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Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Lotish posted:

I haven't enjoyed the last few Tales games I've tried, but this one is charming me. I really think I wouldn't be able to stand it with the oh-so-cool demon protagonist in the intro, but I think they're handling it alright.

Innocence has a really good sense of charm, exactly! There's a bunch of pretty funny 4th wall breaks (Iria calling Coda a "stupid tutorial rat"), and like yeah, Asura is super cool but Luca is just a loving dweeb, I love it.

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Leave
Feb 7, 2012

Taking the term "Koopaling" to a whole new level since 2016.
I played this game a couple of years ago and I've forgotten a lot about it.

Looking forward to the rest of this LP!

Ghostwoods
May 9, 2013

Say "Cheese!"
This looks fun. *bookmarks*.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Thanks for all the positive responses you guys! I'm in the middle of today's update (get hype, we meet 2 of the coolest characters today), stay tuned!

Digital Jello
Nov 2, 2012

Now I have a machine gun. Ho! Ho! Ho!
I just caught up, and I too, am joining others in saying this game actually seems quite charming. I'm actually a bit anxious to see what the "real" dungeons are like.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 7

We were in the middle of Chitose being creepy last time we left off, so let's get back into it! Just as a note, I've been cutting out the majority of Coda's dialogue. This is because literally (no hyperbole) 90% of his dialogue right now is some variation on, “Hey, let's go eat!”. So if you're confused why he's in frame but not speaking, that's why.




: (I will no longer watch from the shadows.)



Speaking of being creepy.

: H-hey! We need to get out of here! Come on, you know, we're busy with things, right? A lot of things!

: Good call. Let's head back and rest up.

: Let us return to base and give you a chance to relax.



: What do you want!?

: I'm sorry. You were completely right.

: Huh?

: There was something wrong with me. I've admired Asura for so long... I was just happy to have become him. My body grew strong, my sword techniques because masterful. I started liking the feeling of defeating my enemies.

: R-right, that...

: I wasn't thinking clearly. I won't say things like that anymore.

: ….........H-hmph. At least you're honest. Be careful from now on! Ready to go, Luca?


Anyway, let's head back.







gently caress. Who left the microwave on?













Just so you understand what's happening here, Spada literally just deflected a bullet with his sword. I LOVE THIS GUY.





: What's going on?

















Hey, I'm Spada. And I run towards snipers.








: Heh, you still wanna go?

: Stop right there!





Let's go beat up the sniper! He's technically not a boss, but I decided not to record it.













Easy-peasey.

: This guy's strong! Maybe even strong than us...

: You're...









: He's Hypnos! Hypnos the Reaper! Luca, you remember him?

: Uh, I...

: So. You're Asura...

: I-I once defeated you upon a battlefield just like this one...

: Don't get the wrong idea. I'm only here to complete my job.

: Job? Killing us?



: The contract had no conditions about chasing any brats or little girls away from the battlefield . Stay out of my way.



: Wait, wait!! So you aren't waving that gun around because of some grudge from you past life? In that case, could you hear us out?

: Not interested. I've already explained that babysitting brats wasn't part of the job description. I'm very serious about my work.

: Just listen for a second! We're traveling around looking for people with memories of their past lives. How about coming with us...

: …..

: ….or not. You know, either way...



Yup, you read that correctly. This random person who just interrupted our conversation was listed as, “weirdo”.









: Who is this guy? A friend of yours?









I think Hasta is like, a proto-Zagi.











: You're a disgrace to mercenaries everywhere. Very well, in place of a military tribunal, I'll pass judgment.



: Luca you idiot! Stay out of it!



: Go, brats.

: Uh... right, thank you! B-Bye!





: We gotta be far enough away now...

: What was up with that guy?

: Which guy? Ricardo?

: No!! That creepy bastard! He gave me goosebumps.

: For some reason, I feel like I've met that Hasta guy before...

: Really? I doubt I could forget someone that flamboyant, no matter how much I tried.

: Try looking in the mirror sometime. Maybe you'll see a familiar face.

HOLY poo poo RUCA YOU GONNA NEED A PANACEA BOTTLE TO FIX THAT BURN









Just for reference, I meant to capture Chitose sneaking up, but she literally just loving appears out of no where.

: Must you leave?

: Yes... this is our only chance to escape.

: I see... I will miss you.

: Will you... come with us?

: (No way!)

: (Off in their own little world again... that chick ain't bad though...)

: No... I'm sorry.

: (Oh?)

: Boooooring!

: I see... I'm sorry to hear that.





She wants the D.

: (Whaaaaaaaaaat?)

: (On the cheek, huh? Weak...)

Spada pls

: …..!!

: We will meet again, I am sure of it.





: ….......







: Hey. It's all the same to me. Let's get goin' already.



: Um, Luca, dear? Are you sure you would not prefer to chase after your lady friend?



So we have 2 options here. I'm going to be going with the second option first.

>>>ASK HER IF SHE'S JEALOUS

: A-are you actually jealous?

: Excuse me?!

: drat, you just stepped on a land mine...









She kicked our asses.





: (She's way too angry...) Hey Luca, Iria ain't watchin' anymore.

: Ehehehehehe... oh man, I can't stop smiling! That's the first time I've ever been kissed by a girl...

: I can tell. Now pull yourself together and lets get goin'!

