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Thank you for LPing the Atelier games. I never would have learned about them otherwise.
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Jan 15, 2016 02:00
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Thank you so much for demonstrating the Atelier games! I've never had the chance to play these series, but I know the Iris Series and the Mana Khemia series from the PS2 are some of my favourite games to this day. It's been a pleasure reading the LP and I appreciate all the effort you put in  .
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Jan 15, 2016 03:26
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Bonus Update 4 Artwork A Small Master Time between Sisters The Aloof Alchemist The Place of Beginnings Water Festival Lord of Water's Memories Herb Garden Faav Village Ruins of Frozen Time Geofront Heaven's Vine Altar of Spirits Katla A Katla B Albert A Albert B Teokhuga A Teokhuga B Linca A Linca B Music: Illusions Shown by the Corals This one was ridiculously difficult. I lost count of how many times I walked my characters through this field without any sound at all... Thanks to that, I memorized it before we even started debugging. (Yanagawa) It's kind of related to the above comment, but I have great respect for composers of all stripes. Think about it: guys like Yanagawa have to write hundreds of songs, they all have to sound relatively different (of course, it'll have his style), and they also can't infringe on any other known melodies. It can't be easy work, and it's a testament to his ability he can continue to write video game songs. Sleeping Vines I added the theme for the herbal gardens found in Ayesha and Escha & Logy. The meaning behind the lyrics in the chorus are a secret. It was also fun playing the flute for this track. (Yanagawa) Sanctuary of Water The lyrics for this are a secret as well. I can say that they're based on a certain book of laws. Regardless, the synthesized choruses are really realistic lately. (Yanagawa) Primordial This also contains the herb garden theme. I really enjoy tracks that combine the repetition of a simple phrase with a melody that slowly builds up, so this was pretty fun to compose. (Asano) If I had to choose just one song on Shallie's OST as my absolute favorite, this one would definitely be up there, maybe even as my favorite. I absolutely love this song, and the image it evokes in my head. When I listen to this song, I feel like I'm staring out at a vast, sparkling ocean. When I was first going through Shallie's OST to see what I liked and what I didn't, I have absolutely no idea why I didn't care for this one. In the Old Road I composed this track intending for the melody to sound familiar in the Dusk Series. Themes for new lands in the Dusk World always have a "four-on-the-floor" image to me. (Yanagawa) Stella -3- I was asked to make this sound somewhat serious, so I chose rock as the base. The guitar here was also played by Shimizu. Maybe we can go drinking together again! (Asano) Sweep -3- This battle theme is based on Lotte's determination to reach the end. This version was the basis for all the arrangements. (Yanagawa) Octopunch Theme for the octopus battle. I asked Shimizu to play the guitar for this. The cutting and solo are all fantastic! Whenever I see a tentacle boss, I think about Totori and Sterk for some reason. (Yanagawa) Oh, I can furnish an explanation for that one. Though, the less said about that particular scene, the better, I think. Goddamn the Arland thread feels so long ago, even though I only finished it about 2 and a half years ago. Um, er... I think This is for situations beyond not knowing what to do. Like when you can't even think. The title was a devastating line I heard during a certain experience recently. (Achiwa) Bursting March I crated this while imagining Shallotte being chased around by sheep, but in this world, god only knows if it'll be used for such a scene in the finished game. (Achiwa) It kinda did...but Lotte was actually surrounded by sheep, not getting chased by them. Darkness of Oblivion A shocking truth! And then you expect to see a boss fight? I guess it's something like Carmina Burana. (Achiwa) The Twilight and the Hourglass This is an arrangement of "Two Shallies"... Or so you might think, but this was actually completed first. I wonder if anyone recognizes the reference for the title? (Achiwa) Automata Song We used certain seiyuu for the vocals. I think the use of a human powered vocaloid really helps strengthen the feeling of automatons. (Yanagawa) Gotta say, that is a good decision on Yanagawa's part. You don't want the automatons to sound too natural, after all. FJ: Secret Arts Wilbell's Ultimate finishing jingle. It was almost comedic in the last game, but since her ultimate in this game looks a bit cooler now, I decided to go with a more serious tune. (Yanagawa) Wilbell's Ultimate move, of course, is the only one in the game not earned through leveling. Kawaki no Rinkaku (Contours of Thirst) (Commentary for Game version) Theme for the Lord of Water battle. We brought ACRYLICSTAB back from the last game to create another hard song to heat up this boss battle. While the theme may be the Lord of Water, there's actually a hidden theme too... (Okamura) (commentary for full version) The hidden theme is related to Wilbell. While she's grown (kind of) over the last 3 entries in the series, we don't have any plans to make her the main character at the moment. (Okamura) An interesting comment there, but it does not likely mean anything. 'Course, I've been wrong about this series before, and I'll be wrong again about something. Anyway, this is personally one of my favorite songs in the game. Bonus Videos Bonus 1 This scene takes place after the scene where Stera and Lotte talk to Perriend about where Keith is. This scene is Lotte-side exclusive, so that's why it wasn't in the update. Bonus 2 Much more elaborate. As long as you get the scene where Kortes, Stera, and Lotte talk about the Water Festival, this should pop up without any problems. It normally happens between Chapters 8 and 9, and the reason I didn't cover it was the story update for Chapter 9 was *plenty* long enough without something like this.
