Moguta Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Re: Sakuraba - You can tell from the prog-rock battle themes everyone seems to love :/ His more ambient synth stuff from Baten Kaitos (see: House of Cards) are pure awesome and some of the town themes are simple but effective. I do not however enjoy his orchestrations or battle themes that much.. it's an acquired taste I guess. Yeah, I understand where you're coming from on Sakuraba's orchestrations. When he first started using a orchestral sample library, in Star Ocean 3, I thought it actually sounded quite nice. And it's still my favorite recent Sakuraba soundtrack. But ever since then, I haven't been able to get into his orchestral pieces. Heck, I enjoy the synth "orchestrations" from his VP, SO2, and SO:BS Arrange albums more! Though, on a hopeful note, Sakuraba seems to have improved his scoring when composing Infinite Undiscovery. And as far as his battle themes... the best ones all seem to be from the days of old, or based on them (like SO3's Cutting Edge of Notion, heavily based on SO:BS's Hand to Hand & SO2's Stab the Sword of Justice). You have to love the Engrish song titles on Sakuraba soundtracks, though. "Let's Creation !!" Just classic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corran Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 This is verified by the fact that your recording business is an inversion of the main title . Oh yeah, there is also that! I forgot to mention, I also own a copy of Star Ocean 2 imported from Japan, just for fun. I actually have been meaning to play it just to see any differences. Oh and having played Star Ocean 1 both on the SNES and the new remake, I really don't think it's better than SO2. The plot isn't as engaging and the items and item creation isn't as refined (or over-refined, as in SO3). Also, the completely random last quest to go kill some random dude, that was annoying. Actually for me the worst part about SO1 is the bonus dungeon (only in the remake) that takes all of 2 hours or so to beat, compared to the huge, days-long cavern in SO2 (and 3 I suppose, though I didn't like that game enough to do it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otakatt Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Oh man... The Cave of Trials was truly epic. I loved that place, even though I got thoroughly pwned the first time I made it there. XD The music there is totally epic too~ Back in the day I'd park myself there for hours and open up portraits of characters and doodle Star Ocean peeps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skummel Maske Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 I, like some others here, loved the second installment but hated the third. Unfortunately I've been unable to find a new set of discs for SO2 for about 7 years. It just gets harder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I-n-j-i-n Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 I thought SO3 was actually very good, if very rough in the edges and with a story that shot itself in the foot after the crazy alien attack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xRisingForce Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 I am of the opinion that I am the #1 Star Ocean fan ever.Star Ocean 2 was the first RPG I... witnessing this magnitude of epic completes me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Legendary Zoltan Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Yeah, I understand where you're coming from on Sakuraba's orchestrations. When he first started using a orchestral sample library, in Star Ocean 3, I thought it actually sounded quite nice.You have to love the Engrish song titles on Sakuraba soundtracks, though. "Let's Creation !!" Just classic. Star Ocean 3 OST is my all time favorite album. Back when I played SO2 for the first time I was stunned at the beauty of all the densely lush soundscapes in that game. Arlia Village got me first, and then Rena's Theme. Then, when I got to Guardia Castle and Sakuraba busted out the choir samples on me, all of a sudden I had a new reason to wake up every morning and face the world. The arranged album version of it is even better. After that, you bet your booty that I had high expectations of SO3's music. And sure enough, he got me again. I agree that he has some pretty funny titles. "Pure A Stream" ?! Please ask someone to check this stuff for you man! But I love all the dramatic sounding titles he has, like Epic Poem for a Meaningful Death and The Divine Spirit of Language. Where does he come up with this stuff? Hahaha! I thought SO3 was actually very good, if very rough in the edges and with a story that shot itself in the foot after the crazy alien attack. Am I really the only person who actually thought the plot twist in SO3 was interesting or neat in the least? The thing that throws me off about it is that...................... Star Ocean 3 SPOILERS...BIG ONES! ... doesn't that mean that everything happened in the first two SO games was also part of that online drama. ... SPOILERS ARE OVER. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halt Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 I will be buying Star Ocean when it comes to the 360. An amazing game, Till the End of Time, had a decent story line, but the game play was awesome ;D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
