Sunday 31 May 2015

Things I Love and Things I Don't Miss About Old RPGs


After playing Final Fantasy Record Keeper and nothing else for a month straight, I decided that with a ready PS Vita and no HDMI enabled TV (what is my life?), it was time to hit the backlog of games on my PSN account. I've always promised myself that I will play all of the Final Fantasy games someday, as it is the series that got me into video games and more specifically, JRPGs. With this in mind, I decided to hit Final Fantasy IX because I heard the story is really interesting and since Kingdom Hearts, I've wondered what on earth even is Vivi (he is a Black Mage by the way, which I should've guessed).

Playing a PS One Classic really made me think about how much they differ from both RPGs and JRPGs of now, so here are a few things that were running through my head throughout the beginning of playing Final Fantasy IX. For the record, I'm still playing and loving the game, but I'm sure I'm up for at least another 100 hours of gameplay. And I'm so keen.
So.
Very.
Keen.

We Are Absolutely Spoiled For Visuals In Video Games Now

Saying that a PS One Classic's visuals are terrible compared to the PS4 or even PS3's graphic capabilities is pretty darn obvious, but it was the first thing I noticed and took some time to get used to, initially putting me off continuing the game for more than five minutes at a time. Even with Final Fantasy IX's cinematic cutscenes, for it's time Final Fantasy IX's visuals were of a high quality and are simply dated because the PS4's cinematic visuals have of course improved thanks to time.

Upon booting up Final Fantasy IX, I see lots of blocky, spikey graphic textures and I have trouble finding treasure chests because everything on the map sometimes blends together, but as with anything, you do get used to it and this is likely why we had no problem with those visuals at the time of it's release. I've come to accept Final Fantasy IX's charming spikey visuals and 10 hours later, I have no problem with them.

This Game Is Longer Than Most Games I Play Now...And I Love It.

I remember playing Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII around this time last year on a very tight work schedule and completing it in around a month. It was a good experience, but when I think back to that game, it's almost like a blur. Even though 30-40 hours of gameplay is a decent amount of time and definitely still a longer game when compared to games such The Order: 1886 or Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes being mainstream examples of shorter games, I've been playing Final Fantasy IX for about 10 hours and I can tell I've barely scratched the surface on the main story and I've just started to get to know the characters.

Of course longer games do exist today (Persona 4 Golden being one of my favourites of all times) and maybe this is personal taste, but I love the slow pacing of Final Fantasy IX so far. It feels like I'm actually getting to know the characters at a normal pace and I'm already seeing characters like Steiner who originally annoyed me begin to grow on me. JRPGs are known as a longer genre because of games such as Final Fantasy IX and it's because the stories in this medium are usually good enough to keep someone involved for that long.

I Don't Miss Save Points or Not Being Able To Skip Scenes

Oh man. There is nothing like trying desperately to find a save point to use a healing while your characters are on extremely low health and you're out of both Phoenix Downs and Potions. The tension!

Save points may provide a challenge to more sadistic gamers who don't mind playing through levels again and again, but personally I seem to have the kind of luck where if I'm low on health, I run into the rare area enemy that can kill all my characters in one hit. The good thing about modern RPGs is you can either save at any time or save points are extremely frequent, so I don't lose an hours gameplay because the next Save Moogle is extremely far away and hidden by long cutscenes.

Games Don't Always Need To Feel Cinematic To Be Good

I remember when Final Fantasy XIII was released and it looked more like I was playing a movie than I was a video game. With high quality visuals in modern Final Fantasy and the mainstream RPG Destiny, it sometimes feels like RPGs are something else entirely to what they were in the PS One era and that with all the polish, they lack charm.

But, there is hope. JRPGs are evolving too, with games like Persona upgrading their visuals but still keeping that JRPG quirk. Or games like Danganronpa who keep a minimalist approach so that the story can still shine.
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Final Fantasy IX definitely has a story worth experiencing. I will admit I'm yet to get to the magical JRPG twist or story hook that means I can't put my Vita down yet, but I'm still enjoying this trip back into the PS One era. If there's one thing I can say about this PS One Classic is that it's reminded me that good gameplay can make low level graphics blend into the background of a good experience. Hopefully I think the same thing after 100 hours, but for now, I'm loving this trip down memory lane.


You can purchase Final Fantasy IX digitally from the Playstation Network Store.
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What are your favourite PS One Classics? Would you revisit your favourite old-school JRPGs or are you happy enough with the current selection?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!

