-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Crimson Shroud |OT| Matsuno fails saving throw, relegated to eShop release
- Thread starter duckroll
- Start date
Nostaglic.
Basileus777
Member
People weren't kidding when they said this has Vagrant Story vibes.
How many chapters long is the game? I'm nearing the end of chapter 3, and hoping it's not ending soon.
How many chapters long is the game? I'm nearing the end of chapter 3, and hoping it's not ending soon.
ShineALight
Member
I'd been looking forward to this since its announcement but my hype had waned a bit in the light of some negativity the last few months. I was surprised to see almost entirely positive reviews and impressions, and went ahead and picked it up.
Really glad that I did. I'm just starting chapter 2 (and on guard for Matsuno's troll, thanks) and it's impressed me so far. I don't really have anything to add that hasn't been said by others. The choose-your-own-adventure/table-top feel is great and battles are fun, lengthy but rewarding. Plan on playing through it a few times.
Really glad that I did. I'm just starting chapter 2 (and on guard for Matsuno's troll, thanks) and it's impressed me so far. I don't really have anything to add that hasn't been said by others. The choose-your-own-adventure/table-top feel is great and battles are fun, lengthy but rewarding. Plan on playing through it a few times.
RyougaSaotome
Member
Wow guys, I wasn't expecting so much positivity from this thread! I only played the opening 30 minutes before I sold Guild 01 back (higher buyback price). Was thinking of DL'ing Crimson Shroud off the JP store, and after reading all these impressions, I'm definitely eager to dive back in again.
Basileus777
Member
I finished it and I enjoyed it quite a bit. I feel like the premise and style would have worked well in a longer game as well, it wasn't just some novelty good for a few hours. And
Is the new game plus the same or is there any new content?
hahaha at that ending.
Is the new game plus the same or is there any new content?
Wolves Evolve
Member
Short review:
An instant, charm-filled classic. Deconstructed RPG with very simple graphics but a love letter to Vagrant Story in many visual ways. Some of the mechanics are totally inspired. Having the loot be worth points which you then have to balance against is just so excellent. You get to have a lot more itemage but not so much that it immediately unbalances you, and it gives you a sense of progressive loot customisation even before you're using or equipping. This eschews post-MMO game design which influenced him in FF12 but also goes back to the more famous variants of AD+D 2nd edition. The dice rolling is pure nostalgic fluff at first but then you realise just what the degree of randomness does to play flow.
Matsuno simply KNOWS game design. He knows a great deal about it at a conceptual level and thoroughly enjoys tinkering with inserting/removing elemental rulesets into formulas.
Most of the game is very tightly woven, though definitely check out videos if you're not sure about graphics.
A complete surprise addition to my best games of 2012.
This game: Amazing.
Liberation Maiden: Amazing.
I'll be buying Aero Porter just because its in the same Guild01 collection.
An instant, charm-filled classic. Deconstructed RPG with very simple graphics but a love letter to Vagrant Story in many visual ways. Some of the mechanics are totally inspired. Having the loot be worth points which you then have to balance against is just so excellent. You get to have a lot more itemage but not so much that it immediately unbalances you, and it gives you a sense of progressive loot customisation even before you're using or equipping. This eschews post-MMO game design which influenced him in FF12 but also goes back to the more famous variants of AD+D 2nd edition. The dice rolling is pure nostalgic fluff at first but then you realise just what the degree of randomness does to play flow.
Matsuno simply KNOWS game design. He knows a great deal about it at a conceptual level and thoroughly enjoys tinkering with inserting/removing elemental rulesets into formulas.
Most of the game is very tightly woven, though definitely check out videos if you're not sure about graphics.
A complete surprise addition to my best games of 2012.
This game: Amazing.
Liberation Maiden: Amazing.
I'll be buying Aero Porter just because its in the same Guild01 collection.
