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Louisgod
Sep 25, 2003

Always Stupid
Bread Liar
:siren:Xenoblade is out now in Canada, the 6th in NA! Good luck finding a copy unless you've preordered from Nintendo or GameStop. If you're lucky, you may be able to find an extra copy floating around Gamestop starting the 6th!:siren:

If you're playing the game and need help with quests and/or finding certain NPCs, the following chart is your best friend. BE AWARE that it does contain some spoilers so use at your own risk and should probably only be looked at when you reach level 50:

:siren:WARNING SPOILERS :siren:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?hl=en_US&key=0Anx12MiCQejudHJfUWhOTGd5Wm1uS25ub2FDeE5BekE&hl=en_US&f=true&gid=11

FAQs:

Are there any major differences between the EU version and the NA version?

Nope, none at all. As far as we are aware they are exactly the same minus not being able to be played in their respective territories.

Does the game have any motion controls

No, none.

Can you use a Gamecube controller with the game?

No, only a Wii remote + Nunchuck combo or a classic controller. The classic controller is probably your best bet.

How do I get the game to run in Dolphin?

I don't know, ask the Dolphin thread!


So why the hell is this game so special?

User Levantine put it best:

quote:

"Xenoblade is the best JRPG of this generation at the least; it may be the best I've ever played, period. This is the game that Square Enix has been trying to make for the last ten years and failing every time. It's the game that the last two Final Fantasies wish they were. It has well written, realistic (especially for a JRPG) characters, a story that seems very down to earth and relate-able but at the same time manages to surprise at multiple turns, a combat system that takes the best aspects of MMO's and never really lets you get bored, and a quest system that any new RPG coming out should adopt immediately. It has taken most, if not all the tedium out of the genre while keeping all the fun (and numbers) intact. It's not without its weaknesses but they are so minor and so cosmetic I'm not even sure every player will notice them. For the record, I put nearly 110 hours into the game before I beat it - none of it was grinding either. Just exploring and finding poo poo and expanding the story through optional cut-scenes between characters and extra quests. The best part is you can skip all of that extra stuff and still have just as much fun with the game. Xenoblade is literally as little or as much as you make of it. Play this game."

(I will echo these words as well. This game deserves all the attention it can get and you are doing yourself a disservice by not playing it. Buy it now. - Louisgod)





XENOBLADE CHRONICLES


WHAT KIND OF GAME IS THIS? WHO MADE IT?

Xenoblade Chronicles is a JRPG made exclusively for the Wii from developer Monolith Soft whose biggest claim to fame is the Xenosaga series. They have also been responsible for such games as Soma Bringer, Disaster: Day of Crisis, Super Robot Taisen OG Saga: Endless Frontier, Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans, and more. However, they are also noted for having many staffers that were responsible for the games Xenogears and Chrono Cross when they were at Square-Enix.

However, when I say "JRPG" don't think of stuff like Final Fantasy XIII, Resonance of Fate, or Ar Tonelico 3 (Hopefully you haven't even played this). This game was made to elevate the JRPG genre from the pit of stagnation it's been caught in. This game isn't a one way trip down a corridor, there's no random battles popping up every 5 seconds when you're walking around and it's not a game that looks like a anime with characters that go ~UGUU~. Xenoblade is a fantasy work that tries to remember why we got into RPGs in the first place while updating the genre. This means wide open explore-able environments, battles that can be fought at your own discretion and a cast of characters that don't continually make awful choices for story convenience and are actually quite likeable! Even the "mascot" character!


CRITICAL PRAISE

Right now Xenoblade is currently sitting at a 91/100 rating on Metacritic after 51 reviews. The lowest review to date as of this OP is a 80/100 rating which is well, pretty drat great for a JRPG

Most of the reviews out there call Xenoblade a breath of fresh air. A innovative take on the genre that pushes it to new heights that most JRPG developers should try to reach themselves. Frankly, if you think you know everything there is to know about JRPGs, Xenoblade might be a fair surprise for you and even if you're not a big fan of the genre, you might want to look at this game.


WHAT'S THE STORY BEHIND THE GAME?

