Star Ocean 4

[Dead to Rights]

Leaked? Star Ocean 4 is for the Playstation 3? (http://www.siliconera.com/2007/09/07/leaked-star-ocean-4-is-for-the-playstation-3/)

[marceall]

I believe in this :lol:

[Sanctine]

WOW!1 I NEVAR SAW THIS 1 CUMMING!2!

[RayFoxSith]

http://www.siliconera.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/so4.jpg

http://www.siliconera.com/2007/09/05/meet-the-heroes-of-star-ocean-4/

Siliconera had this article out for a while.

[sushihane]

Hey Sanctine I like your avatar :) no love for Chisato?

[Sanctine]

Thanks. I liked Chisato's character, but her ears freak me out. XP

[dragonlife29]

Hopefully it's not horrible like 3.

[Sanctine]

Hopefully it's not horrible like 3.

3 was arguably the best in the series for me.

But 4's still Star Ocean. I'll love it, no matter how bad it is.

[sushihane]

Thanks. I liked Chisato's character, but her ears freak me out. XP

Chisato, Opera, Celine, now that I think about it I liked a lot of the other girls, except for Rena :P

I can't decide if I like 2 more than 3. I'd probably say 2 though because I found item creation the best thing about the game and I thought it was lacking in 3, plus MP death drove me insane.

[Sanctine]

plus MP death drove me insane.

It was frustrating, but it added a lot of strategy to the game, for me. I really loved how you, or enemies, died from 0 MP.

[RayFoxSith]

^LAWL, very frustrating. And I hated the Blood Armor in 2.

[ViolenceJack]

Have to agree, 2 was great, but tends to freeze a lot on my psx/ps2 :(
3 had a turning point that was kinda anti-climatic, and @#$%^&-@#$%ing Hauler Turtle is so @#$-!@#$ annoying...
Need to get a psp, I really want to get SO1.

[Yazarc]

Valkyrie Profile 1 and 2 are the only worthwhile games Tri-Ace has made so far though it literally took years for VP1 to grow on me. I've stated it many times before, but I truly hate the Star Ocean series. The battle system contains the worst gameplay since Seiken Densetsu 3. I did like SO2 at one point, but after I got partway through, I realized that the whole experience up to that point consisted of rapidly smashing the attack button over and over and I never picked it back up again.

Before the boards crashed, I said that the main character being named Edge Maverick is a terrible sign...I'll stick by that. None of this gives me much hope that SO4 will turn out well.

On a positive note, I really did like SO3's battle music. A cleverly remixed version of SO2s.

[LuminousFaery]

I love SO2!! Haven't gotten a chance to play 'Till the End of Time yet, but still a big fan of what was once Enix. >:)

I wouldn't be surprised of SO4 was for the PS3. I don't really see it going to XBox360 and following tradition it should be on the PS3 but with so many games going multi-platform, who knows?

edit: Rena is my favorite!! >:3

[RayFoxSith]

I love SO2!! Haven't gotten a chance to play 'Till the End of Time yet, but still a big fan of what was once Enix. >:)

You're not missing much.

[Arjuna]

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/305/1189835418024ve4.jpg

I don't care who I spoil this steaming piece of #### for.

[ViolenceJack]

Wasn't Edge Maverick the name of the hero in Atelier Iris 3?

[Yazarc]

Wasn't Edge Maverick the name of the hero in Atelier Iris 3?

No, that was Edge Vanhite.

[Sayckeone]

That's even worse.

[Yazarc]

That's even worse.

Tch....While neither name is very good, I respectfully disagree. Edge Maverick is WAY worse.

Big LOL at Al's post Btw......

[noloe4]

Valkyrie Profile 1 and 2 are the only worthwhile games Tri-Ace has made so far.

Have you tried Radiata Stories? I actually injoyed that game quite a bit. I've only finished the human side of the game,but eventually I'll go back and do the non-human side. If anyones looking for a new inexpensive game to try I highly recommend this one.

[Kakizaki]

Radiata Stories

Haha......Do you have a beard perchance?

[noloe4]

Radiata Stories

Haha......Do you have a beard perchance?

Que?..What?...Clarify.

[dragonlife29]

I despised the twist with a passion. So horrible...

I bought Second Story a long time ago, but have yet to play it, which is annoying me. I have heard it's way better than 3, which I hope to be true. I seriously did NOT like 3 at all. I also have Vagrant Story to play through and other PS1 greats.

[RayFoxSith]

I bought Second Story a long time ago, but have yet to play it...I also have Vagrant Story to play through and other PS1 greats.

WTF are you waiting for?

[Yazarc]

Radiata Stories

Haha......Do you have a beard perchance?

Radiata Stories has a great world, and is interesting from a general standpoint, but the gameplay is pretty shallow and I lost interest.

[dragonlife29]

I bought Second Story a long time ago, but have yet to play it...I also have Vagrant Story to play through and other PS1 greats.

WTF are you waiting for?Dude, I have a bunch of games to play. I have a very bad habit of buying tons of games and leaving them...just there...until I beat the current game I'm working on. Yes, it's hectic, but dammit, that's just me. I'll get around to it eventually, though. Promise.

[CSXLoser]

i loved star ocean 3 mainly because i start playing it after i played tales of symphonia. Never played 1 or 2 though i watched teh star ocean 2 anime (which sucked)....

This is another RPG to buy sigh....

[Thunder-Slash]

Dude, I have a bunch of games to play. I have a very bad habit of buying tons of games and leaving them...just there...until I beat the current game I'm working on. Yes, it's hectic, but dammit, that's just me. I'll get around to it eventually, though. Promise.

Heh, same here. I would buy a whole mess of games and just leave them there because I am too busy trying to 100% the game I was currently playing. Then by the time I finished that game I would've acquired 5 more, which forces me to neglect the ones I bought earlier.

[dragonlife29]

Dude, I have a bunch of games to play. I have a very bad habit of buying tons of games and leaving them...just there...until I beat the current game I'm working on. Yes, it's hectic, but dammit, that's just me. I'll get around to it eventually, though. Promise.

Heh, same here. I would buy a whole mess of games and just leave them there because I am too busy trying to 100% the game I was currently playing. Then by the time I finished that game I would've acquired 5 more, which forces me to neglect the ones I bought earlier.Haha, too true, too true.

[Clephas]

Wow, lots of SO3 bashers here... not that I can entirely blame them. 'The universe is a video game', I can't say I was fond of that twist. The timing just felt off...

The battle system was also a lot more painful than SO2's, and creating items was way too costly and seemed far too random. Nonetheless, I don't think that there is anything to complain about with the characters or the story up to the point where they dumped the video game revelation on you...

However, SO2's story was a lot more interesting, even if they did translate it poorly. Claude and Rena just felt more... real to me than Fayt. I actually died more in SO2 though.

As for SO4, I just hope they don't make us wait for three years after going to all the trouble of announcing it.

[RayFoxSith]

The delays probably won't happen again. They happened numerously due to Square Enix's merging and they had to have a recall on the games because there was a bug in it.

[JMAN]

I thought they took not a great, but still interesting approach to SO3.
Imo I like it a lot. One of my fave games for the PS2.

[Sanctine]

http://www.rpgfan.com/news/2007/1400.html

I'm so confused. Oh well, at least it's multiplatform. Now I've got a decision ahead of me again. PS3 or 360?

[Flußkönig]

http://www.rpgfan.com/news/2007/1400.html

I'm so confused. Oh well, at least it's multiplatform. Now I've got a decision ahead of me again. PS3 or 360?

The source admitted that he made it up.

[Sanctine]

The source admitted that he made it up.

I knew that sounded fishy. And I was dumb enough to fall for it.

[Yazarc]

RPG fan made it up, or the site where they copy their stories from?

[Flußkönig]

RPG fan made it up, or the site where they copy their stories from?

The site that they copied the story from. Evidently he just wanted to play a trick on the denizens of a certain site.

[Yazarc]

RPG fan made it up, or the site where they copy their stories from?

The site that they copied the story from. Evidently he just wanted to play a trick on the denizens of a certain site.

Haha funny...videogame "journalists" indeed. :roll:

[RayFoxSith]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1SHoi4wtiA

A very very short clip of the game.

[JMAN]

Wow
:D

[Sayckeone]

Not at all impressed.

[Sanctine]

Me neither.

[Arjuna]

Wow
:D

lol.

[Dead to Rights]

More scans at Gamersyde (http://www.gamersyde.com/news_6251_en.html).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v379/DeadToRights/game-forum/star_ocean.jpg

[Zachalmighty]

Ok, so far no Bishis. Thats good for an RPG coming from japan.

[Sayckeone]

Do I see Valkyrie Profile and previous SO characters? Yes, I do.

[DamageCity]

It just says Tri-Ace Special. Oh wait I see it now, it only shows two characters from SO4.

[ViolenceJack]

It just me or do the character's costumes just look overly complicated.

