Social NintenZone Social 4 - Bring It In, Guys!

[Burruni]

I can't believe you watched that crap

Let me guess, it was actually good but loldutchdub

Original Suite Life was acually pretty solid. Later seasons and then the trainwreck of On Deck however are by no means defendable.

 

[ChikoLad]

Now, they just threw some gratuitous fanservice and dating sim elements with a self-insert character. I don't like that stuff, sorry, and I have the right to not invest a cent on a game series I feel it lost its luster.

I tolerated Awakening, but Fates elevated the stuff I didn't like about Awakening up to 11 and that's when I felt that the series was no longer what I used to like. And I know for sure I'm not the only FE fan to think like this.

Two problems:

-Using a self-insert is optional. I made my avatar look just like me since I do that when given the option in games because why not, but you can't define their character. Corrin has a defined character and a defined default look that we are familar with in Smash, both as a male and as a female. While you have the option to try and make him/her represent you, the game still has the defaults, and the character's name is still "Corrin" by default when you are creating the character. So Corrin is his/her own character. It's no different than say, Commander Shepherd in the Mass Effect games, except even less definable, as Corrin doesn't have dialogue trees, the only choice you can make is the obvious Branch of Fate in Chapter 6, and even then, because of how they decided to distribute the game, for most, that choice is gonna be made according to budgets and preferences in gameplay than it is on investment in the characters. Yes, you can make them look like you, but you don't have to (and either way, it does not effect gameplay whatsoever, other than the ability to pick your "Boon", "Bane", and "Talent", which is essentially just saying what kind of stats they will have).

-Fates didn't crank anything "up to 11". At all. In the localised version, the only interactions you can have with your partner is waking them up, or cooling them down when they're too warm. The latter is a bit weird but it rarely comes up and you don't have to engage in any of this to begin with. Other than that, the bond feature is now literally just your partner saying something encouraging to you, and the ones you can do with friends are mostly just jokes and stuff when you invite them over (like Saizo's "if it was anyone but you, I would say this was a complete waste of my time" line). This stuff by no means classifies as a dating sim. If you think it does, you probably haven't played or seen an actual dating sim.

It's fine if you don't want the game, it's your money. But this reasoning is just silly and delusional especially since some of this stuff isn't the way you think it is. At this point, it just comes off as you not wanting more options and trashing on the franchise for things that aren't issues. It'd be different if these things are forced on you but they aren't.

At least, having a ton of optional features has been a staple of Smash, right down to the first game

No it hasn't.

Smash debuted as a party game fighter that has Nintendo characters, meant for multiplayer. The first game barely had any extras, and mass public perception of the game remains the same as when it debuted. Even though Smash has added way more direct fanservice and pandering than any Fire Emblem has.

The arguments you are directing towards Fire Emblem don't really apply much to Fire Emblem, yet they all apply tenfold to Smash and you aren't bothered by that. That's why your reasoning is poor.

Yes, right down to the self-inserts. Or anything inserts in Smash's case.

 

[Z25]

Contributing to the whole Pokemon anime discussion going on:

Spoiler

I'm pretty split regarding who I want Ash's 6th Pokemon to be. Goodra would be pretty cool to bring back, yet a Pokemon from Ash's past would also be cool (Infernape is my preferred pick). That idea how the marshlands man will approach Ash about Goodra sounds very plausible though.

I used to think Ash's 6th Pokemon would go to a Generation 6.5 back in the days when we thought there was going to be a Pokemon Z and how that game would involve southern Kalos, but with the way things are developing right now, I highly doubt they'll devote it to a Sun and Moon Pokemon. There's no way Ash can catch one before the League, and while they could advertise a potential evolution similar to how Pokemon Origins revealed Mega Charizard X, I still think that's a little too early to do. Similarly, I don't think Ash's past Pokemon will be used for Mega Evolution. Sceptile is covered thanks to Sawyer, and the other possibility, Charizard, is pretty much taken care of thanks to Trevor's Mega Charizard Y, the Mega Evolution many thought Ash would use prior to Ash Greninja coming to the picture. Ash Greninja is pretty much Ash's Mega Evolution, so that department is covered.



I love the changing battlefields too! The stadium as a whole already has the best design we've seen in other Pokemon League stadiums, so that just makes things better. I also hope we see Charles Goodshow make a return this time around. He's the president of the Pokemon League, but he strangely didn't appear in the Unova League despite his job being to overlook every region's leagues similar to the Olympics president who he's based off.

^This is Charles Goodshaw during the Sinnoh League.

Trevor owning a Mega Charizard Y definitely sounds rather odd, but I guess the writers were just trying to find a way to have his loss go out in a bang instead of having Mega Charizard X knock out a normal Charizard. I can definitely see the heatburst festival being the spot where Trevor will receive it though. I'm interested to see what other Pokemon Trevor has caught since we last saw him in the Moltres episode

For the lack of appearances they had in the series, I think it makes sense Trevor and Tierno will go down fairly early, although I was expecting Ash to fight Tierno since that's the XY friend that had more appearances between the two. I also find it interesting that the episode featuring Sawyer vs Tierno will focus on Tierno's Raichu rather than his Blastoise despite the latter being his signature Pokemon which also has the potential to Mega Evolve. Naturally, one would expect the battle to be Mega Sceptile vs Mega Blastoise, but I have faith Raichu will put up quite the show if the episode title is highlighting it instead of Blastoise. I have a feeling Tierno will have a Rain Dance strategy since three of his Pokemon are Water-types: Blastoise, Ludicolo, and Politoed. You also have Raichu who could benefit from having 100% accurate Thunder attacks.

I'm also willing to bet we'll see a moment in the episode where Tierno will try to get Serena's attention during the fight since he has a crush on her.

I think it was pretty obvious the League was going to be a Mega smackdown thanks to how they're a big deal this generation. I only wonder if we'll see more Megas beyond the Charizards, Sceptile, Absol, and Garchomp. If so, I'd love to see Mega Gallade, Mega Salamence, and Mega Lopunny in the League. Between Remo and Astrid, I think it makes sense for one of the episodes to involve Ash vs Astrid. They already fought in the Diancie movie where he beat Ash, so it'd be cool to see him get revenge her with his much stronger team this time.

