PS3

Persona 5 Review: Stealing my Heart

Posted on by astyahla

Platform: Playstation 3 and Playstation 4 (Reviewed on PS4)

Genre: Role Playing Game

No. of Players: 1

ESRB: M

While the “Persona” series is probably the most well-known spin-off series in the “Shin Megami Tensei” franchise, there has not been a new numbered title in the series since 2008’s “Persona 4.” After nine years of waiting, “Persona 5” has arrived and it was more than worth the wait.

The basic structure of the game will be familiar to anyone who has played “Persona 3” or “Persona 4.” The main character has moved to a new town to transfer to a new school and has to live a double life fighting against Shadows, creatures born from the personality traits people hide from the world. The twist is that the protagonist has been falsely accused of assault and currently on probation. He had to move to Tokyo because he had been expelled from his school and Shujin Academy was the only one that would accept him. As a result, the protagonist is a pariah from the start. However, after discovering another world known as the Metaverse and seeing how several authority figures abuse their power, he and his friends become the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, to get back at the abusive figures and save others from their tyranny.

There is a lengthy period of time spent setting up the plot, but one it really gets going, you will be enthralled by the cast of characters and their struggles in life. The excellent writing also helps keep you engaged.

Gameplay is similar to past “Persona” games. Your time is divided between normal life and life as a thief. After school lets out, players can choose whether to hang out with friends, go shopping, work a part-time job or dive into the Metaverse. When doing the latter, everyone adopts their thief identities and it is time for action. Each target has their own dungeon to infiltrate as you search for the treasure that is the motivation for their wicked deeds. While battles are not random, the thief theme adds a stealth element not usually present in JRPGs. You are encouraged to sneak up on enemies to get a preemptive strike, either by simply walking up behind them or hiding in the shadows and waiting for the opportunity to strike. Failure to do so will raise an alert, indicated by a gage filling. If it gets full, the game will end.

Once you go into battle, enemies are engaged in a turn based system, with different actions assigned to different buttons on the controller. This results in faster paced battles than if you would have to scroll through menus for every action. Most notably, the defend command is assigned to the circle button, which also backs out of menus. Fortunately, you are asked to confirm if you want to defend, keeping turns from being wasted just because you were frantically backing out of menus. As usual, there is a heavy emphasis on targeting enemy weaknesses. When a character successfully does so, they get an extra turn while the enemy gets knocked down. While said character can act again, they can also pass their turn to another character for a boost in power or healing, or to target another enemy’s weakness. If all enemies are knocked down, you can hit them all with a powerful All-Out Attack or negotiate with them for money, items or to have them become a Persona for the protagonist to use in battle. However, the enemy can knock you down and rack up extra turns as well.

In addition, the enemies are relentless. If you leave them an opportunity to strike one of your allies weaknesses they will take it. They will also cripple you with status ailments and go for one-hit kills if possible. This is especially bad, as the protagonist’s death ends the game. Fortunately, you can unlock the ability for individual party members to take a fatal attack for him. While the game is hard as is series tradition, it is also very fair. So any deaths are usually the player’s fault.

Outside of the Metaverse, most of your time will be spent hanging out with Confidants, who you can bond with to gain special benefits. While the usual ability to create more powerful personas remains, each character will get you additional abilities based upon your relationship with them. For example, getting to know a local doctor will expand the stock of healing items she will sell to you and get you discounts on her wares. Spending time with your teacher after discovering her part-time job as a maid will enable you to use her services in the evening to do tasks that would normally take up time. Befriending a student from another school and playing shogi with her will teach you some new tactics to use in battle. While you will come for the skills, you will stay for the stories of their personal struggles. For example, the doctor works out of a back alley clinic because she was framed for a disastrous clinical trial she advised against. Meanwhile, the teacher has to work a second job because the parents of a former student are extorting her for money after said student’s death.

While these Confidant events are compelling and well written, almost all of them require you to raise your social stats to get past certain points in their story lines, which is annoying.

