Adventure of Mana Stealth Release on Vita NA and EU

According to our friends at Kotaku by way of Siliconera, Secret of Mana has been stealth released by SE for a digital release on the Play station Store. Apparently this game was released on the mobile market which means that I completely ignored it. But now we get to experience this on Vita too! I will continue to contend that Vita s far from dead and is doing quite well of your a fan of JRPGs and visual novels. I definitely hate that they are screaming that these titles are available from the rooftops but I will do my part and spread the word.

Secret of Mana is available for 14.99 on PSN NA/EU today so go pick yours up now if you aren't too busy playing Star Ocean of Zero Time Dilemma.

Until Next Time,

DreaPoetic

Sources:

Image:
http://www.technobuffalo.com/2013/12/12/square-enix-working-on-a-new-secret-of-mana-game/

Articles:

Kotaku:
http://kotaku.com/surprise-adventures-of-mana-appears-on-vita-1782735084

Play station Blog:
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/06/28/adventures-of-mana-is-out-today-on-ps-vita/

To Buy A Collector's Edition or Not?

I remember when I was a young gamer searching through all of my magazines for any information on upcoming JRPG releases I would always come across the collector's editions (CE) from the East. The amount of jealousy I felt knowing that none of these glorious bundles were going to come this way would fill me such sadness. Unfortunately at my age then, even if they had made it this way I couldn't have afforded them anyway lol.

But these sets, they were filled with pretty much useless stuff to someone on the outside looking in. Usually soundtrack CDs, figurines, art, plushies etc. All of these things were standard fare you could find at any convention. Nowadays, more of these sets are coming to the West if not all of them. We have our picks of all of these sets for a wide range of games and to make things more interesting, a lot of Western games are also adopting these sets.

I would say if there is two major differences its that now a lot of these sets contain Downloadable Content (DLC) that used to be obtainable in game. and sometimes a "free" copy of its predecessor. I will probably cover my issue with DLC later but my issue today is when is a getting a Collector's Edition worth it?

This whole topic is probably subjective honestly. Its like, do you like soundtracks and art? The get this set. Do you want to get a rare collectible and DLC? Get this one. I guess my issue is that one, I'm running out of space for all of this awesome stuff and sometimes the CE's don't really justify having a CE at all lol. Just art and a soundtrack? Is that really worth it? I think that the CE's need to be updated to either include more or fit with the demographic. What could they include? I guess all of the above all at once but then I guess the issue would be the price point. Sigh.

Well, I definitely preordered the Persona 5 set and I have no regrets. I guess this is something to think about but definitely let me know your thoughts.

Until Next Time,

DreaPoetic


Source:

Image:
http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/06/07/e3-2016-persona-5-us-release-date-collectoras-edition-announced

Why Don't We Have More Visual Novels?

In the recent years I have become acquainted with visual novels. I'm an avid reader on a good day so when I discovered that I could play a game that was actually a story and I didn't need to "play" the game I'm like sign me up. So i delved into my first visual novel which was Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom on my PS3 published by Aksys Games. It was an otome game meaning that it was a reverse harem. For those not familiar with that concept it means that the main protagonist is female and she is the one surrounded by gorgeous men who are trying to woo her. Needless to say, the game had all of the typical anime tropes as well as a bit of history, although not entirely factual, along with romance. It took me hours to finish that game and it was worth every second.

Fast forward to now. I have managed to play 4 other visual novels that were all on the Vita. There is at least one that I know of that is coming out this year but I haven't heard of too many more. From my research there are a ton of visual novels on Steam which is probably the only reason why I would explore PC gaming but even those have to be fan translated into English. I also tried to play one of the many mobile offerings but those are pay to progress which I refuse to spend my money on (read: again lol).

I guess my question about it is why is that the case? I suppose the reason for it would be that there isn't an audience for it here but I disagree. We want these games but they just aren't coming out as frequently as they other titles and genres from Japan. My only other thought is that because they are so text heavy that they have been having issues justifying the cost of localization for a few thousand sales. I already play a ton of games with only Japanese voices so to me they don't even need to be voiced in English.

Are visual novels not really wanted in the West? Are they only for weeaboos like me? What can we do to get them to bring over more titles besides supporting kickstarters and complaining on official forums? Let me know what you guys think?

