Grazza

Well, I'm up to Chapter 10 now. I actually restarted again! Now I've promoted Franz, Vanessa and Ross, but they were all Level 20 first. Ross in particular is a powerhouse (and I'm going to use the other recruit, Amelia). I think Fire Emblem could do with a "Defend-only" option, as it's hard to recruit someone when they attack one of your team. They fight back, even when you don't want them to!

To be fair, there are only a few series that we know Nintendo will put the money and effort into - 3D Mario, Metroid and Zelda, to name three. If even those still... It's like how supermarkets have "loss leaders" - ie. a product that will draw people into the shop, then they make their money back on other things. Nintendo knows they have to spend money on making a decent Zelda, because that will make a lot of people buy the console, even if the actual game doesn't turn out to be one of their most profitable. What I'm saying is that there's a limit to how many Zelda-like or Metroid-like games they are prepared to make. If I see a really good game where you can explore 3D worlds I promise I will give it just as much chance as a Zelda. I just hope we do see a lot of games like that...

If Nintendo genuinely thinks that using a 2nd screen is the way forward to improve gaming, then the games should do so. I'm just not convinced that is actually the case. We have to be realistic. The improvement of games isn't always the reason these "big" features make their way into consoles. Analogue sticks, rumble and analogue triggers, yes, but not others. With motion control, Nintendo saw an opportunity to be unique - not necessarily better, just different. They went for it, and it was a success, but that doesn't mean motion controls were the way forward. Many at Nintendo were apparently against the idea, but they went for it and it was a business success for them. So as I say, if this "2nd screen" thing is genuinely the innovation that will improve gaming, great. But if it turns out to have been just another attempt to distinguish themselves from the competition, and it doesn't continue for more than one generation, we could be left with a collection of great games - Marios, Metroids, Zeldas - that don't work with future consoles.

And I hope their next game is Dragon Quest XI on PS4. No one can do it like Level 5 and, as you say, never better than on a Sony console.

I definitely think this is one Nintendo would like to localise. I sort of assumed/hoped they would make sure Dragon Quest VII was released in Europe anyway. Bravely Default seems to have a similar tone to classic-era Final Fantasy titles, which have done well over here in the past. The other RPG out of the "Big Three" is Etrian Odyssey IV, plus the "life sim" ones like Fantasy Life and Rune Factory 4.

Yeah, that last aspect of it was particularly annoying. Also, I thought the task was simply to get back to the starting point. I did that, and the guard said I hadn't mapped enough! And yet you don't have to map it all (the area on the right), just whatever the game considers "enough". Thought it was just me. On a happier note, I have found something about this game I really like - Auto-battle! Just tap L and it just does normal attacks for you, very quickly too. You can get through three turns in no time. Watch out for Chop/Mine/Take points. The developers thought it'd be fun if you were sometimes ambushed by an overly-powerful monster. :wtf: Some thoughts on the classes: Survivalist - Absolutely essential, in my opinion. I was only using one for Chop/Mine/Take, but then I found out about the monster ambushes. If only I had maxed-out Ambush and Sagacity first (which you can do by Level 12, as it takes 15 points including the Agility pre-req). Oh well, I know what to do now. I can't see my party not having a Survivalist. Landsknecht - To me a "warrior" is pretty essential, but I don't really know which axe skill to max-out. I'm going for Brawn, as it has the highest pre-req (and the disadvantage of going last), so I'm hoping it's worth it. Silencer would also be pretty useful. Protector - I really like protectors/paladins in general, but I'm not convinced one still has a place in Etrian Odyssey II. His defence hardly seems any better than the others, and without Defender I'm forced to rely on his other skills. I regret going for Front Guard, Back Guard and All Guard, because he's just not tough enough to take it at the moment. I'm hoping he'll prove his worth when I've maxed-out Shields and Vitality (which I think I should have done first). Dark Hunter - I hear a Dark Hunter is pretty much essential for this game. I'm going for the binding skills + Climax. Maybe Bait and Magibait much later on if I have the skill points. Medic - Supposedly, the Medic is not so essential this time (War Magus can heal), but they are well worth using in my opinion. Got Cure, Salve, Refresh and Revive at the moment. Am definitely going to have to Rest or Retire this one later on though, in order to swap to Cure 3, Salve 3 etc. I am missing Immunize, but I hope Phoenix will make up for it. Alchemist - I started off using an Alchemist instead of a Survivalist, but their high TP cost makes them much harder to justify this time round. Shame, as I'm sure I'll need one for some of the conditional drops. Gunner - Think I'm going to need one sooner or later, but I don't know who it will be instead of. Troubador - I think I'll need their buffs for the boss fights but, again, I don't know who instead of. Without Relaxing, they don't help you throughout the Labyrinth as much. ... Just completed the 1st Stratum.

