Separate names with a comma.
Those of you who read my last blog entry know that I've been obsessed with Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call for the 3DS lately. What some of you may not know is that I'm a very musically-inclined person, and great music can really influence me and get me in the mood for something. Case in point: I fell in love with Final Fantasy XII's music so much from playing Theatrhythm that I started FFXII up again a few weeks ago. Now, I'm 120 hours into it and still having a blast doing side content. Xenogears' "Soaring" song in Theatrhythm also influenced me to finally purchase Xenogears on PSN to play for the first time. Now, you may be wondering what all this has to do with the blog title. Well, it turns out, I also fell in love with the FFXIV Theatrhythm songs, so I asked a friend who shares very similar interests in games who has played FFXIV (both the original and A Realm Reborn). Upon his recommendation, I caved an did something I've avoided doing for a decade now: purchased and began playing a subscription-based MMO. And really, I must say, I am god damned loving it! Maybe it's my dear love for Xenoblade, which is a single-player RPG whose battle system resembles most MMO's, but I took to the combat instantly. I was naturally overjoyed when I heard the songs I've grown to love from Theatrhythm in their natural environment, and being a long-time Final Fantasy fan, I quickly found myself loving the hell out of all the references to all the various Final Fantasies made throughout the years. Things like Magitek Armor, Fat Chocobo, Ahriman, and Coeurl as mounts; materia slots in armor; job names; and more! I instantly felt at home. Now let me just say, it's unusual for me to consider an MMO because it's by its very nature a social game. To my delight, though, I found that worrying about parties and how you fit into them is really more for instanced events, like duties, raids, or dungeons. A large bulk of the adventuring so far has been solo, which suits me well enough. I'd feel awkward asking people I don't know to just kinda...follow me around while I do stuff. No one wants to do that because it'd be boring. :derpe: I was worried about making friends, though. However, it turns out I needn't have worried at all! Within 3 hours of starting the game, someone came up to me at the warp crystal and invited me to their Free Company (kind of like a guild). Since there's no obligation or anything, I figured I might as well. Gives me some people to talk to who may be more willing to lend a hand or give advice to a newbie. It gets better, though. Today, my third day of playing, I died and revived at the warp crystal I'd set as home, and before I could move on, a Lv18 someone who I noticed a little later belonged to my Free Company, walked up to me and waved. This began a pow-wow where we just sat and talked to each other over the chat. I was surprised at how endearing just sitting and tlaking to another player could be. It may have helped that I was visualizing our two characters conversing in my mind and it looked cute on-screen (well, everything my character does is cute, but more on that in a second). While we were talking, a Lv50 person walked up to us. Not part of our FC or anything, just a random person. She waved to us and we waved back. She asked if we were new players. My compatriot wasn't, but I am, and said so. She sat down with us and joined our conversation. During the course of the conversation, the Lv50 sent me a friend request. This brought to mind that I hadn't exchanged this with the first person, and I did so. Then the Lv18 player logged out and logged back in with her Lv50 character, and we exchanged friend requests again. Near the end of the conversation, the first Lv50 person gifted me a Lapis Lazuli, which I found out, after a bit of research, can be used in the crafting of some very good magic armor (I'm a Thaumaturge, A.K.A. baby's first Black Mage). I asked if they wanted anything in return, and they declined. It was funny how such a little gesture could feel so nice. They also said they'd help me if I ever needed it. After the conversation wound down, I thanked them again and bade farewell because I was itching to get back to adventuring. So in the span of 10 minutes, I made friends with 3 characters, two of which are max level, and received a very nice gift for my class. It's good to see nice people, and I'll see if I can't be as helpful when I get where they are now. Alright, so. Remember when I said that I'd get to the cuteness of my character later? Well, now is that time. My character is named Liliana Blumenthal, a lilac-haired, magenta-eyed, tiny little Lalafell girl with big dreams of making things explode. :derpe: I'm being facetious, but I do find something really adorable about cute little things trying to me megalomaniacs, like when Yzma turns into a kitten at the end of Emperor's New Groove. [video=youtube;qfcEHOrhJmQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfcEHOrhJmQ[/video] Nah, but seriously, Liliana is just a little thing trying to make her way like everyone else. Not much else I can say to do her cuteness justice, so I'll just post these! Spoiler: LOOT AT HER! DO IT. DIABEETUS SO. If anyone else plays Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, I invite you to get in touch with me in-game. The character is Liliana Blumenthal on the Aether data center in the Gilgamesh world!
