Might give this a try, because even the negative reviews focused mostly on the visuals, and I'm no longer affected by silly terms like "PS2 graphics" ...the art is either good or not, and the art style is decent. I thought "Caligula effect" games were criminally underrated, so I might like this.
This is a great review, and I think you really nailed the appeal and place in the industry FuRyu has. It’s refreshing to see a fair review of one of their games that takes their pros and cons into account in a good faith manner. I became a fan of them after playing Monark. Which quickly became one of my favorite games of all time, with what I think is legit one of the best narratives in a JRPG. And I’m still frustrated by the reception it got. Games like this are really important when there’s so many safe, big budget titles. We really need more of the artsy weird stuff that’s willing to not only experiment, but dive into some more old school game design. Like for example I appreciated so much how Monark just does not hold your hand like most newer games. You can miss the important Fertile Ground maps that give you EXP, and the game also doesn’t tell you those are EXP grinding maps. It wants you to experiment. And to touch on the bit about the whole GTA notoriety system, it reminds me of how Madness in Monark doesn’t really matter when exploring. It’s got that same feel like it may have been more harsh earlier in development. Although I think Madness is really cool in combat with how it’s a weird twist on an MP bar. But anyways I’m really looking forward to Reynatis, and I’m glad to hear it seems to deliver on the kind of unique experience I buy a FuRyu game for.
@roxas7295 Have you tried Lost Dimension? The same company who made Monark made that. LD was first. I really wanted to love Monark and it had a lot of cool neat premises. Like how you could tell your net pals what sins you unlocked first. It's still an average game that leaves a lot to be desired with me. I did like playing dress up with equipment and my sins lol. The first one I unlocked was Wrath. It fit my disposition. Envy was the mage one I think some time later. She/he was so broken lmao with some strategies by that point.
@@notyoursavior78 I’ve wanted to try Lost Dimension for a while mainly because of that connection with Lancarse and how it shares mechanics, but haven’t been able too since it’s delisted on consoles. Also I can see how some may view it as average or just not care for it. It occupies a niche space in the current gaming landscape. It’s like a weird, ambitious Vita RPG that came out waaaay too late, leaving people scratching their heads at it as they play it in 4K on their PS5s.
@@notyoursavior78 I’m interested but haven’t tried it because it’s delisted on consoles. I’ll play Lost Dimension one day. Somehow. Also I can understand seeing it as average or just not caring for it. It’s appeal is really niche in the current gaming landscape. It’s like a Vita RPG that came 6 years too late. So I can understand why some people may scratch their heads at it.
@roxas7295 Oh I forgot to say I liked Lost Dimension a lot better than Monark. I played Lost Dimension on Steam (it was on PS3 and Vita). Too bad it's not easily accessible outside of PC. Anyhow you wrote up a lot of good points about Monark. The madness system is fun, but I feel like it was better implemented in combat in Lost Dimension. You can send your characters into a frenzy intentionally and it's a good strategy as long as you don't have any party members near. After the frenzy the characters don't automatically die they just recover and are normal again.
@@notyoursavior78 I’ve heard a couple people mention they thought the combat system was better in that game. I wish I didn’t miss it before Furyu cut ties with Atlus USA back then. The original English release of The Caligula Effect is even more lost being a digital Vita exclusive.
I am glad this review came up on my page because this was clearly a more balanced review then the rest I have seen. I will for sure check this game out. I appreciate the way you presented it and glad I found your channel. Subscribed. Keep up the good work.
I saw this as a lower budget AA/indie title. I was still excited for it. But I didn’t have overblown expectations, like a lot of the reviewers had. They basically expected a AAA for some reason. So they crapped all over it.
Dubbing has varying degrees of success but I liken it to movies. I feel a culture is best represented when the barrier to entry is as minimal as possible. English just isn’t Japanese and vice versa. When a game takes place in another country, I prefer that country be represented and it also exposes me to the vocal inflections native to that country. I watch Indian and Korean movies in the same way. It just isn’t right in English. Don’t know how else to explain it. Also, my first language was Spanish, but living in the US, my stronger language is English if that makes a difference.
Yeah, I can understand that. I think there are a lot of legit reasons to prefer subtitles. For me, I just don't get the same emotional connection to a character with subs as I do dubs.
“Trust the magic.” It took a while for me to get used to the combat but once I did, I found it really engaging. It ended up being a chase for the max combat rating. I think the visuals are bland because they released it on multiple platforms and were just working off the least powerful system and then went from there. It’s still a good looking game.
I doubt I'll pick this one up but I really liked this review! FuRyu, to be honest, generally lets me down, but I appreciate that they're doing the double-A thing and Trinity Trigger wasn't a bad Mana-like. and as someone who I think is around your age I did laugh at the Maybelline joke
Yeah I'd imagine that based on the description and some gameplay you'll probably have a good sense if this is up your alley. FuRyu definitely won't be for everyone!
I like your open minded review style! I’ve heard mixed things about this game, but your perspective has me interested again! I’ll for sure play the demo and see what I think!
It was nice to see a more positive review of the game. I would still wait till a sale to see if I want to try it out for ,myself though. As for my favorite FuRyu's games I haven't tried that many but I absolutely loved Caligula Effect 2 and Lost Dimension. Monark was so so and I actually didn't like the first Caligula Effect very much. I thought I would like it more.
@@JustTheGems I think this guy's mainly referring to the social links being more refined, and the fact that you don't have to worry about enemies joining battles, and turning 1 enemy into 5
I knew you would I feel the same as me people have been so harsh on this game I have really enjoyed it when the combat flows for me it’s great and the story is unique. I have never been turned off by graphics and this game is no exception I’m very happy with what we got 😊
Played this game a bit at anime expo at the NISA booth and also attended the panel you and Dave had on this game at the expo too. To me, this game would have been a must play if it had come out 15 years ago during the dark ages of RPGs, but it's hard to get on my radar today. The biggest problem a game like this has is the sheer strength of the overall market. The game looks decent, but, it has three major issues that don't have anything to do with the game itself. Those three major issues are: Metaphore Refantazio, Ys 10 Nordic, and (for the game's Japanese audience) Kai no Kiseki. The biggest problem a game like this has is that I don't have the time to play all the S-tier and A-tier games that are on my list, hell, I still haven't gotten to Final Fantasy 7 remake or Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth. When those games are on the list, and are known fantastic experiences, it's really hard to give a B-level game a try.
I would say that a game like this, one that I likened to a theater production in the review (whereas the other games you mentioned would be more "film" releases) serve a different purpose. I might enjoy watching a few banger movies, but going to see something performed by a local theater troupe is just such a different experience, and it's rewarding in a different way. So while that doesn't solve the time issue exactly, I will sometimes invest the time into something that's outside these other experiences. To me, I couldn't call Reynatis a "B" game and something like Metaphor an "S" or "A" because that's ranking them on the same scale with the same criteria in mind.