The story of Xenoblade is that 2 ancient gods known as the "Mechonis" and the "Bionis" fought a long time ago. They were locked into what seemed to be an endless struggle. However, the struggle eventually came to an end as both of them wounded the other and both seemed to have lost their lives. However, born from this struggle, races of people were born from both of the gods. On the Mechonis, a race of metal beings known as the Mechon were born and on the Bionis various races such as the Homs (humans), Nopon, and High Entia were born. They now live their lives on the remains of the dead gods, and races both born of Mechonis and Bionis now themselves are both engaged in wars. The story of Xenoblade will have you following the character Shulk as he travels to unlock the mysteries of a sword and the world he lives on

OKAY, SO WHAT DOES THE CAST OF CHARACTERS LOOK LIKE?

Shulk


The main protagonist of the game. Shulk is a scientist that has devoted himself to studying the legendary sword "The Monado". He lives in Colony 9 with his childhood friends Fiora and Reyn who help Shulk. However, events will force Shulk to leave the life he once knew and embark on an adventure with said friends so that he can unravel the secrets of the Monado and the world they live on.

Dunban

Age 30. Dunban is a hero among the homs (humans of Bionis) as he took up the legendary sword against the Mechon when they tried to invade Bionis a year before the events of Xenoblade started. However during this attempt he severely wounded his arm and as a result was no longer able to wield the Monado. Dunban also has a younger sister who has become a close friend of Shulk's.


Fiora


Shulk's childhood friend and the younger sister of Dunban. Fiora always sticks around Shulk and tries to help him out along with Reyn. Fiora is the younger sister to Dunban however Dunban looks after her like a father would after both of them lost their parents a long time ago.

Reyn


Another of Shulk's childhood friends. Although he is a member of Colony 9's Defence Force, he can often be seen at Shulk and Fiora's side. Reyn is brash and hot headed which can usually mean he says things without thinking and can get the party into a bad situation. But everyone knows he always means well and he tries his hardest at what he does.

Sharla


A medic of Colony 6's Defence Force. Sharla left Colony 6 but vow's to return there someday. Sharla is a medic and is the primary healer of the group. Using an ether rifle for long range attacks means she always hangs back in the fight.

Melia


A powerful mage that uses ether arts. She is member of the High Entia race who reside on the head of the Bionis.

Riki


A member of an race of merchants known as Nopon. A natural story-teller, he will go on at length about how he is actually the true legendary hero spoken of in the prophecies. He also sometimes cheers up the team when they are in despair.



ALRIGHT. SO WHAT IS THE GAMEPLAY ACTUALLY LIKE?

The closest example that can be given would be that Xenoblade is that it's somewhat like Final Fantasy XII. They both share Wide open environments, no random battles so it plays more closely like an offline MMO, an attempt at a more mature story than most JRPG's attempt. However, many would agree that Xenoblade took what Final Fantasy XII attempted and did a lot more things right. Especially in that Xenoblade's main character isn't a douche that looks like a metro-sexual that the story will ignore after 12 hours!

- Huge towns with lots of unique characters to make it feel like an actual busy town.

- Tons of tons of quests offered so that you can ignore the story at you're own leisure (300+ quests!)

- Wide open environments where if it looks like you can explore there, you probably can! You can jump around, and the game won't stop you from falling to your own doom if you choose!

- There's an achievement system included so that you get achievements from doing special things like using special attacks 100 times over with a certain character. But these achievements will also give you experience for accomplishing them! But that's not all, you can get fun achievements as well! Died? Have an achievement! Decided to throw yourself off the Bionis because you can't take life anymore and want to dull the pain? HAVE AN ACHIEVEMENT.

-A day/night cycle. A unique monster may only appear at night! Or perhaps during the day when there's a thunderstorm! Or maybe even at night during a meteor shower! But don't worry. This cycle is also able to be controlled by you! So if you want it to be 3 in the morning or 1 in the afternoon. Just go to the clock option and spin away!

-Affinity system with towns and your own party members. Higher affinity with towns means more quests and higher affinity with party members means more skills you can share between them (Like HP UP, Magic UP, or Finding better treasure!) or being able to craft better gems which will increase you're equipment!

