Tag Archives: lost odyssey

Nintendo Switch, Reviews

Octopath Traveler [Switch] – Review

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Octopath Traveler - Switch - North American Box Art

One of the first games announced for the Nintendo Switch, Octopath Traveler had me intrigued from the moment I heard its ludicrous name. Developed by Square Enix and Acquire, it was published by Nintendo on July 13, 2018. As indicated by its name, the game highlights the journeys of eight disparate individuals. They travel throughout the continent of Orsterra in separate adventures inspired by golden-age JRPGs. Unique turn-based combat and addictive character development kept me entertained for the hundred hours I spent playing the game, even when the game’s storytelling underwhelmed me. Continue reading Octopath Traveler [Switch] – Review →

Nintendo Switch, Reviews

I Am Setsuna [Switch] – Review

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I Am Setsuna

Satisfied with my completion of Breath of the Wild, I was free to singularly devote time to another game on the Switch. Next in the queue: I Am Setsuna.

Originally released for the PlayStation 4 and Vita in early 2016, Square Enix announced I Am Setsuna would be a launch title for the Switch shortly before the platform’s launch. The game was developed by Tokyo RPG Factory, a newly minted subsidiary of Square Enix with the primary intent of creating RPGs inspired by classics from the 1990s. The story and characters were fairly rote although a series of late game reveals caught me by surprise. Narrative and dialogue were compelling to the end, as was the soundtrack, which I’d go beyond and describe as exceptional! Lastly, the gameplay was immediately familiar thanks to the implementation of the Active Time Battle system. Considering the studio’s narrow purpose, I Am Setsuna was a success, albeit unambitious. Continue reading I Am Setsuna [Switch] – Review →

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The Top 10 Games I Played in 2015

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TopGames2015

It seems like every year I begin my best-of list by stating I didn’t play many new releases. This year is no different, and the rate of current releases to “older” games is very close to last year’s. Nonetheless, I do feel like I played more new releases this year, they just didn’t make the cut. Again, like last year I’ll order these alphabetically and provide links to any of the title’s that I actually wrote about.

Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut – This game was such a bore for the first handful of hours. I couldn’t quite figure out where the love for this game originated. Granted, it’s mostly ironic love, but it was still lost on me. Then everything clicked. One weekend in particular I had ample free time to devote to the game and I figured out the side missions and realized that’s where the addictive qualities lay. After forty hours, I had a platinum trophy in my possession and a new found appreciation for Swery65.

Her Story – This is one of the few games this year that I was able join in on the zeitgeist. The weekend it came out (or maybe one or two later), my friend and I devoted an entire gaming session to solving the mystery within the game. Interacting with the emulated vintage computer system and watching the four second to three minute clips of interviews was a gaming experience unlike any other I’ve had. We took notes and had fun speculating about the mystery every step of the way. Heck, after all was said and done we went back and watched the entire interviews spliced in chronological order on YouTube. Unforgettable. Unlike my intentions to come back and write more about the game as mentioned in my review…

Lost Odyssey – There’s always a few games that I fail to write reviews for but luckily, I did at least write something about this game (two articles in fact!). I’m bad about doing that, especially with the games I enjoy the most. That’s the case with this gem. This is by most measures, a very traditional JRPG; it is, though, an exemplary traditional JRPG. Like Deadly Premonition, it took a while for this game to click with me but once it did, I was irrevocably sucked in. I could lavish praise on the mature story, or the addictive character growth mechanics but I failed to do so after originally beating the game so why start now? Nonetheless, easily one of the best games I played this year.

Metal Gear Solid – With the release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, I felt the urge to play through the entire MGS series (I tend to get these urges, especially with long-running series’ damn it!). Since that urge, my friend and I have played through this title and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, and we’re currently working on Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (and I played VR Missions, solo). The second game had much more to analyze and is likely the more important video game to the industry (perhaps of all time?) but my friend and I had more fun playing the first one.

South Park: The Stick of Truth – Here’s one of those games that I didn’t write anything about. Without a doubt, it’s got the funniest writing in a game I’ve ever played. The vulgarity may offend some, but hey, it’s a South Park video game! It’s a brief riot that invoked the sensibilities of the Mario RPG games, ergo, turn-based combat with quick-time events.  It was a well-crafted romp through the South Park universe and Jeff, if you’re reading this, play it already!