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Jan 15, 2016 08:54
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I appreciate your work Sylphid, and I read this entire thread but these games have pretty dull writing. The big problem with these games is that they feel like they were written for a 6 or 8-year old girl. There's no real conflict and everyone's friends throughout the entire story. It feels like a giant tea party in a doll-house. All the adults act like responsible parents and try and protect, encourage, and/or make you happy. It's all fluff. Not much really resolved either. We went through all this just to shut off a water treatment plant which will only make matters worse before anyone can make things better. We just kicked the can down the road and we still have a world-destroying crisis and no solutions other than "keep trying". Are they leaving it open to making another game?
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Jan 16, 2016 07:20
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mastersord posted:Are they leaving it open to making another game? What they're doing is releasing Shallie Plus, so far only announced for Japan - so basically an extended cut of the game. Most of the plus titles haven't had major story additions but it looks like Shallie will be the first to do it, altgough we don't really know too much about what they have planned outside of some returning characters. Also, since it's a nice picture to close off the Dusk trilogy. Edit: Logy just keeps changing the colour of his jacket. 
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Jan 17, 2016 20:52
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You've really done a superb job of presenting these games - they're the sort of thing that I know I'd never have the patience to play through myself, let alone multiple times, but I've loved reading your LPs. Thank you!
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Jan 17, 2016 21:59
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pichupal posted:What they're doing is releasing Shallie Plus, so far only announced for Japan - so basically an extended cut of the game. Most of the plus titles haven't had major story additions but it looks like Shallie will be the first to do it, altgough we don't really know too much about what they have planned outside of some returning characters. That's a really nice picture, thanks for posting it. Ayesha really has bloomed into a beautiful woman. drat I'm going to miss Hidari, though it looks like whoever is doing the art for Sophie is emulating Hidari pretty closely. Sylphid fucked around with this message at 19:46 on Jan 18, 2016 |
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Jan 18, 2016 19:30
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Yeah, Atelier games have really tried to be open-ended. The plot has kind of come out to play for big chunks of Ayesha and Eschatology, but even then a big part of the game is just doing what you want in the world, right? Regardless, thanks for sticking through to a trilogy break point.
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Jan 19, 2016 04:38
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Bonus Update 5 Artwork Same deal as the Escha and Ayesha threads. Ending EDs will be posted here, but will be listed in the LP after. Village Chief ED Magician ED True ED Sweets Festival Government Official ED Popular in Town ED Celebrity Meeting Certain Sisters Water Control Device Gerard A Gerard B Rosemia A Rosemia B Food Rabbit Sand Runner Boar Colonia Lord of Water Sand Dragon Controller Music Tsunami The track just before the last boss awakens. The guitar and bass are played by Dani. The image is an unavoidable fight with an opponent who's been burdened with a sorrowful fate. (Achiwa) Interesting direction from Okamura there. I feel more like the player facing the full might of the ocean. One of the first times I listened to this song was during a grey, slightly rainy day in Taiwan, and it was just perfect. I can just imagine a great wave cresting over the ocean surface when I listen to this. Defeated by Dreams It's been a while since I composed a game over theme. That's right, there're game overs in this game! Personally, I enjoy games that are hard enough to have lots of game overs, so I'm glad! (Yanagawa) Yep, various important battles in the game (such as the first one with the Sand Runner with Stera in the prologue, the Controller, and the boss of the DLC dungeon, certainly among others) will give you a game over if you lose them. Now, while obviously I lost some of these battles (including, embarrassingly, the very first battle because I didn't change the game difficulty to a beatable level), never got a chance to post this until now. Alchemist on a Ship -Epilogue- Stera's atelier theme arrangement for her epilogue. This is a woodwind quintet plus strings. I like small orchestral compositions like this, and I'd like to try recording live some day. (Yanagawa) Of the three epilogue themes, this is my favorite. There's something sorrowful, yet hopeful about the way it sounds. Gazing out on a limitless horizon, and watching the world go by, on an uncertain road to the future. Humming in the Atleier -Epilogue- Theme for Lotte's epilogue. This is also an