Post by Kiri on Jan 21, 2008 18:14:37 GMT -5
Well. Jyou and I had a discussion about the original Baten Kaitos game, Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean when it first came out. Recently, my boyfriend got me the new one, Baten Kaitos Origins, which is a prequel to the first. I don't know if anyone else actually plays this series, but I figured it couldn't hurt to make a thread.
I'm actually almost through the story part of this game. I have a lot of sidequests to catch up on, but my overall impression of Origins is that it's absolutely glorious. It's really unique; plus, it's fun seeing younger versions of characters from the first game, or characters that are related to them. It also gives a lot of insight into the history of the world and things like that. My only regret is that since it was so long since I played the first game, I forgot a great deal about it. XD
One of the original game's big weaknesses was voice acting, but thankfully it was rectified in this prequel. Personally, I think the voice acting is great, though it does have its rough moments (mostly when characters are doing things like screaming "ARRRRRGH!"). All in all, unlike the first game, much easier on the ears.
Easy on the eyes, too. Though I feel a bit sad that the Baten Kaitos games fall short of say... recent Final Fantasy games as far as graphics go... it's not bad. The scenery is beautiful, though sometimes I find myself having issues with depth perception (could be a personal problem; I have bad eyes). Most of the characters and NPCs aren't very detailed, though, and you can't change camera views. It's not that big of a deal, but I think it would have been great in both the first game and this one if they had actually had some cut scenes with the preview graphics.
The battle system is pretty different from the original, but I've come to like it. Whereas in the first all of your characters had separate decks, in Origins, all of your characters share the same deck. Although it's kind of annoying and cumbersome at times, it also gives some more possibilities for battle, including something called a "relay attack." The spirit numbers are also far less complicated. I also liked the addition of something called a "wing dash," which makes it easier to avoid monsters on the map.
Disc 1 of the game is relatively normal. I'm not very good at video games and I didn't have much trouble with the bosses after figuring out the battle system. Disc 2, however, is brutal. The first boss on Disc 2 is probably the second hardest in the entire game, and it killed me several times. I've since come across quite a few that took more than one try to beat, or that I had to level my characters obscenely or look up a guide to even stand a chance of defeating.
In spite of that, it's kind of a nice challenge, even if it's probably just due to the fact that I suck. XD I think Origins is a great game, and everyone should play it (after playing the first one). It has a good storyline with some interesting twists, and although I don't know how it ends yet, I'm looking forward to finding out.
I'm actually almost through the story part of this game. I have a lot of sidequests to catch up on, but my overall impression of Origins is that it's absolutely glorious. It's really unique; plus, it's fun seeing younger versions of characters from the first game, or characters that are related to them. It also gives a lot of insight into the history of the world and things like that. My only regret is that since it was so long since I played the first game, I forgot a great deal about it. XD
One of the original game's big weaknesses was voice acting, but thankfully it was rectified in this prequel. Personally, I think the voice acting is great, though it does have its rough moments (mostly when characters are doing things like screaming "ARRRRRGH!"). All in all, unlike the first game, much easier on the ears.
Easy on the eyes, too. Though I feel a bit sad that the Baten Kaitos games fall short of say... recent Final Fantasy games as far as graphics go... it's not bad. The scenery is beautiful, though sometimes I find myself having issues with depth perception (could be a personal problem; I have bad eyes). Most of the characters and NPCs aren't very detailed, though, and you can't change camera views. It's not that big of a deal, but I think it would have been great in both the first game and this one if they had actually had some cut scenes with the preview graphics.
The battle system is pretty different from the original, but I've come to like it. Whereas in the first all of your characters had separate decks, in Origins, all of your characters share the same deck. Although it's kind of annoying and cumbersome at times, it also gives some more possibilities for battle, including something called a "relay attack." The spirit numbers are also far less complicated. I also liked the addition of something called a "wing dash," which makes it easier to avoid monsters on the map.
Disc 1 of the game is relatively normal. I'm not very good at video games and I didn't have much trouble with the bosses after figuring out the battle system. Disc 2, however, is brutal. The first boss on Disc 2 is probably the second hardest in the entire game, and it killed me several times. I've since come across quite a few that took more than one try to beat, or that I had to level my characters obscenely or look up a guide to even stand a chance of defeating.
In spite of that, it's kind of a nice challenge, even if it's probably just due to the fact that I suck. XD I think Origins is a great game, and everyone should play it (after playing the first one). It has a good storyline with some interesting twists, and although I don't know how it ends yet, I'm looking forward to finding out.