Our staff shares their expectations for Square Enix's latest 3DS RPG.
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/roundtable/36516
With Square Enix's latest Japanese RPG, Bravely Deafult, out in North America, we asked our staff their expectations for the game, and if it will be the game that rekindles their love for JRPGs in general.
Zachary Miller:
I was initially excited about it, but the demo killed it for me. The focus on Jobs makes me sad—I like an RPG that just gives you the usual classes and says "go" rather than making me worry that I'm playing the game wrong.
The game looks great, though.
Tom Malina:
My JRPG tolerance is very specific, so in general, if I am to get excited about something like Bravely Default, the systems it employs need to be accessible enough that I can not only understand how they work, but also feel like I can make effective, intelligent use of them.
I certainly expect Bravely Default, based on the impressions I've seen, to be a good game, but that doesn't mean I anticipate it will be something I personally want to play.
Andy Goergen:
At this point, it's very difficult for me to find myself invested in anything that doesn't have the ability to pick up and get playing (and feel satisfied) within a minute or two. JRPG's don't really fit that mold, but if there was some sort of pick-up-and-play mechanic in this game that didn't require me to set aside 30 minutes every time I wanted to play, then that might get me excited for the game. As it stands, no matter how pretty or epic the game is, it just doesn't fit the way I play games anymore.
J.P. Corbran:
I'm not generally a JRPG guy, and originally wasn't even interested enough to download the demo, but hearing people talk about it, even when they meant it as complaining, got me to try it. Before long I was completely hooked. The only non-Pokémon JRPG I've ever really come close to completing was the original Final Fantasy, which I loved, so I feel right at home with what you might call the archaic nature of a lot of it. This shows the power of demos, as I went from not interested at all to buying it day one because I had a chance to try it.
Guillaume Veillette:
My 3DS is starved for another JRPG and Bravely Default will keep me busy for quite a while. Experimenting with the various classes in the demo was fun. The only thing missing was a fun world to explore, something that the full game will fix. I especially like how the game seems to respect the player's time, allowing him to fast-forward through the battle animations, and reduce or turn off the random encounters completely. It doesn't hurt that the game is easy on the eyes and the ears, as well.
Neal Ronaghan:
I keep on going back and forth on if I want to get Bravely Default. My first impression with the demo was bad, but I've gone back and enjoyed it a bit more. I keep on coming back to the whole idea that I think I'd rather finish a DS RPG like Dragon Quest VI or Radiant Historia that I never polished off. I think this is the kind of game that I could be at a Target for something else and I walk out with the game. Or it's late night on a Saturday, I had a few beers and I'm on the eShop. I mean, that worked with Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate last weekend. Who knows.
It's funny how a lot of people , especially self professed "i'm not really into jrpg's" kind of people, are turned off by the job system. I admit, I am REALLY into jrpg's, and i have no problem with job systems, but no one complained about the job system in 4 heroes if light, and that was the same developer. And everyone gushed over fire emblem last year and that was most definitely a job system.
It's funny how a lot of people , especially self professed "i'm not really into jrpg's" kind of people, are turned off by the job system. I admit, I am REALLY into jrpg's, and i have no problem with job systems, but no one complained about the job system in 4 heroes if light, and that was the same developer. And everyone gushed over fire emblem last year and that was most definitely a job system.
k then pick your jobs and never change them. now the game doesn't have a job system. HURRIt's funny how a lot of people , especially self professed "i'm not really into jrpg's" kind of people, are turned off by the job system. I admit, I am REALLY into jrpg's, and i have no problem with job systems, but no one complained about the job system in 4 heroes if light, and that was the same developer. And everyone gushed over fire emblem last year and that was most definitely a job system.
I never used Second Seals in Fire Emblem.
It didn't feel like a game with a job system to me.
Have you actually played Bravely Default? Have you heard about the extremely shitty last chapter? I wouldn't blindingly follow this game just because of the hype.so it was released in all regions but 1 and has gotten rave reviews everywhere but it's all "hype"? lol, just admit you are desperate to find flaws in it
Have you actually played Bravely Default? Have you heard about the extremely shitty last chapter? I wouldn't blindingly follow this game just because of the hype.so it was released in all regions but 1 and has gotten rave reviews everywhere but it's all "hype"? lol, just admit you are desperate to find flaws in it
Have you actually played Bravely Default? Have you heard about the extremely shitty last chapter? I wouldn't blindingly follow this game just because of the hype.so it was released in all regions but 1 and has gotten rave reviews everywhere but it's all "hype"? lol, just admit you are desperate to find flaws in it
By "playing it wrong," I mean "making things artificially harder on yourself by going with the wrong party mix." The game can't possibly be balanced for every possible party combination, so I'll constantly be worrying that I have the wrong group of classes.As far as i can tell from the demo (also note that my experience with JRPG is extremely limited i still haven't beaten a single one) as long as you have one tank, one healer and one black magic wielder you're okay. You can even combine two or three roles into one person.
k then pick your jobs and never change them. now the game doesn't have a job system. HURRIt's funny how a lot of people , especially self professed "i'm not really into jrpg's" kind of people, are turned off by the job system. I admit, I am REALLY into jrpg's, and i have no problem with job systems, but no one complained about the job system in 4 heroes if light, and that was the same developer. And everyone gushed over fire emblem last year and that was most definitely a job system.
I never used Second Seals in Fire Emblem.
It didn't feel like a game with a job system to me.
It's funny because to me the customization of the job system is part of the whole damn appeal. If you want me to get interested in your RPG throw a job system in there. What I find awkward is something like the first Final Fantasy game where you pick your classes and that's it. Picked a poor choice but not find out until 20 hours in? Too bad! Start the game over. With the job system that NEVER happens. You realize your classes ain't cutting the mustard so you just change them as you wish.
"I'm afraid I'll play the game wrong." Uh, yeah, isn't this an issue with EVERY game worth a ****? If you don't know what you're doing in any game you lose and you die unless you're playing worthless dumbed down bullshit like Wii Music. It isn't like this is Fire Emblem with permanent deaths. When you lose you load your save back up and try again.
I'm really digging the flexibility of the game. I'll go into a dungeon and maybe be in over my head and get my ass handed to me with me barely surviving the first fight. Well I just then turn the random battles off, run back to town to heal and maybe grind or experiment with jobs or save up to buy better equipment and I try again. The ability to turn off the battles or crank them up whenever I want is ridiculously user friendly. If I die on a boss I can just walk through the dungeon to get back to him without getting my health and magic chipped away by regular enemies. I need to grind? I can crank the battles up and find enemies I can kill in one round by Braving and the game REWARDS me with bonus EXP for doing this, thus making grinding go faster.
Can't comment on your examples being very new to jRPG genre, but i can't understand generic complaint used against BD where every single job for each character has unique looks to them (http://i.imgur.com/v1et0f7.jpg).
I think his point is that a system that allows anyone to be anything makes them all essentially the same character. To quote The Incredibles, "when everyone is special, no one will be." This is a major complaint I have with Final Fantasies 6, 7, 8, & 12: the characters are so functionally the same in the progression system that they feel incredibly generic in battle. It isn't like in Final Fantasies 4 or 9 where the characters have set roles and, thus, have unique identities in battle.My favorite Final Fantasy titles are VI and IX. It's been a while, but I don't remember really playing them differently. I just equipped skills then leveled up. Based on what you're saying, I have no idea how I completed IX. I'm assuming I just stumbled through the game then leveled up high enough to beat the final boss.