Terra and Lightning's RPG Roundup

"Over and Over and Over Again" (RPG Roundup Episode 36). So what have we been playing? Lots of stuff! Today’s episode laments some of the more repetitive elements of Bravely Default and also questions some of the -um- wardrobe decisions of the denizens of Star Ocean 5. We also discuss Final Fantasy II, King’s Quest: Episode 1, and our progress in Dragon Warrior! Some FFXIV, FFXI, and Shining Force 2 also sprinkled in.

Persona 4 Golden – You are Yu! (RPG Roundup Episode 35). PlayStation Vita. 2011. What happens when your parents go to work in some foreign country and you move to a little town called Inaba? Murder, that’s what happens! Join Yu Narukami and pals as they learn the power of Persona, bond over beach escapades and boring school trips, and of course try to solve the murder mystery! Turn-based combat married to an intriguing social link system makes for a great 100 hours, especially on the newer Vita version. Disclaimer: we did misremember a few things in retrospect, so try not to mind when we get a few things wrong. We also couldn’t discuss everything we wanted to, given how long the game was.

"Segue Episode #1 – Oh Where Have the JRPGs Gone?" We're now splitting up our What We've Been Playing and review episodes – have no fear, Persona 4 Golden should be out in about a month! Today we talk about Persona 5, Shining Force 2, and South Park: the Stick of Truth, among other games, and also about this year’s rather disappointing E3, although a few games piqued our interests. And what’s this terrible game called Magikarp Jump that we’ve been playing? Find out if you dare!

"Disgaea 5: Alliance of Vengeance – the Eyeliner of Evil Returns." PlayStation 4. 2015. Now coming out on the Nintendo Switch! Although a little more simplistic than its predecessors, Disgaea 5 still has its merits, with a fun tactical battle system, larger than life characters, and fixations with curry that border on the obscene. Why does main character of Killia want revenge on the powerful overlord Void Dark? All this and more, to include some spoiler-free Persona 5 talk and discussion on our travails through Final Fantasy XI.

"Conception 2 – The One With the Boobs." Recorded in early January – episode may not sound up to date with what we’re playing now. So…boobs. This game has a lot of boobs. It also has boring dungeons, painful battle mechanics, and repetitive cutscenes. Listen to us as we ramble about (of course) boobs, baby mechas (no lies there), and sleep aids (you won’t need any after playing this game).

“Dragon Age: Inquisition: Part 2—The Trouble With Lord Woolsley.” PlayStation 4. 2014. It’s been a year and half since Part 1, but we’ve finally finished Dragon Age: Inquisition. You name it, we’ve done it: Healing the rift, defeating Corypheus, killing dragons, electing a new Divine, deciding the future of the Inquisition—and, of, course, bringing Lord Woolsley home. It’s a Christmas miracle—that we saved Lord Woolsley and that we finally finished this episode.

Chrono Trigger: Part 2 – To Faraway Times. SNES. 1995. Here we are with our second installment on Chrono Trigger, picking up after the showdown with Magus in the Middle Ages. Much like its predecessor Final Fantasy 6, the game turns from a linear format to a more open-ended experience, including skippable sidequests and several options on how to beat the final boss. Also, Lavos sounds like a broken-down car. And Magus becomes your reluctant last party member.

"Mario Maker – the Hammer Brother Horde." Wii U. 2015. We are finally back to talk about…Mario Maker, which is one of our non-RPG minisodes. We also talk about the games we’ve been working on, complain about Final Fantasy XV, and discuss our future plans. New Star Ocean game, anyone? Remember, Chrono Trigger Part 2 should be coming out soon!

"Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch – Oliver’s Acid Trip." PlayStation 3. 2013. We recorded this in early December, but schedules and a myriad of audio issues made this one a hard one to edit. It also didn’t help that we weren’t overly fond of Ni No Kuni. Wait – what? But everybody else liked it! Well, the battle system is a clunker. So is the AI. The game revolves around a boy named Oliver, who is learning to be a wizard while dealing with the death of his mother, and his journey to become powerful enough to beat the evil wizard Shadar.

"Chrono Trigger: Part I – Robo's Rave." SNES. 1995. What groundbreaking game in the mid-90s featured time travel, multiple endings, and Rick Astley lovin' robots? If you guessed Chrono Trigger, then you are correct. We discuss the first half of the game as well as what we’ve been up to gaming-wise. Hint: we had nothing to do with pigeons.

"Hatoful Boyfriend – Everybirdie's on Crack." PlayStation 4/PlayStation Vita. 2011. We take a break from RPG's to...date pigeons. Rich, elite pigeons. Sexy, suave pigeons. Crazy, feral pigeons. And...murderous doctor pigeons that want to throw a scalpel at your face. What is it really like to play this cracked out game? We spill all!

"Final Fantasy VI: Part II – Atma Ponders on the Toilet." SNES. 1994. We now bring to you the World of Ruin, where the world has gone to pot and it's up to our adventurers to save it from the evil madman Kefka. The second half of this game shines in its uniqueness – while the first half was linear, now it's all about choose your own adventure. What adventures did we choose? Listen and find out!

“Dragon Age: Inquisition Part One – Drunken Age.” PlayStation 4. 2014. Name inspired by the screwdrivers we had while recording. The Dragon Age universe has gone to hell since we last left you at Dragon Age 2. Among other things, the mages and templars are waging an all-out war, strange green rifts are appearing in the sky, and the Divine Justinia, an important spiritual leader, has been murdered along with countless other people in a mysterious explosion. You are the only one to come out of the explosion alive…and you’re also the only one who can seal the dangerous rifts. Welcome to the Inquisition, Miss Trevelyan!

