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 Conception Plus Japanese Opening Theme: “Destiny ~ 12 Kaime no Kiseki” by Nano Note: This is the Japanese opening cutscene for Conception Plus. I’ve got a whole spiel about this in the first mini update because of some weird changes that were made to it from the PSP version, and also changes that weren’t made from the PSP version in Japan but are made in the English localization. Welcome to the SSLP of Conception Plus: Maidens of the Twelve Stars. One year ago (2018) I decided to take a shot at my first LP on SomethingAwful by doing Conception II: Children of the Seven Stars. During that LP, I made the promise that I would LP the first game in this series if it ever saw the light of day on English shores. Apparently I misjudged the capability of Spike Chunsoft’s fledgling North American branch, because they went full throttle on English localizations. They released 12 games in the span of 16 months and Conception Plus was, fittingly (this’ll make sense later), number 13. What is Conception Plus? Conception Plus: Maidens of the Twelve Stars is a remastering of Conception: Ore no Kodomo o Undekure!, which was a visual novel/dating sim/JRPG hybrid released in 2012 for the PSP. This is the first game in the Conception series. The sequel, Conception II (which I already LP’d here), only shares some general terms and ideas, so it doesn’t matter what order you read these in. Like Conception II, this game follows a self-insert protagonist that has to have fantasy not-sex with a bunch of ladies in order to create magic spirit warrior children to help him fight monsters in the world that he has been pulled in to. Also, that fantasy mind sex stuff has been ordained by Star God. Star God really loves entrusting the fate of the world to horny teenagers that he proceeds to blue-ball for fun. Did Conception Plus add anything new? Yes, although I’m still a little unclear as to exactly how far the changes go. Graphical improvements should be obvious given that this game is coming to the PS4 from the (long dead) PSP. Aside from that, there is an additional Star Maiden, network features, a CII style Database (which is a godsend for me), extra sexy (unless you bought the English PS4 version), as well as some other stuff like a personality adjustment for one of the Star Maidens (this is a weird one that we will discuss almost immediately in the first mini update). According to a marketing release, changes were also made to game balance, comfort, specifications, and some features were added (as well as removed). I can’t find any concrete information on what any of the game balance stuff actually means, but for the love of Star God, please tell me that it means a bump in difficulty. I'm begging you Spike Chunsoft. I will be sure to highlight any new features or changes that I know of as they are introduced. Some of them are confusing and some of them are funny (such as the PS4 changes to sexy stuff that caused the "CENSORSHIP!!!" crowd to rise from the grave and throw a temporary shitfit). What kind of LP is this going to be? This will be a blind screenshot LP with video and music links where appropriate. The LP is almost completely blind because the original PSP release was never brought to the West and I never bothered to search it out for import after playing Conception II. There will be thread participation, the same as with the CII LP, and I don’t intend for this to be a completionist run. Speaking of… What kind of thread participation? In Conception II, I had the thread vote on a few things to help steer the LP. People voted on which Star Children to include in teams as well as which ending we would get. Those two things came back for this LP, although they worked slightly differently. -Team A(wful) made its return for voting. The thread voted for individual Star Child classes to include in the team and offered up names for the little buggers. -Team B(astard) was made up of Star Children classes chosen by me. However, I placed a condition on this team that said I had to swap in whatever Download Star Children the game decided to randomly grab. Sometimes that only happened once during a team's lifespan, while other times it happened twice, meaning that I had to kick out some of my personally chosen Star Children. -Team C was decided on as a whole team. I used full team suggestions that users in the thread submitted. -The "Final Teams" were decided on using a mixture of voting and basing Star Children off of users in the thread. -Voting on the Heroines also made a return and was more important than before. Why? Because if you watched the opening cutscene (or read this intro) you will have seen that this game has way more heroines to choose from than Conception II. Instead of the 7 heroines in CII, CP gives us 13. We’re going to want to narrow that scope a little to focus mainly on 3 or 4 heroines, because trying to follow 13 different routes at once would take forever with my intended update schedule. Naughty Content Just like in CII, always remember the words of The Dark Id:  It's an anime VN/JRPG, it's going to have risque content, although it's largely limited to particular heroine routes. It doesn't have any actual nudity, but there are a few CG's that you wouldn't want people catching sight of over your shoulder at work. There's also likely to be blood in some event CG's. The game has an M rating in North America. I will warn in advance of any particularly bad scenes. Also, I know first hand how great SSLP's are for reading during boring work days, so if we run into any embarrassing scenes I'll either censor them or I'll just link to the CG so the decision is left entirely to you (probably the more considerate option). Updates: ---------------------------------------------------------------- Prologue/First Offering: Aries Update I - I've been searching for a man, all across Japan Special Update I - Conception Plus' Delivery Problems Update II - No need to fear me; I did not come to touch Update III - The Stars predict tomorrow you'll wake up, do a bunch of stuff, and then go back to sleep Bonding Update I - Aries, Taurus, and Gemini Bonding Update II - Cancer, Leo, and Virgo Bonding Update III - Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius Bonding Update IV - Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces Update IV - Let me see what Spring is like on Jupiter and Mars Update V - Every day there’s sorrow; today, tomorrow ~ But I’m dancing instead Second Offering: Capricorn Update VI - If there's something strange; In your neighborhood Bonding Update V - Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Libra, Aries… and to a lesser degree the rest Bonding Update VI - Aries, Libra, and Scorpio - Summary of Sagittarius, Pisces, and Leo Bonding Update VII - Capricorn, Virgo, and Cancer - Summary of Aquarius, Gemini, and Taurus Bonding Update VIII - Aries, Libra, Capricorn, Scorpio, Virgo, and Cancer Bonding Update VIII - Summaries of Sagittarius, Pisces, Leo, Aquarius, Gemini, and Taurus Update VII - I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take (Dungeon) Update VII - I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take (Story) Third Offering: Libra Update VIII - Drink blood like a vampire without warning Special Bonding Update I (Alfie Bonding) - I'm a goddess with a blade - Part 1 Special Bonding Update I (Alfie Bonding) - I'm a goddess with a blade - Part 2 Update IX - I've been battered, but I never bruise. It's not so bad (Dungeon) Update IX - I've been battered, but I never bruise. It's not so bad (Story) Fourth Offering: Leo Update X - Just about the time you’re thinkin’ it’s alright ~ Breakdown. Takedown. You’re busted Special Events I - The Autumn Festival Bonding Update IX - Ophiuchus and Aries (Part 1) Bonding Update X - Leo, Cancer, and Capricorn (Part 1) Bonding Update XI - Libra and Bottom 7 Maiden Summaries (Part 1) Bonding Update XII - Ophiuchus, Aries, Leo, and Cancer (Part 2) Bonding Update XIII - Capricorn, Libra + Bottom 7 Summaries (Part 2) Update XI - Couldn't see a thing but open skies Fifth Offering: Taurus Bonding Update XIV: Ophiuchus, Aries, and Leo + Summaries of Virgo, Pisces, and Scorpio (Part 1) + An explanation Bonding Update XV: Cancer, Capricorn, and Libra + Summaries of Sagittarius, Aquarius, Gemini, and Taurus (Part 1) Bonding Update XVI: Ophiuchus, Aries, and Leo + Summaries of Virgo, Pisces, and Scorpio (Part 2) Bonding Update XVII: Cancer, Capricorn, and Libra + Summaries of Sagittarius, Aquarius, Gemini, and Taurus (Part 2) Update XII: Toutes celles qui rentrent dans le jean slim en taille 34 Sixth Offering: Gemini Special Events II: The Star Conception Festival (Part 1) Special Events II: The Star Conception Festival (Part 2) + Valentine's Day Update XIII: You come on like a flame; Then you turn a cold shoulder Seventh Offering: Cancer Special Update II: “Conception: The Game: The Anime: The Advertisement” (Episodes 1-3) Update XIV: I’m seeing things I thought I’d never see Eighth Offering: Virgo Bonding Update XVIII: Final Bonding Events – Ophiuchus, Aries, Leo, Cancer + Virgo Summary (Part 1) Bonding Update XIX: Final Bonding Events – Capricorn and Libra + Summaries of #8-13 (Part 1) Bonding Update XX: Final Bonding Events (Part 2) – Ophiuchus, Aries, Leo, Cancer, Capricorn, Libra Bonding Update XXI: Final Bonding Events (Part 2) – Virgo, Pisces, Scorpio Bonding Update XXII: Final Bonding Events (Part 2) – Sagittarius, Aquarius, Gemini, Taurus Update XV: Black is white, up is down and short is long Ninth Offering: Scorpio Special Events III: Flower Viewing Part 1 - Scorpio, Ares, Leo, and Cancer Special Events III: Flower Viewing Part 2 - Capricorn, Libra + Bottom 6 Summaries Special Events IV: Day at the Beach Part 1 - Aries, Leo, Cancer Special Events IV: Day at the Beach Part 2 - Capricorn, Libra + Bottom 7 Summaries Update XVI: They see me walk; They hear me talk; I make them feel; Like they’re on Cloud Nine Tenth Offering: Sagittarius Special Update III: PK finally breaks – Conception: The Anime (Episodes 4-6) Update XVII: Once I ran to you; Now I'll run from you Special Events V: Final Side Events (Part 1) - Leo, Cancer, and Libra Special Events V: Final Side Events (Part 2) - Gemini, Sagittarius + Summaries Eleventh Offering: Aquarius Update XVIII: And what matters ain’t the “who’s baddest” but the ones who stop you fallin’ from your ladder Update XIX: Prince oh Prince, are you really sincere? That you one day aren't gonna disappear Twelfth Offering: Pisces Special Update IV: If nothing else, I’m a glutton for punishment – Conception: The Anime (Episodes 7-9) Update XX: All the burdens gone; Open the chest once more Final Offering: Ophiuchus Update XXI: The hero always saves the world; The villains get what they deserve; The boy will always get the girl Post-Game Cleanup Extra Update I: Alternate Endings and PK's thoughts on the Maidens Extra Update II: Final thoughts on the game Special Update V: Let’s finish this. Please – Conception: The Anime (Episodes 10-12) LP Extras Images, Videos, and Guest Contributors Astrology Corner, with contributions from user AnAnonymousIdiot Japanese Version Comparisons, with contributions from user Polsy Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 18:43 on May 12, 2020 |
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LP Guest Contributors I had some unexpected help from a few users in the thread over the course of the LP, so I want to give a shout out to them and the stuff they've contributed. ~Astrology Corner, with contributions from user AnAnonymousIdiot~ User AnAnonymousIdiot gave their input on the Star Maidens and how closely they relate to their respective Astrology Signs. These were usually posted after Bonding Updates or major story developments. ~Japanese Version Comparisons, with contributions from user Polsy~ User Polsy was kind enough to help out with comparisons of the English version of Conception PLUS to the original Japanese release of the game. I wanted to stay blind for this LP, so I avoided looking for videos of the Japanese version to compare with. User Polsy decided to take on that task, particularly with regards to changes in the character Mahiru's personality (which was altered for this HD upgrade). Polsy's ability to translate Japanese is also greater than mine. Bonus Images 1. Spike Chunsoft Needs a Spell Checker:  Spike Chunsoft's fledgling North American office is having a touch of difficulty with reviewing their localisation work. Those of you that read the CII LP will remember the discovery that someone apparently went back and redid the Atlus translation from 2014. CII's Steam release in 2016 had a bunch of spelling and grammar errors that didn't exist in the PSV/3DS version that Atlus did. The trend seems to continue with Conception Plus, as myself and the rest of the thread have been finding spelling and grammar errors all over the place. One of my favourites is the moment Itsuki is told that the Star Maidens are selected "by the population", which would imply that the citizens of Granvania vote for who should become the next Star Maiden. The thread pointed out that what was probably meant in the Japanese version was that Star Maidens are chosen "from the population", which makes complete sense given that Star God is bestowing His power on people and probably would handle the selection process himself. Other highlights currently include starting a sentence with a lower case "L" in "Let's", as well as Narcisstes saying that he's relying on Mahiru to lead the "other 12 Star Maidens" even though there were only 12 Maidens in total (Mahiru included). Is it kind of petty? Yeah, I will fully admit that it is. If it was only an occasional thing, I'd brush it off. It's not an occasional thing, though. It's happened quite a few times and (as of my writing this) the LP hasn't even cleared the second dungeon yet. The point is, Spike Chunsoft are in desperate need of some form of proofreader. Or maybe just a basic word processor. This image was made by me after reaching a point where I felt that using [sic] to highlight errors that SC was responsible for (as opposed to errors on my part) wasn't doing enough to really hammer home how bad this problem is. 2. Character Chibi Sprites User Polsy found the official anime website at one point during a discussion on the anime. However, while looking through it, I noticed that there were some chibi versions of the Star Maidens/Itsuki/Mana that seem to have been created just for the anime website (they don't appear on the game's site, original or Plus).                I think that only five of these sprites show up in the website itself. Itsuki/Mahiru/Mana/Lillith and Lillie/Arie. They were included in the pages that give background information. Although only a handful of them are actually used, a full set was apparently drawn (likely for use on merchandise). Polsy fiddled with the URLs and discovered that most of these chibi sprites were actually uploaded, even if they weren't used on the site itself. The only two that were missing were Femiruna and Alfie. Both Polsy and myself tried everything we could think of to track down Femiruna's sprite. I eventually discovered that Femiruna's chibi art had spelled her name as "ferumina" in the image URL. No idea why, but whatever. Alfie's remained a complete mystery. I tried every possible alternate spelling I could think of to no avail. In the end, I did manage to find Alfie's chibi art on a listing for small acrylic standees that were part of the merchandising for the anime/game. "SAMPLE" was originally plastered over it, so I did what I could to fix that. It's not perfect, but it's all I could do to ensure that Alfie's chibi art wasn't excluded. 3. A cheap shot that you may have missed During our introduction to Femiruna, I had made a small edit to one of the shop signs that nobody in the original thread seemed to notice. Either that or it was simply incredibly lame and everyone silently agreed not to acknowledge it in the hopes of pretending it didn't happen.  It's probably the second reason. Videos This game isn't as video or cutscene heavy as CII was. I only really needed 2 videos for this LP and both of them are battle related. Aries Seal Boss (+ Battle Example) Leo Boss Fight + Seal Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 18:37 on May 12, 2020 |
