I'm not really bothered by spoilers much, so I'm pretty casual about avoiding them. One thing I've been spoiled on that isn't really a spoiler but whatever
I have to say I feel like poor old Liberl is forgotten. I mean I know we see Tita/Estelle/Joshua, etc. But the nation itself just feels so insignificant now. Even North Ambria seems to come up more often. I realize it may be hard to write in since it is totally surrounded by Erebonia and Calvard, wouldn't invade either, and probably can't get involved in matters otherwise, but *hits desk*, I want it get get a chapter or something anyway dangit! =P. It would be fun to see liberl once again in 3d. Plus Liberl was supposed to be technologically advanced compared to the other nations, yet crossbell and Erebonia seem way more high-tech. So it seems to me that the world overall simply advanced technologically THAT much in such a short period of time (it kind of is the entire plot of the series with the orbal revolution after all of how the world went from medieval to modern+ in like 50 years).
I'd like to see Liberl with some higher techier gadgetry. Maybe all the mayors/bracer branch managers have orbal net headsets keeping them in touch with their neighbors out outlaying territories. Or maybe they have robot maids like we were supposed to have IRL by 2020 =P. Ooh, maybe they'll be the first to goto the moon... Does Kiseki HAVE a moon? I thought for some reason they have 2 with 1 being not there anymore or something, or was that Ys? I suppose maybe they'll be the first to accidentally discover en-masse 'the outside' in that regard? Or are they canonically no longer the high tech country anymore, but low tech hill-billy bumpkins now?
Still in the start of Chapter 4, having not gotten an opportunity to play this weekend. I'm trying to keep comfortably ahead of floofy's streams so I can enjoy my popcorn help moderate them so I'll be making up for lost time this week.
I'm not really bothered by spoilers much, so I'm pretty casual about avoiding them. One thing I've been spoiled on that isn't really a spoiler but whatever
.SpoilerCrossbell is still very significant to this game, not just 1 chapter, but like, most (maybe even all?) of the game I think
This one's not only not a spoiler but it's spelled out in all the pre-release materials to the extent that it's pretty difficult to go into the game and not expect it to be the case. It's presented as Lloyd's driving plot arc which means a third of the game and it's pretty clear from the same promo material that the other arcs are intertwined with it.
I'd like to see Liberl with some higher techier gadgetry. Maybe all the mayors/bracer branch managers have orbal net headsets keeping them in touch with their neighbors out outlaying territories. Or maybe they have robot maids like we were supposed to have IRL by 2020 =P. Ooh, maybe they'll be the first to goto the moon... Does Kiseki HAVE a moon? I thought for some reason they have 2 with 1 being not there anymore or something, or was that Ys? I suppose maybe they'll be the first to accidentally discover en-masse 'the outside' in that regard? Or are they canonically no longer the high tech country anymore, but low tech hill-billy bumpkins now?
Liberl is still the world-leader in airship technology, having developed the first successful one (mentioned in in-universe lore dumps), having developed particularly advanced models (Hundred Day War backstory) and having developed the fastest (the Arseille) but they don't have the military machine to produce something on the level of Erebonia's Pantagruel and Gargantua-class dreadnoughts. They were supposed to be the testing ground for the first Orbal Network but Crossbell essentially outbid them late in the day. However, you shouldn't assume that what we saw in the Sky games is representative of Liberl four years later; we know for example that ZCF is manufacturing automobiles (the SSS gets one and Noel is extremely impressed with it) and they're still described as the leading manufacturer of Orbments on the continent. They may not be as focused on military hardware as Reinford or Verne or as cutting-edge as the Epstein Foundation but they're second to none in general-use orbal technology.
Kiseki's world has one moon. Ys' world has two moons.
Still in the start of Chapter 4, having not gotten an opportunity to play this weekend. I'm trying to keep comfortably ahead of floofy's streams so I can enjoy my popcorn help moderate them so I'll be making up for lost time this week.
With how much time she's spending in TRC, I'd say you've nothing to worry about on that front lol.
By the way, how's hard treating you? I'm thinking ahead to when it comes out here and what difficulty to start on, but those turn limit bonus RP fights have me a little worried. I haven't been paying too much attention to what's been nerfed since 4 (mainly since I don't remember how the various CS3 OP strats ended up in that), since everything crumbles in V Easy.
