So today is the release date of Xenoblade Chronicles on the Wii, a JRPG I've been looking forward to for quite some time. Xenogears is one of my favorite games of all time, and while I never played the third Xenosaga game on PS2, I did enjoy the first two even if they did have some really tedious parts to them. The game is apparently very different from Saga and Gears, more akin to the openworldlyness of FF XII which is fine by me. Even though the story was the main draw in past Xeno games, I don't mind a change in the series; especially if the game is as good as I've been reading people say it is.
I'm a huge RPG fan. I like all video games, but ever since I was a kid RPGs have been my favorite genre. It's very disappointing to me that Japanese RPGs have been stuck in such a funk in recent years. I do enjoy games like Skyrim and Mass Effect, but there's a very different charm to a good JRPG, and one that I prefer to Western RPGs.
So speaking of JRPGs I've been playing Final Fantasy V on my PS3 lately in anticipation of Xenoblade. I got it free as a Playstation Plus member a few weeks ago and was waiting for a good chance to play it. It's the Playstation 1 version that was released in 1999 in a package with FF VI called "Final Fantasy Anthology". The version itself probably isn't the best one since it has some slowdown, and some longer load times, but it was free so what the heck. If I had my choice I'd probably play the GBA version.
But the game itself is surprisingly fun. I've never played FF V before (one of the only main series Final Fantasies I've never played) so I was very eager to see what it was like, especially since chronologically it was developed in between two of my favorites in the series, FF IV and FF VI. Well, I know I would enjoy it more if I were a naive ten year old who hasn't played hundreds of RPGs but I am impressed by the game. The job system is fun, the plot is better than I expected, and the items that you pick up are actually USEFUL. FF IV was so easy and this one is much more of a challenge. I find myself having to grind occasionally to get enough money to buy the best equipment and have enough items to survive the upcoming dungeons, boss fights etc. The thief class is awesome too, and I wish I would have used it earlier in the game since almost all the enemies have some useful items that are easy to steal. More of a grinder than other SNES era FF games, but certainly worthy of the FF name.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
First Post!
Hello! I plan to use this blog to talk about things going on in the video game industry, and share my thoughts on the games I'm currently playing. We'll see how it goes! I'm guessing I'll update it once or twice a week, depending on how into it I get.
I picked up a PS Vita a few weeks ago, and I love the system so far. It's so sleek, the screen is great, the graphics are amazing and all that good stuff. At this point there isn't anything specifically for the Vita that has impressed me TOO terribly much, its just an amazing piece of hardware and I'm very eager to see what game developers do on it in the future.
MLB 12 The Show
I bought the PS3 version and the Vita version so I could transfer my dynasty and play it on the go. It works great and the game is ALMOST as good on the Vita as it is on the PS3. The interface is slightly different, and some of the controls are slightly different as well due to the lack of the extra shoulder buttons on the Vita, but I'm impressed with how it all works together. The best Vita game out right now in my opinion, that is if you like baseball. If you're not a baseball fan then... I doubt this game will convert you but meh, you never know!
Dynasty Warriors Next
Pretty fun. Great graphics and same old Dynasty Warriors hack and slash gameplay. I haven't played a Dynasty Warriors game since Dynasty Warriors 4 on the PS2 and when it comes to the main gameplay, not a whole lot has changed that I can see. They added a bunch of new modes and ways to level up your guy since then and a collectable card type system and all that to keep you playing. I guess that if you haven't played a Dynasty Warriors game in a while or are a huge fan then this would be worth checking out.
Lumines Electronic Symphony
AWESOME. The music is electronic and dance style. If you've never played Lumines (which I never had before I played this one) its a puzzle game where cubes containing 4 blocks of 2 different colors fall down in an area Tetris style. The point is to get 2x2 cubes of the same color blocks together to clear the level. When you clear a level, a new song plays and the colors of the blocks change as well. As you move the blocks around and drop them on each other, little clicks and beat sounds play that go along with the music that is playing. It's a really neat experience. It's not the kind of game that I could play for hours on end, but the bits of time I spent with it here and there really added up and each time I found myself fascinated with the game and thoroughly enjoying the experience.
Besides the newer games up there, I played a few old PSP games on the Vita and I have to say, I really do enjoy playing them more on the Vita more than the PSP because of the screen size and how much easier the analog stick is to use. Final Fantasy Tactics, Ys The Oath in Felghana (great action RPG that I overlooked until recently) are both enhanced with this awesome piece of technology. I can't wait to see what some of the games are like in the next year or so, but my only concern is that right now the release schedule looks a little sparse. A bit of a shame...
I picked up a PS Vita a few weeks ago, and I love the system so far. It's so sleek, the screen is great, the graphics are amazing and all that good stuff. At this point there isn't anything specifically for the Vita that has impressed me TOO terribly much, its just an amazing piece of hardware and I'm very eager to see what game developers do on it in the future.
MLB 12 The Show
I bought the PS3 version and the Vita version so I could transfer my dynasty and play it on the go. It works great and the game is ALMOST as good on the Vita as it is on the PS3. The interface is slightly different, and some of the controls are slightly different as well due to the lack of the extra shoulder buttons on the Vita, but I'm impressed with how it all works together. The best Vita game out right now in my opinion, that is if you like baseball. If you're not a baseball fan then... I doubt this game will convert you but meh, you never know!
Dynasty Warriors Next
Pretty fun. Great graphics and same old Dynasty Warriors hack and slash gameplay. I haven't played a Dynasty Warriors game since Dynasty Warriors 4 on the PS2 and when it comes to the main gameplay, not a whole lot has changed that I can see. They added a bunch of new modes and ways to level up your guy since then and a collectable card type system and all that to keep you playing. I guess that if you haven't played a Dynasty Warriors game in a while or are a huge fan then this would be worth checking out.
Lumines Electronic Symphony
AWESOME. The music is electronic and dance style. If you've never played Lumines (which I never had before I played this one) its a puzzle game where cubes containing 4 blocks of 2 different colors fall down in an area Tetris style. The point is to get 2x2 cubes of the same color blocks together to clear the level. When you clear a level, a new song plays and the colors of the blocks change as well. As you move the blocks around and drop them on each other, little clicks and beat sounds play that go along with the music that is playing. It's a really neat experience. It's not the kind of game that I could play for hours on end, but the bits of time I spent with it here and there really added up and each time I found myself fascinated with the game and thoroughly enjoying the experience.
Besides the newer games up there, I played a few old PSP games on the Vita and I have to say, I really do enjoy playing them more on the Vita more than the PSP because of the screen size and how much easier the analog stick is to use. Final Fantasy Tactics, Ys The Oath in Felghana (great action RPG that I overlooked until recently) are both enhanced with this awesome piece of technology. I can't wait to see what some of the games are like in the next year or so, but my only concern is that right now the release schedule looks a little sparse. A bit of a shame...
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