Social DGames Social | V/LA |

[#HBC | marshy]

SW348728343597

my friend code for switch

everyone who reads this add me and lets play smash. this game is fun af

 

[BarDulL]

I just play DK and cargo throw people off walk-offs at 0% in free for alls

 

[ranmaru]

Nice! Did you buy it or build it?

Built it!

Nice! what sort of specs?

I just upgraded the computer I built a few years back a bit.

Let me get back to you on this when I get time tomorrow. (going to sleep lol)

 

[Thirdkoopa]

SW348728343597

my friend code for switch

everyone who reads this add me and lets play smash. this game is fun af

depends

are you on discord

 

[#HBC | marshy]

depends

are you on discord

ya. hmu if you like

YOLOSWAG #7250

in case the fire emojis dont show on this software

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

giraffelasergun Most videogames have terrible writing. Most writings are terrible writing. This is an example of terrible writing. However to your point, FF X was the start of the end for me as the focus of JRPG games seemed to shift more on to graphic capabilities to carry the narrative over an attempt at dialogue, setups, and creativity. A lot of the latter elements were relied upon to overcome limitations on the PS 1. Projects like Vagrant Story often ran into limitations that required eliminating plot points & bosses as well as determining graphic designs choices as the game was developed. Despite this, the focus was still placed on a cohesive narrative because the graphic capabilities still hadn't achieve sexy eye candy levels that could reliably bring in consumers over an attempt at plot.

It seems like a problem for AAA games is no longer about technical limitations, but financial limitations. Procedurally generated maps for dungeons loses all the charm of having a purpose or a design function to why Dungeon A has differences to Dungeon B that may be relevant to the plot. Design choices like this are ideal for studios that churn out games with map-oriented exploration because it means that they can just insert x, y, z assets and then have their patented map maker create the dungeon for players. Having players actually believe that this is a fun & novel idea is probably easier when the quality of JRPG games has been declining and expectations are non-existent. FF 15 still has remarkably high ratings for being designed as an intentionally incomplete game that would require DLC booster packs to unlock significant portions of the story. In this case, a board room of executives could get together and add content based on what which DLC was the most successful and simply force it in there in order for Sony to meet their expectations for the fiscal quarter. All of these new innovations are less focused on enhancing the play for players and are more interested on increasing the pay off from payers.

In short, I'd like to posit that JRPGs are now dead to me. Videogames are dead to me. And I'm dead on the inside.

tl;dr version

Spoiler

Most videogames have terrible writing. Most writings are terrible writing. This is an example of terrible writing. However to your point, FF X was the start of the end for me as the focus of JRPG games seemed to shift more on to graphic capabilities to carry the narrative over an attempt at dialogue, setups, and creativity. A lot of the latter elements were relied upon to overcome limitations on the PS 1. Projects like Vagrant Story often ran into limitations that required eliminating plot points & bosses as well as determining graphic designs choices as the game was developed.

It seems like a problem for AAA games is no longer about technical limitations, but financial limitations. Procedurally generated maps for dungeons loses all the charm of having a purpose or a design function to why Dungeon A has differences to Dungeon B that may be relevant to the plot. Design choices like this are ideal for studios that churn out games with map-oriented exploration because it means that they can just insert x, y, z assets and then have their patented map maker create the dungeon for players. Having players actually believe that this is a fun & novel idea is probably easier when the quality of JRPG games has been declining and expectations are non-existent. FF 15 still has remarkably high ratings for being designed as an intentionally incomplete game that would require DLC booster packs to unlock significant portions of the story. In this case, a board room of executives could get together and add content based on what which DLC was the most successful and simply force it in there in order for Sony to meet their expectations for the fiscal quarter. All of these new innovations are less focused on enhancing the play for players and are more interested on increasing the pay off from payers.

In short, I'd like to posit that JRPGs are now dead to me. Videogames are dead to me. And I'm dead on the inside.

 

[Thirdkoopa]

a tl;dr that says literally the same thing as the regular one

10/10

 

[BarDulL]

a tl;dr that says literally the same thing as the regular one

10/10

You’re wrong

The tl;dr does not include “tl;dr version” at the bottom like the bulky behemoth of an essay prior. The tl;dr is functionally 10 or so characters less and helped significantly for my reading retention

 

[Thirdkoopa]

You’re wrong

The tl;dr does not include “tl;dr version” at the bottom like the bulky behemoth of an essay prior. The tl;dr is functionally 10 or so characters less and helped significantly for my reading retention

it also didn't include giraffelasergun so touche

 

[Fire Emblemier]

giraffelasergun Most videogames have terrible writing. Most writings are terrible writing. This is an example of terrible writing. However to your point, FF X was the start of the end for me as the focus of JRPG games seemed to shift more on to graphic capabilities to carry the narrative over an attempt at dialogue, setups, and creativity. A lot of the latter elements were relied upon to overcome limitations on the PS 1. Projects like Vagrant Story often ran into limitations that required eliminating plot points & bosses as well as determining graphic designs choices as the game was developed. Despite this, the focus was still placed on a cohesive narrative because the graphic capabilities still hadn't achieve sexy eye candy levels that could reliably bring in consumers over an attempt at plot.