: Where are we going next, anyway? I'm pretty worn out...

Now, let's see what happens when we >>>EXPLAIN THAT IT WASN'T A BIG DEAL





: That's right! Totally normal! Even if you and Spada did it, I'd think nothing of it!



Poor Spada.

: Ugh...





The rest of the scene ends the same way as the other option. Except for some bizarre reason, doing this option gets us 25 friendship points with each character. Social link, go!




Anyway, time to leave the battlefield.











































And on that happy note, let's call it for today. Thanks for tuning in, make sure to check out the Update 7 Skits after you've read today's update!

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 7 Skits



Inanna and Iria













I really like this skit.





Fire?














If only Chitose would disappear















If Only Chitose had come along























A former foe















Leave
Feb 7, 2012

Taking the term "Koopaling" to a whole new level since 2016.
In the seventh update, wouldn't it just have been better to take that section near the end, the five shots of Luca with no commentary, and use a portrait to say it? Sure, it's a bit of a wall of text, but I think it's better than five shots, uninterrupted, in a row.

Why do I always feel that I sound like a dick when giving advice like that? I'm not trying to be!

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Leavemywife posted:

In the seventh update, wouldn't it just have been better to take that section near the end, the five shots of Luca with no commentary, and use a portrait to say it? Sure, it's a bit of a wall of text, but I think it's better than five shots, uninterrupted, in a row.

Why do I always feel that I sound like a dick when giving advice like that? I'm not trying to be!

no problem, I appreciate the feedback! In this particular instance, that dialogue is a mandatory skit, so I wanted to keep it in skit format (also my boss was lurking and I didn't want him seeing me typing non-work related content :P

Is it hard on the eyes? I can go back and edit it later, it just seemed like the right thing to do

Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer
By comparison to Iria and Spada, Luca lacks a memorable expression. The way he tugs at his hair sometimes doesn't make him look like nearly enough of a dweeb.

Interesting how different the various opinions of their past lives are.

Leave
Feb 7, 2012

Taking the term "Koopaling" to a whole new level since 2016.

Darth Numbers posted:

Is it hard on the eyes? I can go back and edit it later, it just seemed like the right thing to do

I wouldn't say it's hard on the eyes, but it is some images that aren't needed. Just the first would have been okay to me, or if they had been broken up with some sassy commentary.

At the end of the day, it's not a big deal either way, but it would have cut down on images you had to post and may help the page load better later on, depending on how image-heavy this page gets.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Anastasiya posted:

By comparison to Iria and Spada, Luca lacks a memorable expression. The way he tugs at his hair sometimes doesn't make him look like nearly enough of a dweeb.

Interesting how different the various opinions of their past lives are.

What do you mean by a memorable expression?

And yeah, I really like how Ricardo literally doesn't care about his past life, as opposed to LITERALLY EVERY CHARACTER who's like "PAST LIFE PAST LIFE PAST LIFE" (not that I dislike the past lives, its one of the cooler aspects of Innocence, I just think it's funny how little fucks Ricardo gives).

(also today's update's gonna be late, workin' late, sorry y'all!)

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Leavemywife posted:

I wouldn't say it's hard on the eyes, but it is some images that aren't needed. Just the first would have been okay to me, or if they had been broken up with some sassy commentary.

At the end of the day, it's not a big deal either way, but it would have cut down on images you had to post and may help the page load better later on, depending on how image-heavy this page gets.

Thanks for the feedback, I'll definitely keep it in mind!

Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer

Darth Numbers posted:

What do you mean by a memorable expression?

And yeah, I really like how Ricardo literally doesn't care about his past life, as opposed to LITERALLY EVERY CHARACTER who's like "PAST LIFE PAST LIFE PAST LIFE" (not that I dislike the past lives, its one of the cooler aspects of Innocence, I just think it's funny how little fucks Ricardo gives).

(also today's update's gonna be late, workin' late, sorry y'all!)

I mean just an expression that I would completely associate with them. There's Iria's wide toothy grin, Spada's small time thug impressions, in other games there was stuff like Kratos face palming, or that particular way Luke had of staring into the top left corner when he was being arrogant.

Basically, Iria and Spada keep making these really great faces, but Luca's much more low key.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Anastasiya posted:

I mean just an expression that I would completely associate with them. There's Iria's wide toothy grin, Spada's small time thug impressions, in other games there was stuff like Kratos face palming, or that particular way Luke had of staring into the top left corner when he was being arrogant.

Basically, Iria and Spada keep making these really great faces, but Luca's much more low key.

Hmm, yeah. I think it's mostly because Luca's character is like "wimpy kid who happens to be a demon lord", he has 0 self confidence and so he kinda just stares at the ground all the time. If you noticed, the portrait I use for him talking in dialogue is his staring at the ground one instead of his default looking at you, I like it more and I think it fits him pretty well. Like I said, Luca is the Emil we deserved, but never got :P

EDIT: Update coming tomorrow, sorry y'all! Had to complete a few projects, sadly my teachers don't take "BUT MY LET's PLAYYYYYY" as a legitimate excuse :(

Darth Numbers fucked around with this message at 05:49 on May 13, 2015

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 8

I just wanna take a moment to show off our characters here, cause I did some grinding.



For Spada, you can see we have a bunch of moves unlocked. I won't get into their specifics, but rest assured we're ever growing stronger.



