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[Ruff]

I don't know what to tell you. The depth IS there if you want it. It's more important to realize that Automata first and foremost a Nier game, with platinum flavor combat, not a Bayo clone. I personally didn't hate the gameplay in N1 as much as the clunky animations, crappy combat loop, reliance on certain OP magic and the annoyance of getting constantly chain KO'd. The style of gameplay was fine, but Cavia wasn't good at the execution. The sequel fixes that without giving it a completely new identity which is fine by me. I still feel like I'm playing a massively improved Nier game, rather than Bayo with a new skin.

Anyway, way off topic here So i'll stop.

 

[Koozek]

I thought that Automata's combat was poor. It was really limited and lacked depth, with very few combo options. Felt more like a shallow hack and slash than an action RPG. I know it's unpopular opinion.

XV' combat can be just as shallow, but at least, for me, it's unique. With things like the holding mechanics, warp strike, link-strikes, the way they handled aerial combat, it just feels fresh and new and unlike any other game even if it has little depth to it. Automata just feels like a poor man's Bayonetta.

That's said, Automata's combat is more polished and responsive, so there's that.

I know what you mean, but as you said it's just much more responsive and utilized better in the encounter designs of enemies and bosses. To be fair, the team said they dumbed down combat so it would be more accessible for RPG-fans and those who aren't as good at pure Hack & Slash/Character Action games. It never was supposed to be like Bayonetta/DMC.

FFXV feels like the team absolutely had no prior experience with fully action-based combat (and, well, they didn't). If BD2 learned a few lessons about audiovisual telegraphing of animations, encounter design (especially for bosses), animation priority, targeting, camera etc. then FFXV could've been incredible because it does definitely have some cool elements to it that add variety to battles like warping, Techniques, magic, party attacks, finishers, parries etc. but a lot of it is still flawed (which, again, is why I'd almost welcome a FFXV-2 with an improved battle-system, seeing how FFX-2 and LR are the best systems in the series). The potential was there.

 

[Koozek]

If you haven't yet, in Nier Automata, get the Engine Blade and get it to Level 4

Waaait a minute. For real?? I have the blade, but never used it. Fake-EDIT: Oh man, I thought you meant there was a warp-strike, but it seems it only changes the color of the dodge particle effects to blue like in FFXV

 

[iamdarkcloud]

I am stuck between feeling ripped off because I blew through it in under an hour or so & feeling totally fulfilled since the Final Trial is the most fun I've had in a while

-- wondering if multiplayer is going to be a combination of this and the last battle (Dissidia meets Soul Caliber by way of Dark Souls) or is that hopeful thinking? -- it's probably going to be monster slaying with 4 people, isn't it?

also Prompto looking intense in that teaser for his episode - here's hoping it fleshes out that "revelation" that still has me rolling my eyes

 

[Ricker]

Just finished it this morning and I liked it...good music,nice little dungeon,looks great as well...only complaint is the lenght,since I am not interested in the trials and time attack thing,1 hour and 15 minutes is a little short,even for 5 bucks...that Prompto tease looked great,looking forward to it...

This got back into the regular game,even if I beat the main story,which is what part of DLC's are meant to do lol...

 

[Koozek]

I am stuck between feeling ripped off because I blew through it in under an hour or so & feeling totally fulfilled since the Final Trial is the most fun I've had in a while

-- wondering if multiplayer is going to be a combination of this and the last battle (Dissidia meets Soul Caliber by way of Dark Souls) or is that hopeful thinking? -- it's probably going to be monster slaying with 4 people, isn't it?

also Prompto looking intense in that teaser for his episode - here's hoping it fleshes out that "revelation" that still has me rolling my eyes

Apparently the multiplayer won't be with the main party but with generic Kingsglaive characters and they probably are able to warp too like in the movie (hopefully!). From the recent Polygon feature:

"There are a lot of things I can't really say about the multiplayer future just yet," Tabata says, "but it will tie into the game — the main game — at some point in the story. And for the multiplayer feature, we are less focused on playing as the four main characters but rather as an avatar that the user creates themselves. So rather than having you and your friends play as these four guys and experience their journey again together, it's more about the journey that you and your friends have together with each other in this world."