Until next time,

Drea Poetic

Sources:

All images are owned by Aksys games.

Image:

https://www.google.com/search?q=hakuoki+demon+of+the+fleeting+blossom&prmd=visn&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjD2d7smrzNAhUCbB4KHYTzBmIQ_AUICCgC&biw=360&bih=560#imgrc=UBgW-oofaTWkyM%3A

Niche Corner: I am Setsuna

Platform: PS4, PC, Steam, Vita
Release Date: 7/19/16
Genre: JRPG

There is a lot of hype surrounding this game which is considered to be the spiritual successor to Chrono Trigger, a classic JRPG made from this publisher SquareEnix. As I perused the official website it even said that it's battle system was inspired by the game. They aren't even trying to be coy about the similarities lol. For those of you that don't know, the community has been clamoring for a sequel to Chrono Trigger and what we got was Chrono Cross. Chrono Cross was a great game in it's own right but not quite what people were looking for.

The story of I am Setsuna follows a girl aptly named Setsuna who was gifted with enchanted powers and chosen to be a human sacrifice to pacify a fiend. A mercenary was chosen to guard Setsuna and make sure she arrives to her destination and that's where the adventure begins.

The lastest trailer was shown off at E3 which I will link for you guys. From the video clip I can say that the art is beautiful. While the games graphics are more polished than the above mention title, its safe to say where the inspiration comes from. I am super excited for this game and can't wait to play it next month. I'll definitely keep you updated on any new information I find.

Until Next Time,

DreaPoetic

Sources:

Image:
http://d2.christiantoday.com/en/full/46139/i-am-setsuna.jpg

Youtube Clip:
https://youtu.be/4txT2EicrHE

Official Game Website:
http://www.iamsetsuna.com/us/

Final Fantasy 15: The Future of the Franchise or the Last Hurrah?

Platform: PS4, Xbox One, VR Compatible
Release Date: September 30th, 2016
Available both retail and digital download


The title sounds super bleak but in my heart of hearts that how I really feel about the franchise and the game as a whole. To catch everyone up who isn't familiar, Final Fantasy 15 (FF15) was formally known as Final Fantasy Versus before it was re-packaged into one of the numbered entries. This game has been in production for the last 10 years and is finally getting it's release on September 30th 2016. This game will also be the first game in the series to almost completely abandon the active turn based battle system in favor of a more action rpg like feel. This game is also set in a completely immersive and massive open world much like Witcher or Skyrim. And finally, but not really finally, this game has 4 male protagonists and no female characters to be a part of the main cast. We don't know if there will be a female guest NPC to play at some point but I guess we will see.

This game has so many red flags for me personally I don't even know where to start. To be fair, I am more of a traditionalist when it comes to rpgs. I love turn based combat and while I find some action rpgs enjoyable, for this series it almost immediately put me off. The creators released two different demos, FF15 Duscae and The Platinum Demo. I skipped the first one despite having brought Final Fantasy Type 0 to play it, but I did play the second demo because you can have the carbuncle join you in the game if you complete it. Who doesn't love a cute Carbuncle right? And the combat felt like Kingdom Hearts minus the Disney Property. Even the enemies looked like low level Heartless mobs from the game. 

Plenty of publications came to the same conclusion as I did about the feeling of the battle system. In Final Fantasy it's not like them to have a recycled idea. Some people could argue that the turn based battle system is nothing but a giant rehash but SE has always managed to make it fresh. I couldn't get past Final Fantasy 13 but the paradigm shift battle system was fluid and seamless. A lot of people didn't like the Junction System in Final Fantasy 8 but that was also a different take on turn based combat. I could state the battle system for all the entries I have played but this was glaring to me.

