Sunday, April 8, 2012

Xenoblade Chronicles and random shit..

Yes it has been a while and I am sorry to the fan-less viewers for the disappointment but I am back in semi-force willing to give my thoughts on a game I never played but my thoughts are mostly based on others opinions and reviews that I read on the internet. I know it doesn't make sense and it is credible but please bear with me here for the fun of it.

Anyway onto Xenoblade, shit I wish I had a Nintendo Wii to play this one because from what I read it seems to be a gem and probably one of the best RPGs of this generation, especially one that is a Japanese RPG I may add. OK, it has been ages since I've played an excellent RPG like Chrono Trigger and Xenogears, and interestingly enough, the creators of Xenoblade are former employees of Square-enix and have worked on those classics, plus those were the guys that brought us the Xenosaga series which I enjoyed.

If you don't know now then now you will know how much I hate the current Square-enix. They are not the same as they used to be. The Final Fantasy franchise hasn't been the same since FFX and their other projects outside that have been even worse--actually, more like shit and not even worth noting. Role playing games as a whole from the Japanese side in particular hasn't been up to par and in most cases down right embarrassing and dated in terms of design, game play mechanics, and the story telling has matured since 1990s--the just same generic tired bullshit.  The only JRPGs worth noting that haven't fall in that pathetic category are the Demon Soul series and the Persona games, however, I only had the pleasure of playing former and not latter but I will be getting my hands Persona games one day since I read and heard nothing but praises for them.

I do appreciate the fun and craziness of blowing out an enemy's digital brains out with a sawed off shotgun but shit man I am tired shooters; the gaming market is over saturated with fucking shooters. This generation of gaming has been predominantly shooters and nothing but shooters and I am sick and tired of it. However, I cannot blame them because shooters are easy sellers and the other genres, especially RPGs, haven't been as good as used to be. The FF series is a perfect example; there was a time where Final Fantasy games were an instant buy and they sold in the millions. Now, however, FF games are nothing but dog shit in terms of content but they still do have exceptionally over the top presentation value. Anyway...so far this blog post isn't up to par to my previous posts--funny, how I am ranting about poor RPGs where my writing and this post in generl is just as poor as the recent RPGs--and that is because I am feeling little drowsy due to a full stomach. Too much information? Yeah, I know but I am trying to blend a little personality in my blogs and I am trying to add more content as well since I really don't have much to say and I am running out of ideas.

Anyway, um, where was I...oh yes, Xenoblade, I am glad this RPG exists and I am going to do everything I can in my limited power to play this game because this RPG gem needs to be supported. Unfortunately, however, it is exclusively tied to the Nintendo console and it may not ever be available to other platforms since Nintendo owns the right to the company that made the game and the intellectual property. In that context, I may have to buy a Nintendo Wii and its successor since I want to play Monolith Soft games in the future. *Sigh*

To my non-existing viewers that are reading this terrible post and that do have a Wii or access to one, please by all means play this game. I don't care if you buy it, rent it, or get it by other means, just play this game and show lots support to beautifully made games such as this one. A game that is complete, bug free, and have all the content on the disc that isn't locked away and can only be unlocked through real world money. It is a complete lengthy RPG that is well made and from what I saw, it looks stunning, despite running on dated hardware. This game is a testament of why we shouldn't be rushing on PS4 or a next generation Xbox360 since the current consoles have more power left in them. Besides game developers should be focusing on achieving "rewarding and fun gameplay" instead of insufficient tech demo like games that are boring and nothing more than show pieces.

Now speaking of terrible RPGs or want-to-be RPGs, let's talk about our friends at Bioware, the creators of the now infamous Mass Effect 3, courtesy of its controversial ending that ranks it as one of the most messed up games ever.

I have some depressing news. It seems that ingenious indoctrination theory, the theory that the fans came up with, probably doesn't apply to the ending and the ending may actually be the real ending after all--shit, who would have thought. OK, well If this is true, and I hope for Bioware's sake it isn't, then Bioware is one of the most ridiculous, idiotic, greedy, pathetic, gaming company in the history of gaming and they deserve all of the hate they are getting from their fans because they have officially ruined the Mass Effect series. It is too early to tell and we all have to wait and see how the "the extended DLC director's cut ending" pans out but if it isn't the indoctrination theory--which makes perfect sense and aligns perfectly with the game's mythology--then I am going to be laughing ass off of how much of a dumb fucks Bioware's writers are and I will most definitely be boycotting the game if it is true as well.