While I originally didn't want Alain in the League because I thought he'd be another Tobias thanks to how they give the impression that Charizard was his only Pokemon, I don't mind seeing him there now. After it was revealed that he also has a Metang on his team and reading online that Alain refers to Charizard as his "strongest Pokemon" (thus hinting he has more Pokemon), I'm interested in seeing what the rest of his League team will be. I definitely think that's an interesting theory regarding Lysandre giving him the badges, although I like the Malva idea even more since she's one of the Elite Four members and works for Team Flare, and having her working a way to have Alain in the League would definitely give this sense of inner corruption that would make the interesting development/a perfect reveal regarding Malva's secret that many don't know.



That's a really good theory! It's a great set up for the big reveal regarding Lysandre's true goals and his evil motives. I have hard time imagining how Lysandre would kill people within the stadium other than the "vine machine" we saw Xerosic use in two episodes. It seems more likely the way he will reveal his goals will involve some sort of doomsday announcement (perhaps showing off the vine machine in the process or by showing how he wants to use Zygarde's Complete Form to destroy Kalos), but we'll just wait and see. The Alain vs Ash match definitely seems like the perfect time for Team Flare to strike/reveal themselves.

With the Team Flare finale arc, Lysandre labs definitely seems like a great way to start it off. I also think it will be around that point Ash and company will learn about Blaziken Man's identity; right now, only Professor Sycamore knows about it. Out of it, I can definitely see the identity unmasking exploring Meyer's backstory regarding how he became Blaziken Man, perhaps even going into Clemont's backstory since there's a possibility that could be involved.

I think Alain being manipulated is a given since the opening hints he will be on their side for a period of time. There'll probably be a point later into the arc where he learns about how he was manipulated the whole time and thus decides to change sides. Team Flare taking Mairin hostage sounds plausible, particularly by taking her sick Chespin hostage to indirectly to take her along as well. The Zygarde 50% battle is probably going to happen too, but I have a feeling that Team Flare will ambush Puni-chan during it similar to how they captured Z2 in the episode it fought Alain's Charizard. I just have this feeling Zygarde's Complete Form will probably be manipulated by Team Flare for their "true goal", although I could see it going the other way around where they save Z2 and then Zygarde's Complete Form is the one to ultimately stop Team Flare's plan and mark the team's demise as a whole.

No doubt Team Rocket will come back to aid the heroes. I also have a feeling this is the perfect opportunity for Looker to come back. So far, he appeared in all the arcs where the evil team starts to execute their evil plan, and considering Looker appears in X/Y/OR/AS, I have a feeling he'll come back, this time to stop Team Flare. It also seems like the perfect opportunity for Emma to appear as Essentia and helps Team Flare's plan.

Some other characters that I hope will appear during the Team Flare finale arc are Steven Stone, Zinnia, and AZ. The last time we saw Steven, he visited Kalos to talk with Lysandre and watch the battle between Alain and Malva. They don't say whether or not he returned to Hoenn, but considering Steven and Lysandre have that relationship of some sort, I'm willing to bet he's still in Kalos. That'd be pretty good to see considering he needs to know about Lysander's secret. It would also make for the perfect reunion with Ash. The two met in Hoenn, and I would love to see Steven recognize Ash and tell him that he remembers from the time they were in the Granite Cave. Then they flashback to that Hoenn episode complete with updated graphics this time similar to how they updated the art when they did the Charizard flashbacks in the BW series. It'd be pretty cool to see him and Ash work together to stop Team Flare, as well as with Alain if he switches sides.

With Zinnia... yeah, it seems doubtful she'd be involved in this arc considering that she was supposed to be involved with Rayquaza and the Delta episode, so I don't know how they could make her tie in with the current development in the anime. The only way I can see her being involved in the arc is if they reveal that Team Flare was responsible for killing her friend Aster, and so she bears some sort of vendetta against them and wants to do everything in her power to take down Lysandre and Team Flare. There was also the megalith Lysandre recovered in Mega Evolution Act III, so maybe it could tie back with the Draconid people backstory. Going back to the earlier point, maybe in her quest to avenge her friend's death, she learns about Zygarde's backstory and realizes how Zygarde and Rayquaza are quite similar to each other as well as how AZ was involved with Hoenn's history; then, she meets up with Ash and company at some point to explain the backstory and ally with them to take down Team Flare. Yeah, all of this doubtful, but it's just that I would love to see Zinnia in the anime since she was such an amazing character in OR/AS (and imagine hearing her theme + her battle theme in the anime; that would be absolute gold).

AZ is also doubtful at this point since it doesn't look like Team Flare will use the Ultimate Weapon as part of their grand plan, but considering he's been alive for so many years to the point he even witnessed Mega Rayquaza saving the world and giving Sootoplis City that tree, I bet he knows a lot about Zygarde and its involvement with Kalos' history. There's also the theory going a while back how Ash Greninja could somehow be related to AZ's Floette since that Floette looks a lot different from other Floettes (having a different flower and the blue color matching the color of AZ's coat when he was king), so if the theory is still relevant, perhaps that could also be a good opportunity for AZ to appear. It's doubtful, I know, but I just find it odd that AZ hasn't appeared at all in the XY anime thus far (especially since Lysandre is his descendent, or at least AZ's brother's descendent).

I could see Ash being offered to challenge the Elite Four League after they find about how Malva was involved in the corruption of allowing Alain into the League assuming the Malva/Lysandre theory turns out to be true, as a way of rewarding Ash for his accomplishments or realizing Ash deserved the League win instead of Alain because Ash actually earned his badges. Or maybe if they give Ash the championship title, I can see a good reason Ash going to the Alola region would be that this time he wants to actually "earn" the Pokemon League champion title instead of being given to him because of corruption on the opponent's part.

If the League ultimately gets cancelled because of the Team Flare attack, that'd be cool to see. If it happened, people wouldn't wine about how "Ash lost the league yet again" as we would have an original reason why Ash didn't win the League this time.

Spoiler

Sad to hear about what happened to Kaze.

I remember being spoiled about his death before the release, and man, I think I got a bit emotional when I saw that the first time.

Story wise, the point of the scene is that Kaze feels guilty for not stopping Garon forces when they kidnapped you when you were a toddler; it eats him up to the point that he thinks the only way he can redeem himself is by sacrificing his life to save yours should the situation require it. This is further highlighted In Chapter 7 where Kaze states that he owes you his life when he tells Saizo that you are on the good side.