arrangement of the atelier theme. Delicate chord progression enhances the touching, heartrending feeling. (Yanagawa) Rusty Sky -Epilogue- Theme for the true end. It is an arrangement of the opening. I changed the chord progression a little to make it brighter than the original. (Yanagawa) But not to be outdone, here's the last remix of Rusty Sky. It's really good, just falls a little short of Stera's epilogue theme for me. I was seriously considering naming the final update Golden Sky, just because I like theme naming (shocking, I know) and closing circles of fate, as it were. Ultimately, I decided to name it what it is because I felt the emotional connection the two Shallies gain in that ending was strong and emphasized enough in the ending for what I did. I'm pleased with what I went with. For the final record, my Ayesha updates were named after the ED song for Ga-Rei Zero (Hear the Footsteps of a Dream), Escha and Logy's updates were named after the first OP to Attack on Titan (The Crimson Bow and Arrow, also incidentally I think the hardest theme naming for my Dusk series), and this thread's updates were named for Maria-sama ga Miteru's ED for its fourth and final season (The Other Side of the Cloudy Glass). The naming theme is one of the first things I decided for each thread (the Arland and my Agarest 2 thread included), and they were decided long in advance. For the title of this thread, I'm pretty sure no one picked up on it except me. It's a quote taken from the ending to the first Record of Agarest War (probably more well-known is the Escha thread's name, which is a quote taken from the opening to MGS3). I first saw it near the tail end of the Ayesha thread, and decided on it long in advance of this thread. I played Agarest 1 again back in...April I believe, and remembered exactly how the quote went. See, it turned out real well, especially since the opening to this game focuses so much on Stera and Lotte's eyes, which I hadn't seen at the time I decided on the name. The Twilight and the Hourglass This is an arrangement of "Two Shallies".... Or so you might think, but this was actually completed first. I wonder if anyone recognizes the reference for the title? (Achiwa) FJ: Fatal Blow Jurie's victory theme. Cool beauty. Femme fatale. She's great! I want an older sister like this! Wait a second? Wasn't someone else saying the same thing...? (Asano) FJ: Arm of Divinity Finishing jingle for Kortes. He seems like someone who would bust out some martial arts, so I made a fitting track. I really wish he would "Hayah!" or something like that... (Yanagawa) FJ: Hand of Dusk Keith's victory theme. I want to be this kind of old man. His ultimate is shorter now, so this track needed to be shorter too. (Asano) Narcolepsist (Game version) Theme for the last dungeon. We wanted to use a song in a different way from usual for this game, and used this as a field track. This was also composed by Matryoshka. (Okamura) (commentary for full version) (continued from above) Since this is the area where the final battle takes place, we wanted it to be both magnificent and decadent. We hope this song helped you better feel the atmosphere as the Dusk, as you pressed forward to the final battle. (Okamura) Fun fact: the giant squid is the only battle you have to fight between the start of the dungeon and the Controller. The big tank slag you don't have to encounter at all, and you can just squeeze around the Stone Giant. Luto -Tochisurumoro- (Luto -The Controller-) Theme for the latter half of the last boss battle. The vocals were performed by mao, with Dani on guitar and bass, and Asano on piano. For some reason I was called a pervert during recording again, but I take that as a compliment. (Yanagawa) Ah, memories. mao sung the ending theme for Atelier Totori, her first involvement in this series, and did some song I guess in Meruru. Yanagawa mentioned being called a perv in the composer commentaries for Meruru, and the person who called him that was none other than mao. (commentary for full version) I really like the situation for the last boss in this game. That inspired me to make some lements in the melody a little painful and heartwrenching. Although you still end up beating them up in the end. (Yanagawa) He got whacked 'cause he was weak. Is what I'd like to say, but he puts up a surprisingly good fight on NO HOPE. I beat him twice before the recorded version, but I rejected them because I didn't end it with Hand of Dusk. Last Wanderlust The ending theme, composed by Matryoshka. This game is the third entry in the Dusk series. Thank you very much for playing this game! I'll see you in the next Atelier! (Okamura) And thank you and everyone who worked on this game for a splendid finish to the Dusk series. Bonus Videos Encyclopedia Skills Compilation 1 (Stera, Lotte, Kortes, Miruca, Jurie, Wilbell) Skills Compilation 2 (Homura, Keithgriff, Solle, Escha) Attack Item Compilation For Lotte's combination skill, there's a total of five different animations depending on what items you use / what order you use them in. While I didn't try absolutely every combination of every item (and Lotte can't dip into Stera-exclusive items), after I exhausted the combinations for the Craft, Ice Bomb, and Bomb, I think I got the picture. Bonus Bonus This next scene comes if you lose against the Beast Man. Remember, you have to have the Talisman of the Beast King to know what he's actually saying.   