Board 8 > Jeff Zero & Leonhart in Different Houses: Trails of Arcadia Edition [JZLF]

(+) Yeah! (+)

High hopes for Phasma and Finn.
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Watched a couple more episodes of Working!! Sato is the best. Also, Inami's mother is an excellent minor character. She kills it every time she shows up.
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After finishing that story in the third SNAFU book, I can see why it got cut out of the anime. To quote Hikigaya, "This is without a doubt the biggest waste of time the Service Club has been involved in since its inception."

Not to say it was bad, but I don't think it would've adapted well.
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Platinum trophies are fun
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BK_Sheikah00 posted...

Well this "make all snacks" trophy in Zestiria is proving to be worse than all of those.

oh god

I didn't get that trophy. I had every snack made except Marron Glace and my only explanation is that Mikleo went on strike or something and just refused to make it.

~~~

Berseria done.

Wrapped up the equipment skills, just barely got the gold trophy by selling off my entire inventory (and then reloading to get it back because no thanks) and I was right about the item collector trophy just being a matter of buying fashion items from the Katz. If I had known one would include a costume that changed the battle theme to The Will That Opposes Reason I would have done that a long time ago. Don't know if it'd work in the Bonus or Final Dungeons though. But even still. Which left the Level 200, All Titles Level 2, and Tales Coin trophy as "nope. maybe if i ever do NG+." I was willing to go for the Tales Coin one until I learned the game wouldn't let me cheese the Balloon minigame for 15k coins. Was willing to play CHILDREN'S CARD GAMES if the trophy were for 100k since I was almost there, but 200k? no thanks bro.

Excellent game, probably best Tales. Would be GotY in many other years but unfortunately shares a year with Trails in the Sky The 3rd and Nier Automata. Still beats Persona 5 and Breath of the Wild though. Did find it interesting that Berseria's peak was when I felt it was starting to channel Nier though.

Next up will be Danganronpa V3. I unfortunately ran across some Case 1 spoilers a while back but I think I'm mostly good beyond that.

However the true BIG NEWS of the day is that today is Mr. Robot Season 3. Best TV show returns hype.
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fwiw the best way to grind Tales coins is doing the damage thing and just incrementally increasing your atk by changing weapons or using saffron or whatever to keep beating your high score

it still takes a bit but you need the coins to buy the costumes for item collector anyway
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The card game in Tales of Berseria was actually really fun I thought.
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It was fairly good as far as card minigames go.
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I only played it once or twice and had a tough time following what was actually going on.
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Yeah, it took me a while to figure it out, but once you understand how it works, it's fairly decent.
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LeonhartFour posted...

After finishing that story in the third SNAFU book, I can see why it got cut out of the anime. To quote Hikigaya, "This is without a doubt the biggest waste of time the Service Club has been involved in since its inception."

Not to say it was bad, but I don't think it would've adapted well.

I thought it was kinda neat just seeing Japanese people playing Scum.
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It was interesting to read, but I don't know that it would've been interesting to watch.
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Oh hey, the third SNAFU book has a prose adaptation of the drama CD that came with the Japanese release of the book. That's nice. I guess I could've found a video of it on YouTube or something, but it's still cool to have it in this book.
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Now playing: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Turnabout Sisters 2001

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTmQDAUSvac

This song has been remixed and redone many times, but the original is probably still my favorite. It's just fun and really catchy.

Actually, I really like the version from the Cadenza CD, too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBCmslbeM7M
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Finished season 2 of Working!! I'm gonna miss ED2. After listening to it the whole season, I think it is the best ED of the three.

I wonder what my favorite ED ever is. I'd have to think about it.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeMm18QwvqM

one of my favorite EDs!
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The contenders:

Kanon
SNAFU ED1 & ED2
Persona 4 ED1
School Rumble ED3
Haruhi Suzumiya ED1
Toradora ED2
Working ED2
GTO ED1
Azumanga Daioh
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj2xvXNFJ6g

Probably mine.
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Top tier of ED's:

Clannad
SNAFU S2
Bakemonogatari
FMA: Brotherhood ED2
Welcome to the NHK! ED1
Yona of the Dawn ED1
Princess Jellyfish
Chihayafuru S1
Gundam SEED
Cowboy Bebop
Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet

Probably something like that, though there might be something I missed.