In the A Support, Kaze tells Corrin about what's troubling him: the backstory regarding the whole Sumeragi death incident. Because he manages to tell Corrin about it without a life-threatening incident happening at the moment, Corrin manages to talk things out so that the incident no longer eats away at Kaze to the point he wants to sacrifice himself. Feeling overjoyed about the conversation Kaze then discusses how retainers work, and he offers to become Corrin's retainer. Corrin accepts. It's a really memorable support conversation because it's one the longer ones in the game.

I honestly wish there was a special dialogue featuring Saizo in the following scene where Ryoma and Corrin look out at the mountain. It would've added the emotion to see how Saizo would react knowing that he's the only one of his family left.

And that wasn't the only sad death in this chapter though. Even though it isn't directly stated, you also ended up massacring the entire Wolfskin population in the end thanks to how the battle originally started. Not going to lie, but when I completed this chapter, I remember feeling really bad just thinking about that.

Spoiler

Yeah, Ash greninja is basically his mega, which is why I find it unlikely. Ash's 6th slot still has a lot of potential. I think the goodra scenario is definitely likely, but I wouldn't count out past mons either. Still will be interesting to see what ends up being his sixth mon though. Charles was one of my favorite characters. I'd love to see him return. It's just funny how he looks like an older version of ash though.

The rivals from XY being knocked out early does make sense, theire teams could still be cool. They'd at least be able to put up a fight maybe. So it could still be a good match. As for Lysandre, his reveal as a bad guy has a lot of potential. I think another great thing would be sycamore's reaction to Allan working with Lysandre and with Lyysandre being shown as evil. It could make for a good backstory there and I wouldn't mind them exploring it more. I think the vine machine will be used as a way to summon zygarde complete. Their machine would cause the vines to come to life, and maybe attack people. Thus the enviorment would be damaged and Zygarde complete would form, thus they can capture and use it. What's interesting is the fan game pokemon reborn actually has the evil team use tangrowth hooked up to what they call pulse machines. These machines create like mutated versions of the pokemon and amplify it's power. The evil team uses the vines to destroy cities, and take over areas as they can't be cut unless you stop the source. Probably not at all what will happen, but it's still something I thought of when I saw the machine.
Blaziken man could have a good backstory to. Perhaps clemont's mother was killed ala batman style and thus he vows to protect the city?

As for them kidnapping squishy, I could see that happen to. And looker coming back would be pretty awesome, especially if they bring in Emma. I liked her character and seeing her have the suit could be a cool thing as well. Maybe have it that the looker agency was formed something after Ash started, and Looker learned that Emma was being manipulated by Flare and helps save her and the suit?

Zinnia would also be great, but will probably not happen sadly. Steven I think has a good chance of showing up since they brought him into the TF storyline partially. However your idea for her to appear would be pretty awesome. Az would be a really neat person to see in the anime, but it probably won't happen. It be interesting to see if he'd be taller then Lt. Surge though. I do think that AZ's flotette could have been something similar to Ash greninja, because Ash greninja does not refer to the original Ash greninja, its something entirely different. The ninja village story seemed to be within the last 1,000 years, but 3,000 years ago was when AZ existed so it could happen.

Ash fighting Dianthia again, could definitely happen, maybe make it like the AZ fight in XY. At the ceremony she thanks Ash for helping save the region and offers a battle. Perhaps a full battle, but maybe not. This probably won't happen but I would love if it did. Having Ash actually beat Dianthia but as you said not technically win the league, could be an interesting plot point. Maybe Ash is even offered an E4 position as they get rid of Malava for her actions. He'd deny it and then perhaps Alexa or dianthia talk to him about the Aloa region. It also be neat if Allan decides to do an honest journey and goes to Aloa with Mallon and ash, and becomes a rival to him.

Most of this probably won't happen, but I really hope it all does in some form as it be such a good twist for the anime. I wanted Plasma to crash the league in BW's anime, but it didn't happen. However there is more of a chance here. Whatever happens I hope some of this comes true and that the conclusion to XY is good and sets up for an even better and more mature anime next time.

 

[_Sheik]

Why do I get the feeling that FE Fates has worse writing than previous games in the series?

Then again, given the direction it's taking the franchise, I'm not too surprised...

If you were to remove Dragon Veins, clothing customization, children and onii-chans, you'd notice that Birthright's directive plot line is 95% the same as Shadow Dragon. Gotta march on to the enemy capital to defeat the evil Dragon Lord, but let's not forget to crush all of the kingdoms and nations that have sworn allegiance to him on our way there.

Save for the Tellius episodes where the geopolitic was somehow way more complex (and they nailed it), most FE games possess a manichaean configuration. Awakening and Birthright are no exceptions, but... I think Awakening has actually gotten a better writing when it comes to showing the true meaning of a full-fledged war, be it from organization and military tactics to consequences of the fight such as villages being wiped off and populations getting decimated in the midst of the conflict.

Fates on the other hand. Its only memorable deaths are Mikoto and the siblings, but those deaths were only there to put the accent on the drama of Corrin as a character and help him develop himself through the course of the story. But it was done pretty blandly, and it feels like the sole purpose of Fates' main plot focus - the war, which, in this episode, is as random as they get - is to justify the existence of the game itself. Only existing for the sake of us being able to enjoy a Fire Emblem game, as in, for the series not to fall in slumber like some Nintendo franchises already have.

 

[Z25]

I see we are discussing Fates story writing. As someone who's played and beaten all 3, I can't say the writing is bad. Let me explain:

Conquest:
I see everyone saying Corrin is meant to be an anti hero in this. I really don't see that as the intention or him as an anti hero. The entire plot of conquest is that Corrin knows garron is evil, but he knows that he can't side with his birth family. He has more memories of the nohr family, then the hoshido family. Thus he has more attachment to his Nohr siblings. After all, they all love him and treat him as their pride and Joy. Garon doesn't care for Corrin, it was just an act of war, which is why the plot's set the way it is. His Nohr siblings even agree with Corrin's views on how it's wrong to brutally kill people, especially if they are defenseless. Yes this is a theme they play with quite a lot, but it's not done wrong imo. Each time does develop his character. With each encounter, he knows he's getting stronger as he can handle the horror of innocents being killed. It's how war works. Garon knows this angers corrin, but that's what motivates him. he's not an anti hero, he's a regular hero, who is just shunned by his real family, who realize he's still himself. That's the point of the endgame, they realize those trials were meant to make him snap, but his true spirit could never be crushed, especially with a supporting family behind him.

