RPG Insanity

Well I'm probably a little late to the party on this one, as I've just now reached Chapter Two.. :whistle:

At first I was really put off by the controls and the orientation (I really prefer landscape, and I get tired of holding my tablet in portrait layout, and it just seems like there's no good reason for it anyway.)

I was (and still am) intrigued by the story. I like how the main character narrates parts of the story - I think that's a nice change of pace from the 15 minutes of dialogue between 12 different characters every time you reach a new location in Exe Create games (ok I exaggerate, but some times it gets annoying!)

I also liked the few puzzles - the bit of math and the tiles that constantly change direction.

But the battles are, in my opinion, completely UN-challenging. Not as bad as the first Alphadia, but not a single Boss battle presented any real challenge.

Still the story seems interesting, so I'm willing to keep going just for that reason.

Overall, though, I think I'd say this game somewhat reminds me of Eve of the Genesis - only not as well done. (I don't think Astral Frontier is horrible, I just think it wasn't well thought out...)

For those who've finished the game, did you find that you liked it any better once you got to the end? Or are there still too many problems to make it feel really enjoyable? (Or, do you think I'm being too nitpicky?) I think the story will end well, but I fear that might be this game's only redeeming quality.

[quote="MSG Commander" post=6314]I was (and still am) intrigued by the story. I like how the main character narrates parts of the story - I think that's a nice change of pace from the 15 minutes of dialogue between 12 different characters every time you reach a new location in Exe Create games (ok I exaggerate, but some times it gets annoying!) [/quote]
At least they have 12 different characters :silly:

Actually, my main problem with this story is that not having 12 different characters is not a joke. Astral Frontier has a very... focused story. There are protagonists and a few key figures like Brainix. Everyone else might as well be replaced by lamps. It goes to the point where time passes only for protagonists, is measured only by their main story progress, and nothing else ever happens or matters. No, seriously. Here are some choice examples:

1) During the main plot, you need to revive the 4th party member, and for that you need batteries. Said batteries are found in the machine named "Mother", and the 4th party member is necessary, so you're forced by Mother to scrap her and take the batteries. The problem? Mother happens to be the source of the all-female El. As in, El can't reproduce among themselves, so Mother has to create all new El. By scrapping her, our heroes just, oh, doomed the entire race to extinction. A minor slight, surely, which is why it goes completely unmentioned by both heroes and NPC. Who'd notice, right? :whistle:
2) That NPC thing, period. Nothing any NPC says ever changes. Ever. A year passed between parts of the game, with environment stabilized for the time? Who cares! The Mother got busted? Never heard of it!

Yes, constant scenes where we spend 15 minutes on random conversations can be annoying. But they have a purpose: to establish that the world is alive, that protagonists aren't the only things there and things happen outside of them. That, and character establishment/development. Astral Frontier takes the opposite approach: the protagonists are pretty much the world itself, everything is centered on them and all else doesn't matter. It's different, sure, but that does not make it better.


[quote="MSG Commander" post=6314]I also liked the few puzzles - the bit of math and the tiles that constantly change direction.[/quote]

The movement reversal tiles aren't really a puzzle. They're a gimmick, and a pretty annoying one. You still have to walk the same paths, it's just that you'll sometimes have to hold up instead of down to go down, and that you'll be frequently sent going in the opposite direction.


[quote="MSG Commander" post=6314]For those who've finished the game, did you find that you liked it any better once you got to the end? Or are there still too many problems to make it feel really enjoyable? (Or, do you think I'm being too nitpicky?) I think the story will end well, but I fear that might be this game's only redeeming quality.[/quote]

Gameplay doesn't get any better. Story decides to go with out-of-absolutely-nowhere, almost fantasy-like dramatic plot twists. Whether it's better or not is a matter of preference, I suppose.

[quote="Searinox119" post=6319]Everyone else might as well be replaced by lamps.[/quote]

Lols. (I actually really liked your overall analysis, but that one line - golden.)

Well, I finished all the way to the True End over the holiday...

I don't think there's anything about the game that's really "bad," per se - but there's also not anything that I found to be really exciting, or engaging. It just seemed... I don't know; empty, maybe? Like with a little more effort it really could have been something, but as it was, it's just not that remarkable.

Still, it wasn't the worst Kemco game I've played, but it's hard to say I'd really recommend it. Anyone else?

I guess the main issue I have with the game is the controls. When scrolling the item list it's very easy to accidentally use an item you didn't mean to use. I burned through my consumables that way. I also didn't like how the item list was divvy'ed up - it made it even easier to press the wrong thing. I really disliked the moving floor puzzles. With the vertical display, I kept accidentally pressing the wrong button and sending my character back and forth once the tiles changed direction. The story did feel a bit flat, and there was a glaring lack of characters. One year later, Arina in Japina was still going on about the PB she gave me, even though humanity was supposedly on the brink of extinction. The Muti and (spoiler) L2 were almost nonexistent in the storyline. It makes no sense to have all these different races and barely touch on them.

One thing I did like about the game was the music. It was rather atmospheric and somehow sounded appropriate for a Genesis-style fantasy RPG.

Edit: another thing I thought of. SPOILER:

Honestly, I liked the open world style of the game by connecting all of the places together. however, I was dissapointed by the fact that the game was all a single straight line. I felt like there should have been more exploration of different cosmodomes or planets or how you call it. I really wanted the game to be much more of an open world experience. The skills system severely missed the mark lacking the elemental Rock-Paper-Scissors which turned all the characters into attacking machines. In fact, you should give the skill gems to Orian and Carla to make them your mages. I disliked how sparse the game felt at times being almost isolated. I guess overall, i wanted much more from this game than i did really.