s_bishop
2023
it's alright
2018
1cc'd white vanilla and currently doing green orange. might update later when i'm done with everything but as my first shmup and just as a game this fuckin owns
2003
bro i literally do not care if the story has little substance or theres really icky loli sex scenes or whatever the atmosphere and just the experience of reading for the first time fucking ruled. godtier ost and presentation overall just made for a highly memorable experience
Since the beginning of my teenage years (which are now coming to an end), I've occasionally grappled with the question of "how do I want to be remembered after I die?". To my early pubescent self, this question was near rhetorical. "I'm not going to be in the world after I die, why should I care how I am remembered!". This line of thought followed me throughout the last few years, with me not really stopping to think about it during that time. I still didn't get it. I couldn't understand why people wanted a legacy. For the world to be affected even after they had left. Then comes my last year of secondary education, like a slap to the face, making me really reconsider my views as life begins to take break-neck pace. Facing an ever-growing loneliness I had much more time in my head, and I began to open myself to new ideas, especially the "life" after death.
Shadowbringers, to me, at its most fundamental level, is about what we leave behind after we're gone: what's remembered in the history books, and what's forgotten to time. There's a certain comfort in knowing you will be remembered, or the things you've learned will be passed on in some way or another. Its a rejection of the idea of immortality and instead a tale about the beauty of humanity's ephemeral lives. A showcase of our imperfections, our failures, and how we've come so far despite them all. We can reach a certain "immortality" through what we do, and by changing the lives around us. What better way to demonstrate this through the lens of a world on the brink of utter collapse?
Norvrandt is in stark contrast to where our heroes came from. In place of the Eorzean Alliance, fighting to live together peacefully in the face of an entourage of imperialism that is the empire, are several isolated settlements of people all equally dreading the coming end. A sense of unease permeates this land. The time for heroes is gone and there is very little hope to be found in the people. What makes Norvrandt so compelling is how each person continues to live out their final days differently. Some have already tried and failed to stop what's coming, and instead seek to spend their final days in pure bliss, surrounding themselves in luxury. Others find comfort in their work, continuing to trudge through the days through. Others come to religion for a slither of hope, finding solace in the coming afterlife. Finally, there are those few who choose to fight on, in spite of overwhelming odds. These few find courage in those from the past, the valiant heroes of old who fought tooth and nail to bring the world salvation.
Shadowbringers presents death and moving on as something with a true meaning. In a world that already suffered a deluge of death and destruction, the loss of those dearest to us are what help us grow as people. Each death meant something, big or small, and we take their memory as lessons for our own lives.
It would be hyperbole to say Shadowbringers changed my worldview drastically or anything, but it did further affirm how I feel about the idea of death. It came at the right time and I'm very satisfied with how personal of a story it felt to me. I might update this review sooner or later as... typing this out has made me realize I'm not apt at putting these feelings to words.
"Remember us.. Remember that we once lived."
Shadowbringers, to me, at its most fundamental level, is about what we leave behind after we're gone: what's remembered in the history books, and what's forgotten to time. There's a certain comfort in knowing you will be remembered, or the things you've learned will be passed on in some way or another. Its a rejection of the idea of immortality and instead a tale about the beauty of humanity's ephemeral lives. A showcase of our imperfections, our failures, and how we've come so far despite them all. We can reach a certain "immortality" through what we do, and by changing the lives around us. What better way to demonstrate this through the lens of a world on the brink of utter collapse?
Norvrandt is in stark contrast to where our heroes came from. In place of the Eorzean Alliance, fighting to live together peacefully in the face of an entourage of imperialism that is the empire, are several isolated settlements of people all equally dreading the coming end. A sense of unease permeates this land. The time for heroes is gone and there is very little hope to be found in the people. What makes Norvrandt so compelling is how each person continues to live out their final days differently. Some have already tried and failed to stop what's coming, and instead seek to spend their final days in pure bliss, surrounding themselves in luxury. Others find comfort in their work, continuing to trudge through the days through. Others come to religion for a slither of hope, finding solace in the coming afterlife. Finally, there are those few who choose to fight on, in spite of overwhelming odds. These few find courage in those from the past, the valiant heroes of old who fought tooth and nail to bring the world salvation.
Shadowbringers presents death and moving on as something with a true meaning. In a world that already suffered a deluge of death and destruction, the loss of those dearest to us are what help us grow as people. Each death meant something, big or small, and we take their memory as lessons for our own lives.
It would be hyperbole to say Shadowbringers changed my worldview drastically or anything, but it did further affirm how I feel about the idea of death. It came at the right time and I'm very satisfied with how personal of a story it felt to me. I might update this review sooner or later as... typing this out has made me realize I'm not apt at putting these feelings to words.