@@JustTheGems Okay, fair enough, what about something like Witchspring R? That's the game I'm playing through right now, and I'm pretty close to finishing it, and it was a fantastic experience. If Reynatis is a theatre performance, then Witchspring R is (budget-wise) a school play. Witchspring R has a solid story, charming characters, and (it's best feature) an utterly addicting game-play loop. It's a scaled down experience, sure, but man does it absolutely exude charm. The protagonist is likable as all hell, and the game just has this crazy sense of wonder and amazement at everything. It's fine to have different kind of experiences, I agree, but my point would be even the theatre is getting crowded with top-end stuff these days. In addition to a game like Witchspring R, have you played either of the two FUGA games? If Reyantis is theatre scale budget, then FUGA's budget is the old man on the street corner who's dropping his pants for money (budget-wise). FUGA was made for a fraction of the cost of Reynatis, and the two games combined have sold 450,000+ copies (which is just a crazy number for a game with that low a budget). Like FuRyu, Cyber Connect 2 has a hit or miss history and the people who are fans are really fans of it, but the budget limitations really turn off some people. Both FUGA games were fantastic. I usually only platinum trails games, but I platinumed both FUGA games because I liked what they were so much. FUGA 3 is probably coming out sometime in the next 12 months, and it's a day 1 purchase and play for me. In my opinion, Witchspring R and the two FUGA games are proof that bigger budgets don't mean better games, but the point remains: I'm playing Witchsprng R right now when I could be playing Final Fantasy 7 remake or Infinite Wealth. Why? Because the plot is well-written, the characters are well done, the game play loop is really well made, what side-quests there are make sense, and the experience is just impressive. This is not to say anything for or against Reynatis or anything else, it's just to say that the Japanese game market is different than the US game market; the Japanese market is spoiled for choice, at every level, and a lot of really great games just don't get the chance to shine. Witchspring R and FUGA are both games that don't have enough budget to have any English voice acting, which is absolutely a turn-off to a lot of people, and they are both games that, like Reynatis, will draw a certain core fandom, but will never approach the mainstream appeal of their big-budget brothers.
@@SuperSupersoda You're right about the lack of mainstream appeal for games like this. That's totally fine by me honestly, and I get the sense it's fine by you too (based on our conversations). I think studios like FuRyu can survive and thrive with a small fanbase that is on board with what they're trying to do. And I've heard quite a bit lately about Witchspring R. It was not on my radar at all, but this may have convinced me it's time to check it out.
@@JustTheGems The absolute poster child for "games with a lack of mainstream appeal, and that's totally fine with me, but the studio can survive and thrive with a small fanbase that's on board with what they're trying to do" is the trails series. That's pretty much what the brand of trails is. In my mind, trails has finally hit the inflection point. If you do something, do it well, do it passionately and you are totally and completely committed to what you're doing, you will be mocked at first, but, as time goes on, if you do it often enough, you will gain an incredible amount of acceptance and people will follow you. Don't worry about what anyone else says, follow your mission in life and allies will join you. Trails popularity is exploding in the west, because it's reached the point where it has been around long enough to gather a critical mass of allies. That's how FurYu, Cyber Connect 2, Falcom, VanillaWare (VanillaWare might be the only better example of this than Falcom) and so many other small developers both survive and thrive: they know exactly what they are, they know exactly what it is they do, they know exactly who their audience is, and they know exactly what their audience wants. You ever watch a movie or play a game from a big studio and wonder "who asked for this?" You see that with Disney, or Sony, or Ubisoft or Bioware all the time. Smaller studios with smaller budgets know exactly who their audience is. Kondo makes games for the people who were in the room at his panels at anime expo that we both attended. He doesn't care (and importantly, doesn't need to care) about what anyone outside that room thinks, he knows who his people are. That's the edge smaller studios have. If you like games like the Atelier series, please give Witchspring R a try. It's a classic turn based RPG, with a fantastic game-play loop, a really well designed progression system (the game is elite at keeping engagement by dolling out power ups at short intervals, which both keeps the game short and always makes you feel like you're getting stronger and better), the characters are charming, and the story is well put together. The crafting/alchemy system is not nearly as involved as the Altelier series, and the pet system adds a lot of experimentation and optimization to battles.
@@SuperSupersoda Trails is actually where it is because of cheapness. The CEO and/or President doesn't want to spend a lot of money on the games and coincidentally, staff either. There's a lot more on the company side, but it's not that they can't afford to step production up. They are simply milking Trails for all it's worth for as little cost. They hardly acknowledge any of their other IP.
You and TKN have wildly different thoughts on this game. I love seeing the different viewpoints. Great review like always, I love the detail you go into in your reviews. Really lets me see the game through your eyes and gives me a good idea of what to expect.
I got the Maybelline joke and I loved it. 😆But yeah, no idea if those commercials run anymore either. The reviews I've seen on this have skewed pretty negative. I appreciate the fresh perspective and you've convinced me to check it out.
C'est ok Avez vous entendu parler d'un autre jrpg développé par Furyu appelé 'XCicatrice' ?..un projet qui a été développé avec plus de temps et techniquement bon , en plus d'avoir l'air intéressant, proche d'un persona avec des thématiques tel que l'exclusion, le handicap et pouvoirs para-psy dans un contexte d'experimentation. Sinon le reproche que je ferais sur leurs jeux , ce serait le Prix. Merci
My favorite part of the review was the statement at the end putting the right perspective on a game like Reynatis. It's not fair to compare a marvel movie to a local play. The lens at which we judge games should vary when warranted. The creators of this game can improve in the future and with some luck, will be square enix down the road.
Sweet was looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this game Im looking forward to playing the game myself. I just had trouble connecting with anyone in the short demo, it needed to be longer. Great review thanks was nice to hear your final thoughts, I don’t even know what others games Furyu made honestly can you list a few for me? I love a good story and characters as well as decent to good gameplay and world crafting so I’m definitely looking forward to this game 🥰 the best graphics and performance are not important to me so long as I can play the game and enjoy my time with it. I still was hoping the subtitles were at least fixed to be a bit bigger😓 because it’s hard reading those small subs sometimes
@@JustTheGems Cool thanks for the suggestions on games I’ll look them up. Is crystar worth spending $60 on because I found it earlier when I was looking on amazon
i agree with comments on here saying that most reviews of other reviewers are more negative and it was interesting to see this one. i tried the demo and thought the game was fun! though i did struggle with the dodge and getting used to "trusting the magic" haha. since i liked Crymachina i think your review helped me decide to get this one!