"Pokémon X-Y—Pokémon Noobs." Nintendo 3DS. 2013. All of you Pokémon veterans: come here for a laugh. We are new to the series, and it’s quite apparent. We not only mispronounce the word in Great Midwestern Fashion, but call TM’s “HM’s” and even sneak in a reference to FFX-2. For anyone new to Pokémon…welcome to X and Y! You start out as an ambitious young Pokémon trainer with clingy friends in the French-inspired Kalos region. Of course, things aren’t that simple – you are very intent on becoming the Champion, and as a little side thing this red-haired guy named Lysandre is out to destroy the world. Oh noes!

"Final Fantasy VI: Welcome to Our BBQ!" SNES. 1993. We at last get to our first installment covering arguably one of the best RPGs at all time. We also deviate from our format a little, preferring a more detailed account rather than our usual overview while discussing the World of Balance. Either way, we both love FF6 and are looking forward to finishing the second half of the game!

"Castlevania: Symphony of the Night – Creature of Chaos." PlayStation. 1997. Like platformers and RPGs? Also like eating old, old pizza? Then join us for a discussion of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, one of the most beloved and lauded games in the Castlevania series. In this installment, Alucard, the oh-so-cleverly-named son of Dracula, must search for the missing vampire hunter Richter Belmont and defeat his scheming dad, all while exploring the very appropriately-named "creature of chaos" (AKA Dracula’s castle).

"Star Ocean: Second Evolution – Fourscore and Seven Hundred Million Years Ago…" PSP. 2008. It’s been one year since we started our first show with Star Ocean: First Departure! Ironically, we are celebrating this major milestone by discussing its sequel, also a PSP port and remake. In this installment, we dive into the problems of planet Expel, which is dealing with the disastrous arrival of an extraterrestrial device called the Sorcery Globe. Tsunamis, earthquakes, rabid beasts…you name it, it’s there – and it’s up to an Earth boy named Claude and a mysterious girl named Rena to sort it all out. We also do a light review on FFXIV’s PS4 version and how well it integrates with the PS4 hardware and accessories.

"Secret of Mana: Help, I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Get Up!" SNES. 1993. A lot of us played this game when we were kids. A lot of us also didn’t – but despite being 20 years old, Secret of Mana still holds up well as a solid title in the retro gaming scene. Is multiplayer really that good? What about some of the insane grinding that you must do in order to level up your weapons and magic? And why does Lightning slip in and out of this extremely awful British accent at times? All of this awaits you and more!

"Wild Arms: For a Few Gella More." PlayStation. 1996. Early 32 bit polygonal hell awaits you if you take on the first installment of this long-running Sony staple, which is replete with deserts, twangy music, and mysterious weapons called ARMs. What’s with the medieval Wild West mash-up? WHY did nobody question the abrupt disappearance of one of the two major kingdoms in the world? And why oh why did the game developers treat us to the same two monsters in every dungeon? All of this will be answered...or at least discussed. Disclaimer: inconsistent sound quality throughout the episode, which made editing the stuff of nightmares (and why we recorded two weeks ago but are only posting this now). Try not to turn the volume up or your ears might bleed.

"Soul Nomad and the World Eaters – Hotpod Hoedown." PlayStation 2. 2007. For the past few hundred years, the world has gone to hell in a handbasket. Wars rage on, sickness and disease spread, and large, mysterious creatures called World Eaters threaten to ravage the land. And now it’s up to YOU, Revya, with a mysterious sword and a wise-cracking, foul-mouthed being named Gig trapped inside your body, to take out the World Eaters and bring peace to the land. Developed by the same folks as Disgaea and La Pucelle Tactics, we find that this game is more off the beaten path than other NIS titles, with a squad system reminiscent of Ogre Battle and a heavy focus on pre-battle tactical decisions. Variety is the spice of life, however, and we explain why we enjoyed this little diversion from the Item World before we move on to Disgaea D2.

"Shining Force – Here, Have a Jogurt Ring!" Genesis. 1992. Proudly holding its title as the granddaddy of console strategy RPGs, Shining Force even today has a lot to offer the average retro gamer, with simplistic but fun gameplay, an endearing art style…and a main character who adamantly refuses to wear pants. We are looking very forward to playing more in the series…but Sega, why oh why didn’t you release all of Shining Force III in English? Note of warning: we just got a new microphone, and we’re still tinkering with the settings. The audio quality is a bit different than usual – we’re working on it.

"Final Fantasy – Wash Your Damn Face." NES. 1987. PlayStation. 2002. At last – we play something in the Final Fantasy series! In this episode we cover the NES version of Final Fantasy and include a segment on the PlayStation remake that was released in North America in 2003 (complete with the game’s intro music, which apparently has some cheesy sound effects). What party combinations are the best? We not only take on these exasperating questions, but we also warn any would-be wanderers of the Ogre Corridor of Doom. You have been warned. Yes, we later found out we that screwed up the "return the light" bit.

"Phantasy Star II - Retro RPG Russian Roulette." Genesis. 1989. Do you like maps? Do you like making maps? Well, we don’t either. But cartography is a must-have skill in this installment of the Phantasy Star series, and you’d better darn well use it.