What Are You Currently Playing?

[Kizyr]

I'm finally getting to play the FF7 Remake (PS4).

The main thing I don't like is that so much of it, still even after 40+ hours in, seems needlessly complex. It took a long time to get comfortable with the action RPG fighting system and still sometimes I find myself button mashing because I can't figure out how to work the controls for issuing other commands quick enough -- and the myriad shortcuts actually make this a harder task. But, I'm now at least at a point where I can fight pretty decently (which is why I didn't want to tone down the difficulty) and the challenge level feels right.

That said, nearly everything else about the game I am thoroughly enjoying. Surprisingly, the voice actors for Cloud, Tifa, and Barret, sound exactly like what I expected, and though Aeris/Aerith sounds different from what I had in mind she's likewise incredibly good (not to mention all other side characters). I'm really enjoying the scenery and worldbuilding, the exploration, the story and how much more in-depth they went, all of that.

For the original FF7, I mostly enjoyed it right up to the end of the first disc (when you left Midgar), after which the pacing took a nose dive and it became almost boring to finish (except for isolated parts: Cosmo Canyon, dealing with Yuffie 'til she joins the party, etc.). I'm hoping that when they continue with the rest of this, they'll also do right by the pacing.

[Alunissage]

I was really surprised by how much I liked the remake, including the voices. Aerith's bugged me a little at first but as she eased into the group her voice started sounding more natural. Also...I had the feeling that her character couldn't lie, or at least was really bad at it? It seemed like she did things like shake her head instead of verbalizing when she had to lie. I never played the original game myself after the first half hour*, though I've watched most of it being played at one time or another, so I don't know if that's actually part of the character or just something I'm projecting.

I also found myself liking Cloud, which I did not expect. Though I still think it's a little out of character for him to be provoked so easily by Reno.

* I had only played turn-based RPGs, and not many of them, when I got FF7, and did not appreciate being dumped into a battle system I was totally unfamiliar with and that was time-based right at the outset.

[WD RPG WD]

I really like the fighting and materia system of FF7R.

It took some time, but I got used to it. The biggest issue I had was the amount of fighting. By the end, I was burned out..


Playing through Dragon Force 2, currently.

[ShugoHanasaki]

DBZ - Kakkarot. Almost done and then moving on to Legend of Mana on PS4 (I'm impressed with the many things they did remaster, but they hardly did anything or next to nothing to the sprites...It's like blurry sprites on HD background. Doesn't mix well

[Sonic#]

I've been playing Yakuza Like a Dragon. I'm nearing the end; I'm surprised how much I've been sucked into the side content - minigames, side quests, the optional dungeon.

I think I prefer the generally more grounded nature[*] of Yakuza Kiwami, but I admit enjoying the flights of fancy in LAD. I like that entering combat involves a phase shift where usually human enemies appear in creative, ostentatious dress - because this is how Ichiban Kasuga, Dragon Quest fan, imagines fights. Switching RPG job roles requires going to a literal job center. A rooster is a key employee at my business, Ichiban Confectionaries.

[*] There are exceptions. Kiwami also had the minigame MesuKing, a collectible card rock-paper-scissors brawling game for kids, where the fighters were scantily clad women dressed as insects. LAD has a few eyebrow-raising moments, but nothing as singularly absurd as that.

[WD RPG WD]

Sonic, I loved LAD, but loved Judgement 2 even more. I had 95% completion. I tend to be lazy on side content, but Judgement hooked me.

Just finished Dragon Force II.
So nice to get closure to the story, 25 years later. For anyone who doesn't know, part 2 was never released in English, on the Saturn.

The new fan translation was adequate, but flawed. They were hoping none of us had read Moby Dick (read it twice), because it plagiarizes many lines from it.

Enemy officers have quotes like:

"I spit my last breath at thee!"

I'll chase you around perdition's flames before I give you up!"

"He tasks me; he heaps me!"

Ugh.

[ShugoHanasaki]

I got 100% trophies for DBZ Kakarot (^.^) Wasn't the plan, but when i realized it was easier then I planned I decided to do it. Now I am playing the remaster of both Diablo 2 and Legend of Mana. Whatever i'm in the mood for (^^)

[Kizyr]

Enemy officers have quotes like:

"I spit my last breath at thee!"

I'll chase you around perdition's flames before I give you up!"

"He tasks me; he heaps me!"

Ugh.

Oh wow, I didn't realize that Moby Dick borrowed so much from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan!

Ok seriously though, I just finished FF7 Remake, and really enjoyed it. I still have beefs with how a lot of it is overcomplicated in the control scheme. But, the characterization, storyline, environment, and how all of that was done so much more in-depth this time, was more than worth it.

Next, I'm not sure... I'm waiting for Horizon: Forbidden West, but before then I'm not sure what if anything I might start up.

[VidKid369]

Hello. The last game I beat was Final Fantasy Mystic Quest. Boy, what a throwback! It was nice to finally beat it I have memories of that game all the way back to elementary school. It was a pretty fun game overall.

I'm getting settled again as usual with RPGs so I started a whole bunch and I'm playing them all at the same time.

Breath of Fire III
Suikoden V
Dragon Quest VIII Journey of the Cursed King
Azure Dreams

I would just play one for an hour and maybe do a dungeon and do a whole town like talk to everyone and then I pop another game in and do the same thing.

I got really tired and bored of playing one RPG at a time sometimes I just wanna play more than one.

[Alunissage]

I liked Mystic Quest well enough as a starter RPG. I think it gets a lot of flack for not being something it wasn't trying to be anyway.

I've been playing TSS, very very slowly.

[WD RPG WD]

Enemy officers have quotes like:

"I spit my last breath at thee!"

I'll chase you around perdition's flames before I give you up!"

