Famitsu score for Demon Gaze: 34/40 (Gold)

Congrats Team Muramasa!
Can't wait til I can actually afford a vita. And Demon Gaze comes out on my birthday. Sadface.

(In funny news, Nippon Ichi's new game only got a 33! SUCK IT)

Demon Gaze OP movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puQyRgt8Szw
PV 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUfE-uS2GMM
PV 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVIfTJMLQFo
PV 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xy1i6MzJUog

the Japanese love their first person dungeon crawls. It looks great though. I love their art style. Its much more to my tastes then say Etrain Odyssey. On a side note, I'm not the machine the Zeto is, but I have been doing small play bits and reading through the manuel. I still have not gotten the time to just sit through a hard playthrough yet.

Only a five-character party?! That's a 16.66~% decrease in complexity! Two thumbs down, etc. Seriously though, I'm still amazed by the entire "dungeon game" phenomenon in Japan, it's a pretty sharp contrast with the oldschool / grognard reputation these games have in the West.

taubu wrote:On a side note, I'm not the machine the Zeto is, but I have been doing small play bits and reading through the manuel.

I'll take that as a compliment - and considering that my nickname is based on a tractor brand (long story), it's not far off the mark. That said, I didn't play the demo THAT much (yet). Two sessions of 2-3 hours each going through the main storyline and doing some exploring, most of it was spent reading text. I don't think I even got enough xp to level up my dudes! On the other hand, I learned some Important Things (ie. run when you encounter a mantis group, even if it's level 1).

I am excited to see how the new formation system works. I have a hunch that the monster capture mechanic is similar to the one for Summoners in Breaker/Realize: you use the "Pact" skill on a monster in battle and it gets put in a special "in front of the front row" position, like a meat shield.

Students of the Round and Demon Gaze certainly have more "mass" appeal, at least to a Japanese audience, but if SotR is anything to go on then Demon Gaze is a hardcore dungeon RPG at heart.

On the other hand, I learned some Important Things (ie. run when you encounter a mantis group, even if it's level 1).

Oh, how many times I have died to a 20-30 damage mantis swing. Some tips you can keep in mind :

• Switching Bloods once, just for a second, will allow you to learn that Blood's level 1 spells. Try giving your primary spellcasters 11 INT and PIE both. This will allow them to have 4 MP for both WIZ and HEAL codes, meaning 4 extra Fireworks or Cares. Hella powerful at lv1, and no downside.
  
• Upgrade equipment as soon as possible as quickly as possible. Even with 3 pieces of equipment, with enough MTs you can raise your DEF up to 27 at least (if you upgrade each piece to +9) which is certainly enough to negate any Mantis attack.
  
• Use Escape A LOT. It always works and it's much more worth it to run away from a fight that's too hard than to waste GP and time reviving someone at Hinowa. PSI is a bit harder for another class to have at lv1 (takes 10 INT/LUC both for Moses/Joshua) but it might be worth it if you're having too much trouble.
  

Haha. I agree on the reduction of party members. Fewer members makes for less complexity. I hated when the more mainstreme rpgs started going with four or less members. "Grognard"? You'll have to explain that term to me. I do, however, hate the bad rep that the western gamer press is giving the JRPG as of late. It's funny how quickly the trends can change. The JRPG was top dog of the RPG four or five years ago.

taubu wrote:Haha. I agree on the reduction of party members. Fewer members makes for less complexity. I hated when the more mainstreme rpgs started going with four or less members. "Grognard"? You'll have to explain that term to me. I do, however, hate the bad rep that the western gamer press is giving the JRPG as of late. It's funny how quickly the trends can change. The JRPG was top dog of the RPG four or five years ago.

A grognard is a term for a tabletop wargamer - not stuff like Warhammer, but the really hardcore stuff, like WWII reenactments with model tanks. It's since been used to describe any kind of angry/stick-in-the-mud tabletop gamer: the rules-lawyer, the guy who gets annoyed when people bring out of character knowledge into the game, that sort of thing.

As for JRPGs getting a bad rep, it's because they've been very much the same thing for the last few years: the same cliches, the same moral choices, the same barely teenage protagonists with a girly-looking kid up front, blatant love-interest by their side, etc. I've been into RPGs of all sorts for years, and even I'm getting bored with the same old same old. Anything new or different is a godsend these days.