"Remember us.. Remember that we once lived."
Its pretty good. The story is definitely a bit of a mess and Lyse isn't really a great character but I loved Zenos so its fine. The Gyr Abania section definitely suffers but man the whole Doma part of the story kicks so much ass. Will update with how I feel about the raids when I'm done.
Omega raids were awesome. However after ruminating more on Stormblood's MSQ I think 3 stars is more appropriate in proportion to Heavensward's 4.
Omega raids were awesome. However after ruminating more on Stormblood's MSQ I think 3 stars is more appropriate in proportion to Heavensward's 4.
fun game with a killer story that overstays its welcome. having to collect all weapons to see one of its 4 main endings is silly. having to play half the game 3 to 4 times for the full context of the ending is silly. that being said, I do think the second playthrough was substantial enough to be worth existing. didn't bother with ending E because I was satisfied by that point. (didn't want to replay a portion of the game yet again)
very daring of square enix to have writers for this expansion
this fucking sucks
2022
Beat the game 3 times to get most endings. Absolutely loved it all the way. Great gameplay, stellar atmosphere, visuals, and a story I really enjoyed piecing together through the load of hints the game gives you. Became one of my favourites very quickly.
im only 30 hours in and have finished chapter 6 but i can already confidently say this is one of my favourite games of all time. will update later.
stockholm syndrome kicked in its good actually
This review contains spoilers
I honestly enjoyed this game as much as 1, despite its faults (which there are many).
Its most obvious faults are character designs that range from great to way too horny to bad (likely due to it being heavily appealed to teenage boys), hit or miss voice acting, a few plot issues as well as some gameplay choices.
Gameplay wise I enjoyed it more than the first despite the gacha mechanic being dumb and bordering on annoying. The titans explored in this entry are a lot more fleshed out with things to find and see as well as generally more involved side quests that, while a few still are here and there for padding, aren't just "go find x number of y" or "go kill x at y", which was a big improvement to me. The combat itself is really engaging once you get the hang of it. (took me 10 or so hours.) I enjoyed setting up blade combos and the customization of blades with aux cores as well as how those tie into chain attacks (which seriously improved from 1 in my opinion). The gacha mechanic really does weigh it down though. Many of the most fun blades to use are locked behind rolls upon rolls of the gacha in hopes you'll get them. It's dumb and doesn't belong in a $60 game.
This game presents itself pretty well across the board with some minor and major hinderances. As stated, the character designs can be slightly egregious to many. I honestly didn't mind Pyra and Mythra's over the top horny design but I can see why people have an issue with it and kills their immersion. Also I don't really like Rex's design until he gets a flashy new suit in the climax of the game. Other than that I generally enjoy the designs of the game, with Malos and Poppi α being personal favourites. The voice acting in this entry is also notoriously hit or miss. Rex especially is a real shame as his voice acting in this ranges from excellent to garbage, its an especially bad look after Adam Howden set such a high bar with Shulk. There's still consistently well voiced characters in this game thankfully, Zeke is great all around and I absolutely adore Malos' voice.
The music is honestly a step beyond the first's to me which is saying a LOT since I love its soundtrack. But they fucking killed it with this one. Its incredibly bombastic and memorable and its more sombre songs are also a highlight. Great battle themes to boot.
As for the story, I loved it. There are a couple things that make me question the writers but overall its characters and worldbuilding are excellently crafted with a climax that blows the first's climax out of the water. I really enjoyed how the party play off eachother's personalities and backgrounds, especially Zeke and Poppi. Poppi's subtle development throughout the game is excellent and is one of if not the best robot characters in anything I've played. Zeke also going from a comedic character to having actual story value and quickly becoming one of my favourite characters in the game by the end really surprised me. The villains in this game are excellent, each of the main three's different reasons for why they're against the main party and how it plays off the other villains is really entertaining. My issues with the story revolve around how they treat Tora, and maybe Morag aswell as Mythra. Tora has an interesting concept to his character, being an artificial driver using an artificial blade he made himself. But the writers make him out to be a complete creep, with implications that he made Poppi as some form of sex robot and that he's a huge pervert. It was fine once or twice, but it really made me hard to like him. However, what really annoys me is how he is shafted during the best part of the game. After chapter 6 or so, he hardly says anything besides "Rex-Rex" and adds nothing to the plot. This also applies to Morag but she's already super cool so I'm not as mad. With Mythra, who is a character I generally enjoyed I mainly have an issue with one moment between her and Poppi in the land of Morytha. This is when they make a "promise" in a friendly manner, however Mythra essentially manipulates Poppi into stopping Rex from saving her from committing her suicide at the end of the game. I'm not sure what the writers were going for with this, as she likely did not plan her suicide as she couldn't have known what was going to happen at Elysium, however it confuses me a lot. (sorry for the rambly section) Also, about the ending, I thought it was pretty great despite how people generally ( i think) feel about it. I think Pneuma sacrificing herself is fitting as she is willing to die in peace and is a sign of her development as a character, but at the same time Pyra and Mythra not being alive to be with Rex would be such a poor ending and defeats the point of their character in my opinion.