With how much time she's spending in TRC, I'd say you've nothing to worry about on that front lol.
By the way, how's hard treating you? I'm thinking ahead to when it comes out here and what difficulty to start on, but those turn limit bonus RP fights have me a little worried. I haven't been paying too much attention to what's been nerfed since 4 (mainly since I don't remember how the various CS3 OP strats ended up in that), since everything crumbles in V Easy.
Yes, the Corridor is a bit of a time sink isn't it? xD
I've missed two bonus RP conditions so far, but based on floofy's experience of one of them I think it's less my difficulty and more the fight itself being a right pain without the appropriate setup; I'll have to see how she does on the other to see what it looks like on Normal. To not spoil where it is for anyone, just assume these fights take place somewhere before the end of Chapter 3.
The other one I failed is the second Emperor fight at the end of Chapter 3 (Rufus). In this case I almost had him but I made two mistake that cost me. One was failing to notice that his Exaltation state included a charge of Perfect Guard (which meant I wasted a 200 CP S-Craft for nothing) and the other is that I let him get a healing turn bonus that unwound a good chunk of my progress. I'm certain if I redid the fight that I'd win it within the limit because the Order that Nadia gets is just that broken, I just didn't feel like repeating the first phase of the fight and the small army of Lapis copies again to try it out.
So yeah, both should be perfectly doable on Hard, I just wasn't inclined to try.
As for broken strategies, Chrono Burst spamming has been nerfed because it can't be cast during its own effect any more. Breaking enemies and then using Delay-reduction and AT Advance Orders to get many free hits in remains an extremely effective trick, though like CS4 bosses can cancel out of Break at certain HP thresholds so you can't endlessly stunlock them even if you have the right combo of Orders to get unlimited turns while they're stunned. Oh, and one other thing got entertainingly nerfed as well.
I like difficulty and thought cs3 was too easy even on hard but turn count limit bonus point battles like cs2's 2 jaegers and such kind of annoy me. Maybe they would annoy me less if it has a display counting the turns for you, or if it didnt punish you by pure chance via the enemy spamming its fast moves instead of slow ones (especially if said fast move summons minions eating up precious turns). Or maybe it if counted player turns only, etc.
Are the mechanics pretty much the same as cs2?
I wouldn’t worry too much about getting Max RP. There’s like 600 available and you only need 500 for the final accessory. You are practically guaranteed to get it in the post-game if you do the TRC a bunch. The accessory sucks though.
Started Rean's Chapter 4 route in earnest and was surprised when I hit what felt like a route pause moment only to be allowed to keep going. And then got hit by some unexpected nostalgia when I saw the dungeon. I also couldn't help but remember what happened the last time we went through there and now I'm worried. xD
Oh, and I was able to obtain the Mercurius MQ from the Corridor and wow is that thing powerful.
Are the mechanics pretty much the same as cs2?
Hajimari like CS4 (which also had a few timed battles) provides a turn counter so you can see how close you are to the limit and it will start changing color as it gets close to the end as a warning.
EDIT: @hellseye47 Thanks. I wasn't too worried about it and figured I'd get it on a replay if I missed it anyways, like I've missed an enemy scan or two. But knowing there's that much leeway helps too.
Also, kudos to Gilbert for getting an S-Craft that doesn't beat himself up in the process. Even if he needed the Apache to do it. Baby steps, I guess!
Ngghhhhh, I'm now into what's probably the end of Lloyd's Ch4 route and still can't join the discussion because I have no idea what might cross routes, especially since I saw C's route listed before Rean's and I got a tip from Gu4n to do that one last for... some reason. All I know is that he threw a popcorn emote at me when he said it, which worries me. I'll save the thoughts until I've finished the whole Chapter, which I imagine I'll do by tomorrow with a bit of luck, or Sunday at the latest.
Not that I'm minding too much, I've been loving the game and getting my own popcorn fix from watching floofy. She just finished Chapter 3 Rean on Wednesday and her reaction was glorious.
SpoilerCedric EpisodeThere was debate on whether he’d be Sun or Moon because he arguably could fit the reverse arcana of either of them. Sun seems to have won out.
Well, that's a wrap for Hajimari. Boy oh boy.
Kondo: Oh, Carnelia for sure :^)
*80+ hours later*
KONDOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
I'm never believing another word out of that man's mouth.