A lot of things have been going on, but not a lot of progress has been made in the process. My friend and I are still tossing ideas around for bringing back Ookami Den, but if we do bring it back, it will likely not be until we get a place together, so we can work on the post-recording stuff together. I know that if I tried to do it all again by myself, I'd get burnt out and stop again, so I'm hoping having my partner support me in a more literal sense (he lived a long way away before, but he's back in my town now) will help keep me motivated and keep the workload lighter. Also, I'm in the works for a potential new job. It'll be full time, 30-35 hours per week with benefits. Not like the ridiculous 40 hour per week "part-time" bullcrap at Walmart with no benefits at all. To top it off, there's room for advancement, again unlike Walmart. My friend, who also works here, says that the store manager at the location I'd be working at hires people he expects to advance, which would say a lot about me if I do get the job. So fr, I've had two interviews: a group interview with the district manager, and a solo interview/store tour with the store manager. I heard from my friend that the district manager had positive things to say about me, and the store manager told me to my face that he really liked everything he'd heard form me during the interview, so I'm pretty optimistic! Just gotta find a way to get past the drug screening. Unfortunately, I'm fat, and even though I haven't smoked any weed in a month, there's still a good chance it might show up because of my body fat. I'll figure something out. In other news, I've been addicted to Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call for the 3DS for the past few months. It's so fun to play a well-made rhythm game and play along with my favorite Square-Enix music tracks, from almost every Final Fantasy game to even some other Square-Enix RPGs (E.g. Nier, Chrono Trigger, Bravely Default, Xenogears). Over the months, I've worked myself up to being really good at the highest difficulty, having a perfect score on around 8 or so songs now. Here's an example of a song from the game, so you know what I'm talking about. It's not me playing, but I have gotten a perfect score on the second one too. The first one, not so much, but I did have a fluke run where I got 4 Greats and everything else was Critical (perfect): [video=youtube;VsgQq4HWWoc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsgQq4HWWoc[/video] [video=youtube;k2oYsAKT704]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2oYsAKT704[/video] P.S.: If anyone with a Wii U wants to play Smash Bros, feel free to contact me!
I was watching THE WORST GAME EVER MADE by Caddicarus with a friend while high and we both almost died from suffocation laughing at a specific bit, so I thought I'd make a 10-minute version of it. Enjoy! [youtube]UFf6c0gLUWg[/youtube]
Hey guys, long time no speak, at least when it comes to my life. As many of you may know, I have a new job and it's going pretty well. I enjoy the overnight aspect because our department has no manager looming over us at night, but at 6:00 AM, the department manager comes in and she's a total *****. The good news there is I only have to deal with her for an hour before I go home. Aside from that, I can work at my own pace, drowning out the awful Christmas music with my own much more awesome Xenoblade soundtrack. In other news, my BFF has finally moved back to Georgia after living out of state for 6 years. This is bittersweet, though, as he moved back because he and his boyfriend couldn't live together anymore, and went their own ways. I'm ecstatic to have him back in my life, but heartbroken that it came at a painful cost. But! We have tentative plans to start looking for a place so we can both move out of our parents' houses, along with another mutual friend of ours. I count myself very lucky indeed that my first experience with roommates are with two people I already know very well and love. Also, I just found out today that my stepfather, the one that's been out of work for 2 years because of that RETARDED accident with my mom's medicine, may well have a job lined up at long last. I don't want to jinx anything, but I feel I may see a light at the end of the tunnel after 2 years of utter destitution. We're crossing our fingers! And with the return of my BFF comes the possible return of Ookami Den! Now that he's here, we can play more games and he can help with the editing process, where before we recorded and I did everything else after that. Would anyone be interested in our triumphant return? I'm thinking Xenoblade Chronicles as our next game! Please leave your feedback. :3 That's it for now! It's been fun catching up with you guys. Til next time! UPDATE: MY STEPFATHER GOT THE JOB!
