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Post by Kazin on Oct 20, 2022 8:06:04 GMT -5
The bad level ups can snowball, though, to where there are several battles in a row where you have characters dealing like 1 HP damage. It's still doable, the enemy AI is dumb! Just a slog. I'm not looking for the best possible level up - I once got an increase of 6 attack and like 4 HP on one character, which was hilarious but not necessary - but a little more consistency would let me concentrate on the part of the game I like - tactical positioning and spreading exp around - and less on just relying on my spellcasters to get me through, or whatever. The first game also likes to throw very underleveled characters at you in the middle of the game, so switching them in can require some Egress grinding to get them up to snuff, too. None of the other games in the series have this issue, just the first one. Even the Game Gear games are smoother experiences!
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Post by toei on Oct 20, 2022 8:17:45 GMT -5
The Game Gear games came later, so it makes sense that they improved on the little things. But I've finished SF two or three times and never had to Egress. You really don't have to. If a useful character is a little bit behind, just set up a few easy kills for them (ie get your stronger guys to weaken the enemy, then move the weaker one in for the kill). If you just can't seem to, forget about that character and replace them when you can. The original SF is more inspired than 2 in terms of locales (both towns and battles) and cast. SF2 is all Centaurs fighting on green plains, it gets tiresomely bland at times. I still like the game overall, though. In terms of pure gameplay, SFCD was the best to me (it's the first GG games with better sound and graphics, basically). I liked Scenarios 1 and 3 of Shining Force 3, too, though the middle one felt mostly unnecessary.
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Post by Kazin on Oct 20, 2022 8:29:28 GMT -5
Shining Force CD is fantastic, yeah. And while I agree Shining Force II has an abundance of Centaurs, SF1 is a little more on rails between battles than SF2, which I also dislike. You've got one town to explore at a time, generally, where in SF2, you can kind of go all over the place, even if it's not usually all that useful. And yeah, I still like SF1, I just find it a bit too rough around the edges to replay it much. I've been poking away at the original cart on my Nomad this year, and having a decent time generally. The whole time though, I think to myself "man, I could just play 2 or CD and have a better time" lol.
I've only beat the first scenario of SF3 - I need to finish those last two. I did carry over my save from scenario 1 to 2, but was a bit burned out on the series at the time so I dropped it (I'd played through 2, Hajya, and Final Conflict* just before starting 3.1, so I'd played a TON of SF at the time lol).
*Final Conflict is amazing, by the way. Absolute fan service with fun battles, and some difficult ones later on. Still pretty easy overall, though, like most of the series. Easily the best Game Gear game (if we're not counting CD).
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Post by Ex on Oct 20, 2022 10:53:58 GMT -5
Ex has wild tastes. I mean, I guess I do too Oh yes, you do.
But wild tastes are better than generic pollyanna tastes. The difference there is, you can beat a classic Castlevania in under an hour. Whereas Alundra is 30+ hours of torture, and Landstalker is 17+ hours of absolute sadomasochism. I am interested in trying Dark Savior someday though. I didn't worry about leveling up in Shining Force, because it's such an easy SRPG. So missing stat increases sometimes made it marginally more challenging, thus slightly more engaging. But I don't blame anyone for being perturbed when they level up, and yet receive no stat gains whatsoever. That is a disappointing situation on its face. But I wasn't surprised considering how boneheaded Camelot's ideas can be. The absolute worst shopping systems I've ever endured have been in Camelot games.
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Post by Sarge on Oct 20, 2022 11:39:54 GMT -5
I guess I'll be the generic taste guy. Ha, no, not really. Although I do think my tastes conform slightly more than either Ex's or toei's. Other than some very tightly-timed puzzles, Landstalker was a good time as well. I basically recommend all the big three ARPGs of the late-gen Genesis ( Beyond Oasis, Crusader of Centy, Landstalker), and toss in King Colossus as well. (And Sword of Vermilion, while not amazing, is moody and a pretty good playthrough.)
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Post by Ex on Oct 20, 2022 11:51:43 GMT -5
I've not played through Crusader of Centy yet, so neutral on that one.
I agree Beyond Oasis, Tougi-Ou: King Colossus, and Sword of Vermilion are great, well worth action-RPG fans time. And I'll throw Light Crusader in that list too, as another Genesis action-RPG worth playing. But Landstalker can die in a fire.
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Post by Sarge on Oct 20, 2022 12:05:13 GMT -5
Oh, right, Light Crusader is good, too. Always seem to forget about it - one of Treasure's more understated games.
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Post by toei on Oct 20, 2022 12:18:30 GMT -5
Landstalker is the best of those, but yes, they're all really solid. Sword of Vermillion is a different kind of game too me, since it has random encounters taking place in a separate screen. Great music, great somber atmosphere, love the weird early Genesis graphics in town. Light Crusader gets a bit overlooked, probably because it's different - Treasure went for a Western vibe, kind of like From Software - but it's solid too.
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Post by Kazin on Oct 21, 2022 9:32:11 GMT -5
So, update on Arc the Lad.
I'm currently looking for the Guardians or whatever. I'll be honest, the story hasn't grabbed me at all yet, but the gameplay is just so smooth and fast paced for this type of battle system that I keep coming back. Helps that the animations are gorgeous as well. I just figured out how to see what items do what now (hold square in the item equip menu), but I'm not really clear on a few things, so if anyone knows:
1. One of my items gives a character Jump Level 1. I have this equipped to Poco, but he doesn't seem to be able to jump very much, if at all. Am I limiting myself by having this equipped to him? In other words, is his jump level actually higher than 1, but the item caps you or something?
2. What actions cause me to gain exp? I'm not having a problem gaining levels, but it seems somewhat random. I've had characters take damage and level up, and I've had them level up from dealing damage.
3. Is it possible to miss party members? I know some stuff gets carried over to Arc the Lad 2, and I've not seen any indication yet that I've missed anything (I think), but should I be doing and redoing battles in certain areas, or going back to certain areas, to get bonus stuff? Or should I just not worry about it?
Having a great time still, and hopefully will beat the game in the next few days. I think I'm about 2 and a half or 3 hours in, iirc. Other than watching Doctor Who on Sunday, I don't have plans this weekend, so I should be able to dig in most of the time.
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Post by Xeogred on Oct 21, 2022 11:14:55 GMT -5
Sadly it's been like 20 years since I played Arc 1 and I can't really remember any of those specifics. Maybe you should double check online to see if any units are missable. But I think even if so, you probably have a chance to get everyone in Arc 2. Your stats will carry over with a shared save file to an extent, but I think they just come with base stats if someone doesn't have an Arc 1 file.
Plus Arc 2 just feels like the real game from top to bottom lol, so Arc 1 I'm drawing a complete blank on story wise and all. Just feels like a short prologue.
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