Yes, it's absolutely brilliant news. Hopefully this type of game can stop being thought of as niche or risky. Really has restored my faith in the market! (Mine's arrived, but I'm going to wait until 20th Feb, just in case the PS4 plays PS3 games. I don't think it will, but I'm going to see.)

Yeah, I would have done though. That said, I never noticed a password in Etrian Odyssey.

OK, here we go (I apologise if the mods think this should be a separate thread but, thinking about it, it might only be me and Ike playing it. Please thread rip if necessary. No offence intended.)... Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard In 1989 I went into an arcade and, much to my surprise, found Double Dragon II - the sequel to my most beloved coin-op of the day. Though it looked familiar, the moves and controls were completely new, and thus I didn't get very far. To this day, I have not played it again. In 1992 I went into Virgin Games and, just as surprisingly, found Golden Axe II, the sequel to my favourite Megadrive cartridge. Though I quite enjoyed it (you had to get your money's worth out of £34.99 games!), my excitement fell a little bit flat when I realised it was very, very similar to the first game - just not quite as good. I mention these two because Etrian Odyssey II gives me a very similar feeling. The characters in the town are not quite as well-drawn. The enemies are similar, but not quite as good. The FOEs on 3F are the same as the corresponding ones in the first game. Not that you can fight them, because they are way too strong for you when you first encounter them (again, like the previous game!), but then FOEs in general are best avoided at first, as they no longer give EXP. The main thing that reminded me of Double Dragon II is that the moves are very different. The 5-turn buffs, like Immunize and Defender are completely absent. As far as I'm aware, the Troubador (Bard) is the only character that can buff, but even he loses Relaxing (the "song" that restores your TP). Some of the strongest attacks have apparently also been weakened, meaning you can no longer necessarily rely on Crush or Apollo. But then apparently some of the other moves have been improved, such as Climax. As for gathering items, I was surprised that a Survivalist can only Take, Mine or Chop five of each item instead of twenty. Also, the first Mission on 1F (the typical "map the forest" type task) is rock hard, and you could very easily fail it! Make sure you have decent armour and healing abilities! All in all, I'm not saying I don't like it, but it's going to take quite a different playing style.

Who even said I was criticising? For someone who doesn't want to derail the thread, you sure as heck are giving it a good go.

No, on! Stereoscopic 3D helps me concentrate in many games - Mighty Switch Force, Pilotwings Resort, Super Mario 3D Land. For all its critics, it really does help with depth perception. Not that you really need depth perception for Mighty Switch Force, but the combination of 3D + headphones helps me concentrate more than if I was playing it with less "dedication", as such. Well done anyway. PS - Have you got the update that makes it 21 levels total?

Basically, running on a game engine that they wouldn't have bothered doing on console. Part of that was the controls, but it was also the way they combined these things: * Overworld was 3D, but on rails * Villages and dungeons were 2.5D * Some boss fights were 3D, others 2.5D As I say, a lot of that was due to not having analogue sticks, but I still think the DS was quite far off being able to do a proper 3D Zelda.

Brilliant video, RedShell (with added sound effects!) The Hyper stages look quite a lot more complex, really making you think about the blocks. I am definitely going to buy this when I get a Wii U.