Super Mario Maker – I haven’t written about this game, yet. I’m still playing it all the time and it’s been a hub for the gaming sessions my friend and I have. I’m not usually attracted to games that have a user-designed focus but I’ve had a lot of fun designing stages in this game. It definitely helps that I’m designing Mario stages and can immediately understand how everything will work and how to design a stage. That being said, I’m learning so many new techniques and playing so many awesomely difficult stages that you’d never find in a Nintendo published 2D Mario game.

The Walking Dead: A Telltale Game Series – I missed out on this originally, despite the pleas of a friend and the acclaim that was thrown this game’s way, but I was looking for just such an experience after getting my PS4 after Christmas last year. This game told an enthralling story that packed a punch and left me wanting to find two hours to devote to the next episode after completing the previous one. So glad I played this.

Wolfenstein: The New Order – Okay, apparently this is just the section of the list where I talk about games I never wrote about. Like many of the games I’ve included, I’ve selected this game based in part on its story. That’s something that is rarely said about an FPS, but it’s true. This was a narrative-driven shooter that had me interested in what was going to happen to the characters it revolved around. It didn’t hurt that the gameplay was fun as heck, too.

Xenoblade Chronicles X – Like Super Mario Maker, I haven’t written about this game as I’m still playing it. I’m about thirty hours in at the moment and can’t spend enough time in the world. I’ve been doing way too many monotonous side missions instead of the affinity and story missions, but I’ve been doing this to spend more time roaming the large environments and exploring every nook and cranny. The story is rubbish but who cares with a world like this one’s!

You Must Build a Boat – Mobile games for me serve mostly as time wasters, so it’s impressive when I play one when my time should be devoted elsewhere. The dungeon-crawling, character growth elements put a spin on the tile-matching gameplay. For a couple of bucks, don’t think about it, just buy this game.

Uncategorized, Xbox 360

Lost Odyssey and My Seeker of the Deep Woes

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Lost Odyssey - Nooo!

So, after roughly 75 hours, I’m finished playing Lost Odyssey. That game had me engrossed like few other RPGs before it. I could’ve beaten the game around the 50 hour mark, but thanks in no small part to achievements, I found myself compelled to eke everything I could out of the game. I literally did everything that could be done in the main game save one thing – obtain all items from the treasure chests strewn about the world. This was an achievement, and the only reason I didn’t pop this one was because I fucked myself over roughly halfway in. Most items that are missed later appear in an auction house, and unfortunately I lost the first auction I entered and didn’t realize the consequences of that until much later. Likely, I missed other items too, so I probably wouldn’t have gotten this one anyways.

That’s not the point of this article, although it does provide additional details on my experience with the game. The main point of this article is how I fucked myself over in another way! After beating the final boss and enduring fifteen minutes of ludicrous cutscenes, I was prompted to save the clear data. Actually, I may have been prompted to save beforehand and I’d like to get my facts straight, but no enough to research it, I just wanted to let you know. Anyways, I saved right over my primary save not thinking twice about it. A day later, I decided it was time to do the very last thing on my Lost Odyssey agenda – play through the Seeker of the Deep DLC. But I saved clear data over my primary save. CLEAR DATA!

For those uninitiated with RPGs, and more specifically Japanese RPGs, clear data is generally an unplayable file only certifying that you completed the game. And really, what is the fucking use in that!? Lost Odyssey uses it for new game + purposes, so at least it’s put to use for something. It does me no good however. Reading online, the recommended levels to complete the DLC hover around the 90s, maybe the mid 80s. With party levels in the 70s, it would take me hours of grinding with the other saves to reach a comfortable party level, while loading my primary save starts the game at the very beginning, with a few perks. So, instead of spending a few more hours with Lost Odyssey, I’m finished with it.

Uncategorized, Xbox 360

Lost Odyssey and My Disc Four Woes

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Lost Odyssey - Japan

“Are you kidding me?” I sat there and thought as I kept failing in my attempts to install the fourth disc of Lost Odyssey to my Xbox 360. You see, in the hopes of reducing load times and allowing my Xbox 360 to take it a little easier (less disc spinning should mean moving parts are being used less) I prefer to install any game I play. And, this tactic worked just fine for discs one, two, and three. The fourth disc on the other hand was being a bugbear and dampening my good feelings upon reaching it after 35 hours of traditional JRPG excellence.