While all of the activities you can engage in are fun and make sense for their inclusion, it is important to keep an eye on the calendar. Every dungeon in the Metaverse has an in-game deadline to complete it. Failing to do so, will end the game with the target getting away with their crimes. In fact, it takes at least three days to complete the dungeon. At least one day to secure an infiltration route, one day to send a calling card in the real world to make the treasure tangible and another day to defeat the boss and steal the treasure. It is the boss fights that make the battle system really shine, as you get special command that can be used to make the boss more vulnerable.

Overall, “Persona 5” is a masterpiece of a game. Gameplay is engaging, the story will keep you hooked and the presentation is extremely stylish. If you are a JRPG fan at all, you really should play this game.

Score 9.5/10

New Tales, God Eater to get international release

Posted on by astyahla

This past Monday, Namco Bandai announced several games for worldwide release, the most notable of which are “Tales of Berseria” and two installments from the “God Eater” series.

“Tales of Berseria” is a prequel to “Tales of Zestiria.” It takes place in a world known as the Wasteland. Unlike “Zestiria” you are not restricted to a single continent, but the central continent is said to eventually become Glenwood, the setting of “Zestiria.” Despite this, the world is very different from how it is in “Zestiria”  While the location names and terms are different, there are some undeniable connections. For example, a major plot point is an ailment known as Goma Disease, which turns people into monsters known as Goma. Some victims turn feral but others retain their personality and intelligence, similarly to the Hellions from “Zestiria.”

The main plot revolves around a young woman named Velvet Crow, the first woman in the Tales Series to have the main character role to herself. Velvet used to be a very kind and gentle person, but a traumatic experience changed her to become hateful and filled with barely contained rage. Said incident also caused a mutation in her left hand, causing it to sprout claws when not kept bandaged. She will also be accompanied by a boy named Laphicet, who is said to be the “light” to Velvet’s “darkness.”

“Berseria” keeps the seamless transition between exploration and battle, but the battle system is further refined from “Zestiria.” You may now assign artes to each of the four face buttons. The attacks you use will even change based upon which order the buttons are pressed.

“Tales of Berseria” is being developed for both Playstation 3 and Playstation 4, as well PC. The game is set to be released in Japan sometime in 2016, while release dates for the rest of the world have not been announced. However, the PS3 version of the game will not be released outside of Japan.

Namco Bandai also announced that “God Eater Resurrection” and “God Eater 2 Rage Burst” will be be released worldwide in Summer 2016 for PS4, PS Vita, and PC. The series takes place in a post-apocalyptic world in which creatures known as the Aragami have consumed most of Earth’s biosphere, leaving remnants of humanity as the last of the worlds life. The Aragami, being cell clusters that take on the traits of what they eat, are immune to conventional weaponry. In response, the Fenrir Corporation has formed a group known as the God Eaters, who wield weapons known as God Arcs that are effective against Aragami, to act as humanity’s last stand.

The original “God Eater” was released in Japan for the Playstation Portable in 2010, before its updated re-release, “God Eater: Burst” got an international release in 2011. The North American version of the game was renamed “Gods Eater Burst” in order to avoid offending followers of monotheistic religions, despite actual deicide not being part of the game. This version of the game introduced an additional storyline following the original game’s ending. “God Eater Resurrection” is a remake of “Burst” introducing elements from later games and an additional story to connect the game to “God Eater 2.”

“God Eater 2” was released for PSP in 2013, but did not make it out of Japan. Like the first game, it got an updated re-release called “God Eater 2 Rage Burst,” this time for PS4 and Vita. Like “Burst,” this is the first version of “God Eater 2” to be released outside of Japan. The story revolves around a new special forces team of God Eaters known as Blood as they continue to struggle against the Aragami.