Thank goodness there's more than 50 shadoes of grey! An 8 bit grayscale image alone has 256! Retro games are so much more spicy than romance novels with that math. That combat system sounds like it could be pretty interesting.
I love what you had to say at the end of the video! It's made me sad, seeing how much hate and criticism this game seems to be getting. I enjoyed the demo and have been looking forward to experiencing the rest of the game!
I hope there's a re-evaluation of this game at some point. We can't keep reviewing all video games with the same criteria, and we can't keep experiencing them with the same checklist of what we want our experience to be. Different games are going to bring different things, come with different benefits and different drawbacks.
Honestly, reviews play an incredibly small role in my decision of whether or not try a game. Typically I made up my mind long before the game is released. You know what does it for you better than anyone else. Also, really appreciate your style Gems. Straight forward and honest but you also just love this stuff. See you next time.
Thanks for that! Honestly, it's kind of the same for me. (Maybe I shouldn't say that, being a game reviewer...😅) But yeah, I think a lot of people do have a sense for what they're going to like. For people that are on the fence, reviews can definitely help though.
@@JustTheGems I didn’t even think of that. Everyone keep watching! 😂 I kind of view what you do differently than what you get from something like IGN though.
finally a review that makes this game sound intriguing. Honestly I like Furyu.. Crystal was a hit for some reason but crymachina had an intriguing story too for example, Caligula 1 and 2 probably too derivative... monarch is interesting... Furyu deserves more praise even tho this game in particular looks really crappy to me I really hate the art direction and especially character design. The music sounds bombastic and reminds me a little of ode Vein (also fantastic jrpg rarely talked about).
Sounds like I'll get it when it's on sale at a proper $20-30. 60$ is ridiculous when for 40$ right now you can get FF16, P3R, Dragon's Dogma 2, or even Yakuza 8
So I finally played through it. Finished it, got the platinum, and even cleared the extra post story mission with the superboss fight. My take on the game is that it's not a great game...but it also isn't the train wreck some community members want you to believe it is. It isn't the next coming of "Kingdom Hearts" or "Verum Rex" or "Versus 13" or whatever and it's not this soulless cash grab either. But it really is simply just okay. An average, albeit lower budget, experience. In terms of where I'd rank it among the other FuRyu games I've played, I'd say it's about around the middle. There were some areas where they clearly improved from their previous works, at least as far as their action titles go. Prominently, the actual character animations during battles and those couple rendered cutscenes. Though the character models themselves still have this stiff presentation to them, the faces especially can look really uncanny at times. Combat is definitely more hit-or-miss. It's probably the busiest and most mechanics-filled they've ever had. Some of it worked quite well, especially when you enter a flow, while some of it didn't really. Dodging for example is like 2 extra steps too many. Even outside of strictly combat, the whole trending system and stress gauge was just weird. It's annoyingly frustrating trying to do anything with it...until you find out how to completely trivialize it (which is very easy to do) where it then just turns into a pointless time waster. Overall, it's a mixed bag. Some people will hate it (...clearly) while other people will love it (I had a JP fan account like and retweet my comment for saying the second paragraph above on Twitter). The game has its audience, even if doesn't include everyone.
I only switch to japanese when the game is heavy on japanese names or takes place in japan. Because there are few sounds in nature more horrendous than a native english speaker trying to spell a japanese word. But If a japanese game has option for portuguese dub I'm all in for it, not only the phonemes fit much better, but also our voice actors have been nailing on dubbing japanese since the 80s.
Thanks for the video! Some of the others I have watched were pretty negative, but I'm pretty laid back when it comes to games. I just care if I have fun or not, and 9 times out of 10, I'm having fun. I have this one pre-ordered, and am looking forward to getting my hands on it. I have Trinity Trigger and Crymachina in my backlog by FuRyu 😊
I played on PS5 and I didn't have issues. I did play the demo at Anime Expo on Switch, and it did run sluggishly, so I suspect that even though it was supposedly made with the Switch in mind, it's not optimized on it.
Among the criticisms I’ve come across are the camera being very jank, especially in tight spaces, and MEA being hard to avoid/too few safe zones. The other stuff I can probably deal with but that seems pretty meh. Did they patch the camera or something, or was it something you could deal with? Because from what I saw here it was ok, whereas in other videos it…it got pretty hairy
Yeah, tbh I don't recall having any significant problems with the camera. I only used lock-on about half the time in combat, but whether I used it or not I didn't have issues.
When it comes to dubs vs. subs, Im more of a "whatever language it was built for" kinda guy, and aside from FF16, there arent many games from japan, built for english. granted, AI tech is making that line blurrier, but only for the big dogs. small devs, or teams in large companies that are allocated tiny budgets, will always have an edge with JPN
I dont need to understand japanese to know I like how a language sounds. When i listen to japanese dubs its more how they convey emotions and most of the time recorded in the same studio with other actors. While most english dubs tend be seperated as they leave in different states. Then again i think english dubs are a waste of money for smaller studios on a budget.
I dont perfer the Jp language over English I prefer the Japanese voice actors because of their abilities to mimic the the voices of different anime and anime games better Imo ( its their industry to being with)
you probably should consider learning Japanese. It'll improve your experience of these games even further. Plus you can start collecting obscure Japan-only releases ;)
For language option, for it's context I'd like they speak the language they are supposed to speak, I mean, they ARE Japanese. So of course they should be in their native language. For example, I can't stand one piece live action in Japanese for the same reason, in anime, it's okay; but live action, it's just wrong when they looks like westerns but speaks Japanese. For game itself, I gotta say the graphics turns me off, BIG TIME. Personally I usually never cared about graphics since I hang out with trails for so long. But this game's graphics...it's just so wonky it get under my skin. The facial expression, the movement, the empty streets, it's kinda bad even for an AA game. It has no soul. I mean trails is also considered an AA game series, but the feeling it gave off is completely different.(like daybreak, or even cold steel 3,4. It might be just my bias, but it looks way much better.) To give them credits, the cutscene are goat, though.
Yeah, I don't have much to say in defense of, say, the character models. Not the best. At least there's a storyline explanation for why the streets are relatively bare (there's a voluntary curfew imposed in Shibuya so most people abide by it, only some still go out).
@@JustTheGems yeah, I know that. it's just the model felt so...lifeless, like a puppet. especially in the opening scene, you know the guy that in M.E.A talks to their people, his face, his dead fish eyes even gives me uncanny valley effect.
i have played it and i dont think its good at all. i really wanted to like it. i dont care that it looks like a ps2 games. it doesnt bother me. but face animation is a bit stiff. and the fact that your mana runs out and when it does you can not attack. thats very annoying. if it drops to 35 bucks, and you turn off your brain, then i think you can enjoy it
Yeah I lived in Japan for two years and I can understand most of what they say in Japanese and I still prefer English because that's the language I grew up with. English sounds will have a significantly more emotional impact on me than Japanese ever will since it's the sounds I associated meaning with.