We couldn't win... Mom...  (Alchemy... Your civilization based on borrowed knowledge reminds me of our own failures... I'll see the downfall of your civilization as well...)  (I'm... Still alive?) The downfall of our civilization...? What did he mean? I doubt his race has the strength to rebuild a civilization. His people simply live in the darkness, waiting for the end. Since I didn't get it in the actual update, this is where the special DLC recipe chest is in the bonus dungeon. For a larger picture for anyone playing the game in the area with the hexagonal platforms and the glowing water, this is where it is. You can also match up exactly where it is using the radar, of course.  And because I never made any of the items from it in the actual playthrough, here's the items. You can get some cool effects, but it's really more effort than is necessary. Atelier Shallie artbook 1 Atelier Shallie artbook 2 Atelier Shallie artbook 3 Time for the last call. Stera: under #4, I would say B is my favorite, but Shallie's final design was fine as well. Lotte: seems like she was one of the harder designs for Hidari. I'm gonna go with the one on the far right under #10. Kortes: not a whole lot to choose from that's significantly different from his final design, so I'm gonna go with the first design. Interestingly, seems like Early Kortes was supposed to use daggers. Jurie: white-hair Jurie under #6 looks cool. Miruca: another tough one. Let's say...B under #2. Wilbell: I like the second Wilbell, under #1, and think that would have been quite an improvement over the final design. Not my call, of course. Keithgriff: they're all pretty much the same thing, just with a few accessories missing or his gauntlet looking different (#3 B's gauntlet looks cool, but would have been hell to make it look right in the actual game), so I'm gonna roll with the second Keith under #1. Teokhuga: not wild on either design in #1, but let's say C. Nady: the hat would be nice, but I like that design more than her final one. Raoul: the third Raoul there would be nice (#2, A) Solle / Escha: both of them look pretty much the same, with both of their rough designs and their E&L / Shallie appearance, so I won't waste the bandwidth. Katla: I'm a sucker for blazers, so any of the Katlas with a blazer would be acceptable, even if it's not very "Katla-like". Rosemia: easily the first rough sketch. Think that looks a lot better than her final design. Linca: also would go with her first rough sketch. Looks a bit nicer than her final appearance. Albert: three in a row. His rough sketch I think is better than his final design.  Thanks for posting this, pichupal And that's the end of the thread, and the Dusk Trilogy! If you're reading this in the Archive, move on to the endings (remember to click the first screenshot in each ending for the video) now, but if you're reading this on Something Awful itself, this is My Last Bow. Sylphid fucked around with this message at 08:48 on Feb 7, 2016 |
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Jan 27, 2016 10:56
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Now, obviously, I have to go back and fix various tags, which oughta be a blast, but I'm thinking of adding a few more things just for the road. Archive request should be going through by the end of the week.
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Jan 27, 2016 10:57
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And it's DONE! I have nothing more to add to this LP, so the archive request will be going through very shortly and that'll be the end of the Dusk Trilogy. I'll make one final post when it hits the Archives, and that'll be that.
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Feb 7, 2016 08:49
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Ok, I looked you up cause I remember seeing your name in other Atelier LPs as well as Agarest 2. What's next for you in terms of quirky PS3 JRPGs? Also, was the game that short or did you just cover a lot of ground in each post?
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Feb 17, 2016 04:32
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Ok, I looked you up cause I remember seeing your name in other Atelier LPs as well as Agarest 2. What's next for you in terms of quirky PS3 JRPGs? Also, was the game that short or did you just cover a lot of ground in each post?
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Feb 17, 2016 04:32
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And it is done! Thanks for playing, everyone! And a magician never reveals his tricks. I'll probably start recording the next game soon. I've got a lot of games to play these days. Oh, and it's a little of column A, little of column B. It's not a terribly long game by any stretch, but I did cover a lot of ground per update.
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Feb 17, 2016 20:06
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 05:48 |
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Thanks again for all the hard work
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Feb 18, 2016 06:46
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