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Nov 8, 2019 04:38
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Update I: I’ve been searching for a man, all across Japan Song Reference: Butterfly – Aqua  I’ll be skipping over the opening cutscene. There’s a mini update I have in mind where I will discuss the weirdness involved with it, among other things that will be noticed in this update. For the time being, let’s just focus on the mountain of exposition and world setting that is about to happen.  Just after selecting to start a new game, we’re asked to customize our protagonist a little. Leaving the naming of the protagonist up to the thread would be ill advised, so I’ll leave it as the default: Itsuki Yuge. We can also choose his birthday and blood type, although this doesn’t have any impact on gameplay as far as I know. His birthday will be the start date of the LP (it’s November 8th where I am), and I change his blood type to O for no particular reason. I’m not familiar with the implications of our protagonist having O type blood. I know it’s a Japanese thing, but I don’t care enough about divination or whatever it is to bother researching the details.  Also, the English release of this game has the Japanese swimsuit DLC pack included, which is nice, I guess? I suppose it beats having to pay for it for the people that care about that. No, we’re not using this option. It looks stupid and out of place. It also removes nearly all of the design elements of the maidens. ???: Mahiru Konatsuki. The girl I grew up with, and my childhood friend.  ???: She gets high marks in academics and sports. She’s always taking care of others. She’s what you’d call the “popular girl” at school. Three years ago, my parents died in an accident… Really checking off those protagonist boxes, aren’t you Conception? ???: Now I live with her family at their house.    Getting flashbacks to Narika’s route in Conception II here. Maybe we should just pretend like we never got the text.  Never mind, we’re throwing caution to the wind. ~School Roof~   Thank you for coming…This is Conception Plus Mahiru. Why do I specify it like that? Well, in the process of remastering this game from the PSP version, the developers decided that Mahiru needed an attitude adjustment. I won’t derail the update with it right now, since we only just started. I’ll discuss it in more detail in the mini update. It’s… strange. Sorry for calling you out here even though we’re in the middle of exams. It’s fine. Even if I went back, I wouldn’t have anything to do besides studying.Also, that was Itsuki talking earlier. No idea why they kept it a mystery, since it’s obvious who it is. Then again, I didn’t do so good on the English exam today.That’s your fault for playing games instead of studying.Anyway, it’s rare for us to meet at school like this.Yeah… There’s actually something I wanted to talk to you about.You invited me to the roof, don’t tell me you’re asking me on a date.No way… You play too many games…Hey, it could happen. There has to be some basis for the idea. Besides, we used to play those games together all the time.That was… a long time ago. We have to prepare for college exams next year… so there’s no time for that.Oh, right… entrance exams… That’s… So, what was that stuff you wanted to talk about!? Something you don’t want your mother to hear?Yeah… Not really… We occasionally get the option to choose what Itsuki will say. It doesn’t change much except for a line or two of dialog, at least in main story scenes. Bonding scenes will be different. I’ll make sure to point out any particularly amusing choices. I see… So what did you do?Nothing really, but… Well which is it? Did something happen or not? …Mahiru?Itsuki, please listen carefully.I’m suddenly not feeling so great about this.… I… …What?I’m going to have a baby. While “Is it… mine?” is tempting, it’s also pretty stupid to say considering the detail a character will blurt out a little later. I don’t intend for LP Itsuki to hit that level of idiot. …You’re messing with me, right?Why would I joke about that? Itsuki, I’m sure you want nothing to do with this. You probably just want to go home, eat chips, and play video games.That sounds really good right now, actually.…Right, that was probably the wrong thing to say. Sorry, I guess I still don’t believe it.They say fact is stranger than fiction… But anyone would be surprised if they heard something like this.A-Anyway, maybe we should go talk about this inside. It’s cold out here.Huh…?Well, cold weather can’t be good for the baby, right? Isn’t that a thing?Y-Yeah… Uhhh…. Guys? I think reality is collapsing behind you. poo poo, is it an earthquake?!Itsuki, look up!Wh-What the hell is that?!  *Both Mahiru and Itsuki get sucked up into the crazy sky hole*   …So that happened. Oh well, better add this spot to my map of Tokyo. Need to know where all the dimensional rifts are so I don’t accidentally stumble into one. I’m going overseas to study next year and that poo poo costs serious money. I don’t have time to be farting around in the Feudal Era or Soul Society or Cephiro or the Digi World or wherever the hell our protagonists are about to wind up. ~???~  Oh god, where are we? What happened?Ugh…You doing alright?Yeah, I’m fine… It doesn’t hurt anywhere.Good to hear.I thought we were at school… Where are we now?Beats me.This is a creepy place. I don’t want to stay here…I dunno, I think it looks kind of cool. It’s like an old school RPG dungeon....Okay, okay. I was just trying to make it less spooky. Come on, it looks like there’s an exit over there. Alright, we have control now. Not for very long mind you, but we do. Standard camera controls are in play. You could rotate the camera with L and R, but the right stick just gives you complete control so why would you bother with the shoulder buttons?  Also, Itsuki has a goofy run cycle and stance. Why are you superhero posturing, Itsuki? There’s nothing in here. Anyway, there’s only one door out of this place, so run up to it and hit X or A or whatever your confirm button happens to be. Should we stop for a bit?After running through a small hallway, the next scene triggers. I’ll be all right… We barely walked at all. But thanks for looking out for me.No problem. I’m trying to support this whole pregnant thing any way I can.Itsuki, listen to me. You may not believe this either, but… Wait, what? Mahiru, if you don’t have a boyfriend then how the hell can you be pregnant?But I’ve been feeling strange since about three weeks ago… I checked online and found my symptoms are signs of being pregnant.Ah, Dr. WebMD. The world’s most trustworthy medical professional. Those symptoms could point to a lot of different things though.I thought the same at first. Like, maybe I was just imagining it. But I took one of those pregnancy tests and it came back positive… That must mean I’m pregnant, right?Well, those things can be wrong, can’t they? Did you talk to an actual doctor about it?Not yet… I was too scared to…What if I went with you? Think that would help?Yeah…Great. Then let’s find our way out of here and head to a clinic. I’m sure this is all just a big mistake.Say, Itsuki…What’s up?Let’s go back together… then we can play games again.Now you’re speaking my language. This place really has me in the mood to check out this new-Ugh…Hey, you’re the one that suggested it. Agh!Oh, you’re still feeling sick. Do you need to throw up? Mahiru? That doesn’t look fun.  Did… Did a monster just pop out of your mouth?!*The buff monster man charges Itsuki* Guh! (poo poo, that hurt! It’s going to kill me!)*Then, a flash of light*  Wait, where did this sword come from?! The game throws us into a battle and wants us to attack the monster. I’m not going to spend time explaining this, because your only option is to do what the game says. We kill it and move on. That… was… AWESOME! I killed a monster! Hey, Mahiru, did you see?!Ugh…Right, sorry. Not the time. Come on, I think the exit is over there!Forest  This has to be a bad dream…Uhh, Mahiru? I think you’ve got something on your face. Ah… Wait, there’s something on your hand too.. Haha, we’ve got the same thing. We’re like a couple now.You’re in a weirdly good mood all of a sudden.You think so? Compared to being mysteriously pregnant, this is nothing…???: Nar! There they are! Nar! Narcisstes!  That stuffed animal is floating and talking…It also has handcuffs on it. What’s the deal with that?Wait, I think I know what this is… It has to be a drone that uses AI or something. I’m Mana. Isn’t that a nice name? Once you hear it, you’ll never forget it. That’s the kinda name it is.There will be other reasons for us remembering Mana’s name. None of them are good. Mana sucks. I hate cutesy mascot characters. It also just now occurs to me that Conception II never had one. I’m going to miss that aspect of Conception II.  Wow, not only can you talk, you can carry on a conversation? Modern figurines have really advanced from what I remember… I feel like the future has left me in the dust.What is this “figurine” you’re talkin’ about? I don’t know that word.Um… In short, it’s a toy for adults. Isn’t that right, Itsuki?I really don’t think you should phrase it like that.What? Are you calling me a plaything?!I guess that’s not quite right, huh.So, what’s your name?H-Huh? M-Me? I’m… Mahiru Konatsuki.*sniff, sniff*… I can tell you’re a virgin. You smell like a green banana!This is just a taste of what Mana is like. I’ve seen people online say that it gets worse, so look forward to that I suppose. What?! This toy is so rude!Also it can smell. I don’t think that’s something you can program.And you, what’s your name? Screw you, Mana. I am not telling you that.What?You’re shady as hell.Sh-Shady? But I’m soooo cute. How dare you call me shady!You can be cute but still shady… And anyway, you’re not that cute to begin with.Wh-What?!But, I know there’s a lot of people out there who are into that ugly-cute thing. *And then this dude shows up to mercifully interrupt this conversation* That’s right, Nar. He’s the God’s Gift this time around. Look, he has the Star Brand. It seems that way.I dunno why there are two of ‘em though.Two God’s Gifts… Interesting.Um, who are you? And where are we?Also, what’s this stuff about God giving gifts?Excuse me. I apologize for the late introduction. My name is Narcisstes. I am the palace scholar of the Kingdom of Granvania.Where is Granvania? Is that like Transylvania?It’s a world in a dimension different from yours. The God’s Gifts who have come to this world have called it a “Fantasy World.”Fantasy World? Are we legendary heroes!? Is what I think happening, actually happening!?Let’s save the details for later. How about I guide ‘em away?Yes, please do. It’s dangerous to remain out here. There are some hungry, wild animals around these parts.Hold on. Where are you taking us?To the castle. I would like for you to meet our king.Yes. Yes, yes, yes. Let’s do that!*And then a magic symbol appears on screen and everyone is whisked away to…*   This is our “Star Energy.” Your kind would probably call it magic.Is this place-It’s the castle town of the kingdom. Um… Will we get sent back to our world after we meet the king?Yes, but just as I said earlier, only if you accept our king’s suggestion. Please look ahead.Kinda sounds like we’re being blackmailed here, but whatever. We’re in generic fantasy land. We can roll with it.  Correction, generic fantasy land with a touch of future tech. That is National Star God Academy, the pride and joy of Granvania. The people of Granvania come to this academy to learn the ways of this world.I’ve seen this place in a movie before. You study magic here, right?The students learn to control the Star Energy they all hold within themselves. It’s on the way, so let’s take a look around the academy.Why don’t we just teleport there? You did it a minute ago. You can’t just bust out magic teleportation and then not bother using it for everything. I know I sure as hell would if I had it.  It’s a lot bigger up close. Do you really get this many students?The academy is an all-in-one educational institution. There are also many other facilities, like a church and a hospital.Oh, looks like the Star Maidens are gathering.poo poo, they can smell protagonist.  Like a pack of sharks. Just look at them. Star… Maidens?They’re all young and bubbly. Doesn’t that get you excited, Itsuki?Uhh, I guess so. What does that have to do with being that God’s Gift thing? Doesn’t the hero usually go explore dungeons and kill monsters and all of that cool stuff? Are they going to be our party members or something?I’ll introduce you to the Star Maidens later. Let’s go to the castle. Check this dude out. Pretty fancy dudes. Kind of wish I had a tie like that. Also that shirt. And the coat. I like the whole ensemble, really. Your Majesty, I have brought them. I welcome you. I am the king of Granvania, Shangri-La.That’s the name you’re going with? The mythical promised land supposedly located in the Kunlan Mountains in China? That’s silly, Conception. I am sure you two are surprised, for what happened was quite sudden. However, please listen to what I have to say.What do you mean? Just send us back to our world already.Slow down, Mahiru. Let’s hear him out.Very well. I shall be direct then. This world is in danger. We need you two to save us.That’s so sudden… You can’t just tell us that out of nowhere!I’m okay with it, personally. This sounds awesome.Of course… Narcisstes, explain to them so they may understand.Allow me to give you more insight into our world. Sora is a world which hosts a civilization developed by science. Our world, on the other hand, is built around Star Energy. I’m sure you remember, but Star Energy is what your kind would consider magic.Yeah, yeah. Our world is all about technology and yours is about magic. It’s not a difficult concept. Keep it moving Narc. We have a lot of intro poo poo to get through. Now, make sure you pay attention. This is where it gets important.