[VapourTrail90]

The article covers the upcoming Valkyrie Profile DS game and Star Ocean 2 for the PSP as well as Star Ocean 4, so why is it surprising that they're showing pictures of characters from those games? Or am I missing something?

[Sayckeone]

The article covers the upcoming Valkyrie Profile DS game and Star Ocean 2 for the PSP as well as Star Ocean 4, so why is it surprising that they're showing pictures of characters from those games? Or am I missing something?
What you're missing is that I can't read Japanese, so how would I know that? Besides, no one said it was surprising.

[RayFoxSith]

Well you vaguely see those two characters in the uber short video, so it's a first we're actually seeing them full-on.

[marceall]

I'll believe in this project.
I don' remember Tri-Ace's bad game.

VJ - thanks :wink:

[Pixel]

It just me or do the character's costumes just look overly complicated.
That's to maintain the sci-fi theme while you're traipsing through a medieval town. 8)



Edit: Oops, I guess that was a necro-bump. Nice update on those scans, thanks.

[Zachalmighty]

Question: What was that star ocean game that looked more like a Tales game?

[massaker]

Looks painfully generic.

Persona=win.

[Sayckeone]

Question: What was that star ocean game that looked more like a Tales game?
The first one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPIVcQQGf4A

[Shintai]

The original Star Ocean had a Chrono Trigger-esque gameplay style and was never released in america (though there are fan subbed roms) but this game is being remade with the Star Ocean 2 gameplay for PSP, hell Star Ocean 2 is being made for PSP aswell, though Iam not sure if that one is a port or a full remake, I just hope they fix the glitches.

[Futomimi]

Question: What was that star ocean game that looked more like a Tales game?
The first one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPIVcQQGf4A

Wow, that music is awful.

[Arjuna]

Must have been playing on a real ####ty emulator I honestly don't remember it being that bad.

[Sanctine]

Wow, that music is awful.

Nah, that audio capture is off, or something.

[Flußkönig]

A new gameplay vid featuring combat is up on the US marketplace.

Combat looks slick, and most importantly a smooth 60fps.

[Kid Marin]

A new gameplay vid featuring combat is up on the US marketplace.
http://gamersyde.com/stream_7763_en.html

[Raidou11]

SO3 was a great game until after entering 4th Dimension. The idea of Eternal Sphere sort of ruined the Star Ocean series a bit. Speaking of which, SO4 isn't based on Eternal Sphere anymore, so its probably good. Another thing.. Doesn't Edge Maverick look like Fate Linegod in his 3rd outfit?

[rainking187]

SO3 was a great game until after entering 4th Dimension. The idea of Eternal Sphere sort of ruined the Star Ocean series a bit. Speaking of which, SO4 isn't based on Eternal Sphere anymore, so its probably good. Another thing.. Doesn't Edge Maverick look like Fate Linegod in his 3rd outfit?

LOL, Edge Maverick still sounds like a fake name a kid would make up to buy beer, but I'd forgotten about Fate Leingod. What happened? At least Claude Kenni sounded like it could be a real name. And to be blunt I hated everything about SO3. There's a huge plot twist I know everyone hates, but really I was overcome by the boringness long before that.

[Sayckeone]

I tried to play SO3. As soon as Sophia, or whatever, opened her mouth, I shut it off and never looked back.

[unknown]

I liked the Item Creation system, I made some crazy (hax) weapons with it >_>

[Pixel]

crazy (hax) weaponsLOL, that part was awesome! The memories...

[Raidou11]

crazy (hax) weaponsLOL, that part was awesome! The memories...

That reminds me.. It took me nearly 2-3 hours to make the Philosopher's Stone, which was a mandatory requirement in recruiting this dude who makes the Orichalcum stones much easier. On my third playthrough, which I kinda stopped, still haven't got the damn Philosopher's Stone.

[Flußkönig]

^ Do you play every game three times or something?

[Constraint]

I tried to play SO3. As soon as Sophia, or whatever, opened her mouth, I shut it off and never looked back.
That's dumb.

[RayFoxSith]

^Your face.

[Constraint]

A new gameplay vid featuring combat is up on the US marketplace.
http://gamersyde.com/stream_7763_en.html

Man, that was badass.

[Sayckeone]

I tried to play SO3. As soon as Sophia, or whatever, opened her mouth, I shut it off and never looked back.
That's dumb.
I'll let you know when I give a #### what you think.

[Constraint]

I tried to play SO3. As soon as Sophia, or whatever, opened her mouth, I shut it off and never looked back.
That's dumb.
I'll let you know when I give a #### what you think.

:cry:

[marceall]

Man, that was badass.

[Raidou11]

^ Do you play every game three times or something?

No. I only replayed a few games.

Persona 3 FES: 4th playthrough
SO3: 3rd playthrough (due to battle trophies)
Final Fantasy X-2: twice (due to crimson squad)

[unknown]

I tried to play SO3. As soon as Sophia, or whatever, opened her mouth, I shut it off and never looked back.

If you continued playing you probably would've ripped your ears off when you heard Farleen's voice.

[Sayckeone]

^That's good to know. I'll make sure not to ever give the game a second thought.

[SlaughterX]

So yeah... I watched the video last night, looks more interesting than ToV...

[allie_razakel]

I tried to play SO3. As soon as Sophia, or whatever, opened her mouth, I shut it off and never looked back.

I understand how you feel, Saycke.

But you could disable the voices in the game, ya know? Then again, that just makes the game even more...boring. 0.o

Eitherway, SO4 looks really good.

[Haderach]

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0002.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0003.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0004.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0009.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0001.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0011.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0012.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0013.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0014.jpg

http://images.gamersyde.com/gallery/public/9494/1362_0016.jpg

[jeffx]

Thanks man. these are looking spectacular. Been a huge fan since SO2.

[jj984jj]

Aside from the first screen it looks amazing!

[Haderach]

More screens here:
http://gamersyde.com/news_7160_en.html

[Emilio Morales]

Wow!! Looks really cool, and you can now have 4 players at the battle! If it has all the elements of Till the End of Time, I'll buy it.

And when I first saw the trailer, I thought it was Fayt Leingod. XD

[SlaughterX]

http://www.atlus.com/forum/showthread.php?t=215&highlight=star+ocean

[Constraint]

Yeah, definitely gonna buy this when it comes out.

[Sei]

Day one most likely. Here's hoping that it's better than Infinite Suckdiscovery

[unknown]

The graphics are so shiny.

[Haderach]

^
http://i35.tinypic.com/11bixhz.gif

[jj984jj]

^
http://i36.tinypic.com/281ssw1.gif

[Haderach]

^
http://i38.tinypic.com/2b74lg.gif

[Flußkönig]

I really hope there will be more sci-fi and less fantasy this go around. Every time a SO game comes out I delude myself into thinking it will be a sci-fi extravaganza and each time I am disappointing by a plot that takes place in a medieval setting.

[ViolenceJack]

Star Ocean: First Departure comes out this month (for the PSP), ships on the 21st.

[jeffx]

said it before and I'll say it again, this is the game that's gonna make me buy a 360.

That and Raiden IV.

[Thunder-Slash]

I really hope there will be more sci-fi and less fantasy this go around. Every time a SO game comes out I delude myself into thinking it will be a sci-fi extravaganza and each time I am disappointing by a plot that takes place in a medieval setting.

Yeah... the majority of the games usually end up in a predeveloped medieval planet. The beginning of the second (Claude's side) and third are what I wanted the rest of the game to be like.

[dragonlife29]

PLEASE don't suck ass like SO3...I have hope for this one.

[RayFoxSith]

It certainly looks beautiful.

[Sakubo]

This is one of the titles im really looking forward to next year. Despite what alot of poeple say I actually liked the last Star Ocean, til the end of time. I havent played the first 2 games but I liked the 3rd one enough that I have been thinking of getting a psp to play them.

[Fuyukaze]

As it's for a system I currently dont own, nor have plans to own any time soon looks as if I'll be missing this one. Loved the second game enough to kill a PS1 from playing too much of it. Third game just wasnt as good.

[Kakizaki]

Okay, so I merged the new thread with the old, but I am asking that you would all please do a quick search before making new threads from now on.

[jj984jj]

This had such a great showing at TGS, it's coming out in NA on March 3rd.

[SlaughterX]

New preview @ 1up...

http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3170550

[Sakubo]

New preview @ 1up...

http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3170550


Theres a spoiler in this for Til the end of Time, If you havent played it and plan to still at some point in your life as it is the "end" of the series then dont read this article.

[SlaughterX]

I really hope there will be more sci-fi and less fantasy this go around. Every time a SO game comes out I delude myself into thinking it will be a sci-fi extravaganza and each time I am disappointing by a plot that takes place in a medieval setting.

You might be pleased with this information...

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3170671

[Flußkönig]

^ That is definitely good to know. Might be the first time I have something to looking forward to other than the battle system in a SO game.

[Flußkönig]

The fifth party member was revealed and it is a cyborg!