Overall, despite this game's issues I think its fantastic and if you liked the first game or just like JRPG's its an absolute must play, or at least worth a try.
Its most obvious faults are character designs that range from great to way too horny to bad (likely due to it being heavily appealed to teenage boys), hit or miss voice acting, a few plot issues as well as some gameplay choices.
Gameplay wise I enjoyed it more than the first despite the gacha mechanic being dumb and bordering on annoying. The titans explored in this entry are a lot more fleshed out with things to find and see as well as generally more involved side quests that, while a few still are here and there for padding, aren't just "go find x number of y" or "go kill x at y", which was a big improvement to me. The combat itself is really engaging once you get the hang of it. (took me 10 or so hours.) I enjoyed setting up blade combos and the customization of blades with aux cores as well as how those tie into chain attacks (which seriously improved from 1 in my opinion). The gacha mechanic really does weigh it down though. Many of the most fun blades to use are locked behind rolls upon rolls of the gacha in hopes you'll get them. It's dumb and doesn't belong in a $60 game.
This game presents itself pretty well across the board with some minor and major hinderances. As stated, the character designs can be slightly egregious to many. I honestly didn't mind Pyra and Mythra's over the top horny design but I can see why people have an issue with it and kills their immersion. Also I don't really like Rex's design until he gets a flashy new suit in the climax of the game. Other than that I generally enjoy the designs of the game, with Malos and Poppi α being personal favourites. The voice acting in this entry is also notoriously hit or miss. Rex especially is a real shame as his voice acting in this ranges from excellent to garbage, its an especially bad look after Adam Howden set such a high bar with Shulk. There's still consistently well voiced characters in this game thankfully, Zeke is great all around and I absolutely adore Malos' voice.
The music is honestly a step beyond the first's to me which is saying a LOT since I love its soundtrack. But they fucking killed it with this one. Its incredibly bombastic and memorable and its more sombre songs are also a highlight. Great battle themes to boot.
As for the story, I loved it. There are a couple things that make me question the writers but overall its characters and worldbuilding are excellently crafted with a climax that blows the first's climax out of the water. I really enjoyed how the party play off eachother's personalities and backgrounds, especially Zeke and Poppi. Poppi's subtle development throughout the game is excellent and is one of if not the best robot characters in anything I've played. Zeke also going from a comedic character to having actual story value and quickly becoming one of my favourite characters in the game by the end really surprised me. The villains in this game are excellent, each of the main three's different reasons for why they're against the main party and how it plays off the other villains is really entertaining. My issues with the story revolve around how they treat Tora, and maybe Morag aswell as Mythra. Tora has an interesting concept to his character, being an artificial driver using an artificial blade he made himself. But the writers make him out to be a complete creep, with implications that he made Poppi as some form of sex robot and that he's a huge pervert. It was fine once or twice, but it really made me hard to like him. However, what really annoys me is how he is shafted during the best part of the game. After chapter 6 or so, he hardly says anything besides "Rex-Rex" and adds nothing to the plot. This also applies to Morag but she's already super cool so I'm not as mad. With Mythra, who is a character I generally enjoyed I mainly have an issue with one moment between her and Poppi in the land of Morytha. This is when they make a "promise" in a friendly manner, however Mythra essentially manipulates Poppi into stopping Rex from saving her from committing her suicide at the end of the game. I'm not sure what the writers were going for with this, as she likely did not plan her suicide as she couldn't have known what was going to happen at Elysium, however it confuses me a lot. (sorry for the rambly section) Also, about the ending, I thought it was pretty great despite how people generally ( i think) feel about it. I think Pneuma sacrificing herself is fitting as she is willing to die in peace and is a sign of her development as a character, but at the same time Pyra and Mythra not being alive to be with Rex would be such a poor ending and defeats the point of their character in my opinion.
Overall, despite this game's issues I think its fantastic and if you liked the first game or just like JRPG's its an absolute must play, or at least worth a try.
for how long it was it was really impactful. finished in under 4 hours.
2020
story doesnt do anything new but what it does it does quite well
Fantastic gameplay and story is great. I love jack.