It seems like a problem for AAA games is no longer about technical limitations, but financial limitations. Procedurally generated maps for dungeons loses all the charm of having a purpose or a design function to why Dungeon A has differences to Dungeon B that may be relevant to the plot. Design choices like this are ideal for studios that churn out games with map-oriented exploration because it means that they can just insert x, y, z assets and then have their patented map maker create the dungeon for players. Having players actually believe that this is a fun & novel idea is probably easier when the quality of JRPG games has been declining and expectations are non-existent. FF 15 still has remarkably high ratings for being designed as an intentionally incomplete game that would require DLC booster packs to unlock significant portions of the story. In this case, a board room of executives could get together and add content based on what which DLC was the most successful and simply force it in there in order for Sony to meet their expectations for the fiscal quarter. All of these new innovations are less focused on enhancing the play for players and are more interested on increasing the pay off from payers.

In short, I'd like to posit that JRPGs are now dead to me. Videogames are dead to me. And I'm dead on the inside.

tl;dr version

Spoiler

Most videogames have terrible writing. Most writings are terrible writing. This is an example of terrible writing. However to your point, FF X was the start of the end for me as the focus of JRPG games seemed to shift more on to graphic capabilities to carry the narrative over an attempt at dialogue, setups, and creativity. A lot of the latter elements were relied upon to overcome limitations on the PS 1. Projects like Vagrant Story often ran into limitations that required eliminating plot points & bosses as well as determining graphic designs choices as the game was developed.

It seems like a problem for AAA games is no longer about technical limitations, but financial limitations. Procedurally generated maps for dungeons loses all the charm of having a purpose or a design function to why Dungeon A has differences to Dungeon B that may be relevant to the plot. Design choices like this are ideal for studios that churn out games with map-oriented exploration because it means that they can just insert x, y, z assets and then have their patented map maker create the dungeon for players. Having players actually believe that this is a fun & novel idea is probably easier when the quality of JRPG games has been declining and expectations are non-existent. FF 15 still has remarkably high ratings for being designed as an intentionally incomplete game that would require DLC booster packs to unlock significant portions of the story. In this case, a board room of executives could get together and add content based on what which DLC was the most successful and simply force it in there in order for Sony to meet their expectations for the fiscal quarter. All of these new innovations are less focused on enhancing the play for players and are more interested on increasing the pay off from payers.

In short, I'd like to posit that JRPGs are now dead to me. Videogames are dead to me. And I'm dead on the inside.

Hey, at least the DQ games are still the same. Writing is still filled with puns and while the story still has predictable cliche moments its part of its charm. I reccommend DQ11 if you crave a old school Jrpg that is new.

 

[BarDulL]

I could never get into the DQ games even though I generally like the art (I like DBZ/chrono trigger so go figure), but I am sure they are good (obviously they are wildly popular in Japan).

I liked Acro’s post because I love Acro but Persona is sick and is also post-PS1 era. There’s def some “modern” JRPGs worth playing these days but I won’t deny that I still mostly prefer the older PS1 games (maybe there’s an unconscious bias speaking for me in this regard but I LOVE FF7/8/9 for example).

 

[ranmaru]

Nice! what sort of specs?

I just upgraded the computer I built a few years back a bit.

Here's this:

https://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/12694121

Power Supply: corsair CX 450
Some motherboard I'll edit in later once I finish typing up some code my friend is helping me with

 

[ranmaru]

I just noticed I'm premium but my avatar is the same size as non-premium users...

 

[adumbrodeus]

giraffelasergun Most videogames have terrible writing. Most writings are terrible writing. This is an example of terrible writing. However to your point, FF X was the start of the end for me as the focus of JRPG games seemed to shift more on to graphic capabilities to carry the narrative over an attempt at dialogue, setups, and creativity. A lot of the latter elements were relied upon to overcome limitations on the PS 1. Projects like Vagrant Story often ran into limitations that required eliminating plot points & bosses as well as determining graphic designs choices as the game was developed. Despite this, the focus was still placed on a cohesive narrative because the graphic capabilities still hadn't achieve sexy eye candy levels that could reliably bring in consumers over an attempt at plot.