relyanCe Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Am I really the only person who actually thought the plot twist in SO3 was interesting or neat in the least? The thing that throws me off about it is that......................Star Ocean 3 SPOILERS...BIG ONES! ... doesn't that mean that everything happened in the first two SO games was also part of that online drama. (use spoilertext u dummy!!! :-x:-x) ... SPOILERS ARE OVER. Yes, this kinda makes everything that happens in the series seem like, well... Unimportant? Kinda like the O.C. I guess. No one really cares who's screwin who at the end cuz it's fake amirite? ZOMG MORE SPOILERS!!! Wouldn't it be cool to have a Star Ocean installment that mas characters from 4D space as the main peoples? I mean, I'd have no idea what they'd do but hey, it sounds kinda cool to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corran Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 witnessing this magnitude of epic completes me :D I r winnar? It's too bad I hadn't played SO2 when I signed up for OCR like last millenium, I totally would have had Dias Flac as my screenname. At VGMix too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I-n-j-i-n Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Am I really the only person who actually thought the plot twist in SO3 was interesting or neat in the least? The thing that throws me off about it is that...................... I *liked* the twist, but they didn't do anything with it. It's like a player getting a ball and not doing anything with it. The end game's enemies were total pushovers compared to the big alien invaders, and the final boss was just a geeked up supernerd. It would've been way more epic to fight the seemingly unbeatable enemies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Legendary Zoltan Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Do you think it has a chance of happening? Here's an article stating that there are such rumors going around. http://www.psxextreme.com/ps3-news/3921.html I personally am hoping for it. Star Ocean 4 is the last major consideration for me in deciding whether to get an XBOX360 or a PS3. PS3's got Metal Gear and XBOX has Star Ocean 4 and Infinite Undiscovery tempting me. What ever is a girl to do?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
relyanCe Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Do you think it has a chance of happening? Here's an article stating that there are such rumors going around.http://www.psxextreme.com/ps3-news/3921.html I personally am hoping for it. Star Ocean 4 is the last major consideration for me in deciding whether to get an XBOX360 or a PS3. PS3's got Metal Gear and XBOX has Star Ocean 4 and Infinite Undiscovery tempting me. What ever is a girl to do?! Just get a PS3. There isn't a chance in hell that SO4 won't end up on it. Square-enix isn't THAT retarded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TehDonut Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Yeah I agree with rely, there's no way that SO4 won't come out on PS3, at least a later release than the xbox360 version. Besides......we all know in about a year or two, Tri-Ace is gonna be like oh...time to continue the VP Franchise with a game on PS3 with the focus on Hrist......yeah..their gonna call it Valkyrie Profile 3: Hrist...or something. Nevermind the DS release, cause I'm definitely gonna get that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
relyanCe Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Yeah I agree with rely, there's no way that SO4 won't come out on PS3, at least a later release than the xbox360 version. Besides......we all know in about a year or two, Tri-Ace is gonna be like oh...time to continue the VP Franchise with a game on PS3 with the focus on Hrist......yeah..their gonna call it Valkyrie Profile 3: Hrist...or something. Nevermind the DS release, cause I'm definitely gonna get that. OMFG WHEN IS THAT DS GAME COMING OUT... I need my norse mythos fix... Slight derailment: I just finished the main story in Radiata Stories on the non-human side, and is it supposed to be so... well... ambiguous? It's like you beat the last boss run away from the collapsing tower, and watch some guy laugh maniacally. Is that really it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arek the Absolute Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I recently purchased SO2 for the psp. Hearing it was awesome, I couldn't resist. Unfortunately, as hard as I keep trying, I just can't get into the game! I think tales games really spoiled me. It seems slow and clunky. i hit attack and it takes forever for him to run and hit a monster. What also sucks is that you can't block *unless I am totally missing the button*, so while running ot the monster, the other one on the battle field keeps slapping me around. Tales games did this type of battle system way better, at least in my opinion. Any reasons for me to try SO2 again before I put it on the shelf to collect dust? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwordBreaker Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 OMFG WHEN IS THAT DS GAME COMING OUT... I need my norse mythos fix...Slight derailment: I just finished the main story in Radiata Stories on the non-human side, and is it supposed to be so... well... ambiguous? It's like you beat the last boss run away from the collapsing tower, and watch some guy laugh maniacally. Is that really it? SPOILER ALERT Gotta agree with you there. The ending was sort of open in the non-human side. Even in the scene after the collapsing tower that suggests that Jack and Ridley are still alive and all is well. Not sure whether the ending is different in the human side. Either way, I'd love to revisit this game someday 'cause how awesome it is. It took the recruitment concept from VP and made it really cool...just wish the other players were controllable. The story had a good mixture of humor and drama. And the music...wow...insanely good and jazzy. I think this is the only Tri-Ace game in which Sakuraba was not the composer...still though, Iwadare did an excellent job. Anyone notice the sweet Star Ocean 2 reference in Radiata, btw? EDIT: Valkyrie Profile DS is coming out sometime in March I believe. Some import impressions say that it's the weakest in the series, but still good all around. I'm definitely buying this one, even though I haven't even touched VP2 for the PS2 yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwordBreaker Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 I recently purchased SO2 for the psp. Hearing it was awesome, I couldn't resist. Unfortunately, as hard as I keep trying, I just can't get into the game!I think tales games really spoiled me. It seems slow and clunky. i hit attack and it takes forever for him to run and hit a monster. What also sucks is that you can't block *unless I am totally missing the button*, so while running ot the monster, the other one on the battle field keeps slapping me around. Tales games did this type of battle system way better, at least in my opinion. Any reasons for me to try SO2 again before I put it on the shelf