What are you playing right now?

[Left]

Valkyria Chronicles went on sale before Deus Ex did, so I got it.

Wow, I've had it for two weeks now, and it's really good. It's a lot more like Fire Emblem than I'd thought it would be, but in a good way. It's also very challenging, at least for my first time playing it. There are a lot of things I could go into about why I like it, but basically it's just a very good game, and if you like Fire Emblem than you'll almost certainly like this.

[Asperity]

Black Desert Online CBT2. Got Scadrian as my Family name so I'll roll with that one.

 

Otherwise, not much. I want to get the second part of the Pillars of Eternity expansion but I can't justify the cost. Probably be playing Grim Dawn with a friend sometime today too.

[Straw]

Star Wars battlefront. Was playing Destiny about 3 months ago but then bungie messed with it in the update.

Edited February 21, 2016 by ThatTinyStrawMan

[Kestrel]

Flight Rising, because holiday. But also Okami, off and on, because its my all time favorite game. Currently trying to get all the stray beads.

[Orlion Blight]

Well, I'm back to playing video games with Fire Emblem Fates. They didn't have Birthright in stock, so I'm playing Conquest.

[Patar]

Well, I'm back to playing video games with Fire Emblem Fates. They didn't have Birthright in stock, so I'm playing Conquest.

How is it? I've been itching to get myself a copy but I don't have the money yet.

[mattig89ch]

I picked up the gog version of saints row 2.  And its...disappointing.

 

I'm not going so far as to say its bad, far from it.  But its not as amazing as everyone made it out to be.  That and it runs like crap, and controls terrible.

[Orlion Blight]

How is it? I've been itching to get myself a copy but I don't have the money yet.

First Fire Emblem game I have ever played, and I am enjoying it immensely.

[Citadel16]

has anyone else played atwar?

[Cruxer]

I play League of Legends because I am apparently a soulless monster. 

[Dunkum]

First Fire Emblem game I have ever played, and I am enjoying it immensely.

I always sour on fire emblem, because I can't stand losing my people so I end up replaying the same level a million times trying to tweak it just enough that no one dies.  this is not very productive.  that said I read a little bit about this one earlier today and I thought the concept of getting a different version of the game depending on which side you choose sounded really cool (although nintendo definitely set it up in the best way to make the most money off of it).  Apparently there is a third version, Revelations, coming out soon for those who don't want to pick either side.

[Orlion Blight]

Revelations is downloadable only, I believe (unless you paid 80 dollars for the pre-order special edition).

As far as the permadeath, you can play this version with that off (I opted to play with it on)

[Dunkum]

Revelations is downloadable only, I believe (unless you paid 80 dollars for the pre-order special edition).

As far as the permadeath, you can play this version with that off (I opted to play with it on)

Yea, I was aware that you could turn permadeath off in some of the more recent entries, but its hard to shake an ingrained opinion even then.

 

didn't know the preorder was $80.  Nintendo are really milking this for all its worth

[The Sovereign]

I've been on Elder Scrolls Online again recently on Xbox One. Anyone else playing? I'm in Ebonheart Pact on the American server, PM me and I'll send you my gamertag if you are too.

[Blaze1616]

 

didn't know the preorder was $80.  Nintendo are really milking this for all its worth

 

Er, this is a bit of a misconception. Each of the three pathways is a completely different game. To begin, let's remove Revelations, the third pathway, until later, and only focus on the first two; Birthright and Conquest. In Birthright, your avatar chooses to side with blood ties, and as a result you align yourself with Hoshido, a country which is incredibly similar to feudal Japan. In Conquest, your avatar chooses to side with relationship ties, and as a result you align yourself with Nohr, a country which is incredibly similar to feudal Europe (and thus most similar to older FE games).

