Thread: Zemekis' JRPG Voyage

Mantis has a "gayming Journey" thread, and suggested that people make their own. I thought that was a pretty good idea since I've just been posting in the What game(s) are you currently playing? thread. If I made a generalized gaming thread people would know I was bullshitting because I pretty much have one genre on my mind when it comes to games and that's the Japanese Role-Playing Game. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, they are Chinese Cartoon games designed for high-speed cultural appropriation.

In this thread, I will document my noble quest to play through new releases and slay my backlog. I used to do a fair bit of podcasting with my friends which always helped me organize my thoughts about games I had just finished. Hopefully this thread will do the same in writing format. Speaking of format, I'll be stealing Mantis'. Since it's super early in 2020 I'll include some 2019 stuff since the shit I play takes MONTHS to finish.

2019: Completed Games

Red Dead Redemption 2: I honestly forgot I played this when starting the thread. I think I finished it in the first few days of 2019.
Trails of Cold Steel II: Completed in March
Brave Fencer Musashi: Completed in May
Xenogears: Completed sometime in the Spring
Yakuza Kiwami: Completed in March
Skies of Arcadia: Completed in July
Final Fantasy XIV Shadowbringers "Completed" in July, it's an MMORPG expansion so Mr. Bones' wild ride never ends
Death Stranding: Early December
Shenmue 3: Sometime in mid-December
Final Fantasy VIII Remastered: Late November

2020: Completed Games

Grandia: Completed 1/18/2020
Grandia II: Completed 3/9/2020
Final Fantasy VII remake: Completed 4/22/2020
Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete: Completed 7/20/2020
Air Combat: Completed 8/23/2020
Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies: Completed 8/23/2020
Ace combat 2: Completed in Early September 2020
Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky First Chapter: Completed 9/26/2020
Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere: Completed 10/4/2020
Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War: Completed 10/4/2020
Trails in the Sky: Second Chapter: Completed 12/20/2020

In-Progress Individual Games

   20% Final Fantasy Tactics

   10% Wild ARMs 1

   95% Octopath Traveler

   60% Okami

   75% Tales of Vesperia

   60% Grandia III

In-Progress Game Series

   25% Yakuza

Finished Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami. I'm including Judgment in my count of Yakuza main series games which brings the count from 7 to 8 as of this writing.

   50% Lunar

I've decided to simply play Lunar 1 & 2, not going to dive into the handheld sequels. I finished the first one so that's 50% not accounting in differences in how long the 2nd game might be.

   70% Grandia

Just finished the first game!!! (1/18/2020).
Wrapped up Grandia II yesterday. (3/9/2020) Still going strong, but I'll be taking a detour to kick off Wild ARMs so I don't need to start another series from scratch after Grandia III. There are 3 in the main series that I'm planning to play, so I'll divide this into thirds. If I decide to take the dive on Grandia Xtreme then I'll update the bar.

   2% Wild ARMs

I'm about 10% through the first game, so roughly 2% through the series.

   40% Kiseki Series

AKA the "Trails" series. 4/10 games completed thus far.

Good to see this may become something of a trend. I do like the age-old "currently playing" thread because it essentially does the job... however, that way games are treated in a very momentary manner which works for "currently listening", but games can take dozens of hours.

JRPGs are great and all, but when it comes to single player games they really are the biggest time sink. I like to mix them in with other genres. They can take so much time, so when completing side quests as well I've sometimes wondered if it was worth the investment.



Huh, do you actually like Grandia III? Admittedly I haven't played much of it. It just didn't feel anywhere near the same. Grandia I and II are true classics and I can't wait to replay the original in HD.

Aw dang, you reminded me that I gotta replay Lunar here soon. I still have that on my PC. Man, it was cool to talk about that game. As I mentioned before, it's the one JRPG that I have a soft spot for since the characters were so likable and I just like that classical 90s fantasy anime style. I look forward to beating it again so we can talk further on it.

Have you started on Judgement yet? I plan on buying it on my next payday so I was curious to see what your thoughts on it are if you have. I've been meaning to play the other Yakuza games. I've only played Yakuza 0 (Well, and Fist of The North Star: Lost Paradise, which is made by the same guys and is basically a Yakuza game with Fist of the North Star Characters but I don't think that counts. Fun game BTW. You should play it). Yakuza Kiwami is next on my list so that should be a fun discussion too.

Wonderful seeing Vesperia on that list. And nearly completed! Hooray! How'd that Wolf boss treat you?
You're (probably) too far along for most of the tips I like giving out, but I do have a few if you want them.

