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Cosmic Star Heroine |OT| Alyssa's Chrono Phantasy

B

Brashnir

Member
Gaffi said:
Ds4 but I think I set it to "hide" in ds4Windows so it appears as a Xbox one?
Click to expand...

oh hey, that setting fixed my d-pad issue. Thanks!

So I've played a couple hours now. I missed (or just forgot or misunderstood) the part in the tutorial that explains how Hyper mode works, and got to a fight that I just couldn't seem to win. I saw the pips under the health bard for hyper mode, but just didn't understand how they worked.

I went back, re-did the tutorial, and came back and wrecked that fight on the first try. Feels Good Man.

Really enjoying the combat system so far. I was concerned when one of the pre-release posters mentioned that there was a lot of finding weaknesses, but that's definitely not the focus of the system. It's another layer and definitely worth considering, but it's not a game where you just find the weakness and hammer it. Manipulating those hyper pips is so important. It really makes some abilities like (barely a spoiler but just in case)
Sue's attack that increases the damage on the next hit, and Chahn's group Gunmancy
shine.

Hoping that the game's relatively short length for an RPG means that this won't just become a rote exercise in "applying the formula" by the end, but I'm really enjoying it so far.

Playing on Heroine difficulty, btw.
 
D

devious.one

Member
Every time I change my video settings the game crashes. Seems like upon reloading the setting I chose before the crash is saved at least.
 
B

Brashnir

Member
devious.one said:
Every time I change my video settings the game crashes. Seems like upon reloading the setting I chose before the crash is saved at least.
Click to expand...

Yep, I got the same thing. Perhaps the game requires a restart after a video settings change, but they forgot to put in a screen saying so.
 
G

Gaffi

Member
Brashnir said:
oh hey, that setting fixed my d-pad issue. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Cool!

Yeah I'm curious if the controller is sending hidden inputs that mess with the Ali's pathfinding or something but converging and slowing down is a super wierd bug no matter how you slice it.
 
B

Brashnir

Member
Gaffi said:
Cool!

Yeah I'm curious if the controller is sending hidden inputs that mess with the Ali's pathfinding or something but converging and slowing down is a super wierd bug no matter how you slice it.
Click to expand...

It happened to me with multiple controller types. (DS4, 360, Keyboard) It's weird. I only asked which controller you were using because I was having issues with the DS4 and saw you were playing on PC.

It seems to sometimes affect all companions, and sometimes only some of them.
 
G

Gaffi

Member
Brashnir said:
It happened to me with multiple controller types. (DS4, 360, Keyboard) It's weird. I only asked which controller you were using because I was having issues with the DS4 and saw you were playing on PC.

It seems to sometimes affect all companions, and sometimes only some of them.
Click to expand...
Hmm yeah it seems to be happening to me about 50% of the time so far on the first major area. Will try to sus out a pattern if I can.
 
K

Knurek

Member
Are there any plans to add achievements to the PC version? Seeing as PS4 one has a set of trophies...
If so, will they unlock retroactively for people who have already started playing?
 
B

Brashnir

Member
Knurek said:
Are there any plans to add achievements to the PC version? Seeing as PS4 one has a set of trophies...
If so, will they unlock retroactively for people who have already started playing?
Click to expand...

The devs mentioned this upthread. They are planning to add them, and no, they likely won't unlock retroactively.
 
F

Feep

Banned
Hey, guys! I...*think* this is a bug, and it's non-critical, but.

Upon attempting to use my XB1 controller (with wireless dongle), the character seems to be constantly moving to the left. Normally I would ascribe this to something on my end, but I verified the controller and dongle are working with no default input in two other games, and I swapped out to another controller as well, to no success.

If I disconnect the controller dongle it's fine, and I can play with KB/M, but I feel like a 16-bit title really needs that controller goodness. Let me know if you can think of anything!
 
C

Conezays

Member
So the issue of talking to NPC's resulting in repeated text seems to occur the closer you are to them in my experience. Obviously you have to be close enough to initiate dialogue, but if you are "closer than necessary" it seems to trigger the repeated dialogs; your mileage may vary. On PS4 for what it's worth, though it doesn't seem repeatable in all instances.

Very much enjoying the combat so far a few hours in. It has a nice progression of mechanics and abilities opening up.
 
N

Noogy

Member
Feep said:
Hey, guys! I...*think* this is a bug, and it's non-critical, but.