In terms of Styles, all 3 of our current characters are on that Advance style, and they all have the exact same special skills equipped.



Under friendship, we can see that we're becoming BFFs with our party members, nice!

Anyway, off to Naos! A healer awaits us.

Stealin' this dude's map again so I can show you where we're heading, off to Naos!










After some navigating of this game's awful world map system, we've arrived at the holy city of Naos! How exciting.









: Oh, so this is Naos?

Luca apparently missed the giant banner telling us that yes, this is Naos.

: What a beautiful place... it's so peaceful.

: So where's that Avatar?

: Who knows? I don't have a clue.

: Huh? You don't?

: I told you, I've only heard rumors. There's supposed to be a miracle worker known as the Holy Maiden here.

: You came all this way here for a rumor? Was it really worth getting' caught and desertin' the army?

: Hey! Shut up!



: Good thinkin', brains! Let's check out the city a bit!

There are many things you could call Luca. Brains would not be on the top of my list.

: Agreed!

Time to explore the city!





Uh oh. That can't be good.





We're just going around and talking to NPCs.



Oh? Looks like we're on the right track.





So we're getting the impression that the holy city of Naos ain't doing so well.





Awkwaaaaaard.





Yeah... this definitely isn't good.

Anyway we interrupt your regularly scheduled plot for something NON PLOT RELATED! If you don't care, skip this: It's just an explanation of guilds (remember how I mentioned them 6 updates ago?). A word of advice, if you plan on doing guilds in this game (Which you should, they're super useful), don't wait until the end of the game to do them like I did my first playthrough. You can only do guild missions in your guild rank, and until the higher ranks, each guild mission gives you like 2 points, so it takes a really long time to actually get anywhere if you save it for later. Just a word of advice!



: Yes, that's right...



: An organization that adventurers join and help eachother in, right?



: Can we make requests for work?





: Nope.



: But we're not just traveling for fun... our situation is a bit complicated...





: Now you're speakin' my language.





: I'm all fired up!

: Sounds interesting, let's do it!









We'll be careful.









: Pretty generous of you.



: Hah! We always finish what we start.





So that's guilds. I'll be grinding them behind the scenes on 4x speed later. I know, I know. I'm a cheater :P

Anyway, back to finding out plot.

Walk far enough forward and you'll trigger this cutscene.







: This is supposed to be the heart of Naos, the Grand Cathedral...

: The place is trashed. What the hell happened here?

: I don't think we'll learn anything here. What do we do now?

: “What should we do now?” Isn't that obvious? Didn't we say we were going to talk to everyone we could?

: I guess you're right, let's do that.

So yeah, let's keep doing that.



As we're about to check out some more stuff, a wild tutorial appears! Feel free to skip if you don't care, it's a tutorial on weapon customization.



: What's that?

: Oh, you don't know? Guess I have to teach ya'!

: Sure, what do we do first?



: Sometimes?



: You can use up to two materials at once.

: Does that mean using more materials is better?



: If you use two, there's no guarantee you'll get all the effects you want. It could even make the weapon harder to use.

: It really is a gamble...

: Ain't no harm in takin' a few risks. Some rare materials have effects as well.

: I see...



: If you don't like how it turned out, you can always redo it. You just gotta be patient and stick with it.

Yay! Customizing weapons is actually really useful, you can add all sorts of cool effects, like chance to poison, chance to petrify, restore hp, etc. They can also add skills to your weapons that you usually only get through Styles, which is pretty neat.

Anyway, I bought new weapons and armor for our heroes. I would have customized stuff, but we have nothing good enough to use at the moment.



I guess the game decided we walked around too much.

: There has to be somebody we haven't talk to yet! Let's see...



Hoo boy.



: Wha-?

: “Young master”?









Uh....



: You're a rich kid?!



UHHH...



: No wonder your name sounded familiar...

: Shut up! Sorry for being a no-good redneck!





: Hold on! Who are you calling a servant!? I'll have you know my dad is a mayor!



: Gah!! Now I'm pissed!!

: Hartman, watch yourself! These are my friends you're talkin' to!



: We've had a long journey. Get us to the inn. A cheap one is fine.



: That's fine. And watch what you say to my friends.







: Young master, huh?

: Shut it! Let's get a move on already.





: Could you drop the Young Master bit already?



: How am I supposed to run the drat ceremony when I'm on the run?





: Anyway, this is Luca. The noisy one is Iria, and the small thing is Coda.

: I'm Luca Milda. Thank you for your hospitality, I hope we won't be too much trouble for you.



Oh? Will we finally learn what Luca's business he was supposed to take over was?

: Yes... my father is the president.






: Um, I'm Iria. Iria Animi.









: Sorry, but we're starvin'









: Not really. Not with this power, anyway.





: “To think that one of the Fallen would be found in House Belforma... The house has never known such shame!” ...I thought you'd say somethin' like that.





: Really?



: We saw it... it looked trashed.



: The Holy Maiden destroyed it?





: That refers to the turning point, where the church lost their authority, right?







: The people called them miracles... and Devic Artes.





: Because... she was one of the Fallen?





: I see...





: Pisses me off just hearin' about it.







: I heard about that... A fallen girl transformed into a giant and crushed a den of thieves.





: What the hell?! Wasn't there anyone to stop them?



: Mr. Hartman, are you not afraid of us? We are Fallen after all...