I honestly think game companies have lost their integrity and commonsense these days. They are just bleeding out the life out the loyalty out of there fan base and practically cheating us with incomplete buggy games, unlock codes internet codes to fight privacy but undermine their fans at the same time and other bullshit....the videogames and the gaming industry isn't the same as it used to be. It just getting worse year after year and for those of you who have their old consoles, please keep them and don't ever trade or sell your old games because games of today can't be played, properly, tomorrow. Games today requires wired consoles to be unlocked so the user can play them, and wired consoles to fix their bugs and unlock the complete package. However, imagine a decade from now where game companies move on and those servers are no longer active, what will happen to those games? Yeah, they are practically unplayable and requires one to hack them to play. Gaming companies are ruining our games and only way for them to listen is for us to not buy those games. They only understand money and we have to hit them hard with our wallets...anyway on that note I am going to end this, later.

4 comments:

  1. Sorry to be a party crasher but honestly, I'm still not sure what people see in Xenoblade. I got it to support Operation Rainfall and I honestly didn't know much what to expect from it but it turns out what I get is an offline MMO. Simple as that. It's been done before, and better (the .Hack//G.U trilogy).

    Hugely vast maps with visible enemies and an MMO-like battle system with some degree of strategy and more side-questing (the pointless "kill x number of monster xyz" or "get me x number of items") than actual story.

    Don't get me wrong. It looks like a decent story (although not nearly as complex and as fleshed out as the philosophically and theologically-charged Xenosaga) and the world setting is cool but after sinking over 20 hours in, I just feel like abandoning because I feel like I'm dragging myself through, sadly. I don't like the battle system at all and the characters aren't very identifiable for me.

    And as for ME3, I haven't played it and I don't feel like it, honestly (first ME is one of my favorite RPGs). And finally, the Persona series are amazing games all around. Definitely play Persona 4. Probably the best PS2 RPG. :)

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  2. Once I get my hands on a Nintendo Wii I am going to give the game a try because of the reviews and comments I'd read from gamers. I am always open to play RPGs, especially Japanese style RPGs since they are my favorite.

    Preferably, I always lean towards turn-based style RPGs like Chrono Trigger and Dragon Quest but I am always open to new systems once they are "fun" but it is a chore to play then we have a problem.

    I see that you're a fan of Xenosaga; I think one and three were the best in the series and it is damn they didn't do more. However, I classed Xenogears as one of the most intellectual RPGs I had ever played-that game has so many layers in its fiction, religion, racism, fascism, politics, social class, and psychology. Yes it has minor flaws here and there like the dreadful English voice acting but overall it was a masterful piece of work. I enjoyed it better than Final Fantasy 7 back then when I had first played it.

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    1. Oh, definitely do give it a try! You might dig it more than I did. I think it probably all comes down as to if you enjoy the battle system or not, since most people I saw praising the game loved the battle system and did not mind the endless questing.

      I myself also lean towards turn-based and action RPGs and shooter RPGs are not my cup of tea but there's something for everyone out there. I guess I was hoping Xenoblade to be more complex and as deep as Xenogears/saga and that didn't happen (I heard there's some Nietzsche references in the end and stuff but it's not as deeply explored).

      Being a theology buff myself (and a psychologist), Xenogears/saga were so perfect. People who found Xenosaga's plot "convoluted" were simply people who did not have the desire or will to do a little research and find out where things like the "zohar" and "merkabah" mean in a "real-world" religious context (so much in Xenosaga was drawn from Kabbalah and zoroastrianism that it's not even funny!). In its whole, one could say that it was an amazing analogy to philosophy and religion.

      Of course, it was a bit rushed in a way, since it was originally a 6-episode series but considering, I think they did a decent job at rounding up the story. Xenogears/saga are probably the games where I attached myself most to the characters, ever. And I find myself struggling for this to happen in games from the 360/PS3 generation, unfortunately...

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    2. I don't like this generation at all, I think this is probably the worst generation for console gaming. At least games of the past are functional today because they don't require an online pass to play or patches to be playable. I curious to see how gaming companies going to mitigate this issue several years from now--would they keep the servers active or would they abandon them all together move to the next big thing. I guess we all know the answer to that.

      As for RPGs...um, they have been extremely lackluster this generation, and I won't even consider Mass Effect an RPG and I have yet to play Skyrim. Games today are just superficial shells of their former self...and RPGs are becoming more action oriented and less of an RPG; games barely challenge the mind but yet rewards the brain dead cheap thrill gamer, it just bloody sad.

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