Anyway, if you ever said to me that the fate of Crossbell would one day hinge on the outcome of a dance battle, I'd have laughed in your face, but here we are. I can tolerate a fair bit of cheese in the media I consume, but I gotta say this was a bit much even for me. Maybe its thematically appropriate considering they're both dancers and all that, but I dunno...Fighting off the curse with an anti-curse dance was stretching it a little.
Another thing that somewhat bothered me is powerlevels. Now, I'm not one to typically engage in, or care about, powerlevel discussions, but the whole Rufus beating the SSS & friends ultimately never really made any kind of sense, near as I can tell. As established later in the game, the robots, like Arios, didn't match the capabilities of their real counterparts, which would imply that robo-Rufus would've been inferior to our one. Again, I normally wouldn't mind if, say, this were some one on one bout that you could hand wave with any number of explanations, it's just in this instance it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me given the numbers he had against him. Or maybe robo-Rufus was designed to be super tough and the others were made inferior as a joke. It's not a huge deal or anything, I was just hoping there would've at least been a throw-away line explaining it. Or maybe there was - I'll see if I get corrected.
Juno's destruction was quite a jaw drop moment, although as it happened, I joked to myself that all the people stationed there were probably conveniently out for the day, and then literally moments later they pretty much said just that. That earned an eyeroll.
The attack on Reverse(?) Babel at least was all kinds of entertaining and seeing the super badass squad repel a giant death laser with God damn swords (even if they were enchanted) was my favourite kind of ridiculous. Bunch of monsters, the lot of them. Heck, even ya boi Gilbert got to be somewhat heroic!
Of course, as people joked prior to release, Kevin's "appearance" was hardly even that. I'm not particularly peeved or anything, and I get why they didn't show the other unknown Dominion for obvious reasons, but it's still kind of a shame that was all we got from the ol' onion knight.
The final dungeon was fairly routine as dungeons go, so not much to really say there. I liked the two squads intersecting every so often, but other than that...at least it wasn't too long, I guess? They also had a tough act to follow music-wise, with Spiral of Erebos and To the Future (underrated track in my opinion) as the competition, and while it didn't match them, it felt...fitting. There was a kind of sense of finality to it, maybe. I'm not sure how to describe it.
Ok, at this point, I think Falcom have something against you, Yotaka. Yet another game goes by with no unique final boss theme. And for this game to not get one is kind of astounding, but oh well! I mean the trailer song certainly served its purpose, but I remember you saying, since it played during events in Nord, you wanted something totally new. Instead, bupkis! I'm not too bothered since it's an awesome song, but I certainly see where you're coming from.
Now, let me see if I got this right: Rean alter and the Great One weren't actually from the other timeline, but simulated? As in Rean was a robot and the Great One was just...what, a recreated Sept Terrion fusion? That's kind of hard to wrap my head around. At least in so far as Elysion was capable of actually making that along with Ishmelga and the curse? How would that even work? I suppose the cult were able to make a Sept Terrion too, so it's not exactly without precedent. Maybe it's just because I was rather looking forward to it actually being the genuine articles rather than fakes, I felt a little disappointed. Also, what was the deal with the digital pleroma grass???
What I did love, however, was getting a pseudo-Divine Knight team-up with 3 Knights! It was so nice to have the ol' aibou back for one last (or not as things hint later on) rodeo. Also, Rean & Rean's conversation was a great moment and a capstone to his arc. I especially liked him acknowledging he needs to make himself happy if he wants his loved ones to be happy too. He's come a long way. That said, I do feel like this realization/conversation should have happened in the actual final Cold Steel game, and not the bridge game. It just makes his arc feel so stretched out compared to our other protags.
I should also mention the rather horrific end normal end Rean met after he flew off into space back in CS4. Then there was the slow realization for me that that was our Rean we'd been following since CS1. That was how he ended up, all twisted and consumed. Sure, true ending Rean is also ours, but to think there was a version that ended up like that. Poor guy just can't catch a break!
As for Rufus, I really thought for a second they were actually going to kill a protag. Of course, I should have known better, but I don't actually mind in this case. I think they did a good enough job on selling me on him getting to walk away, but mainly because he can never go back to his old life. Had he just resumed life as the noble Rufus Albarea that would've been too much. Now do Crow.
