Grazza

Another thing is that it was important for the 3DS to be backwards compatible. With a successor to the 3DS, though, I think it would be better to embrace what a high-res screen can offer, and design the games around that.

Serebii is right though - that particular artwork does look better with its proper colours. Otherwise, we should just colour everything gold for the sake of tradition.

Yes... if you're trying to emulate the 3DS, but I mean in general. Even if you go back to when the 3DS was announced, I thought it sounded great but said there was not much point in two screens. Don't get me wrong, I've loved the 3DS but would so much prefer a single, high-res screen from now on.

If you need any advice, you know who to turn to! Do you still get EXP from FOEs as well? Etrian Odyssey II was the game where they hardly gave you EXP for anything (bosses were the best way to get it), then EO III introduced it for Quests and reinstated it into FOEs.

I seriously do expect a 2DS XL. Nintendo's business plan with handhelds seems to be to get four models out over six years or so. After that, I do hope it goes towards "tablet with good controls", because there's very little point in having two screens.

Etrian Odyssey IV, Zelda and Bravely Default for me (and, if it's out, Shantae 3).

This does actually make some sort of sense. The biggest barrier to the 3DS becoming as successful as possible was the 3D. Parents didn't trust it, even if you explained it could be turned off. There's always been this idea of "What's the point of a 3DS if you're not going to use the 3D?" It doesn't make sense, but it's psychological. Secondly, Nintendo is finally cutting out all the things that made it unnecessarily expensive. And quite honestly, if two screens are more expensive than one, why would we ever want the clamshell/dual screen design again? I'd much rather the next handheld was single-screen and high-res. I won't be buying a 2DS (and I'm not saying there won't be confusion), but it bodes well for the future. I particularly hope they start making games that don't support 3D at all (but still work on the 3DS), so that we can finally utilise its full processing power.

No, I believe you're always meant to wake up with morning glory!

Yeah, I mean, let's make no bones about it, the fact a lot of Americans don't have foreskins is the reason they go on about "lube". It's probably even the reason they've got such a huge hang-up about sex (which is a normal, natural thing), yet love violence. Really makes me sick how religion has ruined so many minds and bodies. They seem to think their God routinely creates people with body parts they shouldn't have.

Just a note about that: I didn't find Party Shield very useful in Etrian Odyssey II. A lot of people liked Front Guard, but it wasn't part of my build. I like this class to have max HP, max TP, Shields, Smite (if that's still in it) and Anti-Fire/-Ice/-Volt. Always want more skill points with Protectors! Didn't even need one against the main post-game boss of EO II, although I did with the Dragons. Zodiacs (ie. Alchemists) in III have something similar as well. I haven't used it yet because it's something like "Anticipate Ice; use Ice". Oh well, just looking forward to playing about with the different classes, to be honest (resists demo!)

For me, watches are cheap things for telling the time. Anyone who wears one knows the strap breaks before anything else, so I won't be going for these. If they do take off, though, it might finally stop everyone under 30 asking me the time!

If Runemaster does elemental protection for the whole party, I might not use a Fortress. I really like Protectors/Hoplites, but I've found them less and less useful as the series goes on. They were great in the first game because they had Defender. They didn't have that skill in Etrian Odyssey II, but obviously Anti-Fire/-Ice/-Volt was still useful against the Dragons. Now though? Whilst I'll probably create a character for each class, maybe I'll use a Nightseeker instead of a Fortress. I've never really felt the need for a "tank", for two reasons: 1) If a Protector did manage to provoke all the physical attacks, he still couldn't take them anyway against a boss. He's not that tough! 2) Even Provoke does not protect everyone else from elemental attacks (which most bosses use). So, sounds like this game will require some different thinking (like III).

Sounds like Etrian Odyssey III, with its ocean. It depends, really. In I & II I was happy to use my Survivalist for farming. In III, there are actually Farmers. I haven't seen the skills for this game but I'll probably just throw a few skill points towards farming in the character that best suits it. Just taking a quick look at the classes, I think I'm going to start with Landsknecht, Fortress, Runemaster, Dancer and Medic. No, I was 100% sure I wanted this, and I'd rather just start it when I get the proper game.