Tabata's description of 15's multiplayer mode seems to line up with fan speculation [S/O to GAFer @Muscle Wizard!] that it will be set during the main story's 10-year time skip. The popular line of thought is that the multiplayer component seems likely to repurpose the main game's assets in order to allow players to experience the world of Eos's descent by way of a cooperative take on the story mode's combat system — one that replaces AI-controlled companion characters with other players.​

 

[Solid Sora]

I know what you mean, but as you said it's just much more responsive and utilized better in the encounter designs of enemies and bosses. To be fair, the team said they dumbed down combat so it would be more accessible for RPG-fans and those who aren't as good at pure Hack & Slash/Character Action games. It never was supposed to be like Bayonetta/DMC.

FFXV feels like the team absolutely had no prior experience with fully action-based combat (and, well, they didn't). If BD2 learned a few lessons about audiovisual telegraphing of animations, encounter design (especially for bosses), animation priority, targeting, camera etc. then FFXV could've been incredible because it does definitely have some cool elements to it that add variety to battles like warping, Techniques, magic, party attacks, finishers, parries etc. but a lot of it is still flawed (which, again, is why I'd almost welcome a FFXV-2 with an improved battle-system, seeing how FFX-2 and LR are the best systems in the series). The potential was there.

Fair enough. I totally get why would anyone prefer any of the two games over the other, combat wise. It's a classic case of polished vs. uniqueness imo.

The thing that I don't really get is how could you consider Nier the best ARPG combat when it just feels like a simpler hack and slash , but I guess this's way out of topic here.

Regarding the sequel talk, I just hope that Tabata's new IP will use an updated version of XV' combat. Would be interesting.

Apparently the multiplayer won't be with the main party but with generic Kingsglaive characters and they probably are able to warp too like in the movie (hopefully!). From the recent Polygon feature:

"There are a lot of things I can't really say about the multiplayer future just yet," Tabata says, "but it will tie into the game — the main game — at some point in the story. And for the multiplayer feature, we are less focused on playing as the four main characters but rather as an avatar that the user creates themselves. So rather than having you and your friends play as these four guys and experience their journey again together, it's more about the journey that you and your friends have together with each other in this world."

Tabata's description of 15's multiplayer mode seems to line up with fan speculation [S/O to GAFer @Muscle Wizard!] that it will be set during the main story's 10-year time skip. The popular line of thought is that the multiplayer component seems likely to repurpose the main game's assets in order to allow players to experience the world of Eos's descent by way of a cooperative take on the story mode's combat system — one that replaces AI-controlled companion characters with other players.​

I still think they will use the 4 characters play-styles as classes or something. It would be a waste if you can only play as a Noctis clone in the online mode, when they have 3 other different play-styles ready to use.

 

[Arkeband]

Waaait a minute. For real?? I have the blade, but never used it. Fake-EDIT: Oh man, I thought you meant there was a warp-strike, but it seems it only changes the color of the dodge particle effects to blue like in FFXV

It also changes the damage text, sort of like how the Cypres Stick changes damage numbers to the new style of DQ splashy damage numbers, and also changes chests to look like DQ treasure chests.

 

[royox]

Not sure why people are praising a sub 2-hours DLC for almost $10.

That's not the question. You should ask why people are praising a sub-2 hours DLC for 5$ that SHOULD be on the retail game as it explains some major stuff about one of the 4 characters we use. "hey Noct, I'm leaving for a while LoL, see ya on the next chapter!" And same for Cor "prince, I'm so sorry I couldn't be there to save your dad...I should stay with you and at least protect you, my new King...but I'm leaving for no reason LoL!! Buy my dlc for me not to leave Your side for literally no reason!".