It seems like a problem for AAA games is no longer about technical limitations, but financial limitations. Procedurally generated maps for dungeons loses all the charm of having a purpose or a design function to why Dungeon A has differences to Dungeon B that may be relevant to the plot. Design choices like this are ideal for studios that churn out games with map-oriented exploration because it means that they can just insert x, y, z assets and then have their patented map maker create the dungeon for players. Having players actually believe that this is a fun & novel idea is probably easier when the quality of JRPG games has been declining and expectations are non-existent. FF 15 still has remarkably high ratings for being designed as an intentionally incomplete game that would require DLC booster packs to unlock significant portions of the story. In this case, a board room of executives could get together and add content based on what which DLC was the most successful and simply force it in there in order for Sony to meet their expectations for the fiscal quarter. All of these new innovations are less focused on enhancing the play for players and are more interested on increasing the pay off from payers.

In short, I'd like to posit that JRPGs are now dead to me. Videogames are dead to me. And I'm dead on the inside.

tl;dr version

Spoiler

Most videogames have terrible writing. Most writings are terrible writing. This is an example of terrible writing. However to your point, FF X was the start of the end for me as the focus of JRPG games seemed to shift more on to graphic capabilities to carry the narrative over an attempt at dialogue, setups, and creativity. A lot of the latter elements were relied upon to overcome limitations on the PS 1. Projects like Vagrant Story often ran into limitations that required eliminating plot points & bosses as well as determining graphic designs choices as the game was developed.

It seems like a problem for AAA games is no longer about technical limitations, but financial limitations. Procedurally generated maps for dungeons loses all the charm of having a purpose or a design function to why Dungeon A has differences to Dungeon B that may be relevant to the plot. Design choices like this are ideal for studios that churn out games with map-oriented exploration because it means that they can just insert x, y, z assets and then have their patented map maker create the dungeon for players. Having players actually believe that this is a fun & novel idea is probably easier when the quality of JRPG games has been declining and expectations are non-existent. FF 15 still has remarkably high ratings for being designed as an intentionally incomplete game that would require DLC booster packs to unlock significant portions of the story. In this case, a board room of executives could get together and add content based on what which DLC was the most successful and simply force it in there in order for Sony to meet their expectations for the fiscal quarter. All of these new innovations are less focused on enhancing the play for players and are more interested on increasing the pay off from payers.

In short, I'd like to posit that JRPGs are now dead to me. Videogames are dead to me. And I'm dead on the inside.

JRPGs always had issues with terrible writing though, that was a function of localization. Remember "spoony bard" for example, that wasn't just archaic as many people defend it, it described Edward's actual character instead of what Tellah thought of him.

The quality of the writing has improved drastically over time in JRPGs and what's arguably gotten worse is the plot, but that largely depends on your frame of reference. If we're talking specifically FF that's definately true of the latest entry in the series which was largely handicapped by plot in spite of a really interesting story.

But FFX wasn't the start of that issue, plot-wise it's one of the best of the series.

 

[Maven89]

Tbh, most fantasy games have terrible plots and writing, and almost all JRPGs are fantasy

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

tl;dr

Spoiler

adumbrodeus I mentioned that FFX was the start of an end. What this means from my end is that game design philosophy started changing in terms of priority. There was more focus on voice acting in cutscenes and even outside of cutscenes as well as an attempt at improving graphics for player immersion when games came out for the PS2. This is not to say that graphics weren't a priority for the PS1. Vagrant Story actually did have a graphics oriented focus in its development and was known for stretching the capabilities of the PS1. However, I think the advent of the PS2 brought a holistic change in game design philosophy as the priority became more graphics/animation oriented consuming both the bulk of funds and ultimately dictating the narrative (sometimes literally with Tidus making overtures in cutscenes) rather than having the story dictate when there would be cinematic cutscene moments. I am a big believer in show and not tell, however it seems like videogames took this adage too literally as the show became the tell that producers thought RPG gamers were more interested in a million dollar budget for aeons, cars, & sky boxes over a story composed of sprites that had good pacing, gameplay integral to story telling, and some form of having a process.

A quick fade away would be to point at what BarDulL said about loving the Persona series. The Persona series is actually quite consistent with the process and have an established design philosophy. Note, I hate these games because the pacing is terrible (tedious) and unlocking side quests (e.g. certain end game arcana) is dependent upon choosing the absolutely correct responses that I would have to trial and error with resets (which I detest). However, the design for these stories is for the most part subdued in terms of graphics and reminiscent of traditional RPG games. Conversations with players often feature sets of emotional faces set to text boxes. Voice acting is often reserved for limited cutscenes that are at critical plot points. Graphics have steadily improved with every iteration, but there is no drastic attempt to advertise BREAKTHROUGH ANIMATION as a selling point for the game. The game also retreads common territory in terms of major themes in the plot. A driving theme throughout the Persona series is a bildungsroman journey of finding the truth by using superficial elements of Jung, PSYC 101, and arcana. This is staple to the series, integral to gameplay, and a center point for the plot. It shows that the series has had a process and refined it with every iteration of every game. I like the Persona series from a game design perspective, I just hate playing it.