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Janus gets it in one
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Oh right, Psycho-Pass ED1 is pretty good. Clannad's ED1 is fun and cute, but I can't really call it top tier.
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Now for a Skies of Arcadia update! Red Moon Crystal get! I'm not a fan of desert locations, but I like fire dungeons/temples. Go figure. By the way, did you know that Bellena's original costume was edited for Western audiences? You can actually still see it if you look at the picture of her in the Journal entry for Maramba. I guess the Western team missed it! Lots of stuff was "censored" in SoA for the Western release, most notably turning alcohol into "loqua." I like Belleza a lot as a character. She's probably the only Admiral besides Gregorio you can really sympathize with who also isn't a terrible human being.

Anyway, like I said, I like the Temple of Pyrynn. The design is really cool, and it has some fun little puzzles. The temple theme is great. The most annoying thing about it is that literally every single treasure chest requires you to fight a battle. Every single one. Not sure who thought that was a good idea. Also, I think I got a little unlucky with the boss fight because he kept spamming his attack that hits everyone in your party for like 500 HP for the first five turns or so. Vyse actually got KO'd at one point, but thankfully, I had a Riselem Crystal.

Perhaps Belleza's greatest trick is how her removing her disguise results in her suddenly wearing more clothes. Also, I was thinking, couldn't Vyse have just removed the Red Moon Crystal from the pedestal before it finished summoning the Gigas? Belleza had run away at that point, so she couldn't have stopped him. I guess it would've been hard with all the energy it was emitting. I really like the first two Gigas fights where you have to fight them with the Little Jack. It really gives off an excellent "against all odds" vibe because you're essentially fighting these monstrous weapons of mass destruction in a fishing boat. Still, there's something to be said about the sense of satisfaction you get from blasting these things out of the sky with the Moonstone Cannon, but you have to struggle in the Little Jack first to fully appreciate it.

The ship battle against Belleza might be the best and perhaps the most difficult one in the game, too, which is weird to say considering it's the first major one. It has a ridiculous amount of strategy involved for your first major ship battle, so you have to learn to get good at ship battles really quickly. Belleza is kind of touted as the most tactical and intelligent of the Admirals, and it shows. The game makes you earn that victory, and it feels great to outmaneuver her and nail her with the Harpoon Cannon.

Now that I have my first Moon Crystal, I guess I'll be switching back to Trails.
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Now playing: My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU - Hello Alone (Yui version)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_emvD3tifBw

I probably like the regular version of the song the best, but this one is really good, too. Better than the Yukino version, although I think Yukino probably has the better Everyday World version.
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I never liked liked Hello Alone as much as the other OP's and ED's for that show, but I did like Yui's version the most. (It's still good, just the other theme songs are better)

Everyday World blows everything else in the show away for me though. God I love that song. (Normal version > Yukino version > Yui version in that case, for the record)
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S3E1 of Mr. Robot reminded me that I could still be totally locked in on every moment of a show still. The GOAT has returned. (Note to self: Get Jeff to watch it, as well as anyone else who seems interested)

Started Danganronpa V3 too. Did the Prologue and made it to the first night of Chapter 1. So far so good. Cast looks quite promising so far, not sure there's anyone I was immediately against which is something I absolutely could not say about DR1 or 2. Music so far seems like a step down from DR2 but it's way early and the last song I encountered, what seems to be the Night song is by far the best so far.

Got a question if anyone here can answer it, afraid to venture to the DRV3 topic for fear of more spoilers. (Early Chapter 1 Spoilers) Is Death Road of Despair beatable? I feel like it should be, but I got tired of trying to do it because the snaking of the party members leads to too many silly losses. I got a bit past the "CLEAR" written in traps that leads into the area with vertical platforms. The point seems to be to lose, so I don't know if you eventually just hit a dead end/unwinnable portion or you can win and it's a joke ending or something.. If answering that is somehow spoilers beyond the scope of where I am then just let me know that and don't answer.
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xp1337 posted...

not sure there's anyone I was immediately against which is something I absolutely could not say about DR1 or 2.

that would definitely be a big improvement
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There is one V3 student that I can't stand, but yeah, that's a big improvement from the first two.

it makes up for it by having easily the worst mascots though

LeonhartFour posted...

I really like the first two Gigas fights where you have to fight them with the Little Jack. It really gives off an excellent "against all odds" vibe because you're essentially fighting these monstrous weapons of mass destruction in a fishing boat. Still, there's something to be said about the sense of satisfaction you get from blasting these things out of the sky with the Moonstone Cannon, but you have to struggle in the Little Jack first to fully appreciate it.