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff23/Funkygish/so03.jpg

[jeffx]

K I'm gonna have to ignore this thread from now on.

SPOILERSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

(not the biggest one out there mind you, I just want to be completely surprised by the game)

[Haderach]

new screens

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142836_7_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142836_0_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142836_1_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142837_9_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142837_8_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142837_11_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142837_16_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142837_12_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142837_17_big.jpg

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/72151320081107_142838_19_big.jpg

[SlaughterX]

New trailer...

http://xbox360.ign.com/dor/objects/903309/star-ocean-the-last-hope/videos/SO4_111408.html

[Constraint]

New trailer...

http://xbox360.ign.com/dor/objects/903309/star-ocean-the-last-hope/videos/SO4_111408.html

Looks amazing.

[Flußkönig]

The opening movie http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=tVLZe_fBOpA

Cool stuff.

[Thunder-Slash]

Whoa... it's as if someone over there played Mass Effect and went "I think we need space travel!"

[Soushi_Grapple]

I HATED SO3; I got really far (recruited Abel) but I put it down and don't remember anything about it now. =/ The plot was so confusing and pointless the whole way, but I did like the characters. Hated Item Creation and was meh about the battle system.
I don't care for the edits of Star Ocean 1 PSP here, and the fact that some carried over to SO2 PSP... which is my favorite of the current 3. However, 4 looks promising.

[Azriel Crusnik]

so...does this have a PS3 release schedule or not?

[SlaughterX]

the later

[Soushi_Grapple]

so...does this have a PS3 release schedule or not?


IIRC, SquareEnix/SCEA said that they have no plans of a PS3 release of SO4, however, they aren't ruling it out entirely. If it does happen, they said it will be after the 360 release.

[THEWINE]

What's with the intro to the trailer for this game "SquareEnix x tri-Ace" is this some kinda otaku doujinshi pairing?

Speak the language of your audience. Game's gunna be bollox.

[Azriel Crusnik]

so...does this have a PS3 release schedule or not?


IIRC, SquareEnix/SCEA said that they have no plans of a PS3 release of SO4, however, they aren't ruling it out entirely. If it does happen, they said it will be after the 360 release.

Kind of what they did with "The Last Remnant"....I'm willing to to wait.

[jj984jj]

so...does this have a PS3 release schedule or not?


IIRC, SquareEnix/SCEA said that they have no plans of a PS3 release of SO4, however, they aren't ruling it out entirely. If it does happen, they said it will be after the 360 release.

Kind of what they did with "The Last Remnant"....I'm willing to to wait.The Last Remnant was announced multi-platform from day 1.

[Azriel Crusnik]

so...does this have a PS3 release schedule or not?


IIRC, SquareEnix/SCEA said that they have no plans of a PS3 release of SO4, however, they aren't ruling it out entirely. If it does happen, they said it will be after the 360 release.

Kind of what they did with "The Last Remnant"....I'm willing to to wait.The Last Remnant was announced multi-platform from day 1.

They said "a posibility" so I'll wait to see if there's a PS3 release (I wont be holding my breath though)

[Haderach]

NA cover
http://scrawlfx.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/star-ocean-4-us-boxart.jpg

Jap cover
http://www.scorezero.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/so.jpg


jap cover rocks!!! :D

[frequency]

That NA cover is horrible...

[Sei]

That NA cover is horrible...

Agree wholeheartedly. WTF.

[ViolenceJack]

So does the NA cover hint that you'll be exploring 6 planets? >.>
I hope so.

[Sanctine]

The Japanese cover isn't anything to brag about, either. The Star Ocean games have always had particularly boring covers, so I'm not surprised.

Although I am surprised to see a giant man standing in space.

[Kaibigan]

I enjoy the NA cover more than the JP one.

[jj984jj]

So does the NA cover hint that you'll be exploring 6 planets? >.>
I hope so.

The latest trailer (http://www.gamersyde.com/news_7408_en.html) shows you 5 different planets, I hoping they all don't just have single city and dungeon playable though.

[Towel]

Both covers are pretty good, though I prefer the Jap one by a little. Still, as far as NA covers for JRPGs go, SO4 has a decent one.

[ViolenceJack]

I like the NA one better too, maybe they'll have a LE in a metal case with alt art? Hopes

[Soushi_Grapple]

Still hoping they fix Item Creation and the Battle System.. my only true complains about 3 ;(

Looking forward to SO2:SE for PSP... the english voices arent THAT bad so far ><; but Claude is a little out of place..

[ViolenceJack]

I rem. in the anime they kept pronouncing Claude's name as Cloudt. :(

[SlaughterX]

Official JP site...

http://www.eternalsphere.com/so4/

The US release date is set for 3/3/09

[Soushi_Grapple]

I rem. in the anime they kept pronouncing Claude's name as Cloudt. :(

The anime wasn't fantastic to begin with, defiling characters into horrible stereotypes from the first minute... Not to mention the stupid addition of Yuki the Jam Seller from Salva and those Team Rocket rip-offs. Celine might as well have been Pikachu. Also, the dragons were poorly handled. From what I've seen of the manga (although I cant read it) it looked nowhere nearly as bad as the anime.

The english just made that so much worse. The voices were fine, but the translation was absolutely horrendous.

Claude = Cloahwd
Energy Arrow = Energy Allow <-- I rofled so much
A lot of location names and I think Xine's name were changed, too. (FYI: Xine being the bird you fight during Ashton's quest.)

[Haderach]

NA TRAILER

http://www.eurogamer.pt/videos/star-ocean-iv-the-last-hope-novo-trailer?size=large

[SlaughterX]

Official US site

http://na.square-enix.com/starocean/

[SlaughterX]

Famitsu (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3172766) review summary...

"- Star Ocean: The Last Hope (9/9/8/8, 36 points): Star Ocean, even more so than with other Japanese RPG series, is a game that lives and dies by its battle system. With that in mind, series fans ought to breathe a sigh of relief: "The battles are as fun as always, action-packed and filled with variety." Of course, there's a ton of other stuff to enjoy, too: "From item creation to the Private Actions, working your way through all the game's features is one of the main draws."

"Overall it's a very easy to follow game, one where you'll advance rapidly without getting lost very often," wrote one reviewer. The load times are also "nice and fast, even if you don't load it on the hard drive." There's no mistaking that this is one hardcore RPG, though, not the sort of game that'll experience Mass Effect-like crossover success. "It's a good game, but the characters (a little too unique in personality) and the gameplay (which leans a little too far toward hardcoreness) will make this an underground title," as another writer politely put it. What, you mean the casuals don't like meowing catgirls in your party? Bah!"

[xHaseox]

I want to play this game so bad, but I don't have an Xbox. D: I'm still paranoid about the whole RROD thing.

[hibiki_takami]

This is going to be my first Star Ocean game, so I'm hoping I won't get burned by this purchase. Otherwise, I'll probably hand this off to someone else to review.

[SlaughterX]

I want to play this game so bad, but I don't have an Xbox. D: I'm still paranoid about the whole RROD thing.

Why? RROD hasn't really been a problem since the Falcons were released in late 2007, not to mention you still have a 3 year warranty on the system if it does break...

[Crabman]

I want to play this game so bad, but I don't have an Xbox. D: I'm still paranoid about the whole RROD thing.

I have a Xenon. Yes, the original. Been a year and a half now, still running strong (knocks on wood). If you keep it well ventilated (i.e. not on carpet, not in closed off entertainment cabinets) it should be fine.

I'm also in the same boat of hibiki. This is gonna be my first SO...but it looks cool, so I went ahead and preordered anyways :D

[ViolenceJack]

... I had mine for less than a year and it just broke yesterday.

[SlaughterX]

New preview @ IGN (http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/953/953381p1.html)!

[Onezanagi]

I'm pretty pumped for this game. It's the first next gen JRPG that's interested me.

[Azriel Crusnik]

I want to play this game so bad, but I don't have an Xbox. D: I'm still paranoid about the whole RROD thing.

Why? RROD hasn't really been a problem since the Falcons were released in late 2007, not to mention you still have a 3 year warranty on the system if it does break...

Got Electronic problems? CALL: 1800-SalughterX.

[SlaughterX]

That number wouldn't work...

Anyway here's the IGN (http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/955/955258p1.html) review!

[Hitoshura]

^ The terrible review. Lol. "It has save points instead of being able to save anywhere, oh no." D:

[Sakubo]

^ The terrible review. Lol. "It has save points instead of being able to save anywhere, oh no." D:

Which is pretty standard in japanese RPGs, i mean ff games , persona etc you would think he never played an RPG of that type before @@

[Rikuo]

That number wouldn't work...

Anyway here's the IGN (http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/955/955258p1.html) review!

IGN gave a good game a good score? Wow i guess someone there still has some dignity.

[Constraint]

^ Who lowers the score because of save points.