Note: This article does contain an affiliate link. You can read our Affiliate Link Policy here.

Saturday 30 May 2015

This Week's PSN EU/AU PSN Releases, JRPG Style! (30/5/15)

Why hello! Welcome to this week's edition of Europe and Australia's new PSN releases, which pulls each week's PSN additions related to the JRPG genre and other Japanese games into one post for your convenience.

This week's main release seems to be Hyperdimension Neptunia U, with it being a new release and having a bunch of DLC. It's successfully the main JRPG for the week on the PSN, even if it's an action spin off of the original Neptunia series. I don't know a bunch about this game other than it's use of Japanese game media magazines as characters such as Famitsu and Dengekiko, but Neptunia always has good humour and fanservice, so I'm curious to check it out (and play the first one, sitting in my backlog). The Vita on the Move sale also continues, with plenty of Persona games and Gravity Rush for those who want to save a few bucks!

Have good week and happy gaming everyone!

New Releases

  • Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed


DLC

Hyperdimension Neptunia U (PS Vita)

Free

  • Dengekiko's Swimsuit
  • Exciting Swimsuit Set
  • Famitsu's Swimsuit
  • MAGE.'s Gift, Vol. 1
  • MAGE.'s Gift, Vol. 2


Paid

  • Bonus Quest
  • Difficult Quest


Deals

  • Breath of Fire (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Gravity Rush (PS Vita)
  • Harvest Moon: Hero of Leaf Valley (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Patapon (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Patapon 3 (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Persona 2/Persona 3 Portable Bundle (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Persona 3 Portable (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Riviera (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Shin Megami Tensei: Persona (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Trails in the Sky (PS Vita, PSP)
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Pick of the week: Hyperdimension Neptunia: U and the Persona bundle.

What's your pick of the week? Will you be picking up anything from the PSN this week?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!

Please note the content available is subject to change by region and the content listed in this post is based on the European/Australian PSN at the time of writing.

Sunday 24 May 2015

A Bite-Sized Banquet: Final Fantasy Record Keeper (First Impressions)


When hearing about a game trying out to condense what could be called a banquet of 13 console games into a single bite-size experience, I don't think it's strange that my initial impression on Final Fantasy Record Keeper was that it was trying to do too much with a small, handheld experience. This was until it's strategical battles and loot collecting system slyly pulled me into an addictive state and kept me hooked with constant new dungeons to play and it never asking me to pay for the app. Final Fantasy Record Keeper may not be an experience with the same breadth of a console game, but as a sucker for rare collectibles and RPGs battle systems, it's a nice substitute for when I'm on the go at the price I like to pay most - nothing.

Record Keeper begins with what could be described as a throwaway story premise comprised of something about a museum, a Moogle and a boy needing to dungeon crawl to restore said museum in order to save the world (seriously). Despite this, I'm happy to say the game's 8-bit dungeons are not to be tossed aside. As a miniature version of the original Final Fantasy battle system, Record Keeper's battles see your team of five characters taking turns to attack, defend or use one of two abilities to defeat enemies and bosses from previous Final Fantasy games. Partnered with the familiar Active Time Battle system that is featured in some of the main Final Fantasy games (Final Fantasy IX comes to mind), the battle system is easy to understand and each battle is short and sweet, usually lasting just a few minutes. With so few options and easy to use touch screen mechanics, this makes it easy to concentrate on enemy weaknesses and finding the right strategy to win and getting the highest score in each battle. Record Keeper thrives with many different enemies and strategies that are reminiscent of Final Fantasy games of yonder and even if you haven't played every Final Fantasy game, every boss is varied in ways that are fun to figure out for the first time.


Along with working out strategies for unfamiliar bosses, I found it equally as satisfying to recognise enemy strategies being incorporated from some of my favourite Final Fantasy games. When in the Final Fantasy X dungeon Sinspawn began using Demi on my party, I remembered the wasn't going to kill me immediately, but realised that the Sinscales could knock out my party quickly, so I changed my strategy accordingly. Record Keeper rewards players for exploiting the right weaknesses with a rank from 1 to 3 chocobos decided by how well you did in each battle, with 3 chocobos being the best and giving you double experience and better loot so it definitely pays to know how to handle each boss.