Birthright:

Eh, it's fine. The stories nice, but it's more toned down. You don't feel like the war was really hard on people like the other two stories. but it's still fine.

Revelation:

It's pretty good. I can't say there is anything wrong with it. The story is really good, and you see how war affects both sides of the story. Seeing how both sides realize what the greater threat is, is done very nicely. Corrin is still considered a traitor by quite a few people until they realize he is right. With this, the element of betrayal and what being a traitor is played with a lot. It works well imo and the conclusion to the story is really good. I really liked it. And playing hidden truths makes this story even better. There's a lot of nice details that show you how everything in their fates can to be. I think it's writing is pretty good.

 

[ChikoLad]

"We 'bout to go take over Smash. You in or nah?"

 

[Frostwraith]

Two problems:

-Using a self-insert is optional. I made my avatar look just like me since I do that when given the option in games because why not, but you can't define their character. Corrin has a defined character and a defined default look that we are familar with in Smash, both as a male and as a female. While you have the option to try and make him/her represent you, the game still has the defaults, and the character's name is still "Corrin" by default when you are creating the character. So Corrin is his/her own character. It's no different than say, Commander Shepherd in the Mass Effect games, except even less definable, as Corrin doesn't have dialogue trees, the only choice you can make is the obvious Branch of Fate in Chapter 6, and even then, because of how they decided to distribute the game, for most, that choice is gonna be made according to budgets and preferences in gameplay than it is on investment in the characters. Yes, you can make them look like you, but you don't have to (and either way, it does not effect gameplay whatsoever, other than the ability to pick your "Boon", "Bane", and "Talent", which is essentially just saying what kind of stats they will have).

-Fates didn't crank anything "up to 11". At all. In the localised version, the only interactions you can have with your partner is waking them up, or cooling them down when they're too warm. The latter is a bit weird but it rarely comes up and you don't have to engage in any of this to begin with. Other than that, the bond feature is now literally just your partner saying something encouraging to you, and the ones you can do with friends are mostly just jokes and stuff when you invite them over (like Saizo's "if it was anyone but you, I would say this was a complete waste of my time" line). This stuff by no means classifies as a dating sim. If you think it does, you probably haven't played or seen an actual dating sim.

It's fine if you don't want the game, it's your money. But this reasoning is just silly and delusional especially since some of this stuff isn't the way you think it is. At this point, it just comes off as you not wanting more options and trashing on the franchise for things that aren't issues. It'd be different if these things are forced on you but they aren't.

It's still unnecessary development time that could have gone into more meaningful stuff.

Again, my opinion.

I mean, I pretty much knew I couldn't take the game as seriously as previous FE games when there are skills and weapons that strip enemies.

It's called suspension of disbelief, and coming from older FEs, I feel Fates breaks it.

No it hasn't.

Smash debuted as a party game fighter that has Nintendo characters, meant for multiplayer. The first game barely had any extras, and mass public perception of the game remains the same as when it debuted. Even though Smash has added way more direct fanservice and pandering than any Fire Emblem has.

The arguments you are directing towards Fire Emblem don't really apply much to Fire Emblem, yet they all apply tenfold to Smash and you aren't bothered by that. That's why your reasoning is poor.

Yes, right down to the self-inserts. Or anything inserts in Smash's case.

Smash having fanservice isn't much of a problem because:
1. Smash Bros. isn't meant to be taken seriously.
2. Smash Bros. is a fanservice game by definition given it's a massive crossover, it's why I don't mind the amount of fanservice in Project X Zone.

Context. Smash is a silly game and even the fights themselves are silly with items flying around and blows make characters fly around.

Fire Emblem is supposed to be a strategy game about war and the stories, setting and presentation reflected that. The older games focus on these aspects to the fullest to deliver the best experience based on that premise.

Fates adds a bunch of pandering stuff that I feel goes against the premise of the game.

You can't change my mind, so I'd rather end this argument. It's going nowhere and I'm wasting my time by continuing this.

 

[A Distant Demon]

At a restaurant where spanish channel is on


>Commercial starts.
>Asian woman and black man seemingly seducing each other.
>They lean in for kiss
>she shoves a laundry detergent pack in his mouth
>She forces him into a washing machine as he resists.




>he emerges as an asian man

 

[Arcanir]

Why do I get the feeling that FE Fates has worse writing than previous games in the series?

Then again, given the direction it's taking the franchise, I'm not too surprised...

I'd honestly say it's among the worst overall, at least for me personally.

Birthright as mentioned before is serviceable. It's basically a typical FE plot where the oppressed kingdom is going up against the empire. Most of its major issues are those connected to the other routes such as atrocious world building (the continent doesn't even have a name unlike FE6/7's Elibe or FE8's Magvel), poor villains, and having key information shoved off into Conquest and Revelations (mostly the latter).

Conquest is probably the worst of the bunch. The first few chapters you're doing tasks for Garon, and they're OK, but eventually it becomes clear that Garon is just a puppy kicker seeking to make Corrin cry and do evil crap and doesn't have much else going for him, yet the characters don't do much about it and some of them are blindly loyal to him regardless. Then Chapter 15 happens and everything goes to hell for the story. It also suffers from having a good amount of information shoved off in the other routes that would've helped make the plot make sense, the other villains being very poor, and a lot of idiot ball holding.

My feelings on Revelations may be a bit unpopular, but I honestly can't say I really liked it personally. The first part is disjointed as you're given the truth right from the get-go, but you're basically aimlessly wandering around to gather characters and find an important character to move things forward, but it's just a series of "nope, he's not here, go there!" The second part is a bit dull to me as the final area and villain (ignoring his story being locked behind a paywall) get little development and the subplots within the area are poorly done such as Anthony.

Spoiler: Chapter 19/20 on

I also wasn't really feeling the parent's deaths as we barely know Arete and Sumeragi, and Mikoto we only knew for a second, so their roles came off more to me like this rather then being truly tragic. They would've benefitted from having more time for us to get to know and understand them and their relationship with the characters rather then what we got with Anthony. I also don't like how they used Corrin in this route as it feels like they're glorifying him a bit too much, as you have things like Ryoma saying that he was jealous of the character's leadership skills when they were five, which doesn't make a lot of sense for Ryoma's role as he should have little reason to be jealous of a kid. Also, I feel the story drops the ball in not allowing him to develop as he's stuck as being this wide-eyed idealist, but even when it's challenged, they coddle him and just gloss over it. That's kind of jarring when we have characters like Eirika, who was punished for her naivety and had to learn from it as a result.