[ViolenceJack]

^ The terrible review. Lol. "It has save points instead of being able to save anywhere, oh no." D:

Which is pretty standard in japanese RPGs, i mean ff games , persona etc you would think he never played an RPG of that type before @@

Heck even Resident Evil has save points. If he never played a game with save points b4 then that makes his review completely worthless. Most games have save points, except for maybe, Spyro, thats about the only one I can think of atm.

[Flußkönig]

Uhh.... It doesn't seem like some of you even bothered to read the review. He was merely saying that he thought the save point system was archaic and that you should be able to save anywhere.

There was nothing said about lowering scores or never having played a game with save points.

[ViolenceJack]

Your right I didnt read the review. I already pre-ordered the game and I'll decide wether I like it or not.

[Flußkönig]

Your right I didnt read the review. I already pre-ordered the game and I'll decide wether I like it or not.
Lol, my point was that people were taking what was said out of context because they hadn't actually read the review. I was simply trying to clear up any confusion.

[Crabman]

Alot of the complaints I can live with, although the voice acting is gonna kill me.

[THE_IOI_GUY]

star ocean ahhhh brings back memories number 2 was super awesome beat it and loved it loved the colleseum in that game it was actually making it worth playing to me for number 2 but colleseum you dont get til end of game but its the best colleseum i have ever found in any game...... now number 3 ooooohhhhh gosh made it around half way thru i think when you gotta go thru this cave and its all about timing and how hard you gotta hit the buttons to get a door open i stoppped right there cause seriously it took me 2 days to try and make it thru but never could do it it pissed me off to the core so i was like forget it im not wasting 3 yrs trying to get thru one door that they should have never made so hard stupid enix anyways all other parts that i saw about star ocean 3 was great never had any complaints even the mp thing didnt really perturb me :D cause you could control ever characters mp usage like way better than anything you could make it so only certain moves were used even and also certain types of spells were used in both 2 and 3 which was really nice.... all in all i dont know if i will get to play 4 anytime soon i wanna beat 3 first but havent had a chance to get ahold of it so anyways great games but horrible about the timing button hitting ^.^

[Flußkönig]

Alot of the complaints I can live with, although the voice acting is gonna kill me.
It would be nice if more companies included the option to turn the voice acting off. I am not 100% sure, but I don't think that tri-Ace games usually have the option though.

Generally VA doesn't bother me, but some of the voices in SO4 do seem a bit on the annoying side.

[Azriel Crusnik]

So in order to get a good score in a game you....don't have to have save point's, It's like these reviewers are looking for something to lower the score.

[Flußkönig]

So in order to get a good score in a game you....don't have to have save point's, It's like these reviewers are looking for something to lower the score.
Why exactly do you think he lowered the score due to save points?

[Rikuo]

^ Who lowers the score because of save points.

Well i said they had some dignity, not alot. Trusting IGN these days is like A good 3-d Sonic game. Possible, but not likely for a while.
More importantly, who does lower a game because of Save points?
I know for a fact that Final fantasy 3's score was lowered because of that, but seriously? Save Points? Are they so worried about whether or not they lack the skill to keep fighting after a grind and the nearest save points is 2 areas away before they are safe that big of a problem?

[SlaughterX]

The score is good, but of course people are going to bitch about it not being better regardless... Anyway lack of save points can make a game frustrating, and thus, less enjoyable. I know there are a few parts in FF12 that pissed me off and made me not want to play it anymore because I had to fight bosses over again and hordes of other random enimies.

Anyway here's a video review from X-Play (http://g4tv.com/xplay/reviews/1927/Star-Ocean-The-Last-Hope-Review-.html)...

[Sei]

Sei's review roundup is cancelled due to Ganerankings dying. I offer the metacritic page however: http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbox360/staroceanthelasthope average score is 80. Sorta looking forward to it.

[hibiki_takami]

I just got this game today and will be playing through it pretty soon. Hopefully, it's pretty good. It's gonna be my first Star Ocean game as indicated earlier in the thread and maybe I'll review it if I get far enough into it or beat it (preferably beat it).

Edit:
By the way, has anyone noticed that the menus and battle interface were updated for the American release? I was running around in another forum and they had these comparison screenshots. Just figured I post these since people were commenting on Star Ocean's North American cover.

Japanese Menus
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp206/eternityinblack/sojmen2.jpg

English Menus
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp206/eternityinblack/somen1.jpg

Japanese Battle Interface
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp206/eternityinblack/sob2.jpg

English Battle Interface
http://i412.photobucket.com/albums/pp206/eternityinblack/sob1.jpg

[Sei]

^ ####ing terrible. So they went and removed all the art and replaced with rather generic in engine portraits?

One would think Ys ark of Naphitism for PS2 woulda taught companies about doing stuff like that. If there is no way to revert, im cancelling my order. I wanted a Star Ocean game, not a Mass Effect wanna be. I wonder if they really think #### like this improves sales.

[Flußkönig]

I had heard about the menu changes and the CG portaits. I wish they had kept the characters illustrations, but I think the NA menu is a lot better than the JP version.

I had someone pick SO4 up for me today, but I don't think I will get around to playing it till Thursday.

[massaker]

Pretty. That menu looks suspiciously familar.

I was sold at, cat girl with a tail.

*Edit. I can't believe they changed the portrait art...

[Sei]

Here is the Siliconera account of the changes: http://www.siliconera.com/2009/02/06/different-region-different-star-ocean-the-last-hope-interface/

http://www.siliconera.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/sojmen1.jpg

VS

http://www.siliconera.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/somen1.jpg

"Pesmerga00 also discovered the character portraits accompanying dialogue vanished in the English version. I couldn’t find a good comparison screen in my batch of media, but going by the other changes I wouldn’t be surprised to see those removed too."

#### this. I am not supporting this garbage with my money, I like the series, but I think I'll wait till the inevitable pricedrop or (hopefully) enhanced, un####ed ps3 version, Directors cut or whatnot. The funny thing is that I only see this idiocy costing them sales as they only piss off people like me that woulda bought the game, but bring in no new sales.

Day price drop/used. Luckily amazon takes it's sweet time to ship. I will laugh if this flops as hard as Last Remnant did. If they want to make Western games, then they should, but they shouldn't rape their asian ones in lame attempts to window dress them. This garbage upsets me to no end.

[hibiki_takami]

#### this. I am not supporting this garbage with my money, I like the series, but I think I'll wait till the inevitable pricedrop or (hopefully) enhanced, un####ed ps3 version, Directors cut or whatnot.

Good observation. I have my copy of SO:TLH here and it doesn't have an "Only For Xbox" sticker which probably suggest that this is only a timed exclusive. Inevitable PS3 port incoming.

[Zephyr]

It seems to me that Square-Enix is trying to make their games appear more "mainstream" over here, where anything remotely anime scares off some types of people. It's a mistake, because their long-time customers and franchise fans are going to be displeased with the results...

[Flußkönig]

^Eh, I think the character artwork looks a lot nicer than the CG portraits and I would definitely prefer them, but it really isn't a game breaker or anything.

This seems like a tiny detail that is really only going to seriously bug certain people. I don't really expect the majority of people will react as strongly as Sei, although it is always possible. Hopefully they will get with the program and offer the character artwork as free dlc or something.

[hibiki_takami]

^Eh, I think the character artwork looks a lot nicer than the CG portraits and I would definitely prefer them, but it really isn't a game breaker or anything.

This seems like a tiny detail that is really only going to seriously bug certain people. I don't really expect the majority of people will react as strongly as Sei, although it is always possible. Hopefully they will get with the program and offer the character artwork as free dlc or something.

I think the better question for this is how long did they spend to implement this new art and how much time did that hold back its North American release.

Having worked for a publisher before, typically changing pieces of art like these aren't just simple asset swaps and probably caused a myriad of problems during QA. And I want to make it clear: I'm okay with the art. I just hope the game holds up by itself.

[DamageCity]

Wow! Actually I find this pretty ####ing hillarious!

SE ####ing over the animu fans. Man that just made my day.

[Sei]

They removed all of the personality from the game and replaced it with generic looking garbage. I don't think that is tiny. They also cut all the art from conversations, as I guess, giving personality and expressing personality with their stale generic CG portraits didn't work out so well.

I'd be happy if the option to play the game as originally intended was in there, but it isn't. At least Konami had the decency to give the option to play their "enhanced" version or have the original game. No such luck here.

Considering that the game is an 8 in sites where the scale starts at that (so really its more of a 5 in a 1 to 10 scale) passing on it is no big loss. I emailed Square about it. I encourage whoever isnt pleased about the changes to do as well. Who knows, they may offer a "Unraped art pack" or something as free DLC.

I thought we were past the age when asian characters were replaced with white and black ones and all asian culture was replaced with generic. I am sad to see it coming back.

[Flußkönig]

Wow! Actually I find this pretty ####ing hillarious!

SE ####ing over the animu fans. Man that just made my day.
I have heard that S-E is cutting out the JP voice work in the Valkyrie Profile DS game and replacing it with... nothing!

S-E may well be on its way to becoming your favorite publisher DamageCity or at least the most entertaining.

