So What Are YOU Playing?

**Ayn** · 2014-02-20 01:56

Completed Shadow Hearts 2 yesterday, easily one of the best games for the PS2, it's everything you can ask for in a sequel.

Agreed 100%.

My condolences to you should you decide to play SH3.

**Icarian** · 2014-02-20 17:54

Originally Posted by Ayn

Agreed 100%.

My condolences to you should you decide to play SH3.

Hah, I will not. I can say it fucking pisses all over Shadow Hearts just by looking at the cover.

**Ayn** · 2014-02-20 23:29

I actually wrote something about it years ago (god, hard to believe this post was 3 years ago. . .)

http://backloggers.blogspot.com/2011...h-whimper.html

Long story short, it's not a *bad* game and it definitely improves on the gameplay. It even has a Shadow Hearts feel to it, it's just.. aside from the main character (and maybe Frank, with how ridiculous he is..) it's hard to care about the cast.

Plus, after following Shadow Hearts 2.. yeah.

**Souj** · 2014-02-21 16:58

yeah, auto-haste and Auto-regen just make FF9 way too easy lol. I know I could just 'not use them,' but if I can use something, of course I'm going to use it!
I recalled FF9 being my favorite FF but I think I may have to change that. I had apparently forgotten how for most of the game it chooses which party members you use and constantly takes away people in your party. And it's actually really linear too. People complain about 13 being linear, but you're pretty much forced to go one place after another in 9. I think I'm going to have to replay through 7 and 8 again now too.

Also; Necron quotes Yoda lol. Or at least quotes whatever Yoda's quote is based off of. "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering."

**Sol-Blackguy** · 2014-02-21 17:05

At least FF9 had towns and an actual world map, something that's been missing from Final Fantasy games as of late.

**Souj** · 2014-02-21 17:11

I'm not complaining about the linearity btw. I thought the way FF13 progressed was fine.
Also; Kuja fight was anticlimactic as fuck.

**Charismatic** · 2014-02-21 17:18

I think the main thing that makes FF9 one of my least fav is just how sloooooow everything is with regard to battle.
Slow readying animations, long summon animations (making you never want to use them even before endgame where they aren't that great anyway) slow load times... slow everything.

Thinking back on it I'm kinda surprised that I even went all the way through that game.

**Souj** · 2014-02-21 17:32

FF9 summons are short except for Eiko's. And even then they have nothing on FF7's. Dagger's take literally about 3 seconds after the first time. But yeah, a lot of stuff is slow in that game.

**Charismatic** · 2014-02-21 17:55

iirc don't they show the full animation when boosted?
I mean, yeah, you could summon them without boost but you're losing damage and most of the time might as well not use them.

**Souj** · 2014-02-21 18:08

oh yeah, forgot about that.
I never used summons anyways lol Aside from Phoenix a few times.

**Sol-Blackguy** · 2014-02-21 22:36

I could never figure out what governed getting the full summon animations. Even in trance mode, it all seemed random. I had to look then up on YouTube years later to see all of them.

9 was kind of middle of the road for me. It wasn't one a beat more then 2-3 times compared to other games in the series but it was still part of that era when Squaresofft was pretty damn consistent. I actually plaid it again pretty recently on an emulator with some of Pete's filters. It aged pretty well compared to 8.

**Hitoshura** · 2014-02-21 23:54

Originally Posted by Kuroikage

I think the main thing that makes FF9 one of my least fav is just how sloooooow everything is with regard to battle.
Slow readying animations, long summon animations (making you never want to use them even before endgame where they aren't that great anyway) slow load times... slow everything.

Thinking back on it I'm kinda surprised that I even went all the way through that game.

Auto-Haste definitely helps but def way too late by the time everyone has it lol, I played it on an emulator and used the fast forward function to avoid these slow downs, but to each their own lol.

**BaneTheBrawler** · 2014-02-21 23:56

I'm playing Banished. It's digital crack. Fantastic game, highly recommend.

**Corrderio** · 2014-02-22 01:05

Originally Posted by Sol-Blackguy

At least FF9 had towns and an actual world map, something that's been missing from Final Fantasy games as of late.

And good characters. Granted I never played 13 but a few of my friends that played it said they hated the cast.

**Sol-Blackguy** · 2014-02-22 02:14

Originally Posted by Corrderio

And good characters. Granted I never played 13 but a few of my friends that played it said they hated the cast.

That's one of many things that turned me off from finishing 13. Aside from looking like love children of previous final fantasy characters, it was impossible to relate to anyone because they were a hodgepodge of tropes in the form of what was supposed to be a character. Forgettable at best, annoying at worst while everyone in between simply went through the motions of an already predictable and overused plot.

For all the shit I give 8, at least the characters were memorable and you could relate to most of them. Also, I might be bold enough to say that 8 might have one of the best supporting casts in any Squaresoft game in the 90's.

**Charismatic** · 2014-02-22 08:26

Originally Posted by Sol-Blackguy

any Squaresoft game in the 90's.

How we gonna forget about Scribe Shanky (coooooome closeerrrrr) and Steward Ribson?
Most hilarious bad guys too

Spoiler: show

**Kalmado** · 2014-02-22 08:30

Originally Posted by Corrderio

And good characters. Granted I never played 13 but a few of my friends that played it said they hated the cast.

I played a few hours of 13 and Ebay'd it because the characters were so annoying to me.

**Souj** · 2014-02-22 10:28

On to 8!

Spoiler: show

I didn't use a guide for 9, wasn't really trying to do everything and ended up beating the game in about 35hours. But from what I remember about FF8, it's that there is a shitload of stuff that can be easily missed if you don't know where to go/explore everything. And unlike 9, i've only played through 8 once and barely remember anything about it lol

**Corrderio** · 2014-02-22 10:38

Originally Posted by Sol-Blackguy

For all the shit I give 8, at least the characters were memorable and you could relate to most of them. Also, I might be bold enough to say that 8 might have one of the best supporting casts in any Squaresoft game in the 90's.

The only real character I found memorable in 8 was Squall just because of how anti-social he acted at the start. IMO the FF8 cast suffered from the same problem FF7 had: Characters felt so bland and had very little personality. That's why 9 was my favorite on PS1. Zidance, Vivi, Steiner, etc. were a breath of fresh air.

Also thanks for the warning on FF13. I was actually considering picking up a copy now that I have a PS3.

**Charismatic** · 2014-02-22 12:07

Originally Posted by Corrderio

The only real character I found memorable in 8 was Squall just because of how anti-social he acted at the start. IMO the FF8 cast suffered from the same problem FF7 had: Characters felt so bland and had very little personality. That's why 9 was my favorite on PS1. Zidance, Vivi, Steiner, etc. were a breath of fresh air.

Also thanks for the warning on FF13. I was actually considering picking up a copy now that I have a PS3.

FF7 characters had little personality? Sit your ass down in that chair and drink your goddamn tea.

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