Wolves Evolve
Member
Well, its partially Alexander O Smith who did all the good FFs. You may be interested in this academic article going over his writing and localisation, along with a couple of others.
http://www.eludamos.org/index.php/eludamos/article/viewArticle/64/123
D
Deleted member 20920
Unconfirmed Member
The monsters are stronger but you also get better loot and the treasure chests have different items.
clay_ghost
Member
He help localized Phoenix Wright too? Wow. Time to wiki and play whatever game he help localize too.
What about the additional story choices? Do they amount to anything interesting or worthwhile?
Why are you telling me who Alexander O Smith is? Lol.
D
Deleted member 20920
Unconfirmed Member
Just started chapter 1 again and have not made it to any additional story choices yet. There is however an additional room in chapter 1 and
a locked chest and no key. Looking for the key now
Quick impressions from Chapter 2 (lol, I'm totally stuck too, but I don't want to look up how to proceed just yet!)
I LOVE how focused and tight this game is. I also don't think battles take too long either. Sure, some of the fights can last awhile, but some of those claims seemed to be a bit exaggerated. You can tap any room on the map and walk there directly and bypass encounters completely. You can also retreat from an encounter if you do return to enemy rooms one by one. The focus on gear is really fucking cool too. The mini crafting system is just interesting enough as well. I fucking love the 3-man party focus too. For a group of allies who don't animate, they are packed with some damn good personality. It's all in that writing. Oh, and holy shit at all of the enemy/dungeon descriptions. I've never seen Goblins or Skeletons justified/explained to this level of degree. When games go as far as to explain why there's treasure chests in a dungeon or why enemies occupy an area, you've got something special on your hands. So good.
God, the sound design is much better than I expected. The crackling of fire from a torch, the sound of water flowing down a stream, the growls of monsters in the distance, etc. Man, some of those event scenes are pure audio-gasms. I wish the enemy death screams were a bit more pronounced though. I feel like I'm hearing two sounds on top of each other when an enemy dies too.
Also, I don't like how the power of healing is based off of your magic resistance. I don't believe in having a penalty for increasing stats. You can take care of risk/reward shit through equipment or other means. Not that it seems to matter TOO much in this game since it's on a much smaller scale and there's no traditional leveling, but still. That's pretty barfy in my books. It seems like the kind of decision that would result from starring at an excel sheet or growth rate formula for too long. The database guy needed to take a step outside and get some fresh air on that one, lol! I'm being MEGA nitpicking, by the way. Game's fucking amazing still! =D
I LOVE how focused and tight this game is. I also don't think battles take too long either. Sure, some of the fights can last awhile, but some of those claims seemed to be a bit exaggerated. You can tap any room on the map and walk there directly and bypass encounters completely. You can also retreat from an encounter if you do return to enemy rooms one by one. The focus on gear is really fucking cool too. The mini crafting system is just interesting enough as well. I fucking love the 3-man party focus too. For a group of allies who don't animate, they are packed with some damn good personality. It's all in that writing. Oh, and holy shit at all of the enemy/dungeon descriptions. I've never seen Goblins or Skeletons justified/explained to this level of degree. When games go as far as to explain why there's treasure chests in a dungeon or why enemies occupy an area, you've got something special on your hands. So good.
God, the sound design is much better than I expected. The crackling of fire from a torch, the sound of water flowing down a stream, the growls of monsters in the distance, etc. Man, some of those event scenes are pure audio-gasms. I wish the enemy death screams were a bit more pronounced though. I feel like I'm hearing two sounds on top of each other when an enemy dies too.
Also, I don't like how the power of healing is based off of your magic resistance. I don't believe in having a penalty for increasing stats. You can take care of risk/reward shit through equipment or other means. Not that it seems to matter TOO much in this game since it's on a much smaller scale and there's no traditional leveling, but still. That's pretty barfy in my books. It seems like the kind of decision that would result from starring at an excel sheet or growth rate formula for too long. The database guy needed to take a step outside and get some fresh air on that one, lol! I'm being MEGA nitpicking, by the way. Game's fucking amazing still! =D
Hero of Canton
Member
Okay, can someone tell me the exact process for this Chapter 2 bit? I've followed the
order 14 times now and haven't got the right drop. 