Now, I've been ecstatic for a while about Shulk's inclusion in the new Smash Bros. games. He's the Xenoblade representative and Xenoblade is one of my favorites games ever, so my reaction was basically this when I saw the reveal trailer: [video=youtube;WahJHDrfT7k]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WahJHDrfT7k[/video] But that's not why I've gathered you all here today. We're here today to see a truly unexpected, but incredibly welcome, piece of awesomeness that has spawned from Shulk's exposure to a wider audience. A true gem created by a Smash fan. Disclaimer: I am not actually certain this video was made by a Smash fan rather than a Xenoblade fan, nor do I know if Smash Bros. was even responsible for inspiring the creator to make this. There is a good probability that this blog is being typed up by my astoundingly dextrous butt muscles. And so, without further ado, the main attraction: [youtube]uYyzc8vffKk[/youtube]
Fair warning: I wasn't as trigger happy with my camera as I usually am, but I still got some good cosplay pics. Not a whole lot to say about this one. Not that it was bad, because it wasn't. I just personally didn't do a whole lot there. First off, on Friday, got off work at 7am and decided to stay up until that night to force myself to adjust to a normal sleep schedule for the con. When I got there, I spent some time perusing the dealer's room and artist alley to see what jumped out at me, the result being a couple of figurines, a plush, and a number of art prints. I noticed that the Japanese voice actor for Dandy from SPace Dandy was there and, knowing how huge a fan of Dandy my friend was, I told her about it. She got really bummed because she wasn't going to attend AWA this year, so I offered to swing by her place to take something of hers she wanted signed. She drew up a picture of Dandy's head and gave it to me to get signed, so I did that. The VA was even dressed up as Dandy. It was great. I also noticed a Space Dandy art print in the artist alley and got that for her as well. After that was done, I went to a screening of One Piece: Film Z, but at that point, my lack of sleep was really catching up to me. I was nodding off every 20 seconds or so, so I couldn't follow the movie much at all. All I knew from the movie is that child Nami is adorable beyond words (her age was regressed by one of the antagonists' Devil Fruit powers). Spoiler: Look at her. LOOK After that, I was concerned about how much my fatigue was getting to me, so I decided to head on the perilous journey home before it got worse. Perilous because I was shaking off sleep every 10 seconds driving on the freeway for 40 minutes. x_x Saturday, I picked up a few more figurines and a plush from the dealer's room, went to a screening of the first two episodes of Kill La Kill (awesome anime if you like crazy things), and attended a Q&A panel for Vic Mignogna, a highly talented and well-known voice actor. I had planned to go to his autograph session after his panel, but a series of unfortunate events saw me locked out of that opportunity. I got there 20 minutes early (2:40), but the line was full and the staff member said to come back in half an hour or so, to give the line time to die down. So I came back at 3:10 and the line was even longer, with people waiting outside the line to get a chance to get in. A different staff member said to come back in 20-30 minutes. So I came back at around 3:40 and was informed that the line was halfway dwindled. Feeling hopeful, I approached yet a different staff member only to be informed that the line was regretfully closed off and not admitting any more people. I was so irritated that after looking at my schedule and noticing the only other thing I wanted to do for the rest of the day was still 2 and a half hours away, I said screw it and went home. Sunday, today, was a bit of a hassle. I had planned to go to two things today: The voice actor round table at noon, and another screening of One Piece: Film Z at 1:00, fully awake this time. Unfortunately, the Vic Mignogna autograph session today was at 1:30, so I had to miss both the things I wanted to attend in order to make it to the autograph session. The first thing I had to miss because I didn't want to get screwed again by not being early enough, and the second because the autographs happened at the same time. But I suppose it was worth it, since I got a pic with him and something autographed. It was a good day, all things considered. Unfortunately, I got out of the autograph signing at 2:30, and the only other thing I wanted to go to, a screening of Lupin III: Castle Cogliostro, had started at 2:00. So I just kinda shrugged and called it a day. I got another figurine and an autograph, so it was a successful day, I'd say. Apparently, though, some crap went down (in one case, literally) Saturday night after I left. There was an attempted date rape, I presume after the AWA mixer. It was foiled by an guy cosplaying as Maes Hughes from Fullmetal Alchemist. I heard the girl said "I was saved by a state