MegaTen

[scy]

[Kitsunexus]

[Teclo]

Well actually it is a series in the Final Fantasy sense. If you think about it, FF has a central series that isn't usually connected and then several parallel series; the parallel series themselves not necessarily being connected either. I mean, you have stuff like Crystal Chronicles and I don't think they're all meant to be connected with each other, the Tactics/Tactics Advance games and Chocobo Mystery Dungeon and even the odd duff action game like Dirge of Cerberus (equivalent to MegaTen's duff action game Maken Shao...)

However, they tend to share themes like the same Summons/GFs, the same item and spell names and the same classes (though in MegaTen that would be more the same enemy categories and therefore the same categories your party members will fit into).

[Akarshi]

Nghg, I picked up the SMT series due to Persona 3. Anyway, I only have P3 and Nocturne so far, though. They're both great, IMHO, but I don't have the systems for the old SMT games...I guess I'll just look for Avatar Tuner or whatever else is on the PS2 platform...

And for some odd reason, I REALLY REALLY REALLY want to play Shin Megami Tensei If... . It sounds like it has a lot of replay value. And Soul Hackers for the creepy maid people....arggreergerw, too bad I can't play them...they look hard to find and very expensive.

[Teclo]

I'd like to play "If" too, but Akarshi, download the emulator ZSNES and the translated ROMs of SMT and SMT2 and try and play them (don't forget to delete them after 24 hours! ). I bet you can't stand them for more than 5 minutes, half an hour if you brace yourself for some shoddy old pseudo-3D. I appreciate and respect them for what they are (or were, more like) but they have aged terribly. The philosophies and ideas in them, which seem to be the one thing people use to defend them, can be found in much more profound forms in countless philosophy and religion books.

[Kitsunexus]

[scy]

To be frank, 90% of the old games appeal right now is tinted by nostalgia. Playing through some of them is fun, sure, but it's nothing less than a totally unappealing visual experience (and, usually, horrible dialogue thanks to early day shoddy translations). They're good, no great, games but ... that doesn't take into account that NOW they look very, very, very, bad. Also, if it's a PS1 game with voices, just shoot yourself now instead of dealing with it.

If you can get over the fact that what you're playing isn't going to be what-so-ever visually immersive then it probably doesn't matter in the slightest (that or if you're dead set on playing it through for the story). However, I've played them before and I can leave myself with the fond memories of when it sure as hell "looked" good and not be wondering what made this game "so amazing" when I first played it >>.

I'm not a graphics whore but I do quite like "omg pretty visuals"; that is, I like the game to be appealing to look at. It doesn't need to be next-gen (...current gen?!) but at the very least, it needs to look good enough. Veyr obscure, I know. I can respect what the games looked like at the time but, at the same time, I can definitely see how it shows it's age and fails to satisfy me NOW. Nostalgia only goes so far, really.

That said, I guess I just don't "get" it for retrogaming; they sure were awesome for their time but man ... they don't age well. That and a lot of this is more of a, "So why play it again?" and not seeing it for the first time. Some stories / game experiences I'd say to flat out ignore what it looks like and to just play it; Terranigma, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VI, etc. All a bit lacking now in terms of story probably (...definitely) but they're still amazing games for their time and they aged a lot better than other titles, probably due to not being "omg 3D guys!"

Edit: Just because I sound totally bashing it, I have nothing against the old games and people who like / prefer / have sex with / etc. them. Just ... I guess I don't "get" it and probably never will. Also, I like to type really long posts for weird ass reasons.

And because I want to take a stab at it because I can't help myself, I don't like the "but a book did it!" argument. De-rail ahoy!
[spoiler]Yeah, there's countless books across all the genres that cover pretty much any and all game stories ever made and ever to be made and tend to do it better anyway. That's not the point. There's just something about the story and seeing and playing it out as opposed to reading it. I mean, in essence, it's just a giant interactive book so the argument works but, to be honest, the early days of games didn't really have super impressive and deep stories.

...not that they really do now but still. I dunno. They're just "different" forms of entertainment to me, much like how I don't really correlate book, TV, and movie plots unless I have to (ie, one based on the other). They're different. Very, very different although the core ideal is the same--telling a story.

I'd like to walk away from a game with the same level of "story" satisfaction as a good book but I doubt that'll happen for awhile; I can, however, enjoy the game's story in context to itself or others in the genre and not compare it cross-mediums and shatter how I felt about it. That's all. Persona 3, for example, has a pretty hum-drum story in it, a usual twist that people have seen countless times, and even the ending has been done before. That said, it's still an enjoyable story for what it is: A dark twist on the, "OMG SAVE THE WORLD," plot that plagues ... well, every RPG ever. It's not unique and it's not A+ caliber material but, as far as games go, it's a respectable story.

Also, very fucking emo by the end of the game where I wondered if the game was going to give me a /wrists option or something. Seriously.[/spoiler]

[Kitsunexus]

[scy]

Ouch, fuck ... you got me.

To counter, Grandia I.

Edit: I guess to be more clear, most PS1 titles had, "Oh my god, you're raping my ears please stop what you're doing." The really early "HEY GUYS ... WE GOT VOICES" games were deplorable.

Incidentally, this goes to a lot of DS Games too (seriously, could you sound any less enthused Mega Man ZX Advent cast? Seriously guys?).

There's notable exceptions but man ... replaying some of those games (STAR OCEAN I'M LOOKING AT YOU) makes me cringe despite how much I enjoyed them at the time (and still do now, occasionally).

[Kitsunexus]

[scy]

[Zai]

[Kaining]

[Vapour Trail]

[Kitsunexus]