While “Resurrection” and “Rage Burst” are not going to arrive until Summer 2016, international gamers will still get a taste of the latter, as two of its characters, Ciel Alencon and Nana Kouzuki, will appear in “Project X Zone 2” for Nintendo 3DS.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Review – A Hideo Kojima masterpiece

Posted on by astyahla

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Systems: PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC

ESRB: M

No. of Players: 1-16 online

After several years of development, the latest game in the “Metal Gear Solid” series is finally here. While we got a taste of the gameplay in the “Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes,” the prologue released last year, “The Phantom Pain” is a fully realized game and an excellent swan song for Hideo Kojima’s involvement. While there are some flaws, the game is exceptional and a must play.

Following the destruction of Mother Base at the end of “Ground Zeroes,” the legendary soldier, Big Boss fell into a coma for nine years. Upon waking up in a hospital on the Greek Isle of Cyprus, he is greeted with the sight of a missing arm and the news that the whole world wants him dead. What follows is an attack on the hospital by an unknown military organization that Big Boss narrowly escapes. He then reunites with his allies, Kazuhira Miller and Revolver Ocelot, and begins to rebuild his private military force in order to get revenge for what he had lost.

“Ground Zeroes” gave us a taste of the new open world style, but instead of being limited to a single prison camp, you get to explore large regions of Afghanistan and Central Africa. There is plenty to do in these areas, such as rescuing prisoners, capturing animals, gathering resources and, of course, many bases to break into. Once you decide on a mission, you have plenty of options for how to accomplish it. You can go in silently during the night, but have to avoid searchlights. You could sneak in from a side enterence or go in through the main gate. If you are confident, you can charge in guns blazing. There is even the choice of knocking out the guards or killing them.

What keeps thing exciting is that the guards will adapt to your tactics. For example, relying too much on head shots will result in them wearing helmets. If you keep going in at night, the guards will start carrying flashlights, or even night-vision goggles. This forces players to mix things up and constantly upgrade equipment to remain effective, especially due to the excellent AI.

While the  game gives you a lot of freedom, you have to constantly manage your in-game money carefully. The operation costs will vary based upon which weapons and equipment you take with you, so you have to take only what you need in order to avoid going into the red. This also applies to if you take a vehicle with you and which buddy you have accompany you. There are four buddies. D-Horse is great for traveling long distances silently. D-Dog is able to sense nearby enemies, animals, mines and medicinal plants. Quiet is a sniper who helps with taking out enemies and scouting the area. Finally, D-Walker is best used for straight fights. You can call in supply drops and request new buddies, but it also cost money.

While things are excellent out in the field, there are some design choices that do not work as well. You can return to Mother Base between missions and freely explore it, but there is barely anything to do there. In addition, the main storyline offers plenty of missions, but the post-credits content is largely made up of tougher versions of previous missions. Granted there are some new story missions, which are some of the most engaging in the entire game, but you need to wade through a lot of recycled content to get to them.

The game offers online multiplayer in the form of “Metal Gear Online.” In up to 16 players in the PS4, Xbox One and PC versions, or 12 players in the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, compete in three different types of matches. Bounty Hunter is a team deathmatch mode with a twist. Each team has a set number of points and must deplete the other team’s points to win. Killing an enemy is worth one point, but it also increases the point value of the killer. If you capture the enemy instead, you earn the point value instead. Cloak and Dagger has one attacking team armed only with non-lethal weapons and must steal intel and exfiltrate the area, while the defenders have lethal weapons and must kill all of the attackers. Finally, Comm Control requires the attacking team to reach the nodes to download intel within the time limit, while the defending team must keep them from doing so until time expires.

All of these modes are fun, but I thought that Cloak and Dagger was the most faithful to Metal Gear. I also never had a problem connecting to the server or experienced lag.

The other multiplayer component, the Forward Operating Base, on the other hand, is nowhere near as fun. You basically get to create your own base and set the defenses. You can also attack other players bases to steal their resources and kidnap their men to recruit into your own army. You can also kill them. If you get attacked, you can go to defend your base. The catch is that the defending player can respawn, but the attacker cannot. The attacker wins if they can get to the goal.

What makes this annoying is that, unless you purchase insurance with real money, you will actually lose resources and men when you are attacked, even if you are not connected to the internet at the time. If you are connected to the internet past a certain point, you are forced to create an FOB. This would not be so bad, but you need a premium currency to upgrade the base instead of the free currency.

