DMC 2/3 and God Hand and Bayonetta even more so made dodging a core part of their mechanics, realizing that an 'oh shit' button was a need at higher levels.
Between this and Ninja Gaiden's insultingly easy difficulty I'm getting bothered that hack-n-slash games feel like they have to lose their bite.
Even though the griffon fight was better than the other one, you still could beat it just by mashing attack constantly. And actually, it's pretty much impossible to play any other way, considering how difficult it is to actually tell what's going on, what with all the shit constantly covering the screen, particle effects everywhere, and the whole slow-mo-zoom-over-to-an-ally thing that happens every 5 seconds and makes it really difficult to actually see what you're doing.
Damn. Binary Domain is a blast.
I played the demo, and I was impressed.
On another note: Just a simple question: Which faction should I join in Mount and Blade: Warband?
Been playing Devil Survivor 2. Been digging it even if they need to hire a character designers that doesn't make boobs look frightening.
... Wait, what do you mean boobs and frightening?
Basically they look like they're floating in the air and they're usually right above the dialogue box so they tend to always be at eye level.
aren't all japanese games based around the idea that boobs should horrify you
That's just Highschool of the Dead.
how about god of w...wait, that's canadian, right
hurm.
how about silent hi...no, that's just anything sexual
guess you're right.
how does it feel
DMC is more "carefully placed raging flurries", though. It's not like it encourages you to place one or two attacks, get out of there and then circle for thirty seconds before committing again. The combat system for DMC requires strong timing, especially at higher levels, but the focus is on keeping combat close and furious throughout.
If I had to make a comparison, I'd say DMC is the equivalent of Errol Flynn's high-speed fencing duels, whereas Monster Hunter and Dark Souls and so on are like two kenjutsuka circling one another, changing stance until just the right moment.
^I'l agree with that at least. The way you worded it made the game sound like it took no skill or finesse, though.
Which raises the question of DD's tone. I mean DMC has a definite high-style camp-gothic superhero style like a independent nineties comic if independent nineties comics had a sense of humor about themselves. If DD has a similar tone I don't see it being all that bad, though being too forgiving can kill twitch-based action games for me. (like the otherwise great madworld)
DD is high fantasy that, while not quite striking me as "dark", isn't all perky and shiny either. The combat isn't quite so fine-tuned as DMC, either, which it didn't need to be for the bosses but the mook battles could have used some more interesting features and flow.
One of the things about Monster Hunter is that it only takes itself vaguely seriously at the most sombre of moments, whereas the rest is ridiculous stupid fun stuff, yet it still has this plodding, tactical combat system that ramps up the tension via its limitations.
How this combat system will really work for DD remains to be seen, especially given the high emphasis on climbing onto bosses and the like, not to mention all the peripheral stuff you can do in general. For instance, an NPC ally set my arrows on fire and I shot the Griffon's wings, setting it ablaze. This both lit up the night and sent it crashing to the ground, granting me both visibility and the opportunity to wail on it like no tomorrow. There's also the fact that the Griffon can't exceed a certain altitude while you're grappling it, giving your allies an opportunity to bring it down again.
Mind you, the combat isn't bad by any stretch. In fact, it's certainly quite good. But I've been spoiled by stuff like Dark Souls, Monster Hunter, Mount and Blade, ect. and I don't think DD's combat is going to stand alongside them as great strategic experiences.
War of Roses Game: Oh god, when that game comes out we will never see Alex again
No, you will all see me all the time because I am making you all get it so medieval IJBM can become a thing.
Silly Alex. Believing you could make me get something like that.
Spending that hour digging out my Wii and tackling the wirepocalypse was totally worth it.