I don't really have a whole lot to say about the new engine video. I need to see the new game running in it to really judge. For what we got, it seems fine for Falcom's standards, but I really am not too bothered however it ends up. As long its an improvement, it's fine with me.
Phew! That may have come off as a bit negative, but I genuinely enjoyed the finale and the game as a whole. There were just some decisions that didn't sit quite right with me. That said, actually playing it English with proper context for everything, may very well improve my thoughts on it. Good grief, to think in just over a month I'll have CS4 to sink my teeth into. I feel spoiled.
Edit: Lmao, as one final F-You to Yotaka from Falcom, Mireille and Randy getting hitched means you'll SUPER never learn her last name! : P
Edit 2: So...what was the deal with the TRC? Was that ever expanded upon? Who set it up, why it pulled them in...Is all this going to be added in the October update, I wonder.
It's the first time in 10 years that McBurn's been back to the Celestial Globe.
The GM's actual appearance isn't what it seems? I'm a little fuzzy on that, so that could be pulled right outta my butt.
Something's going on in Ored.
Lianne's replacement has already been scouted.
There's a new (to us) major player on the scene, and it was they who facilitated Calvard's Prez hacking into the Globe for his tete-a-tete with the GM. He certainly seems like he's going to be our new Osborne for the next arc. Anyone who's able to chat casually with the GM is someone you want to keep both eyes on. He's also working on his own plan and the two have agreed not to interfere with eachother for a few years.
Not gonna lie, I was hoping we'd get another gathering of all the remaining Anguis, but this has certainly given plenty to ruminate on at least!
SpoilerHajimari FinaleAnyway, if you ever said to me that the fate of Crossbell would one day hinge on the outcome of a dance battle, I'd have laughed in your face, but here we are. I can tolerate a fair bit of cheese in the media I consume, but I gotta say this was a bit much even for me. Maybe its thematically appropriate considering they're both dancers and all that, but I dunno...Fighting off the curse with an anti-curse dance was stretching it a little.
Another instance is a side-quest just before the Dreknor infiltration, when Class VII is seeking for an escaped horse belonging to the Imperial Riding Club. They find the animal at an abandoned valley with black Pleroma Grass which transforms the normal horse into a demonic one. After the boss battle, Elliot steps forward and transforms the horse back to normal with his power of music.
The third instance is probably the most crucial for the situation during Hajimari Crossbell and it's of course an optional bonding scene with.... surprise! Elliot. Basically, Rean finds him listening to a music performance on radio and the performers happens to be two of Elliot's former music friends who the players meet as far back as the CS1 field study in Heimdallr. To make a long story short, both of these friends were hired by the government to perform 'wartime' music that heightens the aggression of the listeners and therefore amplifies the curse. Elliot confronts these friends during a life-performance in Raquel, where we can visibly see the curse-amplifying effect Our favorite redhead confronts his friends in a musical showdown with his performance dominating over his friend's music which reverses the curse effect.
The above scenes and this dance show-off in Hajimari also lends even more credence to Hellseye's theory how evoking emotion (which is what art does) can protect people from Ishmelga's influence. So all in all, it's not as much of an ass-pull as it seems initially.
Posted by: @jumpyjunpei
SpoilerHajimari FinaleJuno's destruction was quite a jaw drop moment, although as it happened, I joked to myself that all the people stationed there were probably conveniently out for the day, and then literally moments later they pretty much said just that. That earned an eyeroll.
Posted by: @jumpyjunpei
SpoilerHajimari FinaleAs for Rufus, I really thought for a second they were actually going to kill a protag. Of course, I should have known better, but I don't actually mind in this case. I think they did a good enough job on selling me on him getting to walk away, but mainly because he can never go back to his old life. Had he just resumed life as the noble Rufus Albarea that would've been too much. Now do Crow.
It's that famous thought experiment of using a time-machine to travel back to 1920s Germany and kill Hitler before he can enact all the tragedies of WW2. Now, flaws of this thought experiment aside, the only reason why this can even remotely be considered a moral action, as it's basically a preventional crime measure, is because we as time-travelers possess the knowledge of historical hindsight. Crow's assassination was for all intends and purposes also a preventative measure and those, like the time-machine example are usually problematic to justify, because you cannot prove a negative... except that Osborne didn't stay dead once killed and proved to become exactly the kind of warmongering dictator that should be rebelled against, at least considering our own real life historical experiences.