With a choice between classic and elite dungeons, even from the initial install, Final Fantasy Record Keeper has enough regular content to keep players busy for awhile. On top of this, there's plenty of replayability to be found in the game's daily and limited weekly events, giving players chances to win hard to find upgrade materials and gil in daily events along with new characters and rare items lurking within the depths of the event dungeons that are usually added on a weekly basis. The best part about these events is that they almost always include different difficulty settings so that all players can find enjoyment in these challenging settings. I found myself striving to finish each weekly dungeon to the highest rating as fast as I could so that I could begin preparing for the next one. The satisfaction of getting new characters and seeing my weapons giving me a totally new edge in battle kept me so busy that the only thing keeping me from spending days on the game and cutting off contact to the outside world was the stamina bar that depletes everytime you enter a dungeon, which I almost become thankful for.


On the topic of the stamina bar, Record Keeper does have in-game purchases in the form of an in-game currency called Gems. These Gems allow you to do things such as recharge your stamina instead of waiting for it to recharge over time, add more item slots to hold weapons and abilities or having a chance at winning a 3-5 star weapon in the Rare Relic Draw. But here's the thing – I never needed any Gems, because the game's alternate currency of Mythrils can be used instead of Gems. Since Mythrils are usually won by completing battles in main and event dungeons, I've never felt the need to buy any Gems and the game has never tried to push their existence upon me. Rather, the game takes an approach I think all games should by letting you enjoy the game to it's full potential, but if you want more chance of getting better equipment and less time waiting for stamina, you have the option to pay. As I've said, I haven't put a single cent into the game, but may do so in the future purely because I like the game so much.


Although it doesn't replace the stories or large immersive worlds that RPGs are known for, Final Fantasy Record Keeper is a free and good alternative for on the go that has a fair payment model along with hours of free gameplay to keep player's of every budget busy for hours. I love opening the app, turning down Record Keeper's soundtrack of original Final Fantasy tracks just low enough so I can hear any podcast I'm listening to while playing a fun miniature dungeon crawler that is strategical enough to keep me logging in daily and trying to get all of the relics for my favourite characters (And goddammit, someday I'll figure out right strategy to take down Forza from the Final Fantasy V dungeon). With a wealth of replayability, bosses, collectibles and dungeon varieties, I'd say Record Keeper is a quality addition to any RPG player's smartphone and a great reminder of the original Final Fantasy games.

Score: 9/10
Honestly, I'd still be playing it instead of writing this review if I hadn't broken my phone last week.

Final Fantasy Record Keeper can be downloaded for free from the App Store if you have an iPhone or iPad or the Google Play store if you are an Android smartphone user. Thanks for reading!
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What did you think of Final Fantasy Record Keeper? Does it make you want to go back the old Final Fantasy games?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!

Note: Smartphone games are regularly updated and changed. My opinions about this game are based on the condition of the game at the time this review was released and may not cover any future important changes to the app. Thank you for understanding!

Thursday 21 May 2015

This Week's PSN EU/AU PSN Releases, JRPG Style! (21/5/15)


Why hello! Welcome to this week's edition of Europe and Australia's new PSN releases, which pulls each week's PSN additions related to the JRPG genre and other Japanese games into one post.

This week this PSN is very quiet, especially for JRPGs, probably due to the Witcher 3 taking the week by storm as a huge RPG release. If you're not playing the Witcher 3, Catherine is still on sale, along with a huge Vita on the Move sale that features great JRPGs such as Persona 3, Persona and awesome Japanese games such as Gravity Rush and Patapon to keep everyone happy. Otherwise, it may be time to hit the backlog.

Enjoy your week and happy gaming!

Videos
  • Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy Trailer

Deals
  • Breath of Fire (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Catherine (PS3)
  • Gravity Rush (PS Vita)
  • Harvest Moon: Hero of the Leaf Valley (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Patapon (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Patapon 3 (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Persona 2 / Persona 3 Portable Bundle (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Persona 3 Portable (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Riviera (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers (PS3)
  • Shin Megami Tensei: Persona (PSP, PS Vita)
  • Trails in the Sky (PSP, PS Vita)


You can check out these games and more at the Playstation Network Store.
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Pick of the week: Catherine, Patapon and Persona 3. In fact, I recommend them to myself.

What's your pick of the week? Will you be picking up anything from the PSN this week?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!


Please note the content available is subject to change by region and the content listed in this post is based on the European/Australian PSN at the time of writing.