*And then the game agrees with my viewpoint by skipping over all of Narc’s exposition* So basically… There are a bunch of monsters called Impurities in the Stardust Labyrinths… And the protection offered by the 12 Star Offerings there is about to fade… The Impurities are overflowing, bringing about chaos in this world.Thank you, official Itsuki. I’m sure Narc’s version of that exposition was like 10 minutes long. But that won’t happen. You see, each time a Star Offering loses its powers… a gift from the Star God appears in this world to save us.And that’s supposed to be us?Do you see it all coming together now? Yes, you two are the chosen gifts from the Star God. In this world, every 10 years… a God’s Gift with the Star Brand of the depowered Star Offering appears. They come from the Gate of Light connecting this world to Sora. God’s Gifts have a duty to purge Impurities and bring balance to the labyrinths. Thus, we need you to fulfill that duty. It must be done.Man, Star God is an rear end in a top hat in this game. I mean, he was kind of a dick in Conception II, I guess. Sort of had the drunken idea to bestow his power on a bunch of teenagers and then make them dry hump each other in order to summon the spirit warrior kids. Still though, Conception II Star God didn’t go barging into a different world and kidnapping people to force them to save Granvania every 10 years. Is the god of our world cool with that? The fate of the world rests on your shoulders.In other words, Itsuki and I… As expected of the Virgo Star Maiden. You learn quickly.But… we’re just students. We wouldn’t know what to do… How are we supposed to save the world…?I’m kind of pumped for this myself, but I’ll be honest, Mahiru has a point. I’ve played a lot of games about being a hero, but it’s not like either of us—Ugh…*And then Mahiru hits the floor for an unexpected nap* Mahiru!Reone! Is Reone here? Take the girl to the medical office.Is she going to be okay?! She’ll be fine. She’s probably just a little tired. Ah! This Star Brand! Is she the Virgo Star Maiden?Yes… There are too many unknowns this time around. Itsuki, you should rest too. Reone, can you take him with you? Itsuki, not to worry, Reone is the palace physician.As long as someone here knows what they’re doing. I’ll carry her over, just lead the way.Thank you. You know, you’re quite handsome when I look at you up close…Uhh… th-thank you? Where did that come from?Pump the brakes, Reone. Jesus, a girl just collapsed on the floor and needs medical attention. You’ll get your chance to hit on the designated protagonist later. Itsuki, I ask of you to save this world. You may return to yours after.That’s not really a request, you know. It’s more like an ultimatum.Let’s head to the medical office now.~Star God Academy Clinic~  As well as I could considering what happened to Mahiru. I’m sort of excited for this world saving adventure, but it’s really stressing Mahiru out. We really need to get back to our world, for her sake.After you fulfill your duty, the Gate of Light will appear. You can both return to your world then. I’m sure you still need some time to process what we’ve told you. But you two are, without a doubt, God’s Gifts. The Star Brands on your bodies prove that.Yeah… what is that brand thing exactly?That is proof you are a God’s Gift. Her mark is of Virgo. God’s Gifts have the Star Brand of the Star Offering whose power has been lost. And one of those dies every 10 years, right? So we just need to restore the Virgo Star Offering and then we’re done? …Excuse me?Don’t make a woman repeat herself. I’m telling you to take your clothes off.Could you maybe not say it like that?Oho… How else would I say it?Maybe like a doctor would? Isn’t that what you’re supposed to be?You need to learn how to talk to older women… young man.Oh please, what are you, 20? I’m betting 21 at the absolute oldest. Don’t go pulling that maturity crap on people who are maybe 2 years younger than you. I’ll teach you that with a little one-on-one…Whoa! Hey! Watch the hands!*Reone then proceeds to jump Itsuki and strip him to the skivvies* Whew… I let you keep your underwear on, so you better be thankful.Right. Why exactly am I almost naked?.jpg) Speaking of, I wonder if that’s a particular brand? I can’t quite read the text. I think it’s in Japanese, but it might also just be jibberish lettering. My body? What about my—What the hell…All 12 of the constellations have their Star Brands on your body. It wasn’t just one Star Offering that lost its powers… All 12 have.That’s probably bad. Do you understand what that means? Impurities not absorbed by the Star Offerings will increase twelvefold. And if they break out of the labyrinths, this world will end. That’s why we need your help.But what do you expect me to do? Is there a boss monster or something I have to go and fight? Or some kind of magic crystal I need to find?Does that mean you’ll accept?Doesn’t seem like I have a choice. Although even if I did, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little bit excited about being a hero. Anyway, back to the problem. What exactly am I supposed to do?You must exchange the powerless Star Offerings in the labyrinths with new ones. That is the duty of God’s Gift. Oh, hey Mahiru. Whoa! Mahiru! When did you wake up?I’ve been awake since you started taking your clothes off… But I didn’t want to interfere, so I pretended to stay asleep.I didn’t really have a choice, you know. You saw what she did.Haha… You’re a funny one.If you ask me… that’s too unreasonable.Even if it is, you have no other way of returning to your world.  Wait, I thought she was a God’s Gift too, just like me. She’s doing something else?What’s that?I’ll explain some other time. Just rest up for now.I have to agree with her on that. I think you still need some rest.…All right.*And Mahiru wanders off to continue resting* As she said, there are monsters dwelling in the Stardust Labyrinths. Deep inside are the Impurity Gods. Unless you defeat the Impurity Gods, you cannot place the new Star Offerings.What’s an Impurity God?That’s what becomes of a Star Offering when it loses its powers. It begins fusing with the Impurities deep in its labyrinth… and it quickly becomes a powerful monster called an Impurity God.So this is different than how it worked in Conception II. In that game, the boss monsters were something of an energy source for the labyrinths. They formed when a massive amount of Dusk energy pooled together. The heroes seal them in Matryoshka dolls in order to cut off the energy supply, which stops the monsters from continually respawning. In this game it seems that Dusk/Impurities just naturally flow into the labyrinths and are sucked up by the Star Offerings. When the Star Offering finally hits its limit, the amassed energy causes it to turn into a boss monster. Then I guess a God’s Gift goes in, kills it, and the energy just vanishes? Or does the new Star Offering suck up the energy of the old corrupted Star Offering? Both of those explanations raise some questions/issues. Wonder if we’ll ever find out the answers? You guys can fight them though, right? I mean, you’ve got magic and stuff.Unfortunately, no.  We can’t even hurt one. Our long history proves that.Wait, you guys can’t even scratch it?! Then there’s no way I can kill it! I don’t even have cool magic… that I know of.No, you are God’s Gift. You are the warrior who will save this world. And you’re not alone. You have many allies on your side. You’ll need the power of the Star Maidens to fulfill your duty. Now, come with me, Itsuki. I’ll introduce you to the Star Maidens.Finally. About time we get to this. The sooner we meet the Star Maidens, the sooner I can get the introduction bonding events out of the way and the sooner we can vote on which of the loving ~Granvania Shopping Center~  Itsuki, your bed’s ready! Wanna see? You can have some fun with any of the Star Maidens at any time now.Uhh… What is she talking about? What fun?Mana, hold your tongue. But before we meet the Star Maidens, I’ll take you to where you’ll be lodging.Oh, and I’ll be your guide for a while, Itsuki.Please Star God, no. Let us be rid of Mana. This is a blind LP, but Mana’s reputation as supposedly complete garbage has still managed to find its way to me. Oh, right. It should be noted that despite the perviness and general skeeviness, Mana is actually a girl. She uses the pink text box when she speaks, which is the color all the other female characters use (boys use blue), and she’s voiced by Sarah Williams in English (Yurin in Japanese). You get to have this beauty by your side, so you better be thankful. Now we get to have a little control. By that I mean we are allowed to push X and go to the Inn. Riveting. I will say that Conception Plus is much better about tutorials than Conception II was. There’s still a moving van’s worth of exposition to unload, but we’ll be let off the tutorial leash almost entirely by the end of this update.  This will be your frontline base until you fulfill your mission. You should have everything you need, but ask Mana if you need anything else.What about Mahiru? Where is she?Mahiru will be given a room in another dormitory. Do you need to be with her?You two were in a relationship?! What a pervert! Guehe… So, what were both of you up to before you came here?We’re not a couple! Also, how would I be a pervert for wanting to see my girlfriend if we were a couple? And we weren’t doing anything weird before we came here! She was just telling me—wait, no, going to stop myself there. Listen, I’m just worried about her.You can see her whenever you want. There’s no need to worry. Mana, please take care of the rest. Itsuki, come to the square when you’re ready. I’ll introduce you to the Star Maidens.  There we go. There’s the relentless barrage of tutorial cards that I was bracing myself for.  The Inn is mostly just where we go to save and advance time. There’s a few small things to do with Star Children that we’ll get into later, but a lot of the options you see here can be accessed from other more useful places. I’ll be waiting outside, so come out whenever you’re ready. You better not do anything weird just because you’re alone!You said it’s my room. I’ll do what I want, thank you very much. Although, not right now. I still have too many questions to think about relaxing.We get the chance to save, so I do just that. That’s all, so let’s keep this intro going.  Let’s talk about how you walk around the castle town.  All straightforward stuff. We’ll get more detailed looks at all of these places and letters and stuff as they become available. Reo is waiting for you at the academy. Now try going there. This time we actually have two choices for places to go. We’re supposed to go to the academy to meet the other Maidens, which I do actually want to get to, but the Palace has some more lore for us that sheds important light on how things work in this world. Let’s quickly check it out.   Narc here offers to tell us more about the world and Impurities and junk. At first it seems like he’s just going to repeat everything we were already told, but he actually has quite a bit of new info. Let’s start with asking about the Fantasy World.  After repeating the info about “Sora” and how this world is based on magic and ours is based on science and blah blah blah, he gets into new material. Our people receive blessings from the god of their birth month.And that’s it. It isn’t much, but it raises the question as to the hierarchy of Gods. Is Star God the supreme God? Are the 12 birth month gods collectively known as the Star God? I kind of wish he talked about this a bit more. I’ll have to look through the database later and see if it’s explained more thoroughly. Moving on to Impurities. In this world, Impurities are released as people bed with each other. Impurities are… Negative energy? What kind of insane BDSM poo poo do the people of this world get in to? Impurities, when left to their own devices, will fuse and turn into monsters. They then become beings that bring disaster. They’re far worse than wild bears. But people cannot simply stop being intimate, as it prolongs our species.So sex makes babies…. And also sometimes monsters. Who the gently caress designed this world? Was Star God drunk off his rear end, or did those 12 birth month gods suffer from a case of a “too many cooks spoil the broth”? This is also different than how it works in Conception II. In CII, Dusk energy was the monster creating force. Dusk energy was just an element that governed people’s desires. It wasn’t necessarily bad, as people can have a lot of desires that aren’t evil or wrong, like living for example. There was a bit of discussion in the CII thread about Shinto beliefs and purging impurities and stuff like that as it related to the concept of Dusk. Unlike in that game, there’s no debate here about the nature of the “dark” energy. Impurities seem to be 100% bad. At least as far as we know right this moment. That is why we use Star Energy to seal away Impurities in a special place. And that place is within the Stardust Labyrinths. Ever since, all the Impurities have been absorbed and stored within them. Still… people will continue sleeping with each other for all eternity.Wait, so what were things like before that mage created the Impurity vacuum? Did monsters just roam everywhere? The labyrinths ebb and flow with Impurities because of this. To prevent overflow, we have 12 Star Offerings deep within the labyrinths. That sums up the nature of Impurities.Choosing “A different question…” will give us two other topics to ask about. We’ll start with Star Offerings.  For every constellation, there is one Star Offering. Each of these… blessed by that constellation’s god, has the power to absorb Impurities. Active Star Offerings continue absorbing Impurities in the labyrinths.  The periods in which they lose their powers are offset by 10 years. In other words, one Star Offering is lost every 10 years. Despite knowing this, we are still unsure of the specifics of a star’s passing. The ancient texts only say this divine law: The stars revolve around the world.I see we’re still operating on the old Geocentric theory in this world. That’s cool. It’s a different dimension I guess. There’s a chance that everything here does actually orbit the Earth. And when a Star Offering is lost… The Impurities amassed by the citizens of that constellation cannot be absorbed. The Impurities would spill forth from the labyrinths to attack our world. When that happens, the world will be thrown into utter chaos. But that will not happen, for each time a Star Offering loses its powers… a God’s Gift appears in this world to save us. That sums up the machinations of the Star Offerings.So every ten years there’s a group of people worldwide who wake up and read their horoscope to find that their sex life (and those of their lovers) is officially on hold until Star God can summon a God’s Gift and sort poo poo out? That’s gotta suck. Although I guess each astral sign only experiences it once every 110 years or so. Granted things are a little different this time. Asking about God’s Gift is the other question for Narc, but he just repeats stuff we already know. Star God sneaks into Sora (Earth) every ten years and swipes somebody to act as God’s Gift. God’s Gift has to cleanse the Impurities in the labyrinth and swap in a fresh battery. Then the Gate of Light opens back up and the God’s Gift gets to go back home. Then he talks about Itsuki being the only hope for the world and all that JRPG protagonist nonsense.  Alright, that’s all for now. This went a bit longer than I thought it would, so we'll have to meet the Maidens that we'll be putting up with for the next 20-30 updates in Update II. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 13:47 on Nov 8, 2019 |
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Nov 8, 2019 04:54
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The temporary post I made here was rolled into Update II. Check it out here and skip past the first part if you already read through the Maiden introductions.
Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 01:21 on Nov 14, 2019 |
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Nov 8, 2019 04:58
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Wasn't around to catch your first LP of this series, but I suppose I'm here at ground floor for this one. ...I'll admit my eyes glazed over pretty quickly. I saw enough of the last one to know what to expect. I suppose these internet rants about censorship regarding this game are dumbfounding and/or worth a laugh. I don't think my brain wants to remember what I saw of Conception 2, but this plot seems even more contrived to make this work. More of them also look even younger which makes this all the more unsettling.
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Nov 8, 2019 05:36
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My body is steeled and ready for anime romcommery.
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Nov 8, 2019 06:19
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Ooh, kinda forgot this was in the pipeline. Time to see if the game we got first was the improved version, or if it just had sequelitis.Psycho Knight posted:
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Nov 8, 2019 07:22
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Mana, man. I came into this with low expectations and I was disappointed.
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Nov 8, 2019 08:12
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Looking good so far. Also I’m already annoyed by Ruka but can’t fault her for it regardless.
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Nov 8, 2019 08:12
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Commander Keene posted:Looks like a screenshot error here. You have a shot above that makes no sense where it is, and the same dialogue transcribed a few lines later. Good catch, thanks. I'll fix that as soon as I can. The Flying Twybil posted:...I'll admit my eyes glazed over pretty quickly. I saw enough of the last one to know what to expect. I suppose these internet rants about censorship regarding this game are dumbfounding and/or worth a laugh. Keep in mind that this is the exposition dump intro. It's hard to stay focused when the game is talking at you for half an hour about generic anime fantasy garbage. I know it's still very early, but CII actually feels like it has a better story and atmosphere, at least based on the intro. Maybe it's just because I grew attached to certain characters and their crap, but so far CP hasn't been giving me the same feeling that CII did. Maybe it has to do with the smaller supporting cast. According to the database, there are only 3 other characters in the extended cast and it's possible they are our antagonists. I can't remember exactly, but I know that CII had a much wider supporting cast than that. Kemix posted:Looking good so far. Also I’m already annoyed by Ruka but can’t fault her for it regardless. This is blind, so I have no bias towards particular characters like I did in CII. That said, Ruka is sending the strongest Tsundere vibes out of the 12 and I don't like that. Lillie seems to be leaning towards that too, but the only indication of Tsundere tendencies we've seen so far from her is her being pissed that mana clubbed her over the head with a hammer. Granted I will probably still hate Lillie regardless, because she looks like a character type I typically want nothing to do with. Ratoslov posted:Mana, man. I came into this with low expectations and I was disappointed. People online say that Mana is a low point for this game. So far she's only been slightly more of a creeper than Chlotz, but maybe she gets a lot worse once the game actually gets going. There has to be some reason why the fanbase is against her. __________________________________________ Just a few things of note about this LP so far. -For those of you that read through my CII LP and enjoyed the expressive character portraits, I'm really sorry that they are missing here. CP does use the same Live-D (or whatever it's called) system that CII used for character sprites, but I'm unable to get the art assets for this game. Like CII, the Steam version of this game is just an exe. I tried some tools to explore the file or scan for certain assets, but nothing worked. As for online help, somebody posted a request on another site for the sprites to be ripped back in October, but it hasn't been responded to. The game only came out on the 5th, so maybe someone will get around to working their magic now that it's actually out. Unless they do though, I'll have to keep using these static sprites. If things change and I get access to all of the assets by the New Year, then I will look into replacing everything with the expressive portraits. I'm not even really that happy with the current portaits to be honest. They aren't as nicely framed as I want them to be. Unfortunately this game has basically zero artwork floating around, so the headshots I have now are the best I can do on that front. -Music links will go up soon. The Steam version includes a 57 track OST, so I should be able to link to it myself. So far I haven't found a playlist of the songs on YouTube to use, so I'll probably have to upload it all myself. Somebody has the PSP soundtrack, but I'm not sure if all the music is the same as in Plus. -Cutscenes will be linked in the future. The cutscene in the intro wasn't linked because the drat thing is like 4 seconds long. The two screenshots I posted from it are basically half the scene, so I didn't bother waiting for that before posting. That being said, there are apparently only 3 cutscenes in total, according to the file folder. -I'm still working on Itsuki's personality. He really doesn't get many opportunities to speak during the intro since Mahiru does almost all of the questioning and reacting to things. I intend for him to be a typical teenager that's jazzed as hell about the idea of getting to act out an RPG in real life, except the reality of it is not as glamorous as imagined. I'm trying really hard to hold back on snark because that was Wake's thing. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 13:37 on Nov 8, 2019 |
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Nov 8, 2019 13:17
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If anything, I was reading him as a more laid back wake that's happy to help, but still isn't afraid to go 'wow that's lovely of you guys. Really?' And oh boy, they dialed up the anime for this one, didn't they?
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Nov 8, 2019 20:31
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Well that’s certainly a way to start a game. Also, what the heck is up with Narcisstes’s teeny hat?
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Nov 8, 2019 21:06
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Drakenel posted:If anything, I was reading him as a more laid back wake that's happy to help, but still isn't afraid to go 'wow that's lovely of you guys. Really?'
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Nov 8, 2019 21:50
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What the gently caress Mana. Good luck with this LP. Hopefully the combat will be better in this one.
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Nov 8, 2019 22:48
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Drakenel posted:If anything, I was reading him as a more laid back wake that's happy to help, but still isn't afraid to go 'wow that's lovely of you guys. Really? That works too. Like I said, still working on it. I haven't played ahead much beyond what you see in the update, so I don't have a lot of official dialog to work with yet. Commander Keene posted:It's more like they dialed back the anime for the sequel. And that one was still full of typical anime tropes. Although let's be fair, it's still really early in the game. I'm getting this weird inkling that the story in this game is going to be even more bare bones than CII. Maybe it's because the supporting cast is so small. I'm honestly not sure if we'll get a lot of anime in this game. I could be wrong though. Maybe I'm just weirdly unused to playing games 100% blind because of the advent of YouTube and poo poo. I'm used to at least some tiny bits of the overall story trickling in during the wait for release. Or catching screenshots of later parts of the story. OOrochi posted:Also, what the heck is up with Narcisstes’s teeny hat? I have no idea. I've been noticing more lately that Japan seems to have an obsession with tiny hats. Code Vein has a ton of them that just sit on your character's head, covering like 10% of the noggin. God Eater had them as well. Is it some Mad Hatter thing? Do the Japanese just find it really cute? I'm kind of baffled. Also frustrated because they look loving stupid. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 23:07 on Nov 8, 2019 |
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Nov 8, 2019 23:05
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I'm honestly more  at the morning sickness + pregnancy = monsters.Psycho Knight posted:Is it some Mad Hatter thing? Do the Japanese just find it really cute? I'm kind of baffled. Also frustrated because they look loving stupid. It's an idol thing and yes they think it's cute/quirky.
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Nov 8, 2019 23:11
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This seems like a really lovely world to have to live in.
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Nov 9, 2019 06:58
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OOrochi posted:
It is a wizard's hat. Obviously. More important, what is up with Mana's handcuffs? Besides the implication that he probably a dangerous sex offender pokemon thing on parole...
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Nov 9, 2019 09:31
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Ground floor! Let's see how insane this one can get! After classmanting, I'm sure nothing about this game can surprise... ... Welp.
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Nov 9, 2019 12:13
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Million dollar question is gonna be how this cast changes the rules by the time the sequel turns up. Also I wonder if over the years the Star God has abducted people across dimensions during the sequel and we just weren't aware of it.
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Nov 9, 2019 16:58
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Aww hell, ladies and gents, here we go again.
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Nov 9, 2019 22:10
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Aw man, here we loving go. 12 haremettes  no wonder the sequel pared it down.Random speculation with no basis whatsoever, Granvania Kingdom is going to be revealed as evil. Because when the palace scholar is named Narcissist you gotta read something into it.
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Nov 9, 2019 22:50
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Psycho Knight posted:
The fate of the world is at stake due to an unprecedented crisis and they forget to hold an election for one of the Star Maidens? Whoopsie doodle I guess!
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Nov 9, 2019 22:57
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Pretty sure it's 'from the' citizens, not 'by the', but I don't know how they managed to mistranslate that multiple times and also (presumably) proofread past it.