So, when I had the opportunity, I took the troublesome disc to a local game shop to have it resurfaced. This, being Friday after work (aka payday) and accompanied by my closest gaming equal Jeff, we made an evening of the trip. As I always say: “it isn’t a weekend if I haven’t bought a video game!” The first stop – Tulsa’s midtown Vintage Stock – was a bust. Their disc resurfacing machine was out of order, but we took a look around nonetheless. Were it not for his suggestion to choose this Vintage Stock location, I wouldn’t have added Rippin’ Riders (Dreamcast), Murakumo: Renegade Mech Pursuit (Xbox), Battle Fantasia (Xbox 360), and Space Invaders Extreme 2 (Nintendo DS) to my collection. In other words, the trip wasn’t completely unfruitful.

Thus we headed to the Tulsa Hills Vintage Stock, with the foreknown knowledge that their resurfacing machine was in order. As it was getting late (around 9:00 at this point) and both he and I (as well as Jenny, back home) were ravished with hunger, I quickly scanned the walls and only walked away with Ferrari F355 Challenge for the PlayStation 2 and the strategy guide for Infinite Undiscovery. The former, in the hopes of comparing/contrasting it alongside the Dreamcast port, and the latter in the hopes of… well, we’ll see if I actually ever get around to playing that game; I mean, I’ve owned Lost Odyssey for a couple of years now, have wanted to experience it since its announcement, and I’m only now getting around to it!

With food retrieved (Chinese, if you must know) we enjoyed our meal with a humorous selection of videos courtesy of YouTube. Afterwards, we proceeded to play the first episode of Telltale Games’ Game of Thrones adaptation. Wait… what!? Well, Jeff had just played through it himself and was curious to see how my decisions contrasted with his. Personally, I very much enjoyed what I played. This was my first experience with the newer style of their games, and was a strong reminder that I NEED TO PLAY THE WALKING DEAD! When he vacated the premises to return to his abode, I sat down and set about installing the final disc of Lost Odyssey. And it got no further. Heck, I even tried multiple times, again.

“Okay, what’s really wrong with this disc” I thought to myself. As they generally do, the quick Google search I performed yielded the answer and luckily enough, the solution. It turns out, for the North American and European releases of the game, the clamshell packaging was only made to contain three discs (which I always thought was odd considering the secondhand copy I acquired had all four in the disc slot clearly labeled three). The solution was to place the fourth in a paper sleeve, which, at some point during shipping or storage or whatever, a thin film of grime was produced on this disc, which has proved difficult for most to remove. As I mentioned however, my Google search also yielded the solution, although I was equal parts hesitant and flummoxed at the suggestions: boil the game disc.

As a layman on the structure of a DVD, I was understandably incredulous. However, many disparate sources were suggesting the remedy with as many or more claiming it worked for them. “I can always acquire another copy, or borrow Jeff’s. Surely he still has his copy.” I thought, placating my doubts. And so, I started to boil a pot of water on the stove. As the water was getting to temperature, I tried installing the game yet again in the hopes I wouldn’t have to take such a drastic measure, but no dice. So, with the water at a steady boil, the disc took the plunge.

I held it just at the top for the recommended ten seconds, dried it off on a nearby towel and forced the plunge once more. As it neared the water, the heat emanating from the pot caused it to warp slightly, inflicting second doubts in my mind, but it returned to normal after the plunge. After a moment for it to dry and return to room temperature, I went back to the living room to try yet again; all the while leaving the water on a low boil in case it was needed once more. I sat patiently as the percentage slowly climbed. When the 40% figure was reached, I grew tentative. The Xbox 360 was audibly having difficulty and this was always around the percentage the system gave up. The odd starts and stops soon disappeared and it smashed past 50% and never looked back. I could get on with my life again – problem solved!

Thinking back on it now, there’s surely another reason for the fourth disc to cause so many people issues. I mean, I’ve played games that have been kept in paper sleeves and they worked just fine. Perhaps there was an issue with the manufacturing of the mentioned regions’ fourth disc. If it truly was the paper sleeve, it still comes down to Microsoft as the publisher choosing to skimp on the clamshell case and jury rigging a solution. Whatever the case may be, I can now resume a damn fine JRPG. Plus, I got an interesting story out of this predicament!