: Man, you're embarrassing me...

: T-thanks... Do you know where they may have taken the Holy Maiden?





: All right! After we rest up, that's our destination.



: Leave it to us.

: …





: Thats, uh...



: “The heart's blade shall be thy companion's shield. Order in the right hand, pride in the left.”







: The five pillars of House Belforma. I'll forget my own name before I forget what it means to be a knight.

: Let's hit the road!

: Already? (I just want to go home...)

: Don't start whining on me now.

: Nah, let's take it easy. We have to rest a bit before we head out. Hartman, you got a place for us to crash?





And fade to black. That's the end of this update, folks! Make sure to tune in for the next one, and check out the update 8 skits after reading this update!

Darth Numbers fucked around with this message at 07:06 on May 14, 2015

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 8 Skits

I want to go home.





















About the Muses
























































The mayor's daughter























Arrival at Naos













Iria and I 1






























Let's Keep Searching












Darth Numbers fucked around with this message at 07:02 on May 14, 2015

Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer
Er... The skit titles are totally mismatched with the screenshots. Also, there is a lone I want to go home screenshot way at the bottom.

Otherwise, wow that was an info dump, but it answered a lot of questions. It feels like so far the game is really good at providing information to the player. Actually, I don't have any particularly outstanding questions left, aside from general what did Matthias want from Iria, etc.

Mraagvpeine
Nov 4, 2014

I won this avatar on a technicality this thick.

Darth Numbers posted:




Stealin' this dude's map again so I can show you where we're heading, off to Naos!


For some reason it's not appearing.

Digital Jello
Nov 2, 2012

Now I have a machine gun. Ho! Ho! Ho!
"...And if you think I got this line from that old Star Trek movie, you are....correct."




I'm liking the plot to this game. It kind of reminds me of X-Men, what with the whole "hunting/hating humans with superpowers", with a touch of Shin Megami Tensei, with said humans transforming into monsters/demons from past lives.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Hey, sorry folks! As I said, lot going on, screenshots got kinda jumbled in translation-- my that's embarrassing! I'll fix it right now ^^;;;

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Anastasiya posted:

Er... The skit titles are totally mismatched with the screenshots. Also, there is a lone I want to go home screenshot way at the bottom.

Otherwise, wow that was an info dump, but it answered a lot of questions. It feels like so far the game is really good at providing information to the player. Actually, I don't have any particularly outstanding questions left, aside from general what did Matthias want from Iria, etc.



Sorry about that! All fixed now. Like I said, I hosed up, haha.

Yeah, it's a lot of exposition, sorry not much happened. Yeah the game is REALLY good about pacing, and explaining poo poo. There's some stuff about devaloka and the manifest we still need to learn, and a few plot twists, but we're going strong so far!

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Digital Jello posted:

"...And if you think I got this line from that old Star Trek movie, you are....correct."




I'm liking the plot to this game. It kind of reminds me of X-Men, what with the whole "hunting/hating humans with superpowers", with a touch of Shin Megami Tensei, with said humans transforming into monsters/demons from past lives.

Yeah, and that comes with a really neat battle system, and leaves behind SMTs bullshit difficulty (Innocence is honestly pretty easy, but I'm also playing on normal mode :P)

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
I'm not dead! I swear!

Update 9

Sorry this took so long! Finally home and unpacked... My bad for the radio silence, just a lot going on!


When we last left off, we were mooching off of Spada's ex-butler.



: Yeah. We gotta go save the Holy Maiden, Ange.

: We don't have any guarantee that she'll be an ally, do we? I mean, she destroyed the cathedral...

: But she doesn't sound like a bad person.

: That's true... but... I mean...

: What's the problem? We can sort out the details when we actually meet her. Let's get goin'.



: Enough with the young master thing already!



: Gimme a break. What do I care about my parents?



: I don't give a drat about being a knight...





: Yeah, we'll be back, later.



: See you around.

: Thanks for everything.

As we leave the city, we get this skit.



: *Sigh*

: What's wrong, Luca? Why so serious?

Iria was actually the first actor to audition for the role of the Joker in The Dark Knight, but had to turn down the role when she was offered the role of lead romantic interest in the prestigious Tales of Innocence.

: I was just thinking about my parents.

Luca was gonna be batman in the same film, but Christian Bale had the better audition.

: I wonder if they're even worried about me.

: I'm sure they are. I mean as far as they know, you ran away from hone, right?

: Iria, don't you want to go back home?

: Mmm... I'm not going back.

: Why not?

: Isn't it obvious?! There's no way I'm gonna let these memories ruin my life!

: B-but don't you think it's hard to live this way?

: Are you crazy? Our only choices are submitting to Arca or being used as pawns in wars until we die! I'll take this path any day, I'm gonna keep pressing onward. I won't let anybody get in my way.

: You're talking about running from governments... religious organizations... I don't think we can handle that alone. Ever since I started remembering my past life, it's been nothing but endless battles. It's not like this is fun...

: So what? Why don't you just go home, then?! I... I can't go home. Even if I wanted to.

: …....

: It's my fault you got caught up in all this. I'm sorry, Luca. I'm really sorry... I never meant for any of this to happen.

: Like you said, we're up against governments and religions, right? If you go back, they'll catch you in the blink of an eye. If we're gonna get caught, you might as well try stickin' it out a little longer.