alchemist!" My inner nerd said "He's not an alchemist, just a soldier." I also hear someone pulled the fire alarm and that caused a stink. Even more, one couple apparently had sex on the stairwell during said alarm. This baffles me because they presumably had a hotel room. Go figure. I also heard that a group of Homestuck cosplayers went around and graffitied a bunch of the bathrooms, in one case smearing poop on the wall in the shape of a smiley face. What the actual ****, AWA. Oh well, at least I wasn't there for all that. Anyway, enough rambling on. Time for pics! Junichi Suwabe dressed as Dandy - https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/73613383/Conventions/AWA 2014/IMG_8327.JPG Spoiler: Nami and Luffy from One Piece Spoiler: EXTERMINATE Spoiler: The whole Regular Show crew Spoiler: Zelda and Hilda from Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds Spoiler: Attack on Pocky Spoiler: Sasami and Tsunami from Tenchi Muyo! Spoiler: Eevee, Vaporeon, and Umbreon from Pokemon Spoiler: Me and Vic Mignogna doing Edward Elric's transmutation clap Spoiler: The crap I bought Spoiler: Perona, KOS-MOS, Caimie + Pappagu, Don Quixote Doflamingo, Chopper figurines and Usopp bobblehead Spoiler: Fake Chopper and Lapras plushies Spoiler: One Piece Strawhat crew fanart signed by Vic Mignogna, who sang the Funimation English versions of "We Are" and "To the Light", two of One Piece's openings Spoiler: One Piece fanart (MASSIVE SPOILERS IF YOU'RE NOT CAUGHT UP WITH THE SERIES) Spoiler: Disgaea fanart featuring Pleinair, Flonne, Laharl, Etna, Hanako, and prinnies TF2 fanart featuring a spy being burned by a pyro - https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/73613383/Conventions/AWA 2014/IMG_8366.JPG The signed drawing and art print I got for my friend - https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/73613383/Conventions/AWA 2014/IMG_8368.JPG
After interviewing for Walmart for a week for overnight stocker and hearing nothing back, I got a call from a different Walmart wanting to interview me for overnight produce. This Walmart offered me a job on the spot after the interview, and I'm now one drug test away from once more being employed! It's been a year and 3 weeks coming, but my unemployment is at an end, and it feels good. Now, this all sounds like sugar and rainbows, right? Well, there's a couple downsides: 1. It's overnight, so I'll be working between 10pm and 7am. Not a huge deal. I can adjust for it. But it becomes a bigger deal in conjunction with number 2. 2. The pay is pretty awful. I'm going to be making $8.60 an hour, and that's WITH the extra pay I get for working nights. That's 50 cents per hour less than I was making as a cart pusher by the time I left, and 40 cents less that my starting wage as a cashier 3 and a half years ago. I don't know how this could be. Did Walmart severely slash its wages in the year I've been gone? I don't know. In the end, what this means for me is this will be a temporary gig while I continue to search for better opportunities. I really want to get into warehousing. Lots of activity to get me fit, and good pay after some time.
Toshio Suzuki, general manager of Studio Ghibli, announced today that they are shutting down their animation department. This is a truly saddening day for animation enthusiasts the world over. http://www.hypable.com/2014/08/03/studio-ghibli-announces-closure/ UPDATE: The original translation was bad and it should feel bad. What Suzuki said was that they're temporarily halting production following the reitirement of Miyazaki in order to assess the direction they want to go. Studio Ghibli is okay!
http://variety.com/2014/digital/new...-all-seasons-under-exclusive-pact-1201261659/ Yep. I just found out that South Park will now only be available for streaming on Hulu Plus. This is a really dumb move for South Park, and I'm 90% certain that the creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, had nothing to do with this deal. It's far more likely that it was done over their heads and they're probably just as pissed about it as the rest of the fans. See, up until now, there was an amazing site called South Park Studios, where you could stream any and every episode save for a handful completely for free. It was one of the best services ever and kept many people entertained for a long time, myself included. Have a scene stuck in your head? You can watch the episode it's from instantly. Or, at least, you could have. Now Hulu's taken over and, come September, the only episodes aired on South Park Studios will be the newest episode, and only the day after it airs on TV. Apart from that, viewers will have access to 30 random episodes per day. All "powered by Hulu". Which means 15+ full-length commercials in each episode that can't be blocked by Adblocker (trust me, I tried). Yeah, I'm a bit pissed at this. P.S. Hulu, you will never be as good as Netflix. You know why? They cost the same amount as you, have NO ADS AT ALL and access to many, many more amazing TV shows and movies than you ever will.