Archers > Mages > Skeleton
Basileus777
Member
Okay, can someone tell me the exact process for this Chapter 2 bit? I've followed theorder 14 times now and haven't got the right drop.Archers > Mages > Skeleton
It's a random drop, you just
need to keep killing Mages.
D
Deleted member 20920
Unconfirmed Member
Okay, can someone tell me the exact process for this Chapter 2 bit? I've followed theorder 14 times now and haven't got the right drop.Archers > Mages > Skeleton
Some said that the loot is randomised. Have you gone into the room with the
fog of war
EDIT: Late.
In my case it dropped
only after two mages appeared in the same battle.
Hero of Canton
Member
I've been in every room it's possible to go in. What a dreadful piece of design. I was absolutely loving it up until then, too.
EDIT: Is it worth me
keeping one archer alive and just killing mages? Will they keep appearing?
EDIT #2: 15 times now, still nothing.
D
Deleted member 20920
Unconfirmed Member
I've been in every room it's possible to go in. What a dreadful piece of design. I was absolutely loving it up until then, too.
EDIT: Is it worth mekeeping one archer alive and just killing mages? Will they keep appearing?
EDIT #2: 15 times now, still nothing.
I must have been pretty lucky because I got it quite quickly. In one or two battles. Not sure if there's a difference to whether you keep
the archer alive
Hero of Canton
Member
FINALLY. Jesus Christ. At least I've got a decent Composite Bow for Lippi, I guess.
What level is your Composite Bow? Welcome to the club!
duckroll said:
Akuosa said:
Basileus777
Member
Do like turn based RPGs? Vagrant Story? The table top stuff mostly applies to the presentation, I think the writing and combat are interesting enough for an $8 game.
I never played a table top game in my life nor do I have any nostalgic attachment to D&D games. I'm merely a lover of vids/RPGs/Matsuno games and this is my GOTY. Enjoy!
Would you pay 8 bucks for a short Vagrant Story style fantasy novella written by Matsuno and translated by Alexander O Smith with an awesome Sakimoto soundtrack?
I'd pay a hell of a lot more than that! That's as close to a RPG dream team as we're going to get these days!
Ok I would. SOLD
Hero of Canton
Member
Only +6, despite the 16 attempts.
You do have to be real careful about what equipment you have on especially for the mage girl. A few times I was screwing around with stuff and left her pretty much useless against the enemies I was fighting (undead as per usual fantasy tropes are immune to dark magic, demons however are not.)
vagabondarts
Member
yeah, I did that too
Basileus777
Member
Just meld some decent magic onto her accessories, you don't change them very often, if at all. Then you can use whatever weapon you want and still have magic to use against incompatible enemies.
I know all about that but this was still pretty early in the game and I didn't have any good magic to bind yet. One brainfart can turn a five turn fight into an hour long affair though.
perfect free
Member
Wow, that Chapter 2 roadblock. "You want to avoid needless fighting... but you may not have a choice." ASTUTE OBSERVATION, GAME. At least it only took me 5 or 6 tries.
polyh3dron
Banned
Downloading now.
In Matsuno I trust.
In Matsuno I trust.
SpaceBridge
Member
So how many hours is a play through?
grimshawish
Banned
This. Fucking. Script.
Such gorgeous writing. Love how the models are made to even look like real figurines.
Still to go deeper into the games depth, A LOT for people to take in.
Very excited for this game though!
Such gorgeous writing. Love how the models are made to even look like real figurines.
Still to go deeper into the games depth, A LOT for people to take in.
Very excited for this game though!
Basileus777
Member
I beat it in a little over 5 hours.
SpaceBridge
Member
Same length as Ace Combat 3D. Lol. Just picked up $20 eshop card. Not to derail the thread, but any other eshop game recommendations?
Similar threads
- Locked