 

[Arkeband]

That's not the question. You should ask why people are praising a sub-2 hours DLC for 5$ that SHOULD be on the retail game as it explains some major stuff about one of the 4 characters we use. "hey Noct, I'm leaving for a while LoL, see ya on the next chapter!" And same for Cor "prince, I'm so sorry I couldn't be there to save your dad...I should stay with you and at least protect you, my new King...but I'm leaving for no reason LoL!! Buy my dlc for me not to leave Your side for literally no reason!".

Well that's the inherent stupidity of the FFXV story - on the way down to Titan, Gladio pulls you aside and explains to you, the person he's been looking after for years, that he's your bodyguard - this exposition is in the midst of Titan waking up. Like, is this the time? Nothing else happening right now that is more important than explaining to your friend your backstory...? Maybe... a giant who has been asleep for ??? of years that no one's been particularly concerned about is about to free himself and rampage across the landscape?!!?

For a 'fantasy based on reality', no one acts like a human being. Of course the bodyguard later ditches his liege to gain power he then doesn't use when he comes back. It makes perfect sense that Gladio would do this, because he's been doing nonsensical shit from the very beginning, along with the rest of the inhabitants of this country. The world building makes no sense when put under even the most minor of scrutiny.

 

[Ludens]

Tried for two hours to fight

Spoiler

Cor

with no success. For me the parry is inconsistent, I can't make it work properly half of the times. When I defend, even with a full stamina bar, often Gladio won't use his shield, so I take all the hits. Plus when I'm winning the fight, Cor literally starts to spawn his awful "Holy Impact" out of nothing, like he is 50 seconds of an entire minute in his red form. Also when I use a potion or a phoenix down, even if he is far away, he comes near me, attacking me and taking care of a good chunk of my health bar before I can even control Gladio again.

 

[IvorB]

Shame we couldn't play as him in the main game; I might have been more receptive to it.

 

[B00TE]

Shame we couldn't play as him in the main game; I might have been more receptive to it.

Was hoping they'd make the party members playable as their DLC came out, personally.

Haven't played this yet, but I love the music they added with it. Been listening to it since last night. Love the boss/trial theme.

 

[Slaythe]

Beat it last night. Gladio's movement and attacking somehow feels a bit more responsive, but man, coming from the best ARPG combat in NieR: Automata.

2FM is by far Square's best action rpg. Ps4 version's smoothness is fantastic, if I may add.

 

[Solid Sora]

2FM is by far Square's best action rpg. Ps4 version's smoothness is fantastic, if I may add.

Can't agree more. I'll also add that KH2FM+ also has the best action RPG combat of all time. Still unrivaled, even by the series most current effort in 0.2.

 

[ShadowSoldier89]

2FM is by far Square's best action rpg. Ps4 version's smoothness is fantastic, if I may add.

2FM is garbage tier compared to Nier A

 

[Perfo]

Just finished it! I honestly liked it way more than what I would've thought. Maybe this is what the game needed afterall, a more focused experience and tight gameplay experience. Now I'm really looking forward to future DLCs and hopefully that unannounced expansion rumored before will be based on the improvements seen here.

 

[Koozek]

2FM is by far Square's best action rpg. Ps4 version's smoothness is fantastic, if I may add.

From my experience (beat KH1 and half of KH2 back then) I find it waaay too floaty for my taste. Nothing feels like it has impact or satisfying feedback.

 

[PshycoNinja]

I don't know what to tell you. The depth IS there if you want it. It's more important to realize that Automata first and foremost a Nier game, with platinum flavor combat, not a Bayo clone. I personally didn't hate the gameplay in N1 as much as the clunky animations, crappy combat loop, reliance on certain OP magic and the annoyance of getting constantly chain KO'd. The style of gameplay was fine, but Cavia wasn't good at the execution. The sequel fixes that without giving it a completely new identity which is fine by me. I still feel like I'm playing a massively improved Nier game, rather than Bayo with a new skin.

FFXV could literally use the same excuse.