I came across this. It is awesome, and I love it. [video=youtube;CrxGLptTXyA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrxGLptTXyA[/video]
I didn't really ask for anything for my birthday, but I was talking to my mom about not being able to see the chat box when streaming full-screen, and I mentioned I'd need two monitors to be able to see it. While she was at my brother's house, she must have relayed the message to my brother, and lo and behold, a new monitor arrived at my house via UPS! Honestly, at first I felt awkward. I was very grateful. It's a really good monitor, but I was only musing when I mentioned needing two the see the chat box. I had no intention of getting a second monitor, so I felt simultaneously awkward and grateful for the gift. I invited my friend over to hang out and we could put our heads together so I could decide if I would use the new monitor, because I would hate for it to go to waste, and it would be in poor form to return a gift. A gift is a gift, and it should be accepted in good faith because the person who gave it to you was thinking of you. So! As a result, I have a shiny new monitor, and a dual-monitor setup! Observe! Spoiler: Shulk Xenoblade cosplay Dark Souls II character. Great Magic Weapon-ed Claymore = MONADO ENCHANT Spoiler: Monado...BUSTER! Also known as Soul Greatsword
Long ago, the world was nothing more than an endless sea, cloaked in a boundless sky, reaching as far as could possibly be imagined. Then, two great titans came into existence: The Bionis and the Mechonis. The titans were locked in a timeless battle, until at last, only their lifeless corpses remained. Eons have passed. Now, our world, this vast land stretching across the remains of the Bionis, is under attack from a relentless force known as the Mechon. Hello and welcome to my review of Xenoblade Chronicles! I just finished this wonderful game last night and couldn't refrain from sharing my opinion and enthusiasm. Exploration, side quests, music, character interaction, we've have it all! Xenoblade is a game made by Monolith Software, who are acclaimed for their work on their other successful Xeno-titled RPG Xenogears and Xenosaga (the former I have yet to play, the latter is my favorite PS2 RPG, bar none). This game takes a unique approach to world-building in that the world you traverse is actually the body of a titan, and the environments are shaped in such a way to give that impression, where possible. If I were to try to explain the game experience to an outsider, I suppose I might say it's like a cross between Elder Scrolls and Final Fantasy XII. That may sound weird, but bear with me. What I mean is that exploration and side quests are a huge part of the game, but it's not open world like TES, but rather separate locations, like FFXII. However, these locations are HUGE and offer plenty of things to find. You encounter and fight enemies right on the field, which is what reminds me of Final Fantasy XII, but though the creator said the combat system was inspired by FFXII, the similarities pretty much end there. This is good, of course, since we want Xenoblade to be its own game, and boy, is it ever. Well, that's enough gabbing, so let's just dive right in, shall we? STORY The story follows Shulk, a young man living on Colony 9, a mostly Homs (human) colony located on the Bionis' calf. He spends his time salvaging Mechon remains, inventing things, and studying a mysterious energy sword called the Monado alongside his mentor, Dickson. The Monado is strange in that no one seems able to wield it without putting their body in great danger. It left it previous user's right arm almost completely inoperable. Apart from studying this enigmatic blade, Shulk lives a peaceful life with his friends. Events unfold that lead Shulk and his friend Reyn into a nearby cave at the order of Colonel Vangarre, a.k.a. Square-tache. Square-tache. If you're wondering if you'll ever be able to take any scene this guy's in seriously, the answer is no. After accomplishing their goal, something happens back at the colony that requires them to return with all haste. Or, if you're like me, you continue exploring and killing random wildlife. LOL What's happening at Colony 9? Who knows? Doesn't matter. The game will wait for me to get there. In the meantime, I don't like the look this rabbit is giving me. That's enough synopsis, I think. All in all, this game's story is a very good one. It doesn't necessarily offer anything particularly unique; in fact, it's pretty much standard shounen anime cheesiness. Where it shines, though, is how it portrays it scenes and ideas. It may tell a standard, story, but it tells it in an excellent way that leaves an impression. I always found myself wanting to know what happens next, and the events unfold in a way that made me really care about the characters and their struggles. The story is full of twists and