This is one thing I always thought was cool about Skies - the Gigas don't scale much in power (except Zelos being the strongest), you just beat them harder as the game goes on.
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Yeah, there's definitely ones I like more than others, and some hover at the "meh" line, but there hasn't been anyone close to say Hifumi or Teruteru which is a welcome change.

Janus5k posted...

it makes up for it by having easily the worst mascots though

well yeah there's that

i like their theme song though. 2nd best song so far?
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Thankfully, DR's mascots have never been a draw for me, so it feels like it'll probably be business as usual.
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Speaking of Danganronpa and music, the best DR song (at least through the 2+ I've played so far) is Ekoroshia/Kill Command:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjbgj2V6-o0
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Definitely one of the best, but I think I might prefer To Survive.
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Monokubs > Monokuma

xp1337 posted...

Got a question if anyone here can answer it, afraid to venture to the DRV3 topic for fear of more spoilers. (Early Chapter 1 Spoilers) Is Death Road of Despair beatable? I feel like it should be, but I got tired of trying to do it because the snaking of the party members leads to too many silly losses. I got a bit past the "CLEAR" written in traps that leads into the area with vertical platforms. The point seems to be to lose, so I don't know if you eventually just hit a dead end/unwinnable portion or you can win and it's a joke ending or something.. If answering that is somehow spoilers beyond the scope of where I am then just let me know that and don't answer.

Not really spoilers, but it's possible, but it takes a very, very long time. And nothing really changes if you actually do manage to beat it.
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I see. Thanks.
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Forgot to do a Now Playing selection from the Prologue for Trails FC, so I'll double down.

First, Secret Green Passage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpjEJD4pcwI

a.k.a. The Mistwald theme

Second, In My Heart:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wVTyO16unQ

a.k.a. Sad, somber moment theme
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I was never a huge fan of Secret Green Passage. Probably one of the only songs from the soundtrack I'd say I don't like. It's a bit better in-context than out-of-context, but I don't think it's anything great in either case.
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It's one of my favorite...I dunno what you'd call it, not necessarily a dungeon theme, but close enough, I guess, from the game. Most of Trails's "exploration" or dungeon music is pleasant but not really something I'd listen to on its own.
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Watched the first two episodes of season 3 of Working!! It's kind of amazing how many things get resolved during this season after the first two seasons were essentially maintaining the status quo to a sitcom-esque level.
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Did some running around in Bose. Met some of the best important NPCs (Maybelle and Lila, of course. Mirano's great for a minor NPC, too, but we met her in Rolent already), as well as the most overrated party member (The poor man's Zelos Wilder, of course). Joshua and Schera are pretty much immediately convinced that Olivier is more important than he lets on. Estelle is clueless, of course, particularly when it comes to the, uh..."finer" points of his lechery. You get some pretty big hints on Joshua's Erebonian heritage, as he gets very offended by Estelle's assumption that Olivier is a prototypical Erebonian and corrects her by saying that they're...pretty much just like him!

Made my way out to Ravennue Village and noticed that you can already read Mischa's name on the memorial in the graveyard. Can't enter Agate's old house yet though.
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Secret Green Passage is one of the better songs in FC, IMO. I think I'd say best "dungeon" theme in FC outside the obvious Hollow Light of the Sealed Land, but I'm not 100% sure.

Tokyo Xanadu ex+ got its release date confirmed for December 8, so I'm guessing that's probably what'll take my attention after Last Recode.

.hack//G.U. Last Recode, Tokyo Xanadu ex+, and Chaos;Child in the last just-over-2-months of the year, lmao 2017 never quits. Well, with Chaos;Child I'm hoping it can hang with Steins;Gate but I suppose I'll find out... probably in 2018 because god all these games.

Still in DRV3 Chapter 1, on what I'm assuming to be the last Free Time section before things get real. Will say though that I think I've put together a fair bit about what's going on and am a bit surprised/frustrated even the "smart" guy here seems to have missed it.

nagito would have caught this (chiaki too, probably)
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Today I drank the first soda I've had in months, but only because the restaurant gave me the wrong drink. Oh well, at least it was root beer (which I like), and not some disgusting diet drink (which has happened before).