to collect dust? How many hours have you been playing? If you're early in the game, it'll seem slow and clunky for you 'cause you haven't learned any of the combat abilities yet. There are a couple of them which increase your combat skills, including blocking, counterattack, and rushing to monsters faster. So that's all your problems solved there. The more you put skill points on those, the more probable these combat skills are activated. Yeah, they're sort of random (and you seem to prefer them to be button-activated), but they add a lot to combat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brycepops Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 How many hours have you been playing? If you're early in the game, it'll seem slow and clunky for you 'cause you haven't learned any of the combat abilities yet. There are a couple of them which increase your combat skills, including blocking, counterattack, and rushing to monsters faster. So that's all your problems solved there. The more you put skill points on those, the more probable these combat skills are activated. Yeah, they're sort of random (and you seem to prefer them to be button-activated), but they add a lot to combat. In other words: Play Moar. It'll get better. Trust us :3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
relyanCe Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I recently purchased SO2 for the psp. Hearing it was awesome, I couldn't resist. Unfortunately, as hard as I keep trying, I just can't get into the game!I think tales games really spoiled me. It seems slow and clunky. i hit attack and it takes forever for him to run and hit a monster. What also sucks is that you can't block *unless I am totally missing the button*, so while running ot the monster, the other one on the battle field keeps slapping me around. Tales games did this type of battle system way better, at least in my opinion. Any reasons for me to try SO2 again before I put it on the shelf to collect dust? Yeah, tri-ace games are generally much slower in pace than the balls-out craziness of Tales combat. It's not so much that it's clunkier, it's just slower and more strategic, at least starting out. Once you get higher level and start throwing out crazy destruction everywhere and the screen is shaking and giving you brain hemorrhages, you'll start to really enjoy it. Persevere, my friend! Persevere! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arek the Absolute Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Blargh. I will give it another shot. Hopefully SO4 takes a page from ANY of the tales games and fixes up a thing or two so it doesn't take ages for the game to be GOOD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwordBreaker Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 Really enjoying the Private Action skits of First Departure. There's this one where the characters reenact Cinderella in Roddick's dream that I stumbled upon a few days back...it got HILARIOUS towards the end of it. I also heard that the character Welsh Venyard has some hilarious PAs, so I decided to boot Mavelle to recruit Welsh. I'm not disappointed thus far. She's a funny character. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Mw3snl6rPI&feature=related MAJOR SPOILERS for those who want to discover the Private Action I'm talking about by themselves. Youtube has everything indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I-n-j-i-n Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Blargh. I will give it another shot.Hopefully SO4 takes a page from ANY of the tales games and fixes up a thing or two so it doesn't take ages for the game to be GOOD. Even if SO games don't always have the most solid story or gameplay progression, at least its plots are usually much more interesting than the typical Tales formula of: -Hero sets out with childhood friend -LOTS OF BS POLITICS -Hero's friend becomes evil and turns into the final boss -The final boss was only the mid boss -Exploration, then the true final boss I don't think I played a Tales game that deviated from that formula. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malaki-LEGEND.sys Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Tales of Vesperia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red9 Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I recently purchased SO2 for the psp. Hearing it was awesome, I couldn't resist. Unfortunately, as hard as I keep trying, I just can't get into the game!I think tales games really spoiled me. It seems slow and clunky. i hit attack and it takes forever for him to run and hit a monster. What also sucks is that you can't block *unless I am totally missing the button*, so while running ot the monster, the other one on the battle field keeps slapping me around. Tales games did this type of battle system way better, at least in my opinion. Any reasons for me to try SO2 again before I put it on the shelf to collect dust? you could send it to me and i'll pay for it. SO1 was the first game i played on zsnes emulator. "....and it was good." SO2 was (IMHO) better than ff7. after you got onto the second disk and could actually get into the extra dungeon and all that. Also for 2 at lvl 100-ish after completing the 50 round survival arena you get this cool lvl 100+ only skill that if an attack on you would cause no damage, the character auto-counters it as a full attack, so if you work for it thats a good thing to look forward to. SO3 was pure love, my sister and I would actually chart out what you would produce for each person at each price level and the combinations and so on. we tried posting it as an FAQ but ign refused on account of that it was an excel spreadsheet at a whopping 14mb. Even the attempt at achievements is pretty slick. But my sadness explodes at learning that SO4 is 360 only. Not that i'm a fanboy or am against microsoft (I want dlc for fallout 3 on ps3) but i dont wanna buy another system for a game that has typically been on one system (sony) to begin with. Finally bunny shoes help if you feel slow and run up manually and attack when there is an opening, dont assume you can make it work every time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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