Well that's the inherent stupidity of the FFXV story - on the way down to Titan, Gladio pulls you aside and explains to you, the person he's been looking after for years, that he's your bodyguard - this exposition is in the midst of Titan waking up. Like, is this the time? Nothing else happening right now that is more important than explaining to your friend your backstory...? Maybe... a giant who has been asleep for ??? of years that no one's been particularly concerned about is about to free himself and rampage across the landscape?!!?

Spoiler

He pulls him aside because Noctis keeps bitching about what he's doing and Gladio tells him off because he won't let him do his job in giving advice and protecting him. If Noctis continues Gladio won't be able to do his job and protect him. So, yes, it was the time for him to say all that and to tell him that he's not the only one suffering and who lost someone. Gave Noctis a proper wake up call and acknowledge the sacrifice Gladio/Iris's dad made for Regis.

If you're going to criticize something, at least be sure to give all the information first.

Can't agree more. I'll also add that KH2FM+ also has the best action RPG combat of all time. Still unrivaled, even by the series most current effort in 0.2.

Agreed!

2FM is garbage tier compared to Nier A

Respectfully disagree.

Just finished it! I honestly liked it way more than what I would've thought. Maybe this is what the game needed afterall, a more focused experience and tight gameplay experience. Now I'm really looking forward to future DLCs and hopefully that unannounced expansion rumored before will be based on the improvements seen here.

Yay!

Really looking forward to Episode Prompto. Should be some good stuff!

 

[Arkeband]

Spoiler

He pulls him aside because Noctis keeps bitching about what he's doing and Gladio tells him off because he won't let him do his job in giving advice and protecting him. If Noctis continues Gladio won't be able to do his job and protect him. So, yes, it was the time for him to say all that and to tell him that he's not the only one suffering and who lost someone. Gave Noctis a proper wake up call and acknowledge the sacrifice Gladio/Iris's dad made for Regis.

If you're going to criticize something, at least be sure to give all the information first.

The thing is, you supposedly worked on the game, and you've been very vocal on these boards about defending FFXV at all costs, so no matter how I point out how bad the writing is, you're never going to concede on any points. I cannot actually talk criticism with someone who has clear conflicts of interest with the thing he's defending.

 

[Septimus Prime]

I get the impression that The Six wake up whenever there's a new king of Lucis. Like, when

Spoiler

they do the Leviathan thing

, it's a big deal and there are spectators, but no one talks about it as if it hasn't happened before, and I guess it's similar with Titan. Ramuh seems so tired of this shit that he just gives up his power right away.

Regis also

Spoiler

uses the Armiger

in Kingsglaive, so I can only assume he had to tour all the royal tombs, too, at some point.

 

[PshycoNinja]

The thing is, you supposedly worked on the game, and you've been very vocal on these boards about defending FFXV at all costs, so no matter how I point out how bad the writing is, you're never going to concede on any points. I cannot actually talk criticism with someone who has clear conflicts of interest with the thing he's defending.

Yes, I am certainly biased. Though, I don't see how that should be an attack on me as a person or a poster here. I do not believe that should invalidate my opinion on the matter.

That said, that does little to dilute what I countered with. I simply gave more information that is there and answered your questions that the game itself answered.

I am not going to make a habit of being overly negative about games I like. I don't mind criticism but I am not going to go into every thread and complain about a game I dislike. I did that when FFXIII came out and I found that I got very little out of doing that. That is not the poster I want to be, nor the type of person I want to be.

 

[Geg]

The thing is, you supposedly worked on the game, and you've been very vocal on these boards about defending FFXV at all costs, so no matter how I point out how bad the writing is, you're never going to concede on any points. I cannot actually talk criticism with someone who has clear conflicts of interest with the thing he's defending.

I see you didn't actually refute his correct response to your criticism though

 

[Arkeband]

I see you didn't actually refute his correct response to your criticism though

How can I refute, "Gladio decides to spend a few minutes lecturing his magic leader and telling him exposition clearly meant for the viewer because all of the character development was done in a separate anime, a stage play, a CGI movie, and strategy guides - that the leader is already aware of! - while a monster rages outside... is good writing.", by someone who may or may not be directly responsible for localization (not that this scene would be any better in Japanese).

