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[DarienA]

Rumble Roses = 5
BloodRayne 2 = 4
Underrated

WWE Smackdown! Vs. Raw = 8
Overrated...get off Yukes nutsack

 

[Tsubaki]

As established before, our gaming philosophies are totally different. So I probably won't be replying after this because it's futile but..

Well, hey, if that's the case... if there's an RPG out there that actually looks and plays well enough that it can actually negate the effects of a shitty storyline... then hey, maybe it's the exception.

I agree with you in that most if not all RPG storylines are crappy. That's almost their very nature. So that's why I don't understand at all why people play RPGs for the story. The plot twists only exist to extend the game to send you to another dungeon.

So for you, you demand better story.

For me, stories were never their emphasis no matter how much people wished it were. I play games to -play- them.

Approximately 75% (<<Fake Estimation Here) of non-combat time in RPGs are spent reading dialogue or watching cutscenes which provide exposition on the plot. If this aspect is a failure, a huge chunk of the game therefore becomes a failure because of this.

While you are more or less right about the first part, you fail too acknowledge that 75% of the entire game is spent in combat. So why shouldn't combat be the most engaging, the most fun part of the game, and where most of the development effort be spent? Grandia's story in of itself isn't phenomenal. It's got a lot of character, and Japan-isms, and dramatized events which help it a lot. But ultimately, it's standard fare. But the game system is where it shines and it will probably forever be my favorite RPG of all time.

True, maybe 75% of the remaining 25% of the game (probably really like 15% of game) is spent on the story/cut scenes. But 15% is pretty insignificant in the scheme of things. And you want to place the entire game's value on that 15%, even to the extent of ignoring the 75% combat. It's the 75% combat that makes me hate Tactics Ogre: Knight of Lodis with a passion. I cannot even fathom why anyone would think it's good, when there's so many better SRPGs, even its big brother Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together.

I hold my RPGs to a higher standard, as I do my books, and as I do my movies. Videogames do not receive a break from me simply because so few developers have learned how to manipulate the medium to tell engrossing stories.

That's funny, because I consider myself to holding RPGs to a higher standard than most of the gaming population. I believe that RPGs should not be mindless. I believe that RPGs should offer strategic combat which requires a lot of give and take. And perhaps most of all, I believe that RPGs should not be played for the illusion that they are about the story. They're games, darnit. One should expect them to be just as fun to play as a Mario platformer or SF3: Third Strike.

 

[Amir0x]

I agree with you in that most if not all RPG storylines are crappy. That's almost their very nature. So that's why I don't understand at all why people play RPGs for the story. The plot twists only exist to extend the game to send you to another dungeon.

So for you, you demand better story.

For me, stories were never their emphasis no matter how much people wished it were. I play games to -play- them.

Unfortunately, RPGs are about playing the role of a character in a storyline. This is a crucial aspect; to think otherwise is pretty silly. If I wanted to be completely honest, I'd probably move the aspect down to 45% story, 45% battle, 5% music, 5% visuals. This is still a huge aspect for me. "Time spent" in any given variable is not directly connected to how important each thing is. Most RPG battle systems are slow, archaic and still have many kinks not worked out from the elder years. But even in an RPG with a good battle system, there must be some motivation for wanting to beat the battles. If the storyline is poor, why the hell would I even bother to play the battles? At the end of the battle I'll just end up having to read more shit about the seven crystals of destiny or some such garbage.

While you are more or less right about the first part, you fail too acknowledge that 75% of the entire game is spent in combat. So why shouldn't combat be the most engaging, the most fun part of the game, and where most of the development effort be spent? Grandia's story in of itself isn't phenomenal. It's got a lot of character, and Japan-isms, and dramatized events which help it a lot. But ultimately, it's standard fare. But the game system is where it shines and it will probably forever be my favorite RPG of all time.

True, maybe 75% of the remaining 25% of the game (probably really like 15% of game) is spent on the story/cut scenes. But 15% is pretty insignificant in the scheme of things. And you want to place the entire game's value on that 15%, even to the extent of ignoring the 75% combat. It's the 75% combat that makes me hate Tactics Ogre: Knight of Lodis with a passion. I cannot even fathom why anyone would think it's good, when there's so many better SRPGs, even its big brother Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together.

