How's your backlog?

[RopeMaidenKirie]

Yeah, unfortunately we've got a bit of a tight budget for a while, and I've saved enough for the games I really would like to get day one. As much as I would like to get the summer otoges, time/cost ratio is a bit too low for me, so I'm gonna wait on sales and go with some of the other ones instead.

[Kikki]

They really are very expensive considering that you can often not just finish but 100% them within a week. And so hit-or-miss for me. I mean, I loved Code: Realize, Hakuoki, Sweet Fuse, Collar X Malice and Amnesia, as well as Nameless, but I didn't like Norn 9 or Period Cube at all, nor Mystic Messenger even though they looked good, and I absolutely loathe Dogenzaka Labs otoges as well as Ozmafia. Even Nightshade was only tolerable...so it's a risky thing, picking an otoge. I didn't bother trying Bad Apple Wars as I think the art looks awful and that's half the point of an otome, imo. (High school is a big turn-off as a setting for me, on top of that.)

I've got my fingers crossed that Black Butterfly won't be one of the disappointing ones. If it is, I'll be cancelling my order of Ashen Hawk. 7'scarlet is the one I like the look of most, but they're all kind of risky. And when an otome ends up being not to your taste it's often a complete waste of money, ime, as when I end up to not liking an otome, I tend to really not like it. :/

When XSeed brings out Eikoku Tantei Mysteria I will buy it because I want to support Xseed's branching into that territory, but I'm a bit dubious. I never seem to like the princessy type of heroine. I hope to be pleasantly surprised.

Meanwhile, Black Butterfly is my next up new game. Until then I'm working on Setsuna and Yonder, and then life will most likely get pretty busy. I hope it will...within reason.

[Ronin19]

I want to finish up my Suvi-mance file of Andromeda, maybe my Jade Empire file and Harvest Moon Tale of Two Towns before One Piece Pirate Warriors 3 and Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition come out for Switch in about 2.5 -3.5 weeks. I feel like I can do it, and, once those games are done, do a Reyes-mance file and A Wonderful Life before Vampyr comes out. After that, I feel like a ton of games are going to come out for me all at once; Vampyr, My Time at Portia, Octopath Traveler, Splatoon 2 DLC, and the Banner Saga Trilogy all come out within two-three months of each other.

I really want to make sure all my BioWare files and Bokujou Monogatari games are fully finished before moving away from their games. So far that just means 5 Andromeda files, 2 Jade Empire files, 2 KOTOR files, 2 KOTOR 2 files (I know it's by Obsidian, but it wouldn't exist without BioWare's first one), Baulder's Gate, Baulder's Gate 2, Tale of Two Towns, A Wonderful Life, Grand Bazaar, DS, Gameboy 1, 2 and 3. I'll probably wait on playing both KOTOR and Balder's Gate games for a while, and I still don't have Neverwinter Nights Enhanced edition; got others I'm more inclined to finish. Maybe Kingdoms of Amalur or To the Moon will be next since I'm in the middle of both of them.

[Kikki]

I need a bit of extra feedback on Hyrule Warriors. I find the character art style gorgeous and I know the game has a story mode and it sounded interesting, so I wanted it for that reason. But except in very limited circumstances (I liked fighting in Tokyo Xanadu and in the Cold Steel and Tales games.) I do not like fighting, let alone hack-and-slash.

So on one hand, I do really want it and have since it first came out on the Wii U. But I've put off buying it because I figure it's going to be one of those games I will end up not liking after all because it is so focused on fighting. (Basically entirely focused on it, right?) I suspect it's silly for me to buy it, even though I really want it...seems like I'll end up not actually enjoying myself when I play with it just being endless fighting. Does that seem accurate?

Sounds like everyone has loads of games they're expecting to take on in the latter half of 2018. Me, too. Gotta get Setsuna and Yonder wrapped up to try to absorb some of the negative numbers I'm going to end up wracking up with everything that's going to come out in the next season. Ys VIII, Lost Child, Shining Resonance, Portia, Ashen Hawk, 7'scarlet, and possibly Sakuna. And maybe Dragon Quest XI as well. Oh and the Switch version of The World Ends With You.