Because it's bad, like the rest of the game's writing is bad. Saying that the character had an emotional reason, ignoring everything going on around them, doesn't justify the situation in its entirety. It's self evident. I'm just saying, having this conversation with Ninja is maybe the least productive person I could discuss this with on the site, because they would be the least likely to change their mind on this.

I'm saying that the game sets this precedent early, has an obviously manufactured section for future DLC, so it comes as no surprise that the game doesn't organically reflect the content of the DLC. We knew going into this that it would most likely be the case. At least in Ignis's DLC we all know how that will end, and Prompto's as well, so those might not be as egregious.

 

[TheEndOfItAll]

My take on FFXV is that the first few chapters feel like the pilot to a TV show from the 80s or 90s that was spun off from a movie (Kingsglaive), and the rest of the game is episodes of that show, where there are loose subplots that follow from episode to episode, but the subject of each chapter doesn't really feel connected to subjects from the previous chapters or the chapters afterward. The DLC feels similar. If that is what they were trying to achieve, fine, but I suspect it isn't.

That said, I enjoyed this little bit of DLC. Combat felt different but, at least for me, not as fun as the main game. More Witcher-y.

 

[JayEH]

Beat it. Liked it for what it was. It's tough going to do this after playing 8 hours of KH2 yesterday though lol. Still it was very satisfying to pull of perfect parries and I liked the final boss (who had an awesome badass design too) Will try the other modes a bit later.

 

[Socivol]

I get the impression that The Six wake up whenever there's a new king of Lucis. Like, when

Spoiler

they do the Leviathan thing

, it's a big deal and there are spectators, but no one talks about it as if it hasn't happened before, and I guess it's similar with Titan. Ramuh seems so tired of this shit that he just gives up his power right away.

Regis also

Spoiler

uses the Armiger

in Kingsglaive, so I can only assume he had to tour all the royal tombs, too, at some point.

Nah

Spoiler

Luna

is waking up the Six in preparation for the final battle with

Spoiler

Ardyn

. This is why she is

Spoiler

dying

because with each Astral that gets awoken she loses strength.

 

[PshycoNinja]

Beat it. Liked it for what it was. It's tough going to do this after playing 8 hours of KH2 yesterday though lol. Still it was very satisfying to pull of perfect parries and I liked the final boss (who had an awesome badass design too) Will try the other modes a bit later.

Yeah, I thought

Spoiler

Gilgamesh

had a super cool design too.

 

[RecRoulette]

Finished it in just over an hour, shorter than I thought it would be. Thought the story was pretty neat.

Holy shit at the Final Trial though,

Spoiler

Cor destroyed me the first time I tried it.

 

[Bladenic]

Well that was boring. And I didn't get either item or column trophies even though I looked everywhere. Moving on.

 

[Hazu]

Sad to see that to one seems to care about FFXV anymore.

I did enjoy this episode but I wish Gladio had a bit more moves to make it interesting, it just felt like some kind of demo but at least it explained some part of the story I guess.

Now I just hope Episode Prompto won't be some kind of shooter bullshit, that would be really disappointing.

 

[PshycoNinja]

Sad to see that to one seems to care about FFXV anymore.

I did enjoy this episode but I wish Gladio had a bit more moves to make it interesting, it just felt like some kind of demo but at least it explained some part of the story I guess.

Now I just hope Episode Prompto won't be some kind of shooter bullshit, that would be really disappointing.

The team described Episode Prompto as more story-story focused than Episode Gladio. With Episode Gladio, from interviews, it seemed they wanted to focus on the gameplay while also explaining

Spoiler

why Gladio left the party in Chapter 6

.

 

[Geg]

Just finished the

Spoiler

Enkidu

fight, it's pretty fun so far and I really like the visual design of the dungeon. It's a little hard adjusting right after playing Nier Automata though

 

[RecRoulette]

Sad to see that to one seems to care about FFXV anymore.

I did enjoy this episode but I wish Gladio had a bit more moves to make it interesting, it just felt like some kind of demo but at least it explained some part of the story I guess.