: If I go home, they'll catch me?

: No doubt about it. I bet they're already watchin' the house.

: Spada, aren't you worried about anyone back home?

: Yeah, right. I'm sure they're thrilled to have me outta the way. I haven't been home for over a year, I don't really give a drat.

: So I'm the only one with a place to return to...

: Well, if you wanna go back, I ain't stoppin' you.





: Luca, you gotta choose. It's your life. You gotta be the one to decide if you're gonna turn back or keep goin'. Nobody's gonna force you. Choose the just path you wanna follow. “Walk justly the just path” is one of our five pillars, after all.

: ….I'm sorry, Iria.

: It's okay... take care.

: T-that's not what I mean! I'm not going back.

: ...Really?



: I got to talk to you about the Devic Era. I made a friend who shared these memories of the past.



: Idiot... for such a smart kid, you really are dumb...

: You may be right about that... I'm not used to being called an idiot though, so it's a bit of a shock... Now that I've done something so stupid, I'll be an idiot to the end. So... please don't cry, okay? I'm sorry for making you sad...

: …....!! Idiot, I'm not crying! I-I got something stuck in my eye! Idiot idiot idiot! Luca you dimwit! Let's go. Dimwit Luca.

IT'S NOT LIKE I LIKE YOU OR ANYTHING B-BAKA





: No prob. Just know... this is the point of no return. Ain't no turnin' back now. You start whinin' about leavin' after this and you'll pay for it, got it?

I wonder if Spada get's taxed on how many G's he has in any given sentence, which is why he talks like that.

: I-I got it!

Geez. Can we get to gameplay already? After this angst-fest filled with emotions and fortune cookie wisdom from Spada-turned-Yoda, we can finally control ourselves. We're supposed to go West and find the Naos base, but I'm gonna grind guild quests before then. I won't have that in this update though, so from your point of view this paragraph is pointless!





Here we are.



Luca has figured out that the people who made Innocence are lazy and didn't make many different looking areas.

: Odds are, we'll find other captured Avatars here.

: They're probably planning on turning them into soldiers too... How can they do this?

: We won't let them. Come on. Let's search for the Holy Maiden, Ange.



I took this screenshot right as this man was attempting to introduce my face to his weapon.



Anyway, lot'sa dudes here. Let's move on.



Two choices over here, stairs or room. You can see there's a skit the game wants me to see-- I keep trying to watch it, but I keep getting attacked, which resets the skit for a few seconds. It's annoying!



Up the stairs we're rewarded with... absolutely nothing!





Another branching path, let's take the stairs first.



I'd like to point out, in most of these screenshot's there's a large man in front of me. That's just a randomly spawning enemy, the enemies spawn constantly in here so it's hard to get a screenshot without 'em!



We're rewarded for our troubles with a stun guard. This reduces the chance of being stunned by 20%, and I'll be putting it on Spada.







aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand absolutely nothing!





And nothing down here either.



Something I haven't been showing as much-- you can see I've been grinding our styles. We're stylin'. Stylish. Anyway, as you can see, we've reached level 16 on Advance style with Spada (and 17 with Ruca and Iria). One of the hidden styles you get is unlocked with getting at least level 15 on all 4 starting styles, and then getting to a certain gameplay point, so I'm going to change the styles and start grinding that so we won't have to when the time comes. One last note, while each of the special skills carry over when equipped regardless of what style you're on, the stat bonuses you get for each specific styles go away when you switch styles.



Up on another stairwell we get a recipe. I'm going to be ignoring the cooking in this game for the most point, but rad!



In the next room, we see. Uh. Whatever this is...







Wow, all these people sure do look exactly the same!





: The hell is this?!

: People... they must be Avatars...

: This is horrible... what gives them the right to treat people like this, just because they're Avatars?!

: Is there no place for us in this world?





Onto the next room we go.



In the background we can see... METAL GEAR!?



METAL GEARRRRRRRRRRRRRR









METALLLL GEARRRR

: Thing's huge. It's got a seat, so you ride it, right?

: It doesn't seem to be steam-driven... how does it move?

: Do you think it's some kind of weapon?

: Looks like it, check out those huge guns. Standard soldier wouldn't last a minute against this thing.

: Do you think it's an anti-Avatar weapon?

: Could be. Hope we ain't gonna find out.



: (Bag her?)





Anyway, let's go destroy the Shagohod-- I mean, rescue the Holy Maiden.



Save point means boss!







Whuh oh.

: It's that thing from before!







Ah yes, my waifu.







: Huh?

: Here it comes!













The Gigantess doesn't have many moves.



: It stopped...

: Ain't over yet, though. Thing might blow any second.







Mah waifu.

: Hey, are you okay? Still alive?



: S-sensus?

: No doubt about it, she's an Avatar.





: We're Avatars. We heard the Holy Maiden, Ange was brought here.

: Do you know anything about her?







: Bingo! Let's hurry up and bust outta here! We have a few things we need to ask you.









Uh oh, smackdown over here.







: You messed up in the head or somethin'?





Ange? MORE LIKE ANGST AM I RIGHT

: So just cause you got this power, you're gonna let someone else decide the rest of your life? To hell with that, what's the point in livin' like that?!



: But before that, you helped countless people, right? Do you think those people have forgotten what you did for them?

: Even now, you can use your power to help others.

