My Own World: JRPG

Showing posts with label JRPG. Show all posts

19/08/2017

Where have I been?

Not where I wanted to be, for certain.

With a lot of things going on in my life at the moment, the little time I have left is hardly spent doing other smaller things like updating this blog. My purchases have not been as intense as before. I basically stopped buying retro games and press kits. Hopefully, better days will come in the future and I will be able to get what I'm missing now.

One of my latest purchases came from NISA Europe. Being very short on money basically means I have to make some harsh decisions and I usually end up buying the things I want the most, either because of their rarity or simply because I really like and wish to play them. That's precisely what happened with RPG Maker FES Limited Edition.

Now, I know that the best RPG maker games still come from PC and they're mostly for free, but having this little tool for the 3DS is something unique that I like the most. As such, I immediately had to buy this game when preorders became available and that's exactly what I did. I usually do not open these editions unless I truly want to play them, but I couldn't leave this one sealed.

I've spent a lot of time making a game already that is far from completion, but I now realize what people look for in these types of games are simple things. And that's exactly what I'm doing. I don't know when it will be finished, but one day it will.

Nerdgasm!

I usually don't have the habit of buying both PAL and NTSC versions of the same game. I usually just stick with PAL versions unless the NTSC one is very exclusive and important, but those are just a few exceptions I have in my collection.

However, I was forced to open another exception this time. Xenoblade Chronicles is by far my most favourite JRPG in recent years and I just couldn't resist getting the US version of the newest game.

I can easily tell the game has several flaws, including a few major ones, but even with all those flaws it's still am amazing game and I had a blast playing it. Nowadays, despite still buying a lot of stuff, it's not normal for me to spend over 100 hours in a single videogame. Knowing that I already spent about 170 hours playing this game and plan on returning to it some day again, you can probably tell how much I've liked this game. Too bad the ending sucks though...

That epic moment when...

... an epic japanese game gets an epic edition in Europe. I totally missed the first game because I didn't want to spend so much money on its edition. I ended up buying it from scalpers in the end. I thought the same thing could happen with this second game but it seems that I'll probably find it later when the price drops, considering the stupid amount of copies this received...

I was brave enough to pay more than the default price for this...

Bravely Default Collector's Edition...
*Didn't preorder because I thought it wasn't worth 100 euros.*
*Still think it's not over 100 euros but had to pay more.*
Looking at this description, I'm not sure if it classifies me as a serious collector or simply a dumb person...

Not cool... The game's awesome though.

I've spent so much 'Mana' in this game

Yeah, being a fan of JRPGs and cool looking games with fancy characters can really make your wallet drain. This is yet another game that took me ages to get, mostly because it was very expensive. I know I buy press kits and limited editions that are worth quite a bit and these old games are amazing, but for some reason I don't always feel like spending much money on them. Maybe because they are just regular games that you have the chance to play through other means, or maybe because a single cart costs much less that the complete thing and I don't think a box and manual are worth so much... I don't know.

I already have the 3rd game for the Super Famicon as well as the 4th title for the PS2, both original japanese versions. But the most important one, the original Secret of Mana 2 (in Japan) and the only of the series to see the daylight in Europe was still missing from my collection. Not any longer.

SNES games are so hard to collect that for many times I've though of just getting the carts alone and find some repro boxes and manuals. Seriously. I've always wanted to have everything official, but this is too much. Finally, I've decided to get this game at all costs and I've managed to track down a dutch version in good condition and complete with all the stuff for an acceptable price (but still expensive). The text in this cart is in English, so hurray.

Thank you for treating us well, Namco Bandai.

As the big RPG fan that I am, I obviously couldn't miss this game. Too bad that 1. this is a poor conversion of the previous titles with no additional features (it actually had some features removed...) and 2. you can't compare this edition to the NA version. Still, the fact that RPGs like this are still coming to Europe after most people sold their souls to the western RPGs I don't like that much is already surprising, let alone with CEs.

When you don't know much about a game...

... but still decide to get it because it received a CE and the images look good... that's what happened when I decided to pick up a copy of Fate Extra for the PSP, thanks to those guys at Ghostlight who are bringing us many japanese games that otherwise nobody would give a sh!t whether they were released in Europe or not. And I appreciate that a lot, honestly.

How tough could it be to get a Crystal?

Damnn, another final fantasy game, yet another limited edition going insane on ebay after it became sold out. Stipud HMV decides to cancel my order one week before the release that, when it's already too late to find it in any other place. But suddenly they have a few more copies in stock. Zavvi, on the other hand, pulled a very dirty stunt... The edition was available for sale on their website for 59 pounds. It became sold out pretty quickly. The game gets released and this edition pops up on their ebay outlet store for TWICE AS MUCH. Seriously, WHY????