So I would definitely say that Fates' writing is very flawed, it feels like they only used the first draft they were given and didn't bother to iron out the issues with it. It could've been a lot better if they did a few tweaks here and there and flesh out the plot, but instead we have three routes that vary in how choppy they portray their events.

 

[ChikoLad]

Context. Smash is a silly game and even the fights themselves are silly with items flying around and blows make characters fly around.

And Fire Emblem didn't have any silliness at all before Awakening?

Pretty sure it had a good deal.

Fire Emblem is a strategy RPG. Fates is still that, possibly the best at it in some regards, what with it having an online mode allowing for truly strategic battles between two actual players, rather than relying on AI.

Anything outside of it being a strategy game and in a medieval setting is superfluous. They can do whatever they want there. Just like how Zelda has more serious games, and less serious ones, or has gimmicks in some games.

Honestly, now that I think about it, this complaining about Fates for putting more emphasis on characters rather than story (which is by no means a bad thing, just means you don't have to engage with characters you don't like if you don't want to), and for adding a few things like being able to customise their appearance a little more, is very comparable to people who complained about Wind Waker for having a different art style and a sillier tone, even though it's one of the most solid entries in the franchise and the core gameplay is unchanged.

Fates adds a bunch of pandering stuff that I feel goes against the premise of the game.

This is objectively untrue because the premise of Fire Emblem is that it's a strategy game with a lot of characters you can interact with and get invested in. Fates still has this, and the ability to have characters marry ENHANCES this premise (without it being a forced mechanic). It can't go against the premise if it directly adds more to it. As does the ability to put in a character that resembles you, as it can help you get more immersed in the world. Then everything else like them trying to minimise RNG in Fates, the online play, and the customisation, all add to the strategy element of the game.

I mean, I pretty much knew I could take the game as seriously as previous FE games when there are skills and weapons that strip enemies.

I've poured 30 hours into Birthright so far and haven't seen this yet. Most I've seen is helmets flying off or heavy armour being broken down, revealing a chainmail or something underneath, or clothes getting a little worn (like a torn cape), which is pretty cool since it adds a nice punch to certain things, like the Armourslayer sword, which is designed to shatter armour on heavily armoured enemies. Maybe they do that in the Japanese version but I haven't seen anything so far that I wouldn't expect in actual combat.

 

[Robert of Normandy]

Starting playing KSSU again recently. I forgot how much fun/kinda OP Suplex is.

I'd honestly say it's among the worst overall, at least for me personally.

Birthright as mentioned before is serviceable. It's basically a typical FE plot where the oppressed kingdom is going up against the empire. Most of its major issues are those connected to the other routes such as atrocious world building (the continent doesn't even have a name unlike FE6/7's Elibe or FE8's Magvel), poor villains, and having key information shoved off into Conquest and Revelations (mostly the latter).

Conquest is probably the worst of the bunch. The first few chapters you're doing tasks for Garon, and they're OK, but eventually it becomes clear that Garon is just a puppy kicker seeking to make Corrin cry and do evil crap and doesn't have much else going for him, yet the characters don't do much about it and some of them are blindly loyal to him regardless. Then Chapter 15 happens and everything goes to hell for the story. It also suffers from having a good amount of information shoved off in the other routes that would've helped make the plot make sense, the other villains being very poor, and a lot of idiot ball holding.

My feelings on Revelations may be a bit unpopular, but I honestly can't say I really liked it personally. The first part is disjointed as you're given the truth right from the get-go, but you're basically aimlessly wandering around to gather characters and find an important character to move things forward, but it's just a series of "nope, he's not here, go there!" The second part is a bit dull to me as the final area and villain (ignoring his story being locked behind a paywall) get little development and the subplots within the area are poorly done such as Anthony.

Spoiler: Chapter 19/20 on

I also wasn't really feeling the parent's deaths as we barely know Arete and Sumeragi, and Mikoto we only knew for a second, so their roles came off more to me like this rather then being truly tragic. They would've benefitted from having more time for us to get to know and understand them and their relationship with the characters rather then what we got with Anthony. I also don't like how they used Corrin in this route as it feels like they're glorifying him a bit too much, as you have things like Ryoma saying that he was jealous of the character's leadership skills when they were five, which doesn't make a lot of sense for Ryoma's role as he should have little reason to be jealous of a kid. Also, I feel the story drops the ball in not allowing him to develop as he's stuck as being this wide-eyed idealist, but even when it's challenged, they coddle him and just gloss over it. That's kind of jarring when we have characters like Eirika, who was punished for her naivety and had to learn from it as a result.

So I would definitely say that Fates' writing is very flawed, it feels like they only used the first draft they were given and didn't bother to iron out the issues with it. It could've been a lot better if they did a few tweaks here and there and flesh out the plot, but instead we have three routes that vary in how choppy they portray their events.

From what I've seen I don't think many people have a terribly high opinion of Revelation's writing so your opinion might not actually be that unpopular

though I might be wrong, I'm not sure exactly what the general opinion is. I do remember hearing complains that the gameplay/maps are too gimmicky.

 

[ChikoLad]

Why I stopped playing Smash reason #111:

Spoiler

Especially relevant since it's Rosalina.

 

[Burruni]

FE Fates in story generally suffers that... it tries to play more on Corrin than the aspect of the War. ESPECIALLY in Revelations.

My summations of the 3 stories.

Birthright: The most bare bones and typical. Attacking nation comes in and kills one of the royal family so the hiers string up an army of varyingly-trained individuals to go beat them with various skirmishes as they invade enemy territory. And then there's a dragon at the end.

Conquest: Really tries to show promise in the "fix from within" mentality. But it devolves into the Iago and Garon sadism hour. Picks back up... honestly as you get to Hoshido's castle, imo. The sibling fights and... outcomes all feel far better in Conquest. They also thematically fit the characters better, embodying what each of the classes revolved around best; the raw mobility of fliers, the range of archers without fear of counter-attack, and the overwhelming single-target capability of a Swordmaster. The endgame chapters felt far better and actually had a twist for the final final boss.

Revelations: Fan-ficy as can POSSIBLY be. Kills off a character just to call out another later for their darkest secret. And just throws aside the entire issue of the war because ermagod Valla.