In paragraph 3 here's where I write that I'm biased. Biased, biased, biased. As I stated before, I like having a process. When we see a game like FF Tactics, I loved the first half of the game that dealt with political corruption and how collective factions actually operated within a predefined structure that the entire game had gradually oriented you towards in terms of your journey as Ramza. If you've played the game, you know why I didn't like the second half where the game decides to run off the rails and has to include demons, possession, and satanic cults being the real puppet masters. Let's talk about this. I don't hate magic, I don't hate aeons, I don't love corruption, I don't love human failure. I hate when elements are introduced inorganically into the plot because the graphic designers had spent time and energy into building assets for Shiva & Bahamut that are visually stunning and now they must be put in the game otherwise it would be a waste of a pretty good portion of the game design budget. This is what I hate. Let's talk about Game of Thrones, when the series started magic was something that was talking about in the lore but we didn't necessarily see it happening a whole lot in the actual plot. Granted, we knew that magic existed as the White Walkers were introduced to us from the very first episodes, however they were a secondary or tertiary plot point to the humans fighting among themselves. As the series developed, so did the use of magic and so did the prevalence of supernatural elements. This gradual development reflected that the show had a set design that it was growing out organically instead of it just being there to stun the audience.

The Persona series also has a gradual development of structure. Take Persona 3 as you are a protagonist that climbs Tartarus and you begin to form connections you begin to unlock summons belonging to arcana. These gradual developments grow until you face against other Persona users therefore making it complicated as the situation is not just about exploring inside, but also seeing the manifestation of other people's Jungian psychosocial problems. Persona 3, Persona 4, and Persona 5 have similar build ups. It's hard to contrast this game from AAA games like Fallout 76, FF 15, and the Kingdom Hearts franchise because I haven't really involved myself too deeply into actually playing these games outside of Let's Play commentary that I listen to in the background. These games don't look fun to play and they seem to have spontaneous plot points that seemed to be reminiscent of flawed gaming priorities that I saw appear with the PS2 era of games. This is not to say that PS1 games sit on some holy mount of infallibility neither does it demonize the PS2 or PS3+ era of games. I think that anyone can begin to see when an established franchise and design priorities have shifted away from player enjoyment and more towards capitalizing on payer returns.

One of two contemporary issues is that first and foremost games are being developed on a budget and created to maximize return. This is an unhealthy mindset for a jRPG game because replayability for these games are limited compared to CALL OF DUTY BLACK OPS or LEAGUE OF LEGENDS or OVERWATCH where people play all the time and can be continually tempted by microtransactions. Microtransactions can be put into jRPG games, but this incentivizes time and resources into creating microtransactions like 50 sets of swimwear for Yukari prioritizing her as a waifu with two personality traits rather than trying to build her up as a character. This latter priority often becomes flawed because of the second of contemporary issues which is that somehow we managed as a collective society to throw tact out the window and have become shameless about smearing our socio-political opinion into every media outlet and medium available. The worst is that this is prevalent when I am alone watching House of Cards Season 6 or Mr. Robot and there are just these moments, just these moments where I engage in these entertainment medium because I already feel ostracized from the entire world and somehow they make me feel even further isolated when I have to question, "Why is Claire looking at me telling me that I'm a bigot because I liked Kevin Spacey as the protagonist... I also liked him in 21 & Moon" "Why is the antagonist crossdressing in these scenes, but not in other scenes? What does this have to do with the plot? Is this actually happening? I am so confused." God forbid this becomes the process for dictating storyline elements when I have chosen to play as the male protagonist (in the original) and the female protagonist (in the remake) solely out of interest to uncover additional dialogue options and plot points.