I had to get this edition from local stores. If it wasn't for that, I would have missed the PS3 version because it was pretty hard to get. I eventually picked up both, being such a Final Fantasy Fan... actually, I was a fan of the original 3 PS1 titles, and that's still one of the main reasons that makes me collect all games and editions from the series. If it wasn't for that, I'd not worry so much with buying the same game/edition for both consoles...

Right now I'm only missing the two exclusive slipcases and the blue slipcase for PS3 of the original FFXIII game.

Oh and I can't forget to mention that I also have the two preorder tin cases, one for each console, both factory sealed. My only complain is the fact that this is a steelbook and no matter how good people consider them, they rust where I live - and no I don't live in a pond, I live in a sunny country actually. Overall it was a fairly good preorder bonus to be honest.

Persona 2

Persona is one popular RPG series released in japan for... a long time. The series only arrived in Europe way too late and as usual it didn't get the same treatment in Europe. We get some of the games once in a while, when certain independent publishers randomly decide to bring these titles to Europe. This one was borught by Ghostlight. I am very happy to know that these companies exist in Europe, otherwise we wouldn't be receiving such games... Persona 2 Collector's Edition for PSP, directly from Ghostlight's website.

A long time ago there was this game...

JRPGs have been for a very long time my favorite genre since I started playing them on the PS1. Before that, I thought they were boring, except for a few that came out for Saturn such as Dragon Force and Shining Force 3. Those were awesome games but unfortunately they were note very common over here and a 13 yo child cannot hold much to buy his new game and has to find a replacement as soon as possible. Oh boy... I did chose good games instead, but they are far more common... That's life for me...

When I first heard about this game, I really had no idea what it was. I thought it was a German exclusive, with German screen text only. It took me a while to find out a few things about this game. First, it had a totaly different name in japanese. Second, it was released in English and it received a sequel, but only in the US. I searched for videos and I immediately felt in love with the amazing soundtrack this game has for a 16bit game. The battle themes are simply epic, and I believe this was far more noticeable by the time the game came out. It's a big shame that I had no way to play this back then. I now consider it one of the greatest RPGs ever released on the SNES. Then I found out the game that was released in German was actually the sequel without the II on the title because the first game never came out in Europe. And finally, I wet my pants when I figured there was a PAL English version released in Australia only, AGAIN! I simply HAD to get it!

I'm talking about Lufia II - Rise of the Sinistrals or Estpolis Denki in Japan, which was released as Lufia only in Australia, Germany and probably a few other countries. As soon as I heard about the existence of a PAL English version, I had to get it. And it took me a couple of years until I finally had the chance to buy one. This game's pretty hard to find. First I ever saw in mint condition was sold for a pretty big price. They I saw a few others in good condition but not mint. Thankfully I managed to win the best used copy of this game I have ever found. The price was a little high, but considering the values I've seen these games in worse conditions go, it certainly was a great deal.

Another mission accomplished in my collection!

Final Fantasy XIII

Finally, it came. The first new generation Final Fantasy game. Honestly, the game itself is not that good. It misses so many good things about the Final Fantasy Universe that... I don't know...

There is little to explore, and not that many sidequests to do. Not many places to explore, no cities and houses to go around searching for clues and items... the closes thing you get to that only happens near the end of the game and there isn't much to do anyway. The closest thing you get to a world map is the so called "open world" in Chapter 11 that's little more than a scenario like Calm Lands from FFX with enemies running all over the place. I miss a world map with cities and towns and airships to ride, I miss all those scenarios where you could talk to people and explore the houses searching for bonuses and small sidequests... where's all that gone???

The game is basically a one way road. When you seem to find an alternative path, it only leads you to one of those item balls - in fact you really learn that tere's nothing else but an item ball in every corner, in every alternative pach, in every place that seems to be the wrong way. Some scenarios are just too repetitive and if it wasn't for the battle system this game would be more suited as a hack n slash rather than an RPG with Final Fantasy in the title. the game's still big, but the ending is rushed... The story may become a mess if you don't read the datalog, and a lot of questions are very hard to ask. Despite all that, it's not a bad game. The storyline is good, the graphics and scenarios are stunning and the overall experience of playing the game is good. But still, not what I was expecting for a new Final Fantasy game. I miss those times when I played through VII, VIII and IX. After that it's been a downhill ride, seriously... Just sharing my opinion...

Above we have the two collector's Editions for both PS3 and 360, as well as a sealed copy of the regular 360 game with the limited edition slipcase. I expect to get the limited edition slipcase for the PS3 as well as the HMV exclusive slipcase for both editions. And not to forget the Crystal Bearers on the Wii which I got thanks to a promotion.

Another one of these?