Personally, I find this fascinating, and also have a very good feeling about it. We have got to the point where handheld graphics look (to all intents and purposes) as good as that of consoles. The main difference is that they aren't as powerful in actual terms because they need to be smaller and are rendering to a lower resolution (even if the PPI is good). Many have pointed out that game engines will be more scaleable from now on, with the suggestion that the Wii U will be able to run Orbis/Durango games, even if they don't have all the graphical detail. It is even more likely that Orbis and Durango will have that relationship with the PC, as apparently they share the same architecture. With this in mind, try to imagine the next Nintendo handheld and console. The handheld will probably run games that look as good as the Wii U, even if they aren't actually 720p. The next Nintendo console will presumably be similar to Orbis/Durango. How likely is it that it'll run games that wouldn't work on the handheld? We have got to the point where handheld games can ape their console counterparts very well. No need for "Phantom Hourglass"-type solutions (hopefully controls will fully catch up next). Nintendo must have a huge dilemma over which games (or even series) to put on handheld and which on consoles. If they can make a game that works on both, that will be a huge relief on their resources. I know a lot of people think handheld games should be very different, but I'll leave you with this thought: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is arguably the greatest handheld game ever made. It was not designed in travelling-friendly chapters, or to be bite-sized. It was meant to be as close to the console experience as they could manage at the time. There was nothing half-hearted about Link's Awakening. They went all-out to create as good a game as possible - one that just happened to be on the Game Boy. By doing this they succeeded in creating an absolute classic - one that is still probably the best thing you can buy on the eShop.

The really big ones I want are: Dragon Quest VII Etrian Odyssey IV Bravely Default: Flying Fairy ...Fantasy Life too.

Well done. I think I could only get the first 12 (on 3DS). Bet it sounds funky through your sound system!

Very true. I really think we lost out on some excellent sprite games because almost everyone used polygons as soon as they became available.

Oh, I see. How very stupid of me. Yes - that sounds great to me. A powerful machine, but the only one that plays Mario, Metroid and Zelda. See, I honestly think the Wii has been massively damaging to them. It's just that it made so much money, few noticed. Before the Wii, my acquaintances did respect Nintendo and played their games. There's no way they'd have missed out on Twilight Princess or Metroid Prime. And because the hardware was as powerful as its rivals, people gave those games as much chance of being "the best" as any other. The very few people who thought Nintendo were "kiddie" were just immature and not worth bothering about. With the Wii, though, hardly anyone I knew bothered to play the core games, such as Metroid Prime 3 or Super Mario Galaxy, and who could blame them? However well-designed they were, they couldn't help but be behind the times. This is true. Nintendo will never be able to shake that, unfortunately.

Seeing that makes me think it's done well. I didn't think it'd have sold anywhere near as much as the Wii. It also reminds me that even the mighty DS had a quiet start. I remember I didn't buy one until the DS Lite and Phantom Hourglass.

Yep, Ross is a Pirate and is on course to become a Berserker. I'm going to make Garcia a Warrior. By the way, I've got their Support level to B. Does this mean they'll actually fight better when side-by-side? Have better defence, attack etc? Also, I managed to recruit Amelia, so no problems there. I aim to make her a General if I get the appropriate item.

Just from chatting around, I think people do get it now - they just don't want it, which is a massive problem. I bumped into one of my old schoolfriends the other day and she just said "It doesn't grab me". Whether Nintendo Land and the GamePad will appeal to the "Wii" audience when you can get it all for £200, we'll see. I doubt it, but it's possible (and not before then, surely). On the other extreme, I think it would be selling better even at £300 if it had 1) a traditional controller (with analogue triggers), 2) hardware that was clearly the most powerful at the moment and 3) plenty of 3D games. What I want from a handheld and home console are different. For the latter, I want loads of 3D worlds to explore. The Nintendo Direct this month was absolutely fantastic, but they'll have to keep up that sort of standard.

Oh, it does have a decent tutorial - I'm just rubbish. I keep restarting every time I learn something new. Am actually quite tempted to do that even now... Yeah, he was pretty much my favourite character when I got to use him briefly, but I thought the game was steering me to do Eirika's route first. What I hadn't considered, though, was that all the weapons someone is carrying weigh them down (I assumed it was just what they had equipped - not that I'd thought about weight, in all honesty). I think I had Vanessa carrying a Javelin and two Lances, just as spares. As @Jonnas says, very realistic! I'm used to RPGs where you can carry anything and it doesn't affect you.

Just checked, and her defence is 13 (as a Lvl 1 Falcoknight). It's just that I was keeping her offshore during Chapter 9, throwing Javelins at the enemy, and it was still very risky. Thanks, but that's OK. I've read from Page 6 onwards. I don't mind spoilers if they help me understand this game as much as I can. I've already looked up all the classes and such.

And NFC. I remember them going to great lengths to include NFC, but they couldn't include analogue triggers!