Games you're playing: The 2009 edition.

[Jo'ou Ranbu]

The big problem with Tales games is that they keep creating worlds with problems so extreme that the status quo as it exists just doesn't work (see especially TotA).

That's because they don't actually adjust the status quo to the reality of their worlds, instead lifting a typical status quo mindset from our world with no regard for context or making any sort of sense. This was impressively ruinous to TotA's general immersion and worldbuilding, especially given how it seemed to try to bank on that.

[Grefter]

Which brings me back to why Tales of Phantasia's plot is the best in the series because it is so incredibly basic.  There is nothing amazing about the world in RPG terms.  There is a bit of time travel.  That is about it.

[Taishyr]

Torchlight: Alchemist is now L55 or so, running around in the Shadow Crypt or whatevs, trying to make some money and get some shineys. Started a Vanquisher, L15 or so, Ricochet and its ilk are silly broke - but I'm doing her playthrough on Hard so my ass, it still gets kicked.

[Anthony Edward Stark]

But the trait of processing Aer is not a trait that can be genetically passed down.

THAT makes a lot of sense. A gene that can't propagate itself at all. There's a reason the common cold is a more successful virus than Super-Ebola. Bamco just keeps digging themselves deeper holes with these stupidly convoluted explanations.

I, uh, really don't think convoluted explanations are the big problem with Tales games.  Incredibly stupid setups are.  The best explanation for why whatsisname the bad guy in ToS is doing what he is doing won't make what he is doing, as a tactical matter, any less silly.

The big problem with Tales games is that they keep creating worlds with problems so extreme that the status quo as it exists just doesn't work (see especially TotA).

I'm not saying that convoluted explanations are the problem, I said that they keep digging themselves deeper holes. To go back to my example of the Entelexia, saying "there can't be any more because Entelexia have broods and so only 10% of births are female and all of them died in the war" has the same effect on the plot as Niu's retarded bullshit, but it's much less retarded.

[Jo'ou Ranbu]

Which brings me back to why Tales of Phantasia's plot is the best in the series because it is so incredibly basic.  There is nothing amazing about the world in RPG terms.  There is a bit of time travel.  That is about it.

When mediocrity is the best you can achieve, you know you're facing a winner. But such is the wasteland of RPG writing by most accounts. >_>

[Pyro]

Niu's retarded bullshit is entirely extraneous to the game itself, keep in mind. ToV's main plot is filler anyway that exists so the characters can have something to interact with. At least ToV actually makes characters with a few more layers than their stereotypes, I guess.

GTA4: Up to "kill your old boss" scenario #2. Yep. This is a GTA game alright.

[Random Consonant]

Tales of Symphonia - Jesus christ Mithos is epic.

[Jo'ou Ranbu]

SRWW - lol reactor voltekka map

[Captain K.]

Torchlight:  Got it, after about 4 days of trying to connect to Steam servers (seriously, wtf?).  Made a Vanquisher on Normal difficulty.  Up to level 18 at the moment.  Difficulty is kind of all over the place.  Enemies either can't hurt you at all and die in 1 hit or rape you and die in 4 hits.

Also, I knew the game was like Fate, but I didn't realize it WAS Fate.  Way to be a .1 version of another game.  Maybe a .05 version.

[Niu]

Xenosaga 13-

I thought Nomura is not convolved with this? What is the deal with "You must beat every Epitaph missions which are just boring grindfest in order to unlock the broken segments that are essentially secret reports that the end game plot is totally going to not make sense if you don't read". Fucked. It is already bad that plot got brutally cut (To the point even the logo of the game is not making sense), and now they pull this shit? Especially when this super hard and boring to get info actually is the meta plot of FF13 trilogy? Brilliant, just brilliant.

ToG- So until I decide to put up with the Xenosaga 13 again, I am back to this. Just discovered by attaching Guy's element on to the weapon well the make the character that equip the said weapon to be OHKOed by any female type enemy.... I think I can expect what happen with a Barbatos element weapon. Anyway, I still need a set up to defeat Rockgagan without cheating.....

