227: Okay, combat was good. A bit simplistic, but I'll admit that it was fun.
But what about the story was good in any way, shape, or form? The whole time I was picturing a five year-old writing the plot off the top of his head. The whole Chopin/music angle could have been amazing, but it was so underutilized that it might as well had not been there, and
any minor plot development led to Beat and others repeating what you
just saw multiple times. It was patronizing, and even worse, nothing particularly profound happened in the entire game to warrant such explanation. I mean, there were sections where I could tell it was
trying to be profound, but the voice acting, script, and plot were just so distractingly bad that nothing ever stuck.
I understand where you're coming from - I guess I was just at a mental state where it didn't ruin it for me. Again, the things you complain about are a lot better in the improved PS3 version, but they're still not great, of course. I doubt you'd suddenly start loving it if you tried it out. :P The combat system is a bit lacklustre until you unlock the final 'version' of it, with the way the special attacks work, and how you can chain them together. A ton of fun, especially if a friend of yours is also playing. I really like the use of timed hits and dodges and counter-attacks. These things really do a lot to make the usually quite static combat of a JRPG feel much more dynamic and rewarding.
Ultimately, I do agree with you; they could have utilized the whole Chopin theme better. In the improved script of the PS3 version, it is somewhat better utilized, as well, but it's still not enough. I mean, with the new translation, I did start to notice several more 'profound' references and themes, that I had not noticed before... but all in all, it should've had a larger presence all throughout the game. I do love how the whole ending scenario and final cutscene(s) play out in the PS3 version - it finally started making sense to me, and I did find the whole thing quite beautiful and powerful.
soldiergeralt: that game itself looks ugly and retarded. looks like it was designed for children so what do you expect?
Oh, please. The aesthetics of a game come down entirely to personal taste and preference. I for one love the cel-shaded art style they use in the game. Together with the combat and music, the graphics are one of the absolute strong points when I look back at the game. Aesthetically creative game graphics don't look dated nearly as quickly as 'realistic' graphics do, as well. Anyway, personal taste. Can't say a game is crap just because
you did not appreciate the art style. The most juvenile thing you can say is that it 'looks to be designed for children.' Gods, if that how you're dismissing games, you've missed out on a lot of gems, I can tell you that much.
dnna: It looks like something that
could be interesting if it were in Japanese with English subtitles, so you could pretend the silly lines are just awkward fan translation. The VAs ruin it completely, with cheesy dialogue and all. I hate those high-pitched girly voices so much, everyone who managed to play it for more than 10 minutes is a hero in my book.
The version(s) I played allowed me to choose the language spoken (EU version for 360, US version for PS3).