 

Each of the two countries offers completely different Chapters from the other, which includes maps, bosses, weapons, and most importantly units. Yes, the two paths share approximately 6 or 7 units, and have ~30+ that are completely unique. In addition to this, the Birthright path plays very similarly to FE13 (Awakening), where the player has the option to play skirmishes on maps which they've already completed the story Chapter for. This allows the player to gain more experience, and have a more laid back play through. Conquest, on the other hand, is much more similar to the FEs of olde (think FE7 or FE9), where the game throws you immediately into the next Chapter with no option for supplemental growth. To add to this, each game features a different story line, though I'm fairly certain they both culminate in the same final boss. Lastly, both versions of the game feature 28 main story Chapters and an additional 14 sidequest Chapters, bringing the total number of missions for each game to 42, which is more than a traditional FE game (though they share the first 5 story Chapters and 6 of the sidequests, but 32 unique Chapters is still beating the average of traditional FE games, which is ~30).

 

Each of the two games, then, is worth a full FE game. Which you pay the full $40 for. If you then want the other path as well, you can download a DLC to the full game you did buy for half price, and the other path unlocks to you (ex: if you bought Conquest, and want to also pay Birthright, you can buy a $20 DLC to gain access to it through your Conquest cartridge/digital download).

 

Now, Revelations is a third path that is supposed to reveal many secrets about the story/world which the other two pathways don't. On top of this, this pathway gives you a mix of characters from the other two paths (but not all of them from both), and still features brand new maps and 28 story Chapters (and all 22 of the sidequest Chapters). Like the others, this path is worth a full FE game as well, but like the DLC option mentioned, Nintendo is only charging you $20 for access to it. [WARNING: Don't play Revelations unless you've played BOTH Conquest and Birthright. You'll get the most enjoyment from all three paths by playing it last.]

 

So in total, you're getting 300% of a classic FE game, for 200% the price. In actual dollars, you are paying a total of $40+$20+$20=$80 for the amount of content that would normally cost you $40+$40+$40=$120.

 

I would not say Nintendo is milking you. But that's as a hardcore FE fan, so I know I'll be playing all three paths all the way through, possibly more than once. If you're a more casual fan of the series, and you will likely only play your initial path once, and maybe half of the second path, then perhaps it's not worth it to you.

 

As for the preorder of $80, that's the special edition, which came with all three pathways on a single cartridge (therefore no DLC needed and you get access to Revelations 3 weeks early), plus an artbook, plus a carrying sleeve for a 3DS XL. Considering the three paths are worth $80 naturally, you're getting the artbook and sleeve for free, plus your cartridge art and the box it came in are unique. 

Edited February 23, 2016 by Blaze1616

[Dunkum]

Yea, that's all true, I suppose.  I dunno, I guess as someone who falls more into  he casual fan area, this is more than I'd be willing to pay.  I think part of it is that I do legitimately like the idea of the different possible routes the game can take, I just don't like the degree to which they are being separated into different games (especially as someone who wouldn't have bought the special edition).  I'd say this isn't as bad as what Pokemon does but still bugs me a little bit.

[Blaze1616]

I definitely understand the skepticism. I thought the same thing until I learned that, well, it's nothing like the Pokemon versions, which are near identical save for a few minor details. The stories are all vastly different from each other, and the units from the two countries are also all very different (Nohr's units focus on high STR/DEF and MAG/RES, while Hoshido's focus on SKL/SPD, with some exceptions for each). It's actually very refreshing, and I recommend not playing them all at once if you're a casual fan, and instead treat them as three separate games released over the next two years (play one now, one late this year, and another next year), as, again, they are all different games. But that's if you want to "keep up" with the series, and not just play one or two of them.

