HALIBABICA'S PROFILE

Okay, here we go! I took the Game Informer approach to reviewing these games, but replaced "Replay Value" with "Playthrough Value" (b/c nobody plays these more than once ::)).

- Dragon Fantasy 2 -

Concept: Recreate the feel and experience of playing an old 8-bit RPG.

Graphics: While severely lacking by today's standards, this game's graphics match the feel it creates perfectly. It really captures the style of the old games it mimics. Very well done!

Sound: Like the graphics, the music and sound all bring back fond memories of old RPGs. You might recognize some of the songs in the soundtrack, but they blend in well enough nonetheless.

Playability: It's RM2K, and they didn't do anything fancy with the controls, so that's just fine. I'd only complain about the reduced hero speed, but that probably has more to do with recreating the old-school feeling.

Entertainment: Not bad for an RM game. The battles are tricky enough to keep you paying attention without mashing enter too much.

Playthrough Value: Moderately high, I played all that existed of it.

As a game that recreates the feel of the classic RPGs of the 8-bit era, Dragon Fantasy 2 succeeds wonderfully. The graphics and music come together splendidly and make you feel like you're back in the good old days of RPG gaming.
The game itself is pretty tough. All the numbers are kept very small, so you have to be careful and pay attention during fights (both random and otherwise). While the battles are tricky, the strategy you use to beat them depends entirely on which heroes you choose at the beginning of the game. Much like in FF1, you can pick from a variety of classes. Their strengths and weaknesses are all explained to you, so you don‘t have to pick blindly and hope for the best.
The dungeons of the game are mostly lacking in puzzles, but otherwise do the job. This is another consistency with classic games that focused more on exploration and battle than puzzle-solving. I would've liked to be challenged a little more outside of battle, but it wasn't that big of a deal.
I didn't find much to complain about in the game. My only real gripes were with the reduced hero walk speed and the spell/item descriptions (which were non-existent). I like being able to know what something does before I use it, and especially before I buy it! I also like knowing what I do and don't need so I can sell off fodder items like many of the game's enemies drop. On a positive note, I like it that when you bump into walls, it makes a ‘BUMP' noise. Sometimes, it was hard to tell what tiles I could walk on and which I couldn't. This feature helped immensely (though it was sometimes annoying when it stopped you for that brief moment).
All in all, I'd say this is a very well made game. It recreates the experience it seeks to without going over the top. If you like the old dungeon crawling fun of past RPGs, then this is definitely worth a look. But, if you want something more than just treasure hunting and battles, you may want to try something else.

- U.S.G. ~A New Beginning~ -

Concept: Shoot M' Up.

Graphics: Unbelievably good. The common enemies are a little bland looking, but the bosses, backgrounds, and character art are top-notch!

Sound: Kyte's navigator can get irritating after awhile, but otherwise the music and sound fit well.

Playability: The controls work flawlessly, letting you weave through bullet patterns with ease.

Entertainment: I'm not that big a fan of shmups, but this was a lot of fun. Both the plot and the gameplay kept me coming back for more!

Playthrough Value: High, I did all but the bonus stuff!

This is probably the most beautiful indie game I've ever played. It's stunning visuals look professional quality and create a feel all their own. Of course, looks aren't everything, but this game has plenty of other good stuff to back it up.
I'll admit, at first the plot felt like it was just tacked on, and I wasn't quite sure where everything was happening. But, as the game progressed and more info was revealed, it all made more sense (so, no problem). Aside from a few spelling errors, the dialogue was well-written and the story was very interesting. I was really surprised by some of its twists!
The game itself was tons of fun to play. There was a wide variety of enemies, and a wide variety of ways with which to fend them off. It was cool how elemental weapons played a significant role, making the player decide beforehand what might be best to use. I didn't like that some enemies could nullify certain elements, though. One in particular was immune to all but two of the weapons, and I couldn't beat that stage until I figured out what worked best. Anyway, leveling up the weapons was awesome, as it changed their firing rate and other effects. I never repeated missions, though, so I usually didn't gain enough experience to power up much. It often felt like an uphill battle, and I only played it on easy! :o
Overall, this game is just incredible. If you're a fan of shmups, this is a must to play. Everything was done so well, I can hardly find anything to complain about. And even if I did, I'd feel like I was nitpicking. Just check it out!


- Aurora Wing -

Concept: Fight tactical battles in a unique RPG battle system.

Graphics: Nothing too spectacular, but not bad either. About what I'd expect from an 2K3 game these days (now that everyone's standards are so high).

Sound: I liked the Donkey Kong Country 2 music, and none of the rest of it seemed out of place.

Playability: Rather confusing. All movement is diagonal, so the controls take some getting used to (even with the option to switch the key functions to your liking).

Entertainment: I'm not too big on this sort of thing, but I can see why it might appeal to others.

Playthrough Value: Moderate, probably appeals more to other kinds of players.

