Summer Games Challenge 2015

[dunpeal2064]

That was a great post. King's Field is life. Can't wait to hear how you'd compare the sequel to the original, as I've only ever played this one (I thought it was the first one, damn localization changes.)

[prfsnl_gmr]

Blaster Master (NES/PSP)
Earthbound (SNES/WIIU)
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (2600/7800)
Kaboom! (2600/7800)
Galactic Attack/RayForce (SATURN/XBOX)
Half-Life (PC/PS2)
R-Type Delta (PS1/PS3)
Samurai Shodown II (NEOGEO/PS2)
Shining Force II (GENESIS/PS3)
Virtua Racing (ARCADE/PS2)

I finished up Shining Force II this weekend. It was a fun game, and I am looking forward to playing Shinig Force and Shining Force III. (It was also a lot longer than I anticipated, and I am looking forward to concentrating on some short games.) At the end of the game my team was:

Bowie (HERO)
Chester (PGNT)
Elric (BGNR)
Jaha (BARN)
Karna (VICR)
Kazin (SORC)
May (BWNT)
Peter (PHNX)
Sarah (MMNK)
Sheela(MMNK)
Slade (NNJA)
Zynk (ROBT)

All of their levels were in the mid- to high-twenties, and all of them had been promoted. I crushed the final battle, and I also crushed the "bonus" battle after the credits. The penultimate battle against King Galam was pretty difficult, however, and I decied to egress on that one rather than risk defeat.

Overall, the game is well-designed, and the battles are a lot of fun. Moreover, the battle animations are spectacular (for the Sega Genesis). For a SRPG, however, I did not think that the battles required a tremendous amount of actual strategy or tactics. Terrain only affected movement, as far as I could tell, and although I determined that flying enemies were weak to ranged attacks, I really did not notice any other sort of enemy weaknesses. (For example, the damage inflicted by Kazin's four spells seemed to hinge entirely on which one cost the most MP.) Accordingly, my primary battle tactics were: (1) keep the force close together to quickly boost or heal any wounded character; (2) move conservatively; and (3) swarm one enemy at a time. (I did play the game on "regular" difficulty, however, and I suspect that it would be more challenging if I turned up the difficulty a bit.)

The game's plot was simplisitc, and none of the characters received much, if any development. (It was a mid-90s JRPG, however, and I wasn't exactly playing it for the story.) Exploration and inventory management were also a bit ham-fisted, and I had to navigate menus to complete pretty simple tasks. Overall, though, the game was fun, and I am glad that I played through it.

Not a game on my list, but I gave it shot last night.......

Damn Kaboom! is hard!

Seriously! I have been practicing for a while, and I still haven't scored more than 1900 points.

[Exhuminator]

Can't wait to hear how you'd compare the sequel to the original, as I've only ever played this one

So far I enjoyed the very first Japan-only King's Field a lot more than this sequel. Not saying that King's Field (USA) is bad by any means, but I preferred the more linear and strongly themed levels of the first game. Compared to the random labyrinthine-ness of this game's nonlinear world, you see. But I've still got a long ways to go, so I might change my mind yet.

[MrPopo]

For a SRPG, however, I did not think that the battles required a tremendous amount of actual strategy or tactics. Terrain only affected movement, as far as I could tell, and although I determined that flying enemies were weak to ranged attacks, I really did not notice any other sort of enemy weaknesses. (For example, the damage inflicted by Kazin's four spells seemed to hinge entirely on which one cost the most MP.)

The game actually is not as simplistic as you might think, but it isn't as robust as a Fire Emblem game. I'm sure you noticed the "Terrain Effect X%" when you were moving characters around. When damage is being dealt the Terrain Effect is used to decrease the final damage, but its based on the difference in Terrain Effect between the attacker and defender. So if you are standing on a 0% tile (like a road) and you attack an enemy in a 30% tile (forest) then you'll be doing less damage. I can't remember if its 30% less damage or the enemy gets 30% more defense. Conversely, if you're on a 15% tile (grass) and you attack someone on a 15% tile (grass) then there is no modifier, as the difference is 0 (and grass attacking into forest is a 15% modifier).