- You control 1 character and the other 2 are computer controlled. But don't worry, the computer controlled ones are actually decently controlled for the most part! While they aren't ever as good as controlling them yourself. They won't ever screw you over. You can also pick anyone from your party you want to control. You're never stuck in just picking the main character (Unless he's the only character in your party)

- A more involved system than FFXII. You're not putting gambits on all your characters and letting the gambits do the work for you. Your character will auto-attack and THAT'S ALL. You have constantly pick special moves, and make sure you're pressing buttons at the right time. Because when you start a fight you get a chance to increase "tension" which makes you hit harder and if you get to max tension, you'll have to do a timed button press to raise affinity between characters! Can't make a sandwich during a boss battle like you would FFXII!

- Fast travel! Wherever you need to go there generally will be a marker for where you need to go. It's not always in the best place though, so sometimes you will need to walk a bit to where you need to go. But it's much appreciated to warp from multiple areas away.

- Many of the quests you do will auto-complete themselves! Need to kill 5 wild rats? Once dead. QUEST DONE! Hooray! This doesn't apply with all quests, but most of them where the objective may simply be "Get this for me" or "Kill X enemy please" will normally finish the quest.

- NO SAVE POINTS!!!! HOLY poo poo. SAVE WHENEVER YOU WANT IN A JRPG.


HOW GOOD IS THIS GAME, REALLY, AND NOT JUST FROM THE CRITICS

Here, have a goon testimonial if you don't believe me and the critics!

From user: Levantine

quote:

"Xenoblade is the best JRPG of this generation at the least; it may be the best I've ever played, period. This is the game that Square Enix has been trying to make for the last ten years and failing every time. It's the game that the last two Final Fantasies wish they were. It has well written, realistic (especially for a JRPG) characters, a story that seems very down to earth and relate-able but at the same time manages to surprise at multiple turns, a combat system that takes the best aspects of MMO's and never really lets you get bored, and a quest system that any new RPG coming out should adopt immediately. It has taken most, if not all the tedium out of the genre while keeping all the fun (and numbers) intact. It's not without its weaknesses but they are so minor and so cosmetic I'm not even sure every player will notice them. For the record, I put nearly 110 hours into the game before I beat it - none of it was grinding either. Just exploring and finding poo poo and expanding the story through optional cut-scenes between characters and extra quests. The best part is you can skip all of that extra stuff and still have just as much fun with the game. Xenoblade is literally as little or as much as you make of it. Play this game."


DOES THIS MEAN THE GAME IS PERFECT?

No, Xenoblade does have it's fair share of flaws. I, and pretty much everyone who've played the game can probably come up with a list of things that we would have liked to see implemented a good bit better. But the fact is that overall, these things don't majorly hurt the game. The game is so jam packed full of ideas and so grand in scope that the little things that they did get wrong are just that. Little things. They may be minor annoyances and things that make you go "Well, that was kinda annoying, it could have been done better" But it's not like Final Fantasy XIII where the laundry list of complaints always seemed to be bigger than the compliments. It also didn't need a sequel to completely overhaul itself so that gamers won't think of it as complete rear end.



THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE YOU GET STARTED

- YOU DO NOT NEED A CLASSIC CONTROLLER TO PLAY THE GAME. It is perfectly playable without one. But the classic controller seems to be more preferred as its layout is a bit nicer and it's easier to hold. A Gamecube controller WILL NOT WORK with the game.

- When fighting enemies they will drop items. You generally want to keep these as they will be needed for quests in the game (if you choose to do them) however you will find that soon enough you'll get your inventory filled up. When this happens. You'll want to A) Sell the smaller bags that you don't have much of. Or B) Sell the bigger bags that you only perhaps have 1 or 2 of an item. As it's no major loss

- You can trade collectible items (The blue orbs) between party members to raise affinity. To do this, you need to go into the inventory and press the option for trade that shows up in the collectibles section.

