NOUNS! GUESS WHAT!
I have been fortunate enough to come across a SNES copy of EARTHBOUND. That's right I now own Earthbound. So what to do with this monumental discovery? I've decided to play through the game, and keep you updated with my opinion. So here's where I am so far:
I just arrived at Twoson. The story hasn't really picked up yet. Not a lot has happened. I won't spoil it for you, but only the basic story as been explained. From what I understand from the amazing hype on teh interwebs, the story should get really really really good. THe music, which has also been super duper hyped over teh interwebs is...... disappointing. Most of the songs are okay, but not outstanding. There is one song, one of the battle themes, that I CAN NOT stand. I'm not sure why the music for this game is- so popular. Again, I am only in the beginning , so it may get super-fantastical later.
Now for the gameplay. The battles are really hard up to this point. I haven't gotten another party member yet, but at the moment, all of the enemies can kill me in a couple turns. I know for a fact that I'm not under leveled. I had to grind earlier in the game.
The bottom line is, the fame has fallen victim to over hype syndrome. The game play is ball bustingly hard and the music is incredibly over rated. It's supposed to get much better later, but as of now, it's disappointing.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
Chrono Trigger vs. Final Fantasy IV
Salutations Nouns,
Many people have screamed to the heavens that chrono trigger has the best video game soundtrack EVER. I disagree. Don't get me wrong it is a fantastic soundtrack, but when listening to it without the game, it can get boring. Final Fantasy IV on the other hand has a sound track that is about as good in game, and much better on it's own(excluding Frog's theme. So much awesome). Overall, I have to give the soundtrack to Final Fantasy IV.
The Graphics in Chrono Trigger win hands down, understandably so. Final Fantasy IV came out much earlier in the Super Nintendo's life time, and Square was originally developing the game for the NES. So when the SNES was announced, Square jumped ship and did what they could to take advantage of the new tech. They're certainly not the worst graphics, everything is crisp and clean, but they're not groundbreaking. Chrono Trigger's graphics are..... WOW. Fantastic. This game really looks pretty, such wonderful detail. Nothing too groundbreaking, but that may be a good thing. Since Square wasn't experimenting with any new tech, they were able to focus on making everything they had to work with perfect! You can really see the art style of Akira Toriyamam com through............ yay? I know I'm going to get a lot of crap for this, but I don't think that's a good thing.
I liked Toriyama's work in Dragon Ball. It was very appropriate. But then I started looking at the other stuff he drew, and I noticed he had a definite style. That's fine I like it when someone has a definite style. But then I saw more and more of his work.... and I noticed that everything looked the same. In everything he does the artwork for there is a Goku, Vegeta, Trunks, or all three! It's ridiculous, and getting stale.
So that leaves the story. Do we want the time traveling epic, or the globe trotting fairy tale. Chrono Trigger's plot is a lot easier to follow han most RPGs. It's a good story, lot's of fun, and really made the game worthwhile. It was a little annoying that Crono couldn't talk. I understand that the player is supposed to be Crono, and that's why he didn't have any lines, but hat also means that he is the least interesting character. Final Fantasy IV Has a far more complex story, and a main character that speaks. THe story really benefits from that though. Cecil faces some serious issues and makes the "right" decisions. He doesn't really insult your intelligence, nor is he too whiny( SNES version folks). He creates a better fairy tale. Slo FFIV has more locations. Yes Chrono Trigger has time Travel, but the world is pretty small in CT. In FFIV there is ahuge overworld, a slightly smaller underworld, and a small moon. That's a lot of locations. It's a lot of retro gaming. I look at it like this, CT would make a better novel, and FFIV makes a better series of novels. So who wins? If you can't tell already it's FFIV. I judged this one based on my play experience. CT was fun and I wanted to play more, but tt wasn't because of the story. I wanted tog et to the end of the supposed "best RPG of all time". When I played FFIV it controlled my life. I thought about it constantly from start to finish. I would talk about it to anyone that would listen. It was a greater experience.