Which brings me back to why Tales of Phantasia's plot is the best in the series because it is so incredibly basic.  There is nothing amazing about the world in RPG terms.  There is a bit of time travel.  That is about it.

I suddenly have the urge to destroy that for you by exposing all the convoluted parallel world crap that ToP has in its bag. Tales with no nonsensical logic does not exist, that simply defies the law of Tales.

[Meeplelard]

Blue Dragon: I think I've reached the section of "Do Side Quests!"  I get this impression based on how a bunch of bright dots appeared on the World Map as soon as I got my flying vehicle and the characters are like "Yeah, lets inspect these areas!"  Also FINALLY got Zola back!  Not that you guys would know that she was gone cause I haven't updated.

Beat the Stone Dragon, who HOLY SHIT A TOUGH FIGHT IN BLUE DRAGON WHAT IS THIS!?  Actually cost me a reset, which is a first for the game outside of some Minigame sequences.  Also did Kealon Village or whatever the area with "GIRLS WANT MARUMARO'S BABIES!"  Also, that sequence just proved that Zola is awesome.  Nice to have another Lulu like character after a while, as in, doesn't show much emotions but that's more of a stoicy kind of personality rather than just being an emo-bitch.  Works well with Blue Dragon's Light hearted nature and nice contrast to the 4 young characters.

[Idun]

Addicted to 1vs100 on XBL.

[Grefter]

Which brings me back to why Tales of Phantasia's plot is the best in the series because it is so incredibly basic.  There is nothing amazing about the world in RPG terms.  There is a bit of time travel.  That is about it.

I suddenly have the urge to destroy that for you by exposing all the convoluted parallel world crap that ToP has in its bag. Tales with no nonsensical logic does not exist, that simply defies the law of Tales.

ToP in game never made me sit there wanting to slap someone, that speaks volumes over pretty much every other Tales game in the series, but yes, with time travel and extra material you are doomed to having alternate reality garbage plot unfortunately.

Captain K.  It is called Diablo, check it out some time.  Edit - Not ot disparage Fate, it is quite a good addition to the genre.

[Meeplelard]

Which brings me back to why Tales of Phantasia's plot is the best in the series because it is so incredibly basic.  There is nothing amazing about the world in RPG terms.  There is a bit of time travel.  That is about it.

I suddenly have the urge to destroy that for you by exposing all the convoluted parallel world crap that ToP has in its bag. Tales with no nonsensical logic does not exist, that simply defies the law of Tales.

ToP in game never made me sit there wanting to slap someone, that speaks volumes over pretty much every other Tales game in the series, but yes, with time travel and extra material you are doomed to having alternate reality garbage plot unfortunately.

More or less this; everytime I hear of ToP's extra material, I want to shoot someone.  The only thing that doesn't is the Dhaos stuff (as in, his motives, characters, etc.) and well, that's mostly stuff you can deduce based on what little the game did tell us in the ending, so its more a case of confirming suspicions than ass pulling facts.

So much extra material in these games that just totally fucks with the plot in question, and Tales is not the only series.  Its rare to see extra info that does nothing more than merely expand upon what we know, and give us little extraneous info that we didn't see.  Those FF6 articles come to mind, where it doesn't screw with what we knew in game already, it just adds extra little tibits to give characters a little more color (like "Hey, Edgar's perverted ways started with his aunt!"  Yeah, its weird, but this is more a simple "suspend belief and you can accept it" kind of weird rather than a "what the fuck were they smoking?" weird.)  Once we delve into shit like, oh, "CAIT SITH IS ACTUALLY ALIVE CAUSE REEVE BREATHED LIFE INTO A BEANIE BABY CAT" is when I start wanting to kill everyone.