- When fighting enemies, you will be prompted at times to hit the "B" button at the correct time to raise tension to max. If you time it right so when it's just at the outside edge, it will raise affinity by 3 hearts and not just 1.

- You can access the map right away by pressing the select option

- Some collectibles are harder to get than others. For the harder ones try looking in hard to get or special areas. Collectibles also appear brighter at nighttime and I've read that some rare ones may be easier to find (just a theory)

- If you do the side-quests. You WILL be over-leveled. If you wish for the game to be somewhat challenging for the most part, especially when it comes to battles. You may want to just do a run-through of the story first.

- When a quest has a clock icon next to it, it means the quest is timed. It does not mean you have X amount of hours to complete, but simply that at a certain point in the story you will be unable to do these quests due to story purposes. You may want to prioritize these if you choose to do quests.

- When chatting/raising affinity with townspeople, make sure to talk to them twice. They always have 2 different things to say.

- When Raising Affinity between townspeople. Some of them are static and don't move. However, they will at certain times to go back to their houses. You may want to chat with these people again as they may say something different from when they were standing still. The times static people move at generally seem to be at 15:00 for anybody awake during the day, and 03:00 for anybody during the night. Just stick by them and change the clock, once they start moving chat twice and move on!

- When fighting monsters you need items from. If you see a big group you'd like to consistently farm. SAVE AND RELOAD. This will cause the mob to come right back and saves you time running around the map.

- If you want to make sure you've found everybody you could in a town/village. Check out this handy spreadsheet to see if you've got everyone! - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?hl=en_US&key=0Anx12MiCQejudHJfUWhOTGd5Wm1uS25ub2FDeE5BekE&hl=en_US&f=true&gid=11 (Note that there is spoilers so read at your own risk please)

Hope you have fun playing the best JRPG released this generation!

Louisgod fucked around with this message at 20:23 on Apr 13, 2012

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Death By Yogurt
Apr 3, 2007

There's a mistake in the OP. Everyone knows that Riki is the main protagonist and everyone else is his sidekick.

Also I'd like to add a word of caution from someone who swore off the game twice before finally completing it just above 80 hours. You will not do all of the sidequests in the first playthrough. You just won't. Even if you are an anal retentive, OCD completionist you will not accomplish it. You will drive yourself crazy if you try. Just do the ones that are convenient and eventually the ones that give you much better rewards for your labor and you'll have a lot of fun.

That being said, I still recommend the game to anyone who's a fan of good jrpgs or just over-the-top games. Like the OP said, it's far from flawless, but it's still a very refreshing game in what's been a stagnant genre this gen.

null_user01013
Nov 13, 2000

Drink up comrades
Got my love pillow and mountain dew ready, the only easter eggs I'm hunting for this weekend are anime ones!

null_user01013 fucked around with this message at 17:46 on Apr 5, 2012

Sally
Jan 9, 2007


Don't post Small Dash!

Death By Yogurt posted:

There's a mistake in the OP. Everyone knows that Riki is the main protagonist and everyone else is his sidekick.

Xenoblade Chronicles is Reyn's story.

Also, didn't see it mentioned in the OP, but the game's soundtrack is wonderful. This track in particular has become my new study music. Though some of the battle music is fantastic as well.

Red Alert 2 Yuris Revenge
May 8, 2006

"My brain is amazing! It's full of wrinkles, and... Uh... Wait... What am I trying to say?"
I imported this and modded my Wii just for this, then I stopped playing a few hours in because my roommate at the time bombarded me with inane questions every time I played. Now I live on my own, I guess I should finish this...

It is seriously awesome though, everyone buy this. I haven't really been into JRPGS in years, but this exactly the direction they should take.

NINbuntu 64
Feb 11, 2007

If you live in Barrie, Ontario, they seemed to have a whole mess of these behind the counter at EB Games in Georgian Mall.

dvorak
Sep 11, 2003

WARNING: Temporal rift detected!
This is without a doubt, the best jRPG of this console cycle, and in my opinion, since the PSX.

Basically what I'm saying is, it's pretty great.