The next thing is the open world. Most of the older titles had an overworld map or something similar. Final Fantasy 12 was probably the one that had the most open world feel in comparison to Final Fantasy 10 or 13. I believe that I am personally suffering from Open World Fatigue, a term i'm borrowing from Colin Moriarty of Kinda Funny Games Podcast/Channel. The term basically means that most of the games that have emerged have so much open world, space etc that you can literally get lost in doing side quests or your own thing that you never finish the main campaign or you may complete it but it will be after sinking a gajillion amount of hours into a game. That's more like MMORPG territory which is fine if that is what you signed up for. It's definitely a more western gaming idea that the East has been trying to adopt for some fucking reason. Personally I like a self contained environment that does not overwhelm me the possibilities of what I could do but gives me the freedom to play how I like. Bottom line is that I payed for creators or someone to make the game and tell me a story. I don't need to "make" my own, but that's just me and plenty of people will disagree.

And probably my last issue is the amount of pomp and circumstance they are putting into its release. They have an anime, and prequel movie, some VR elements that look half baked and some more gimmicky stuff. I have never needed that to sell me on a Final Fantasy and I think most of the FF fanbase hasn't either. I'm worried that the lore of the game is going to be mixed in with all of the other media that a regular gamer won't be able to truly grasp the story without exploring it as well. And the story sounds like it has the making to be epic but its over exposure is almost like the big movies that spoil things with the trailers. The stories and game have always spoken for itself and I guess I'm concerned that all of this marketing hype is hiding that this game is another dud in the series.

I really want to love this game. I really want the game to do well. If this is the direction that the series is going then maybe I may need to face the music that this series is not for me anymore but either way, we will see in September. 

Until Next Time,

DreaPoetic

Source:

All images are property of SquareEnix

MMORPG Explorer: Final Fantasy 14 Patch 3.3

So, I know that I should probably start at the beginning to discuss the massive world that is Final Fantasy 14 (FF14) but I'm going to start at the latest content patch of 3.3. To break that down a bit though, 1.0 is the original version of FF14, 2.0 is FF14 A Realm Reborn and 3.0 is the Heavensward Expansion. All of the .xx stuff if the actual content that they add during the course of the expansion but anyway, moving on.

This patch added several new features:

• More main story quests (MSQ) that conclude the current crisis in the game, the Dragonsong War
• The Niddhog Normal and Extreme trial which drop I235 weapons
• More story regarding the Warring Triad story line with a mission attached
• The next tier to the 24 man/player raid called the Weeping City
• 2 new dungeons call Sohr Kai and Hullbreaker Hard Mode
• New Hildebrand quests (although they are short)
• Another map to the 72 man/player PVP (Player versus Player) mode called Frontlines: Shatter
• A new addition to the Dragonskin Map system that has a 50% chance to spawn a dungeon area called the Aquapolis for rare loot drops, lore tomes and Gil
• The next step to the Anima (relic) weapon story line. 
• They also added the last Moogle Beast Tribe Quest which focuses on leveling crafters

There were other quality of life adjustments added as well: 

• like being able to create different HUD layouts for each character or battle mode
• the addition of new furniture and flower pots, new gear for crafter, gatherers and battle classes
• adjustments to the crafter/gatherer script system and numerous other things that they put into the game that I can't even begin to name. 
• They also added something called the Raid Finder that allows for players that want to participate in the highest tier raids called "Savage" but can't find players to group with, the ability to find others in the same situation across their particular data center.

That's a lot of stuff included and all of it was great. For now, I wont mention any spoilers because it's barely 2 weeks old but, I finished the main story and the conclusion was satisfying although shorter than I thought it would be. It would be important for everyone to remember that we are still halfway through this expansion and 3.55 will probably be the long cinematic story that we are looking for. I think the most surprising thing was the Niddhog Normal mode battle because most people couldn't dickroll through it like the we normally do. That caused the player base to be kind of confused and I haven't seen this kind of frustration from the casual/midcore crowd outside of hardcore raiding. It was refreshing and I was all for it. (I cleared it with my 1st party btw :))

I got to play the Warring Triad Mission as well and it was very informative as well to the identity of the mysterious boy who has been leading us to fight these primals or Eikons as he calls them. This too was shorter than I wanted it to be but still satisfying. I played through both of the new dungeons and they were both pretty decent. Hullbreaker was definitely boring looking aesthetic wise in comparison to the other dungeon or content but hey, we have to slack of somewhere right?

