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[KeioSquad2]

I absolutely love this game so far. I just got to a certain place, and the story and music along with the side quips by npcs have all been great. I can't get the hang of the critical hit expanders though, some times my timing is perfect and I'll be able to link like 3 criticals in a row, then others I can't manage it, though I swear my timings is right. But I love when you pull it off and you see cool animations and stills.....

 

[SamBishop]

I can't even begin to explain just how superior this game is compared to its predecessor.

Having a completely different development team with some serious artistic chops and a badass localization will do that. Glad you're digging it -- same with everybody else in this thread. Nice to know I wasn't completely crazy when I fell in love with the game. Sucker is charming, that's all there is to it.

 

[AwRy108]

I'm quite torn with this game: despite the fact that it's completely monotonous and the 95% of the skills are worthless, I just can't seem to stop playing it. I think it's because the art is so beautiful, the writing is quite good, and the difficulty is almost perfectly balanced.

Oh, and BTW, here's a link to a GameFAQ's thread that then provides more links to maps of all the dungeons: dungeon maps @ GameFAQs ...sadly, the map titles aren't in English, so most of us will have to explore a bit to determine which map is which. Either way, having these is a big help.

 

[Magik]

The game is pretty solid so far in the 20 hrs I've spent with it.

I'm quite disappointed in how lackluster the skills are in this game. Outside one or two skills for each person, the rest are useless. It doesn't even take that long to unlock since you can encounter enemies early on that give over 50+ SP each battle making it very easy to unlock and learn everything.

Also, trying to do the Critical combos are such a pain in the ass. I think I've only gotten 10 or so combos the entire game. =\

Other than that, decent game.

 

[AwRy108]

I'm quite disappointed in how lackluster the skills are in this game. Outside one or two skills for each person, the rest are useless. It doesn't even take that long to unlock since you can encounter enemies early on that give over 50+ SP each battle making it very easy to unlock and learn everything.

Yeah, the whole skill system was pretty poorly implemented, especially because everyone except Henson have only enough MP to use a few skills. However, with the frequent level-ups and availability of MP-restoring potions, using Skills become more of an annoyance because it involves always being concerned with refilling MP.

Also, I really like the ability to upgrade weapons, but the lack of explanations and details make the whole process seem like a crap shoot.

In any event, it's still a great portable (eg. YOU CAN SAVE ANY TIME!) RPG, and I don't regret the purchase at all.

 

[Powerslave]

What the hell is the deal with RPG series that are labeled with 'saga' ugh..

 

[Hobbun]

Wow, that's a shame to hear about the skill system. I was really looking forward to playing this game. I mean I still will, but it's been pushed a lot further back now on my backlog.

 

[BoilersFan23]

Anyone having problems finding the game? Every GameStop I checked in my area was out (along with Game Crazy). I'm debating about making a long drive to Fry's to see if they have it. I saw Amazon was out of stock too. I really hope I don't miss out on this. I'll admit I kind of waited after how the first Astonisha(sp) Story was.

 

[Tailzo]

^I just bought the game from videogamesplus.ca

 

[Mejilan]

Having a completely different development team with some serious artistic chops and a badass localization will do that.

I've seen that mentioned everywhere, but is it different really?
I'm not up on my Korean developers, admittedly, but unless I'm mistaken, the first Astonishia was developed for (or ported to) the PSP by Sonnori. This one was developed by Ironnos with a thank you mention made to Sonnori in the credits.

However, Ironnos is simply Sonnori backwards. They're not playing an evil game on us all, are they?

 

[Quixzlizx]

Due to this thread I'm completely paranoid about spending any SP on learning new skills. Are there any particularly useless ones in the beginning, or will I be earning enough SP to unlock most skills anyway?

I'm only about an hour and a half in, but I'm having fun with it so far. I like how the battle encounter system was implemented, and the localization is great.

 

[Mejilan]

Before too long you'll be gaining like 50 SPs per battle. Worry not!

 

[adamsapple]

Quite a few grammatical errors in this game so far, very surprising for an Atlus title.

 

[Fusebox]

Quite a few grammatical errors in this game so far, very surprising for an Atlus title.

That sounds like the Asian version to me.

Btw, man this game ramps its difficulty up. I was just cruising along, no probs and then I come across that

Spoiler

spider bitch with the knight bodyguard and he kills a party member each turn

. Time to grind I guess...

 

[Mejilan]

Yep, there was an English version before Atlus', and supposedly it was pretty bad.

 

[adamsapple]

Oh, i thought Atlus did all the versions, sorry atlus.

 

[B.K.]

I read on CAG that the game is down to $20 used at Gamestop already.