Zelmel
Sep 17, 2004

O brain new world, that has such ganglia in't!
Have there been any reports of Nintendo preorders shipping? Mine doesn't seem to have gone out yet, but I'm still holding out hope of getting it for this weekend.

Crux
Apr 9, 2007



Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry...

Sorry.
I thought Xenoblade was only out today in Canada. Can anybody confirm GameStop releasing the game today in the US?

Sally
Jan 9, 2007


Don't post Small Dash!
If anyone is interested in goon testimonials, my review for the game went online this morning: http://trendygamers.com/2012/04/05/xenoblade-chronicles-review/

In short, I say it's amazing and that you should buy it as soon as humanly possible.

The Black Stones
May 7, 2007

I POSTED WHAT NOW!?
Oh hey, Kotaku has "reviewed" the game and

"Powered my way through much of the game—including quite a few side quests—in around 35 hours. Have not yet finished."

Haha. gently caress you Kotaku.

Here's the review for anybody who wants to read it. I want to know what they consider the best JRPG of this gen because if Xenoblade isn't it. WHAT IS? http://kotaku.com/5898947/xenoblade...dium=socialflow

spiritual bypass
Feb 19, 2008

Grimey Drawer
It feels so different from other JRPG's that it almost feels wrong to call it one. It's definitely got a Japanese art style, but the world and characters are so much more lively and convincing that I hate to lump it in with the rest of the genre.

Gifts for Audiophiles
Dec 10, 2005

Picked this up in Oshawa, Ontario today without a pre-order. They had a full retail shipment of copies and the whole PRE-ORDERS ONLY thing was a load of crap! Probably will be impossible to find when that all sells out but anyone in Canada could probably walk out and buy this today, pre-order or not.

Louisgod
Sep 25, 2003

Always Stupid
Bread Liar

The Black Stones posted:

Oh hey, Kotaku has "reviewed" the game and

"Powered my way through much of the game—including quite a few side quests—in around 35 hours. Have not yet finished."

Haha. gently caress you Kotaku.

Here's the review for anybody who wants to read it. I want to know what they consider the best JRPG of this gen because if Xenoblade isn't it. WHAT IS? http://kotaku.com/5898947/xenoblade...dium=socialflow

Dduuuuuuuuuurrr. Useless idiots. Let's REVIEW a game we haven't finished. May as well rename yourself to IGN. I'd wager they're like 40% of the way through if they've completed "quite a few of the side quests".

Really though, I have no idea what they're looking for since Xenoblade bucks so many JRPG staples and cliches: inns, items, mana, potions, save points, random battles.. essentially every generic JRPG motif has been removed.

Louisgod fucked around with this message at 19:00 on Apr 5, 2012

Violently Car
Dec 2, 2007

You are now entering completely darkness
I can almost see what he's saying if he's only played for 35 hours. I loved this game, but the highlight is really the second half.

I also have an issue with his criticism of the battle system. You need to put actual effort in to boss fights, but random mobs can often be dispatched by a casual mashing of your skills. This is a good thing. If every single random fight was an actual challenge that required you to put a lot of effort in, you'd be worn out very, very quickly. Xenoblade strikes the balance very well.

Violently Car fucked around with this message at 19:00 on Apr 5, 2012

The Black Stones
May 7, 2007

I POSTED WHAT NOW!?
I'd love to see his approach to the optional bosses when "grind so you're above their level" isn't a viable strategy anymore.

Idioteque Dance
Jun 19, 2004

Dinosaur Gum
I'd just like to confirm that all of the praise being heaped upon Xenoblade in the OP is not at all hyperbole. Before I bought the game I figured it was, but a couple of hours of playing it proved me wrong. Ended up clocking in at >80 hours, and missed quite a few sidequests, completely immersed the whole time. It really is magical.

I'm actually looking forward to reading all of the first impressions from all the posters, as well as the NA critics.

All I'll say is avoid ALL spoilers. Locations, characters, anything - keep it a blank slate if you can.

Zaggitz
Jun 18, 2009

My urges are becoming...

UNCONTROLLABLE

I'm only about 40 minutes into this but I dig the soundtrack and the british VO is a nice change of pace.

testtubebaby
Apr 7, 2008

Where we're going,
we won't need eyes to see.