This game struck a few bad notes with me, but it plays flawlessly and probably works better for different kinds of players. But, this is my experience…
The game throws you into the middle of the action right off the bat. There are lots of names, lots of places, and a situation described that I still don't entirely understand (I remember who Nash is, but that's about it…). There's a lot to take in right away, so it felt overwhelming and could do with better pacing in my opinion. I feel that the plot also suffers from the way it's mostly presented. The game's focus is on the tactical battle system, so all the plot stuff takes place on the custom menu screen between fights and at locations that aren't much more than backdrops. I couldn't get a feel for where anything was happening, and even though the dialogue was good, it lost its impact from not being able to see the places and situations the characters found themselves in.
The menus and battle system all work perfectly, but I found them quite confusing. Along with all the plot stuff you have to take in at the start, none of the menu's functions are explained. A tutorial was offered for the battle system, but it was still hard to grasp even after that. It basically boiled down to I didn't know enough about anything or how it worked to want to experiment around with things.
The battles themselves flow very nicely. I liked that the player could take as many or few actions as they liked during their turn, and the enemies only got to move when the player was finished. I didn't test all the functions of the battle system, but I liked what I did get to see. It works beautifully, and I found nothing wrong with it (even though I didn't like it).
This game offers a unique RPG experience for a 2K3 game. While the battle system is interesting and works very well, it suffers from being rather vague and confusing. The plot is difficult to follow due to the large number of characters and places to keep track of. It also lacks most of what would constitute cutscenes, making them feel bland in spite of good dialogue. I think this game could be great, and I'm sure a lot of people still enjoy it, but it needs something more for its plot to work and could do with better pacing.

- Kinetic Cipher -

Concept: A story-focused 2K3 game.

Graphics: Anyone who's not afraid to use RTP is okay in my book. Except for the battle chars, those really are awful.

Sound: Okay. Not outstanding, not bad. Just okay.

Playability: It plays like 2K3, so the field mode is fine and the battle system's ATB is as annoying as ever.

Entertainment: Since the game is focused on story and plot development, it has a good deal of dialogue and scenes. It's very well written and enough to keep the player interested, even though some of the scenes seemed like they dragged on longer than they should've. Puzzles were also good, but battles were a nuisance.

Playthrough Value: Moderately high, I'm still playing to see what happens next (lost to the pirates, though).

From the outside, this would seem like your standard issue 2K3 game. It uses the DBS and other standard features, but looks can be deceiving. From the inside, it becomes clear that it's a very well-made standard issue 2K3 game ::). Here's how I felt about it.
The story, which is the focus of the game, is very well done. The dialogue sounds natural and the characters are all distinct. The game explains its premise and important plot info in a way that's easy to understand and follow. It's not standard RPG plot #357, and it shows it through the characters and presentation of information. It creates a unique world that reveals its distinctions from the real world without overwhelming the player. I'd say this is the game's strongest point.
The battles still feel like the typical 2K3 crap you've come to expect, but there's much more to them than just mashing enter and watching bars fill up. The game offers you more options on how to fight which can make the difference between an easy battle and a visit to the “game over” screen. All the encounters are touch as well, so you can avoid fighting if you're not up to it.
The game also features tough puzzles in its dungeons, so it's not just walking from point A to point B. I enjoyed solving the puzzles and working my way through. Some of them really made me think! I also liked that the creator edited sprites as necessary to give the impression of what the heroes were doing (such as pushing and pulling rocks).
As before, this is a very well-made 2K3 game. The plot and dialogue are both the focus and strong points of it. It features annoying battles but balances it out with fun puzzles and plenty of incentive to keep you slaughtering your way through them. If you like RPGs in general, then there's no reason you shouldn't like this.

- THE END -

tl;dr

You don't really have to finish the games, just play them and get a feel for what they're like. Give 'em a fair chance, and say what you did/didn't enjoy on the 1st. No obligation, either. It's the honor system (you have honor, don't you?!).

author=Nightblade link=topic=1536.msg24897#msg24897 date=1216769787
I'll even expand my horizons and play Iffermoon.

If you can get ahold of it. :(

Hey, that's my size! I'm thin as a rail, but they don't make pants with 28 waists long enough for my legs...

One day, I find one of those old comedy/tragedy masks lying on the ground. It's the comedy side, and sports a big happy smile like this: :D. Knowing full well that comedy is nothing without tragedy to offset it, I realize I must find it's missing mate.

So I go on eBay and start snooping around. I see some good auctions, but most of them have both halves of the set instead of just the tragedy side. I browse for hours through thousands of auctions until I finally find a lone tragedy mask at a reasonable price. As I'm bidding on it, the price quickly becomes unreasonable, but I keep bidding, because dammit, comedy NEEDS tragedy! It just DOES. After the bidding hits over $5000, I finally win it with a surprise snipe bid at the last second (max bid $10,001.47, shnuckas!).

After about a week the tragedy mask arrives in the mail. I open it only to discover that it's a complete fraud. It wasn't the mask pictured, and looks more indifferent than anything else, like this: :P. So I complain to the seller and give him a bad rating, and he gets pissed at me and tells me to...well, nevermind that. I end up sueing him and we go to e-court for the case. I won the trial when the judge realized what a jerk that guy was and he was required to find me a real tragedy mask to go with the comedy one. But, as I was walking out of the courthouse, I tripped on what looked like a bomb with three wires cut, fell into the street, and got my head run over by a segue.

I dropped the the script containing the alternate ending to Kirby 64 where Waddle Dee pulls out a sawed-off shotgun and shows everyone what happens when you push a minion around too much.