@@adrianvictorv For me, I didnt grow up with either english or japanese, but dubs in my language are kinda bad and cringey. And I feel the same with english. So I always go with the original language, no matter what it is. I feel like it enriches the experience and fits whatever setting it has better
Hmm, I'm not so sure about that. I'm only fluent in English, but there's an obvious difference in someone speaking, say, Castilian Spanish and Dominican Spanish (two dialects of a language I'm used to being around.) In the same way, really professional dubbing can sound very different from low quality takes with stammering or slurred speech. Generally though, I agree with you. I usually like to play games that take place in an unusual setting in the language of that place. Atomic Heart in Russian, Tales Of Kenzara in Swahili... JRPGs I usually play in English, but I don't mind Japanese only at all.
I used to love dubs but now… no. It’s always the same 10 voices that are in every other anime game with terrible writing and half the time the voice doesn’t match the character even a little bit which makes harder to connect with anyone. I can’t play most Jrpgs nowadays in English bc the dub is just so mediocre
@@KingArgo97 Thats one big reason for me too. The same voices everywhere. Translating is already a hard job. Localizing is even worse and usually end up as badly written. I still miss those old fan subs with translation notes to help understand it better
I made the same Maybelline joke last night!! We were watching star wars Ep 1, talking about Anakins force power... I said "huh, I guess it's not Maybelline." Girlfriend "what are you taking about?" Me "we'll, cause maybe he was born with it" GF "oh my god, you're such a dork"
The subs/dubs debate, i perfer subs 🤔 But the main reason is because if im playing or watching something from a different country, i perfer if the language is retained. Secondary reason...is that English voice actors for anime in general, are ear grating alot of the time 🥲
@borrellipatrick agreed. To me, something is lost when it's dubbed...something on the emotional impact sometimes and the meaning of words. If you watch really cultural foreign work (anime is actually aggressively western written) you really see this...jokes don't land in English because the context is lost...but if you understand the underpinning of a Japanese or Korean joke (for example) it really does reading it. Not picking on Brandon here, but enjoying something written in another language doesn't require knowing that language, it does require you to immerse yourself in what and where characters are coming from. I can't fathom not being able to understand something because I'm...reading it. We're all different. So I guess that's just him, but I'm asian myself, but can't possibly understand the many languages of Asian culture (I only know 2) so reading is essential and dubbing in my preferred language looks and sounds bizarre the more culturally different the other Asian country is (like Japan or Korea, as I'm southeast Asian, Filipino specifically)
Yeah, for me it's not so much that I don't understand it due to the subs, just that I don't experience the same emotional connection I do when I hear it voiced in English. Like, there's SOME emotional connection (after all, before voice acting I definitely developed emotional attachment to characters and stories in JRPGs). But with the advent of voice acting, my personal bar was raised, so that's why I harp on about it so much.
@JustTheGems that's fair, and I hope you didn't get the idea I was attacking your experience. I think there is something to be said about experiencing something heard in your own language, with the context of your own language that is very immersive. I'm not a Sub vs. Dub purist and never was even in the early days of anime Fandom (I became one in the late 80's)
Question about one of the narrative points. Unless wizards aren't human, how is their blood being used as a drug? Unless ingesting, taking a blood type not your own and unless universal, doesn't end well. There is also the aspect of if you are fighting in the middle of a city, why are there still citizens there and life going on as normal? That is a level of disconnect that contradicts much. It should be warzone unless the monsters that appear are just a nuisance. How are wizards oppressed if they have so much power and what power does the government have to suppress them? A lot of games try and make plots around discrimination, but it never makes sense. Wizards are superhuman and logically, they would be elevated or would elevate themselves and become the oppressors unless their numbers are naturally low. In that case, someone would find a way to make more. Not trying to write a story, but when I heard about the plot these things came to mind and why I think so much was half-baked about it.
FuRyu has more misses than hits and garner the reputation they have. It's not that people are hard on AA games, especially JRPGs, it's just some are not that good or rely on too many tropes or mechanics without substance. There are many AA that succeed, I'd say the budget of Atlus games are still in AA budget range, but the quality is just higher. Other games fall into this too, even at big developers that produce AA games. I liked Lost Dimension, but they do lack a certain something as if the games take too long, the more chance flaws will show.
Might give this a try, because even the negative reviews focused mostly on the visuals, and I'm no longer affected by silly terms like "PS2 graphics" ...the art is either good or not, and the art style is decent. I thought "Caligula effect" games were criminally underrated, so I might like this.
If graphics stopped improving during PS3 era I would have been totally fine with it.
@@theonlymattthatmatters Same. They still look great if you bump up the resolution
Yeah, iffy graphics or not, if the gameplay is interesting and the story is good, I'm there for it.
tbh graphics are overrated and can only carry a game so far. For me the price is bit too much, if it was $40 it be more attractive
This is a great review, and I think you really nailed the appeal and place in the industry FuRyu has. It’s refreshing to see a fair review of one of their games that takes their pros and cons into account in a good faith manner. I became a fan of them after playing Monark. Which quickly became one of my favorite games of all time, with what I think is legit one of the best narratives in a JRPG. And I’m still frustrated by the reception it got. Games like this are really important when there’s so many safe, big budget titles. We really need more of the artsy weird stuff that’s willing to not only experiment, but dive into some more old school game design. Like for example I appreciated so much how Monark just does not hold your hand like most newer games. You can miss the important Fertile Ground maps that give you EXP, and the game also doesn’t tell you those are EXP grinding maps. It wants you to experiment. And to touch on the bit about the whole GTA notoriety system, it reminds me of how Madness in Monark doesn’t really matter when exploring. It’s got that same feel like it may have been more harsh earlier in development. Although I think Madness is really cool in combat with how it’s a weird twist on an MP bar.
But anyways I’m really looking forward to Reynatis, and I’m glad to hear it seems to deliver on the kind of unique experience I buy a FuRyu game for.
@roxas7295 Have you tried Lost Dimension? The same company who made Monark made that. LD was first. I really wanted to love Monark and it had a lot of cool neat premises. Like how you could tell your net pals what sins you unlocked first. It's still an average game that leaves a lot to be desired with me. I did like playing dress up with equipment and my sins lol.
The first one I unlocked was Wrath. It fit my disposition. Envy was the mage one I think some time later. She/he was so broken lmao with some strategies by that point.
@@notyoursavior78 I’ve wanted to try Lost Dimension for a while mainly because of that connection with Lancarse and how it shares mechanics, but haven’t been able too since it’s delisted on consoles.
