Mysterious Otter
03-04-2005, 02:08 PM
Is anyone else playing this game? I cannot fully express my disappointment in it, and after looking forward to it for two years and keeping an open mind I wasn't expecting an epic, but I certainly wasn't expecting what I'm seeing so far either. I'm still playing it, but I was just prompted to put in the second game disc...after a paltry 12 hours of gameplay. :realmad: Had I not take a bit of time to level up and play a couple of mini-games I could've been looking at a 10 hour long first disc. I should also mention that I probably only "played" the game for about half of that time. The rest has been spent watching cutscenes. :zzz:
Anyway, here's a "first impressions" post I made at another boar for your perusal:
Pros:
I like the various start-up screens that appear when you load a file and tell you "The story so far..." That's a nice feature and I wouldn't mind seeing it in more games, especially games that have complex (or badly written ;) ) stories.
Some of the environments are very nice looking. Nice use of detail and color.
The skill system seems a bit easier to use. I like being able to look at the different skills available under each job class before I spend my skill points.
The Boost system has been improved and is easier to use which has been a great help in battle.
The mini-games are actually kinda fun for a change.
Cons:
Very slow loading inbetween scenes,especially when going between interactive scenes and CG scenes. I think it takes a good count of 5 sometimes, and I find that incredible given that older games had such seamless loading. What's wrong with this technology?
Very slow "loading" during conversations. I mean, how long does it take for one character to respond to another? :wall: There is no excuse why the dialog should drag out the way it does. I hope this isn't some ploy to make us think we're getting more game time 'cause it ain't workin'.
Dubbing is absolutely horrible--not as bad as the original Xenogears, but close. :knockedout: I am certain with a little effort the voice actors or sound technicians could've done a much better job matching voices to lip movement. Why didn't they take the time to get this right?
Voice acting is also horrible. I've never heard such emotionless, bland, and tired-sounding voice acting. These people sound bored out of their minds. And what happened to the beauty and richness of KOS-MOS's original voice? She sounds like Shion now. MOMO, whose voice did not bother me in Episode 1, almost sounds like she's talking baby-talk in Episode 2. Ugh.
The "music" is also horrible. Oh man...I could go on such a rant here but I won't. :mad: Suffice to say, I miss the wonderful music of Yasunori Mitsuda that graced both Xenogears and Xenosaga I. :bawl: The "pop" sound in Episode 2 is just...there are no words to describe how irritating and mind-numbingly awful the music is in this game. :p I've been playing the game with mute on.
It may just be me but the graphics don't look as polished this time around. What on earth has happened to the hands of all the characters? Looks like something out of Final Fantasy 7! And I thought the graphics in the first one were so well-rendered too.
Finally, the obvious...too much CG not enough actual game time. While the story is marginally holding my interest, gee whiz I'd really like to "play" this game at some point! Six hours in and I've gotten in maybe an hour of actual play? Laaaaame!
I'll stop there. These are pretty paltry complaints and, as far as I can tell, should have been "easy fixes". Why do I get the feeling this is going to be the last game in the series? Well, because it's obvious that the game developers did not invest any heart or soul into Episode 2. It's not the worst game I've played but I do so hate this new trend in gaming--soulless J-pop soundtracks, bad voice acting, long melodramatic cutscenes that look like bad martial arts flicks, and no gameplay value. :( Is this really what new breed gamers want???
Anyway, here's a "first impressions" post I made at another boar for your perusal:
Pros:
I like the various start-up screens that appear when you load a file and tell you "The story so far..." That's a nice feature and I wouldn't mind seeing it in more games, especially games that have complex (or badly written ;) ) stories.
Some of the environments are very nice looking. Nice use of detail and color.
The skill system seems a bit easier to use. I like being able to look at the different skills available under each job class before I spend my skill points.
The Boost system has been improved and is easier to use which has been a great help in battle.
The mini-games are actually kinda fun for a change.
Cons:
Very slow loading inbetween scenes,especially when going between interactive scenes and CG scenes. I think it takes a good count of 5 sometimes, and I find that incredible given that older games had such seamless loading. What's wrong with this technology?
Very slow "loading" during conversations. I mean, how long does it take for one character to respond to another? :wall: There is no excuse why the dialog should drag out the way it does. I hope this isn't some ploy to make us think we're getting more game time 'cause it ain't workin'.
Dubbing is absolutely horrible--not as bad as the original Xenogears, but close. :knockedout: I am certain with a little effort the voice actors or sound technicians could've done a much better job matching voices to lip movement. Why didn't they take the time to get this right?
Voice acting is also horrible. I've never heard such emotionless, bland, and tired-sounding voice acting. These people sound bored out of their minds. And what happened to the beauty and richness of KOS-MOS's original voice? She sounds like Shion now. MOMO, whose voice did not bother me in Episode 1, almost sounds like she's talking baby-talk in Episode 2. Ugh.
The "music" is also horrible. Oh man...I could go on such a rant here but I won't. :mad: Suffice to say, I miss the wonderful music of Yasunori Mitsuda that graced both Xenogears and Xenosaga I. :bawl: The "pop" sound in Episode 2 is just...there are no words to describe how irritating and mind-numbingly awful the music is in this game. :p I've been playing the game with mute on.
It may just be me but the graphics don't look as polished this time around. What on earth has happened to the hands of all the characters? Looks like something out of Final Fantasy 7! And I thought the graphics in the first one were so well-rendered too.
Finally, the obvious...too much CG not enough actual game time. While the story is marginally holding my interest, gee whiz I'd really like to "play" this game at some point! Six hours in and I've gotten in maybe an hour of actual play? Laaaaame!
I'll stop there. These are pretty paltry complaints and, as far as I can tell, should have been "easy fixes". Why do I get the feeling this is going to be the last game in the series? Well, because it's obvious that the game developers did not invest any heart or soul into Episode 2. It's not the worst game I've played but I do so hate this new trend in gaming--soulless J-pop soundtracks, bad voice acting, long melodramatic cutscenes that look like bad martial arts flicks, and no gameplay value. :( Is this really what new breed gamers want???