In conclusion,

tl;dr

Spoiler

Tidus waits with his allies outside the ruins of an ancient city. He narrates the events that led to the present, spanning most of the game's storyline.[18] It begins in his home city, the high-tech metropolis of Zanarkand, where he is a renowned blitzball player and son of the famous blitzball star, Jecht.[19] During a blitzball tournament, the city is attacked by an immense creature that Auron, a man not originally from Zanarkand, calls "Sin".[20] Sin destroys Zanarkand and takes Tidus and Auron to the world of Spira.[10]

Upon arriving in Spira, Tidus is rescued by Al Bhed salvagers, who speak a language that is foreign to Tidus. One of them, Rikku, speaks the same language as Tidus and reveals that Sin destroyed Zanarkand 1,000 years ago.[21] After Sin attacks again, Tidus is separated from the divers and drifts to the tropical island of Besaid, where he meets Wakka, captain of the local blitzball team, and shows off his blitzball skills.[15] Wakka introduces Tidus to Yuna, a young summoner about to go on a pilgrimage to obtain the Final Aeon and defeat Sin[13][22] with her guardians Lulu, a mage of black magic, and Kimahri, a member of the Ronso tribe. Meanwhile, Tidus joins to help Wakka in the upcoming blitzball tournament to find a way back home.[13][23][24] The party travels across Spira to gather aeons, defending against attacks by Sin and its "offspring" called Sinspawn.[25] After the tournament, they are joined by Auron, who convinces Tidus to become Yuna's guardian.[26] He reveals to Tidus that Yuna's father, Lord Braska; Tidus's father, Jecht; and himself made the same pilgrimage to defeat Sin ten years ago.[17] Tidus thought his father had died at sea ten years earlier.[27] Following another attack from Sin, they are joined by Rikku, later revealed to be Yuna's cousin.[28]

When the party arrives in the city of Guadosalam, the leader of the Guado, Seymour Guado, proposes to Yuna, saying that it will ease Spira's sorrow.[29] At Macalania Temple, the group discovers a message from the spirit of Seymour's father, Lord Jyscal; he declares that he was killed by his own son, who now aims to destroy Spira.[30] The group reunites with Yuna and kills Seymour in battle;[31] soon afterward, Sin attacks, separating Yuna and sending the others to Bikanel Island.[32] While searching for Yuna at the island's Al Bhed settlement,[32] Tidus has an emotional breakdown when he learns that summoners die after summoning the Final Aeon, leading to his desire to find a way to defeat Sin while keeping Yuna alive.[33][34] The group finds Yuna in Bevelle, where she is being forced to marry the unsent Seymour.[35][36] They crash the wedding and escape with Yuna.[37] The group heads toward the ruins of Zanarkand, seen in the introduction of the game.[18][22][38]

Shortly before arriving, Tidus learns that he, Jecht, and the Zanarkand they hail from are summoned entities akin to aeons based on the original Zanarkand and its people.[39] Long ago, the original Zanarkand battled Bevelle in a machina war, in which the former was defeated.[40] Zanarkand's survivors became "fayth" so that they could use their memories of Zanarkand to create a new city in their image, removed from the reality of Spira.[40][41] One thousand years after its creation, the fayth have become exhausted sustaining the "Dream Zanarkand", but are unable to stop due to Sin's influence.[39][42]

Once they reach Zanarkand, Yunalesca—the first summoner to defeat Sin and unsent ever since[43]—tells the group that the Final Aeon is created from the fayth of one close to the summoner. After defeating Sin, the Final Aeon kills the summoner and transforms into a new Sin, which has caused its cycle of rebirth to continue.[44] Yuna decides against using the Final Aeon, due to the futile sacrifices it carries and the fact that Sin would still be reborn.[45] Disappointed by their resolution, Yunalesca tries to kill Tidus' group, but she is defeated and vanishes, ending hope of ever attaining the Final Aeon.[46] After the fight, the group learns that Yu Yevon, a summoner who lost his humanity and mind, is behind Sin's cycle of rebirth.[42] This leads the group to infiltrate Sin's body to battle Seymour, and Jecht's imprisoned spirit.[47][48] With Sin's host defeated, Tidus' group vanquishes Yu Yevon.[49] Sin's cycle of rebirth ends, and the spirits of Spira's fayth are freed from their imprisonment. Auron, who had been revealed to be unsent, is sent to the Farplane.[50][51] Dream Zanarkand and Tidus disappear, now that the freed fayth stopped the summoning.[52] Afterward, in a speech to the citizens of Spira, Yuna resolves to help rebuild their world now that it is free of Sin.[53] In a post-credits scene, Tidus awakens under water. He then swims towards the ocean surface, and the screen fades to white. - Wikipedia 2018

I have outed an edgy and controversial opinion. I will now hibernate for 6 months in order to return on my quest to find Soul Edge, the true edge of soul.