turns, and tons of subtle foreshadowing that you wouldn't catch on to until your second play through the game. What starts out as a simple journey to exact revenge turns into something great and epic. Along the way, you meet different sentient races, and experience beautiful new locations. CHARACTERS As stated, the story presents itself in such a way that makes you feel for the characters and their hardships. The party characters do tend to be common archetypes, but they are capable of surprising you. Reyn is your usual hot-blooded guy, who protects his best friend Shulk and prefers getting his hands dirty to standing back and thinking about a situation. Things like that. What I like about this game, though, is that its side quests even made me feel for some of the NPCs, which is rare in a game. You talk to NPCs to discover relationships they have with other NPCs, and are often given quests based on those relationships. This is actually a big part of gameplay, which I will cover down the line. Suffice it to say that if you get sucked into the world of Xenoblade, and read the text of each line named NPCs have, you'll get a feel that everyone has their own lives, worries, personalities, etc. And I love that in a game. Now granted, mileage may vary here, but I enjoyed it. Voice acting in this game is very well done, as well. Since America was originally denied Xenoblade thanks to Nintendo of America being wankers, the English version of this game was made in the UK. As a result, the voice acting is British and is a pretty refreshing change from the usual voice actors you hear in JRPGs (as much as I love Yuri Lowenthal and Johnny Yong Bosch, they're in everything). On top of that, these British actors do a really good job of delivering their lines and making the characters come alive ("It's Reyn Time!") WORLD Easily one of Xenoblade's best aspects. The world is massive, imaginative, and every single area is breathtaking in it own right. This game is unique in that it takes place literally on the body of a dead titan. This gave the developers so much room for unique and inspired art direction, and by god, did they deliver. The above is a picture of the Bionis' Leg (the top of the thigh, to be precise), the second major location of the game. As you explore, you can see the curvature of the leg and how it's part of the titan as a whole. As you look up into the sky, in the distance, you can make out the Mechonis beyond some clouds, its sword forever lodged in the Bionis' side, as shown in the above picture. Every area has its own unique charm to it. Take Satorl Marsh, for instance. In the daytime, it's a dreary, foggy swamp filled with lifeless trees and poisonous bogs. But when day turns to night, you are greeted with a sight you never thought possible of this gloomy place. That fog and mist that was so eerie in the day? Yeah, it looks completely different at night. Take a look at the video below. The transition from day to night begins at around 2:50 and ends around 4:10. [youtube]DTTWjh3JqtM[/youtube] I mean just look at it. That visual, that song...I'll get into that more in the music section. There's not much more I can really say on the subject. I can only really show you pictures of different areas, but they really need to be experienced first-hand. Eryth Sea Great Makna Falls GRAPHICS I suppose I should have made graphics and world part of the same things, but the world is such a big part of the game, I thought it deserved its own section. I'll be blunt. The graphics in this game aren't great. The textures in particular are noticeably terrible when viewed up close, which is unavoidable in some cutscenes. They look like something from an early-midlife PS2 game. I know the Wii isn't an HD console, but it is more powerful than the PS2. I can only surmise the textures look like that because the Wii has to render entire areas at once, which is impressive in scope for the Wii, so I can't fault it for that. This game is a perfect example of how art direction can trump processing limitations. The textures may be low-detail, but as I've shown you, the world and art of the game are nothing short of astounding. While not technically a point about the graphics, one little thing I liked about the game is that every change of weapon and piece of armor you make is reflected in the characters' models. This holds true in cutscenes as well, and the game even remembers the equipment you were wearing at a specific time when it does a flashback. It's a little thing, but it's a thing I find really nifty in a game. GAMEPLAY Another area where the game shines. I know I made mention that its combat system was inspired by Final Fantasy XII, and that is apparent with how you do battle right on the field. But that's honestly where the similarities end. Xenoblade's combat system is deeper than that of FFXII in general. When in battle, your characters auto-attack at