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Nov 10, 2019 01:40
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You know, when you're gods, asking to borrow a person is probably like asking to borrow a cup of sugar, petty and minor In other talk, anime plurality with the Lill's where they're magically color changing... beautiful... :eyeroll: We kinda like the designs though Mana gives serious creeps already, can we punch her out Mr. King Man has a wicked sweet outfit Can we punch Mana out PLEASE? And I wonder how bad the Classmating CG will be today, it was pretty bare yet bad for C2, so I dread what C+ has in store
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Nov 10, 2019 02:11
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Cloudmonkey98 posted:You know, when you're gods, asking to borrow a person is probably like asking to borrow a cup of sugar, petty and minor Except that Star God asks for a cup of sugar every 10 years, which probably feels like every few seconds for a God. CP Star God seems like kind of a loser so far. Also, you'll get your classmating answer in Update 2. I've got a whole diatribe to go on about that, mainly in regards to the people on the Steam message boards and the absolute shitfit they threw. Polsy posted:Pretty sure it's 'from the' citizens, not 'by the', but I don't know how they managed to mistranslate that multiple times and also (presumably) proofread past it. That never occured to me, but you are probably right. That would make more sense and also explain why Mana assumed the Maidens would be confused/shocked. As for how they would manage to repeat that error multiple times, it's Spike Chunsoft. I have a mini update to post tomorrow that gives them some credit for the translation work of the NA branch, but that doesn't mean they have gotten their poo poo together. For example, take a second look at the Church description:
Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 03:28 on Nov 10, 2019 |
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Nov 10, 2019 03:26
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There's also a "teh" on Tactics. I'm not sure anybody proofread this.
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Nov 10, 2019 10:27
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Special Update I: Conception Plus’ Delivery Problems Before we keep going with this LP, I wanted to discuss some of the weirdness with Conception Plus-  NO! NOT THAT WEIRDNESS! We’re not going anywhere near the anime adaption just yet and lord help us all when we inevitably do. No, this weirdness concerns the transition from 2012 Japanese-only PSP game to 2019 PS4 remaster exported to the English speaking world.  As stated in the intro, Conception Plus is an updated rerelease of Conception for the PSP, which released back in 2012. It only came out in Japan, yet its sequel (Conception II) did get an English localization courtesy of Atlus. Why Spike Chunsoft would choose this title as the one to dig out of the closet and give an HD update to is anyone’s guess, but they did. Why their newly established North American branch would choose this game to localize is a bit of an easier question to answer:  It’s because they’ve apparently embarked on a mission to speed-run Spike Chunsoft’s entire library. The NA branch opened in December of 2017 and after the Christmas party was finished they buckled down hard. They’ve been translating games like mad since early 2018. Anyhow, the stars somehow aligned perfectly in Conception’s favour and it was brought back for a second chance at life. Now that it’s here, we can take a look at some of the oddities that popped up along its journey. ~Opening tomfoolery~ The first one, which you should have noticed immediately if you watched the opening cutscene linked in the intro, is this affront to the English language:  It’s a little difficult to fully make out because the text starts to fade just as the last few words are appearing and the background light obscures it in places, but here is what it says: “You are about to witness a Tails, The Legend of Messiah, that will be handled down generation after generation.” That’s from the original PSP game’s opening. If English is not your first language or you somehow don’t see anything wrong with that, then let me explain. If I included a line like that in a paper to any of my English professors, they would be genuinely concerned that I fell and struck my head at some point between classes. -You don’t witness a “Tails”, unless you’re playing a Sonic the Hedgehog game. Additionally “Tails” is not a story, that would be a “tale”, which also wouldn’t be capitalized because it’s in the middle of the loving sentence and not a proper noun. -“a Tails” is a conflict of singular and plural. -The Legend of Messiah sounds like a sweet JRPG that’s being way too on-the-nose with its plot. But if that's what they wanted to go with then it should have been the "Legend of the Messiah." -You don’t “handle” a legend or tale down through generations, you “hand” it down, as in to pass it on. You get the point. It’s a complete mess is what I’m saying. Also pretty nonsensical. Japan, I know you guys like to use English to make things seem exotic or foreign. We English speakers do the same thing when we mangle Latin to try and appear sophisticated. I get it. But for the love of god, is it too much to ask that you run this poo poo by a native English speaker before sending it to the presses?  Apparently it is, because this is a screenshot from the Conception Plus intro. They went through the effort of doing a remaster and yet didn’t bother to make this incredibly simple fix. And don’t start with that “How do you know it’s easy? Have you ever made a game?” horseshit. I know it’s easy because Spike’s freshly opened North American branch DID fix it:  ”You are about to witness a tale, the legend of God’s Gift, that has been handed down for generations.” That’s much better. It sounds natural and it’s also not as overly pretentious as that “Messiah” thing. That’s a screenshot from the PS4/Steam English localization. Now, I know what else you might be thinking: “Okay, so the NA branch had the time to be able to change that small thing. Maybe the Japanese office didn’t. They had to actually develop the game after all, so maybe they had to make do with just reusing the old PSP intro.” Maybe so! Except not! I originally gave them a pass on this because I thought the same thing (this was before I knew the English version fixed it). It’s a small studio and an incredibly niche game, so they likely just pulled out the raw footage of the PSP opening animation and slapped a new title card on it to save some time and money. Then I noticed something:  The images on the left are from the PSP opening animation. The ones on the right are from the PS4/Steam version. They decided to reuse the same intro, but they also felt the need to go back and add in these weird aura effects to the sword and monster (as well as the glowing red eyes on the monster). Why? I’m not going to pretend that this took a lot of time or money to do, but there’s no question that it did take some amount. So why bother with it? I can’t imagine many people would argue that it greatly improves the opening in general. It’s also a little weird because Conception Plus introduces a 13th Star Maiden created just for this remaster, yet there is absolutely no sign of her being added to the intro. She doesn’t even get to be cheaply photoshopped in to that shot of Shangri-La, Narc, and Mana. Doesn’t it seem slightly more important to get her featured somewhere in the opening animation rather than making sure the protagonist’s sword is glowing? They clearly did work to touch up the intro, but in ways that don’t especially matter. ~Lillith’s not the only character with an alter ego~ Anyway, enough of that. We’ve got more to touch on. Such as Mahiru’s personality change. I mentioned this near the beginning of Update I as well as in the intro. In the transition to HD, the developers decided to tweak the personality of one of the characters. Unfortunately, instead of tweaking the personality of one character that really needed it (Mana, I’m talking about Mana), they turned their sights on Mahiru.  In the PSP version of Conception, Mahiru is more stuck-up and colder towards the protagonist. Her personality is heavier on the Tsundere side with a healthy dose of snark. She’s the school idol and is more concerned with that status than she is in the Plus version. However, despite the distance she tries to put between her and Itsuki, it's clear that she still sees him as her childhood friend (she does confide in him about being pregnant after all). Getting pulled in to Granvania causes her to grow a bit as a character and she gets kinder as the game goes on (according to what I’ve read about this whole thing online).  Compare the PSP screenshot to this one from the remaster, though. Mahiru in Conception Plus is a lot kinder and a bit more on the meek side. Upon Itsuki asking if she is kidding with the “I’m pregnant” thing, she responds like this in the Plus version: Why would I joke about that? Itsuki, I’m sure you want nothing to do with this. You probably just want to go home, eat chips, and play video games.Mahiru says this in kind of a hurt or disappointed tone in Plus. The kind of tone that says “I really need you to support me right now and not treat this like it’s nothing.” Her response in Conception PSP is along the lines of: Yes, this is just a joke. Is that what you want to hear? It is, isn’t? You just want to get this stupid conversation over with so you can go home. I’m sure you can’t wait to stuff your face with chips and play video games.Her tone in this response is angrier. She also quickly leverages their status as childhood friends in a sympathetic play to try and make Itsuki feel bad for responding like that. Now, I’ve seen things like this happen before in the process of localization. Mistranslating and misunderstanding of the Japanese script can lead to characters sometimes having different personalities compared to their original incarnations. This isn’t that. This personality change was made by the Japanese developers. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of many instances where the makers of the game changed a character’s personality for a rerelease, especially not a main character. If anyone can think of a time where this has happened, then let me know. I’m confused as to why they would make this change. Don’t get me wrong, I know what the idea behind it is. They wanted her to be more submissive and more appealing to players, so they made her nicer and more caring. The problem with that is that this is partially a dating-sim visual novel. PSP Mahiru is a Tsundere, which is an incredibly popular type of character (not to me of course, but to each their own I guess).  And if there are players that don’t like that kind of character? There are ELEVEN (twelve in Plus) other girls in this freaking game to chase after. So why change just Mahiru? No matter what personality you give her, you’re going to get overlap with others. We haven’t seen a lot of Ruka yet, but I get the feeling that she’ll be a Tsundere as well. So even if the devs changed Mahiru to avoid overlap with Ruka, they likely just made Mahiru closer to one of the other heroines. What’s the point? Unfortunately I can’t really find out. I couldn’t find any concrete information on why the developers changed her. It could have been because of focus testing, maybe it was because they found that players were being turned off from the game during the intro due to Mahiru’s attitude, maybe it was to better market the anime adaption, who knows. Either way, I find it very strange. ~General strangeness~ On top of all of that, there are a few other weird things I’ve noticed with this game. Some things were present in the original PSP version and just don’t seem to have been corrected, others seemed to happen in transition.   For one, Lilllith’s hair color seems to shift depending on what scene she appears in. In the opening as well as the small cutscene that plays as the Maidens are being introduced, her hair appears as more of a green. Maybe like a mint, or at most a turquoise. The Maiden introduction shot has her hair as R=167, G=248, B=207. But now let’s shift that to her gameplay appearances:   The second image is the one that the cutscene you saw screenshotted above transitions in to. The breakdown on this shot is R=187, G=255, B=244. Green stayed almost the same, but the Red and Blue were bumped by 20 and 40 respectively. It’s a minor thing, but it’s made really noticeable when we move from cutscenes/illustrations to gameplay. You can also see that Farun got hit with that a bit as well. Mahiru's hair color is also noticeably lighter in her PSP model, but that seems to have been corrected in her Plus model.  Speaking of cutscenes, despite this being a remaster, Conception Plus actually removed at least one of the cutscenes that was present in the PSP version. The image you see above is from a cutscene that, in the PSP version, played immediately after the “running up the stairs to the roof” scene from the opening seconds of the game. This scene doesn’t exist in the remaster. The Steam version only has 4 unique files in the movies folder. There’s the Spike Chunsoft logo movie, the opening, the “sucked into the sky” scene from the beginning, and the maiden introduction scene (which is less of a full cutscene and more of an animated illustration, if that makes sense). Except for the maiden intro scene, the movies come with three different names: _jp for Japanese, _en for English, and _zhtw. User Admiral H. Curtiss informs me that zhtw usually stands for traditional Chinese. There is a Chinese version of the game on the Singapore Playstation Store, but the language option doesn't seem to be included in the English release despite the presence of the cutscenes. I don’t know if there are any other cutscenes missing besides this one, but as for why this specific scene was cut, I believe it’s because it contradicts Mahiru’s personality change. The scene from the screenshot has Mahiru telling off Itsuki for being “12 seconds late”, which was part of her original PSP personality. I’m guessing that the developers of the remaster simply couldn’t find a way to write this scene to fit Mahiru’s rejigged personality since her body language is clearly meant to convey annoyance.  In addition to removing cutscenes, Conception Plus also removed the “Touch Communication” feature. This was present in the original PSP version, but Spike Chunsoft removed it for the Plus remaster. The Touch feature allowed you to weirdly touch the Star Maidens during conversations. Those of you who read the Conception II LP will remember this feature only cropping up maybe twice during the entire playthrough (once in Narika's route and once in Feene's). Those of you who didn’t read that LP may instead remember this from the Fire Emblem: Fates internet shitstorm a few years ago. There was a big outcry from weirdos on the internet that the English release of Fates wouldn’t let you pet and prod your Fire Emblem waifus and husbandos. Cries of “Censorship!” rang forth on gaming sites everywhere. I don’t really care personally. It was barely used and kind of janky in Conception II. I only mention it to document the change in attitude towards that kind of content, even from Japanese developers. This is a little bit important for what’s to come in Update II, because we’ll be seeing something that wasn’t removed from the game that is arguably way more risqué than being able to poke people while they’re talking. It also led to its own internet tantrum being thrown. Finally, to top things off, let's talk about the mess that the PC release was in general. I don't have screenshots for this crap, but here is a shortlist of the kind of stuff that I've been going through: -The game originally released without the Launcher. If you don't play PC stuff much, a Launcher is typically used to adjust graphics options and keybinding for games that don't just include those things in the in-game menus. So for about a week after this game came out, people couldn't adjust the resolution or V-Sync or change their controls. Spike Chunsoft originally made a post on the Steam boards saying that "The launcher should be there, guys. Go check again." When people pointed out that "no, the launcher most definitely is not there", SC apparently realized that the launcher files were in the Steam Developers page, but hadn't actually been released to the general public. -Even after the launcher got released, I was unable to make use of it due to an apparent Javascript error that said a module was missing from a Temp file on my SSD (which is not where my games are installed). Despite staring at the supposedly missing dll files, the error persisted and I wasn't able to find a way to fix it. I sent an email to the address listed on Spike Chunsoft's Steam Technical Support page and a short time later the email came back undelivered. The email SC lists on the Support Page apparently doesn't exist, or has been shut down. So instead, I had to find a different tech support email address from their Twitter account. -The reply I got from their support team said to update drivers, check the registry, run a malware scan, and run a virus scan. That is the digital equivalent to saying "Did you try turning it off and on again?" -After trying to reinstall the game to fix the above problem, the first attempt resulted in the game getting stuck at 100% download but not being actually installed. The second attempt installed, but the sound wouldn't work. The third attempt didn't fix the original error, but everything else was back to normal so I just slowly backed away and decided not to touch anything for fear of everything going to an irreversible hell. -In addition to these general issues, someone on the Steam boards has reported that this game supposedly suffers from a memory leak that can cause it to use up gigs of memory. I haven't had this problem myself (yet), but until it gets patched I will have to keep my task manager open in order to monitor my PC's performance. -A patch was released about a week after release that swapped out the existing movie files for "High Quality" versions. The difference in quality is very noticeable. As an example, the file size of the originally installed movie files was about 11mb for the English version of the opening movie. The High Quality version of that same file clocks in at 37mb. I have no idea where or how they got "Low Quality" movie files to begin with. It's possible that they accidentally compressed them during the port, but that still doesn't make a lot of sense. Best guess that I have, though. Future PK Edit: On top of the issues above, here are two more that I encountered as the LP went on. -The game would occasionally lock up for 30-40 seconds at a time when some kind of loading was required. Usually it happened when trying to open the menu or change rooms in the Labyrinths. After 30-40 seconds, the game would finally recover from it's brain fart and load up whatever it was that triggered the lockup. When it did, and assuming I was inside a dungeon at the time, the frame rate would proceed to get wonky. It would fluctuate between 10-30 fps at random while running around. Most of the time a restart would be needed, but sometimes just exiting to the world map would fix it. You want to know what's weirder? The frame rate dips are only visible in-game, as in live game play. What I mean is that my OBS recording of the footage would not show any frame rate wonkiness. If you play it back, it looks totally normal, but the live game play would show slowdown. And no, OBS was not the cause of this problem. This issue happened regardless of what setup I had going. Full screen with OBS running, full screen without OBS running, windowed with OBS, windowed without OBS, it didn't matter. -From the start of the game right until the end, the game only had about a 40% chance of starting with audio. Want to see how I could immediately tell if this was the case?  Seeing the opening stuff pass by at light speed is how I would know if the game was starting properly or not. If it flicked by like what you see above, then there wasn't going to be any audio. There were times when I needed to relaunch the game 4 times before the audio would finally start. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 12:49 on Apr 19, 2020 |
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Nov 10, 2019 19:35
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I don't have the files in front of me to check, but 'zhtw' usually stands for Chinese using the traditional writing system.