 

[giraffelasergun]

tl;dr

Spoiler

adumbrodeus I mentioned that FFX was the start of an end. What this means from my end is that game design philosophy started changing in terms of priority. There was more focus on voice acting in cutscenes and even outside of cutscenes as well as an attempt at improving graphics for player immersion when games came out for the PS2. This is not to say that graphics weren't a priority for the PS1. Vagrant Story actually did have a graphics oriented focus in its development and was known for stretching the capabilities of the PS1. However, I think the advent of the PS2 brought a holistic change in game design philosophy as the priority became more graphics/animation oriented consuming both the bulk of funds and ultimately dictating the narrative (sometimes literally with Tidus making overtures in cutscenes) rather than having the story dictate when there would be cinematic cutscene moments. I am a big believer in show and not tell, however it seems like videogames took this adage too literally as the show became the tell that producers thought RPG gamers were more interested in a million dollar budget for aeons, cars, & sky boxes over a story composed of sprites that had good pacing, gameplay integral to story telling, and some form of having a process.

A quick fade away would be to point at what BarDulL said about loving the Persona series. The Persona series is actually quite consistent with the process and have an established design philosophy. Note, I hate these games because the pacing is terrible (tedious) and unlocking side quests (e.g. certain end game arcana) is dependent upon choosing the absolutely correct responses that I would have to trial and error with resets (which I detest). However, the design for these stories is for the most part subdued in terms of graphics and reminiscent of traditional RPG games. Conversations with players often feature sets of emotional faces set to text boxes. Voice acting is often reserved for limited cutscenes that are at critical plot points. Graphics have steadily improved with every iteration, but there is no drastic attempt to advertise BREAKTHROUGH ANIMATION as a selling point for the game. The game also retreads common territory in terms of major themes in the plot. A driving theme throughout the Persona series is a bildungsroman journey of finding the truth by using superficial elements of Jung, PSYC 101, and arcana. This is staple to the series, integral to gameplay, and a center point for the plot. It shows that the series has had a process and refined it with every iteration of every game. I like the Persona series from a game design perspective, I just hate playing it.

In paragraph 3 here's where I write that I'm biased. Biased, biased, biased. As I stated before, I like having a process. When we see a game like FF Tactics, I loved the first half of the game that dealt with political corruption and how collective factions actually operated within a predefined structure that the entire game had gradually oriented you towards in terms of your journey as Ramza. If you've played the game, you know why I didn't like the second half where the game decides to run off the rails and has to include demons, possession, and satanic cults being the real puppet masters. Let's talk about this. I don't hate magic, I don't hate aeons, I don't love corruption, I don't love human failure. I hate when elements are introduced inorganically into the plot because the graphic designers had spent time and energy into building assets for Shiva & Bahamut that are visually stunning and now they must be put in the game otherwise it would be a waste of a pretty good portion of the game design budget. This is what I hate. Let's talk about Game of Thrones, when the series started magic was something that was talking about in the lore but we didn't necessarily see it happening a whole lot in the actual plot. Granted, we knew that magic existed as the White Walkers were introduced to us from the very first episodes, however they were a secondary or tertiary plot point to the humans fighting among themselves. As the series developed, so did the use of magic and so did the prevalence of supernatural elements. This gradual development reflected that the show had a set design that it was growing out organically instead of it just being there to stun the audience.

The Persona series also has a gradual development of structure. Take Persona 3 as you are a protagonist that climbs Tartarus and you begin to form connections you begin to unlock summons belonging to arcana. These gradual developments grow until you face against other Persona users therefore making it complicated as the situation is not just about exploring inside, but also seeing the manifestation of other people's Jungian psychosocial problems. Persona 3, Persona 4, and Persona 5 have similar build ups. It's hard to contrast this game from AAA games like Fallout 76, FF 15, and the Kingdom Hearts franchise because I haven't really involved myself too deeply into actually playing these games outside of Let's Play commentary that I listen to in the background. These games don't look fun to play and they seem to have spontaneous plot points that seemed to be reminiscent of flawed gaming priorities that I saw appear with the PS2 era of games. This is not to say that PS1 games sit on some holy mount of infallibility neither does it demonize the PS2 or PS3+ era of games. I think that anyone can begin to see when an established franchise and design priorities have shifted away from player enjoyment and more towards capitalizing on payer returns.

One of two contemporary issues is that first and foremost games are being developed on a budget and created to maximize return. This is an unhealthy mindset for a jRPG game because replayability for these games are limited compared to CALL OF DUTY BLACK OPS or LEAGUE OF LEGENDS or OVERWATCH where people play all the time and can be continually tempted by microtransactions. Microtransactions can be put into jRPG games, but this incentivizes time and resources into creating microtransactions like 50 sets of swimwear for Yukari prioritizing her as a waifu with two personality traits rather than trying to build her up as a character. This latter priority often becomes flawed because of the second of contemporary issues which is that somehow we managed as a collective society to throw tact out the window and have become shameless about smearing our socio-political opinion into every media outlet and medium available. The worst is that this is prevalent when I am alone watching House of Cards Season 6 or Mr. Robot and there are just these moments, just these moments where I engage in these entertainment medium because I already feel ostracized from the entire world and somehow they make me feel even further isolated when I have to question, "Why is Claire looking at me telling me that I'm a bigot because I liked Kevin Spacey as the protagonist... I also liked him in 21 & Moon" "Why is the antagonist crossdressing in these scenes, but not in other scenes? What does this have to do with the plot? Is this actually happening? I am so confused." God forbid this becomes the process for dictating storyline elements when I have chosen to play as the male protagonist (in the original) and the female protagonist (in the remake) solely out of interest to uncover additional dialogue options and plot points.