Upon attempting to use my XB1 controller (with wireless dongle), the character seems to be constantly moving to the left. Normally I would ascribe this to something on my end, but I verified the controller and dongle are working with no default input in two other games, and I swapped out to another controller as well, to no success.

If I disconnect the controller dongle it's fine, and I can play with KB/M, but I feel like a 16-bit title really needs that controller goodness. Let me know if you can think of anything!
Click to expand...

Weird to see that pop up, I had that exact same issue about a year ago, same controller and wireless dongle. Never happened since, I'll see if I can replicate it.
 
N

nicanica

Member
This game is real good.

Can't put my finger on the presentation but it just rolls with what it is.
Is it possible to have nostalgia for something you've never experienced before?
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
This game is blowing me away. One of my biggest frustrations with retro send ups of games gone by is when they rest entirely on how much of your nostalgic bone they tickle. They may be competent, but they're generally pale imitations of the games they're pretending to be, and so in the end it barely scratches the itch.

Cosmic Star Heroine is a different beast entirely. Yes, there are references, and yes it is a love letter to various jRPGs of yore - but that's where it ends. It playfully toys with genre conventions, subverting trope after trope whilst creating a battle system that in my view creates a dynamic that is akin to what it would have been like if the traditional jRPG genre had continued to be popular and had more developers iterating on it during the SNES years.

It successfully tackles one of the biggest problems with jRPGs in their traditional form - lots of tedious random battles lacking any strategy, and a billion abilities where you usually end up ignoring 2/3 of them in order to fall back on your "end game moves." This game has you carefully analyzing your load outs, considering which ability to use next, when to rest, how to best coordinate with your team mates. Even the item usage is more strategic, making you decide what you need most in any given battle and capitalizing on it appropriately.

If it were that alone, it'd be one of the most engaging retro jRPGs I've played, but this is the total package. The music is clearly inspired by the Sci-Funk of the 80s and early 90s, with in my view clear send ups to everything from Blade Runner to Labyrinth. The visuals are delightful, with little details peppered around the environment and homages to Chrono Trigger and Phantasy Star being most evident. It's consistently entertaining to explore every environment that Zeboyd has created.

I'm about ten hours in now, and this is genuinely in my top ten for games for the year. That's a year with Persona 5, Horizon: Zero Dawn, NiOh, NiER. I haven't played Zelda, but I think it would still make my top ten. This game is what I've been looking for, scratches every itch.

Really, phenomenal work Robert.
 
T

Teknoman

Member
Amir0x said:
This game is blowing me away. One of my biggest frustrations with retro send ups of games gone by is when they rest entirely on how much of your nostalgic bone they tickle. They may be competent, but they're generally pale imitations of the games they're pretending to be, and so in the end it barely scratches the itch.

Cosmic Star Heroine is a different beast entirely. Yes, there are references, and yes it is a love letter to various jRPGs of yore - but that's where it ends. It playfully toys with genre conventions, subverting trope after trope whilst creating a battle system that in my view creates a dynamic that is akin to what it would have been like if the traditional jRPG genre had continued to be popular and had more developers iterating on it during the SNES years.

It successfully tackles one of the biggest problems with jRPGs in their traditional form - lots of tedious random battles lacking any strategy, and a billion abilities where you usually end up ignoring 2/3 of them in order to fall back on your "end game moves." This game has you carefully analyzing your load outs, considering which ability to use next, when to rest, how to best coordinate with your team mates. Even the item usage is more strategic, making you decide what you need most in any given battle and capitalizing on it appropriately.

If it were that alone, it'd be one of the most engaging retro jRPGs I've played, but this is the total package. The music is clearly inspired by the Sci-Funk of the 80s and early 90s, with in my view clear send ups to everything from Blade Runner to Labyrinth. The visuals are delightful, with little details peppered around the environment and homages to Chrono Trigger and Phantasy Star being most evident. It's consistently entertaining to explore every environment that Zeboyd has created.

I'm about ten hours in now, and this is genuinely in my top ten for games for the year. That's a year with Persona 5, Horizon: Zero Dawn, NiOh, NiER. I haven't played Zelda, but I think it would still make my top ten. This game is what I've been looking for, scratches every itch.

Really, phenomenal work Robert.
Click to expand...

Well thats a purchase for me.
 
F

Feep

Banned
Feep said:
Hey, guys! I...*think* this is a bug, and it's non-critical, but.

Upon attempting to use my XB1 controller (with wireless dongle), the character seems to be constantly moving to the left. Normally I would ascribe this to something on my end, but I verified the controller and dongle are working with no default input in two other games, and I swapped out to another controller as well, to no success.