Violently Car posted:

I can almost see what he's saying if he's only played for 35 hours. I loved this game, but the highlight is really the second half.

Uh-oh... please tell me that this isn't a FFXIII situation where, "Oh, the game is awesome, but you have to make it through the first 25 hours of it before it gets really good! Just keep it up!" because I can't take that poo poo again.

spiritual bypass
Feb 19, 2008

Grimey Drawer
No. It's really, really good from the start.

deepshock
Sep 26, 2008

Poor zombies never stood a chance.

Violently Car posted:

If every single random fight was an actual challenge that required you to put a lot of effort in, you'd be worn out very, very quickly.

This is definitely the case. I mean, what game's devs would get it in their head to pull something like that? *cough*FF13*cough*

The Black Stones
May 7, 2007

I POSTED WHAT NOW!?

zenintrude posted:

Uh-oh... please tell me that this isn't a FFXIII situation where, "Oh, the game is awesome, but you have to make it through the first 25 hours of it before it gets really good! Just keep it up!" because I can't take that poo poo again.

No, it's great from the start. It's just that by the end game you've got a lot more abilities at your disposal, more characters that you can swap between (and I would recommend doing so as only playing 1 character the entire game can be boring) and you have a great grasp of the mechanics. The beginning is no slouch though.

CAPTAIN CAPSLOCK
Sep 11, 2001



zenintrude posted:

Uh-oh... please tell me that this isn't a FFXIII situation where, "Oh, the game is awesome, but you have to make it through the first 25 hours of it before it gets really good! Just keep it up!" because I can't take that poo poo again.

No it is great from the start. It just gets more awesome as you approach the end.

edit: beaten so badly

Violently Car
Dec 2, 2007

You are now entering completely darkness

zenintrude posted:

Uh-oh... please tell me that this isn't a FFXIII situation where, "Oh, the game is awesome, but you have to make it through the first 25 hours of it before it gets really good! Just keep it up!" because I can't take that poo poo again.

Yeah, I presented that poorly. The first half of the game is very good. The second half is simply fantastic.

Vanilla Mint Ice
Jul 17, 2007

A raccoon is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits.
I'm not a fan of a link of the spreadsheet being the third line of OP, that poo poo will ruin some of the magic. There should also be a FAQ section in the OP to address stuff that EVERYONE always ask about such as when certain timed quests expired etc.

Idioteque Dance
Jun 19, 2004

Dinosaur Gum

Vanilla Mint Ice posted:

I'm not a fan of a link of the spreadsheet being the third line of OP, that poo poo will ruin some of the magic. There should also be a FAQ section in the OP to address stuff that EVERYONE always ask about such as when certain timed quests expired etc.
Yeah that spreadsheet should not be touched until you are 50 hours in at least, and even then it's gonna spoil some poo poo.

Neo Rasa
Mar 8, 2007
Everyone should play DUKE games.

:dukedog:
I really hate how "the battle system is just like the oldest Grandia and Phantasy Star games" has been replaced with "the battle system is like a single player MMO."

testtubebaby
Apr 7, 2008

Where we're going,
we won't need eyes to see.


Neo Rasa posted:

I really hate how "the battle system is just like the oldest Grandia and Phantasy Star games" has been replaced with "the battle system is like a single player MMO."

This doesn't even make sense... those two games have completely different battle systems.

Violently Car
Dec 2, 2007

You are now entering completely darkness
Question for others who have played this: Did you scream a little bit when this happened?

InfiniteJesters
Jan 26, 2012
T-minus 24 hours 'til I travel 3 miles on foot to a store I thought I was done with to pick up a game I've never played for a system I don't own (but the school does!).

'course, the artbook is a nice perk too.

YA'LL'D BETTER DELIVER NOW.

Neo Rasa
Mar 8, 2007
Everyone should play DUKE games.

:dukedog:

zenintrude posted:

This doesn't even make sense... those two games have completely different battle systems.