And maybe some things revealed by E3 on top of that. And Mysteria, if Xseed is doing that this year.

[Bluie]

Hyrule Warriors is either love it or hate it imo. I'm a big Samurai Warriors fan, so I bought Hyrule Warriors on the 3DS annnd, I kinda hated it. There's nothing wrong with it, it's got the same gameplay (with some added stuff), it's got nice characters, and some cool features (like adventure mode), but I just couldn't get into it.

Warriors games are very repetitive and grindy, and while I do enjoy a good grind, it's only when I like the game. With Samurai Warriors, you're grinding for perfect weapons and more character events, which is worth it to me because I adore that series cast. I also really like the Samurai Warriors Chronicles series as you have your own self insert that's customizable and all the characters interact with you. I don't mind replaying a stage 3+ times to unlock everything. I was four trophies away from platinuming Samurai Warriors 4, and that is a grindy game.

I didn't feel like the grinding was worth anything in Hyrule Warriors. Once the stories are over, the game stopped being fun. I had no desire to grind for more weapons because why would I want to? There's no extra character interactions for me to unlock, just more movesets for missions i've already completed. You could argue that the post game is meant for the adventure mode, but eh, I got too bored before I got to it.

If it's your first Warriors game and you want to try out the genre, then go for it if you think it'll appeal to you. Me being a SW snob ruined Hyrule Warriors for me.

[Kikki]

The thing that is making me hesitate is that I only want to buy it for the story. And if the story is insignificant, then it's not going to be a worthwhile purchase. It's just so hard to resist the idea of playing a story with Link in it...

I've never played a Warriors game because I'm not into hack and slash and none of them were from games I'm familiar with so I didn't care whether they had stories or not, so I never really looked into the series at all.

[Bluie]

The story is OK, but nothing extreme. Warriors games are kinda known for not having strong stories, the spinoff ones even moreso. The main story is only 12-15 hours of gameplay. IDK if you want to spend money for only that much playtime.

There's videos on Youtube compiling all the cutscenes (including the added tales like Linkle) if you want to save a few bucks. I regret buying Fire Emblem Warriors last year because while I liked it enough, it wasn't worth it's full price tag. I did get 30 hours out of it, but it just wasn't the greatest.

Different strokes though, who know, maybe you'll really like it? Maybe they'll drop a demo and you can try it out, that'd be ideal.

[Ronin19]

I'm getting Hyrule Warriors for Switch mainly because I like the Zelda series and I liked using all the different characters, but hated, absolutely HATED, the 3DS version. I got Fire Emblem Warriors on the Switch and love it. I'm thinking the Warriors games aren't meant for the 3DS; not a lot of control in a handheld, but it handled well on the Switch.

As for the hack-and-slash genre, it's a hit or miss for me, really. I like the Warriors spin-offs (Hyrule Warriors and Fire Emblem Warriors) and love Bayonetta, but I have no interest in the original Warriors games, « Harvest Goddess » of War (tried the demo and didn't like it) or Devil May Cry (my mind may change on it). It really depends on how the game plays for me and if the characters are interesting. The Warriors spin-offs have new and old characters I can get used to and I wanted to know more about Bayonetta since she was revealed for Smash and wanted to play her games.

For Hyrule Warriors' story, I'll echo what Bluie said; it's nothing special and only really okay. Warriors games are all about the fighting, really. Fire Emblem Warriors is the same way. I at least know that One Piece Pirate Warriors 3 is taking the story directly from the manga/anime and going up to the second or third arc after the time skip, but I don't know much more about that.

[Kikki]

Thank you both I guess I'll settle for watching the cutscenes and skipping it. Fighting is usually the part of any game that I try hardest to minimize so that I can just get on with the story...in almost all games it tends to be a chore for me.

EDIT: I am now about 80% finished Setsuna and I hate it. Lol. I honestly almost never say that about a game, except when I come across an otome that makes my skin crawl, but the battle system of Setsuna is so detestable, I just can't take it, and I won't expand or it'll be a frothy rant. I also never did come to care about the story or characters so there was nothing to offset the grinding my teeth got whenever I had to go into yet another battle.