Also I can see how some may view it as average or just not care for it. It occupies a niche space in the current gaming landscape. It’s like a weird, ambitious Vita RPG that came out waaaay too late, leaving people scratching their heads at it as they play it in 4K on their PS5s.
@@notyoursavior78 I’m interested but haven’t tried it because it’s delisted on consoles. I’ll play Lost Dimension one day. Somehow.
Also I can understand seeing it as average or just not caring for it. It’s appeal is really niche in the current gaming landscape. It’s like a Vita RPG that came 6 years too late. So I can understand why some people may scratch their heads at it.
@roxas7295 Oh I forgot to say I liked Lost Dimension a lot better than Monark. I played Lost Dimension on Steam (it was on PS3 and Vita). Too bad it's not easily accessible outside of PC.
Anyhow you wrote up a lot of good points about Monark. The madness system is fun, but I feel like it was better implemented in combat in Lost Dimension. You can send your characters into a frenzy intentionally and it's a good strategy as long as you don't have any party members near. After the frenzy the characters don't automatically die they just recover and are normal again.
@@notyoursavior78 I’ve heard a couple people mention they thought the combat system was better in that game. I wish I didn’t miss it before Furyu cut ties with Atlus USA back then. The original English release of The Caligula Effect is even more lost being a digital Vita exclusive.
I am glad this review came up on my page because this was clearly a more balanced review then the rest I have seen. I will for sure check this game out. I appreciate the way you presented it and glad I found your channel. Subscribed. Keep up the good work.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you found it helpful.
Your review is the first for this game that I've seen, that's more positive than negative. It was very refreshing, thank you 😊
Glad to hear it!
I saw this as a lower budget AA/indie title. I was still excited for it. But I didn’t have overblown expectations, like a lot of the reviewers had. They basically expected a AAA for some reason. So they crapped all over it.
Dubbing has varying degrees of success but I liken it to movies. I feel a culture is best represented when the barrier to entry is as minimal as possible. English just isn’t Japanese and vice versa. When a game takes place in another country, I prefer that country be represented and it also exposes me to the vocal inflections native to that country. I watch Indian and Korean movies in the same way. It just isn’t right in English. Don’t know how else to explain it. Also, my first language was Spanish, but living in the US, my stronger language is English if that makes a difference.
Yeah, I can understand that. I think there are a lot of legit reasons to prefer subtitles. For me, I just don't get the same emotional connection to a character with subs as I do dubs.
“Trust the magic.” It took a while for me to get used to the combat but once I did, I found it really engaging. It ended up being a chase for the max combat rating.
I think the visuals are bland because they released it on multiple platforms and were just working off the least powerful system and then went from there. It’s still a good looking game.
It definitely has a sense of style, so even if the models aren't top notch, it definitely leaves an impression.
I doubt I'll pick this one up but I really liked this review! FuRyu, to be honest, generally lets me down, but I appreciate that they're doing the double-A thing and Trinity Trigger wasn't a bad Mana-like. and as someone who I think is around your age I did laugh at the Maybelline joke
Yeah I'd imagine that based on the description and some gameplay you'll probably have a good sense if this is up your alley. FuRyu definitely won't be for everyone!
Excited to play this one when it arrives!
I like your open minded review style! I’ve heard mixed things about this game, but your perspective has me interested again! I’ll for sure play the demo and see what I think!
Great review.
It's good to hear a review of this game outside of the "everything in this game sucks" type of review.
Thank you! I'm glad to hear you received it that way.
It was nice to see a more positive review of the game. I would still wait till a sale to see if I want to try it out for ,myself though. As for my favorite FuRyu's games I haven't tried that many but I absolutely loved Caligula Effect 2 and Lost Dimension. Monark was so so and I actually didn't like the first Caligula Effect very much. I thought I would like it more.
I've only played Caligula 1, but I do own 2, so I'm gonna have to get to that one soon!
@@JustTheGems I think this guy's mainly referring to the social links being more refined, and the fact that you don't have to worry about enemies joining battles, and turning 1 enemy into 5
I knew you would I feel the same as me people have been so harsh on this game I have really enjoyed it when the combat flows for me it’s great and the story is unique.
I have never been turned off by graphics and this game is no exception I’m very happy with what we got 😊
Glad to hear it!!
Played this game a bit at anime expo at the NISA booth and also attended the panel you and Dave had on this game at the expo too. To me, this game would have been a must play if it had come out 15 years ago during the dark ages of RPGs, but it's hard to get on my radar today. The biggest problem a game like this has is the sheer strength of the overall market. The game looks decent, but, it has three major issues that don't have anything to do with the game itself. Those three major issues are: Metaphore Refantazio, Ys 10 Nordic, and (for the game's Japanese audience) Kai no Kiseki. The biggest problem a game like this has is that I don't have the time to play all the S-tier and A-tier games that are on my list, hell, I still haven't gotten to Final Fantasy 7 remake or Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth. When those games are on the list, and are known fantastic experiences, it's really hard to give a B-level game a try.
I would say that a game like this, one that I likened to a theater production in the review (whereas the other games you mentioned would be more "film" releases) serve a different purpose. I might enjoy watching a few banger movies, but going to see something performed by a local theater troupe is just such a different experience, and it's rewarding in a different way. So while that doesn't solve the time issue exactly, I will sometimes invest the time into something that's outside these other experiences.
To me, I couldn't call Reynatis a "B" game and something like Metaphor an "S" or "A" because that's ranking them on the same scale with the same criteria in mind.
@@JustTheGems Okay, fair enough, what about something like Witchspring R? That's the game I'm playing through right now, and I'm pretty close to finishing it, and it was a fantastic experience. If Reynatis is a theatre performance, then Witchspring R is (budget-wise) a school play. Witchspring R has a solid story, charming characters, and (it's best feature) an utterly addicting game-play loop. It's a scaled down experience, sure, but man does it absolutely exude charm. The protagonist is likable as all hell, and the game just has this crazy sense of wonder and amazement at everything.
It's fine to have different kind of experiences, I agree, but my point would be even the theatre is getting crowded with top-end stuff these days. In addition to a game like Witchspring R, have you played either of the two FUGA games? If Reyantis is theatre scale budget, then FUGA's budget is the old man on the street corner who's dropping his pants for money (budget-wise). FUGA was made for a fraction of the cost of Reynatis, and the two games combined have sold 450,000+ copies (which is just a crazy number for a game with that low a budget).
