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[Danny Dudekisser]

Well, keep in mind that Oath doesn't have the party mechanic, that's exclusive to SEVEN currently; Oath is a bit more like a Zelda game in that Adol eventually picks up a huge variety of abilities all for himself. And also remember that I&II play nothing like either game; I would honestly try to rent that one before buying it, if you can. It's hard to recommend without a demo to see if a person can click with the gameplay.

I actually think I'd like an Ys game without the party mechanic better... either way, it's cool that it plays differently from Seven.

As for 1 and 2... I can't rent it, so I'll probably just pick it up when it's a bit cheaper. I play a lot of old school games, but the whole bumping into things combat system gives me horrible memories of Fatal Labyrinth. But that trailer looked sooooo good.

 

[daevv]

 

[SpaceDrake]

I actually think I'd like an Ys game without the party mechanic better... either way, it's cool that it plays differently from Seven.

As for 1 and 2... I can't rent it, so I'll probably just pick it up when it's a bit cheaper. I play a lot of old school games, but the whole bumping into things combat system gives me horrible memories of Fatal Labyrinth. But that trailer looked sooooo good.

I&II are enjoyable for what they are, although I definitely can't recommend them to everyone. God damn but the soundtrack is great though, especially to Ys I. Literally cannot stop listening to that motherfucker.

I'm also curious to see if you end up liking Trails. I have a suspicion you'll find it superficially similar to the Gust games you've been hating on (btw, we may have to engage in pistols at dawn now since I do like a lot of the games you listed :V) but I wonder if it might do a better job in the "give a shit about these characters" department (along with a rather more engaging combat engine).

 

[teiresias]

Concerning Ys, is there any story reason to want to play I&II before the others, or are they all separate enough for it to not really matter?

 

[Edgeward]

Concerning Ys, is there any story reason to want to play I&II before the others, or are they all separate enough for it to not really matter?

They are all a separate adventure. Almost if not all Ys starts off with Adol landing on a new island.

 

[SpaceDrake]

The only Ys game that ties directly back to I&II is IV, which we've never gotten officially; all of the other games take place in other parts of the world. Oath updated the plot of Wanderers of Ys to obliquely tie the plot in to I&II, but not so much that it'll make no sense to a new person. Basically there's a reason why the numbers generally get dropped from Western releases; the order you play the games in doesn't matter TOO much.

Basically all you need to know if you haven't played I&II is that Adol and Dogi are Brosefs thanks to the two of them helping one another out in Ys I's major dungeon and that, especially by Ys Seven, Adol is famous for being something of a badass and a town-saver (and that he's considered a trouble-maker by the aristocracy of the resident continental superpower).

 

[Laughing Banana]

Lunar is kind of controversial.

<snip>

Otherwise, the PSP version is a solid effort from XSeed. I'm a Lunar fanatic, it's probably my favorite game of all time. I like the PS1 version better (sadly haven't played the original) but like I said, Lunar Silver Star Harmony is a solid effort.

All of my hype and intentions of playing Lunar PSP just suddenly vanished into thin air once I found out that Alex was voiced by Yuri Lowenthal :\

 

[teiresias]

Thanks guys. I've never played a Ys game, and I'm pretty convinced to pick one up for my Go the minute the store comes back online. Are all of these available via PSN, or are any UMD only?

 

[TheSeks]

AFAIK they're on PSN. Xseed and Atlus have been pretty good at putting their UMD offerings on the store and going through their UMD backlog to put those on the store.

 

[The Last Wizard]

AFAIK they're on PSN. Xseed and Atlus have been pretty good at putting their UMD offerings on the store and going through their UMD backlog to put those on the store.

yea that's great but i'm having a hard time with whether to get the psn or umd versions of a few of the listed games as the bonus content with the umds is tempting as well as the cases and manuals.

digital purchases sucks sometimes

is there any place to buy the soundtrack of the y's and legend of heroes games if i like em

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

yea that's great but i'm having a hard time with whether to get the psn or umd versions of a few of the listed games as the bonus content with the umds is tempting as well as the cases and manuals.

digital purchases sucks sometimes

is there any place to buy the soundtrack of the y's and legend of heroes games if i like em

I was debating whether to go the UMD or PSN route, and decided to stick with UMDs. The upside to downloading games off of PSN is that you have them all there to play whenever, and you don't have to use CFW to do it. But apparently, games on PSN are compressed. I looked into it, and there are a number of games that have problems as a result of the compression... stuff like the GTA games and Ridge Racer seem to be the most frequently cited examples. But basically, they have issues with the games stuttering and such. I have no idea if the sound quality suffers as a result of the compression but I wouldn't be surprised.