I honestly wish they played more into the... ambiguity of the war originally stated. That Nohr's a nation floundering to feed itself under the size of itself and HAS to invade as a last resort to gain any agricultural land. Granted, the localization made the Hoshidans at times just as harshly defensive and racist as some Nohrians when in the japanese version, as I know, they were basically "did no wrong" kind of people.

Not to mention that child units were VERY much so shoe-horned in.

 

[A Distant Demon]

Playing Fe7 immediately after awakening is interesting


7's gameplay feels VASTLY superior to awakening's in pretty much every way. But 7 still feels lacking in the character department. The open support system of Awakening leads such better characters. I still think fondly of Awakening's cast (Awakening 2 when?). In 7 I have like 10 people in my roster I could not care less about, and i've even sent one or two to die because I cared so little about them (Dart and that fighter not named Dorcas).


Can't say much about Fates, but that "fanservice" was much appreciated.

 

[ChikoLad]

Here's another Fates song that should be in Smash.

I'm really liking Marth in this game, he's really cool in general.

 

[Arcanir]

This is objectively untrue because the premise of Fire Emblem is that it's a strategy game with a lot of characters you can interact with and get invested in. Fates still has this, and the ability to have characters marry ENHANCES this premise (without it being a forced mechanic). It can't go against the premise if it directly adds more to it. As does the ability to put in a character that resembles you, as it can help you get more immersed in the world. Then everything else like them trying to minimise RNG in Fates, the online play, and the customisation, all add to the strategy element of the game.

I would actually contest this, at least as far as the relationship mechanic is concerned, as a lot of pairings and S supports do feel forced. A good chunk of the characters have no reason to talk to one another, so you have characters that just get paired up for the sake of it, or rather gimmicky supports that don't add anything to either of the characters. I would honestly say that we learned a lot more about characters like Jill or Amelia in their very few supports that don't have them get married then we did characters like Arthur, who does have his share of notable supports, but also those that just exists to get him hitched. Another thing I don't like about the marriage mechanic is that it prevents us from getting things like pre-established relationships such as Pent/Louise and Canas, and older characters/parents that aren't MUsexuals like FE6!Bartre and Garcia. Which I feel does take away from the world around these characters as everyone is pretty much a bachelor/ette within the realms of Fates rather then characters that bring other sorts of bonds that can add to others through means that are not marriage.

I've poured 30 hours into Birthright so far and haven't seen this yet. Most I've seen is helmets flying off or heavy armour being broken down, revealing a chainmail or something underneath, or clothes getting a little worn (like a torn cape), which is pretty cool since it adds a nice punch to certain things, like the Armourslayer sword, which is designed to shatter armour on heavily armoured enemies. Maybe they do that in the Japanese version but I haven't seen anything so far that I wouldn't expect in actual combat.

He's talking about the Raider weapons and Sophie's skill, which do strip the enemy down to their underwear if used on a foe with Weapon Triangle disadvantage (or whenever Sophie's activates). Sophie's skill in particular can't be removed or ignored, so you're forced to strip the enemy if you do decide to field her.

Starting playing KSSU again recently. I forgot how much fun/kinda OP Suplex is.

From what I've seen I don't think many people have a terribly high opinion of Revelation's writing so your opinion might not actually be that unpopular

though I might be wrong, I'm not sure exactly what the general opinion is. I do remember hearing complains that the gameplay/maps are too gimmicky.

Maybe, I can't say I know for sure myself. It just seemed to get more positive feedback for its story then Conquest did, so I assumed that it was just more well liked.

And yeah, the gameplay gets a lot of heat for those gimmicks, especially those like Chapter 10 and it's "break through the ice!" design.

 

[ChikoLad]

I would actually contest this, at least as far as the relationship mechanic is concerned, as a lot of pairings and S supports do feel forced. A good chunk of the characters have no reason to talk to one another, so you have characters that just get paired up for the sake of it, or rather gimmicky supports that don't add anything to either of the characters. I would honestly say that we learned a lot more about characters like Jill or Amelia in their very few supports that don't have them get married then we did characters like Arthur, who does have his share of notable supports, but also those that just exists to get him hitched. Another thing I don't like about the marriage mechanic is that it prevents us from getting things like pre-established relationships such as Pent/Louise and Canas, and older characters/parents that aren't MUsexuals like FE6!Bartre and Garcia. Which I feel does take away from the world around these characters as everyone is pretty much a bachelor/ette within the realms of Fates rather then characters that bring other sorts of bonds that can add to others through means that are not marriage.



He's talking about the Raider weapons and Sophie's skill, which do strip the enemy down to their underwear if used on a foe with Weapon Triangle disadvantage (or whenever Sophie's activates). Sophie's skill in particular can't be removed or ignored, so you're forced to strip the enemy if you do decide to field her.



Maybe, I can't say I know for sure myself. It just seemed to get more positive feedback for its story then Conquest did, so I assumed that it was just more well liked.

And yeah, the gameplay gets a lot of heat for those gimmicks, especially those like Chapter 10 and it's "break through the ice!" design.

Of course there are gonna be some relationships that feel forced. In a game with this many characters and possible combinations of pairings, you're gonna get some that they have to force so the option is there for those who want it, and so nobody feels shortchanged (though my friend felt shortchanged by Camilla's S Support with avatar). It's like how in Smash, of course there are some characters that are going to be barely viable and some that seem overwhelmingly powerful.

However, as a general thing, the supports and marriages do add to the world and give you something to get invested in. Some of them feel really nice and make a lot of sense, and can be quite entertaining. For the player especially, it's cool to see who you end up with and if you just ended up with them arbitrarily, or if the character you married actually reflects your tastes in a potential spouse.

I saw a video yesterday that went over how the Fire Emblem franchise was saved. They noted that marriage was one of the things, but not in the way that "YOU CAN HAVE A WAIFU LOL". The marriage mechanic brings what's known as "fandom discourse" to the series, essentially giving people a talking point for the franchise like they wouldn't have before. Everyone has this curiosity regarding "who would I naturally fall for?" when playing the game, discussing which relationships are good and bad, etc. Fire Emblem was traditionally a series for shut-ins due to it being a complex strategy RPG using a lot of abstract number mechanics, being associated with people who love number fantasy board games like Dungeons & Dragons, but the marriage mechanic is something ANYONE can understand and connect with. And that's why it adds to the game and to the world. It gets people talking about the game even outside of playing it, even if it involves debating a bit over pairings or whatever.