Actually while the latter series is turn based the default setup is very similar. You CAN manually control your characters 2 and up but the default setup is to give everyone a basic attitude/order or a macro of orders to follow each action and everyone just goes at it without even a break for a new turn starting. The PS games also have a lot of similar quirks regarding countering and interrupting attacks based on the party order/initiative.

So many people who write about games evaluate controls/combat/etc. in terms of "is it innovative or not" while at the same time seeming to lack exposure to enough related things to really know. It's not something that's really even necessary when deciding if a game is good or not but so many reviewers and game journalists do this without displaying anything to back it up. That Kotaku one is a good example though, it's repeatedly said that Xenoblade is definitely NOT the best JRPG of this generation without a whole lot of reason as to why the author feels this way. What is the best JRPG of this generation, Lost Odyssey? I'm probably being overly critical because the author also deems the original Xenogears to be "a masterpiece" a few sentences later. :)

Neo Rasa fucked around with this message at 19:27 on Apr 5, 2012

The Black Stones
May 7, 2007

I POSTED WHAT NOW!?

Violently Car posted:

Question for others who have played this: Did you scream a little bit when this happened?

Yes. Yes I did.

more like FAILdows get it
Nov 19, 2007

punch a friend in the butt
This is kind of alarming--I pre-ordered the game months ago from Gamestop and haven't received any notification that it was ready to be picked up. I guess I should call them but isn't it normal for them to send automated reminders the day before a pre-ordered game is released?

Neo Rasa
Mar 8, 2007
Everyone should play DUKE games.

:dukedog:

Pomale posted:

This is kind of alarming--I pre-ordered the game months ago from Gamestop and haven't received any notification that it was ready to be picked up. I guess I should call them but isn't it normal for them to send automated reminders the day before a pre-ordered game is released?

It definitely comes out on Friday in the US, stores have received the game already so you should be fine. Do you have their card or whatever? If you turned off all the additional spam/notifications/whatever on the website I think there's an option that disables getting the pre-order reminder calls.

Gyoru
Jul 13, 2004



I haven't touched my imported European copy in a few months, but with all hype for the NA release I've started playing again. Streaming my ~50 hour save being emulated on Dolphin. I have all the party members so there will be spoilers if that matters to you.

Best jRPG of this generation.

http://twitch.tv/gyoruspy

gimme the GOD DAMN candy
Jul 1, 2007
How many of the side quests have unique stories and rewards compared to how many involve collecting 10 buffalo asses?

spiritual bypass
Feb 19, 2008

Grimey Drawer
Sometimes you collect 10 buffalo asses, then that triggers collecting 10 buffalo horns and so forth a few times over, and then the last quest triggers something cool. You can't know for sure! Also, quests improve your reputation with an area, so the net effect of completing a bunch opens up new quests in that area as well.

HenryEx
Mar 25, 2009

...your cybernetic implants, the only beauty in that meat you call "a body"...
Grimey Drawer

Serious Frolicking posted:

How many of the side quests have unique stories and rewards compared to how many involve collecting 10 buffalo asses?

About a third? Some help develop the huge net of connections between all the different NPCs.


Also, the Night Elf town is huuuugge. Sooo big. I've been walking all over the place doing quests and talking to people for the last ten hours since i arrived there and got my full party back. Probably 5 hours of that were spent walking through that goddamn ginormous town. Let me use public transport or something! :argh:

Dr. Video Games 0031
Jul 17, 2004

rt4 posted:

Sometimes you collect 10 buffalo asses, then that triggers collecting 10 buffalo horns and so forth a few times over, and then the last quest triggers something cool. You can't know for sure! Also, quests improve your reputation with an area, so the net effect of completing a bunch opens up new quests in that area as well.

I don't think any kill or collection quests lead directly into a real plot. Anything with a story attached to it has a unique name, so they're identifiable. Any of the generic kill/collection quests get turned in automatically so they CAN'T lead to anything.

They all contribute to your reputation, though.

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U-DO Burger
Nov 12, 2007




Violently Car posted:

Question for others who have played this: Did you scream a little bit when this happened?

Yes I did. Unlike that hapless player though, I jumped down the cliff on the right to escape.

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