[DamnedToBeFree]

I'm giving this thread a low rating because you all are idiots.

[hibiki_takami]

I have heard that S-E is cutting out the JP voice work in the Valkyrie Profile DS game and replacing it with... nothing!

...

Hahahahaha.

[Sei]

^ I lol'd.

You know, when SE said they wanted to improve their western market share, I didn't think they were going to go all Namco-Bandai.

I wonder how that worked out for Xenosaga. Oh wait, it killed the franchise. Lols.

[DamageCity]

Wow! Actually I find this pretty ####ing hillarious!

SE ####ing over the animu fans. Man that just made my day.
I have heard that S-E is cutting out the JP voice work in the Valkyrie Profile DS game and replacing it with... nothing!

S-E may well be on its way to becoming your favorite publisher DamageCity or at least the most entertaining.

I love it, especially because it irritates me to no end when people bitch and moan about keeping the jp vioce work in a game.

[Flußkönig]

I wonder how that worked out for Xenosaga. Not a 100% sure here but I think they replaced the character art with CG portraits in XS3 as well.

Oh wait, it killed the franchise. Lols.
:(

[Lorinosan]

Uhh.... It doesn't seem like some of you even bothered to read the review. He was merely saying that he thought the save point system was archaic and that you should be able to save anywhere.

Which is a thing I hated in Zelda: Majora's Mask. They used a superior save system in the predecessor and then use an archaic form in the sequel. I asked myself what the hell is wrong with this picture? I wouldn't knock points for it but it's still pretty frustrating.

^ ####ing terrible. So they went and removed all the art and replaced with rather generic in engine portraits?

One would think Ys ark of Naphitism for PS2 woulda taught companies about doing stuff like that. If there is no way to revert, im cancelling my order. I wanted a Star Ocean game, not a Mass Effect wanna be. I wonder if they really think #### like this improves sales.

Bolded for emphasis because I said the exact same thing. I didn't think other people would actually care but...wow that's surprising.

This is the very reason it was taken off my "pre-order" list and moved to my "Do not care/wait for price drop/buy used" list. I would have bought this day one but they lost a sale to try and appeal to an audience that wouldn't have given a damn about it in the first place. All they managed to do was alienate their fan base, of whom, are the reason they're a company in the first place.

[Saburo Hikari]

This game would've made me a little more likely to get a 360 until I found out that:

1. The localized version doesn't include the option to change menu styles. This US only menu's not a game killer, but it would've been nice to have an option to change it.

2. Disc changing everytime you need to go back to certain areas. This is why BluRay is better. PS3 version plz.

3. I heard the voice-acting's kinda bad. Games with this kind of quality voice acting should include a Japanese voice option.

[jj984jj]

A lot more killed Xenosaga than CG portraits, honestly I think the CG portraits will resonate better with western 360 owners and that's obviously what they're going for. I can't wait to play it next week!

[hibiki_takami]

People who own this game, I have a question...

It's coming up as 2.0 channel on my 7.1 system. Also, no Dolby Digital descriptor in the back. Confirmed 2.0 channel only? Also, the audio levels are really, really low.

EDIT:
If Square Enix is using the CG renders to make the game a little bit more western, then they've already failed within the first half hour with this...

Annoying navigator chick with high pitched annoying (yes I said that twice) voice confirmed. Do Japanese actually like these? Ugh. "We're gonna be together for a while, so let's dispense the formalities." NOoooooooooooooooooooo!

Also, the in-game adults that look real remind me of that old Thunderbirds TV show.

[massaker]

Fable2's main character looked like a Thunderbird, lol.

Also isn't it made by Tri-Ace or something, one thing I like about square and the Last Remnant is their awesome character models.

[Saburo Hikari]

Okay, I just looked at the anime artwork for the characters. I personally think the anime art is much more pleasing to look at than the CG models. In fact, the characters' CG faces look younger and more feminine than their anime artwork faces. The Japanese version also seems to have character portraits during dialogue like Persona 3 and 4. This would've given the characters more expression if it was included in the US version.

The art's so beautiful that I think that would've been a huge factor for me to get a 360 and then this game. Hopefully a PS3 versions comes out with the anime artwork (and Japanese voices for good measure.).

[Vincent Alexander]

I'm giving this thread a low rating because you all are idiots.
Agreed. This thread is epic.

[Yazarc]

I'm giving this thread a low rating because you all are idiots.
Agreed. This thread is epic.

This. I also agree with DC. This is hilarious.

[Pixel]

I agree with Sei but am laughing about this at the same time.


I'm gonna try not to think about this. The menu art was really nice, dammit.

[ViolenceJack]

Impressions of the Game so far (Killed the first Boss):

Ok, I have 3 Big Complaints. One is the Screen size seems fixed so it cuts off at the edges of my screen >.> but only a bit, this is an HD game you wont be able to easily read any of the multitudes of text without squinting and ruining your eyesight on a ST tv. Lastly the Characters seem to have Jerky Unrealistic movement during cut scenes like they're an Automated Puppet.

Now getting into Exploration, is basicly the same as SO3, you explore a mapped out area with limits on where you can go, but the map is filled out (you wont be completing maps for items in 4), and you cannot zoom out to see a larger map, there are however lil' Icons telling you whats near like a Cliff you can jump off of, or a Save/Restore Point. You can hit the X (Blue) button to Dash forward (Like Hyper Dash).

Enemies are on the Screen if you run into one its a Battle Encounter, Enemies are easy to Ambush (Preemptive Strike), In Battle you no longer have an Attack Gauge, you can also Jump around on the screen and block, so I'd compare it to Vesperia. Enemies also repawn. And you can hit enemies up into the air to stun them temporarily.

Battle Trophies return, but now you have a menu that tells you what most of the requirements are. There seems to Mining and Harvesting Points as well, though I havent been able to do either just yet. There's a Monster Dictionary, amoung others.

Think I'll try getting an HDTV in March >.>

[Crabman]

^Damnit, it has the Dead Rising problem? Any settings to change it at all (a la MGS4?)

[ViolenceJack]

Dunno, whats the Dead Rising prob? I havent played that one.

[Delition]

Really small text if you don't have a HDTV. It was extremely irritating during parts of Dead Rising for me since I had a small TV and no HD.

[hibiki_takami]

Ok, I have 3 Big Complaints. One is the Screen size seems fixed so it cuts off at the edges of my screen >.> but only a bit, this is an HD game you wont be able to easily read any of the multitudes of text without squinting and ruining your eyesight on a ST tv.

I have a 52" HDTV running at 1080p and the picture doesn't bleed past the edge... in fact, the picture doesn't even reach the edge of the screen at all. I'll try to post some phone pics of this tomorrow evening to illustrate if people are curious.

Lastly the Characters seem to have Jerky Unrealistic movement during cut scenes like they're an Automated Puppet.

I think this is exactly the reason why I mentioned that the characters feel as if they came from that old Thunderbirds TV show.

I think I'm exactly where ViolenceJack is. I just got back to the base where my ship was and talked to the Captain. I'm about to get an assignment from him after gearing up.

For this being my first impression of Star Ocean, I'm both disappointed and glad that I picked it up. I'm disappointed because I have a certain expectation of quality for Square Enix games after only playing the "popular" Square Enix titles (Parasite Eve, Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy (including sub-series such as Tactics and Crystal Chronicles), Dragon Quest (main series), Vagrant Story) and expect them to uphold it with the rest of their games.

On the other hand, I'm really glad I picked it up because the battle system is one of the game's saving graces. Again, this is coming from someone who hasn't had experience with Tales or prior Star Ocean games. In most RPGs (except for the Persona series) I tend to run away from battles a lot and tend to grind up when I hit a roadblock. In this game, I gladly go into as many battles as I can just because I like how the battles progress.

Now saying this, I realize the battles will probably get hellacious later on, as your other teammates are automated to some degree. I've heard stories about how the AI just totally drops the ball in later battles and am reminded how tedious the last boss of Star Ocean: Second Story was. Any tips to avoid this sort of catastrophe?

[raum215]

Impressions of the Game so far (Killed the first Boss):

Ok, I have 3 Big Complaints. One is the Screen size seems fixed so it cuts off at the edges of my screen >.> but only a bit, this is an HD game you wont be able to easily read any of the multitudes of text without squinting and ruining your eyesight on a ST tv. Lastly the Characters seem to have Jerky Unrealistic movement during cut scenes like they're an Automated Puppet.

4 hours in, returned from first recon mission, arrived back to my own ship after killing the first boss.

1. camera - you have almost total control. if you want to you can explore with constant camera adjustment. in battle you can right-click to fix camera angle. It works well. I am on a 27" hdtv.

2. text - there is no background to it when there is voiced dialogue. I have no problem seeing it.

3. jerky movement - I didn't really see. For me, this wasn't something I really noticed until it was mentioned here. I see some of the awkwardness of the in-game engine, but it is negligible.