Like FuRyu, Cyber Connect 2 has a hit or miss history and the people who are fans are really fans of it, but the budget limitations really turn off some people. Both FUGA games were fantastic. I usually only platinum trails games, but I platinumed both FUGA games because I liked what they were so much. FUGA 3 is probably coming out sometime in the next 12 months, and it's a day 1 purchase and play for me. In my opinion, Witchspring R and the two FUGA games are proof that bigger budgets don't mean better games, but the point remains: I'm playing Witchsprng R right now when I could be playing Final Fantasy 7 remake or Infinite Wealth. Why? Because the plot is well-written, the characters are well done, the game play loop is really well made, what side-quests there are make sense, and the experience is just impressive. This is not to say anything for or against Reynatis or anything else, it's just to say that the Japanese game market is different than the US game market; the Japanese market is spoiled for choice, at every level, and a lot of really great games just don't get the chance to shine. Witchspring R and FUGA are both games that don't have enough budget to have any English voice acting, which is absolutely a turn-off to a lot of people, and they are both games that, like Reynatis, will draw a certain core fandom, but will never approach the mainstream appeal of their big-budget brothers.
@@SuperSupersoda You're right about the lack of mainstream appeal for games like this. That's totally fine by me honestly, and I get the sense it's fine by you too (based on our conversations). I think studios like FuRyu can survive and thrive with a small fanbase that is on board with what they're trying to do.
And I've heard quite a bit lately about Witchspring R. It was not on my radar at all, but this may have convinced me it's time to check it out.
@@JustTheGems The absolute poster child for "games with a lack of mainstream appeal, and that's totally fine with me, but the studio can survive and thrive with a small fanbase that's on board with what they're trying to do" is the trails series. That's pretty much what the brand of trails is. In my mind, trails has finally hit the inflection point. If you do something, do it well, do it passionately and you are totally and completely committed to what you're doing, you will be mocked at first, but, as time goes on, if you do it often enough, you will gain an incredible amount of acceptance and people will follow you. Don't worry about what anyone else says, follow your mission in life and allies will join you. Trails popularity is exploding in the west, because it's reached the point where it has been around long enough to gather a critical mass of allies.
That's how FurYu, Cyber Connect 2, Falcom, VanillaWare (VanillaWare might be the only better example of this than Falcom) and so many other small developers both survive and thrive: they know exactly what they are, they know exactly what it is they do, they know exactly who their audience is, and they know exactly what their audience wants. You ever watch a movie or play a game from a big studio and wonder "who asked for this?" You see that with Disney, or Sony, or Ubisoft or Bioware all the time. Smaller studios with smaller budgets know exactly who their audience is.
Kondo makes games for the people who were in the room at his panels at anime expo that we both attended. He doesn't care (and importantly, doesn't need to care) about what anyone outside that room thinks, he knows who his people are. That's the edge smaller studios have.
If you like games like the Atelier series, please give Witchspring R a try. It's a classic turn based RPG, with a fantastic game-play loop, a really well designed progression system (the game is elite at keeping engagement by dolling out power ups at short intervals, which both keeps the game short and always makes you feel like you're getting stronger and better), the characters are charming, and the story is well put together. The crafting/alchemy system is not nearly as involved as the Altelier series, and the pet system adds a lot of experimentation and optimization to battles.
@@SuperSupersoda Trails is actually where it is because of cheapness. The CEO and/or President doesn't want to spend a lot of money on the games and coincidentally, staff either. There's a lot more on the company side, but it's not that they can't afford to step production up. They are simply milking Trails for all it's worth for as little cost. They hardly acknowledge any of their other IP.
You and TKN have wildly different thoughts on this game. I love seeing the different viewpoints. Great review like always, I love the detail you go into in your reviews. Really lets me see the game through your eyes and gives me a good idea of what to expect.
Thanks for that! Yeah, the consensus among a lot of JRPG TH-camrs is pretty negative, but I definitely disagree.
@@JustTheGems I love seeing the varying opinions of all of you. We don't all like the same things so it's nice to see differing views
0:48 - The main character designs are done by Yasutaka Kaburagi , who worked on the art side of the game along with Yusuke Naora
They're absolutely brilliant designs, I love them
I been enjoying Reynatis ever since i saw the very first trailer. And i have the special edition and I been enjoying the game.
I got the Maybelline joke and I loved it. 😆But yeah, no idea if those commercials run anymore either.
The reviews I've seen on this have skewed pretty negative. I appreciate the fresh perspective and you've convinced me to check it out.
Yes! I'm glad someone knew what I was talking about! 😅
Interesting recap. Will keep and open mind and check it out. Great content as always. Cheers
Thank you!!
C'est ok
Avez vous entendu parler d'un autre jrpg développé par Furyu appelé 'XCicatrice' ?..un projet qui a été développé avec plus de temps et techniquement bon , en plus d'avoir l'air intéressant, proche d'un persona avec des thématiques tel que l'exclusion, le handicap et pouvoirs para-psy dans un contexte d'experimentation.
Sinon le reproche que je ferais sur leurs jeux , ce serait le Prix.
Merci
I think you've talked me into it! BTW, Happy Birthday!
Hey thank you so much!!
My favorite part of the review was the statement at the end putting the right perspective on a game like Reynatis. It's not fair to compare a marvel movie to a local play. The lens at which we judge games should vary when warranted. The creators of this game can improve in the future and with some luck, will be square enix down the road.
Sweet was looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this game Im looking forward to playing the game myself.
I just had trouble connecting with anyone in the short demo, it needed to be longer.
Great review thanks was nice to hear your final thoughts, I don’t even know what others games Furyu made honestly can you list a few for me?
I love a good story and characters as well as decent to good gameplay and world crafting so I’m definitely looking forward to this game 🥰 the best graphics and performance are not important to me so long as I can play the game and enjoy my time with it.
I still was hoping the subtitles were at least fixed to be a bit bigger😓 because it’s hard reading those small subs sometimes
A couple of my favorites from FuRyu are Crystar and The Alliance Alive. Both are excellent, albeit very different games from each other.
@@JustTheGems
Cool thanks for the suggestions on games I’ll look them up. Is crystar worth spending $60 on because I found it earlier when I was looking on amazon
Thanks for the balanced opinion!
My pleasure. :)
so this is ..
SCARLET NEXUS , meets JET SET RADIO, meets NEO: The World Ends with You ..
too much chaos.
i agree with comments on here saying that most reviews of other reviewers are more negative and it was interesting to see this one. i tried the demo and thought the game was fun! though i did struggle with the dodge and getting used to "trusting the magic" haha. since i liked Crymachina i think your review helped me decide to get this one!
I hope it clicks for you when you play the full game!
I preordered it once the NEO:TWEWY collab was revealed. The demo was fun but too short, looking forward to playing it.
Yeah, the TWEWY collab was cool!
Thank goodness there's more than 50 shadoes of grey! An 8 bit grayscale image alone has 256! Retro games are so much more spicy than romance novels with that math. That combat system sounds like it could be pretty interesting.