: But... I still remember the scorn and fear in their eyes when I was captured...

: Who cares? Forget 'em.

: I cannot do that.

: You gonna let that power control your life?! You got no reason to be ashamed!

: Right! You're a good person!

These pep talks.

: So what if you got captured by that rehabilitation program?!

: We're here for you. We're all in this together, so don't give up on us.

: What reassuring words... this is true... perhaps I had allowed myself to be swallowed by sorrow.

: Lemme ask you again, you comin' with us?

: Very well. I will go.

: Alrighty! That's that!! I'm Iria Animi. I was Inanna in my past life.

: The name's Spada Belforma. I was a sword named Durandal in my past life.

Spada's the name, sword's my game!

: I was Asura. I'm Luca Milda now.

: You... were Asura of the Sensus?



And we fade to black for another flashback to Asura's super happy fun time. Sorry to cut it off here, I know it's kind of awkward, but hey. Thanks for tuning in, make sure to tune in next time to figure out who Ange was in her past life, and check out the Update 9 skits!

Darth Numbers fucked around with this message at 18:52 on May 17, 2015

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 9 Skits

I'd just like to point out that some skits are entirely based on friendship level, like the '[x] and I' skits. I'll be doing my best to show as many as I can.

Explanation of the Five Pillars



















































House Milda and House Belforma























The Fall

























































Hartman's Past



























House Belforma





















































Spada and I 1





































I ship it.

Spada is kind of...



































Yup, “bromance.” What's better than this, just guy's being dudes.


Luca Shows Some Courage, A Tale





















What is the Holy Maiden like?















Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer
Bromance.... Okay, sure. Let's go with that. I still prefer it to Iria and Luca's little tsundere dance, even if Iria is pretty okay otherwise.

I remember before there was this term "Fallen." Is it different from Avatars? This was like a page back, but I've already forgotten, whoops.

Also. This Devic Arts thing. Have we seen it in action? What falls under that?

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Anastasiya posted:

Bromance.... Okay, sure. Let's go with that. I still prefer it to Iria and Luca's little tsundere dance, even if Iria is pretty okay otherwise.

I remember before there was this term "Fallen." Is it different from Avatars? This was like a page back, but I've already forgotten, whoops.

Also. This Devic Arts thing. Have we seen it in action? What falls under that?

Yeah, the OTP is Spada and Luca, the game just doesn't know it yet :P

And I dislike tsundere, yup :/

okay here's one of the things the game isn't so great at explaining-- The Fallen are what people refer to Avatars as when they're being less than nice. I guess it's sort of a rude term because it has a negative connotation, but it's like the members of heaven fell to earth and were reborn into humans (hence the whole past life thing).

Devic Artes are basically just the moves you have in game, IE Demon Fang, Sonic Thrust, First Aide, Fireball, etc. It's the game's way of explaining why exactly a man with two swords and a cabby hat and do a quadruple flip suspended in mid air while flailing his swords (tempest strike), or why a girl with guns can heal people (First aide). Most tales games explain it away as "oh they're just super strong/have elven blood" or something, but Innocence says gently caress that, they were heavenly beings in their past lives, and that's why they have magic freakin' powers.

although spada's real devic power is unleashed upon him pronouncing the letter g, should he say "running" instead of "runnin'" the world would be destroyed due to his immense delinquent powers

mastersord
Feb 15, 2001

Gold Card Putty Fan Club
Member Since 2017!
Soiled Meat

Darth Numbers posted:

...

Devic Artes are basically just the moves you have in game, IE Demon Fang, Sonic Thrust, First Aide, Fireball, etc. It's the game's way of explaining why exactly a man with two swords and a cabby hat and do a quadruple flip suspended in mid air while flailing his swords (tempest strike), or why a girl with guns can heal people (First aide). Most tales games explain it away as "oh they're just super strong/have elven blood" or something, but Innocence says gently caress that, they were heavenly beings in their past lives, and that's why they have magic freakin' powers.

...

Actually, a lot of the tales LPs I've read have different explanations about how magic works (i.e. Phantasia/Symphonia = Mana, Vesperia = Aether/Blastia, Abyss = Harmonics, Xillia = Mana lobes/Spirit artes), and usually everyone has them to some degree while some have them more than others.

Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer

Darth Numbers posted:

okay here's one of the things the game isn't so great at explaining-- The Fallen are what people refer to Avatars as when they're being less than nice. I guess it's sort of a rude term because it has a negative connotation, but it's like the members of heaven fell to earth and were reborn into humans (hence the whole past life thing).

Devic Artes are basically just the moves you have in game, IE Demon Fang, Sonic Thrust, First Aide, Fireball, etc. It's the game's way of explaining why exactly a man with two swords and a cabby hat and do a quadruple flip suspended in mid air while flailing his swords (tempest strike), or why a girl with guns can heal people (First aide). Most tales games explain it away as "oh they're just super strong/have elven blood" or something, but Innocence says gently caress that, they were heavenly beings in their past lives, and that's why they have magic freakin' powers.

although spada's real devic power is unleashed upon him pronouncing the letter g, should he say "running" instead of "runnin'" the world would be destroyed due to his immense delinquent powers

Okay, cool. I thought maybe Devic Arts were some super move or something, but they're everything, I guess.