Annoying FOB mode aside, The Phantom Pain is an excellent game that should not be missed.

Score 9/10

Opinion: It was right for Tales of Zestiria’s Alisha to leave the party

Posted on by astyahla

Warning! Spoilers Ahead!

“Tales of Zestiria” may have been released worldwide in late October, but Japan had the game ever since this past January. At the time of release, the game had been surrounded with controversy over how the developers handled the character Alisha Diphda. She was one of the first characters shown to the public, causing many to assume she would be the female lead, and thus accompany the protagonist, Sorey, to the end of the game.  Indeed, she is introduced early on and give Sorey the motivation to go out into the world. But then she leaves the party less than a quarter of the way through. This lead some people to accuse the publisher, Namco Bandai, of false advertising. It did not help that she is seemingly replaced by another character named Rose. Now that I have played the game for myself, I feel compelled to weigh in on the matter. I actually believe that making Alisha a temporary party member was the right thing to do.

First, we have to look at why she left in the first place. Sorey making Alisha his Squire seemed like a good idea at the time. This allowed her to interact with the Seraphim, who made up the rest of the party at the time, and fight off the Hellions. Later, we find out she is not powerful enough, so she ends up taking a toll on Sorey. This is foreshadowed by a brief first-person view showing his vision blurring. This comes to a head when Sorey goes blind in one eye, leaving him unable to stop a surprise attack that seriously wounds Alisha. After hearing this, Alisha decides to stay behind and focus on doing what she can as a princess and a knight.

About an hour of playtime later, Rose shows up and proves to be a much stronger Squire. This means she does not affect Sorey, and can even armatize, or fuse, with the Seraphim, which is thought to be something only a Shepherd, such as Sorey, can do. Rose then stays with Sorey for the rest of the game.

From a story perspective, I think Alisha’s situation can be compared to someone underperforming at their job. If you fail to meet expectations and cause problems in the workplace, you are going to get fired. However, Alisha willingly left the party, so it is not like she was cast aside. Even though she is no longer playable, she still plays a big role in the story as a diplomat trying to avert war.

From a gameplay perspective, Rose is superior to Alisha by virtue of being able to armatize, while Alisha cannot. A lot of the tougher battles are extremely difficult to win without the use of armatization. When Alisha is with the party, she will have to do without the powerful attacks and healing spells that this state offers.

That’s not to say this was handled perfectly. I still think there could have been a good story arc involving Alisha at least becoming powerful enough to not burden Sorey. Also, the game does a poor job of explaining how Rose, the leader of an assassins’ guild, is able to be as powerful as a Shepherd, who is supposed to be pure of heart.

While there is a DLC scenario starring Alisha, it really shows just how weak she is compared to Rose. Furthermore, not all of the main game’s party members are available, meaning you do not have as many elements to work with. It does not help that there are a lot of enemies that resist the elements your party members specialize in. Storywise, it is an epilogue, and does not give any essential plot points. Therefore, unless you really love Alisha, it is not worth your time and money.

At the end of the day, Alisha’s departure from the party was for the best. Do you agree? Feel free to discuss this in the comments.

Tales of Zestiria Review – A rough but well-told tale

Posted on by astyahla

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Rating: 7.5/10

Systems: Playstation 3, Playstation 4, PC

ESRB: T

Genre: Role-Playing Game

Number of Players: 1-4 local multiplayer

The “Tales” series has been one of the JRPG long-runners, but it has not been as visible outside of Japan, having been in the shadow of “Final Fantasy.” However, recent years have seen success with “Tales of Graces f,” “Tales of Xillia” and “Tales of Xillia 2.” The most recent game in the series, “Tales of Zestiria,” has some rough spots but it still offers a good time.