If I disconnect the controller dongle it's fine, and I can play with KB/M, but I feel like a 16-bit title really needs that controller goodness. Let me know if you can think of anything!
Click to expand...
Apparently this bug has appeared in a few different Unity games. The devs mentioned solving it, but they don't mention *how*. Hmmm.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/391720/discussions/0/517142253856148071/
 
D

DealWithIt

Member
I think the poor devs had a very long night. I'm not sure they slept at all last night and they were up all day. I'm sure they'll pop back in after they get some sleep. It's pretty fun to the OT for an indie title like this popping up a lot thought. Congrats to Zeboyd.
 
F

Feep

Banned
DealWithIt said:
I think the poor devs had a very long night. I'm not sure they slept at all last night and they were up all day. I'm sure they'll pop back in after they get some sleep. It's pretty fun to the OT for an indie title like this popping up a lot thought. Congrats to Zeboyd.
Click to expand...
Absolutely. I remember not sleeping for days during my launch. :(

Sleep well, Zeboyd! Havin' lots of fun, controller or no!
 
Z

zakujanai

Member
Just noticed on EU PSN it now says this is out on the 18th. I'd be annoyed if I was as interested in playing this as I was 3 and a half years ago.
 
F

Forkball

Member
Is this a RPG, JRPG, or SJWRPG?

C9LelT3XoAMLh4f.jpg
 
B

Burt

Member
DealWithIt said:
I think the poor devs had a very long night. I'm not sure they slept at all last night and they were up all day. I'm sure they'll pop back in after they get some sleep. It's pretty fun to the OT for an indie title like this popping up a lot thought. Congrats to Zeboyd.
Click to expand...

Didn't Robert say something earlier about slotting things into a marketing window Playstation had available? I can imagine how hard it would be to ramp up a schedule to get everything together on time for that, but compounding it with the PC release across multiple stores, and handling the Kickstarter end of (both) things while trying to meet that PS window? Can't imagine how much of a crunch that must've been.

Really, truly, 100% hope they come out of the next few days feeling like everything paid off, because they absolutely deserve it. Because this

Amir0x said:
.
Click to expand...

was pretty much right on the money.

Not to toot my own horn (the opposite, really), but for slash000 (Bill, I'm assuming?) to say earlier in this thread that my ~16 hour run was the only full playthrough they had from non-dev team members to determine the length of the game, despite how big of a Kickstarter it was, despite the established quality record of the dev team, despite how many people would've absolutely loved to get their hands on this game for an pre-release run through, well... it shows just how crunched they were. And while I wouldn't say my run was perfectly glitchless, there was nothing in there that came close to damaging my opinion of the game, and I'm confident that everything will be ironed out in a few weeks at most.

Probably still have a busy few days ahead of them considering the range of releases, but huge congrats to the team for everything they've accomplished under obviously insane crunch.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
Chap 2 Chrono Trigger reference:
"You stare at the broken screen, but the image refused to change."

Chacranajxy said:
Lol. I mean, look. We get what he's asking. He just doesn't want the Gone Home of JRPGs.
Click to expand...

Yeah he's basically asking if the game is going to force him to think women are equal and deserve shit like equal pay and whether or not they should have complete autonomy over their bodies. I mean hey it's on him to advertise how big a piece of garbage he is, but we give that a 10/10 on the shithead scale.
 
T

timetokill

Banned
OH shit, I had this on my "looking forward to but forget about it for a while because it's not coming out for a long time" radar. Can't believe it's out! :D Always a nice surprise.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
Muntu said:
It seriously must be hard to live a normal, happy life when something as minor as a female protagonist is such a big trigger warning for these people.
Click to expand...

haha yeah fucking developers inserting political views like "Women are powerful too" and "it's OK to have intelligent, captivating female leads." ;)

Just another sad virgin who is still bitter over how often he was rejected in High School, interpreting how little control he had in that scenario and how alone he felt and so still feels threatened by any appearance that a female might take on a dominant role in his media.

Anyhow, god the soundtrack to Cosmic Star Heroine is SO GOOD. Very few misses so far, almost all of it is superb. Just nailed it out of the park.
 