Well, I'm pretty pleased because I've been able to do 16 military-wide pull-ups on three separate occasions now, so I know it wasn't a fluke. No, I don't cheat and swing my legs up, or not lower myself much. Chin above the bar every time. I weigh 14 stone, so I'm pretty chuffed with that.

I do like my body but I've always been a skinny bugger! Been weight-training since I was 16 or so and never managed to become bulky. However, there's no point worrying about your actual frame. You can make your body completely slim and muscular, so that's what I try to do. The only thing that bothers me now is my grey hair (I'm 35). Not because of vanity, I just really want to restore the cells to peak condition!

As far as I'm concerned, non-medical circumcision (to a child) is mutilation and should be illegal. If an adult wants it done to himself, fine, but I can't help but think the idea that it's in any way good stems from cultures highly influenced by religion. For example, apparently circumcision is quite popular in the USA, with a lot of women expecting their man to be circumcised (so I'm told). Well, any woman asking that should be told to go forth and multiply! It can't be a coincidence that Judaism has highly influenced all aspects of American culture and politics. I don't dislike anyone racially, I just don't think any religion should be above the law or be powerful enough to prevent laws being made about them.

All I can say is that I think people pass on kindness and how to love each other. If I hadn't been treated so well by my family - kindness, generosity, etc - I wouldn't really understand the concepts as strongly. While there's youth in my body, I just want to use it and enjoy myself in the company of people I love it.

Ah well, I heard the PS3 upscaled it well, that's all I meant. No too bothered either way.

BUMP So, I was in the process of playing through Etrian Odyssey II and III, when the 3DS's crazy year started and I haven't been back to the 3rd game since. However, in anticipation of Etrian Odyssey IV, I decided to play some more of III. It might be unrealistic to expect to complete it before IV is out (I've done the first three floors), but I really just wanted to familiarise myself with it and how the series has moved on with each instalment. My first impression was that the atmosphere is fantastic. The hub town is just right - a sunny fishing village by day and a trendy nightspot in the evening. Everything about it is the best yet. My second impression was that the gameplay is a lot more complex. There are a great many classes to choose from, most of them unfamiliar. No Landsknecht or Protector here (although there are similar classes), and many of the skills are different. Atlus obviously didn't want people to fall into their old habits from the beginning. A big difference is the special move, fuelled by a bar that fills up as you battle. The 1st game had "Boost", which greatly emphasised any move. The 2nd game had the best - Force - which gave each class a unique (and amazing) move. The 3rd game has Limit, which is in effect a selection of moves that have to be shared and assigned between characters. For example, your Gladiator and Hoplite can build up a powerful attack between them, and when it's ready, either of them can use it. The hardest thing to explain is the difficulty. It's not that it's too easy, just that it seems like you can make your way through with any skills. Whereas the first two Strata of Etrian Odyssey II were too hard even if you had the right skills, with Etrian Odyssey III, I'm getting the sense that there are no "right" skills. Normally in an RPG this is good, but not to have any essential skills doesn't feel very Etrian Odyssey. That's what it seems like at the moment, anyway, but I'm enjoying it and I haven't even got to the first boss yet, so maybe my impressions about this are wrong.

Oh yeah, still got my PS2, but only got composite leads. In all honesty, I'd make do with that, my mind was just wandering. It's also an epic game and I've just got so much to play at the moment.

I want to play it again too. The difference between now and then is that now I have an HDTV, and I'd certainly like to play it in HD if possible. Wonder if it's worth obtaining an original model PS3 from somewhere?

I suppose so, yes - it was about 22 hours after I had last visited. I'm going to get banned from these places.

I heard about it as a big craze that was coming over, bought Pokémon Blue, played it for about three gyms, then got confused and never played it again. Sorry, that's a really boring story.

Good idea. It's probably balanced perfectly for StreetPass... in Japan. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood because my StreetPass wasn't working yesterday. In my mind, I've missed loads of furniture I wanted!

I'm getting sick of it too. I think the problem with this game is that you simply can't complete as much as you like whilst you're still interested. Been checking the shop every day and there's still so much I've never been able to buy.