Today I shall compare my two favorite RPG's of all time, Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy IV. Now I know that some of you (Actually, does anyone read this blog?) would immediately say "Now LordSirPumpkin, Everyone knows that Chrono Trigger is a better game!" before reading this. In respones I would slap you in the face with a frozen carp. These two are very similar, yet incredibly different games. Neither is perfect. Curious? I know I am even though I wrote this!
Both games are running the same battle system: ATB v2.0. It's a wonderful battle system that is near and dear to my heart. Chrono trigger has a slight edge with the techs that are integrated into it. While Final Fantasy IV has abilites, they are not nearly as important to battle. Also Chrono Trigger has an advantage with the way the player encounters enemies. There are no random battles. Final Fantasy IV on the other hand had RBS (Random Battle Syndrome). This is the problem that has plagued RPG's for many, many years. Chrono Trigger found the cure.
Many people have screamed to the heavens that chrono trigger has the best video game soundtrack EVER. I disagree. Don't get me wrong it is a fantastic soundtrack, but when listening to it without the game, it can get boring. Final Fantasy IV on the other hand has a sound track that is about as good in game, and much better on it's own(excluding Frog's theme. So much awesome). Overall, I have to give the soundtrack to Final Fantasy IV.
The Graphics in Chrono Trigger win hands down, understandably so. Final Fantasy IV came out much earlier in the Super Nintendo's life time, and Square was originally developing the game for the NES. So when the SNES was announced, Square jumped ship and did what they could to take advantage of the new tech. They're certainly not the worst graphics, everything is crisp and clean, but they're not groundbreaking. Chrono Trigger's graphics are..... WOW. Fantastic. This game really looks pretty, such wonderful detail. Nothing too groundbreaking, but that may be a good thing. Since Square wasn't experimenting with any new tech, they were able to focus on making everything they had to work with perfect! You can really see the art style of Akira Toriyamam com through............ yay? I know I'm going to get a lot of crap for this, but I don't think that's a good thing.
I liked Toriyama's work in Dragon Ball. It was very appropriate. But then I started looking at the other stuff he drew, and I noticed he had a definite style. That's fine I like it when someone has a definite style. But then I saw more and more of his work.... and I noticed that everything looked the same. In everything he does the artwork for there is a Goku, Vegeta, Trunks, or all three! It's ridiculous, and getting stale. In Final Fantasy IV The concept art is done by Yoshitaka Amano, who also has a definite style. The difference is that Amano doesn't draw the same people over and over again. Each new character looks fresh and new. Alos Amano's work is a bit more mature then Toriyama's. It helps create a deeper and more intense atmosphere. So Between the graphics and overall look, there is no clear winner. The visuals are a draw.
So that leaves the story. Do we want the time traveling epic, or the globe trotting fairy tale. Chrono Trigger's plot is a lot easier to follow han most RPGs. It's a good story, lot's of fun, and really made the game worthwhile. It was a little annoying that Crono couldn't talk. I understand that the player is supposed to be Crono, and that's why he didn't have any lines, but hat also means that he is the least interesting character. Final Fantasy IV Has a far more complex story, and a main character that speaks. THe story really benefits from that though. Cecil faces some serious issues and makes the "right" decisions. He doesn't really insult your intelligence, nor is he too whiny( SNES version folks). He creates a better fairy tale. Slo FFIV has more locations. Yes Chrono Trigger has time Travel, but the world is pretty small in CT. In FFIV there is ahuge overworld, a slightly smaller underworld, and a small moon. That's a lot of locations. It's a lot of retro gaming. I look at it like this, CT would make a better novel, and FFIV makes a better series of novels. So who wins? If you can't tell already it's FFIV. I judged this one based on my play experience. CT was fun and I wanted to play more, but tt wasn't because of the story. I wanted tog et to the end of the supposed "best RPG of all time". When I played FFIV it controlled my life. I thought about it constantly from start to finish. I would talk about it to anyone that would listen. It was a greater experience. So there you have it. My comparision. Both are great games. Both are worth playing, but I pick FFIV. Start writing your hate mail(all 0 of you), so I can ignore it.
Farewell for now,
LordSirPumpkin
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