Hahah yeah
And the combat is actually pretty fun, definitely worth at least checking out the demo.
Just commenting to say that yes, the joke worked.... but I'm almost from the same generation, so 😆
😂😂😂
Thank you for a honest review.
😁😁😁
I love what you had to say at the end of the video! It's made me sad, seeing how much hate and criticism this game seems to be getting. I enjoyed the demo and have been looking forward to experiencing the rest of the game!
I hope there's a re-evaluation of this game at some point. We can't keep reviewing all video games with the same criteria, and we can't keep experiencing them with the same checklist of what we want our experience to be. Different games are going to bring different things, come with different benefits and different drawbacks.
Honestly, reviews play an incredibly small role in my decision of whether or not try a game. Typically I made up my mind long before the game is released. You know what does it for you better than anyone else. Also, really appreciate your style Gems. Straight forward and honest but you also just love this stuff. See you next time.
Thanks for that! Honestly, it's kind of the same for me. (Maybe I shouldn't say that, being a game reviewer...😅) But yeah, I think a lot of people do have a sense for what they're going to like. For people that are on the fence, reviews can definitely help though.
@@JustTheGems I didn’t even think of that. Everyone keep watching! 😂 I kind of view what you do differently than what you get from something like IGN though.
Haha I'm so glad all I had to do was hit like. Yes the Maybelline joke worked. I'm old enough for it.
😅
Thank you for pointing out it's subbed. I was interested but I don't understand Japanese and don't enjoy reading subtitles, so I'll give this a skip
It's definitely good info to know
finally a review that makes this game sound intriguing. Honestly I like Furyu.. Crystal was a hit for some reason but crymachina had an intriguing story too for example, Caligula 1 and 2 probably too derivative... monarch is interesting... Furyu deserves more praise even tho this game in particular looks really crappy to me I really hate the art direction and especially character design. The music sounds bombastic and reminds me a little of ode Vein (also fantastic jrpg rarely talked about).
Great review! The game DOES look cool, I'll admit. I may have to check the demo out and then truly get a feel for it.
Thanks Paige! Yeah I had a good time with it. I hope people are willing to at least give it a chance.
I had fun with the demo
One for the ps2 jrpg lovers in 2024 which is a certain niche.
Sounds like I'll get it when it's on sale at a proper $20-30. 60$ is ridiculous when for 40$ right now you can get FF16, P3R, Dragon's Dogma 2, or even Yakuza 8
So I finally played through it. Finished it, got the platinum, and even cleared the extra post story mission with the superboss fight.
My take on the game is that it's not a great game...but it also isn't the train wreck some community members want you to believe it is. It isn't the next coming of "Kingdom Hearts" or "Verum Rex" or "Versus 13" or whatever and it's not this soulless cash grab either. But it really is simply just okay. An average, albeit lower budget, experience.
In terms of where I'd rank it among the other FuRyu games I've played, I'd say it's about around the middle. There were some areas where they clearly improved from their previous works, at least as far as their action titles go. Prominently, the actual character animations during battles and those couple rendered cutscenes. Though the character models themselves still have this stiff presentation to them, the faces especially can look really uncanny at times.
Combat is definitely more hit-or-miss. It's probably the busiest and most mechanics-filled they've ever had. Some of it worked quite well, especially when you enter a flow, while some of it didn't really. Dodging for example is like 2 extra steps too many. Even outside of strictly combat, the whole trending system and stress gauge was just weird. It's annoyingly frustrating trying to do anything with it...until you find out how to completely trivialize it (which is very easy to do) where it then just turns into a pointless time waster.
Overall, it's a mixed bag. Some people will hate it (...clearly) while other people will love it (I had a JP fan account like and retweet my comment for saying the second paragraph above on Twitter). The game has its audience, even if doesn't include everyone.
I'd say that's a pretty balanced take on things
I very much enjoyed the demo. I am hesitant to buy due to pricing. It seems too short for full price imo. Will def scoop it up on a sale though.
Yeah, you'll definitely be able to find it on sale at some point, since it's not a Nintendo published game (those NEVER go on sale...😅)
I only switch to japanese when the game is heavy on japanese names or takes place in japan. Because there are few sounds in nature more horrendous than a native english speaker trying to spell a japanese word. But If a japanese game has option for portuguese dub I'm all in for it, not only the phonemes fit much better, but also our voice actors have been nailing on dubbing japanese since the 80s.
Thanks for the video! Some of the others I have watched were pretty negative, but I'm pretty laid back when it comes to games. I just care if I have fun or not, and 9 times out of 10, I'm having fun. I have this one pre-ordered, and am looking forward to getting my hands on it. I have Trinity Trigger and Crymachina in my backlog by FuRyu 😊
Nice! I've been meaning to get to Trinity Trigger, I picked it up but it came at a bad time and I haven't been able to start it.
I've read the game freezes and crash at times on the Switch. Did you have any trouble while playing?
I played on PS5 and I didn't have issues. I did play the demo at Anime Expo on Switch, and it did run sluggishly, so I suspect that even though it was supposedly made with the Switch in mind, it's not optimized on it.
Among the criticisms I’ve come across are the camera being very jank, especially in tight spaces, and MEA being hard to avoid/too few safe zones. The other stuff I can probably deal with but that seems pretty meh. Did they patch the camera or something, or was it something you could deal with? Because from what I saw here it was ok, whereas in other videos it…it got pretty hairy
Yeah, tbh I don't recall having any significant problems with the camera. I only used lock-on about half the time in combat, but whether I used it or not I didn't have issues.
@@JustTheGems aha cool, noted
I play the demo on both Switch and PS5, it's gives a PS2 vibe
When it comes to dubs vs. subs, Im more of a "whatever language it was built for" kinda guy, and aside from FF16, there arent many games from japan, built for english. granted, AI tech is making that line blurrier, but only for the big dogs. small devs, or teams in large companies that are allocated tiny budgets, will always have an edge with JPN
That makes sense and I can respect that. For me, I just don't get the same emotional connection when it's not in English.
I dont need to understand japanese to know I like how a language sounds. When i listen to japanese dubs its more how they convey emotions and most of the time recorded in the same studio with other actors. While most english dubs tend be seperated as they leave in different states. Then again i think english dubs are a waste of money for smaller studios on a budget.
You do you!
Played the demo a ton last week. I'm loving the combat in this game, and the character designs are cool. Day one purchase for me.
Oh yeah, the character artwork/designs are just straight-up next level. I love them.