I figured I'd just stick with UMDs, because I'm not paying for games that might have issues or in any way be worse than the UMD versions.

 

[Splash Wave]

I was set on buying a PSP after E3 (in hopes of a price drop, and a very kind friend has been letting me borrow his to play TO), but now that the DS Lite is dropping to 99, I'm torn between the two. I used to have the DS, and played the fuck out of it, but I never played DQ V, VI, IX, or Radiant Historia. I'm not sure that the quality of those few titles outweighs what I can do on the PSP--Trails in the Sky, Ys Series, and portable PSOne RPGs. It's a tough call.

 

[SneakyStephan]

Don't forget you can run pops and play your own psx games too, not just the ones
remade for psp.

I'll second Ys being awesome btw , ys seven is my favorite game on psp, much better than crisis core (not that would be saying all that much).
The combat is very very (very) good, as are the pacing and boss fights.
Everything about the game seems designed to be fun first and then also convenient (as in not needlessly timesinky).
Other rpgs could learn a thing or two (or 10) from this game.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I was set on buying a PSP after E3 (in hopes of a price drop, and a very kind friend has been letting me borrow his to play TO), but now that the DS Lite is dropping to 99, I'm torn between the two. I used to have the DS, and played the fuck out of it, but I never played DQ V, VI, IX, or Radiant Historia. I'm not sure that the quality of those few titles outweighs what I can do on the PSP--Trails in the Sky, Ys Series, and portable PSOne RPGs. It's a tough call.

Well if you're counting ps1 games, the PSP wins by default. But honestly, the ds RPG lineup isn't so good. The DQ games I tried (4 and 9) just felt impossibly generic, the remake of Final Fantasy IV sucked, and most of the other stuff that sounded interesting, like Etrian Odyssey, ended up being pretty tepid. That said, SMT Strange Journey is an honest to God SMT game, so that's awesome... Haven't played Radiant Historia yet, though... But I should.

But the PSP has Ys Seven and will have Persona 2. It is the winner.

(I really, really like Ys Seven)

 

[btkadams]

I was set on buying a PSP after E3 (in hopes of a price drop, and a very kind friend has been letting me borrow his to play TO), but now that the DS Lite is dropping to 99, I'm torn between the two. I used to have the DS, and played the fuck out of it, but I never played DQ V, VI, IX, or Radiant Historia. I'm not sure that the quality of those few titles outweighs what I can do on the PSP--Trails in the Sky, Ys Series, and portable PSOne RPGs. It's a tough call.

I have both and I think the PSP is better for rpgs. Playing ps1 games and emulation make it extremely compelling.

However, no game has conquered more of my free time like Pokemon.


You guys are really making me want to try Ys!

 

[TheSeks]

I was set on buying a PSP after E3 (in hopes of a price drop, and a very kind friend has been letting me borrow his to play TO), but now that the DS Lite is dropping to 99, I'm torn between the two. I used to have the DS, and played the fuck out of it, but I never played DQ V, VI, IX, or Radiant Historia. I'm not sure that the quality of those few titles outweighs what I can do on the PSP--Trails in the Sky, Ys Series, and portable PSOne RPGs. It's a tough call.

PSP is a JRPG powerhouse if you're looking for console ports. Hands down winner.

 

[AwShucks]

Looking at the OP it doesn't really seem like you actually like RPGs. I mean you "really like" Crisis Core but then have an unnatural hate for tri-Ace and NIS? And consider Jeanne D'Arc a boring FFT? They aren't even really similar outside of being SRPGs.

Oh well, to each their own I guess.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

You guys are really making me want to try Ys!