A

AtomskEater

Member
Redeemed my PSN voucher as soon as it came in. Dedicating my time to Persona 5 right now, so after that I'll be trying out Nier Automata and CSH. Love the great impressions in here, can't wait!
 
cireza

cireza

Member
Amir0x said:
It successfully tackles one of the biggest problems with jRPGs in their traditional form - lots of tedious random battles lacking any strategy, and a billion abilities where you usually end up ignoring 2/3 of them in order to fall back on your "end game moves." This game has you carefully analyzing your load outs, considering which ability to use next, when to rest, how to best coordinate with your team mates. Even the item usage is more strategic, making you decide what you need most in any given battle and capitalizing on it appropriately.
Click to expand...
What you describe looks a lot like Phantasy Star IV or Lunar II or Chrono Trigger.

I mean, there were RPGs back then that required some intelligence in every battle they threw at you.

Some Nintendo Switch plans ?
 
B

Baloonatic

Member
I finished my playthrough and agree with all the positive impressions. Favourite things were the battle system and soundtrack. Cannot praise either of those things enough. Not once did I feel like I was on auto-pilot for the fights and I think that's actually a really impressive thing.

Only complaint is that I ran into a few small bugs. Just weird visual/animation things mostly. Maybe there should have been an autosave slot as well, but whatever. Nitpicking at this point.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
cireza said:
What you describe looks a lot like Phantasy Star IV or Lunar II or Chrono Trigger.

I mean, there were RPGs back then that required some intelligence in every battle they threw at you.

Some Nintendo Switch plans ?
Click to expand...

I've played them all. The level which this game takes it to is genuinely beyond. This is a game where you will be learning most of your skills and when to utilize them, and using your items and making real choices about which to bring into battle. In the other games you can do these things and they provide a level of depth, but you don't need to. In this game if you're playing on a higher difficulty, you must do these things and if you don't you will die.

Whereas I could play Lunar II and Chrono Trigger using only certain skills and certain characters and ignoring the rest and using only certain items and ignoring the rest.

And in random battles, it's no competition. Even in repeat battles I choose from the menu I find myself altering my strategy to try to gain a faster result, because even simple alterations of what you bring into battle can drastically change the landscape. In Chrono Trigger for example I could frequently just mash my way through any random enemy. The way you work with your teammates goes far beyond merely setting up techs in CT or something. It's a delight.

Really play this for a bunch of hours, see the options, see the way the game cleverly leads you into fielding the entire layout of skills and items, see how many nuanced interplay strategies are available and worth exploring. Compare how frequently you use the full range of skills at your disposal versus these other jRPGs you mentioned. Ask yourself which one requires such interplay versus which one you might just want to mix it up for fun because there's no real reason not to use your strongest shit at all times.
 
H

HyperDuckSW

Neo Member
C9MtUjaW0AAf_Mi.jpg


I cannot remember the last time I actually made a mixtape, but we're making 10 of these suckers. Also judge my doodling with a pinch of salt, or sugar, whichever you prefer.
 
J

Jolkien

Member
Just so I can plan my backlog accordingly do we have an estimate on how long the game is ? Already bought it but I'm knee deep in Persona 5
 
D

Dandy Crocodile

Member
Yes, I really like how random battles actually require some strategy, however minor, to beat. You can't just mash A.
Normally RPGs will either have combat that is far too easy and requires no thought OR it'll be something like Radiant Historia where combat is more in depth but there's far too many random battles so it just becomes a drag each time.
This is a great mix of strategic combat with a good, fair number of battles.
 
B

BassForever

Member
Did my part picked up the game on ps4, if its as good as the reviews say I'll potentially double dip for a switch version if it ever happens. Zeboyd's games have been excellent and this looks like their magnum opus.
 
H

Hobbun

Member
So how do you know if the game is the current version?

I downloaded CSH last night from PSN store, and promptly fell asleep during the download. When I woke up, the title screen was up and just shut it off and went to bed. But when I go home tonight and start playing, how will be able to tell if it downloaded the updated version?

Thanks.
 
Cornbread78

Cornbread78

Member
Hobbun said:
So how do you know if the game is the current version?

I downloaded CSH last night from PSN store, and promptly fell asleep during the download. When I woke up, the title screen was up and just shut it off and went to bed. But when I go home tonight and start playing, how will be able to tell if it downloaded the updated version?

Thanks.
Click to expand...


VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Robert at Zeboyd Games said:
PS4 patch is not up yet. You'll know you're playing the finished version of the game if your main menu has "Insight" in it (the beta has a grayed out Chat command).
Click to expand...
 
J

Jeffrey

Member
Still haven't gotten a key yet. Pmed them on KS. Know they are busy as heck right now, but hopefully I can get something before the work day is over for me lol.

Honestly don't even care which platform haha.
 
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