Of course, all this reasoning pretty much ignores the supernatural factor of Ishmelga's curse.
SpoilerHajimari FinaleAnyway, if you ever said to me that the fate of Crossbell would one day hinge on the outcome of a dance battle, I'd have laughed in your face, but here we are. I can tolerate a fair bit of cheese in the media I consume, but I gotta say this was a bit much even for me. Maybe its thematically appropriate considering they're both dancers and all that, but I dunno...Fighting off the curse with an anti-curse dance was stretching it a little.SpoilerHajimari Finale and CS4Without having seen the scene, I'm glad they implemented something like that. CS4 showed several instances when performance art, Elliot's and Fiona's music to be exact, displayed solid influence on Ishmelga's curse. The first instance I remember is during the Dreknor infiltration. After beating Neithardt and Olaf and 'rescuing' Tita and Alfin, the crew is joined by Fiona who single-handedly made it through the fortress. While it's reasonable to assume that most of the 4th Division simply stood down, considering that Fiona is basically an idol to them, there were cursed individuals among the personnel and she is shown to have forced her way while playing on her violin.Another instance is a side-quest just before the Dreknor infiltration, when Class VII is seeking for an escaped horse belonging to the Imperial Riding Club. They find the animal at an abandoned valley with black Pleroma Grass which transforms the normal horse into a demonic one. After the boss battle, Elliot steps forward and transforms the horse back to normal with his power of music.
The third instance is probably the most crucial for the situation during Hajimari Crossbell and it's of course an optional bonding scene with.... surprise! Elliot. Basically, Rean finds him listening to a music performance on radio and the performers happens to be two of Elliot's former music friends who the players meet as far back as the CS1 field study in Heimdallr. To make a long story short, both of these friends were hired by the government to perform 'wartime' music that heightens the aggression of the listeners and therefore amplifies the curse. Elliot confronts these friends during a life-performance in Raquel, where we can visibly see the curse-amplifying effect Our favorite redhead confronts his friends in a musical showdown with his performance dominating over his friend's music which reverses the curse effect.
The above scenes and this dance show-off in Hajimari also lends even more credence to Hellseye's theory how evoking emotion (which is what art does) can protect people from Ishmelga's influence. So all in all, it's not as much of an ass-pull as it seems initially.
Posted by: @jumpyjunpei
SpoilerHajimari FinaleAs for Rufus, I really thought for a second they were actually going to kill a protag. Of course, I should have known better, but I don't actually mind in this case. I think they did a good enough job on selling me on him getting to walk away, but mainly because he can never go back to his old life. Had he just resumed life as the noble Rufus Albarea that would've been too much. Now do Crow.SpoilerCS4, Hajimari FinaleI fear Falcom isn't going to do Crow at this point. In fact, the different treatment of Rufus and Crow is a nice example of standing on the 'right' and 'wrong' side of history. The post-CS4 political landscape paints Osborne as an irredeemable war criminal. As such, Crow's assassination of Osborne in CS1 is to a degree validated.It's that famous thought experiment of using a time-machine to travel back to 1920s Germany and kill Hitler before he can enact all the tragedies of WW2. Now, flaws of this thought experiment aside, the only reason why this can even remotely be considered a moral action, as it's basically a preventional crime measure, is because we as time-travelers possess the knowledge of historical hindsight. Crow's assassination was for all intends and purposes also a preventative measure and those, like the time-machine example are usually problematic to justify, because you cannot prove a negative... except that Osborne didn't stay dead once killed and proved to become exactly the kind of warmongering dictator that should be rebelled against, at least considering our own real life historical experiences.
Of course, all this reasoning pretty much ignores the supernatural factor of Ishmelga's curse.
...aaaaalmost able to catch up on the Chapter 4 stuff, got less playtime this weekend than I was expecting and the Corridor proved a huge timesink. I've started the Cedric episode but haven't finished it.
Also, the Dudley/Machias Episode? Best thing ever.
Glad everyone here playing the game has been enjoying it. I have a question about two particular characters if they are playable. I remember there was a rumor I believe made in the XSeed forum that Bleublanc may be playable in the game. I feel that it's probably no but still hoping it is actually a thing. The one that has a better chance but not sure was ever confirmed is if Olivier/Olivert is playable in this game? If no crazy that with 5 games taking place in his home country he was only playable in one of them.