 

[Yaweee]

I read on CAG that the game is down to $20 used at Gamestop already.

Their site lists it as that, but it is backordered for new copies, unavailable online used, and there are no stores with it within 100 miles of me.

Typing in quite a few other zip codes also reveal nothing. So, that it's $20 doesn't mean much.

 

[eznark]

Am I the only one finding this game to be a bit of a challenge? I'm in the second maing dungeon and man, pretty much every battle requires using items/healing. I'm basically clawing my through and just trying to hang on to level up. I'm having a blast with it.

 

[MiniBossman]

Finally got a chance to spend some time with this yesterday (8 hour car ride). I'm a good 5 hours in and am wandering around the Desert on the way to the 2nd dungeon.

I seriously need to do some grinding as I am getting my head handed to me in each encounter now. Need to especially beef up the mage.

Overall, I am really enjoying this so far. The skills are not arcane, and are easy enough to manipulate. My only complaint is the lack of a weapon upgrade tutorial. It does seem to be a crap shoot.

 

[KeioSquad2]

Am I the only one finding this game to be a bit of a challenge? I'm in the second maing dungeon and man, pretty much every battle requires using items/healing. I'm basically clawing my through and just trying to hang on to level up. I'm having a blast with it.

Its easy if you get the right skills in the skill tree. I got killians blazing sword tech, which hits everyone for massive damage, and I killed nephilita in 2 turns. it uses a lot of mp, but every battle ive been in gives me a medium mana potion, so it evens out....

 

[Volcynika]

My brother's impressions from what he told me:

He haaaaaaaaates the loading (and doesn't use custom firmware), but he's still enjoying the game. He hasn't gotten a PSP game in a while, so he's pretty happy with it.

 

[KeioSquad2]

My brother's impressions from what he told me:

He haaaaaaaaates the loading (and doesn't use custom firmware), but he's still enjoying the game. He hasn't gotten a PSP game in a while, so he's pretty happy with it.

Really? This game loads pretty fast. I think it would even seem quicker if it didn't say now loading and just faded black though.....

 

[Volcynika]

Really? This game loads pretty fast. I think it would even seem quicker if it didn't say now loading and just faded black though.....

I think he might mean that the loading screen shows up too much or something (I guess). I remember him mentioning (he might be slightly exaggerating) that the game loads after almost everything that happens. I haven't been able to snatch it from him and play it myself :lol

 

[MadmanUK]

Anyone having problems finding the game? Every GameStop I checked in my area was out (along with Game Crazy). I'm debating about making a long drive to Fry's to see if they have it. I saw Amazon was out of stock too. I really hope I don't miss out on this. I'll admit I kind of waited after how the first Astonisha(sp) Story was.

I just picked up a new copy for 30 bucks off ebay. Another one for the back-log i guess.

 

[KeioSquad2]

I think he might mean that the loading screen shows up too much or something (I guess). I remember him mentioning (he might be slightly exaggerating) that the game loads after almost everything that happens. I haven't been able to snatch it from him and play it myself :lol

No. He's right. It does load after every event scene, which pretty much play out all the time. That's why I think it would be less distracting if it didn't say now loading, and just faded black, cause the loading only lasts about 2 seconds for most things, and about 5 or more for others.

If you do get the chance to play it, I hope you enjoy it.

 

[Volcynika]

No. He's right. It does load after every event scene, which pretty much play out all the time. That's why I think it would be less distracting if it didn't say now loading, and just faded black, cause the loading only lasts about 2 seconds for most things, and about 5 or more for others.

If you do get the chance to play it, I hope you enjoy it.

Yeah, I'm just waiting for him to finish it, probably be poking around this thread in July!

 

[Quixzlizx]

Is grinding required in this game, or am I just terrible? I just reached that swamp dungeon where you have to find some medicine, and I'm getting crushed by the randoms. I think my characters are all in the low-20s level-wise, and a couple of them don't have the best available weapons, since they cost a fortune.

 

[Indrew]

Is grinding required in this game, or am I just terrible? I just reached that swamp dungeon where you have to find some medicine, and I'm getting crushed by the randoms. I think my characters are all in the low-20s level-wise, and a couple of them don't have the best available weapons, since they cost a fortune.

I haven't had to grind to be able to beat the next boss or anything, but you definitely need to grind to make money for the outrageously priced equipment and to gain enough SP to uncover and learn skills.

Very fun game by the way. Just made it to chapter 4.

 

[Ricker]

The game is pretty good...I hooked my PSP up to my HDTV yesterday to play it and it still looks good,considering,on a large screen...

