Must hurry now ...
Baaaaah! Despite what I may say about my other physical flaws, if I really were able to change one physical thing about myself (and were practical enough to consider my options objectively), I would probably change my teeth.
I never needed braces -- but I've had a RIDICULOUS amount of cavities, and now, the tooth I've had trouble with all summer and have seen my dentist about is starting to literally fall apart. UGH. My (previously scheduled) next appointment is two days away, and my dentist's office is closed today and tomorrow, so there's nothing I can do until then but continue to poke and prod the tooth which feels strange in my mouth (as it's missing a section as of a few hours ago). It makes me want to scream, especially since it doesn't seem to be the result of anything I did. Since I got a root canal my senior year of high school, I have been extra careful with my teeth and avoided additional cavities on the whole. Then, a few months ago, this accursed tooth started hurting. It already has a filling in it, but my dentist said it might need a root canal. I do not want another root canal. I have a sneaking suspicion that the dentist (not my current one) who screwed up a bit on my root canal also may have screwed up on the tooth that is now causing me pain. There's no way to prove that, of course, and even if I could it would do me no good now. The damage is done, and I'm stuck suffering.
(Of course, on the bright side, if teeth are my worst worry, I guess that's not so bad. Except for, you know, dental work costs a lot of money, and I'm only on my parents' insurance till I graduate. I have to get everything fixed before then ...)
*sigh*
Anyway. I can't get my tooth off my mind (considering that it feels vaguely vacuum-y against my cheek, it's pretty hard to ignore), but let's talk about something else ....
Video games!
~Grim Grimoire~
My second outing with a Vanillaware game has not been as fulfilling as the first (Odin Sphere, which I still adore), but so far it's more than worth the $10 I paid for it.
Gripes:
-OK, the battle system is a PAIN. This is my first RTS (real time strategy) game, and it is not an easy system to pick up for someone who best likes real time fighting a la the Tales of franchise and Odin Sphere. The idea of summoning mythical creatures and using them to fight for you may sound cool (and let's be honest, it is), but when a non-leader type like me is forced to choose everything from which type of creatures to summon to how many to where each one should go on the map, it results in long, often frustrating battles. I'm playing on easy mode, and typically a battle takes me 20-25 minutes.
-By comparison, the story scenes are painfully short. I fight a long battle to see ... a two minute conversation. There's a battle every chapter, too.
-Also, all the battles take place in the same spot, the tower where main character Lillet is staying. Some complained about Odin Sphere's only having 7 lushly illustrated locations to tromp through; by comparison, Grim-Grim's single battle location (and the story conversations are all stationary by the way, not showing much of the surroundings there either) is pretty boring.
-Finally, the English Dub. Sucks. (Mostly, it's because I can't stand hearing an icky old man voice coming out of Bartido.)
But, now that that's out of my system ...
Grins:
-The battle system may be tough, but at least the game does a good job of explaining it. Every time I read about it before buying the game, I was left going, "Huh?" but once I played it, it wasn't so hard to understand as I imagined. Even if I have trouble, at least I know what I'm supposed to be doing.
-The graphics are just as pretty as Odin Sphere, although more limited in the single battle environment as well as the visual novel style (characters stand before you talking, usually moving only their mouths, and sometimes not even that) story scenes. Still, the character designs are very detailed and for the most part look great. The familiar (summons for battles) are gorgeous -- especially the dragon ^_^ (my favorite so far).
-The story, though offered in very small doses, is interesting and shows promise. The premise of the game -- Lillet relives the first five days in the magical tower over and over again in order to stop the tragedy that happens at the end of them -- is not new, but it's done well.
-Even if the dub sucks, there's a Japanese language option, which doesn't suck (yay).
So all in all, I'm far less addicted to it than Odin Sphere, but I do like it, and I hope I can see more from Vanillaware in the future (how about bringing out OS's predecessor?).
~Suikoden III~
OK, so this is the game that's taken over the empty space Odin Sphere left behind. It's been a while since I've read the manga (and I didn't ever finish it, even though I really like it), but I still remember some spoilers. Despite that, I'm having a lot of fun. But first, the gripes.