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Nov 10, 2019 21:25
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Admiral H. Curtiss posted:I don't have the files in front of me to check, but 'zhtw' usually stands for Chinese using the traditional writing system. I'll go back and check again. I'm not familiar with traditional Chinese, but I thought for sure I saw katakana and hiragana. It was only a split second shot of the text message from the opening scene though, so it's entirely possible I misidentified it. I've never seen the tag zhtw, personally. Granted I don't usually go poking around in the files of games. Odd for it to have a Chinese version of that 4 second cutscene. Chinese isn't a language option for the game, at least not the English release. The only language options are English and Japanese. Edit: Never mind, you must be right. There is apparently a Japanese/Chinese version of this game on the Singapore Playstation Store. That must be why the cutscene exists. Not sure why they left that cutscene in when the language option was removed, though. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 22:40 on Nov 10, 2019 |
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Nov 10, 2019 22:33
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On Mahiru, I assume its because she's the closest we get to secondary protagonist, she's got an invested plot hook beyond save the world, and she's introduced immediately, I'm not really happy with her being meek, but I can firmly say that having a "friend" thats just a bitchy brat as the opening to a game gives me a fair amount of negative interest, its first impressions, if they as designers think that getting yelled at is a good opener, you have to wonder what the rest of the game's attitude is like
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Nov 10, 2019 23:06
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Cloudmonkey98 posted:On Mahiru, I assume its because she's the closest we get to secondary protagonist, she's got an invested plot hook beyond save the world, and she's introduced immediately, I'm not really happy with her being meek, but I can firmly say that having a "friend" thats just a bitchy brat as the opening to a game gives me a fair amount of negative interest, its first impressions, if they as designers think that getting yelled at is a good opener, you have to wonder what the rest of the game's attitude is like I agree, I don't want her sucking the protag's dick from the word "go" but like 1) Going off on him about his lazy habits after you yourself called him up to the roof for a serious chat is just being an rear end in a top hat 2) The early game seems pretty ughhhhhhh and having a tsundere girl buzzing into your ear will prob grate REAL hard. Like imagine if shorty from CII was part of the tutorial instead of Fuuka. loving shoot me.
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Nov 11, 2019 04:39
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Update II: No need to fear me; I did not come to touch Title Song Reference: I Like to Watch (Milo's Night Out) - Prozzak ~Star God Academy Field~ Itsuki, I was waiting for you. Let’s go to the Star Maidens’ classroom.~Star Maidens’ Classroom~  There they are. Well, most of them. Mahiru isn’t pictured here. Also we seem to be missing the 13th Maiden that was added for Plus. I wonder when she turns up? Oh, looks like everyone is already here.Itsuki, these are the Star Maidens. By Universal Law… they are each chosen by the citizens and blessed by the Star God.Just so you know… Universal Law refers to the will of the Star God whom we worship.I am the Scorpio Star Maiden chosen by Universal Law. Come on, Itsuki, say hello. It can be short.Oh, okay. Uh… Hi, everyone. Nice to meet you.…Is that all? That’s rather abrupt.Hey, you said it could be short. What do you want me to say? I still don’t even know exactly why I’m being introduced to them. Plus, they’re all staring at me. I’m kind of nervous.Well, all right then.Looks like everyone’s here. How about you all introduce yourselves?I already did, so how about the others? All right, everyone. Let’s go in order and be concise.  I serve the church.  I’m usually out delivering mail. Nice to meet you, Itsuki! Oh, I should mention that Lillith has an alter ego…Excuse me? What do you mean by that?This!*Mana proceeds to whack Lillith on the head*   Mana, you wench! Where’d you even get that drat hammer?! Why’d you hit me anyway?!This is Lillith’s other personality, Lillie. If you hit her upside the noggin real good, Lillie comes out.You can ask her for more details about that later.This kind of took me by surprise. Everything I’ve seen in terms of promo stuff and the opening and the fact that Gemini is known as “the twins” led me to believe that Lillith and Lillie were two separate characters that shared the Star Maiden status. I guess that’s technically still true, although instead of sisters or something we’ve got a magical fantasy bipolar disorder. Also, I could have sworn that the blue haired one was named Lillie and the pink haired one was Lillith. She has bat wings for god’s sake! God drat it, now I’m going to have to rename the head pictures. Next!  You don’t need to remember my name…Great. I’ve already got an inkling as to what my opinion of you is going to be.   So long as I am a Star Maiden, world peace is guaranteed! Oh, God’s Gift, you will have nothing to worry about! As for me…Don’t you dare loving do that noble laugh. I swear to god if that’s your thing. That’s enough. I said to be concise. Next.Thank you, Reo.  Please don’t be proto-Ruby. That’s all I ask from you.   I love caring for animals because they’re so fluffy.  I’m the Capricorn Star Maiden. I was actually a traveler, but now I work at the tavern! Nice to meet ya, Itsuki!  I’m the Aquarius Star Maiden. I hope you’ll stop by to buy my bread. Come on, Yuzuha, you’re the last one. Oh! I’m… um… Yuzuha. I’m usually painting at home… A-And… I might be the Pisces Star Maiden…I know what you’re probably thinking, what with the look of the hair and her being Pisces (the fish), but I can confirm that she is not a fish person or mermaid. At the very least she has legs, according to her database model. That’s what I originally suspected anyway. Femi seems to be some kind of beast person, so I figured it was possible that Yuzuha was some kind of fish-human. Not “might,” you are. Including Mahiru, these are the 12 Star Maidens.So, about them… They were chosen to purge the Impurities and reborn as Star Maidens.Not my typo, Mana really does say “and reborn”. I missed you Spike Chunsoft. I thought you had really upped your game by fixing the hilariously bad English in the opening cutscene, but it looks like I still need to keep my wits about me. They’re able to create the Star Offering of their constellation just the once… And must fulfill their duty for the next 120 years until their powers are lost.For 120 years?! How are they supposed to do that?Also, why 120 years? They can only make the Star Offering one time. Do they have other things they have to do as part of this whole Maiden thing?  Maintaining your youth for 120 years seems like a sweet deal to me.But the previous Star Maidens were different. The “Star Chaos” three months ago made them lose their Star Offering powers.I’m guessing that has something to do with the fact that I have all the Star signs on me instead of just one. Why “Star Chaos”?It is what we are calling that incident. All the Star Offerings suddenly vanished in a single night. The Star Maidens are one with the Star Offerings. That’s why when the Star Offerings lose their powers, so do the Star Maidens. Then, and only then, do they finally complete their role as a Star Maiden.So far they haven’t made it clear what exactly losing their powers entails. Do they die? Does father time finally get a chance to swing the chrono bat at them and 120 years of no aging just catches up all at once? Do they just start aging like normal again and live out their lifespans like normal? The Star Chaos caused all 12 previous Star Maidens to lose their powers. We were chosen next. They were all chosen to be Star Maidens just over a month ago. They must’ve been really confused to see the Star Brand on their bodies!Didn’t you say they were chosen by the citizens? How would it come as a surprise? Or is that “chosen by the citizens” thing just symbolic feel-good BS? Being chosen out of the blue must have been nerve-wracking. So much pressure!Up till that day… None of them thought they would become a Star Maiden. But… there’s no time for that anymore. Even now, the Stardust Labyrinths are beginning to overflow with Impurities.God’s Gift appears when the Star Maidens are chosen. That’s how you got here.You are a rare type of God’s Gift with the marks of all 12 constellations.So does that mean Mahiru has the 12 Star Brands too? No. She only has the Virgo Star Brand. ”It seems”? You don’t know for sure?This is the first time in centuries the Star Maidens have been chosen like this.Same with how two God’s Gifts appeared at once.So Star God hosed up his count of maidens and just decided to swipe some Earth girl while he was out shopping for a new God’s Gift. Nice work, Star God. It must have something to do with the Star Chaos.Usually, only male God’s Gifts are summoned, due to Classmating and all that.Classwhatting?Also, the Star Maidens have always been from this world, chosen by the citizens.But this time, only 11 were chosen. The Virgo Maiden was excluded.That’s when Mahiru appeared with the Virgo Star Maiden Star Brand.There are so many things we just don’t know this time around. When did you get here, Mahiru?You always appear out of nowhere.I’m always eavesdropping.I suppose I don’t have to repeat my explanations then.I doubt I can really serve as the Virgo Star Maiden in the first place. But I have to. Otherwise, I can’t go back, right?As expected of an honor student. While I’m at it, can I ask you something?I really wish Reo said that sarcastically. It was begging for it. Did you spit something out when the Star Brand marked you?I did. It was this creepy, ugly… thing. Ugh… I feel sick just thinking about it. Or is it morning sickness?Morning sickness?Mahiru thinks that she’s pregnant. We haven’t actually confirmed that though.Oh… Then you don’t need to worry. You simply spat out the Impurity within you.What do you mean?The ones chosen as Star Maidens… They expel any Impurities from their bodies prior to being reborn. It varies by person, but to some, they show signs of pregnancy.Then… I’m not really pregnant? Yeah, because she’s my friend and it was bothering her. Of course I’d be relieved for her.Oh, really? I thought you two would make a great couple.D-Don’t be stupid! Why would I be with Itsuki…Ouch. Didn’t realize I was that repulsive.Aww, you’re so cute when you’re embarrassed. Just as a precaution, I’ll give you a check-up later. I may not look it, but I am the palace physician.You don’t really act like a physician either. At least not a licenced one. I see… So I wasn’t pregnant. Thank goodness…So what happened to the Impurity she expelled?I summoned a glowly sword and cut it in half. It was pretty cool actually.Amazing. As expected of a God’s Gift. That strength will help you enshrine the Star Offerings the Star Maidens create.What am I supposed to do? What’s this Star Offering?I’ll teach you how to conjure it later. It’s a tiring ritual, but you’ll be fine. Now, that’s about it for the Star Maiden introductions.Oh drat, I forgot that we did that. Have they all just been standing around in silence this entire time? Itsuki, we need to talk. Come to the church later.Oh, okay. See you there, then.We go back to the city map, but we only have one option on where to go. Well, let’s get this out of the way, I guess. Going to have to do it eventually. ~Church Spirit Chamber~  Magic? Am I going to get cool magic? Because that would really help with the whole “saving the world” thing.To fulfill your duty, you will need the help of the 12 Star Maidens. Remember what I told you?You mean that thing about the Star Offerings?Yes, but that’s not all. The Star Maidens have another important duty. That is Classmating. Even if you are God’s Gift, going to labyrinths alone is suicide. You need allies to join you in the fight.Whew. Not going to lie, I was a little afraid that you guys were going to make me go in alone. Having 12 other people in my party is definitely reassuring. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to defend the Star Maidens in the labyrinths as we fight together.Unfortunately, they have no direct ability to fight impurities.Wh-what…? But but, if they can’t fight then- ….What?CHILDREN!? Hold on, I am not ready to be a dad! I’m definitely not ready to… you know… with the uhhh… I mean, 12 women?!Pardon me. Star Children to be exact.The Star Maidens will Classmate with you and create Star Children. Itsuki, you’ll be surrounded by 12 beautiful girls. It’s like your own harem. Isn’t that awesome? I bet you can’t stop drooling right now.I JUST WANTED TO BE A HERO! I wanted to fight monsters and gather a party and go adventuring and scream at people for not doing their job right! Since when did the hero’s job turn into… breeding!? All of these options are basically “Uh, beats me.” LP Itsuki is not going to be that stupid. How the hell does a guy about to tackle undergrad not know how babies are made? …I mean… I know the basics of how it works…When did you…?Oh…? You don’t look like the type though. I guess you know when to get down to business, ya perv!Listen, that stays between me and my brows—actually, never mind. Let me put it this way. I used to help my grandfather a lot with his cattle. I know how to “plant seeds.”Oh, I did too.Wait, you meant you have experience fertilizing plants with cow manure?…Sure, let’s go with that.Whatever. It was stupid of me to ask.Can we get back to the whole “Itsuki becomes a dad” thing now? I feel like we haven’t properly talked about that.Listen carefully. God’s Gifts go into labyrinths with Star Children to fend off the Impurities. Itsuki, you will create Star Children with us through the Classmating ritual.Now you’re confusing me. Aren’t you supposed to be a doctor? Just how long do you think it takes to raise a child?! And hold on… Why are you talking so casually about making children?! And so we still don’t get any idea of what the gently caress the Classmating ritual actually involves. Conception II was very cagey about it as well. From what we’re told in that game, Classmating apparently just involves God’s Gift holding hands with the girl at an altar and the two of them proceeding to think really hard about each other. Apparently it doesn’t even require direct physical contact, as Ellie initially doesn’t like touching people and will just hold on to Wake’s shirt. Conception is telling us that the Classmating ritual doesn’t involve sex, or at the very least it’s different from sex. But what does that mean? Do they just dry hump each other? The Conception anime adaption tells us that it isn’t sex as well, but-- well, let's save that for the anime discussion later down the road. Either way, I have a feeling that this game won’t be explaining the ritual any farther than what we’re being told here. I guess we’ll just stick with the assumption that it’s like CII, which is to say that Itsuki and the Star Maidens will just stand there and think about each other or eye hump each other or something. Star Children are warriors born to carry out the mission of God’s Gift. It’s not the fruit of your loins that you’re thinking of. From the moment Star Children are given life… They become the only existence, next to God’s Gift, who can purge Impurities. Stardust Labyrinths also have doors that only open with Star Children present. That’s why you need Star Children to fulfill your duty.I’m sorry, but I have no idea what you’re talking about.Same here. Are you really trying to tell me that a bunch of kids are supposed to be my dungeon party? I’m so dead…It’ll be faster if I just show you. We’ll conduct the Classmating ritual now to create a Star Child. Come, Mahiru. I’ll show you how.W-Wait, Dr. Reone. A-Are you telling me to make babies with him right now? Haha… You’re not serious, are you?I’m sure you’re only embarrassed because everyone is watching. Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.People are going to WATCH this!? What the gently caress is wrong with this world!?”Get used to it”?Fuehe… It only hurts the first time.Mana, stop teasing Mahiru. But Itsuki, do be gentle. It is her first time.Be gentle how? What the hell am I supposed to be doing?Just do as I say, and you’ll get it right the first time around.N-No… Don’t just start going at it!Mahiru, this is to return to your world. You must accept it.Nooo! While our heroes protest and get really creeped out, the game informs us that Reone will be choosing our Star Children classes this time. However, after the tutorial team is made we’ll be free to chose what we want. Or rather, the thread will be free to choose what they want. I’ll go into more detail about that a little later.  Every time you Classmate, there is a little scene that will play which shows the spectral Sailor Moon body of the chosen Star Maiden suggestively moving around. These get more elaborate and more suggestive as the game goes on. I’ve edited this screen shot to make it acceptable for an LP that might be read in the presence of prying eyes. If you really want to see the unedited shot, then here it is. It’s only Sailor Moon style “nudity”, but you’ve been warned regardless. Now, I’m going to pause things for a moment to highlight a little something about these scenes. The scene you’re seeing above is actually from the PS4 version, which was censored in North America. A handful of people on message boards went absolutely apeshit over this when it was announced. There was a lot of complaining about Spike Chunsoft capitulating to Sony’s recent censorship policies in regard to Japanese games. For those who don’t know, Sony has recently changed gears and enforced a censorship policy on Japanese games and the sexual content they may possess. People have been bitching about it for a while, but the basic idea behind it is that Tokyo is about to host the Olympics in 2020 and like every country that gets the “honor” of hosting that gigantic waste of taxpayer money, Japan is doing everything it can to polish its image for the easily impressed/offended tourists that they hope to attract. Anyway, got a bit off track there for a second. So, the PS4 version of Conception Plus was censored for North America. How was it censored?  There. Here is the unedited. Yes, that is the change that was made for the North American release that caused some people to poo poo their pants in rage, spam Spike Chunsoft’s Twitter with complaints, vow to “vote with their wallets”, and take a stand against censorship. Oh, also some people were hoping for Spike Chunsoft to go out of business as a way to make them pay for this egregious transgression. I want to reiterate. The censorship that Sony allegedly imposed on this game for North America was not to cut out these weird sexy scenes entirely, nor was it to even make them slightly less suggestive. They CHANGED THE COLOR OF THE BODIES AND SHOWED THE FACE. For those of you who read the CII thread, the censored version of these scenes is basically identical to the scenes in CII. CII went further and made the ladies’ bodies neon colors. And that wasn’t even censorship! It was just the way that CII did it.  Jesus Christ guys, it’s a color change. Not like you’ll be watching these more than once anyway. I made my love of transformation sequences very clear in the Conception II LP, and even I didn’t watch those drat things every single time they showed up. Anyway, it turns out the Steam version was left uncensored, just like the Japanese version. The message board people declared victory in their ongoing Holy War against censorship and acted like they had achieved a great victory. Meanwhile, the more likely explanation is that Spike Chunsoft was lazy and didn’t bother censoring the PC version because Valve doesn’t give a poo poo, unlike Sony.  What were we doing again? …Oh, right. Star Children. Yeah, so here are our first two Star Children. Every time you make a Star Child, they will pop out of their little Matryoshka dolls holding a card. These cards give different bonuses. These two little tykes have 10% off BP cards, which means that it took 10% less Bond Points to create them. We’ll be introduced to Bond Points later. All you need to know about it now is that we need to use the points to make Star Children.  We also get another two Star Children to round out the team. They also pop out with the 10% off coupons. This is a tutorial, so the cards will always be the same, but once we start making our own, these cards can have a range of effects. Sometimes it’s cash, sometimes it’s a boost to the Star Maidens mood, those kind of things. Also, it should be noted that this is a special tutorial Classmating. Unless things are different in this game, then twins are the best you can do in a single Classmating ritual (and twins are pretty rare). You can’t get quadruplets like what happened here. This is simply to give us enough Star kids for a full team. What… what just happened…? I’m so tired…My mind is going blank… I don’t really remember what happened during the ritual. Sh-Shut up!But wasn’t it easier than you thought? Now you all know how to do the Classmating ritual.You gotta do that with all 12 Star Maidens from now on. You better get training to increase your stamina, if you know what I mean. You gotta take the initiative. All the Star Maidens are virgins after all.Please stop talking…One condition to be selected as a Star Maiden is keeping your virginity intact.Normally I’d ask why Star God would make that a prerequisite, but apparently sex in this world is a source of monster juice, so I guess that makes sense. Also, does that mean that Maidens need to maintain virginity for their 120 years of service, or is sex okay after they’ve already been made into Star Maidens? Because if it’s the former, then that is some serious monkey’s paw poo poo, “You shall receive 120 years of life without aging, maintaining your youthful beauty for over a century! …But you also can’t have sex! Star God, out!” Aren’t you happy? You can get with all 12 of them. You gotta be grinning deep down.Oh yeah. Nothing beats getting blue balled… and whatever the female equivalent of blue balls is. Mana, what are you whispering?Oh, sweet nothings is all.Someone please make it stop.Now, this is important, so listen carefully.  How well you interact with the Star Maidens is key to your mission. I can tell you’re not that good at winning over the ladies. But you really gotta be on the prowl when you interact with the Star Maidens. Being a bit forceful is necessary at times too… Guehe…Has everyone grown attached to Mana yet? Huh? Let me get a shout out from all the CII LP people out there that loved Chlotz’s creeper antics and were desperate for more. (I can’t believe this… This is nothing like what I imagined… Well, I’m still supposed to be a hero. If I don’t give this my all, then me and Mahiru won’t be able to go home… and also we’ll probably die here when the monsters kind of overrun the entire country. Stay cool, Itsuki. You can do this… probably…) Let’s make Star Children…Itsuki, that’s not very manly.He doesn’t have it in him to stay that with pride…It doesn’t actually matter what you say here. The responses from Reo and Mahiru don’t change for this choice. Oh, one more thing, Itsuki. There’s actually one more thing about the Classmating ritual. There’s more?! Are you kidding?Hehehe… It’ll be like a dream come true for you, I’m sure. You can actually take in two Star Maidens at a time…Oh, that’s great… As if I wasn’t under enough pressure as it is. Yeah, really taking one for the team on this. Nar, you came at just the right time.There isn’t some insane version where I have to take all 12, is there?Not to worry, I will tell him that when the time is right. There’s something else you must know first. Will you hear me out?I kind of want to sit down for a bit, but I guess it’s better to get this all out of the way at once. So, go for it.All right. Time for the next step. Let’s talk about Party Formation.Oh, okay. That sounds cool, actually. This is a bit different from Conception II. Our Star Children teams will be groups of 4 for this game instead of the groups of 3 that CII used. This is the same as it was in the PSP version of Conception.  Speaking of Party Formation, here is what we’ve been saddled with for the tutorial team. It’s not bad, but also nothing special. We’ve got two boy fighters (Pit and Arthur), a mage girl (Vanessa), and a healer girl (Natasha). Where’s our Tank, Reone?! I thought you were going to choose a balanced team. A party of four is 1 Tank, 1 Healer, and 2 DPS. Here are the database entries for the individual classes we have:    Also, yes, boy Clerics always have that expression. It’s creepy. That’s all there is to it. After the Star Chaos, creating new children has been banned in this nation. That is only a temporary solution however.Yyyeah, good luck trying to enforce a nationwide ban on sex for very long, even with the world at stake. At this rate, the species will be unable to prosper. So I thank you, Itsuki, for accepting this mission, whatever your reasons.Not like I have a choice.