Now, The Weeping City (or Wiping City according to the player base lol) has been the most surprising content this patch. The director of FF14, Yoshi P admitted that the development team made the 1st tier, Void Ark way to easy and this difficulty is how the 24 man raids will be from this point forward. This content has been very challenging because you have to coordinate with 23 other people to not fuck up mechanics of each fight and well... that hasn't gone too hot lol. I didn't clear it the first day and it took forever to clear it the 2nd day. Most people were probably waiting for online guides so they could get the mechanics right and some people have yet to do that. Its been frustrating but damn its a good time and I hope they continue to make content like this.

I've been typing a lot so i'll finish it up. I have yet to finish the Hildebrand side quests and my Anima weapon is not even close to being done. I'm not trying to burn out on the game like a lot of my Free Company (FC) members have managed to do. I'm taking it one day at a time and I'm waiting for the next patch that's going to add Deep Dungeon. All of the improvements are exciting so I'll continue to cover this content.

Sources:

All images are the property of SquareEnix

FF14 3.3 Patch Notes:
http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/197e9c8b2f04efdecffe26bebe43b40551d1e3e8

Niche Corner: Fallen Legion

On IGN today I came across a video of this action JRPG called Fallen Legion. According to Siliconera this JRPG follows protagonist, Princess Cecille of Fenumia. After the death of her father, she inherits a talking grimoire with magical powers to imbue legendary weapons. She decides to go on an adventure to restore honor to her home town as well as the world. From the video on IGN, the play style seems to have actions mapped to certain buttons but it all occurs in real time.

The article didn't mention if this is an indie title or not but it did mention that it is coming to PS4 and PS Vita (per audience request) digital download only some time this summer. I'm surprised that this slipped under my radar but I intend to check it out.

Sources:

Fallen Legion Video on IGN:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.ign.com/videos/2016/06/16/fallen-legion-trailer-e3-2016&ved=0ahUKEwj2peuRpK3NAhWCQj4KHarzAF84ChAWCCEwAg&usg=AFQjCNFhNfLnWiKdgIHxJrY-aj6yrRDDLQ&sig2=9gvEwB3TnhShIZthFsVnbQ

Siliconera Article:

http://www.siliconera.com/2016/01/07/fallen-legion-stylish-action-game-reimagined-jrpg/

Persona 5 Gameplay Footage

Well since Persona 5 won't be coming stateside until Valentine's Day, I have continued to scour the internet for any news from E3 so lo and behold, Kotaku has answered my prayers. In an article posted yesterday on the website they managed to get some game play footage. If you're familiar with the series, all of this looks very reminiscent of Persona 3 and 4 but with way more polish. I can't wait to get my hands on it. I'll discuss my love of the Persona series in another post but for now join me in being jealous of our Japanese friends for getting this in September :(

Here is a link to the article on Kotaku:

http://kotaku.com/some-fresh-persona-5-gameplay-footage-1782004547

And here is a link to the trailer courtesy of YouTube, IGN and Atlus at E3 2016:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3JkO-82YQ8

MMORPG Corner: Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn Into Heavensward

So around February of 2015, I decided to try my first MMO which just so happened to be Final Fantasy 14. Mind you, I don't own a PC and as of now have no plans of changing that, but this one was available on the PS4. I had done my research which had led me into the world of Let's Plays on YouTube and Twitch to watch streamers play the game, (I'm definitely going to talk about that phenomenon at a later time), so I could know what I was getting in to since I was a noob. I approached this game like a person who plays single player games and that was a good and a bad thing. 

I was used to playing alone so relying on other real people instead of characters that I can control was definitely anxiety inducing. As a matter of fact, the idea of interacting with real people in a game where people could dissect your play style if it was different was another anxiety inducing thing. It introduces another not so fun aspect into playing games which I wasn't sure I could mesh with. Plus it had a 12 dollar a month subscription fee which I also wasn't sure I wanted to deal with lol. But what the hell right? I went for broke and played it anyway and loved it.

This game is super friendly to casual people, adults mainly, who have other shit to do than play games all day much to our chagrin. It eases you into the mechanics of the game and treats you as if this is your first MMO which probably blew the hell out of people who were seasoned vets. Another thing that is apparently different is that you can level all classes/jobs on one character so there is no need for multiple subscriptions or accounts. Then there was the story, my God if this isn't a Final Fantasy game, and its cinematic, massive and epic. 