Saturday 16 May 2015

This Week's PSN EU/AU PSN Releases, JRPG Style! (16/5/15)



Why hello! Welcome to this week's edition of Europe and Australia's new PSN releases, pulling the specific content related to the JRPG genre and other Japanese games. This week's main release for JRPG's without question is Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster, this time for PS4. While a second re-release is slightly annoying to those who purchased the PS3 version, Final Fantasy X (and to a lesser extent X-2) is still a game with a powerful story that does deserve to be played by a new generation of gamers. Along with this Final Fantasy remaster, there is some DLC and a couple of good deals, including Catherine again (which I still need to play).

Enjoy your week and this post. :) Happy gaming!

New Releases
  • Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster (PS4)


DLC

Hatsune Miku Project Diva f 2nd (PS3, PS Vita)

Paid:
  • Angel Module
  • Electric Angel (Song)
  • Extra Character Swimwear Pack
  • P-Style CG Module
  • Swimwear Pack
  • Though My Song Has No Form (Song)

Toukiden: Kiwami

Paid:
  • Mitami - Sugi Fumi

Deals

  • Catherine (PS3)
  • Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers (PS3)


Video
Final Fantasy Type-0
  • 'We Have Arrived' - Launch Trailer


You can check out these games and more at the Playstation Network Store.
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Pick of the week: Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster. As much as I don't want to put the money down to buy it again, I love that game and I need to get the Platinum in the best graphics possible. :p

What's your pick of the week? Will you be picking up anything from the PSN this week?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!

Please note the content available is subject to change by region and the content listed in this post is based on the European/Australian PSN at the time of writing.

Saturday 9 May 2015

This Week's PSN EU/AU PSN Releases, JRPG Style! (9/5/15)

Omega Quintet: The Idol crossover that the JRPG genre was missing?
Why hello! Welcome to this week's edition of Europe and Australia's new PSN releases for JRPG fans. If you're anything like me and have secretly been waiting for the world of music, idols and JRPGs to collide, this week you are in luck because Omega Quintet has finally been released in English for PS4, along with plenty of free DLC and more (I will eventually play my Japanese copy and talk about this game by the way. I just need a TV with an HDMI input :| ). While there are no other new JRPGs this week, Catherine and Child of Light are two critically acclaimed games that are on sale, so if you've been wanting to play either this week may be good!

It is also worth noting that if you have a Playstation Plus subscription, there are some new non-JRPG games for you available for this month, so make sure you pick those up before the end of the month.

Enjoy the week and happy gaming!

New Releases

  • Omega Quintet (PS4)


DLC

Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires (PS3, PS4)

Paid

  • Edit Parts - Equipment 6
  • Edit Parts - Equipment 7
  • Special Edit Parts


Omega Quintet (PS4)

Paid

  • Angel Wing
  • Arcanium Power Pack
  • Arcanium Power Pack 2
  • Arcanium Power Pack 3
  • Avenger's Spear
  • Appreciation
  • Chocolate Mint Lover
  • Coin Power Pack
  • Coin Power Pack 2
  • EP Power Pack
  • EP Power Pack 2
  • EP Power Pack 3
  • Flying Fists
  • Full Gallery Unlocked
  • Happy Geisha
  • Lights, Camera, Action!
  • Marching Idol Gear
  • Mega Rifle
  • New Attachment Set
  • New Protector Set
  • Plushy Cat Paw Hammer
  • Rare Armor Set
  • Robotic Idol Gear
  • Wealth Pack
  • Wealth Pack 2
  • Wealth Pack 3


Free

  • Complete MAD Encyclopedia
  • Verse Maiden Beginner Pack 1
  • Verse Maiden Beginner Pack 2
  • Verse Maiden Beginner Pack 3
  • First Verse Maiden War
  • Second Verse Maiden War
  • Third Verse Maiden War
  • Four Verse Maiden War


Toukiden: Kiwami (PS4, PS Vita)

Paid

  • Armor Sanada and Koshosho Set


Video and Trailers

Final Fantasy Type-0 HD


  • 'The Legacy Lives On' - Gameplay Video
  • 'The Plot Thickens' - Story Trailer


Season Pass Additions

Dragon Ball Xenoverse (PS3, PS4)

  • Movie Costumes Pack


Deals

  • Catherine (PS3)
  • Child of Light (PS3, PS4)
  • Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers (PS3)


You can check out these games and more at the Playstation Network Store.
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Pick of the week: Omega Quintet. Because Idols and JRPGs. I like Persona and I like Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F. I have high hopes for this game (even if the reviews I've read don't like it...</3)
What's your pick of the week? Will you be picking up anything from the PSN this week?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!

Please note the content available is subject to change by region and the content listed in this post is based on the European/Australian PSN at the time of writing.