I was kinda sorta thinking about getting it, but wasn't planning to actually do so for a while... Then I went to best buy last week to get final fantasy IV, and I saw that it was $15. I bought it cuz it was cheap, and then proceeded to play through FFIV. I finished that, thought it was great, and started Ys. Then I was like "fuck shit piss pussy cock this is good.". Ys Seven is easily one of the best games of last year. It does basically everything important right. If I had to compare the game to something, it'd be Secret of Mana meets Lords of Thunder... Cuz it's a SOM-like RPG, but you have that rockin' PC Engine style soundtrack, and very twitch-heavy, fast-paced gameplay. It's absurd how fun this game is. I'm around the 13 hour mark right now, and this fucker just keeps getting better.


And as long as I'm on my rant, here's what I really like about this sort of game: it's like old RPGs from the ps1 era. The dialog segments are quick -- not lengthy cut scenes where dudes you don't care about spout a lot of shit about shit you don't care about. Thats what's wrong with RPGs today, and I don't know if it's the psp's feeble hardware or the lower budgets for games like this that prompts that sort of thing, but it's nice to have a return to what made RPGs good in the first place. And the story isn't anything great, but it's a compelling excuse to hack up fools with reckless abandon and the characters are likeable. That's all I want. It's a little like anime from the 80's vs. anime today... You look at shit from the 80s, and it was fucking awesome because it was some hardcore, manly stuff. "You're a bad dude, so Ima fuck up your program, bitch." That's what Ys is. No bullshit, no filler. Stuff by Gust or NIS... Or hell, modern RPGs in general are like modern anime... There's way too much cutesy, moe bullshit. It makes me fucking sick! You all know what I mean. Modern RPGs, just like modern anime, use cutesy characters in silly situations to try and endear the player to the characters, or attempt comedy. It always fails. It was around the time I saw a giant pink teddy bear wreaking havoc on enemies in Mana Khemia that I said "fuck this shit," and realized that I now hated what once was my favorite genre.

So if you can't tell, I've been drinking in addition to playing Ys Seven, but I'm pretty sure my rambling is comprehensible. If it's not, well... The point of this nonsense was to explain why I seem to hate so many RPGs, yet still want to play stuff in the genre. If there's really more stuff on the PSP like what I've been playing, though... Wow. I'm going to be very, very happy.

 

[SneakyStephan]

Well there's patapon, loco roco, crisis snore (so repetitive once you get about halfway through, and the challenge maps SUCK so much)and about a zillion SRPG's and then you've pretty much had it on psp.

I personally hate the crap out of fft type games, because they are clunky and akward compared to the far superior king's bounty series on pc in the way you control them.


Here's my own question:
Is there anything else like ys 7 on the psp btw? As in good combat, no camera controls (because those always make me want to slit my wrists on psp, what was sony thinking not putting a second analog nub on there, holy shit I've had this thing since release and I'll never get over it) , good gameplay and FUN.

I was really surprised to see this kind of gameplay in a modern game, let alone an rpg.
You never see this type of stuff anymre.

Was looking at lists of psp games but it's hard to tell which is good and which suck from reviews.
IGN for example gave the game like a 7.5 despite also stating they loved the gameplay, while giving those camera nightmare games and other games with huge frustrating control flaws 8s and 9s.

 

[dock]

Ys III Oath in Felghana seems pretty amazing from my impressions so far!

 

[Splash Wave]

Well if you're counting ps1 games, the PSP wins by default. But honestly, the ds RPG lineup isn't so good. The DQ games I tried (4 and 9) just felt impossibly generic, the remake of Final Fantasy IV sucked, and most of the other stuff that sounded interesting, like Etrian Odyssey, ended up being pretty tepid. That said, SMT Strange Journey is an honest to God SMT game, so that's awesome... Haven't played Radiant Historia yet, though... But I should.

But the PSP has Ys Seven and will have Persona 2. It is the winner.

(I really, really like Ys Seven)

I enjoyed 4, and I just feel like I'm really missing out on RPG "history" by not playing DQ5. The PSP is undeniably the more logical purchase. Maybe I can just borrow a DS from someone I know.