One thing I highly recommend is to look up and find all the Fell Arms. If the final dungeon is available, they should be as well.
You wont get to fight the full final boss without them. And the game doesn't mention them much at all.

Depending on you far along you are, there should also be a new area in the North West of the map that you can access now. If you can access the final dungeon, you can go there. It's not necessary and has no bearing on the plot, but it's a great place to go. There are a few good weapons and some factories you can get. And you can get outfits for almost everyone there. Theres a stage where everyone (except Patti and Rita) can get some. Theres also a test Rita can take that will get you a damn cool outfit for her. I HIGHLY recommend looking up the answers, because its random trivia about Namco Bandai games that not many people would know off the top of their heads.

Damn, this is more of a response than I get with Outlaw Star light novel translations. I'm so used to people ignoring my shitposting that this was a surprise to wake up to. Glad to see people are interested! If engagement keeps up, it'll 100% encourage me to keep this thread up to date. Thanks guys.

Originally Posted by Mantis

JRPGs are great and all, but when it comes to single player games they really are the biggest time sink. I like to mix them in with other genres. They can take so much time, so when completing side quests as well I've sometimes wondered if it was worth the investment.

Huh, do you actually like Grandia III? Admittedly I haven't played much of it. It just didn't feel anywhere near the same. Grandia I and II are true classics and I can't wait to replay the original in HD.

In my case, they are more or less my only interest so time-sink or not I just don't have other genres that I'm often interested in. That's not to say that I never am, I like a few simulation series (older Sims games, Sim City, Harvest Moon, Recettear) and more action-oriented titles that still retain a few RPG elements (Yakuza, Vagrant Story, Okami, Goemon, Valkyria Chronicles). In my past I played a wider variety more often, but with my reduced time and my favorite genre just so happening to be JRPGs by a wide margin...it doesn't leave time for much else as you pointed out. I don't dislike other genres, they just need to fight extra hard for a slot.

I don't know about Grandia III! I'm just finishing Grandia (1) right now. I've heard good things about Grandia II, and mixed things about Grandia III. The things that I've heard about Grandia III that piss people off actually sound like changes I would enjoy, so I'm looking forward to that one the most. It'll either turn me off completely or be a black sheep that I greatly enjoy.

Originally Posted by Starwind55

Aw dang, you reminded me that I gotta replay Lunar here soon. I still have that on my PC. Man, it was cool to talk about that game. As I mentioned before, it's the one JRPG that I have a soft spot for since the characters were so likable and I just like that classical 90s fantasy anime style. I look forward to beating it again so we can talk further on it.

Have you started on Judgement yet? I plan on buying it on my next payday so I was curious to see what your thoughts on it are if you have. I've been meaning to play the other Yakuza games. I've only played Yakuza 0 (Well, and Fist of The North Star: Lost Paradise, which is made by the same guys and is basically a Yakuza game with Fist of the North Star Characters but I don't think that counts. Fun game BTW. You should play it). Yakuza Kiwami is next on my list so that should be a fun discussion too.

Lunar is pretty cool, I've only played about 6 hours into it as I stated above so I don't have any strong opinions yet. The series I really need to get back to is the Trails series...but that'll easily be a 600-hour commitment and to be honest it just terrifies me so I'm taking down these 1-3 game long series while I muster the courage. Lunar does have a great nostalgic style & I'd even call it more late-80's than 90's. I guess it depends which anime studio you feel that it most resembles.

Haven't played that Fist of the North Star one. I haven't watched or read FotNS, so I probably won't dive into that game until I have. as for Yakuza, I have not played Judgment. I'm going through chronologically and that should be between 6 and 7 so I won't play Judgment for quite some time yet. Let me know how it is if you skip ahead but don't tell me anything about the story.

Originally Posted by pseudohippie

Wonderful seeing Vesperia on that list. And nearly completed! Hooray! How'd that Wolf boss treat you?
You're (probably) too far along for most of the tips I like giving out, but I do have a few if you want them.

It's been on my to-do list for many years, but it was locked away on the 360 and I wasn't going to buy one just for a Tales game when I have so many more yet to play. My patience paid off and it came to PS4 and I was elated to give it a try since it's so highly regarded within the series. I love the characters so far, but it has my least favorite battle system. Everything feels sluggish, like my characters are underwater or moving through syrup. I won't be attempting any additional dungeons or optional bosses because it just feels bad to play, I struggle to get any air juggles going even though they were easy for me in older, clunkier entries in the series (Symphonia). I'm not sure what it is about Vesperia's combat, I hit the enemy about 3 times, then they hit me...I wait for the stun-lock then hit them 3 times...then they hit me again. I also miss ALL THE TIME. Granted, the combat is only one aspect of the game, but I've enjoyed battling in the games before and after Vesperia so I feel they missed the mark on this one. Again, I'm very satisfied with the characters/story so I will finish it in the coming months.

