monroeski
09-08-2008, 02:44 PM
Just started playing this a week or two ago, I'm about 11 hours in, and I'm really enjoying it so far. The character customization feels like it's starting to take off, and if you get the DLC and start on hard mode there is actually a reasonable enough challenge to the game.
One thing I'm getting a kick out of is the difference in animations between the shadows; even in the same class casting the same spell or doing the same skill, they customized the motions each goes through, which is a nice touch.
The enemy designs are pretty cool so far, and I've loved the level design. Even though it's pretty linear, there is a feeling of exploration that has been absent from a lot of the other RPGs I've played lately; I can't wait to get to the next dungeon to see what awaits me, and trekking down all the available paths hasn't gotten old yet like it does in many games of this genre.
Also as I'm getting further into the game and more options become available for combat, I'm really starting to like the combat system and the "charging" mechanic. Basically, for most attacks, after you decide on what to do you can charge up the power at the expense of taking longer to cast (this doesn't apply to physicals, unless you're a monk or have equipped the monk's "charging" ability). For example, if you decide to cast a fire spell and the next three turns in battle are your teammates, you can either cast instantaneously or charge it up for more damage and potentially have the spell go off after your teammates. This is really helpful in some situations, such as when I wanted to stun the enemy party, but my character with the stun spell's turn came up before everyone else (hitting a stunned enemy takes away the status condition and returns them to normal) - I charged the spell with him, letting everyone else get their whacks in first, then the stun spell went off afterwards, hit all but one of the enemy monsters, and my team basically got a free turn.
It's all very light-hearted, and the storyline and characters aren't anything to write home about (unless you're writing about how ****ing annoying Marumaro is), but overall I'm enjoying it a lot so far even if it isn't exactly an instant classic. I've got Lost Odyssey on my shelf waiting for me to finish this, and thus far it looks like it will have a lot to live up to.
One thing I'm getting a kick out of is the difference in animations between the shadows; even in the same class casting the same spell or doing the same skill, they customized the motions each goes through, which is a nice touch.
The enemy designs are pretty cool so far, and I've loved the level design. Even though it's pretty linear, there is a feeling of exploration that has been absent from a lot of the other RPGs I've played lately; I can't wait to get to the next dungeon to see what awaits me, and trekking down all the available paths hasn't gotten old yet like it does in many games of this genre.
Also as I'm getting further into the game and more options become available for combat, I'm really starting to like the combat system and the "charging" mechanic. Basically, for most attacks, after you decide on what to do you can charge up the power at the expense of taking longer to cast (this doesn't apply to physicals, unless you're a monk or have equipped the monk's "charging" ability). For example, if you decide to cast a fire spell and the next three turns in battle are your teammates, you can either cast instantaneously or charge it up for more damage and potentially have the spell go off after your teammates. This is really helpful in some situations, such as when I wanted to stun the enemy party, but my character with the stun spell's turn came up before everyone else (hitting a stunned enemy takes away the status condition and returns them to normal) - I charged the spell with him, letting everyone else get their whacks in first, then the stun spell went off afterwards, hit all but one of the enemy monsters, and my team basically got a free turn.
It's all very light-hearted, and the storyline and characters aren't anything to write home about (unless you're writing about how ****ing annoying Marumaro is), but overall I'm enjoying it a lot so far even if it isn't exactly an instant classic. I've got Lost Odyssey on my shelf waiting for me to finish this, and thus far it looks like it will have a lot to live up to.