Enemies are easy to Ambush (Preemptive Strike)

it is easy to get a preemptive strike, but in practice - it is not necessary when a blind side is FAR more effective than first strike. You do get a bonus board boost (bonus exp) for it as well. Also, in game terms, "Ambush" is when one battle is triggered, resolved, and another battle ensues before you get to the victory screen. setting these up gives you bonuses. but it you escape - you get nothing from either battle!

In Battle you no longer have an Attack Gauge,

You (and enemies also!) DO have the rush gauge, which amps you temporarily when hitting X after it fills. The BEAT:B option allows for this faster, and ups your guard and defense. in practice, no battles trigger this except maybe boss battles. Rush fills when you hit or take damage.

BEAT is a great system, btw. And each optional mode for Blindside or Rush priority ranks individually and both are independent of level. This along with general tactics lets you strategize and customize battles very easily.

you can also Jump around on the screen and block, so I'd compare it to Vesperia. Enemies also repawn. And you can hit enemies up into the air to stun them temporarily.

Jump button (B) is awesome. To jump, button tap and hit the left stick - you jump in that direction for an effective dodge or follow-up arial attack. in practice it works very well. BUT the same button is crucial for blindsiding. When your target also targets you, can hit and charge B until you can let go and blindside the enemy - effectively dashing behind them and "bullet-time" attacking.

instead of just beating the enemy, you should also fill out the bonus board with exceptional combat - this increases the reward of the combat.

There seems to Mining and Harvesting Points as well, though I havent been able to do either just yet. There's a Monster Dictionary, amoung others.

Out of combat, there is a glowing point to collect from, The first one is by an npc who tells you how to collect it right after you leave the ship on your first mission. he is right by the ship. You go up to it and hit B and Reimi harvests it. I don't have mining yet, but you buy manuals for those kinds of skills and you can buy some shortly after returning from the first mission recon. Not every manual can be used by everyone.

[ViolenceJack]

I've heard stories about how the AI just totally drops the ball
I remember in SO3 sometimes the friendly AI would just stop attacking altogether during a battle, instead jumping backwards over and over or just stand there.

[Crabman]

####, combat sounds intense :D

I'm playing on a 32" SDTV...so HOPEFULLY it wont destroy my eyes.

I still don't have it yet though, apparently there are some delays getting it to Canada. Our postmen are still ice fishing in their igloos, it seems.

[raum215]

Combat is VERY intense; far more so than I mentioned before. Here's a bit more:

It immediately quickly escalates mainly because you have to leverage your attacks to fill the onscreen bonus board as much as you can to maximize the gain from a battle. Things like killing an enemy with a critical hit, or using a "rush combo" (when you hit rush, you have a window where you can tap into a combo, and it triggers a chance for a team combo that requires you to make each person's attack chain to the next - very cool way to integrate a QTE kind of feel!) become things you need to be aware of.

Filling the onscreen bonus board gives you extra stuff depending on the color of the tile associated with the feat you perform. HP (raise HP max), Fol(money), SP (used to purchase ranks of skills ON THE FLY), Exp (by percentage), and can even replenish your party. Great way to reward people for using a great combat system, Square. and BEAT is really versatile.

As for gains, the easy kill three times is going to yield a good bit less exp, skill raising SP, and Fol than one good solid fight with some really fancy stuff in it that may last twice as long as a regular fight. More than any other game I played in the genre of Action RPG - this game has incentive to use each char, develop their moves, and tailor them to your style of combat. Kill three enemies and you get 3 exp. Flourish your attacks and blindside and finish them each with crits, and you yield about 7. Get the party involved and you can get alot more. And these bonuses stack... or may get "knocked off the board" if you start slipping up in combat.

There are also 100 combat trophies for each playable character to fulfill, if you are hikikomori and like "shut-in" completionist gaming. And different difficulty modes are available. Wish I could play hard, but even Normal is a healthy run if not a grueling challenge.

[Flußkönig]

I have a 52" HDTV running at 1080p and the picture doesn't bleed past the edge... in fact, the picture doesn't even reach the edge of the screen at all. I'll try to post some phone pics of this tomorrow evening to illustrate if people are curious.


From what I have heard SO4 runs at different resolutions for different parts of the game. Cutscenes and running through dungeons/towns is at 720p at 30fps. Battles have a lower resolution but run at 60 fps.

I believe that is the reason why the black boarders are there.

[ViolenceJack]

and you cannot zoom out to see a larger map,

Wanted to note this, you can Zoom out by pressing the Start Button.

If you miss the npc that tells you how to use harvesting points and you go ahead and defeat the first boss, are you screwed?

[Flußkönig]

^ You should be able to as long as Remei is in your party. Didn't you try it out at any of the other harvesting points?

in fact, the picture doesn't even reach the edge of the screen at all.
I only have a really slight black border on the top and bottom of the screen but not on the sides. I am playing on a monitor though, so that might have something to do with it.

[ViolenceJack]

The Screen Cut off I found out was because I have a ST tv, and I have it set to Full Screen.

Also I found that Harvesting thing out a few mins after posting it, you wont get into Mining 'til you get Bacchus.

There's also a Missable Recipe Note, you have to talk to Van on the ship before you fight the first boss. The Note lets you make the Storm Blade for Edge, I didnt find that out until 3 hours after the first boss.. Guess I'll be restarting.

[SlaughterX]

Here's the 1up (http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3172988) review. Got it yesterday but I've only put in slightly less than an hour so far. The intro is too long, a trend I am starting to see far too often in JRPGs.

[ViolenceJack]

I'm getting into it now that I've restarted from the landing save. Just trying to finish the Egg Collector quest so I can leave Aeos and watch the funny scene with Welch and Faize again.

[Hitoshura]

Wow! Actually I find this pretty ####ing hillarious!

SE ####ing over the animu fans. Man that just made my day.

Well that's just silly. And a bit childish, considering your signature.

Also, I applaud you, Sei. I am just as angry about this absolutely ridiculous and pointless change (when they could have simply included an option and made both sides happy! But, that makes too much sense.), but I was far too excited about the game to not buy it. I would have pirated had that been an option, but the 360 isn't mine so I can't just mod it.

[Moé]

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/305/1189835418024ve4.jpg

I don't care who I spoil this steaming piece of #### for.

this.

[SlaughterX]

Crying over menu options is pretty stupid, and if that's enough to make you not want to buy the game then odds are you weren't too excited about buying it in the first place.

I think I'm gonna stop buying all the non-real SMT games (everything except Nocturne) because in Japan they didn't have Shin Megami Tensei in the title!

[ViolenceJack]

Who was that remark for?

Really getting into it now.
Had my Battle Grid Maxed out with 80% EXp. 20% Fol and 2% SP til it broke right before the 2nd Boss >.> Luckly I had it long enough to reach Lv17.

[Hitoshura]

Crying over menu options is pretty stupid, and if that's enough to make you not want to buy the game then odds are you weren't too excited about buying it in the first place.

No, it's not. It was a stupid and completely unnecessary change, and at the least, they could have tossed in the option to give the player a choice, instead of trying to tell us what we like. I'm tired of Square Enix changing things that don't need to be changed, like the namechanges in Star Ocean FD and SE.

[DamageCity]

No, it's not. It was a stupid and completely unnecessary change, and at the least, they could have tossed in the option to give the player a choice, instead of trying to tell us what we like. I'm tired of Square Enix changing things that don't need to be changed, like the namechanges in Star Ocean FD and SE.


It is, SE is trying to sell the game to a wide western audience, removing the more cartoonish aspects will alllow them to do this period. Just cause you're an animu fanboy doesn't mean everyone is.

[Vincent Alexander]

I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the rest of this thread. I hope it pays off.

[Hitoshura]

No, it's not. It was a stupid and completely unnecessary change, and at the least, they could have tossed in the option to give the player a choice, instead of trying to tell us what we like. I'm tired of Square Enix changing things that don't need to be changed, like the namechanges in Star Ocean FD and SE.


It is, SE is trying to sell the game to a wide western audience, removing the more cartoonish aspects will alllow them to do this period. Just cause you're an animu fanboy doesn't mean everyone is.

And just because you're a horrendously biased animu hater doesn't mean everyone is, either.

Again. Choice. I don't care so much about the changes, had they simply left a choice in. It would be a win-win situation. But I suppose irrational hatred of something you probably haven't given a fair shot and are simply generalizing is more important, huh?

[Sakubo]

Anyone playing this ? Anyone else having a problem with the game freezing ? Im on the 3rd world about 11ish hrs in, after the part where you get Bacchus D-79, after the fight with the ambushes and you are running through the city My game freezes at the end of a fight. Its not the same fight everytime but its always that area, basically game freezes and I have to restart 360. I tried installed disc to harddrive only to have it do same thing. Anyone else had this problem or know a way around it?

[Flußkönig]

Anyone playing this ? Anyone else having a problem with the game freezing ? Im on the 3rd world about 11ish hrs in, after the part where you get Bacchus D-79, after the fight with the ambushes and you are running through the city My game freezes at the end of a fight. Its not the same fight everytime but its always that area, basically game freezes and I have to restart 360. I tried installed disc to harddrive only to have it do same thing. Anyone else had this problem or know a way around it?
I already played through that area with no problem. Maybe it has something to do with your disk?

