Just wanted to ask one from everyone.
Is it trivial to hate all the traditional JRPG's because they have the same outdated gameplay mechanics ?
I love turn-based strategy games like valkyria chronicles&worms just not the "Traditional" ones with this type of gameplay :-
IMO its the equivalent of playing snake&ladders.. with repeated animations&sounds 0% strategy required you're wasting your TIME ! i suggest everyone to look for better strategy games where you aren't actually stuck at one position.
I don't know if Mother/Earthbound, Mario & Luigi, Paper Mario (except Super Paper Mario and Super Sticker Star, I think), or Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars count as "traditional" JRPGs, but they do take a spin on turn based RPG combat by making timed button hits or rhythm gameplay as bonuses for extra damage and effects. Mother/Earthbound also has "rolling" HP meters so even if you get one-hit-KO'd, you still have time to respond to it; sort of like bleeding out in shooters.
From what I remember and this is based only on what I heard since I was terrible at RPGs at the time, Final Fantasy X and X-2 had amazing combat turn-based combat systems. I don't remember if it was the simplicity, the chess/strategy feel to it, or something. If someone who really knows about this, go ahead and tell us about it. Final Fantasy Type-0 - please release this overseas Square Enix - to me sort of has a turn-based and real-time combat system similar to the Final Fantasy XIII series combat system that's decent, but not terrible. It's easy to see with Jack who embodies the one strike equals one kill mentality found in many Eastern martial arts. So every attack is "one turn" and every enemy has a "turn" to respond, but it's real time so they're not limited to enemy and player phases.
On-topic.
- Fire Emblem: Awakening and its casual mode option. Like it states, casual mode is an optional thing. Yet when it was first announced for the game from a series known for permanent deaths and decisions, people freaked that casual mode would ruin the game. Some people still don't like Awakening because of this. It's an option. What's so hard to understand about an option? It's existence has no impact on whether the game sucks or not. You don't have to play on casual mode; you can play on Lunatic mode the first time if you want. Even with casual mode on, that only removes perma-death. It does not magically drop Lunatic mode to Easy mode. All it does is prevent your precious Cordelia or Gregor from permanently dying.
- Super Mario Sunshine and its voice acting. Okay so we know that Nintendo is not known for having games with voice acting especially in its Mario, Zelda, Yoshi, and Kirby series, but does that really make Super Mario Sunshine a bad game? I didn't like Sunshine, but never had I felt that it was a horrible game - there's a dark corner of games worse than Super Mario Sunshine. The moment Peach speaks is like the moment the sky fell for some people. Really? Peach talks and it's "game over, man" for Sunshine?
- The Ratchet & Clank Future series (PS3 gen) and The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker with its "cartoony" graphics and that its a "kids" game. Mario's a "kids" game, you don't see anyone else giving Mario flack for that. There are seniors that probably played or are playing Mario as we speak. Games are fun, what's so wrong about that? What's wrong about a game looking "cartoony"? Wind Waker went to the "this iteration will mean all other iterations will be just like it". So Nintendo decides to try a unique art style that looks "childish" and that ultimately means all new Zelda games will be "childish". Great assumption there and you know what assuming gets you. Wind Waker, despite it being my least favorite Zelda - I don't like sailing the seven freaking seas - was a great game, no doubt about that.
- The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and Link being right-handed. First off, many people are right-handed, some are mixed, some are left-handed, and some are ambidextrous. The Wii uses motion control and since motion control is affected by which hand is used, guess what Nintendo has to do? Yes, make Link right-handed. Can you play left-handed in Skyward Sword? Yes, for the player everything is mirrored. Can you play as traditional left-handed Link? No, I think it has to do with programming and enemies that respond to a right handed warrior. Shigeru Miyamoto is left-handed and Link is left-handed, probably as a way to put a part of himself into his work. So I bet Miyamoto might have been disappointed that Link will have to be right-handed, but not so much since it's only for one game - I don't count Twilight Princess since the Wii version is basically a "flip" of the Gamecube version. Does Skyward Sword mean all future Zeldas will future a right-handed Link? No, heck, with the Wii U being closer to other consoles with "traditional" gamepads, Link probably will be left-handed since nothing will force Link to be right-handed. Also, there were complaints about the art style.
- Final Fantasy XII and Vaan. His voice, clothes, appearance, and relevance in Final Fantasy XII bothers a lot of people. I'll give the clothes and relevance thing as things about Vaan that are weird or are bad, but his voice? Really? There are plenty of people who sound like Vaan in different pitches, tones, etc. It's not like meeting another Louie Armstrong, Gideon Emery, Mako, or JFK. Vaan's voice is just some kid off the block, nothing bad about that. His stats are ridiculous, almost every stat of his when maxed out, or in general are abnormally high - best (tied) physical and third best mage, yeah... Vaan has no weaknesses and instead of being a Jack of All Trades like Fran, who has balanced, but overall low stats, Vaan is more of a Master of All Trades. It's not like Tidus who was all speed and strength or Wakka who's all accuracy or tank Luigi. Sure, there are over-powered characters everywhere, but in a game where everyone can be everything, having a character who can be everything without any drawbacks really makes it seem like Vaan's more special than he should be and people pick on that.
Vaan (and Penelo) get caught up in the events of XII. Many say that you could remove them and the plot would still flow without much loss. Although how a professional Sky Pirate would get caught and meet a framed loyal soldier of Dalmasca would work, which is basically the setup of the game that leads to everything else, without an idiot, desperate kid (Vaan) kind of beats me since Balthier had no reason to get caught ever. Vaan was made to appeal to the bishonen phase that Japan was in with young, handsome, strong men. Basch was the original main character, a hardened, loyal, moral soldier who is in his thirties; not exactly the young, handsome man. At the same time, there are a cast of characters, a group of main characters whose relevance varies from being really important like Ashe or being not so important like Penelo. Vaan acts as Ashe's moral reminder at times with him telling her about him accepting the his brother is dead and that he couldn't really do anything about it and forgiving Basch who he believed killed Reks. Other times, his presence makes Ashe question her goals of justice or revenge. Could someone else have done this? Yes, in fact Balthier has a scene with Ashe that does the same thing with Ashe's and Vaan's scenes or Basch's and Ashe's scenes. Heck, if Square Enix wanted, Fran could have Ashe's moral support through the whole game despite Fran being the silent type and having no real ties to Ashe.
Vaan in a way is like Raiden, they're the rookies of their games. They are supposed to be the viewpoints of the player, but not a lot of people want to play as the rookie. Instead, many want to play the experienced badass. Giving Snake one level didn't help with that... Still, is one character enough for hate on a game and that the game ultimately sucks? So one thing isn't up to standards, then what about the other parts? Me, I loved the setting and atmospheric music in XII, but I don't like the gameplay and the story is just meh.