The story revolves around Sorey, a “pure” young man who has been raised among a race of demigods known as the Seraphim and has lived a sheltered life away from the outside world. When a knight named Alisha stumbles upon his home and is followed by monsters known as Hellions, Sorey must leave the familiar scenery in order to become the legendary Shepard and save the world from these beasts. This story would sound familiar to anyone who has experienced any kind of fiction, but like other games in the “Tales” series, things are quickly deconstructed. Most notably, the game takes a shot at the concept of purity by showing how easily someone who is pure can be corrupted and that “pure” does not necessarily mean “good.”

“Zestiria’s” world is made up of wide open scenery with towns and dungeons scattered across the landscape. While the player is restricted to a single continent, there is a lot to see, although most of the landscapes are fields, caves and ruins. Still, you are given a set of four elementally-based abilities to get past obstacles, giving the world more interactivity than the average JRPG, with the dungeons in particular giving you several opportunities to do so. For example, you could use fire to melt ice, wind to dash across gaps or through certain walls, a bubble to sneak past sentries, or a fist empowered by the earth to smash through boulders. They can even be used to begin battles with a preemptive strike.

Battles in the “Tales” series are in real time, with up to four active party members taking engaging the enemy. Zestiria is no exception, but it adds a little rock-paper-scissers aspect to the fights beyond the usual elemental weaknesses. Here, abilities, known as artes, are divided into three types. Martial artes are quick physical attacks that can interrupt seraphic artes or spells. Seraphic artes, in turn take time to cast, but the caster will not flinch from hidden artes, or special physical attacks which instead shorten the casting time. Finally, hidden artes are slower than martial artes, but will win out in a clash between the two. Keeping this in mind is critical to success. Furthermore, some of the human characters can fuse with one of their Seraph allies to get more powerful attacks, but sacrifice their martial artes, for magic, keeping this mechanic from becoming an instant win technique.

However, some of the later enemies will not stagger even if you hit them with the correct attack, or even become invulnerable for a short time without warning. This can lead to some cheap deaths. The camera during battles can also rotate in weird ways, keeping you from seeing everything. This is particularly prevalent in the Playstation 3 version of the game, while the Playstation 4 and PC versions do not have this problem. Another issue with the battle system is that when there is only one human in the party, you are restricted to two active party members, even if more than one seraph is with you. When in battle, the AI-controlled characters are not as smart as in past “Tales” games. Unless you customize their behavior beforehand, your allies will rush in without regard to their health and potentially end up in critical condition or get killed. They also tend to focus more on fighting and neglect party members in need of healing. Fortunately, this problem can be mitigated by spending time customizing battle strategies or having friends control the other characters.

Another hang up of the battle system is that you cannot restore health at all if you have any status ailments such as poison or paralysis. While this would be understandable if this were limited to one particular ailment, this makes ailments even more annoying than usual. The lack of universal ailment removal or revival spells compound the issue, as well as being limited to carrying only 15 of each consumable item. This includes Panacea Bottles to remove all ailments and provide temporary immunity against them, and Life Bottle for revival. Fortunately, humans can quickly be revived by fusion and seraphim by switching them out of battle.

One thing that I cannot complain about is the acquisition and uses of loot. Enemies nearly always drop weapons or armor when defeated. If you have a surplus of a particular piece of equipment, you can fuse them together to boost their stats and carry over passive skills. Each piece of equipment can have up to four skills attached to it with the first skill on the list being locked to all specimens of that equipment. Equiping different combinations can unlock new skills that can turn the tide of battle. When fusing equipment, skills can either be carried from the original items to the new one, or combine to create a new skill. This gives battles a lot of depth a lot of freedom to customize your characters.

Outside of battle, some other problems rear their heads. While there is a fast travel system to move between save points, it costs in-game currency to do so, with the rate rising as you progress through the game. Compare this to “Tales of Xillia,” in which you could fast travel to the beginning of any given location, no matter where you are, for free. Also, the PS3 version has some frame rate issues when viewing things from a distance.

Despite these flaws, the story, battle system and equipment systems will hooked you to the very end. While not up to the standards of past “Tales” games,”Tales of Zestiria” is worth a look if you like JRPGs.