Now I just hope Episode Prompto won't be some kind of shooter bullshit, that would be really disappointing.

Just curious, did you get the

Spoiler

sniper rifle

in the main game? They sort of have those mechanics built in already.

 

[PshycoNinja]

Score attack is pretty challenging. Will be a while till I can get this trophy.

 

[rec0ded1]

Man playing horizon and Zelda really made me regret getting the ffxv season pass. It feels like I have little control over gladio and just mashed through the episode. Felt like there's crazy input lag. If this had come out in January I would've loved it but now just feels like JP jank.

I did enjoy getting some back story and

Spoiler

Gilgamesh

is awesome. Also felt good to be reminded of the Bros at the campfire.

 

[Geg]

Finished it, it was fun but shorter than I was expecting. It was nice to get some more exposition and backstory on Cor though.

 

[Ourobolus]

Whoops. Didn't know there was a thread for the DLC. Reposting from the main thread:

Short but sweet DLC. Managed to get 566,239 on the Score Attack on my first go.

Time to try the Final Trial

Damn. Got him down to like 20% and he wrecked me

EDIT: there we go, second try. That wasn't too bad. Once he turns red, just lock on and keep dodge-strafing *around him* and he will rarely ever hit you, unless you dodge into a wall.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C8If0NoVoAEtkw-?format=jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C8IfvcjVoAETO_0?format=jpg

Not sure why spoiler tags aren't working...

 

[Error 404]

Did anyone else have trouble picking up all the items or am I just blind? I got dizzy going in circles for every section of the map trying to find them and still didn't get the trophy.

 

[Ourobolus]

Did anyone else have trouble picking up all the items or am I just blind? I got dizzy going in circles for every section of the map trying to find them and still didn't get the trophy.

I didn't check the trophy list until after I beat it and I have no idea where I would have missed one

 

[RangerBAD]

Did anyone else have trouble picking up all the items or am I just blind? I got dizzy going in circles for every section of the map trying to find them and still didn't get the trophy.

Me. I thought I got them all.

 

[Desi]

I'm stuck on infinite loading screen... Any ideas? Full delete and reinstall doesn't seem to fix it. PS4 Pro.

Running into the same issue but on the standard PS4.

 

[Chaserjoey]

Did anyone else have trouble picking up all the items or am I just blind? I got dizzy going in circles for every section of the map trying to find them and still didn't get the trophy.

I didn't check the trophy list until after I beat it and I have no idea where I would have missed one

There are 48 items to pick up in total, so count as you go along.

Spoiler

Or use a guide since there are some really hard to spot ones like the one behind the waterfall

 

[Error 404]

There are 48 items to pick up in total, so count as you go along.

Spoiler

Or use a guide since there are some really hard to spot ones like the one behind the waterfall

I actually got the waterfall one both times that I went through the map, but thanks for telling me the total count; that's really helpful!

 

[Ourobolus]

There are 48 items to pick up in total, so count as you go along.

Spoiler

Or use a guide since there are some really hard to spot ones like the one behind the waterfall

The one near the beginning before the slide? Yeah, i got that one. Darn.

 

[Chaserjoey]

It's a very annoying trophy/achievement because you can't back track haha.

I'll just leave this (and video!) here in case anyone wants to take the fun/annoyance out of it.

 

[GreenMakoEyes]

oh, rugged outfit is missing his scar on the chest it seems.

 

[Tyaren]

oh, rugged outfit is missing his scar on the chest it seems.

Hated that ugly thing in the latter part of the game.

 

[GreenMakoEyes]

Hated that ugly thing in the latter part of the game.

so its not a fantasy based on reality

 

[yayaba]

Finished in 1:15. Last boss took me three tries since I was being sloppy but it was still a good challenge.

Was a good excuse to try out the Ch 13 Verse 2 changes which I was able to finish in about 30 mins.

Felt weird coming back to this after I had moved on but it's back on my shelf until Episode Prompto

For $5 I thought it was worth it. Good cheap price.