On top of all of this, I found out that this game had been released once and was horrible as shit to the point where they blew the game up (all story based) and remade the whole damn game from the ground up. This is probably the only game in history that flopped and managed to recover to a profit. I could be wrong about that and you're free to correct me in the comments if you like.

But anyway, I say all this to say that I plan on discussing this game at different points on here so ill get into detail about a lot more things. In the meantime, I'm going to link a few things for you guys.

Here is the link to the free trial:

http://www.ffxiv-freetrial.com/na/

The trial is 14 days and lets you play up until level 35 to get a feel for the game. Mind you, you can play this game on PS4, Steam and PC. PC and Steam are different and if you want more details you can definitely leave me a message. 

Here is the link to the reddit for the game:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ffxiv/

Now keep in mind this is a reddit forum so be careful as you surf and interact lol. Most of the people are friendly and helpful so be sure to follow the rules of the forum. Also, check the different tabs before asking questions because a lot of beginner things you can find there.

And the last one is this Wiki:

http://ffxiv.gamerescape.com/

This site answered a lot of beginning questions that I had before I went to reddit so if you're a bit shy start here.

I can't wait to share my adventures in Eorzea with you guys.

Credits:

Final Fantasy 14 game and its images are trademarked by SquareEnix

E3 2016 Has Begun

So E3 began this week and as far as RPG news goes I'm scouring the shows and news sites to see what's out there. I mainly own Sony Platforms and no Xbox One or Xbox Scorpio now, but I'll still post information about it if it applies.

So far the conferences have been kinda blah as far as presentation goes except for Sony that came with a live orchestra and nothing but game trailers. Sony decided to let the games speak for themselves but only a handful of them had release dates or real information about the actual game itself.

The Microsoft presentation may have been more lip service but at least they talked about actual games this year instead of how the Xbox One is a multimedia device.

This isn't my overall thoughts so I'll keep it brief. Square Enix is doing their show tonight and Nintendo is today as well. We shall see what else happens and if it's anything good I'll let yall know.

Until Next Time,

DreaPoetic

What are Role Playing Games Exactly?

So when I was about 12 years old, I discovered my first role playing game which was Final Fantasy 8. At the time I had no idea it was a role playing game but what I did know while I was watching MTV and saw the commercial was that it looked awesome and I wanted to have it immediately. Fast forward to today and I now know that there are a lot of sub genres to role playing games that I learned through trial and error. If you managed to stumble across my humble little blog, I figured I would try to give you the basic knowledge that I learned on my own so here we go. 

Role Playing Game (RPG):

A game by which the player (you) assume the role (haha) of an imaginary character and essentially play out their adventure from start to finish by some brilliant developer. The usual elements include character customization, classes, a great story, character battles, etc. Examples would be anything from Final Fantasy, Dungeons and Dragons or Dragon Quest.

Japanese Role Playing Game (JRPG):

These are role playing games that are usually created and/or modeled after Japanese culture and history. Even if the concept is new in concept, usually the models are made to resemble anime characters or have traditional Japanese features. These types of games also used to have a set way they were made like being turn based, sometimes linear and contained an immersive story. Examples would be the Persona, Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest and those are the popular ones.

Western Role Playing Games (WRPG):

I don't really see the acronym used a lot for these RPGs but for the most part take the Western (American) culture, history and character model references for their games. Unlike JRPGs though, these games tend to be open world and expansive allowing the player as much choice as possible to customize their experience. Examples of this are Dragon Age, Skyrim, Witcher etc.

Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game {MMORPG):

Did I mention that most RPGs are single player experiences? Well with MMORPGS these games are usually played with other people online through computers or console game systems. These games are open world, open ended and usually player run ecosystems. They try to encourage social interaction while you escape and play the role of your character. Some Examples are World of Warcraft (WoW), Final Fantasy 11 and 14, Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) etc.

Table Top Role Playing Games:

These are Role Playing Games that the players describe their character's actions through speech. There is definitely a lot of imagination used for these types of games but they have their own lore, world and rules to help the players make the game immersive. Examples of this are Dungeons and Dragons.

Now that we got that out of the way, there are several subtypes of RPGs that you should be familiar with.