As for magic, there are actually resistances and weaknesses to magic, but very few enemies possess either. Occasionally you will find an enemy that takes less damage from a spell than expected, or more damage than expected. This usually gets noticed with Blaze 1, as that does a constant 6 damage to everything that's neutral to it, whereas the other spells have a damage range. You are correct in noticing that the damage ranges do correspond with the MP cost. You might also have noticed that SORCs play a different role from WIZs (promoted MAGE). SORCs pick a damage number an then divide it among all the targets their spell is hitting, while WIZs pick a damage number for each target. So SORCs are better for hitting important single targets while WIZs are good for weakening a bunch of enemies.

[prfsnl_gmr]

For a SRPG, however, I did not think that the battles required a tremendous amount of actual strategy or tactics. Terrain only affected movement, as far as I could tell, and although I determined that flying enemies were weak to ranged attacks, I really did not notice any other sort of enemy weaknesses. (For example, the damage inflicted by Kazin's four spells seemed to hinge entirely on which one cost the most MP.)

The game actually is not as simplistic as you might think, but it isn't as robust as a Fire Emblem game. I'm sure you noticed the "Terrain Effect X%" when you were moving characters around. When damage is being dealt the Terrain Effect is used to decrease the final damage, but its based on the difference in Terrain Effect between the attacker and defender. So if you are standing on a 0% tile (like a road) and you attack an enemy in a 30% tile (forest) then you'll be doing less damage. I can't remember if its 30% less damage or the enemy gets 30% more defense. Conversely, if you're on a 15% tile (grass) and you attack someone on a 15% tile (grass) then there is no modifier, as the difference is 0 (and grass attacking into forest is a 15% modifier).

As for magic, there are actually resistances and weaknesses to magic, but very few enemies possess either. Occasionally you will find an enemy that takes less damage from a spell than expected, or more damage than expected. This usually gets noticed with Blaze 1, as that does a constant 6 damage to everything that's neutral to it, whereas the other spells have a damage range. You are correct in noticing that the damage ranges do correspond with the MP cost. You might also have noticed that SORCs play a different role from WIZs (promoted MAGE). SORCs pick a damage number an then divide it among all the targets their spell is hitting, while WIZs pick a damage number for each target. So SORCs are better for hitting important single targets while WIZs are good for weakening a bunch of enemies.

That makes sense. I did notice the % designations for certain types of terrain, but I assumed that it decreased my movement across that terrain/ I had no idea that it affected defense. I also noted the differences between the SORC and WIZD magic. (I like focusing on one enemy at a time; so, SORC was the choice for me.) This information will be helpful when I play the other games in the series. (The last strategy game I played through was Nectaris: Military Madness; so, I guess the tactics I employed in Shining Force II are only simplistic in comparison.)

[MrPopo]

Well, different terrain also decreases movement that tends to correspond with the Terrain Effect number, but the two are distinct. Promoted Kiwi and Gerhalt can move unencumbered through most terrain but still get the Terrain Effects, since they aren't flyers (and promoted Kiwi is essentially Gamera). And the decrease to movement speed is class and terrain specific. Centaurs take a much larger hit in desert than in forests, while mages take almost no hit in desert but a decent hit in forests.

[Key-Glyph]

Oh man, Exhuminator, that was an epic post! Glad it all came together for you in the end.

That game sounds rough, though. Keep it up!

[Exhuminator]

That game sounds rough, though. Keep it up!

Thanks. Yes, King's Field II is rough. But it's the kind of rough that makes the journey worth making. Everyone should try a King's Field game at least once.

[Ack]

OK, Popo, advice time. I booted up Descent and played through the first two levels. Controls took some getting used to, and I admit that I ain't exactly fast, but I got the job done well enough. But there is an issue: lack of video options. Is there something I can do to increase the resolution and/or go widescreen? Because I don't know if I can handle playing it in a tiny square the way I did for Catacomb 3-D.

[MrPopo]

http://www.dxx-rebirth.com/