Originally Posted by Zemekis

action-oriented titles that still retain a few RPG elements

I'm unsure of your history with survival horror, but don't the Resident Evil games (the original ones at least) technically count here? Visually, they're very similar to the PlayStation Final Fantasy games due to their usage of pre-rendered backgrounds. They can be quite immersive too and have the kind of narrative most action games don't. There's plenty of back-and-forth item collection and puzzle solving which can be considered RPG-like. That's not to mention that while they obviously aren't turn-based, the action is simpler than in most modern JRPGs that have an open active battle system.

I guess the only thing it lacks that far more significantly scares off JRPG players is being weeaboo-friendly. (After all, the series is designed more realistically and with an American narrative.) Come to think of it, perhaps the Parasite Eve games would be better as they're more fantasy-like, featuring magic.

Originally Posted by Mantis

I'm unsure of your history with survival horror, but don't the Resident Evil games (the original ones at least) technically count here? Visually, they're very similar to the PlayStation Final Fantasy games due to their usage of pre-rendered backgrounds. They can be quite immersive too and have the kind of narrative most action games don't. There's plenty of back-and-forth item collection and puzzle solving which can be considered RPG-like. That's not to mention that while they obviously aren't turn-based, the action is simpler than in most modern JRPGs that have an open active battle system.

I guess the only thing it lacks that far more significantly scares off JRPG players is being weeaboo-friendly. (After all, the series is designed more realistically and with an American narrative.) Come to think of it, perhaps the Parasite Eve games would be better as they're more fantasy-like, featuring magic.

I feel like we may have talked about this before? I can't remember exactly, I'd be shocked if this has never come up but I guess it hasn't. I've played through RE 1 - 3, 7, some of 4, some of Zero, and some of RE2-make. Several Silent Hill games as well, even P.T.! My favorite Survival Horror series is Fatal Frame (weeaboo-friendly), when I first played it back in the day I thought it was 1000x scarier than RE because your ability to fight back is so damn limited & your character can't run (it's more of a light trot). I've gone back to Fatal Frame many times and played the whole series minus handheld spin-offs.

I've played a lot of Unity horror games on PC some of which were my most popular videos on my YouTube channel. LifeLine on the PS2. Echo Night Beyond if you want to count that...but at this point it's getting away from "Survival" Horror and just over to "Horror" in general.

In summary, I have plenty of history with the genre but I've played most of the classic stuff I'm interested in. That's not to say that the backlog is entirely empty but this thread is for the stuff I'm currently playing and have immediately on the horizon. Perhaps in October I'll shift to a horror backlog theme! I need to get through the Siren games & play more Dino Crisis.

Originally Posted by Mantis

the Parasite Eve games would be better as they're more fantasy-like, featuring magic.

Well...it's not really about whether or not it features magic per-se. It's much more about a leveling system being present, which PE has and I love. Then again, I don't really consider PE to be survival horror. It sure as hell looks a lot like that genre, but the battles don't work that way and resources are rather plentiful so I always saw it as an RPG with horror visuals. Greatly enjoyed the first 2.

Originally Posted by Zemekis

Unity horror games on PC

I would be playing Grandia tonight, but I spilled beer AND Monster in/on my PS3 controller.

Moved my save file over to my PS1 using a PS3 Memory Card adapter my parents bought me...maybe 12 years ago now? Finished Grandia and started on Grandia II, I also downed a few beers and a bottle of wine. Good fun night after I spent all day packing to move into my new house. Gonna post a few pictures here to commemorate finishing Grandia. I have a sneaking suspicion that this post and these pictures are ones I will look back at for a snapshot of a particular moment in my life. Literally hours away from moving into my first house, Grandia will always remind me of my first house & I suspect that my new house will remind me of Grandia for a long time. Thanks for reading this far whoever is still with me. You'll notice the moving box and missing games in the upper-right. I didn' plan the shot that way, but the meaning behind those details will stick with me for a long time when looking back. That's where Lunar & Lunar 2 usually reside along with another stack of PS1 games (for my reference when I'm filling my shelves in at the house).