Strategy Role Playing Game (SRPG):

A type of RPG where the player gives commands to a unit of characters to complete the assigned objective. Usually the battle field is grid like requiring you to move your units in a certain amount of moves or turns. These aren't my favorite because they actually require strategy lol. It reminds me a lot of planning for a war which is usually the main plot thread in the game. Examples of this are Valkyrie Chronicles, Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem Series.

Action Role Playing Games:

A type of RPG where the player gives commands to their character and the moves are executed in real time. Like if you press X and X makes ur character strike with a sword that's exactly what your character will do immediately. With that being said, the enemy characters can also attack you with that pace. Examples of this would be Kingdom Hearts, Tales of Series and Final Fantasy 15.

Turn Based Role Playing Game:

The traditional form of RPGs that require the player to input commands to their characters that the characters will then execute after a time delay. It goes in the order of character, monster then character depending on the game. This type of rpg gives you time to plan without having to worry about commanding a whole unit and you can normally recover quickly. It also usually has the battle take place in an alternate space than the field. This type of RPG gas fallen out of flavor recently to more action rpgs but tis is my favorite type of RPG. Examples of this would be Final Fantasy 1 through 10, Dragon Quest, Person Series.

Rogue Like Role Playing Game:

This is a type of RPG that has the player take their character through a randomly generated dungeon that's grid like. Usually each time the player enters they will start at level one and will lose all items found if they are killed in the dungeon. This type of rpg can be very unforgiving and require for the player to be patient and have good item management. You can normally see your character on screen but they are normally super-deformed in comparison to their cut-scenes. Examples of this would be Azure Dreams etc.

Dungeon Crawling Role Playing Game:

This is a type of rpg that is normally shown in the first person perspective as the player navigates through labyrinth type dungeons. You are unable to see your character and most times unable to see the whole dungeon or rooms as a whole. Some dungeon crawlers can have rogue like elements like starting the whole dungeon over when killed and losing all items. Some examples of this would be Diablo, Persona Q, Mind Zero.

So we went through a lot in this article but of course if you have anything that you want to add that I missed let me know. This list is by no means comprehensive and there is definitely more information out there but this should at least point you in the right direction. As my blog posts continue a lot of these will be elaborated on when I describe games that I play. But I hope the information is here was helpful. Be sure to share, subscribe and comment.

Until Next Time

DreaPoetic :)

Images found:

FF14: http://www.justpushstart.com/2013/06/final-fantasy-xiv-a-realm-reborn-beta-is-live-once-again-for-pcps3/

FF8: https://www.pinterest.com/krilynebluemage/final-fantasy-viii-ix/

Witcher 3: http://www.gameondaily.com/the-witcher-3-wild-hunt-hopes-and-fears/

Dungeons and Dragons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons

Final Fantast Tactics: War of Lions: http://www.emuparadise.me/PSP_ISOs/Final_Fantasy_Tactics_-_The_War_of_the_Lions_(Europe)/157288 

Tales of Zestria: http://kotaku.com/tales-of-zestiria-takes-a-cue-from-classic-literature-1692549754

Persona 4 Golden: http://gamingtrend.com/game_reviews/following-the-golden-rule-in-persona-4/ 

Azure Dreams: http://lparchive.org/Azure-Dreams/Update%2042/

Mind Zero: http://www.3djuegos.com/15855/mind-0/

Persona 5 Delayed Until 2017?

Persona 5 Not Coming Out Until 2017?

Oh say it isn't so. (Thug tears lol)

On June 9^th, 2015, Kotaku and several other gaming outlets revealed that the Western version of the game was not going to be released simultaneously with the Japanese release like originally thought. This is probably a good thing because people will be able to finish Final Fantasy 15 which also had a September release window. I have loved this franchise since I discovered Persona 3 and the longer wait is just hyping me up even more.

The game has a new release date of February 14, 2017 as well as information on the new “Take Your Heart Out” collector’s edition. Persona 5 will be available on PS4 as well as the PS3.

You can find the original Kotaku interview here:

http://kotaku.com/persona-5-wont-be-out-in-north-america-until-february-2-1780940216

Along with information to pre-order the collector’s and standard editions here (like I will be):

atlus.com/persona5