Thanks for the info. Well what you say about the JRPG totally makes sense. I do see the western RPGs really pushing the graphical boundaries these days. I also appreciate how they have begun combining aspects of the JRPG with the unique styles of the D&Dish play styles. Mass Effect and The Witcher are good examples of that combination. They have systems that are fun and somewhat immersive without being too complex (like the JRPG), and yet they offer a very western look and style of game (I.E the nonlinear progression and exploration systems).
I guess I don't feel so tired of the JRPG because I have learned to branch out my game genres. So I always find myself craving a JRPG at some time or another.
So fun question for everyone… What is one thing you think the Japanese could do to improve their style of RPG? I am going to have to say a better focus on writing. I love the linier aspect of the modern JRPG. I just think they need to strengthen the story writing (take the stereotypes and some of the obnoxious humor).

Demon Gaze is out today.

As a gift, Team Muramasa has posted 4 free "dlc" characters to download featuring unique artwork, and the 3rd chapter of Benny Matsuyama's Demon Gaze short novel is up.

I could translate these if anyone is interested.
http://www.famitsu.com/news/201212/19026205.html

They aren't too long.

looks neat. I keep telling myself to work on the nihongo so I can play some of this stuff one day. I wish we had a good college program here in Texas. It's been the Yookoso! book and Rosetta stone for me.

Anyway, how many games have they gotten off?

They've done the three Generation Xth games, Meikyu X Blood, and Students of the Round on PC (5) plus Demon Gaze on PSV and Stranger in the Town of the Sword coming out sometime later for 360, so 7 total.

I think they also did Wizardry Xth 1-2 for PS2 but I'm not sure. They're extremely identical to Gen X so its pretty likely.

I can't recommended Rosetta Stone. It's terrible for anything that isn't a latin or germanic language, since it's intended for maximum ease of comprehension by English speakers. They literally copy and paste different vocabulary for different versions.

My school used the Nakama series of textbooks and I've heard of a lot of people using Genki. How is Youkoso?

http://www.demongaze.jp/special/campaign_50000.html

Demon Gaze sold 50,000 copies on launch week, so in thanks, they're distributing the IA (vocaloid) theme songs for the game free of charge

I don't really like vocaloid, but I do like the theme songs. Download 'em if ya like.

I can't recommended Rosetta Stone. It's terrible for anything that isn't a latin or germanic language, since it's intended for maximum ease of comprehension by English speakers. They literally copy and paste different vocabulary for different versions.

My school used the Nakama series of textbooks and I've heard of a lot of people using Genki. How is Youkoso?.
shram
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Well, I picked “Youkoso!” because it was the book that the University of Texas uses. I guess its working out well because I am learning. They also have all the audio CDs online so I can do the listening activities. I would have to say that the one thing they do weird is the way they Romanize words (Yookoso=Youkoso).
It does do a good job explaining syntax very well.

http://www.demongaze.jp/special/campaign_50000.html

Mini OST has been taken down and replaced with a mini audio drama.

So I went to Play-asia and sat there with my jaw dropping. I don't know what I want to start importing first. I do know that I have to wait until I get some money next month, but I've already got big plans. I will say that I was hoping to find a copy of Code Hazard for the pc, but that seems to be a no go. Here is my list of wants thus far: Legend of Heroes vi fc, sc, part 3, saga 2, saga 3, tales of the world radiant mythology 3, and final fantasy type-0. I think I'll start with Legend of Heroes, because I don't think XSEED is ever going to release the sc and I really liked that game.

Demon Gaze, on a second note, looks awesome. I kind of dig that it seems to have a dating sim and demon recruiting aspect to it.

I don't think they are, either. They're beautifully written games, though, and I owe a lot of my vocabulary to having played them. I would either get the PS3 or the PC versions though, since the PSP version has tiiiiiny text that's hard to read.

Anything Falcom is a great choice. As far as DS games go, you should check out the Dragon Ball Kai RPG made by Monolith, and the Dragon Quest ports of 4-5-6, as those are all excellent!