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xp1337 posted...

Still in DRV3 Chapter 1, on what I'm assuming to be the last Free Time section before things get real. Will say though that I think I've put together a fair bit about what's going on and am a bit surprised/frustrated even the "smart" guy here seems to have missed it.

Post theories? Also I'm pretty sure there aren't any smart characters in DRv3, except maybe Kaede...
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oh great let's fill the topic with black bars of stuff I have to avoid like we did when Trails the 3rd was flying around here
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I've been on a bit of Clannad kick lately in terms of music. Excellent OST. Not sure which version of Existence I like better: The regular one or the piano version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfsSDnEW2AQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lwm6_4jtTZI
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Watched a couple more episodes of Working!! Heck yeah, Sato. Few characters have had to work harder to earn a love triangle victory than you.

Also, it's a weird quibble, but I guess there's a different translation team for season 3 than the other two seasons because they no longer attach honorifics and they've added the unnecessary "U" to Sato, Soma, and Sota's names. It's not a big deal, but the inconsistency jumps out at me when I'm watching these episodes.
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And SNAFU book 3 complete! Probably the weakest of the three so far since there was relatively little Yui due to the fact that she and Hikigaya had had their fight over what happened to her dog at the end of book 2, and most of the book was devoted to figuring out how to fix everything. Still enjoyable though. The chapter of Hikigaya and Yukino shopping together for Yui's present and Haruno's grand introduction was probably the best part, although I feel like Haruno's essence was hard to capture in just words.
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Mac Arrowny posted...

Post theories? Also I'm pretty sure there aren't any smart characters in DRv3, except maybe Kaede...

LeonhartFour posted...

oh great let's fill the topic with black bars of stuff I have to avoid like we did when Trails the 3rd was flying around here

What Leon said is why I didn't. I briefly debated with myself whether to bring DRV3 playthrough comments here and decided that I'd try to only talk in vague stuff like "Well I'm in Chapter # now" and probably only as a sidenote in other posts since it'd be weird to make a post saying that.

That said, I suppose I'll make an exception just this once: (DRV3 Chapter 1 Spoilers + Speculation on my part based on it): Seemingly no one has picked up on how Monokuma's time limit motive is in violation of his own rules that Monokuma will never directly cause a death. At first I was just disappointed the group let that pass when Monokuma was in the room with them, again, I feel like Nagito or Chiaki would catch that and press him on it.

Then when Shuichi pulled Kaede aside to tell her that Monokuma's wording with regard to "only those forced to participate" would be punished if the time limit hit I just got frustrated that he picked up on that but not the fact that if Monokuma was such a stickler for the rules as he suggests that his punishment in general can't happen!

Ironically though Shuichi picking up on that resolved my own confusion. I'm guessing he's half-right here and that while Monokuma did word it that way to create an exception class, it's literally everyone. It's going to turn out that everyone volunteered to be here and so Monokuma's "threat" is completely harmless, but since no one actually realizes that they're going to end up doing what he wants. Combined with the brief image of Kaede wearing some helmet, which made me wonder if we were going VR again, as well as the whole "Ultimate Hunt" brought up in the beginning and again by Rantaro, plus the name of the academy I'm wondering if Ultimates are being persecuted or whatnot and they entered this freely for whatever reason.

Even if that's wrong, I'm confident about the "Monokuma is intentionally issuing a harmless threat to get things going because everyone ends up fitting his exception case" bit. Especially since if he wanted to loophole this, the regulations are inexplicably quiet on the ability of the Monokubs to interfere directly, they only prohibit action by (and against) Monokuma himself. So intentionally phrasing it in a way that defies his rules has to be on purpose.
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Just been doing Guild sidequests tonight, but I got my Petrify Quartz now, so it's time to literally rock enemies like a Hurricane. Gonna do the TOP SECRET Amberl Tower sidequest next, but I'll save that for tomorrow.
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TOP SECRET Amberl Tower sidequest is what got me in my first Trails playthrough before I realized what exactly I was dealing with. It wasn't the only one, but it was the first.

To this day still think it's the meanest hidden sidequest in Trails. >_>
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I can't remember if I found this one on my first playthrough or not. I know I found at least a couple of the hidden sidequests.

I guess I'll see if I recognize it or not.
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LeonhartFour posted...

oh great let's fill the topic with black bars of stuff I have to avoid

Finally the topic has returned to its true form.
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