In conclusion,

tl;dr

Spoiler

Tidus waits with his allies outside the ruins of an ancient city. He narrates the events that led to the present, spanning most of the game's storyline.[18] It begins in his home city, the high-tech metropolis of Zanarkand, where he is a renowned blitzball player and son of the famous blitzball star, Jecht.[19] During a blitzball tournament, the city is attacked by an immense creature that Auron, a man not originally from Zanarkand, calls "Sin".[20] Sin destroys Zanarkand and takes Tidus and Auron to the world of Spira.[10]

Upon arriving in Spira, Tidus is rescued by Al Bhed salvagers, who speak a language that is foreign to Tidus. One of them, Rikku, speaks the same language as Tidus and reveals that Sin destroyed Zanarkand 1,000 years ago.[21] After Sin attacks again, Tidus is separated from the divers and drifts to the tropical island of Besaid, where he meets Wakka, captain of the local blitzball team, and shows off his blitzball skills.[15] Wakka introduces Tidus to Yuna, a young summoner about to go on a pilgrimage to obtain the Final Aeon and defeat Sin[13][22] with her guardians Lulu, a mage of black magic, and Kimahri, a member of the Ronso tribe. Meanwhile, Tidus joins to help Wakka in the upcoming blitzball tournament to find a way back home.[13][23][24] The party travels across Spira to gather aeons, defending against attacks by Sin and its "offspring" called Sinspawn.[25] After the tournament, they are joined by Auron, who convinces Tidus to become Yuna's guardian.[26] He reveals to Tidus that Yuna's father, Lord Braska; Tidus's father, Jecht; and himself made the same pilgrimage to defeat Sin ten years ago.[17] Tidus thought his father had died at sea ten years earlier.[27] Following another attack from Sin, they are joined by Rikku, later revealed to be Yuna's cousin.[28]

When the party arrives in the city of Guadosalam, the leader of the Guado, Seymour Guado, proposes to Yuna, saying that it will ease Spira's sorrow.[29] At Macalania Temple, the group discovers a message from the spirit of Seymour's father, Lord Jyscal; he declares that he was killed by his own son, who now aims to destroy Spira.[30] The group reunites with Yuna and kills Seymour in battle;[31] soon afterward, Sin attacks, separating Yuna and sending the others to Bikanel Island.[32] While searching for Yuna at the island's Al Bhed settlement,[32] Tidus has an emotional breakdown when he learns that summoners die after summoning the Final Aeon, leading to his desire to find a way to defeat Sin while keeping Yuna alive.[33][34] The group finds Yuna in Bevelle, where she is being forced to marry the unsent Seymour.[35][36] They crash the wedding and escape with Yuna.[37] The group heads toward the ruins of Zanarkand, seen in the introduction of the game.[18][22][38]

Shortly before arriving, Tidus learns that he, Jecht, and the Zanarkand they hail from are summoned entities akin to aeons based on the original Zanarkand and its people.[39] Long ago, the original Zanarkand battled Bevelle in a machina war, in which the former was defeated.[40] Zanarkand's survivors became "fayth" so that they could use their memories of Zanarkand to create a new city in their image, removed from the reality of Spira.[40][41] One thousand years after its creation, the fayth have become exhausted sustaining the "Dream Zanarkand", but are unable to stop due to Sin's influence.[39][42]

Once they reach Zanarkand, Yunalesca—the first summoner to defeat Sin and unsent ever since[43]—tells the group that the Final Aeon is created from the fayth of one close to the summoner. After defeating Sin, the Final Aeon kills the summoner and transforms into a new Sin, which has caused its cycle of rebirth to continue.[44] Yuna decides against using the Final Aeon, due to the futile sacrifices it carries and the fact that Sin would still be reborn.[45] Disappointed by their resolution, Yunalesca tries to kill Tidus' group, but she is defeated and vanishes, ending hope of ever attaining the Final Aeon.[46] After the fight, the group learns that Yu Yevon, a summoner who lost his humanity and mind, is behind Sin's cycle of rebirth.[42] This leads the group to infiltrate Sin's body to battle Seymour, and Jecht's imprisoned spirit.[47][48] With Sin's host defeated, Tidus' group vanquishes Yu Yevon.[49] Sin's cycle of rebirth ends, and the spirits of Spira's fayth are freed from their imprisonment. Auron, who had been revealed to be unsent, is sent to the Farplane.[50][51] Dream Zanarkand and Tidus disappear, now that the freed fayth stopped the summoning.[52] Afterward, in a speech to the citizens of Spira, Yuna resolves to help rebuild their world now that it is free of Sin.[53] In a post-credits scene, Tidus awakens under water. He then swims towards the ocean surface, and the screen fades to white. - Wikipedia 2018