Yep... I did not resist to buy the white PSP Final Fantasy Dissidia Limited Edition. Might have been a stupid decision to spend s much cash in a console I hardly even play, but considering I already had the Crisis Core edition and I'm a real Final Fantasy fan, I decided to spend some cash. At least this was released in Europe. Too bad the original Japanese boxes are much better. Instead we get a regular commercial package instead of the fine box with the logo on it. But at least it was released over here, which is good considering the majority of similar editions never leave japan! The collector's edition of the game alone is already heading my way as well.

A full set of interesting editions

As I've said before, I had a couple of editions in my sleeve but I was waiting for them. Now, to make a brief description of them...

Yes I know you've seen it before. But actually this one is different than the other. The picture included in the frame is not the same Prince but one of the bosses. And this frame is even numbered. I assume that there are more pictures of the other bosses with numbers as well, though I may be wrong, but if I'm rigth (I may be very wrong...) there are 5 diferent boxes and I currently own 2 of them.

This little gem is a FFXII press kit. Compared to its previous kits from VIII and X, this one's a little poor but still includes some nice art cards, a map and other extra stuff. All fit inside a fragile card box.

Bionic commando. Does this even have anything to do with the nes classic? Have to do some research... A promo edition in a nice boxset with a bonus t-shirt.

Ninja blade, a fine boxset that does not even include the game, only the promo stuff.

Now this one looks pretty good and even comes with the retail version of the game. Halo Wars, long box set.

One of the most original editions I've bought in recent times. This edition really seemed nothing special at all, but once I received it I loved it. A square box, completely green with the game logo on it. Once you open it, you see it filled with 9 real tennis balls. I usually take good care of these boxsets, so I only opened the box half way because I was afraid to open it all. But then I realised I was actually supposed to open the box like that when I noticed it was actually a tennis court. Very original indeed, I totaly underestimated this one!

Miss croft has this blue boxset with her sillhouette. Inside there are a few bonus items and a press disc, including an action figure and a t-shirt. Nice one too, but probably not as nice as the previous ones.

And Square betrays European gamers once again...

Considering that Final Fantasy is one of the most popular series all over the world, it's almost unacceptable that they never released an European version of Final Fantasy Tactics. It is one of the many RPGs that never came out of Japan and America. Shame on you, Square...

I decied to buy the american version a long time ago, but I was not willing to pay that much for it. I tried to buy a couple in the past, but lost the auctions. And suddenly, the japanese Millenium Collection Boxset shows up. I placed a low bid early and totally forgot about it, expecting that it would be an obvious loss.

In the end, I did won... Sometimes I struggle to get regular games for a good price and I never get them. Suddenly, something as important as this appears, and people seem to desregard it... It's not sealed, has some very light damage to the cover, but considering the final price, there's no hell of a way I'd regret winning the boxset just because of some very light damage, specially considering the contents are brand new... This is also another signal of something that started a while ago: my collection ig finally moving towards japanese and american editions and not just european games. I'll always prioritize european editions though.

Thankfully, Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lion as released for the PSP...

Final Fantasy Updated

There are so many games, editions and consoles of Final Fantasy to collect, that if I wanted to complete my Final Fantasy Wishlist I would have to sacrifice many other games and consoles. In the past few years my Final Fantasy collection did not increase that much if you consider what there is to buy.

Before moving into games from other regions, I still wish to complete my PAL collection. This means that I will have to get the PSP versions of I and II, the european version of FFIV, all the Xbox 360 games (there are at least 5 of them ), Chrystal Chronicles Rings of Fire and Tactics A2 for DS, Crystal Cronicles box set for GC and possibly some spin-offs like Final Fantasy Fables on the Wii and Chocobo Racing for PS1. I do have some other spin-offs but I left them out of the picture. Once I have all those editions, I will move to some country exclusives such as:

-PS2 version of FFXI

-Gameboy games (Legends I, II III and Adventure)

-American titles for SNES

-Final Fantasy Tactics for the american PS1.

Only after that I will focus on getting the Original NES and SNES japanese editions, as well as some limited console versions that will be a pain to obtain. So far, I hope you enjoy my collection - it probably does not contain many games that most serious Final Fantasy collectors out there consider a "must", but this is my own collection :) And if you compare with the previous picture that I posted in 2006 over here, you'll see the collection still grew a bit :)

SNES Starting now...

As you probably noticed already, my collection is very poor when it comes to NES and SNES. Well, I already have a few NES games anyway. But for SNES I only had the Super Mario World Cartridge that came with the console itself. Finally, I decided it is now time to start my snes collection seriously. Here is the first purchase: something pretty nice and not expensive at all! Terranigma, big box with the guides and comic.

Picture Rampage

I promised a lot of pictures, but since my camera's battery is done for, I could not take them. So I'll just add some more that I have in my laptop at this moment. Here it goes...