 

[DidntKnowJack]

I was set on buying a PSP after E3 (in hopes of a price drop, and a very kind friend has been letting me borrow his to play TO), but now that the DS Lite is dropping to 99, I'm torn between the two. I used to have the DS, and played the fuck out of it, but I never played DQ V, VI, IX, or Radiant Historia. I'm not sure that the quality of those few titles outweighs what I can do on the PSP--Trails in the Sky, Ys Series, and portable PSOne RPGs. It's a tough call.

Honestly, I think they're both rpg juggernauts, and you really can't go wrong with either one. I'd personally give a slight edge to the DS' rpg library, but the PSP one is fantastic as well. Both of them put the consoles to shame. Which is not surprising seeing as the cost of making console games is astronomical these days. But if you like jrpg's you must own a handheld.

 

[Splash Wave]

Honestly, I think they're both rpg juggernauts, and you really can't go wrong with either one. I'd personally give a slight edge to the DS' rpg library, but the PSP one is fantastic as well. Both of them put the consoles to shame. Which is not surprising seeing as the cost of making console games is astronomical these days. But if you like jrpg's you must own a handheld.

The thing is, though, is that all I have left to play on the DS are the games listed. Whether those are of more value than the larger number of titles I plan on enjoying PSP is unlikely, but still kind of a tough choice.

 

[SpaceDrake]

And as long as I'm on my rant, here's what I really like about this sort of game: it's like old RPGs from the ps1 era. The dialog segments are quick -- not lengthy cut scenes where dudes you don't care about spout a lot of shit about shit you don't care about. Thats what's wrong with RPGs today, and I don't know if it's the psp's feeble hardware or the lower budgets for games like this that prompts that sort of thing, but it's nice to have a return to what made RPGs good in the first place. And the story isn't anything great, but it's a compelling excuse to hack up fools with reckless abandon and the characters are likeable.

Man, I... really dunno if you're going to like Trails. Among other things it is a game which does not really lend itself well to drunk-play.

On the other hand I know you're going to love the ever-loving shit out of Oath in Felghana when you pick it up. It's basically "single-character Ys Seven with more engaging villains without being too wordy and a bajillion abilities for Adol". You might even like I&II Chronicles; the gameplay is way different (although II at least gives you spells to play with), but the "run into dudes" gameplay does allow you to Wreck Dudes™ at an amazingly fast clip and it's got the requisite awesome soundtrack that makes the Dude-Wrecking all that more enjoyable.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

Man, I... really dunno if you're going to like Trails. Among other things it is a game which does not really lend itself well to drunk-play.

On the other hand I know you're going to love the ever-loving shit out of Oath in Felghana when you pick it up. It's basically "single-character Ys Seven with more engaging villains without being too wordy and a bajillion abilities for Adol". You might even like I&II Chronicles; the gameplay is way different (although II at least gives you spells to play with), but the "run into dudes" gameplay does allow you to Wreck Dudes™ at an amazingly fast clip and it's got the requisite awesome soundtrack that makes the Dude-Wrecking all that more enjoyable.

Lol, alright, I'm not always drunk while I'm playing RPGs... I just happened to be in that one instance. I think I'll like Trails in the Sky, because Falcom just seems to make shit that appeals to me... but we'll see. If I don't like it... oh well. I'll give it a chance for sure, though.

 

[Augemitbutter]

I was kinda sorta thinking about getting it, but wasn't planning to actually do so for a while... Then I went to best buy last week to get final fantasy IV, and I saw that it was $15. I bought it cuz it was cheap, and then proceeded to play through FFIV. I finished that, thought it was great, and started Ys. Then I was like "fuck shit piss pussy cock this is good.". Ys Seven is easily one of the best games of last year. It does basically everything important right. If I had to compare the game to something, it'd be Secret of Mana meets Lords of Thunder... Cuz it's a SOM-like RPG, but you have that rockin' PC Engine style soundtrack, and very twitch-heavy, fast-paced gameplay. It's absurd how fun this game is. I'm around the 13 hour mark right now, and this fucker just keeps getting better.