I have outed an edgy and controversial opinion. I will now hibernate for 6 months in order to return on my quest to find Soul Edge, the true edge of soul.

I don’t have anything to add to either of your posts. I just want you to know I thought they were both insightful and made me change the way I view video games, I hope you enjoy your winter slumber. TTFN

 

[Dooplissity]

what's this #HBC thing that half of the people here have going on? are half of you in the same clan or something?

 

[#HBC | Nabe]

what's this #HBC thing that half of the people here have going on? are half of you in the same clan or something?

Spoiler: Soup (The essence of the HBC)

You are Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria, 1st Duke of Cumberland, 1st Earl of Holderness commonly called Prince Rupert of the Rhine. You are the entirety of the essence of the HBC. No one can stop you, since you are the essence of that of the HBC. So remember, that you are the sole reason for people bringing on the #HBC. Represent. Never forget, that you, Rupert, will strike fear into the hearts of the people who dare to oppose the HBC, and make them ponder to themselves, "What is this HBC he speaks of?"

Prince Rupert of the Rhine, town doublevoter
​

Due to your considerable influence in the HBC, your vote is worth two.

​

Posting Restriction:
Each one of your posts must begin with a statement about your own humble condition (examples: poverty, lack of social/filial connections, lack of physical attractiveness), and thank everyone for allowing you in their company, in a minimum of 40 words. Also, defer to one player’s superiority of dress, looks, skills or wit in every post. Above all, you must be as polite as possible, as you are a prince. You may not discuss explicitly the details of your posting restriction. You may not confirm that you do in fact have a posting restriction. Failing to fulfill this posting restriction will result in a MOD vote.



A reminder that media and text from this role PM may not be reproduced anywhere while the game is ongoing, under punishment of modkill.

 

[Maven89]

#HBC stands for hairy body crew, and was originally created to mock Marshy and his alopecia

 

[giraffelasergun]

My laptop charger broke and I can’t get a new one until after Christmas. I guess I’ll actually have to actually talk to my family???

 

[ranmaru]

Nabe I love you for posting that. Can we please co-host a game.

 

[#HBC | Kary]

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Timezones do have some advantages after all.
Hope y'all have a day filled with warmth and good-feeling.

 

[#HBC | Nabe]

Nabe I love you for posting that. Can we please co-host a game.

If only you had been around at the start of the current uPick.

 

[giraffelasergun]

Merry Christmas Dgames! My mom gave me a knife

 

[ranmaru]

Merry Christmas Dgames.

If only you had been around at the start of the current uPick.

I wish I was there.

 

[PunchyThyCat]

herro I like mafia hmu if you need another player for your game

 

[Handorin]

Gotta get one last post in before the new year.

Have a great new year's everyone.

 

[#HBC | Nabe]

New, happy year.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Old, dead year.

 

[ranmaru]

HAPPY NEW YEAR

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Regrets and Mafia. Name a more iconic duo.

 

[#HBC | Nabe]

Regrets and Mafia. Name a more iconic duo.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Fixed.

 

[#HBC | Nabe]

But that's a trio.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

But that's a trio.

I don't play mafia anymore, so it might as well be the last 3-way I get involved in.

 

[BarDulL]

This is a good 3-way. Let it not be the last, nor a regretful one.

 

[Maven89]

COWBOYS

DAK ZeKE COOP

WE'RE GOING TO THE SUPERBOWL

 

[giraffelasergun]

Wow cool check up the signups for this hot new mafia game : https://smashboards.com/threads/sig...-and-you-should-too-some-boys-allowed.467601/

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

It is a lawless time. CRIME SYNDICATES compete for resources - food, medicine, and HYPERFUEL.
On the shipbuilding planet of CORELLIA, the foul LADY PROXIMA forces runaways into a life of crime in exchange for shelter and protection.
On these mean streats, a young man fights for survival, but yearns to fly among the stars...
#CRIME SYNDICATES #HYPERFUEL #CORELLIA #LADY PROXIMA

Spoiler

tl;dr

Spoiler