Tag: RPG

I have been watching the first week of WKC:I review scores with interests. Universally the critics are panning the game; 63 metascore (11 critic reviews). Compare with an 8.5 user rating (84 user votes) and something is amiss.

Several things could be a play. First, the game could completely suck, but fanboys of JRPGs are defending the game. Second, most reviewers could care less about JRPGs; they are so “yesterday” which reflects in the attitude of some of the reviews with comments about PS2 graphics, outdated game mechanics, and a clumsy combat system. Finally, WKC:I has the distinction of not being FFXIII. If WKC:I was released six months ago, to some extent the first two points would still be valid, but the game would not have to overcome being released four weeks from FFXIII.

I have not played enough to form a real opinion other than the game does not seem terrible; it’s just too soon for me to tell. Because FFXIII looms, WKC:I will either hit the discount rack in a few weeks, and it has the potential to become a collectable, cult classic. Based on the early reviews, there is no way that this one will get a subsequent printing.

For me the real test will be to see if WKC:I can hold my attention long enough to continue to progress and comment on the game, or if it quickly falls by the wayside. I only have so much disposable free time, so a game has to be interesting, rewarding, and offer a steady progression on improvement (i.e. fair gameplay) for me to stick it out.

A lot of the reviews have slammed WKC:I as having PS2 graphics; I just don’t see it. Certainly WKC:I does not feature awe inspiring, revolutionary, drop dead gorgeous graphics, but graphics engine is a far cry from flat out sucking. Besides that, I do not think the detailed environments could be reproduced on the PS3.

With that said, some minor things bother me about the environment; you are sort of, kind of, on rails to a certain extent. See that creek and all the water? Invisible force fields keep you dry. Same as walking around a big hill; there is really no way to go up or fall off, you just have to go along a predetermined path or you are blocked by those nasty invisible force fields.

I am still trying to get use to the combat system. One thing I hate is that at times I cannot tell who or what is attacking me. I read that enemy combatants have an unfair range advantage. That may be true, and while I have not determined how much this can affect the gameplay, I hate not being able to easily see from which direction I am being attacked. This may just be inexperience with the game, but is worth watching as I progress with the game.

WKC:I is very much a JRPG – if you expect (or want) this, you will do fine, however if you are looking for an RPG with a more Western influence (say Oblivion), you are going to be sadly disappointed. Everything from the music – BTW, love the opening theme song – to the characters is JRPG. I just love randomly going into houses looking for chests to open. Not really, but it is part of the genera. At one point yesterday my wife was watching me play and ask something along these lines “What’s wrong with these people? They are all stuck up and will not bother to help you.” It was kind of funny, but such is life running around talking to everyone and looking under every little nook and cranny for some sort of prize.

One of my favorite pastimes in a silly sort of way is watching the metacritic scores roll in to see how the “critic” review scores line up with the “user” rating scores. As mentioned previously, White Knight Chronicles International was getting flogged by the so called pundits, but a funny thing happened as the users, presumably RPG fans, started voting – 65% (6 critics reviews) to 8.1 (36 user votes). I’m still waiting on one of the better RPG review sites to offer up a score; that should be the telltale sign of where the game actually stands.

Just for the hell of it, I decided to get off the pot; do my business so to speak and order the game. It should be here tomorrow. Worst case is that I either don’t have enough time to play the game (typical on a lot of my impulse purchases) or maybe I don’t like the game. There is always eBay, right? At least I can offer up some other than peanut gallery comments.

I’m closely watching White Knight Chronicles; call it research to justify a purchase. The first four reviews, not necessarily by my trusted regular reading sources, have rated the game with a ho-hum score of 69%. Although the critic score should receive a small bump later in the day when the metacritic editors realize there is an error with the GameRevolution review score (metacritic show 67%, but the actual review shows a “B-”).

It will be interesting to see how the RPG sites rate the game, and how the user votes compare to the critic review score.

I still have not decided what to do with White Knight Chronicles International. I know if I purchase it I will not have enough time to play, or get my money’s worth. Besides there is that backlog of RPGs that I mentioned yesterday, but I digress.

This article from the “official” PlayStation Blog is sure to royally tick off some folks.

For those of you who are going to be investing significant time in your characters, there will be an option to remake them without having to start the game over by purchasing a special key through the PlayStation Store for only $4.99. This will allow you to redesign your avatar at any point and keep all that hard work you’ve put in intact. This feature will go live this Thursday on the PlayStation Store.

Ouch! I am sure it is considered innovative to change your character’s appearance mid-game, but charging almost $5 to make the change (and of course keep your current progression) is just a bit much. Oh well, with the cost of modern game development, I guess Sony has to figure out how to squeeze additional revenue sources from its games.

Still, I think it would have been better to wait on this announcement. Instead it sort of comes off as “F-you! We know you will pay anyway!”

When I have time, which lately for serious RPG fun, is almost never. I have a backlog of PS3 titles that I have yet to finish, and in some cases start: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Demon’s Souls, and Dragon Age: Origins. Adding White Knight Chronicles: International Edition (WKC:IE) may be a tad overkill at this point. Still, the game looks promising.

I have written enough on the topic of online gaming that I do not need to elaborate beyond saying I am not a big fan. RPGamer thinks the game is run of the mill at best, I am actually intrigued by WKC:IE’s online components.

As mentioned earlier, White Knight Chronicles features an online mode which allows for cooperative play. Players will be able to take their avatar online to complete the aformentioned special quests, but will not be able to take Leonard and company along with them. Instead, people having difficulty with a particular quest will have to team up with other players to accomplish their given tasks. Another interesting feature of online play is the ability for players to create their own Dark Cloud-esque Geonet, which allows them to recruit NPCs to a customizable town for support and dialogue.

I am not sure if WKC:IE’s interesting twist on how to integrate online components into a single player offline game will be enough to draw me in for a purchase. Besides, I still have to ask if I even have time for this sort of game.