[Clear Tranquil]

Star Ocean First Departure- This is a very simpilistic, easy yet fun game. For simpilistic I mainly mean the story which I'd heard bitter SO3 haters rant over on GameFAQs before, it works but I really don't see how it's the best thing since sliced bread yet >.> Of course neither was SO3 but that still had other fun stuffs which they missed out on. Oh well~

I'm currently heading to the Van to finally (hopefully) pick up Ratyx and Millie. I think I might have just majorly screwed up on the recruitment process, losing Phia and Ioshua at the end of the Purgatorium and accidentally saving while thinking about what I'd just done >.> I want Mavelle, Pericci and Welch, is this still possible?~

[Grefter]

It isn't people are just retarded.  It was plot so good that Japan had to keep it for themselves!111!  SO1 plot is pretty much a prolonged Star Trek episode.  It serves a purpose of letting you punch things in the face.

[DjinnAndTonic]

Star Ocean First Departure- This is a very simpilistic, easy yet fun game. For simpilistic I mainly mean the story which I'd heard bitter SO3 haters rant over on GameFAQs before, it works but I really don't see how it's the best thing since sliced bread yet >.> Of course neither was SO3 but that still had other fun stuffs which they missed out on. Oh well~

I'm currently heading to the Van to finally (hopefully) pick up Ratyx and Millie. I think I might have just majorly screwed up on the recruitment process, losing Phia and Ioshua at the end of the Purgatorium and accidentally saving while thinking about what I'd just done >.> I want Mavelle, Pericci and Welch, is this still possible?~

It's been forever since I played SO1, but I'm pretty sure if you lose Joshua, you don't get Mavelle.

[Jo'ou Ranbu]

They changed that in SO1r? In SO original, Joshua was in no way necessary to recruit Mavelle/Marvel.

[DjinnAndTonic]

I think you need Joshua to get the spoilery new SO1r character.

[Jo'ou Ranbu]

Oh, that was in the original! Only it caused you to solely lose Mavelle instead of getting another PC. Fuck you, SO1.

[DjinnAndTonic]

Well, it was nice to have the option to boot -someone- if you wanted to get one of the later characters.

[Jo'ou Ranbu]

The booting happened -after- the window for recruiting just about everyone (except maaaaaaaaybe T'nique) closed. It was glorious.

EDIT: To answer CT, though, I think you -do- lose the chance to grab Mavelle if you lose Ioshua in the "Phia is a fugitive" scenario. That one is a complete mess.

[Meeplelard]

It isn't people are just retarded.  It was plot so good that Japan had to keep it for themselves!111!  SO1 plot is pretty much a prolonged Star Trek episode.  It serves a purpose of letting you punch things in the face.

I would agree except that half the game is Ratix and Iria running around the world doing nothing but SEARCHING FOR THEIR FRIENDS WHICH THEY GOT SEPARATED FROM FOR RANDOM TIME BULLSHIT THE GAME DOESn'T WANT TO GO INTO DEPTH ABOUT!!! (actually, that's probably a good thing here; lets you just shrug your shoulders and go "whatever, we'll assume typical fridge logic"  rather than the game justifying it based off some complete technical mumbo jumbo that just doesn't make remote amount of sense) and you kind of completely lose sight of why you were even in the past to begin with until somewhat later.

So its more like a prolonged Star Trek episode with a huge fucking spin off right in the middle that has nothing to do with anything other than "SAME KARACTARS!"  before you can actually finish watching the episode.

[hinode]

I was in the mood for some hack&slash action, so I went back to an old D2 melee sorc file in Act 4 Nightmare. A green Death Mask dropped on the River of Flame, which is pretty damned nice for a non-twinked melee character, especially at this point. I ID it, go to equip it and... "I can't use that".

What? *checks screen* Oh, level 66 requirement. Seriously Blizzard, who the hell thought L66 for Tal's Mask was a good idea when Death Masks start dropping in the middle of Nightmare? -_-

Aside from that, there were two instances when a randomly generated boss with crazy abilities insta-killed me from near-full health, but Diablo himself was completely trivial. Pretty typical D2 fare.

[Anthony Edward Stark]

It isn't people are just retarded.  It was plot so good that Japan had to keep it for themselves!111!  SO1 plot is pretty much a prolonged Star Trek episode.  It serves a purpose of letting you punch things in the face.

The part of SO4 I actually liked was also basically a Japanese love letter to Star Trek.