Games You Typically Stay Away From?

[Henry Spencer]

I would like to play that SJRPG (whose name has slipped my mind) by the guy that did FF12 though, that game has always piqued my interest.

Yasumi Matsuno is the Japanese Strategy Role Playing god and my favourite game designer of all time. Are you talking about Ogre Battle or Tactics Ogre or Final Fantasy Tactics? Since he's the creator of all of those and they're all SRPGs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasumi_Matsuno#Works

Disgaea is shit, by the way, so if that's your only exposure to the genre, no wonder you don't like it.

[AnimeGamer183]

I disagree, disgaea is not shit. Its actually a great game to introduce someone to strategy RPGs, but only if you can enjoy the anime humor and setting, because the story is certainly not serious or deep but you'll be laughin the whole way through. Its a more laid back experience and its not as intense as the Matsuno games (which I agree are better games) but if you wanna ease in to this style of game play disgaea is a good start, you'll be ready for the depth of the other games soon enough.

[Henry Spencer]

With an art style and game design like that, it'd put anybody off. Literally all that you do in Disgaea is grind, grind and grind some more. There's nothing else to it really. Vastly overrated series. I get far more from the SRPGs released during the PSX days, which have all fallen into obscurity.

[AnimeGamer183]

atleast in disgaea you have places to roam around freely in. FFT is more or less a world map and battles and thats it, the shops and towns are all one screen and you dont even get to walk around in em, it just shows your character at the front desk of the shop etc. Another good srpg for beginners is Jeanne Darc on PSP.

[mue 26]

Yasumi Matsuno is the Japanese Strategy Role Playing god and my favourite game designer of all time. Are you talking about Ogre Battle or Tactics Ogre or Final Fantasy Tactics? Since he's the creator of all of those and they're all SRPGs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasumi_Matsuno#Works

Disgaea is shit, by the way, so if that's your only exposure to the genre, no wonder you don't like it.

Tactics Ogre was the one I had in mind. The way the storytelling is done in that gamed sounds interesting to me, and I've always wanted to try that game since before it was even re-released on PSP. I assume you recommend it? If I ever get a PSP that would be one of the first games I get for it.

[AnimeGamer183]

I believe you are talking about Let Us Cling Together, it was originally a SNES game, but I dont think it ever came out in the west until the PSP version. I have not played it, I have only really sunk my teeth into the GBA game, The Knight of Lodis. im sure some other members can tell you more about the chronological order of the games, what games to start with etc.

[Henry Spencer]

^It did, on the PSX (along with Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen). Atlus released it in the US.

I assume you recommend it?

You assume correctly.
It's one of the best games on PSP and one of the best SRPGs, period. It's a highly influential game, since it pretty much started the entire isometric SRPG genre off (before this, most of them from Japan were top down games like Langrisser and Fire Emblem). The PSP version completely changed the levelling system and improved it in a lot of ways. There's different routes you can take, like in Shin Megami Tensei; there is Law, Chaos and Neutral. There is also new characters and storylines expanded upon from the original release and a newly expanded ending from Matsuno, which better concludes the saga. So yes, if you decide to play Tactics Ogre, get the PSP version. It's one of the best remakes (it isn't just a port).

There's also multiple endings, depending on your choices throughout the game. As far the PSP goes, I saw one in the window at Cash Generator the other day for £25, so they are cheap nowadays. Well worth it too, one of the best systems I've ever owned.

[mue 26]

Thanks! I should pick up a psp, 25 quid isn't too bad at all.

[AnimeGamer183]

I forgot to mention that disgaea is so awesome because prinnys.



And they even later got their own game, like bosses.

[Giorgio]

For one, I typically stay away from ultra-violent (plus zombies) games.

[AnimeGamer183]

I couldnt agree more, man has the zombie invasion primise been milked well beyond its worth, and not just in games. Its killed zombies all together for me, not that I was huge on them before, but when they start making zombie versions of everything just to cash during the time period where zombies are all the rage, you kinda have to start questioning the integrity.

[BigTuna]

For one, I typically stay away from ultra-violent (plus zombies) games.

Absolutely! Cannot stand Zombie based games, man. Or Halo/COD. I just cannot get into those games at all. Most of my friends are all about them though. It's sad.

[MiTT3NZ]

The first Halo was a good game, but the rest are just decent to play if you're at your mate's gaff, nothing more. Same goes for CoD, really. I remember playing the original in my uncle's gaming room. Surround sound + perfect screen settings resulted in one of the most absorbing, nervy gaming experiences I've ever witnessed. I specifically remember being taken aback by how unimportant my presence was on the battlefield. It's probably a little too dated now, but I'd defo recommend getting it just to play the Battle of Stalingrad section. Crank the volume right up too. Was fucking immense.

[OL]

^^I actually remember that. Stalingrad was great. At that point, I think I was even taken aback just by the fact that I was playing as a Russian soldier in the first place, since just about any WWII game I'd played up to that point was strictly US/UK characters. I have no interest in the series right now (I don't dismiss them as shit, I'm just not terribly compelled to play them), but back then it was pretty damn great.
And yeah, same with the first Halo. Still love it to this day, even though I haven't bothered with the series beyond Halo 2 (which I thought was pretty "bleh"). Really need to pick up the 360 version of the original sometime.

[BigTuna]

The first Halo was a good game, but the rest are just decent to play if you're at your mate's gaff, nothing more. Same goes for CoD, really. I remember playing the original in my uncle's gaming room. Surround sound + perfect screen settings resulted in one of the most absorbing, nervy gaming experiences I've ever witnessed. I specifically remember being taken aback by how unimportant my presence was on the battlefield. It's probably a little too dated now, but I'd defo recommend getting it just to play the Battle of Stalingrad section. Crank the volume right up too. Was fucking immense.

Let me re-phrase that, man.
I actually do like the first games in those series! They're the only ones I own. The first COD: MW was especially cool when it came out! I remember me and another friend of mine playing that game for hours and hours on end. I have a hard time playing the first Halo now, but I do fondly recall playing that on my PC and original Xbox. It was a great game also.
But I tried the sequel to COD when that came out and really didn't care for it & after seeing my friends play all the others, I knew I wasn't missing out on anything. They all seem to just be re-hashes of the first game. Talk about lame sauce, man.
Then I co-opted on Halo 2 cos a friend of mine is crazy about that series. I thought that was super boring. I just didn't feel it at all. Then he recommended Reach to me a while later. I figured I'd try it cos maybe I was just crazy for not seeing what he and my all other friends saw in those games, but I ended up turning it off not even half way through. It was a pretty terrible experience to me.

So as a result I now stay away from those games.