Gripes:
-The battle system is d-u-l-l. It's basically turn-based with a few twists -- the characters move around the screen (much in the way of Wild Arms), staying close to the enemy at the end of their attack, and the six characters that can be used in battles are grouped into pairs. You command by pairs, not by characters. This can be OK, but it can also be a pain. For example, if one character needs a healing potion and you give that command, you cannot control what the other character in that pair does (because you only give one command per pair per turn). But pretty much, I just don't care that much for turn-based battling.
-Oh, oh. But there are actually three types of battling. The two others are (1) big, strategy style battle in which you must move your units around the screen and (2) duels between two characters. Both are significantly different from the regular battle system, but you know what? The instruction guide barely mentions them. Duels are actually fairly easy to explain: there are three commands (defend, attack, deathblow), and when your opponent does a certain command, you must counter with another command that will trump theirs in order to win (much like rock-paper-scissors). But does the manual explain this? Nope. I had to learn it from an online guide.
-The instruction manual sucks. Like, seriously. Did I not read it well enough? Because I feel like they don't explain a whole lot, and the game itself doesn't help any in this regard.
-As far as I know, there are no life potions/revive/phoenix downs. If your character dies in battle, you cannot do a thing until the battle's over, at which point they'll be automatically revived with 1 hp (but they do not get exp from the battle). There is an item called a "sacrificial jizo" that is supposed to revive a character automatically (much like the voodoo dolls in Tales of the Abyss), but I think it's one use only and costs 5000 potch. Not a good substitute for a revive item.
-This is an early PS2 game, and as such, the graphics are decent (good for their age), but somewhat clunky. (Chris especially looks weird after the crisp designs in the manga that I was used to, though she's better when she wears normal clothes rather than armor.) Not a big deal for someone who does just fine with PS1 sprites, but worth mentioning nonetheless.
-There are no voices. Again, this wouldn't be unusual for a PS1 game, but for a PS2 game, it's kind of unsettling (Wild Arms III also has no voices, so it's not unprecedented, of course). I suppose I'd prefer no dub over a bad dub, but it makes the game feel strangely silent (especially after Odin Sphere, where EVERYONE talks).
-There are no CG cutscenes/mini-movies, etc. Well, there was one 30 second one, but all it contained was lizards charging over fields. Maybe there'll be something later? (I am 30 hours in though ...)
OK, enough of that.
Grins:
-Opening movie is gorgeous. OK, so it's a small thing, but I'm a sucker for pretty anime-style opening movies (see: Tales franchise), and this one is really nice. What heightens things is that I recognize some characters and bits of events from the manga that I know would be spoilers, but as they are in the opening, there's nothing spoiler-y about them. It just shows how well put together it is. (Also, music is fun.)
-The Trinity system (viewing game events from three main characters' povs) is a nice idea. The three characters' stories intersect now and then, and it's really neat to go from, "Now why did they do that?!" in one chapter to understanding all the circumstances in the next. *Note: unlike Odin Sphere, where you play each character's book all at once before moving on to the next character, in SIII, you play one character chapter at a time. So, for me, I started off with Hugo ch. 1, then Chris ch. 1, then Geddoe ch. 1. Then I did Hugo ch. 2, Chris ch. 2, Geddoe ch. 2. But, I could've gone in a different order.*
-Which is to say that the story is pretty good -- not to mention addictive. When I finish one character's chapter, I want to start the next right away, because I want to see their perspective on the events (the chapters roughly correlate with each other). There's a big war looming on the horizon, involving three huge areas, but the focus is supremely on the characters and their pieces of the story.
-There are a whole lot of characters. The three leads, all those in their parties, and oh, yeah, the 108 Stars of Destiny. The 108 are mostly minor, recruitable characters. Most don't get much development (other than "suave salesman" or "traveling musician"), but some interact with the story in big ways. It's still kind of neat, at least in that all these characters have unique designs.
So, yeah, I'm enjoying Suikoden III, even if I really need to detach myself from my PS2 and go clean my room one of these days (you know, before I move out for the school year).
Also, good news: my Toward the Terra DVDs came in yesterday! Bwah, I want to show them to you guys ... just spot checking the DVDs (which seem to work perfectly) made me really yearn to stop and watch the show. It's so good ♥
Also, Gundam Seed sets are apparently in the mail (even the one on-order, I guess?). I hope they come on a day when I'm the only one around so I don't have to explain all of my packages to my mom ...