set intervals unless they use an art, which is like a special attack with different effects. These arts run on cooldown timers not unlike Mass Effect 1. Positioning is important for many characters. Shulk, for example, has an attack that lowers the opponent's defense if it hits from the side, and another that doubles its damage when he attacks from behind. There's also a trio of status effects that are pretty important: Break, Topple, and Daze. When you hit an enemy with an art that puts them in Break, that leaves them open to be hit with a Topple art. When toppled, the enemy can't attack and you do extra damage to it. If you hit it with a Daze art while Toppled, they get frozen in place (and the timer for topple stops while it's dazed, too), and it doesn't gain any aggro for the duration of Daze. It's kind of hard to explain. Like many things in the combat system, it's better experienced than explained. Xenoblade doesn't have the custom AI gambit system from FFXII, for better or worse. Sometimes your party members can be dunces in battle (looking at you, Shulk. I needed you to use Purge ages ago, but no, keep spamming Speed while we kill ourselves with spike damage). Another huge part of gameplay are the side-quests. There's so many side-quests. The count totals at over 400. As I said before, many of these side-quests are used to flesh out the world and its inhabitants. My main gripe, though, is that 9 times out of 10, these quests amount to little more than "collect this many things," "kill this many of this monster," "find this one thing," or "kill this unique monster." A little more variety would have been appreciated, but what can you do? It's also worth noting that if you do every single side-quest when it becomes available, it's pretty easy to lose your grasp on the story if your memory is bad. Not doing quests, though, can leave you high and dry late in the game and leave you without access to quests that grant you skill trees, powerful weapons, armor, etc. So it's really about finding a balance between playing the story and doing side quests. Most quests can be available at any time, so there's really no rush to get them done. The only quests you need to look out for are the ones with a clock on them. That means they're timed and will be unavailable after certain story events. Of course, the game doesn't tell you which events to look out for, so you'd need to consult outside resources to know (the Xenoblade wiki is a wonderful resource). All-in-all, because I found the world, music, and combat system so fun, I didn't mind doing the side-quests, but I fully admit it's up to personal taste. MUSIC Ah, the music. There really isn't much I can say about this game's wonderful soundtrack. Every area has 2 different songs that play depending on whether it's day or night, and they always perfectly fit the feel of the area. This game's soundtrack is one of my favorites in recent memory, and is one of the biggest highlights of Xenoblade. My two favorite tracks are as different from each other as they could possibly be. The first is one of the boss songs. The game uses it for battles against unique monsters and particularly intense boss battles in the story, and it's just the thing to get me pumped and excited. The second song is one of the most serene and beautiful songs I've ever heard in a video game. It's the song that plays in Satorl Marsh during the night, perfectly complemented by the visuals I showed you in the video in the World section. [youtube]ooZyHLLQ5e8[/youtube] Aww yeaahhhh! Let's do this ****! [youtube]75YyJ9FQnMI[/youtube] Damn it, who cut all these onions? CONCLUSION So, in conclusion, if you like RPGs and have a Wii, you owe to yourself to try this game out. From the story, to the music, to the art, to the world, to the characters, to the battle system (to the left, to the right, make noise!), this game has it all. I'm fully aware that this game isn't for everyone, though. The massive amount of side quests can put a hamper on the pacing, but the good thing is that you're in control of how many side quests you do and when. All things considered, I'd highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys RPGs. There's not really much more I can say other than this game is a blast.
This time around, the guys play with fire, discuss wearing hats, and are still waiting for dragons to show up. [youtube]FG6VywSwSr8[/youtube]
This place sucks. You all suck. Ponies suck. Friendship sucks. It can all rot for all I care. Spoiler: SUCK YOU STUPID CLOWN
Bad move. I'm Justin, obviously. Plus it would be prudent to point out that the premise of the original post is flawed in the first place. Chances are high someone just took a photo and put whatever text they wanted to it. The dude could be successful for all well know. But nah, his kind made "bad" choices and must always be at the bottom of society. Spoiler: Biggish image