I gotta wonder... Did the heavenly people reincarnate on earth before the Fall, or was it just a thing that started happening after Devaloka broke? And how did Devic Arts work for normal humans before then? Was it like 5 prayers=1 Demon Fang? How did the gods give the Demon Fangs? Did people receive one Demon Fang from Durandal, and two more Asura, or was there a patron god thing going?

That's assuming this whole thing "people prayed and got powers from heaven" isn't a total lie. In a Tales game, you can't really assume that the explanations you're getting any time in the first half of the story are actually true.

(I don't actually expect an answer to this, but it's amusing to consider.)

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

mastersord posted:

Actually, a lot of the tales LPs I've read have different explanations about how magic works (i.e. Phantasia/Symphonia = Mana, Vesperia = Aether/Blastia, Abyss = Harmonics, Xillia = Mana lobes/Spirit artes), and usually everyone has them to some degree while some have them more than others.

Yeah I mean in Symphonia /theoretically/ its the expheres, but like they don't explain it very well (there's this one random scene where everyone gets expheres and then they just kind of imply it lets you have super powers? Lloyd says it "brings out your inner potential" so I guess so)

I kind of like how Innocence asserts "these are things that your past life allows you to do". One thing Innocence has which I think is a really nice touch, is during your mystic arte (kind of like a super duper special attack for those who don't know, we won't get it until a bit later) in Innocence, you turn into your past self to wreck the enemy, which kind of goes hand in hand with the whole "if you train enough you can take on your past form" thing Oswald was talking about.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Anastasiya posted:

Okay, cool. I thought maybe Devic Arts were some super move or something, but they're everything, I guess.

Yeah everyone gets a super move (Mystic Arte, like I mentioned) but we don't get them until a certain plot point happens :P

Mraagvpeine
Nov 4, 2014

I won this avatar on a technicality this thick.
I just noticed that Luca has silver hair and green eyes while Spada has green hair and I think silver eyes. Is that right?

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Mraagvpeine posted:

I just noticed that Luca has silver hair and green eyes while Spada has green hair and I think silver eyes. Is that right?

Someone else is gonna have to confirm this, I'm colorblind ^^;;

Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer

Mraagvpeine posted:

I just noticed that Luca has silver hair and green eyes while Spada has green hair and I think silver eyes. Is that right?

Yeah, you're right! The shades are a little different, but they're pretty close.

Mind you, Ange has about the same grey eyes as Spada, but her hair is blue.

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 10

I'm still here! I swear! Update schedule? What's that? In seriousness, sorry for the sparse updates folks. I'm crippled by a little game called League of Legends, wherein I manage to put off updating an LP of a cool game to play the worst game ever invented.

When we last left off, we were figuring out who Ange was in her past life.



: You're the tactician, Orifiel? You've given us quite a bit of trouble.





: It would seem there is no need to introduce myself. Will you surrender, or will you die here? Choose.



: Oh? You take loss rather well. I had heard you were Ratio's most resourceful warrior...

: Our strategic objective has already been fulfilled. There is no need for the battle to continue.

: You mean to say you deliberately drew my army's fire? Speak! What were you after!?

: We were allowing civilians to escape. There is a village on this area not marked by your maps. We were interrupted when your army appeared without warning. Thankfully, the evacuation is complete.

: Then that small force was not intended to crush my army, but to dissipate it.



: I am certainly not unsurpassed. I would prefer escape over capture, if that were the case.

: No. By surrendering yourself, you sought to end the battle as quickly as possible, did you not?



: I believe you overestimate me.

: Hm. Very well. I've come to like you. Run away, I won't pursue you.

: I am honored that I should find favor with Asura himself.



: Likewise. I look forward to showing you just how resourceful I can be...



: You're Orifiel of Ratio?

: Ratio's tactician, Orifiel, huh? I remember now. His strategies led people to regard him as a fount of knowledge that never ran dry.



M'durandal -tips sword-

: Now I am but a simple priestess. Although we had our differences in the Devic Era, I hope that will not stand between us now.

: Of course not! Thank goodness! I was worried you were going to lose it and start attacking us.

: What happened in the past doesn't matter, we're glad to have you with us. What's important is that we're all Avatars, we have to help eachother out.

: Thank you... I will do my best to change my former way of thinking.



Spada is saying this in regards to a siren going off.

: That's our cue to get the heck out of here!

: Ange, can you run?

: I can, though I have never been fond of doing so...

: Save your complaints for later, let's go!

And Ange joined our party! Neat.



If we go into our menu, we can see that we can only have 3 people fighting at once. Everyone gains EXP at the same rate, but we can only fight with 3 people at once. I'm going to be replacing Iria with Ange. Ange has a bunch of moves already, but more importantly she is our main healer, and has some really solid physical moves. So with that in mind, I'm going to be playing Ange because the AI isn't so good with healers. That also means I'll be walking around as Ange on the main map, because of how Innocence handles the whole “party leader” thing. Anyway, let's get out of the Naos Base!



It looks pretty similar leaving as it did coming.
Ange has a “steal items” skill, and if you use it in battle, you get the mandatory skit.





: Are you trying to ignore me?!

: My, I had no idea it was so late already. I must say my evening prayers.

: Stop – Right – There! You just swiped something, didn't you? You klepto!

: Dear me! You should not speak so badly of others. This is the bounty of heaven.

: Excuse me? Are you listening to yourself?