I have heard people playing the jp version saying that they had problems with the game freezing after a battle, but it only happened occasionally. It wasn't like they were unable to proceed through the game.

[SlaughterX]

No, it's not. It was a stupid and completely unnecessary change, and at the least, they could have tossed in the option to give the player a choice, instead of trying to tell us what we like. I'm tired of Square Enix changing things that don't need to be changed, like the namechanges in Star Ocean FD and SE.


It is, SE is trying to sell the game to a wide western audience, removing the more cartoonish aspects will alllow them to do this period. Just cause you're an animu fanboy doesn't mean everyone is.

And just because you're a horrendously biased animu hater doesn't mean everyone is, either.

Again. Choice. I don't care so much about the changes, had they simply left a choice in. It would be a win-win situation. But I suppose irrational hatred of something you probably haven't given a fair shot and are simply generalizing is more important, huh?

Bolded because I find it quite ironic... Anyway I agree with you that they should have given us the option, but it's really such a petty reason to not buy a game you were looking forward to. Also I think the redesigned menus are much easier on the eyes anyway.

[Sakubo]

Anyone playing this ? Anyone else having a problem with the game freezing ? Im on the 3rd world about 11ish hrs in, after the part where you get Bacchus D-79, after the fight with the ambushes and you are running through the city My game freezes at the end of a fight. Its not the same fight everytime but its always that area, basically game freezes and I have to restart 360. I tried installed disc to harddrive only to have it do same thing. Anyone else had this problem or know a way around it?
I already played through that area with no problem. Maybe it has something to do with your disk?

I have heard people playing the jp version saying that they had problems with the game freezing after a battle, but it only happened occasionally. It wasn't like they were unable to proceed through the game.


Thats when mine does it at the end of battle. But it does it everytime in the same area. I have already redone that area 5 times and still havent gotten passed it. Its really annoying@@

[Flußkönig]

Anyone playing this ? Anyone else having a problem with the game freezing ? Im on the 3rd world about 11ish hrs in, after the part where you get Bacchus D-79, after the fight with the ambushes and you are running through the city My game freezes at the end of a fight. Its not the same fight everytime but its always that area, basically game freezes and I have to restart 360. I tried installed disc to harddrive only to have it do same thing. Anyone else had this problem or know a way around it?
I already played through that area with no problem. Maybe it has something to do with your disk?

I have heard people playing the jp version saying that they had problems with the game freezing after a battle, but it only happened occasionally. It wasn't like they were unable to proceed through the game.


Thats when mine does it at the end of battle. But it does it everytime in the same area. I have already redone that area 5 times and still havent gotten passed it. Its really annoying@@

Ugh, that definitely doesn't sound random. Is there any way for you to exchange it for a new copy or at least get a different disk 1 so you can see whether it is the disk or something else?

[Hitoshura]

Bolded because I find it quite ironic... Anyway I agree with you that they should have given us the option, but it's really such a petty reason to not buy a game you were looking forward to. Also I think the redesigned menus are much easier on the eyes anyway.

How exactly does one generalize generic looking CG portraits? Just curious.

It is foolish to think it is petty. Have you bothered to think that some people have standards? Why should someone buy something if they don't support it?

Admittedly, I do like the new menus. And, I have given the CG portraits a chance. Keep in mind that I congratulated Sei for being able to stick to her ideals, something I could not do. I am having a blast with the game, still on the first planet, on 13 hours. Am I enjoying the game? Yeap. Would it have been even better if I didn't have a nagging feeling in the back of my head every time I see the CG portraits? Yeap. Did Square-Enix take a giant #### all over the character artist for SO4? Yeap.

[ViolenceJack]

Only thing I find tremendously annoying is that the victory quotes remain as the same line that is repeatedly used over and over and over. You'd think they'd use a nice variation to keep things less dull..

An hour into the game and I already had the battle voices set to mute.

I'm 8 hours in now, onto my way to the 3rd planet, Lv21, but stopped by Aeos to save so when I load I could first go and max out my battle board b4 proceeding.

[Vincent Alexander]

I can handle a lot of changes during localization and still buy a game, especially if the changes are to artwork and such. Hell, I'd still buy a game even if SE went in and turned a lil' asian boy into a black guy with sweet Ebonics.

[Hitoshura]

^Haha.

But seriously. Not everyone wants to support a localization hackjob in the name of "Oh, this isn't American enough, let's make it more American."

Did I mention I feel horrible for the character artist? "Oh, your art isn't good enough for America. Sorry."

[Tatsuya]

^Haha.

But seriously. Not everyone wants to support a localization hackjob in the name of "Oh, this isn't American enough, let's make it more American."

Did I mention I feel horrible for the character artist? "Oh, your art isn't good enough for America. Sorry."

To be honest, i've refused to buy games for less, this one joins that list.

[Sakubo]

I finally got past the area by avoiding 90% of the fights only to have to lock up in another area on disk 2. Im thinking its not the disks its just something they messed when fights end because thats were the new lock up happened.

[Pixel]

Changing content is one thing, but missing glitches is totally unacceptable. I demand a recall! ;)

Edit: http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/genmessage.php?board=946860&topic=48280714

[ViolenceJack]

Is your 360 set to 1080p? Apparently playing at 1080p causes the game to crash sometimes

Maybe thats the problem? Another thing mentioned was that DL'ing it to your HD also tends to cause Lock-Ups.

[raum215]

I got to the second planet where [you know or you don't] and I have to say - if the CG portraits are stopping you from getting this game, you are really missing out.

In fact, and call me crazy - I like the cg graphics. The actually are well done! It is rather well done. The anime-esque portraits are not really something i dwell one - too much other stuff to look for, or look forward to. And if I really want the anime portraits, they are online.

I also wouldn't mind the anime portraits,.. and think they look great, but I wouldn't rob myself of playing a great RPG if it lacked amine graphics. And frankly, this is the most fun action RPG I have played in a long time!

[Sakubo]

Is your 360 set to 1080p? Apparently playing at 1080p causes the game to crash sometimes

Maybe thats the problem? Another thing mentioned was that DL'ing it to your HD also tends to cause Lock-Ups.


I am playing at 1080p as I play using a moniter that hdmi support and thats what its video resolution is. The lock up happened when I was playing off the cd itself and then again when i installed it to the harddrive. It doesnt happen all the time. I just noticed it seems to happen alot in certain areas for me. Other than the fact that I lock up randomly I really enjoy this game. The main story is ok but the battle system I really like.

[ViolenceJack]

Anime Portraits are a nice addition mostly in games with retro graphics. As long as the cg ones are pretty well done I dont mind it, which they seem to be.

Just Reached Disc 2, visited a town, then the dungeon, now I gotta go back to the town lol. If I play anymore tonight I'll have to first reach the town, Backtrack to the Calnus, go back to the Dungeon, then backtack to the Calnus again for Crafting.

[xHaseox]

Animu? I don't get it.

Pretty lame about all the crashes. Square Enix should add this title to Steam as part of this mysterious PC library they claim to have.

This would make a nice addition next to The Last Remnant on PC.

[Sei]

Well, one thing is to change the art and another to remove it altogether. Those who care care, those who don't, don't. Honestly, I have way too many games I don't have the time to play to support games that (in my view) have been raped.

Sure, It is not quite as bad at the Ys Naphitism thing, but there at least there was a choice. Here, it is generic CG for the people. If you hate anime, and are happy about it, great, but really, for me at least, this was a series with great art and aesthetics, and now it is completely down the crapper art wise.

I don't see how it could have been made any more generic. Also lol at the crashes!

Anyway, if you don't mind or support this, more power to you. Some people liked the changes in Persona 1 too, I guess! But from what I have seen, a lot of people do mind, me included.

In the end, I doubt #### like this will make the game sell better to people that like Oblivion or Mass Effect, or Madden, the game is very much a JRPG. Just one that is ashamed of what it is. They might as well have put a line on the back that said "Not a Japanese RPG, Really!, look at the generic cg!". I can't wait for the bald guy on steroids in the final fantasy 12 localization :).

[Vincent Alexander]

^ ...

This game rocks.

[Hitoshura]

Word, Sei.

[Delition]

So Vincent, how does changing the menus and character portraits turn this game into an unplayable mess?

In all seriousness, I can understand where some of you are coming from, but I've heard so many RPG fans say that it's the gameplay and not the graphics that make the game. The changes are graphical only, so yes it's a bastardization, but I don't see how it affects the gameplay. The characters are just as lame in the cutscenes, and the gameplay seems the same, so all in all it seems like the same game to me.

Again, the fans of the original style can continue their boycott, but it seems like a waste to me.