And if there is a way to strip enemies with a specific character or weapon, that's more like an easter egg than it is a feature, because you can avoid it and it isn't supposed to be a selling point, and it's hidden deeper into the game. Saying you won't buy a game for that is like saying you won't buy a Metal Gear Solid game because some of the lockers have pin-ups of Japanese models in them, and all of the other wacky things Metal Gear Solid games do.

 

[Red & Green]

Why I stopped playing Smash reason #111:

Spoiler

Especially relevant since it's Rosalina.

This comic's literally a godsend, sometimes.

Whoever makes it really knows the community.

 

[Deleted member]

List of spoiler things wrong with all the three routes' plot

Spoiler

-Non-spoiler things mentioned below
-The Most Stupid Final Boss Ever storywise in Conquest. Gameplaywise he makes me hard
-Non-existing worldbuilding
-Characters just disappearing after their first chapter(Rinkah, Orochi and some others in Conquest for example)
-Ryoma is a **** in Chapter 12. *ding*
-Iago flat out gives information to the enemy and then accuses the ROYAL FAMILY OF BETRAYAL HOW THE **** DOES THIS WORKS
-Valla in Conquest, just, ugh
-Chapter 18 for ****s sake, Zola was the true hero
-No Xander vs. Ryoma fight that they have been hyping up since announcement
-It takes a literal possession for someone to hate Corrin
-Garon being a huge misopportunity, you don't even get to fight him in Revelation
-Hoshido's morally questionable actions that are never touched upon:
-Having a magic barrier that is a middle finger to foreigners
-"We are your TRUE family join us!" ... "Oh, btw, we are not blood related, wanna ****?"
-"Mokushu destroyed the kingdom of Kohga? I'm sure it's just a big misunderstanding, **** the refugees though"
-Sending assassins to kill Corrin when he's inside Time-Space
-Azura almost being executed
-WHO THE **** BRINGS THEIR KIDS TO A WAR MEETING BETWEEN NATIONS WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL SUMERAGI

Also, regarding the support system, I do feel like the main problem are children, they need to go away
Keep the unlikited support system and the S ranks but make the options more limited(as in, the characters have actual reasons to talk and have some relation even if only in the slightly) and make so S rank doesn't equal to marriage
I want my AmeliaXDuessel-like endings back

From what I hear, Conquest is terribly written due to the fact that Corrin's personality is not built for doing "dark" things, and that path constantly forces him to do so. He is always unhappy with the things he has to do and never really develops a personality befitting of an anti-hero (which is essentially the role he is supposed to play in Conquest). Someone who's actually played Conquest will probably know more specifics though, that's just what I hear.

Corrin is not supposed to be an anto-hero. At all.
The whole premise is that he can't betray the family that raised him, even though Daddy Garon is Obviously Evil
In fact, no one in Nohr besides our three favorite Saturday Morning Villains are bad people, the whole plot was supposed to be a gray and grey morality thing but it was done so badly and there's SO much Hoshido bias that it gets completely one-aided as if Nohr has no justification to start the war whatsoever

Conquest's plot main problem is that it assumes you played BR before and are going to play Rev afterwards, the whole "geez, at least we didn't kill anyone, amirite?" thing(it worked for Chapter 8 tho), that Hoshido is so peaceful and good that the only way they could create any tension in the plot is by making Garon so evil that he orders his henchmen to actively sabotage Corrin's missions and sometimes almost killing the ****ing royal family AND that all the other Hoshido siblings get their focus switched to Takumi

despite having to leave the Nohr siblings behind and having to fight them, you don't feel too bad for fighting them because other than Elise, Birthright (at least up to where I am) hasn't really made me sympathise with any of my Nohr siblings, they just flat out are ****s to you through and through (or in Camilla's case, she just goes full yandere for a Chapter in which case I have no problem fighting her). So overall, the plot works because Corrin's kind-hearted personality was perfectly molded for it.

I mean, considering you betrayed them, I don't expect them to be all nice and **** to Corrin
Then again, I guess it's more of a which version you played first
Seeing Camilla attacking Corrin shows that she's not herself, the usually cheerful Elise getting depressed, Leo saying he hates Corrin and Xander getting really pissed altogether despite how much close he is to Corrin really makes me feel bad for them

At a restaurant where spanish channel is on


>Commercial starts.
>Asian woman and black man seemingly seducing each other.
>They lean in for kiss
>she shoves a laundry detergent pack in his mouth
>She forces him into a washing machine as he resists.




>he emerges as an asian man

Oh, I watched that, it was on my Facebook feed
One of the comments was "It clearly didn't work otherwise he would have become white"

 

[Robert of Normandy]

Maybe, I can't say I know for sure myself. It just seemed to get more positive feedback for its story then Conquest did, so I assumed that it was just more well liked.

And yeah, the gameplay gets a lot of heat for those gimmicks, especially those like Chapter 10 and it's "break through the ice!" design.

tbh I think pretty much everything gets more positive feedback than Conquest's story

 

[ChikoLad]

I mean, considering you betrayed them, I don't expect them to be all nice and **** to Corrin
Then again, I guess it's more of a which version you played first
Seeing Camilla attacking Corrin shows that she's not herself, the usually cheerful Elise getting depressed, Leo saying he hates Corrin and Xander getting really pissed altogether despite how much close he is to Corrin really makes me feel bad for them

I mean of course I don't expect things to be all sunshine and rainbows.

But the only one who actually hears Corrin out so far is Camilla. And even then, she still responds by going comically yandere on you. Yeah she snaps out of it but the whole thing feels forced like they just did it because people expect that from the sexualised character who adores you.

Elise is obviously depressed and seems to actually want to side with you more than anything. Which is cool, I like that, it fits her character. She only doesn't hear you out because she really hasn't come in contact properly yet.

Xander and Leo just act like ****s, though. I get being loyal to Garon, but they don't care about anything Corrin has to say. Leo shows some mercy at one point towards a certain character, but overall, I just didn't feel too attached to the siblings from Nohr. Even within the Prologue, I warmed to the Hoshidan siblings way quicker. Especially since they transcend their base level tropes after a bit of time, and I've heard that doesn't happen as much with Nohr's siblings in Conquest.

Maybe I'll like them more in Conquest but what I've heard so far doesn't sound enticing.