Saturday 2 May 2015

This Week's PSN EU/AU PSN Releases, JRPG Style! (2/5/15)

Some of the platforming action you can expect from 'Sayonara Umihara Kawase'
Good day good friends, welcome to another week of Playstation Network updates for those who love Japanese RPGs and video games in general!

This week includes the release of the fun old-school platform Sayonara UmiharaKawase+ for PS Vita, a PS4 port and Damascus Gear: Operation Tokyo, which appears to be a deep cut as I only stumbled upon by chance when looking at it's corresponding DLC.

Regular readers may notice the lack of a deals section. This is because between writing the first half of this post and finishing it, the PSN has become unavailable for me yet again (and possibly others of course...gyah ><). I will update this post when the PSN is live again, so keep an eye out here on the site or @JRPGJungle on Twitter for updates to this post and the other content on this blog. Thanks for reading and happy gaming! This post has been updated to include deals now! The arcade event from last week is still running, as well as the great Child of Light being on sale as well. Happy gaming!

New Releases

  • Damascus Gear: Operation Tokyo (PS Vita)
  • Sayonara UmiharaKawase + (PS Vita)
  • Toukiden: Kiwami (PS4)
DLC

Damascus Gear: Operation Tokyo (PS Vita)

Paid:
  • Old Hero and Broken Gears of Time (Part 1) - Cloaked With Dishonour
  • Old Hero and Broken Gears of Time (Part 2) - Last Stand of a Hero
Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (PS3, PS4)

Paid:
  • Showstoppers Encore Christie
  • Showstoppers Encore Helena
  • Showstoppers Encore Lisa
  • Showstoppers Encore Mila
  • Showstoppers Encore Nyotengu
  • Showstoppers Encore Phase 4
  • Showstoppers Encore Rachel
  • Showstoppers Encore Tina
  • Showstoppers Encore Set
Free:
  • Costume Catalog 3
Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires (PS4)

Paid
  • Edit Parts - Female Equipment 6 (PS4 only)
  • Edit Parts - Male Equipment 7 (PS3, PS4)
  • Edit Voice 5
Hatsune Miku Project Diva 2nd F (PS3, PS Vita)

Free:
  • KittyCape Checkered - UI Skin (PS Vita*, Free until 16/6/2015)
  • TricksterNightDream - UI Skin (PS Vita*, Free until 16/6/2015)

Paid:
  • Akito Neru Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • Hatsune Miku Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • Kagamine Len Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • Kagamine Rin Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • Kaito Swimwear V Module (PS Vita*)
  • Kaito SwimwearV Alt Module (PS Vita*)
  • Kasane Teto Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • Luka Swimwear P Module (PS Vita*)
  • Meiko Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • SakineMeiko Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)
  • Yowane Haku Swimwear Module (PS Vita*)

*Currently only listed for PS Vita, however the DLC description says this will entitle the buyer to the PS3 version as well. Perhaps to be added in future?

Toukiden Kiwami (PS4, PS Vita)

Paid:
  • Armor Zhao Yun and Wang Yuanji Set (Cross-buy)
Deals
  • Child of Light (PS3, PS4, PS Vita)
  • Dead or Alive 5 Plus (PS Vita)
  • Final Fight: Double Impact (PS3)
  • Guilty Gear (PS3, PS Vita, PSP)
  • The King of Fighters XIII (PS3)
  • The King of Fighters XIII Gold Edition (PS3)
  • Neogeo Heroes -Ultimate Shooting- (PS Vita)
  • Persona 4 Arena Ultimax (PS3)
  • Sonic the Fighters (PS3)
  • SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny (PSP, PS Vita)
  • SoulCalibur II HD Online (PS3)
  • SoulCalibur V (PS3)
  • Tekken (PS3, PS Vita, PSP)
  • Tekken II (PS3, PS Vita, PSP)
  • Tekken 6 (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Tekken 6 + SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny (PS Vita, PSP)
  • Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (PS3)
  • Ultra Street Fighter IV (PS3)
You can check out these games and more at the Playstation Network Store.
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Pick of the week (so far): Sayonara UmiharaKawase + looks interesting and visually reminds me of one of my childhood favourites Tomba. What's yours and will you be picking up anything from the PSN this week?
I love hearing your thoughts, so please comment below or send a tweet to @JRPGJungle and follow if you want to keep up the content we post. Thanks for stopping by!


Please note the content available is subject to change by region and the content listed in this post is based on the European/Australian PSN at the time of writing.