 

Regardless of your decision, I highly recommend playing one of them if you enjoy FE. They're really fun. If you haven't picked the one you want to play just yet, here's some additional information:

• Birthright is easier than Conquest. Part of this is due to the options to grind, part of it is due to a difference in healing items (Batons have larger range than Staves of classic FE games), and part is due to Hoshido getting a ton of useful skills where Nohr doesn't get as many that are that useful.
• If you have a favorite class that you are looking forward to using, be sure to look into which games have which classes, as the classic FE classes have been split between the games. Moreover, Birthright has quite a few brand new classes while Conquest only has one or two.
• I recommend really considering which decision you're more comfortable having the avatar make (Blood v Relationship), because the game really lays on the guilt, and I know I'm more comfortable making the Relationship decision, and so when playing Birthright it's gut wrenching, and I feel like a total chull.
• Difficulty levels are: Normal, Hard, and Lunatic. There's also these options for permadeath: Classic, Casual (units respawn next Chapter), and the new Phoenix mode, which is only available on the Normal difficulty, and revives units on the turn after they died

[DreamEternal]

Playing Pillars of Eternity.

While I brought the game not much after its release, and it was somewhat of a disappointment, after many patches fixing bugs, adding features and perfecting gameplay, I can say it is one of my favorite games.

[aeromancer]

@Blaze1616: Hello Blazer, I'm going to assume that's you. I actually finished TLP not to long ago, massive kudos for that. Currently, I've been looking at Valkyria Chronicles. I'm not going to be playing FE Fates, a real pity because they fixed the completely broken pair-up mechanic from Awakening, and I've played most games in the series (recently beat FE12 for the first time.) Pair-up is so broken that Lunatic difficulty essentially cheats to maintain it's edge.

I've just begun Final Fantasy XII. (shudder) Grinding. Every time I start a Final Fantasy game, I get reminded of what I didn't like about it. Everything else is fine, but I hate grinding games. (*cough* FF Tactics *cough*). Meh, it's a FF, it'll be worth it.

[gorrgon the champion]

Hearthstone anyone? (or tf2) (or undertale)

[Observer]

Hearthstone anyone? (or tf2) (or undertale)

Undertale. Very much so.

[Briar King]

FF 12 was great. It's the last FF game that was to me. Hoping 15 will be that good after the disaster of 13's.

[Blaze1616]

@Blaze1616:  I'm not going to be playing FE Fates, a real pity because they fixed the completely broken pair-up mechanic from Awakening, and I've played most games in the series (recently beat FE12 for the first time.) Pair-up is so broken that Lunatic difficulty essentially cheats to maintain it's edge.

I've just begun Final Fantasy XII. (shudder) Grinding. Every time I start a Final Fantasy game, I get reminded of what I didn't like about it. Everything else is fine, but I hate grinding games. (*cough* FF Tactics *cough*). Meh, it's a FF, it'll be worth it.

 

I still wouldn't say they fixed the issue, they merely toned it down a lot. As a result of the changes, the game heavily favors the Defensive Stance (pair up) over the Attack Stance (adjacent spaces). This favoring is due to a few things, but the main one is that they removed the True Hit system without adjusting anything else. As a result, I would say this is the most defensive FE to date. 

 

Also, I'm not big on FF. I tried the one my friends agreed was the best (FF6), and our gaming tastes are very similar, and didn't like it at all. I'm a Tales guy, through and through.

[Left]

I've played FF I,IV, VII, and VIII. I only finished IV and VII, the first was too hard and I couldn't get into eight or understand the combat system. I really love four, it's a fantastic game, a real gem in my opinion. Seven, well it was okay. It was fun, it was also slow and much in need of its HD remake.

[Dunkum]

I've played FF I,IV, VII, and VIII. I only finished IV and VII, the first was too hard and I couldn't get into eight or understand the combat system. I really love four, it's a fantastic game, a real gem in my opinion. Seven, well it was okay. It was fun, it was also slow and much in need of its HD remake.

FF VIII is the worst in the series, IMO.  I'll agree with you on 1 though.  my first time through I got stuck early on and couldn't proceed.  when I picked it up and started over later, I got to the end, but didn't have the patience to grind my way up to being able to beat it.

 

IX is easily the best, with X, XII, VI, and VII behind it.  I've not played XIII, but I know my friends who have had lots of complaints, and from what I have seen of it, I know I already have a couple.