 

[Z25]

This rumor is likely fake but offers some amazing ideas for Sun and Moon
http://boards.4chan.org/vp/thread/26505582/information-on-pokemon-sun-and-moon

The interactions in the overworld would be perfect.

There's more as the thread goes on, and it's not super in depth which is good.

 

[Deleted member]

Especially since they transcend their base level tropes after a bit of time, and I've heard that doesn't happen as much with Nohr's siblings in Conquest.

While it is true that the Hoshido siblings are more than their basic tropes(except Hinoka, she is just there because Camilla exists), the Nohr siblings are WAY more fleshed out, Leo and Xander get some of it in BR already but they really shine in Conquest's supports
Especially Camilla, her supports with Niles made me completely change my opinion on her and Xander just becomes more and more likeable and relatable with every support
He also has a headstart just for the "Little Prince/Princess" affectionate nickname and just gets more points everytime he says it

 

[Chandeelure]

This rumor is likely fake but offers some amazing ideas for Sun and Moon
http://boards.4chan.org/vp/thread/26505582/information-on-pokemon-sun-and-moon

The interactions in the overworld would be perfect.

There's more as the thread goes on, and it's not super in depth which is good.

Evolutions instead of Mega Evolutions... I wish.

 

[Z25]

Evolutions instead of Mega Evolutions... I wish.

I think it can still happen. I hope they listened to fans on that one. Plus lanturn is pretty cool, so I'd love that to get an evolution.

 

[ChikoLad]

Anyone know how to accept friendly match invites in Fates online? I can't figure it out.

(except Hinoka, she is just there because Camilla exists)

I honestly thought she didn't really have a trope and that's why I like her so much, but to each their own.

 

[Burruni]

This rumor is likely fake but offers some amazing ideas for Sun and Moon
http://boards.4chan.org/vp/thread/26505582/information-on-pokemon-sun-and-moon

The interactions in the overworld would be perfect.

There's more as the thread goes on, and it's not super in depth which is good.

Honestly.
MOST of this is believable.
"Angleam" going physical being... suspicious.

And then
>When fighting a gym leader, item use is tied to difficulty. (Easy = Unlimited for you, none for them) (Normal = Unlimited for you, 2-4 for them) (Hard = None for both).

 

[Z25]

Honestly.
MOST of this is believable.
"Angleam" going physical being... suspicious.

And then
>When fighting a gym leader, item use is tied to difficulty. (Easy = Unlimited for you, none for them) (Normal = Unlimited for you, 2-4 for them) (Hard = None for both).

It is which is why I like it. Physical kind of works though. Anytime I've seen Lanturns use volt switch as a set move. It could work. I wouldn't oppose it.

Difficult settings makes enough sense, it would at least answer the fans demand for hard mode.

 

[Wario Bros.]

This rumor is likely fake but offers some amazing ideas for Sun and Moon
http://boards.4chan.org/vp/thread/26505582/information-on-pokemon-sun-and-moon

The interactions in the overworld would be perfect.

There's more as the thread goes on, and it's not super in depth which is good.

Not holding my breath but we might find out in 5 days.

 

[Deleted member]

It is which is why I like it. Physical kind of works though. Anytime I've seen Lanturns use volt switch as a set move. It could work. I wouldn't oppose it.

Difficult settings makes enough sense, it would at least answer the fans demand for hard mode.

Volt Switch is special though

And having to wear glasses to change the difficulty is the stupidest thing from the leak
I'm not sacrificing my fashion sense to male this game harder, thank you very much

 

[Burruni]

It is which is why I like it. Physical kind of works though. Anytime I've seen Lanturns use volt switch as a set move. It could work. I wouldn't oppose it.

Difficult settings makes enough sense, it would at least answer the fans demand for hard mode.

Water and Electric are both types that benefit far more from being special. It getting thngs like Signal Beam also would be... crippled if such a change.

Difficulty settings, certainly a possibility.
SETTING ITEM USAGE RULES BY IT?
That I can't buy.

 

[Depressed Gengar]

If Sun and Moon do give older Pokémon evolutions, please, please give Farfetch'd and Dunsparce some. Especially Farfetch'd. Megas won't cut it for me.

 

[Z25]

Volt Switch is special though

And having to wear glasses to change the difficulty is the stupidest thing from the leak
I'm not sacrificing my fashion sense to male this game harder, thank you very much

Oh, I thought it was physical, my bad.
And yeah the glasses is kind of a dumb way of doing it, but I wouldn't care. I could see complaints though.

Water and Electric are both types that benefit far more from being special. It getting thngs like Signal Beam also would be... crippled if such a change.

Difficulty settings, certainly a possibility.
SETTING ITEM USAGE RULES BY IT?
That I can't buy.

True, it's super unlikely, but how it works is something that could be determined better with the actual game.

 

[Aetheri]

I wonder how many have actually been playing Smash lately...

I'm feeling like my Cloud and ZSS are slipping....Link and Samus are easily my best two based on the recent success I've been having with them compared to the other two who I have struggled using consistently...

Had some pretty decent runs with Samus as well losing only once or twice compared to around 10 wins respectively...

 

[powerprotoman]

i love how people cant see previous pokemon getting evos because of mega evolution...but sylveon exists

 

[Burruni]

Oh man guys, pack it in.
Litten's becoming a fighting type.
Totally legit images, fresh off the press.

Spoiler

 

[Z25]

i love how people cant see previous pokemon getting evos because of mega evolution...but sylveon exists

True, but the argument people give for that is:

"Pfft eevee is just special and a mascot, no one else will get past evos."

Which I think is kind of bull, I don't see that stopping any other mons from getting evos or pre evos.

 

[ChikoLad]

I've spent like an hour trying to get a multiplayer game set up with my friend. Still can't get it to work. This mode was given such little attention advertising wise, it's unreal.

Does anyone know if it's region locked?

 

[Deleted member]

I've spent like an hour trying to get a multiplayer game set up with my friend. Still can't get it to work. This mode was given such little attention advertising wise, it's unreal.

Does anyone know if it's region locked?

I'm pretty sure online is region locked
Dunno how to set up multiplayer with friends

 

[Z25]

I've spent like an hour trying to get a multiplayer game set up with my friend. Still can't get it to work. This mode was given such little attention advertising wise, it's unreal.

Does anyone know if it's region locked?

I don't know if it is, but it probably is as most 3ds titles are. So that may be the issue.