I did the same "mistake" some of you did at the well part but so far I managed to survive and made a new save for that section...this made me see the "escape" screen which is pretty awesome,if you succeed of course hehe.I'm wondering if I should reload the save before this whole thing though and see if I could go about it differently or if it's the only way(if it is,man,what a spike in difficulty all of a sudden hehe)

Oh and the skill tree/menu is pretty broken yeah,stuff overlap on each other and all,it looks awful but that's the my only gripe with this little game right now.

 

[2DMention]

I'm' about 8 hours in and am finding it difficult. There was no mention of the skill tree in a tutuorial, so I didn't figure it out or come across it recently. I'm in the in mid 20s and am in Ch. 2 and am getting whomped. Time to grind or buy better gear.

How long of a game is this? 40 hour?

 

[2DMention]

Gave up on this game. The encounter rate is irritating, it takes too much grinding and too much effort to beat enemies (7 strikes to kill an enemy - really?), and the story seems dull and uninteresting. I may pick it up and play it again at a later date, but right now I'm going to back off from this game.

 

[Tailzo]

I'm going back to this game, after massive amounts of monster hunter Right now I am confused as to wehre to go. I am at a mountain, blood... something. I don't remember what I was doing there. There's an ogre at the top who says noone can get past him. I talk to him again and again, nothing happens. Hm...

 

[Kinitari]

I just impulsed purchased this game today - there doesn't seem to be a lot of buzz surrounding this game, but so far it looks like GAF is very feeling very positive about it. Any tips for someone just starting out? I.E. - Don't eat the magical jerky, as it transforms into a mega awesome sword on the last world.

 

[Cloudy]

I've been outta the gaming loop and missed this one. I just saw the trailer on Atlus.com and ordered it on Amazon right after :lol

 

[Cloudy]

This is Astonisha Story 2, for those that played the original

I'm really liking this game. Is the first one as good?

 

[Mejilan]

Horrible. Purposefully tracked it down before this one hit, played it, beat it. BAD game in just about every sense.

 

[Tailzo]

I've never played the prequel, but Crimson Gem saga was a decent game. I would've liked more useful skills and less focus on charging my mp all the time, but other than that is was very pretty, had some nice bosses and got me hooked enough to finish it.

 

[chespace]

Picked this game up on iPhone 4 yesterday.

Loving it so far. The port is really good, except for some questionable control choices but nothing that detracts from the game once muscle-memory gets used to menu swiping.

Great classic RPG. Awesome dialogue and story so far too.

 

[daemonic]

I thought it was pretty average. On the surface it appears to be a great game, but after about ten hours of gameplay (or even less) you begin to realize how shallow everything is. While it's certainly not without its charm, the battle system is poor, characters are underdeveloped, and the story leaves something to be desired (big WTF at the ending). I really wanted to like CGS but was honestly more relieved that anything once the credits rolled. I'm actually surprised I made it to the end. At least the voice acting was decent.

 

[chespace]

I thought it was pretty average. On the surface it appears to be a great game, but after about ten hours of gameplay (or even less) you begin to realize how shallow everything is. While it's certainly not without its charm, the battle system is poor, characters are underdeveloped, and the story leaves something to be desired (big WTF at the ending). I really wanted to like CGS but was honestly more relieved that anything once the credits rolled. I'm actually surprised I made it to the end. At least the voice acting was decent.

We'll see I guess. I've only just started it but so far it has the charm of a solid 16-bit JRPG (I know it's Korean developed).

I guess I haven't had a solid 16-bit JRPG experience in a while that wasn't a re-make.

 

[soldat7]

Very good PSP RPG, IMO. Very underrated.

 

[Tellaerin]

I need to start playing CGS again. (Got sidetracked by Blazblue Portable and a cheap copy of Ys: The Ark of Napishtim I snagged about a month ago. >.> ) There's just something very genuine about it - like it was made by (and for) people who cut their teeth on classic 16-bit RPG's, as opposed to some cynical attempt at turning a profit on oldschool nostalgia.

I wish there were more games like this nowadays.

 

[chespace]

I need to start playing CGS again. (Got sidetracked by Blazblue Portable and a cheap copy of Ys: The Ark of Napishtim I snagged about a month ago. >.> ) There's just something very genuine about it - like it was made by (and for) people who cut their teeth on classic 16-bit RPG's, as opposed to some cynical attempt at turning a profit on oldschool nostalgia.

I wish there were more games like this nowadays.

Very nicely put. That's exactly how I feel about it. And the localization captures this essence perfectly.

I tend to overlook PSP games nowadays but I'm glad it came out on iDevice so that more people can experience it. I hear it's doing okay too.

 

[Vinnk]

Sorry to bump an old thread, but it's on sale for $4.99 in the itunes store right now if anyone missed it the first time around. I just got it and I'm having a great time so far.