And with that, it's about time to go to work. Bwah.
I never needed braces -- but I've had a RIDICULOUS amount of cavities, and now, the tooth I've had trouble with all summer and have seen my dentist about is starting to literally fall apart. UGH. My (previously scheduled) next appointment is two days away, and my dentist's office is closed today and tomorrow, so there's nothing I can do until then but continue to poke and prod the tooth which feels strange in my mouth (as it's missing a section as of a few hours ago). It makes me want to scream, especially since it doesn't seem to be the result of anything I did. Since I got a root canal my senior year of high school, I have been extra careful with my teeth and avoided additional cavities on the whole. Then, a few months ago, this accursed tooth started hurting. It already has a filling in it, but my dentist said it might need a root canal. I do not want another root canal. I have a sneaking suspicion that the dentist (not my current one) who screwed up a bit on my root canal also may have screwed up on the tooth that is now causing me pain. There's no way to prove that, of course, and even if I could it would do me no good now. The damage is done, and I'm stuck suffering.
(Of course, on the bright side, if teeth are my worst worry, I guess that's not so bad. Except for, you know, dental work costs a lot of money, and I'm only on my parents' insurance till I graduate. I have to get everything fixed before then ...)
*sigh*
Anyway. I can't get my tooth off my mind (considering that it feels vaguely vacuum-y against my cheek, it's pretty hard to ignore), but let's talk about something else ....
Video games!
~Grim Grimoire~
My second outing with a Vanillaware game has not been as fulfilling as the first (Odin Sphere, which I still adore), but so far it's more than worth the $10 I paid for it.
Gripes:
-OK, the battle system is a PAIN. This is my first RTS (real time strategy) game, and it is not an easy system to pick up for someone who best likes real time fighting a la the Tales of franchise and Odin Sphere. The idea of summoning mythical creatures and using them to fight for you may sound cool (and let's be honest, it is), but when a non-leader type like me is forced to choose everything from which type of creatures to summon to how many to where each one should go on the map, it results in long, often frustrating battles. I'm playing on easy mode, and typically a battle takes me 20-25 minutes.
-By comparison, the story scenes are painfully short. I fight a long battle to see ... a two minute conversation. There's a battle every chapter, too.
-Also, all the battles take place in the same spot, the tower where main character Lillet is staying. Some complained about Odin Sphere's only having 7 lushly illustrated locations to tromp through; by comparison, Grim-Grim's single battle location (and the story conversations are all stationary by the way, not showing much of the surroundings there either) is pretty boring.
-Finally, the English Dub. Sucks. (Mostly, it's because I can't stand hearing an icky old man voice coming out of Bartido.)
But, now that that's out of my system ...
Grins:
-The battle system may be tough, but at least the game does a good job of explaining it. Every time I read about it before buying the game, I was left going, "Huh?" but once I played it, it wasn't so hard to understand as I imagined. Even if I have trouble, at least I know what I'm supposed to be doing.
-The graphics are just as pretty as Odin Sphere, although more limited in the single battle environment as well as the visual novel style (characters stand before you talking, usually moving only their mouths, and sometimes not even that) story scenes. Still, the character designs are very detailed and for the most part look great. The familiar (summons for battles) are gorgeous -- especially the dragon ^_^ (my favorite so far).
-The story, though offered in very small doses, is interesting and shows promise. The premise of the game -- Lillet relives the first five days in the magical tower over and over again in order to stop the tragedy that happens at the end of them -- is not new, but it's done well.
-Even if the dub sucks, there's a Japanese language option, which doesn't suck (yay).
So all in all, I'm far less addicted to it than Odin Sphere, but I do like it, and I hope I can see more from Vanillaware in the future (how about bringing out OS's predecessor?).
~Suikoden III~
OK, so this is the game that's taken over the empty space Odin Sphere left behind. It's been a while since I've read the manga (and I didn't ever finish it, even though I really like it), but I still remember some spoilers. Despite that, I'm having a lot of fun. But first, the gripes.