: Well, I guess it would be a waste...

: I think so too. That is why heaven has taken pity on us. These are compassionate blessings. We must make use of them.

: Now you're just making stuff up...

: I offer up my thanks to heaven...

: Don't just pin it on the gods!

I think that's really funny, myself.

When you go far enough, this cutscene triggers.







: This is our chance to escape.



As I said, exiting this dungeon isn't very interesting.











It's rifle-dad!

: ...Who are you again?

Spada, you don't remember the sniper you charged and then beat the poo poo out of?

: I think his name was Ricardo...

: You three again... when did battlefields become playgrounds for brats?



: Why would we tell you anyth--

: I am Ange.



Oh. That's uh, convenient?

: Unfortunately, I already have companions. Would traveling together be acceptable?

: Sorry, but I can escort only you. I can't be expected to babysit all these brats.



: You heard her! Beat it, old man!



: As a responsible adult, I also have to punish disobedient children.

: You let us escape before! Can't you do it again?

: Listen, brat...

He sure likes that word.



: Are you asking me to break my contract? Hmm?

: You gonna take her no matter what? In that case, you gotta go through us first!

: You wish to settle this by force? Not my preferred method, but I suppose I can make an exception.

An exception? HE'S A SNIPER HOW IS KILLING PEOPLE AN EXCEPTION?

: I have another idea.



: You misunderstand. Have a look at this.

: !!

: Can I interest you in a compromise?



: Then let us form a contract based on the remainder. I request that you become my bodyguard. If you find payment insufficient, consider it an advance.

: Very well. But why would you want to hire me?

: I would rather not be abducted. That is all there is to it.



: You really think we can trust him?

: He did say he's serious about his work.

: And he let us get away before.

: Well... whatever, I guess.



: I say we head back to Naos for now.

: Agreed. It is the closest city, afterall.

: Luca, anything else to add?

: I suppose that's about...

: Then let's get a move on!

No one cares what Luca has to say.

: (At least let me finish...)

: Guess we'll be payin' Hartman another visit.

And with that, Ricardo joined our party! He fights with a rifle and magic, and he's the coolest dad. The first time I played this game, I literally just used Ange, Spada, and Luca for the whole game. I'm gonna make an effort to play with Ricardo (and maybe Iria, who knows how crazy we'll get?) because he's pretty neat. For now, I'm gonna replace Luca for him for a bit.



Anyway, let's get the heck outta here. If you walk far enough, cutscene time!







: !!

: The hell are you supposed to be?





?????? WHOS THIS

: Well aren't you friendly! What do you want, are you after Ange too?

: I seem to be quite popular...



This dude doesn't have a portrait, so I have to take screenshots, sorry!



Gardel is an rear end in a top hat.

: This man is no normal enemy.

: For the sake of Naraka... what is that supposed to mean?



: He's comin'!

Boss fight time!

I know I said I was going to record boss battles, but I decided I didn't want to do that. I'll probably record mystic artes and some other cool stuff, probably the last boss, but the whole recording thing just didn't end up working like I wanted it to. It's a shame, because the combat in this game is really neat and fast paced. We'll see, maybe I'll record the next boss.









You can see he's sort of purple and glowing. This is basically overlimit from other Tales games-- he doesn't stagger when attacked, and has more damage during this.





That move is Ricardo's bayonet charge. Yeah, it's pretty cool, I know.



Anyway, we killed him and got the worst grade possible because I was messing around.

: ..You're...











: Wow...

: He's strong...

: What's wrong, Ricardo?

: ….It's nothing. Let's get out while we still can.

Well said. Off to Naos! Sorry this update was so late and so small! Make sure to tune in for the next one, and check out the update 10 skits!

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015
Update 10 Skits

Less talking, more running!

















What divided Ratio and Sensus?







































































Thank you Garam!













What was that?



















































A Priceless Item

































Ricardo's Introduction



































Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer
Well now, we're getting quite the party here. I like it.

Of course, I was the sort of terrible fangirl who really, really illogically liked Kratos, so Ricardo is kinda in the same general category to me. Which is to say I like him. Ange is great too, especially how she plays off Iria.

(Man, I can't believe Ricardo actually blushes a bit. Wow.)

Darth Numbers
May 7, 2015

Anastasiya posted:

Well now, we're getting quite the party here. I like it.

Of course, I was the sort of terrible fangirl who really, really illogically liked Kratos, so Ricardo is kinda in the same general category to me. Which is to say I like him. Ange is great too, especially how she plays off Iria.

(Man, I can't believe Ricardo actually blushes a bit. Wow.)

Yeah, it's kind of annoying that the game throws party members at you, but only lets you have 3 in battle at once. That said, we almost have a full party! Which is neat. Ricardo is one of my favorites, cause he's like the hot dad of the group, but also super adorable (he blushes, yeah :P) Yeah, in terms of "cool, badass, and ever so sarcastic old guy", Ricardo definitely feels a little bit like Kratos.

Seaogre
Oct 10, 2012
Grimey Drawer
What we need now is some proper build up for our villains. We've seen three (I think) so far, but only once each, and at least one didn't even get a name.

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Mraagvpeine
Nov 4, 2014

I won this avatar on a technicality this thick.
Darth Numbers, it's okay to not have an update schedule. I know plenty of LPers who don't keep to a schedule. You don't have to apologize for it.

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