"He tasks me; he heaps me!"

Ugh.

Oh wow, I didn't realize that Moby Dick borrowed so much from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan!

Ok seriously though, I just finished FF7 Remake, and really enjoyed it. I still have beefs with how a lot of it is overcomplicated in the control scheme. But, the characterization, storyline, environment, and how all of that was done so much more in-depth this time, was more than worth it.

Next, I'm not sure... I'm waiting for Horizon: Forbidden West, but before then I'm not sure what if anything I might start up.

I've... never watched Wrath of Khan... Don't hate me!

I'm a Trek fan only for:

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (Again, don't hate me)
The Next Generation
Deep Space Nine

EDIT: Almost done with Policenauts. It's not as good as Snatcher, and has some real campy story elements (Typical of Kojima). For a mystery/thriller, it is a bit predictable.

The ability to play with the breasts of every female character and watch them bounce up and down, is about the worst thing I've seen in video games.

[ShugoHanasaki]

Beat Legend of Mana once again. That was a nice throwback. Although everything was remastered BUT the sprites >_> Kind of an OCD thing for me, but i enjoyed it nonetheless! Now I'm playing Tales of Arise (^.^)

[WD RPG WD]

25% done with Okami.

It's one of those games where you wonder "Why didn't I play this game before??"

[Kizyr]

I've... never watched Wrath of Khan... Don't hate me!

I'm a Trek fan only for:

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (Again, don't hate me)
The Next Generation
Deep Space Nine

I don't hate anyone for the extent to which they are or are not into Trek! Star Trek IV is a good movie, everyone loves that one for good reason. And TNG and DS9 are just phenomenal.

I actually have come to literally like all Star Trek to some degree, and I mean all. I'm currently going through the original series and after getting used to the pacing (tbh the 1960s special effects and cringey elements were not as hard to get used to or overlook as I thought), I have a lot more appreciation for them. And meanwhile I love all the new series (all four, soon to be five, of them). Way too many folks harp on others for which series they like, or which ones they haven't watched; I figure why add to that when there's so much out there to enjoy.

EDIT: Almost done with Policenauts. It's not as good as Snatcher, and has some real campy story elements (Typical of Kojima). For a mystery/thriller, it is a bit predictable.

The ability to play with the breasts of every female character and watch them bounce up and down, is about the worst thing I've seen in video games.

So I really enjoyed Policenauts but not as much as Snatcher. But I definitely had to memory-hole Kojima's horniness... ugh.

Are you finding the Easter Eggs for Metal Gear and Snatcher in the game?

[WD RPG WD]

So I really enjoyed Policenauts but not as much as Snatcher. But I definitely had to memory-hole Kojima's horniness... ugh.

Are you finding the Easter Eggs for Metal Gear and Snatcher in the game?

I actually like Meryl Silverburgh in Policenauts, more than in Metal Gear.

I found some of the music from Snatcher, but that's about it for references. It's been a while since I played Snatcher and Metal Gear Solid (the only one I've played in the series).

I liked the game overall, but the bad guys were so obvious from the start, that I assumed it was just a cover for the eventual reveal that never came.
Once it moved to the moon, it became a much more interesting story.

Snatcher still wins on atmosphere and a sense of fear. When the music kicks in, as Metal Gear reveals the potential presence of a Snatcher, in a dark alley of Neo Kobe City... perfect tension building. I played it on SEGA CD, so it came with the best version of the soundtrack, imo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeUbRd3eIeY

[ShugoHanasaki]

Bouncing through Tales of Arise, Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel, Diablo 2, & Gems of War, lol!

[VidKid369]

Hello. Sorry I haven't posted in awhile but I'm playing through Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King and Suikoden V on the side. I got really distracted at the beginning of the year but now I'm back on track. DQ8 is really fun I can't wait to get to the first casino and waste time there. Playing Suikoden V for the first time is also really fun.

[ShugoHanasaki]

Playing Tales of Arise & Chrono Cross on PS4 (^.^) One of my all time favorite games

[VidKid369]

I just beat DQ8. It was pretty epic, but I'm glad it's over. I'm ready to move onto something else... Maybe Suikoden V?

[Sonic#]

Chrono Cross remaster. I'm a little over halfway through the game, in my estimation.  I've just awakened the Black Dragon.

I still really like it. The difficulty curve has always been about what I like - hard enough that I can and will game over if I neglect something, battles structured to not be too drawn-out due to the one-use-per-battle elements, clever systems like element fields and traps that it's up to me to figure out.

I've been playing without a guide, and I forgot how several sections function similar to an adventure game. Viper Manor is the first distinct example, where talking to everyone and following clues from dialogue helps the party avoid traps and escape the basement. (That's also one of my favorite examples because it requires what I would do anyway: talking to everyone.) Other moments require using the key items in the right spot, sometimes backtracking between dimensions in order to do so. These moments aren't necessarily puzzles like a LucasArts game, but they do require me to pause and think about what characters to bring along or what items might be useful at what locations.

Related to that, a lot of the story is a little off the beaten path. I was surprised what little nuggets I got by going to all the accessible locations in Home World at the start, as well as going to every other location I could once I obtained a boat. One of the key tropes in discussions of Chrono Cross is that the story is confusing and only delivered in full at the end. However, I was surprised how many hints are dropped very early about the Frozen Flame, Serge's and Lynx's backstories, the Dragon Tear, the nature of the dragons, groups in the archipelago, and more. I think Chrono Cross sets up its lore as a key incentive to explore the world.

I do acknowledge the greater number of characters are too much to focus on at once; my permanent party is protagonist + Irenes, and I switch out the third character for whoever is new to see if they stick. I'm okay with characters not being all that distinct in the main story, and one thing I do like is how many of them are interrelated or connected to interesting bits of lore.