And as long as I'm on my rant, here's what I really like about this sort of game: it's like old RPGs from the ps1 era. The dialog segments are quick -- not lengthy cut scenes where dudes you don't care about spout a lot of shit about shit you don't care about. Thats what's wrong with RPGs today, and I don't know if it's the psp's feeble hardware or the lower budgets for games like this that prompts that sort of thing, but it's nice to have a return to what made RPGs good in the first place. And the story isn't anything great, but it's a compelling excuse to hack up fools with reckless abandon and the characters are likeable. That's all I want. It's a little like anime from the 80's vs. anime today... You look at shit from the 80s, and it was fucking awesome because it was some hardcore, manly stuff. "You're a bad dude, so Ima fuck up your program, bitch." That's what Ys is. No bullshit, no filler. Stuff by Gust or NIS... Or hell, modern RPGs in general are like modern anime... There's way too much cutesy, moe bullshit. It makes me fucking sick! You all know what I mean. Modern RPGs, just like modern anime, use cutesy characters in silly situations to try and endear the player to the characters, or attempt comedy. It always fails. It was around the time I saw a giant pink teddy bear wreaking havoc on enemies in Mana Khemia that I said "fuck this shit," and realized that I now hated what once was my favorite genre.

So if you can't tell, I've been drinking in addition to playing Ys Seven, but I'm pretty sure my rambling is comprehensible. If it's not, well... The point of this nonsense was to explain why I seem to hate so many RPGs, yet still want to play stuff in the genre. If there's really more stuff on the PSP like what I've been playing, though... Wow. I'm going to be very, very happy.

no worries, good post. you should still try tits someday though. and oath, and....

 

[chaosblade]

Man, I... really dunno if you're going to like Trails. Among other things it is a game which does not really lend itself well to drunk-play.

On the other hand I know you're going to love the ever-loving shit out of Oath in Felghana when you pick it up. It's basically "single-character Ys Seven with more engaging villains without being too wordy and a bajillion abilities for Adol". You might even like I&II Chronicles; the gameplay is way different (although II at least gives you spells to play with), but the "run into dudes" gameplay does allow you to Wreck Dudes™ at an amazingly fast clip and it's got the requisite awesome soundtrack that makes the Dude-Wrecking all that more enjoyable.

Absolutely. Oath in Felghana is amazing. I loved Chronicles too but it's harder to recommend for the reasons mentioned above. Definitely worth checking out, I loved it's old-school simplicity combined with the really fast gameplay (and all Ys games have incredible soundtracks, so that's shouldn't even be a concern!).

But yeah, Trails is like the opposite of Ys. It's slower paced and has a ton of dialogue. As long as you know that going into it, you should be fine though. The story is pretty light-hearted and care-free for most of the game, and keeps the dark and angsty stuff to a minimum.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I just finished Ys Seven, and I think you're all full of shit. Oath of Felghana cannot possibly be better than this. I clocked in around 17 hours in Seven, which felt like just the right length... and I absolutely loved it. I'll probably move on to Trails in the Sky next... I think. Might take a break for a couple days before I launch into another RPG.

 

[PumpkinPie]

I just ordered TITS, y'all better not be lying about it being good.


Does anywhere have the Lunar Silver Harmony limited edition in stock for a decent price?

 

[Big Papa Husker]

Heads up, XSeed said that Brave Story will be removed from PSN in the next few days because of an expiring license and to grab it now if you haven't.

"So, "Last Chance to See" on Brave Story for the PSP. The door is closing on an amazing RPG. And this all rhymes, unintentionally... "

http://twitter.com/#!/XSEEDGames/status/76800973544226816

 

[Big Papa Husker]

A few good games are on sale from Amazon...
Tactics Ogre - $25.99

Dissidia 012 [duodecim] Final Fantasy - $17.99

The Third Birthday - $17.99

Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection - $19.99

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep - $19.99

 

[RpgN]

Heads up, XSeed said that Brave Story will be removed from PSN in the next few days because of an expiring license and to grab it now if you haven't.

"So, "Last Chance to See" on Brave Story for the PSP. The door is closing on an amazing RPG. And this all rhymes, unintentionally... "

http://twitter.com/#!/XSEEDGames/status/76800973544226816

I'm playing through the game at the moment and so far it is a great ride. It's a very typical RPG that does what you'd expect with some small new touches. But it's very polished and well made. I haven't played a traditional RPG in a while.