Gripes:
-The battle system is d-u-l-l. It's basically turn-based with a few twists -- the characters move around the screen (much in the way of Wild Arms), staying close to the enemy at the end of their attack, and the six characters that can be used in battles are grouped into pairs. You command by pairs, not by characters. This can be OK, but it can also be a pain. For example, if one character needs a healing potion and you give that command, you cannot control what the other character in that pair does (because you only give one command per pair per turn). But pretty much, I just don't care that much for turn-based battling.
-Oh, oh. But there are actually three types of battling. The two others are (1) big, strategy style battle in which you must move your units around the screen and (2) duels between two characters. Both are significantly different from the regular battle system, but you know what? The instruction guide barely mentions them. Duels are actually fairly easy to explain: there are three commands (defend, attack, deathblow), and when your opponent does a certain command, you must counter with another command that will trump theirs in order to win (much like rock-paper-scissors). But does the manual explain this? Nope. I had to learn it from an online guide.
-The instruction manual sucks. Like, seriously. Did I not read it well enough? Because I feel like they don't explain a whole lot, and the game itself doesn't help any in this regard.
-As far as I know, there are no life potions/revive/phoenix downs. If your character dies in battle, you cannot do a thing until the battle's over, at which point they'll be automatically revived with 1 hp (but they do not get exp from the battle). There is an item called a "sacrificial jizo" that is supposed to revive a character automatically (much like the voodoo dolls in Tales of the Abyss), but I think it's one use only and costs 5000 potch. Not a good substitute for a revive item.
-This is an early PS2 game, and as such, the graphics are decent (good for their age), but somewhat clunky. (Chris especially looks weird after the crisp designs in the manga that I was used to, though she's better when she wears normal clothes rather than armor.) Not a big deal for someone who does just fine with PS1 sprites, but worth mentioning nonetheless.
-There are no voices. Again, this wouldn't be unusual for a PS1 game, but for a PS2 game, it's kind of unsettling (Wild Arms III also has no voices, so it's not unprecedented, of course). I suppose I'd prefer no dub over a bad dub, but it makes the game feel strangely silent (especially after Odin Sphere, where EVERYONE talks).
-There are no CG cutscenes/mini-movies, etc. Well, there was one 30 second one, but all it contained was lizards charging over fields. Maybe there'll be something later? (I am 30 hours in though ...)
OK, enough of that.
Grins:
-Opening movie is gorgeous. OK, so it's a small thing, but I'm a sucker for pretty anime-style opening movies (see: Tales franchise), and this one is really nice. What heightens things is that I recognize some characters and bits of events from the manga that I know would be spoilers, but as they are in the opening, there's nothing spoiler-y about them. It just shows how well put together it is. (Also, music is fun.)
-The Trinity system (viewing game events from three main characters' povs) is a nice idea. The three characters' stories intersect now and then, and it's really neat to go from, "Now why did they do that?!" in one chapter to understanding all the circumstances in the next. *Note: unlike Odin Sphere, where you play each character's book all at once before moving on to the next character, in SIII, you play one character chapter at a time. So, for me, I started off with Hugo ch. 1, then Chris ch. 1, then Geddoe ch. 1. Then I did Hugo ch. 2, Chris ch. 2, Geddoe ch. 2. But, I could've gone in a different order.*
-Which is to say that the story is pretty good -- not to mention addictive. When I finish one character's chapter, I want to start the next right away, because I want to see their perspective on the events (the chapters roughly correlate with each other). There's a big war looming on the horizon, involving three huge areas, but the focus is supremely on the characters and their pieces of the story.
-There are a whole lot of characters. The three leads, all those in their parties, and oh, yeah, the 108 Stars of Destiny. The 108 are mostly minor, recruitable characters. Most don't get much development (other than "suave salesman" or "traveling musician"), but some interact with the story in big ways. It's still kind of neat, at least in that all these characters have unique designs.
So, yeah, I'm enjoying Suikoden III, even if I really need to detach myself from my PS2 and go clean my room one of these days (you know, before I move out for the school year).
Also, good news: my Toward the Terra DVDs came in yesterday! Bwah, I want to show them to you guys ... just spot checking the DVDs (which seem to work perfectly) made me really yearn to stop and watch the show. It's so good ♥
Also, Gundam Seed sets are apparently in the mail (even the one on-order, I guess?). I hope they come on a day when I'm the only one around so I don't have to explain all of my packages to my mom ...
And with that, it's about time to go to work. Bwah.