I'll finish it because not getting to knock it off my list would make all the time I already spent on it wasted, but there's no hope for it at this point. I'm going to take Lost Sphear off my wishlist, too. I don't even want to glance at anything related to Setsuna again, lol. I seriously misjudged on this one...I should have paid more attention to the battle system before purchasing it. Oopsy.

EDIT 2: I changed my mind. This game is so geared to be exactly the most un-fun thing for me to play that it'd be stupid to continue (I get really cranky when I play it and it's not fair to inflict that on anyone around me), especially after I checked and saw that the last part seems to be boss battle after boss battle. I'm gonna delete this off my system to clear the space and what's more, I'm making it a + on my list for getting to 80% finished. I deserve it just for dragging myself through 40% of the game already barely able to tolerate it, lol. Well, in my opinion, anyway...is that just cheating too much? I guess it is. Forget a +, what I really need here is a very large piece of high-quality chocolate.

[Bluie]

Hey, you gave it your best effort, no worries. I guess you hate it so much you don't even care about the story. XD

My offer still stands if you wanna know the story's twists and ending. IAS certainly isn't for everyone, but I am one of the few who loved it (and I plan to do a second playthrough eventually - I even bought the English boxart release I love it so much).

Stay far, faaaar away from Lost Sphear, as it's more of the same (though the characters and battle system are vastly improved - it pretty much plays the same).

[Kikki]

I had some mild curiosity about Endir. The story itself didn't seem very important, to me, though there were some odd things going on where I stopped playing. I hope my dislike of it doesn't feel unpleasant for you since you loved it. It wasn't the story I hated, honestly, it was that loathsome battle system, even though I usually hit momentum quite often. I was pretty much indifferent to the story and characters except for Endir, though none of the characters seemed very well-fleshed-out at the point where I left off. I won't pester you to tell me the end though as that would probably be time-consuming for you if it is complicated at all. I do appreciate the offer, thank you

[Ronin19]

I have I Am Setsuna waiting for me to finish it on my PS4. I've started it over once already and I'm going to have to do it again. The boss fights and the grinding kind of turn me away from it, but I did buy it and want to give it a fair chance.

Luckily, there is a demo for Lost Sphear if you are ever curious about it, but, from what I remember about it, it plays like I Am Setsuna. The difference is they get mech armor for battle and other things. My boyfriend likes it and I Am Setsuna; I told him about it and he tried it. It's kind of what happens when either of us gets a new game and we tell the other about it; the initial one kind of never touches the game again while the one who was introduced to it by the initial loves it. This happens to me more than him though, lol.

And I'm slowly remembering why I found Andromeda boring: the middle. While I still say it's a good/okay game, not great or bad, the middle is just so boring, particularly Havarl and Voeld. Kadara and Elladan are just so much fun, but it feels like a grind to get to them. The beginning and the end are the best parts. Suvi's romance so far is...cringy.

[Kikki]

Yes, I've tried the demo and I think you all are right; it's very similar to Setsuna. I deleted both Setsuna and the Lost Sphear demo off my Switch just now. Setsuna certainly had good points (that got buried beneath my pile of resentment for the battle system, lol) but the thing for me was that you spend almost all of your time wandering through dungeon after dungeon, fighting monsters, many of whom blow up when you kill them, with no opportunity to dodge it, and items are so expensive and weapons need constant upgrading so the amount of fighting I did was barely enough to let me keep any healing or resurrection items on hand, or escape items, or anything. And since the game was so focused on the part I hated...

I just couldn't deal with so much combat done in a way I dislike so much. Nothing else was hate-able at all, really.