~Inn Room~  Okay, I guess we’re skipping to the next day. Yesterday must have been crazy taxing from all the info you had to process. But now you have a general idea of the situation this nation is facing. We’re going to the shop today to gather some fighting equipment for you.Oh, cool. I can get behind that. This is more the kind of thing I expected. But, how are we going to buy that stuff?This is from the king. His orders are for you to prepare for you mission. Oh, hell yeah! That’s what I’m talking about. It’s about drat time we see a ruler that’s willing to take the “no expenses spared” route for the one person that everybody’s life depends on. poo poo, in CII our boy Wake was stuck having to earn AngelMarker fun bucks by fighting monsters. It’s a check.He’s giving me all of this?!The fate of the world rests on you. You can buy up the entire shop if you’re so inclined.I am indeed so inclined.  Okay, let’s not go crazy. I love me some cash, but I draw the line at being a douche about it. What do ya think, Itsuki? Doesn’t it feel great to be rich?To be honest, all of this pressure is kind of making me sick…You’re so pitiful… Anyway, let’s go shopping. It’s too dangerous to explore the labyrinths without the proper equipment.I will rarely ever agree with Mana, but in this case Mana is right. Stop being a loser, Itsuki. Let’s go make some poor shopkeeper’s month and kit out our kiddos. ~Granvania Shopping Center~  We got plenty of money to blow!That doesn’t mean we should waste it. I’m all for buying up useful stuff like items and equipment, but I’m not blowing money on getting drunk.You’re such a square! You’re no fun at all!Gonna side with Itsuki. Spend much but spend wisely. Also, what the hell even is the drinking age in Granvania? How do you determine legal drinking age for beings like Mana? There’s another question that will come up— *Douchebag outta nowhere*  Who was that? A drunk this early in the day?Forget that. What was with that stupid getup? Who walks around in a bird mask and skin tight spandex? The bums are really crawling about everywhere.Says the one that wanted to go get hammered after shopping.Anyway, let’s go cash that check, Itsuki!Sure, su—What happened?I could have sworn I had it in my pocket…Wh-Wh-Wh-What?! Where’d it go?!Maybe it’s… wait, there’s a hole in here!Wh-Wh-What did you say?! G-Go look for it right now!*One fruitless retracing of steps later*   Dammit!Wait… Maybe it was that masked man from earlier who bumped into you?! Did he pickpocket you?!WHAT THE gently caress IS THAT GUY GOING TO DO WITH A CHEQUE?! It was written by the King of Granvania specifically to God’s Gift and has 9,999,999G as the amount! What bank in the world is going to cash that poo poo without verification?! Especially when the dude handing it over is wearing a goddamn bird mask! This entire hero thing has gone to hell… I’m really starting to hate this place.What’re you gonna do, Itsuki?!I guess we better go tell the king that we lost it. Maybe he can cancel it or something and write a new one.You can’t do that! If you do, who knows what punishment he’d dish out to me!Well, I was the one that got pickpocketed.I was ordered to be your babysitter! That definitely won’t fly! Ugh, I’ll be punished dearly for this… This is the end for me…Not gonna lie Mana, you kind of have it coming to you. Itsuki wasn’t the one out there on the street loudly proclaiming how loaded you were. Seriously, you couldn’t just keep your mouth shut until we were done shopping? Ugh… fine. We’ll keep it a secret. I’ll figure something out with the supplies.Itsuki, here’s my life savings. Try to get what you need with this. Your attempt at making amends is like poison to my veins… Get that pocket change away from me!Are you sure you want to do this?Of course not! But we don’t have any time to save up the money! Taking too much time will make Nar super suspicious.I guess you’re right.We’re in this together, at least for now. I’m prepared to do what I need. I didn’t think we’d trip up so early though. Once you’re done preparing, it’ll be time to head into the Stardust Labyrinths!  gently caress you, Mana! Take your 2,000G and choke on it! Son of a… Alright, it’s okay. I’m calm. It’s only 9,997,999G less than expected. Let’s just… let’s see what we can do. The Shop is up first.     Here is everything you need to know about shopping. I’ve never found Bulk Buy particularly helpful, personally. I prefer to equip on an individual basis.  Let’s take a look at what we can do, if anything.  Items are all standard stuff. Potions are for HP, Mana Stones are for MP, Star Drops revive, and everything else is for curing various status effects. All of these are far too expensive for the pittance we got from Mana. That’s okay, though. If this game is anything like CII then we’re going to wind up getting most of our items from dungeon runs. What’s the scene like over in the equipment isle?  Jack poo poo. That figures. The one upgrade for Itsuki is beyond our newly reduced savings account. Also, I’m sure the game will do it at some point, but here’s a run down of the stats since they’re here in front of us: ATK – Physical Attack Power TEC – Accuracy (has an impact on critical hits) DEF – Physical Defense SPD – Speed (affects turn order and dodging) MAT – Magic Attack Power MDF – Magic Defense LUC – Luck (affects stuff like critical hit chance and item drops) Unless things have been greatly revamped in this game, then Speed will be the most important stat. Speed determines how quickly your characters’ turns come around. The faster you are, the more turns you get. Having more turns than the enemy gives you more flexibility in healing and responding to attacks.  Other than that, we can’t afford any new armor for Itsuki. None of the accessories are worth it. We only have enough cash to give one of our tutorial kids an upgrade, but I pass on doing that because we haven’t gone dungeon exploring yet. We'll get upgrades for them from there. Might as well check out the Tavern before moving on.    The Tavern is where we pick up quests, although some quests will apparently come to us directly from the Star Maidens. Completing them is how we get new items in the shops.  Also, Farun works here, which she mentioned earlier in the update.  There’s a bunch of quests available right from the start. As far as I can tell, all of the ones we see here are already active. The tutorial card just told us that we’ll get the ability to take on more quests as we complete others, but I’m not seeing any way to accept quests. Weird. Oh well, I’m not going to complain. Just means that I can tackle all of them at once. Anyway, off to the Stardust Labyrinths, where there is apparently an event. ~Granvania Shopping Center~  Even if you head to the Stardust Labyrinths, the entrances aren’t open. To open them, you need the help of all 12 Star Maidens.Okay, well let’s go do that then. Why the hell did you point me here if we can’t go? ~Palace Throne Room~  The fate of the world is in your hands. I wish you the best.Itsuki, I entrust these Star Offerings to you. Enshrine them in the deepest parts of the 12 labyrinths to complete your mission.Well that’s nice. We were actually given the magic doodads that we need to save the world before being shoved into the monster filled death mazes. What a novel concept.   Right, Ruby? You unbelievable dumbass.Now, take the Star Maidens to the labyrinth entrances. Itsuki, go to the Stardust Labyrinth once you’re ready.Finally. Off we go.  You guys have satellite dishes in this world? Anything decent on TV around here? So this is where the labyrinth is, huh…These great labyrinths… They were constructed by Mirei’s ancestors to seal the Impurities.  They passed their hopes down to us as I took over their mission. That is why I need your help, Itsuki.Uh, right. I’ll do my best.All the Star Maidens are here. Everyone, just do it the way we practiced yesterday. Mahiru, you remember, don’t you?Yes… It’s easier than making the Star Offering.This gate is the entrance to the labyrinths only to be used by God’s Gift. It’s usually locked by the Seal of Thorns. But we’ll be unsealing it right now. Mirei, let’s start.We will now conduct the Unraveling Ceremony on the Seal Gate of the Stardust Labyrinths. Then we get a little clip of each Maiden’s face appearing alongside their star sign. It isn’t nearly Sentai enough for my liking. I miss the transformation sequences from CII.   Phew… Oh, geez…You looked like a sorceress. Wish I could learn some magic like that.Never mind that. Just be careful out there.I can do this. You just have to trust me.Yeah… I’ll do that.(At least, I hope I can do this…)I haven’t slept at all since creating the Star Offering and practicing for this ceremony. I feel bad about it, but I need to get some rest now.Mahiru, you did well. Thank you.You don’t need to thank me. It’s all to get back to my own world.Itsuki, before you go into the labyrinth, I’ll explain the structure of it. The 12 Stardust Labyrinths each have a chamber hidden deep within. But this is the only entrance.  Go through the gates to get to each labyrinth. The labyrinths all go deep underground, and the lowest level is B15.Not liking the sound of this so far. 15 floors was a pain in the rear end to get through in CII. Not to mention boring as sin. Every five floors, the Impurities’ energy signatures will become stronger. They basically get harder to fight every five floors. Don’t get too cocky. Return to the surface if you sense you’re in danger. Also, the labyrinths of the four seasons are of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. When you get to B10, they’ll branch out and reveal three more labyrinths. Four labyrinths with three branches make them a total of 12 labyrinths.I’m going to assume that these paths are all locked off behind story advancements. I don’t expect we’ll get a choice as to which gate to enter or even which branch to go down. At the bottommost floor, the Impurity Gods await you. That’s all the dirt I’ve got on the Stardust Labyrinths. Itsuki, are you ready? Let’s go!  And here’s the gameplay loop. Like CII, this game doesn’t seem to have any kind of hard limit on time. We can rest and fart around as much as we want, since only the plot can advance story time.   You should start from the Spring Labyrinth. The Impurities there aren’t as strong. Go to the end of the Aries Labyrinth and enshrine the Star Offering. By then, you should be strong enough to take on the other labyrinths.Alright, let’s do this I guess. Come on… uhh… kids? Party? Star Children? Not really sure what I should call you. Well, we’ll figure it out on the way.Have to stop there for now. Next time, we'll check out the dungeon and also the Star Maidens. Decisions have to be made for both. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 01:23 on Nov 14, 2019 |
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Nov 14, 2019 01:19
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drat, Mana is just plain insufferable. This whole thiing is awkward enough without a flying pervert doll, and it's worse that it's a main character that pesters you in every conversation and not just a side character who can mostly be ignored. It also doesn't help that they're responsible for causing you to lose your money in a cutscene. Also, that censorship crusade ordeal is just as dumb and pointless as I expected. It's hardly a change and still yet manages to bring out the idiots. I'm actually relieved it wasn't something as far up on the creep scale as Fire Emblem Fates's whole censorship thing. Mana's already enough to make my eye start twitching or facepalm in astonishment.
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Nov 14, 2019 02:02
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We need to make a boy cleric.
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Nov 14, 2019 02:06
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Wow, I really do hate this. I mean, most of it at Mana, just please snuff the abomination at the earliest convenience. But... Yeah I see the sequel was an improvement in a number of ways.
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Nov 14, 2019 02:16
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At this point I wish Mana turns out to be some sleeper agent for the Impurity nonsense from what little I'm gathering from this update. It'd be kinda clever.
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Nov 14, 2019 02:18
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Jesus, at least Chlotz had some decent qualities eventually. Mana is just stupid. Also, I like the clerk's wacky hair.
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Nov 14, 2019 02:30
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So none of the star maidens are going into battle with us? That's just going to make them even more forgettable. Also why is it still called classmating anyway? Mahiru is the only classmate we have here.
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Nov 14, 2019 02:32
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quote:wow they actually said it, I was not expecting that I gotta say, this world seems to suck a lot more than CII's. It's a hell of a lot less compelling too. Seraphic Neoman fucked around with this message at 02:46 on Nov 14, 2019 |
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Nov 14, 2019 02:36
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