[Hitoshura]

I think you mean Sei, or me, but... it's not a -graphical- issue, it's a -localization- issue. Nobody's saying the gameplay is bad, or that it somehow affects the gameplay, it's just that Sei doesn't want to support a such a hackjob.

[Delition]

I get that, but my statement is that the gameplay still remains the same, and most RPG fans say gameplay is above all.

I'm just saying that the game might still be worth playing for the gameplay alone, despite the terrible localization.

[Olethros]

I bought it day one, just haven't gotten around to playing it yet.

My two cents on the whole art change thing: a non-issue. Seriously. If that's the only knock against the entire localization process that you can come up with for the game, then they did a fine job in my estimation. If anything, now they've given you a choice. If you want to play the animu Japanese version, you can. If you want to play the English version with the clearly more tolerable/readable menu screens, you can. Win-win.

The glitches/freezes, on the other hand, may be a whole different ball game. I'll make that decision when I play it.

[Vincent Alexander]

Crack that #### open and start playing it, Olethros!

I actually lied though. I haven't touched this game yet. I'm a poor SOB.

[Sei]

Olethros: Errr, I think you misunderstood. If you want to play the generic CG version, you can. If you want to play the Animu (original version) you can't. If you had an option like in Ark of Naphitism, then I would have no problem whatsoever. To my knowledge though, there isn't one.

I think the more tolerable menu screens must be a quite subjective thing, cause I don't find the generic blue cg ones in the Us version more tolerable, but that may just be me.

Also, I think you meant me Delition, I think most RPG fans say story, not gameplay before all, at least that is it in my case :P. I can't really remember a lot of RPGS I played for the gameplay, if any at all. The point is that, there being a choice between this, or an actual JRPG that isnt ashamed of being one and that sends the message that JRPGS sell without random content bastardizations, the later gets my vote. This is not the only game in town, and from what I hear, it's not one of the best, either.

The money that was going to give square/ms/whoever 60 for this went towards retro game challenge and Knights in the nightmare instead. Both seem awesome, aren't bastardised (from what I can tell) and send a message I am more comfortable with. I mean they could have changed Arino for Mike, and the Japanese tatami room for an american one, but they didn't. In my mind, this makes it more worthy of my money. And it has an RPG too! Wholeheartedly recommend!. And if in the end they sell well and Atlus decided to bring more aesthetically strong games like kitten, or Xseed decides to bring fragile or gamecenter cx 2, I will be happy. On the other hand, generic stuff like this selling well and leading to even more generic stuff would make me unhappy.

Again, if they wish to make Western RPGS, that is great and I might buy them. But don't serve me bastardized, gutted, genericly presented stuff like this. And the slippery slope for stuff like this takes us back to a time where all non us culture was removed from games. Might be a stretch, but I would rather not support that time or any return of it with my money. And again, it's not like there aren't more worthy contenders around.

And I hated that time. With a passion.

[Flußkönig]

The glitches/freezes, on the other hand, may be a whole different ball game. I'll make that decision when I play it.
As far as the freezing problem goes, it really isn't an issue for everyone. I personally have played for a little over 50 hours with no problems and I know a bunch of other people who have been playing for at least that long or longer without any performance issues. I guess it is a crap shoot at this point although a lot of people seem to think it has something to do with what resolution you play the game in.

I have really been enjoying what I have played of SO4 so far. SO4 has done a good job of capturing the sci-fi feel that was missing from the other SO games.

The battle system is the big draw and it definitely won't disappoint unless you completely hate action based combat. The story is pretty typical as far as jrpg's go, but thankfully doesn't take itself too seriously.

[Olethros]

Nope, I understood just fine. What you want to play IS the Japanese version, not the English version. That's what importing is all about. If you want to play the game in English but have absolutely nothing else changed, then we're talking about a pure translation, not a localization anymore. As far as I know, most places aren't in the strictly translating business. Maybe you could start the first one?

[Vincent Alexander]

It amuses me how much people deduce from one thing.

[DamnedToBeFree]

I really had no intention of ever picking this game up, but after reading this thread, I feel I need to support this game in any way I can.

[ViolenceJack]

Well I like it. Vince, Olethros let me know what you think once you start it, Monster Data and Battle Trophies carry over from one Save File to the other, so you can save right before a boss then reload to complete its data. Also near the end of the first planet you can board the Calnus then exit it to replenish the Harvesting Points, there's a Private Action that takes place in the Caves around the time you get access to the calnus (you must do it b4 leaving), its in he area with the flowers.

Another Missable thing is Talking to Van right after you land on Aeos (he's right outside the control room and has white hair).

I'm looking forward to seeing what future DLC might be.

[Sei]

I really had no intention of ever picking this game up, but after reading this thread, I feel I need to support this game in any way I can.

You should buy a few and make a card house out of them! Unrelated but I find the Maddox "for each animal you don't eat I'm going to eat three (http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=sponsor)" shirt hilarious, you sorta reminded me of it :).

[Hitoshura]

Nope, I understood just fine. What you want to play IS the Japanese version, not the English version. That's what importing is all about. If you want to play the game in English but have absolutely nothing else changed, then we're talking about a pure translation, not a localization anymore. As far as I know, most places aren't in the strictly translating business. Maybe you could start the first one?

Um...

Aside from Square Enix recently and Namco, most companies do not change major things for American audiences.

Why is it so much to ask for a company not to change stupid #### like this? It's not like I'm whining about the JP voices or anything, because that's silly, and I support dubs 100%. I'm just expecting the same localization quality most companies have been giving for years, Square Enix included.

i mean YEAH LETS REWARD SQUARE ENIX FOR SCREWING OVER THE WEEABOOS, YEEHAW PEOPLE SHOULDN'T BE ALLOWED TO PREFER THINGS UNAMERICAN

:/

[unknown]

This game and RE5 are making me seriously consider getting a 360...but I need another price drop to convince me to go buy a console that might die on me.

[ViolenceJack]

The Red RE5 Console looks nice. Not nice enough for me to buy one though.

Unknown, if your system does die it's covered for a year and you can ship it for repairs for free and check up on its status fairly easily, I got mine back a couple days after SO4 came out. If you get an extended warranty at GameCrazy if it breaks after a year they'll replace it for free on the spot. If mine breaks again though I'm gonna upgrade to an Elite (which I'm told doesnt break down much).

[SlaughterX]

This game and RE5 are making me seriously consider getting a 360...but I need another price drop to convince me to go buy a console that might die on me.

I really get tired of hearing stupid #### like this. Anything MIGHT die on you, including a PS3, Wii, DS, PSP, PS2, Xbox, Gamecube... and anything before it or after it. Right now the 360 is the cheapest current gen console on the market. An Arcade SKU costs the same amount as PSP bundles, and $30 more than the DSi. $50 more than a PS2 with a memory card for a system that is heads and shoulders above it technically. $50 less than a Wii, which is also far beneath it technically, and half the price of a PS3. If you're complaining about the price of the system, then you should complain about other systems that cost more and offer less. Also I don't see people bringing up DRE every time someone mentions buying a current model PS2... because just like the RROD, it's not a problem anymore.

[EvilHero]

This game and RE5 are making me seriously consider getting a 360...but I need another price drop to convince me to go buy a console that might die on me.

I really get tired of hearing stupid #### like this. Anything MIGHT die on you, including a PS3, Wii, DS, PSP, PS2, Xbox, Gamecube... and anything before it or after it. Right now the 360 is the cheapest current gen console on the market. An Arcade SKU costs the same amount as PSP bundles, and $30 more than the DSi. $50 more than a PS2 with a memory card for a system that is heads and shoulders above it technically. $50 less than a Wii, which is also far beneath it technically, and half the price of a PS3. If you're complaining about the price of the system, then you should complain about other systems that cost more and offer less. Also I don't see people bringing up DRE every time someone mentions buying a current model PS2... because just like the RROD, it's not a problem anymore.

Yeah, seriously. I've had my 360 for about 2 years now and I haven't had any problems at all. I bought a PS3 and all it does is collect dust, most expensive paper weight i've ever purchased.

[Vincent Alexander]

This game and RE5 are making me seriously consider getting a 360...but I need another price drop to convince me to go buy a console that might die on me.

I really get tired of hearing stupid #### like this. Anything MIGHT die on you, including a PS3, Wii, DS, PSP, PS2, Xbox, Gamecube... and anything before it or after it. Right now the 360 is the cheapest current gen console on the market. An Arcade SKU costs the same amount as PSP bundles, and $30 more than the DSi. $50 more than a PS2 with a memory card for a system that is heads and shoulders above it technically. $50 less than a Wii, which is also far beneath it technically, and half the price of a PS3. If you're complaining about the price of the system, then you should complain about other systems that cost more and offer less. Also I don't see people bringing up DRE every time someone mentions buying a current model PS2... because just like the RROD, it's not a problem anymore.

Yeah, seriously. I've had my 360 for about 2 years now and I haven't had any problems at all. I bought a PS3 and all it does is collect dust, most expensive paper weight i've ever purchased.
I don't even use mine as a paper weight.