[Bluie]

I had some mild curiosity about Endir. The story itself didn't seem very important, to me, though there were some odd things going on where I stopped playing, with two persons leaving all of a sudden at the same time in a way that seemed oddly unrelated. I hope my dislike of it doesn't feel unpleasant for you since you loved it. It wasn't the story I hated, honestly, it was that loathsome battle system, even though I usually hit momentum quite often. I was pretty much indifferent to the story and characters except for Endir, though none of the characters seemed very well-fleshed-out at the point where I left off. I won't pester you to tell me the end though as that would probably be time-consuming for you if it is complicated at all. I do appreciate the offer, thank you

Eh, i've got some time. Here:

Spoiler:

Late in the game (like, almost endgame) you encounter a being called the Time Judge, who looks exactly like Aeterna. It's revealed that the Time Judge sealed away the big bad of the game (pretty much a human who couldn't control his magical powers due to experimentation he underwent via the fallen kingdom - he became this thing called the Dark Samsara and it's the source of all monsters, THUS being the thing that all the maidens keep sacrificing themselves for). She's waited and watched all the maidens before Setsuna sacrifice themselves with lukewarm results, but when Setsuna was born, she knew that she was both the last chance at quelling it + Setsuna had a 'light' in her that she knew could change destiny.

She created a clone of herself (Aeterna) because she can't leave her temple, to go and collect Setsuna once she was of age for the sacrifice so that she may test her, but Setsuna failed - choosing to not kill the Dark Samsara and keep the sacrifice cycle going, but that would end up having the world end as said sacrifices aren't going to work anymore. So, the Time Judge rewinds time over and over, hoping the next time she comes, she chooses correctly so the world can be saved.

Each time she rewinded time, there were small changes, but Setsuna wouldn't budge. Eventually, the Dark Samsara decided to make a move as well and made Fides (The Reaper) and it being a big enough change to the timeline, other anomalies happened as well; mainly the appearance of Endir. He had never joined Setsuna's party before then and it's believed that he was the influence she needed to get past her pacifism.

So, everyone fights the Dark Samsara, but just as it's supposed to die, it disappears. Basically, the Time Judge constantly turning back time caused a bunch of anomalies, and one of them is trails of magical energy that leaked every time she rewinded, and those became rings of light - the save points. When you meet Hapsper at the beginning of the game, he can't see the save points while Endir can. Setsuna chose wrongly so many times that the rewinding leaked a crapton, and that's why there's savepoints on their journey's path. Only she and Endir can see them, probably because they're both anomalies as well, Setsuna for having 'light' in her and Endir for not originally supposed to even be there. They figure out that the Dark Samsara went back 30 years in the past (using the trail of magical energy) to kill Setsuna's mother, thus ending the world prematurely, but Endir and Setsuna are able to go after it.

Endir defeats it but it isn't enough to kill it. Setsuna then takes the Dark Samsara into herself, giving it a new body where it can truly die (because it was eternal and stuff), making her the very last sacrifice as she tells Endir to finally go ahead with killing her. You're given a choice whether to kill her or not, but either decision happens off screen (and she always dies no matter what - either by Endir killing her, or the I guess Dark Samsara doing it).

The game ends with Endir being stuck in the past (it was a one way trip) and him traveling alone in the vast snowfields with a ghostly Setsuna watching over him. The rest of the party go back to their homes (except Aeterna as the Time Judge overused her powers and died, therefore Aeterna ceases to exist, and Fides - who became a party member at the very end of the game, also wanders aimlessly).

Endir is quite possibly stuck in a timeloop. It's implied that Hapsper is Future!Endir (Same moveset, the only other masked tribe around, knows a little too much about Endir, ect). He leads Endir to the 'go kill the sacrifice' quest and then only reappears again in Endir's side quest, where the two duel and in Endir's victory (that kills Hapsper) passes on his final move to Endir, that only he can use.

So, time travel sucks and messes « Cow Poopoo » up, for better or worse. Setsuna will still be born and the Dark Samsara still technically exists in the past (they killed the future one), so they saved the world, and will have to keep doing so, possibly forever. I'm guessing the only way to stop the loop is for them to somehow stop the Dark Samsara from existing in the first place, but no one has the power to go back that far and prevent it. It's pretty sad and I can't help but feel sorry for all the Endirs and Setsunas.

[Kikki]

That's very interesting, thank you

Spoiler:

Actually the whole Endir/Setsuna thing reminds me of Link/Zelda (even though it's actually really different), which is also, to me, a very melancholy system of existence, though of course that's highly debatable. Though I love the two of them. Kind of makes you think of fan fiction.