[h1] Severely Chronically Offline Role Playing Game [/h1]
[i] "Why didn't you just say so from the start?" - Haseo, .hack//G.U. Vol. 4: Reconnection [/i]
[b] FULL SPOILER [/b]
I've played the trilogy on the PS2 a decade or so ago.
Playing these games supposed to be a nostalgia trip for me, but I must've had a surgically precise amnesia because 80% of this game escapes my memory.
The things that remained in my mind of this game are Atoli, Shino, Kuhn and Pi, Ovan,
The Epitaphs orbital frames, Sakaki being a see-you-and-tee and the Xth form.
Rediscovering the details in these games is actually quite a pleasant experience throughout, regardless of flaws along the way.
A string of action RPGs that dared to ask...
[b] what if Sasuke is Naruto? [/b]
[b] So, are the games fun? [/b]
Yeah, it's fun for what they wanted to be, which is seasons long anime series that you can play.
The developer of this series, CyberConnect2 was responsible for all those Naruto Ultimate Ninja 'arena fighters' that FGC people hates so much, and Asura's Wrath, so you can see the lineage here.
The combat is simple, straight forward multi hit combos on one button, charge attack, and your occasional Devil Trigger when you burn the filled up meter. The enemies had weaknesses to certain weapons and elements, so it's not entirely mindless.
There're magic spells but I barely use them, which is appropriate for the character you're playing to be fair.
You don't really have to care about the itemization that much, but for optimization sake it's there for you to engage with.
The dungeon crawling's unfortunately repetitive, the level design is very "boxed in", going through them is routine.
The Epitaph boss battle, comparable to Zone of the Enders in terms of controls and mobility, are just as simple but still fun to play through. I enjoyed these segments, most of the time.
The collectibles side missions, they don't carry progress from volume to volume, so that's not fun.
The game is not hard at all. It's almost too easy at times, which is fine.
[b] Alright, that's all I can say about the gameplay, time for some melodrama and themata [/b]
The greatest thing about these games is the unique premise for sure. In a general sense, it's a study of human behaviour in a simulated environment, how video game immersion affects one's decision making process, how freedom and restrictions shape the users' attitude and opinions, and how the online and offline world interact with each other.
The in-universe MMORPG 'The World' is this hybrid isekai setting that smashed the 4th wall with its chainsaw-scythe, acknowledging fantasy and reality in the same space, appreciating and criticising the idea of escapism.
The multimedia aspect of these games are actually really fun to observe. The most interesting part of the worldbuilding happened outside of the MMORPG, seeing the offline world's technological progress through news outlets and public forums. It's a fun lively way to recreate the pre-social media internet culture we had back then.
All of this is background to a classic hero's journey, the main character Haseo goes through the same old story but the contexts are rearranged.
It's digital instead of magical, divine powers are cheating tools, evil is not just cruel it's viral.
It's cyberpunk under the guise of fantasy. It's great.
[b] Now, is the story good? [/b]
[u] Vol. 1, 2, 3 [/u]
'Meandering' is the keyword here.
The pacing of the dialogue is a little slow if you don't mash the skip button.
You can kinda see the structural formula of the story of these games by how they gave out information it's almost transparent.
Some events that happened in the story actually could've been an email, but it's a video game so they gotta stretch it out I guess.
But you know what? Overall, it's a fun ride. Seeing Haseo's character growth is compelling, an anti-social loner going on a shonen adventure to protect his dear newfound friends. It's a fairly satisfying watch.
[u] Vol. 4 [/u]
It's a victory lap, return to this decade old world and give it the happiest ending possible. This is like Dragon Quest 11 level of optimism. It's nice.
[u] Misc. [/u]
- Piros the 3rd is cool
- Online Jack is cool
- Crimson Vs is fine
- Sakaki is such a ♥♥♥♥ isn't he
- Ovan is a [b] gamer [/b] so I guess him being mysterious is just his dorkiness seeping out
The steampunk visual aesthetics is actually great for real, I recommend these games for the visuals alone.
Should you play .hack//G.U. Last Recode?
Get it on sale, it's less than thirty bucks, in my country at least.
So, Buttrice, R3?
Go check your email.
[spoiler] Pi is best girl shut up [/spoiler]