That's neat, of course. But time spent isn't always directly connected to how vital something is in a game. In some cases, yes... that's true. You use SRPGs as an example later, and SRPGs are like 95% battle. So of course when the entire game is so overwhelmingly battle system, I'd say it's pretty important.

I disagree with your number, though. I'd say most RPGs are probably 60-65% battle system, which isn't much less than your number, but is still a pretty important distinction. Of course, the time spent in battle for most RPGs is completely optional... so depending on how often you want to sit around leveling up, more time will be spent.

Point is, RPGs are by nature a narrative, story-driven affair. You can't deny this; that'd be silly. They were born of such things, and to say that storyline isn't of primary importance or damn close to it is silly. And frankly, as I said, 99.9% of RPG storylines are horrible. And, of course, our philosophies are different... so I can't enjoy an RPG with a horrible storyline. And, besides that, I haven't played a single RPG where its battle redeemed a bad storyline. Not even Grandia.

That's funny, because I consider myself to holding RPGs to a higher standard than most of the gaming population. I believe that RPGs should not be mindless. I believe that RPGs should offer strategic combat which requires a lot of give and take. And perhaps most of all, I believe that RPGs should not be played for the illusion that they are about the story. They're games, darnit. One should expect them to be just as fun to play as a Mario platformer or SF3: Third Strike.

A significant amount of the "fun" derived from RPGs are from the story. That's pretty much the whole point.

 

[zylo]

Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean = 6

WHAT!? I'm 38 hours into this game and there is no way that it deserves a score that low. The story is in no way as bad as some people make it sound infact IMO it's better than some rpgs that got a better score for example FF8(how anyone rated this game above a 6 or a 7 is beyond me,no offense to those who like it),and probably some others I can't remember right now. Anyway overall this game has decent to good story, excellent battle system, gorgeous graphics and great music. I would even recommended it over TOS (which was good but not great battle system rocked, graphics were ok but everything else was just meh) I find this much more enjoyable.

 

[FortNinety]

I think it's really tough to gauge how good a RPG's storyline is. Since I don't play too many RPGs, I'm automatically going to be a bit more forgiving to some cliched plot-point that's been seen in other RPGs a billion times beforehand, at least to a RPG vet. Granted, every game steals from previous iterations, but when its easier to digest controls that's been repeated since it involves action, meaning not too much thinking, whereas hearing a story for the twentieth time is going to be upsetting no matter how good it was.

 

[Patrick Klepek]

(insert the usual question about the review here)

Oh and another thing...does "multiplatform" mean that 6/10 is for the GBA version as well? I just wanna know if I can add it to the pile of reviews labelled "we played the console version and, assuming the GBA game has the same features, wrote up a review of the GBA version and talked about the cart racing and submarines EVEN THOUGH THEY ARENT IN THE GBA GAME OOPS OH WELL WE'LL DRAG THE GBA GAMERANKINGS SCORE DOWN ANYWAY THANKS".

Christ, am I in a fowl mood this evening...

sorry gaz, i didn't have the gba version to review. just the console games.

 

[The Faceless Master]

* WWE Smackdown! Vs. Raw = 8
* Rumble Roses = 5

what the fuck?

* BloodRayne 2 = 4
* The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age = 8

what the fuck?

* NCAA March Madness 2005 = 8
* ESPN College Hoops 2K5 = 7

what the fuck?

 

[u_neek]

Thank heavens someone has the balls to recognize! GTA:SA is a great game, but it has nothing on pure awesomeness that is MGS3.

So true!
SA is just like a fuckin update - still a great game tho.

 

[Future]

------------
Capcom Fighting Evolution = 3
------------

:lol And well deserved. Terrible, terrible, terrible. Capcom can't go out of the 2d biz like this.

 

[M3wThr33]

I do know my friend had mediocre hopes for BK, but everytime I've dropped by his apartment, he's playing the damn thing like crack.

 

[Kumiko Nikaido]

Growlanser: Generations review location fixed, and coupons found in issue added.

 

[belgurdo]

SA is just like a fuckin update

no

 

[Catchpenny]

* Capcom Fighting Evolution = 3
* Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 = 7

It truly is a dark day when I believe this news.

 

[Hellraizah]

* Halo 2 = 10

 

[Agent Dormer]

Actually, it only got a 10.

 

[Hellraizah]

Actually, it only got a 10.

I declare : Underrated.