I dont perfer the Jp language over English I prefer the Japanese voice actors because of their abilities to mimic the the voices of different anime and anime games better Imo ( its their industry to being with)
Oh, so you mean like there's a particular sound to the presentation that you prefer, I think I understand that.
you probably should consider learning Japanese. It'll improve your experience of these games even further. Plus you can start collecting obscure Japan-only releases ;)
I’ve already started! 😁
This game got jugs so it gets a 10/10 from me
For language option, for it's context I'd like they speak the language they are supposed to speak, I mean, they ARE Japanese. So of course they should be in their native language. For example, I can't stand one piece live action in Japanese for the same reason, in anime, it's okay; but live action, it's just wrong when they looks like westerns but speaks Japanese.
For game itself, I gotta say the graphics turns me off, BIG TIME. Personally I usually never cared about graphics since I hang out with trails for so long. But this game's graphics...it's just so wonky it get under my skin. The facial expression, the movement, the empty streets, it's kinda bad even for an AA game. It has no soul.
I mean trails is also considered an AA game series, but the feeling it gave off is completely different.(like daybreak, or even cold steel 3,4. It might be just my bias, but it looks way much better.)
To give them credits, the cutscene are goat, though.
Yeah, I don't have much to say in defense of, say, the character models. Not the best. At least there's a storyline explanation for why the streets are relatively bare (there's a voluntary curfew imposed in Shibuya so most people abide by it, only some still go out).
@@JustTheGems yeah, I know that. it's just the model felt so...lifeless, like a puppet. especially in the opening scene, you know the guy that in M.E.A talks to their people, his face, his dead fish eyes even gives me uncanny valley effect.
i have played it and i dont think its good at all. i really wanted to like it. i dont care that it looks like a ps2 games. it doesnt bother me. but face animation is a bit stiff. and the fact that your mana runs out and when it does you can not attack. thats very annoying. if it drops to 35 bucks, and you turn off your brain, then i think you can enjoy it
Problem is, if you turn off your brain, I feel like you miss the surprisingly poignant story, and that was the clincher for me being a fan.
Yeah it makes no sense when someone says another language is better than the other if they don't even know the language. LOL dubs all day long baby!
Yeah I lived in Japan for two years and I can understand most of what they say in Japanese and I still prefer English because that's the language I grew up with.
English sounds will have a significantly more emotional impact on me than Japanese ever will since it's the sounds I associated meaning with.
@@adrianvictorv For me, I didnt grow up with either english or japanese, but dubs in my language are kinda bad and cringey. And I feel the same with english. So I always go with the original language, no matter what it is. I feel like it enriches the experience and fits whatever setting it has better
Hmm, I'm not so sure about that. I'm only fluent in English, but there's an obvious difference in someone speaking, say, Castilian Spanish and Dominican Spanish (two dialects of a language I'm used to being around.) In the same way, really professional dubbing can sound very different from low quality takes with stammering or slurred speech. Generally though, I agree with you. I usually like to play games that take place in an unusual setting in the language of that place. Atomic Heart in Russian, Tales Of Kenzara in Swahili... JRPGs I usually play in English, but I don't mind Japanese only at all.
I used to love dubs but now… no. It’s always the same 10 voices that are in every other anime game with terrible writing and half the time the voice doesn’t match the character even a little bit which makes harder to connect with anyone. I can’t play most Jrpgs nowadays in English bc the dub is just so mediocre
@@KingArgo97 Thats one big reason for me too. The same voices everywhere. Translating is already a hard job. Localizing is even worse and usually end up as badly written. I still miss those old fan subs with translation notes to help understand it better
I made the same Maybelline joke last night!!
We were watching star wars Ep 1, talking about Anakins force power... I said "huh, I guess it's not Maybelline."
Girlfriend "what are you taking about?"
Me "we'll, cause maybe he was born with it"
GF "oh my god, you're such a dork"
Hahahahaahahahahah I love this
FINAL FANTASY Imitation XIII.
You've lost me...😅
the keyboard and mouse gameplay is terrible
I can imagine.
The subs/dubs debate, i perfer subs 🤔
But the main reason is because if im playing or watching something from a different country, i perfer if the language is retained. Secondary reason...is that English voice actors for anime in general, are ear grating alot of the time 🥲
@borrellipatrick agreed. To me, something is lost when it's dubbed...something on the emotional impact sometimes and the meaning of words. If you watch really cultural foreign work (anime is actually aggressively western written) you really see this...jokes don't land in English because the context is lost...but if you understand the underpinning of a Japanese or Korean joke (for example) it really does reading it. Not picking on Brandon here, but enjoying something written in another language doesn't require knowing that language, it does require you to immerse yourself in what and where characters are coming from. I can't fathom not being able to understand something because I'm...reading it. We're all different. So I guess that's just him, but I'm asian myself, but can't possibly understand the many languages of Asian culture (I only know 2) so reading is essential and dubbing in my preferred language looks and sounds bizarre the more culturally different the other Asian country is (like Japan or Korea, as I'm southeast Asian, Filipino specifically)
Yeah, for me it's not so much that I don't understand it due to the subs, just that I don't experience the same emotional connection I do when I hear it voiced in English. Like, there's SOME emotional connection (after all, before voice acting I definitely developed emotional attachment to characters and stories in JRPGs). But with the advent of voice acting, my personal bar was raised, so that's why I harp on about it so much.
@JustTheGems that's fair, and I hope you didn't get the idea I was attacking your experience. I think there is something to be said about experiencing something heard in your own language, with the context of your own language that is very immersive. I'm not a Sub vs. Dub purist and never was even in the early days of anime Fandom (I became one in the late 80's)
Question about one of the narrative points. Unless wizards aren't human, how is their blood being used as a drug? Unless ingesting, taking a blood type not your own and unless universal, doesn't end well. There is also the aspect of if you are fighting in the middle of a city, why are there still citizens there and life going on as normal? That is a level of disconnect that contradicts much. It should be warzone unless the monsters that appear are just a nuisance. How are wizards oppressed if they have so much power and what power does the government have to suppress them? A lot of games try and make plots around discrimination, but it never makes sense. Wizards are superhuman and logically, they would be elevated or would elevate themselves and become the oppressors unless their numbers are naturally low. In that case, someone would find a way to make more. Not trying to write a story, but when I heard about the plot these things came to mind and why I think so much was half-baked about it.
All good questions, but the game does a decent job of answering them, at least to my satisfaction
@@JustTheGems I'm a prude when it comes to such things, so my narrative expectations are always high for games that prioritize it.
FuRyu has more misses than hits and garner the reputation they have. It's not that people are hard on AA games, especially JRPGs, it's just some are not that good or rely on too many tropes or mechanics without substance. There are many AA that succeed, I'd say the budget of Atlus games are still in AA budget range, but the quality is just higher. Other games fall into this too, even at big developers that produce AA games. I liked Lost Dimension, but they do lack a certain something as if the games take too long, the more chance flaws will show.
Totally valid opinion, I don't share it but that's cool