My passion has always been for obscure Japanese RPGs, particularly for the PlayStation. I could share these games, and my feelings on them, with the world. It would be epic! Such was the sheer thrill of this idea that in moments, the decision was made. My father informed me, succinctly, that I was nuts. He was, of course, correct. But he took it in stride in his usual manner, all smirking aside, and let me tread my own course. My mother embraced it with open-armed enthusiasm, which is her usual manner. Years ago, she sat watching me play Wild Arms Advanced Third for hours while I practiced my translating on her, during which she developed an eternal dislike for Jeinasu that is really quite endearing. So I have complete support there, regardless of the logistics of this plan.
So here we are, little gray console at the ready,
and a stack of games to be canvassed. Most of them are obscure, which is the
true point of this blog, but some of them will be quite familiar. I’m not
setting out with the intention to review the Final Fantasies and the Dragon
Quests of the world because that has been done to death, however if they should
come up, so be it. After all, Final Fantasy IX was the first PlayStation RPG
that I imported, and I must be fair to such a great series. But my heart lies
more with the obscure and the underappreciated, those that weren’t well known
in the west or, worse yet, never saw our shores at all. I may even deviate from
the PlayStation occasionally, should the mood strike me, but never fear, this
blog will always be primarily dedicated to Sony’s first console and the RPGs
that spun in it.
For those who want to know a little bit about me, I’m an American woman who was born and raised in northeastern Pennsylvania. I’ve been a gamer for my entire life. I started with Pong and the Atari 2600, with a few computer games sprinkled into the mix. My parents bought me an SNES when I was about twelve years old, and my life changed forever. From then on, I knew that gaming would be an important part of my life. Then came the PlayStation, and the many consoles that have followed in it’s wake. It’s been an amazing journey so far, and I’d like to share a little bit of it with you.
For those who want to know a little bit about me, I’m an American woman who was born and raised in northeastern Pennsylvania. I’ve been a gamer for my entire life. I started with Pong and the Atari 2600, with a few computer games sprinkled into the mix. My parents bought me an SNES when I was about twelve years old, and my life changed forever. From then on, I knew that gaming would be an important part of my life. Then came the PlayStation, and the many consoles that have followed in it’s wake. It’s been an amazing journey so far, and I’d like to share a little bit of it with you.
WA Advanced Third is one of my all-time favourites. It was a dream come true to finally do a play-through in Japanese earlier this year. I'd love to see your blog updated again - it's hard for me to imagine there are other people in PA who actually play these games in Japanese.
ReplyDeletePeople who game in Japanese in Pennsylvania seem to be a rare breed. It's nice to know that I'm not alone! I still love Wild Arms; I wish they'd bring the series back. I may come back to this blog someday should the writing bug strike me. Your kind words are certainly a motivator!
DeleteHave you heard of Armed Fantasia? It's the name of Kaneko-san's upcoming crowdfunded project. Apparently he had already approached Sony (among other publishers) with the idea, but was told that traditional JRPGs without an established name don't sell anymore; as a result, he and Shadow Hearts director Matida Matuzou launched a so-called "Double Kickstarter". I have yet to back them, since I'm not sure if I'll even own any of the consoles the game is scheduled to release on, but it is definitely very interesting! It's hard not to feel a pang of nostalgia when reading the tagline on the official website: "荒野と口笛".
DeleteI'm not sure how much you follow modern gaming - I myself was adamant about not going beyond the PS2 until about four years ago when I moved back to PA and my cousin gifted me with a PS4. As much fun as it has been exploring what I've been missing over the past decade and a half since I finished Odin Sphere (the last "new game" I played - just to give you an idea), it was sad to discover that Sony has changed so much since those days. Honestly, had they even accepted Kaneko-san's proposal, they may have very well pushed him away from a traditional RPG. It's really a far cry from the Sony of the PS1 and PS2 days, which seemed willing to publish all sorts of games regardless of genre - no matter how far off the beaten path they were. Even today, there are so many times that I find myself learning about something new they put their name from those console generations.
That said, despite how much I love Advanced Third, I have yet to delve into the other Wild Arms games. I ran through the demo of 2nd Ignition and was amazed by just how well-written the characters were - it really reminded me a lot of WA3. That's not to mention all the other games (among which RPGs constitute a sizable amount) that are still diligently waiting on my shelf...
I hadn't heard of it, but I certainly will be giving it a look. Thanks for the heads up. It's sad to see traditional RPGs being sidelined so much in recent years. It made me smile to hear you mention Odin Sphere. That's a favorite with me.
DeleteOh, Odin Sphere is without a doubt one of my all-time favourites! I was very moved by it when I played it back then, and it is one I'm very much anticipating revisiting in its original language in the near future.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Vanillaware and Kamitani-san's games, have you played 13 Sentinels (十三機兵防衛圏) yet? I only just finished it myself a little over a week ago. While the gameplay portion is closer to something like a hybrid of a classic Japanese adventure game and Grimgrimoire (a game that, now having finished the demo, I regret having missed out back when it was new), its visual style and innovative approach to storytelling reminded me so much of Odin Sphere, as did its stellar voice acting and music, which was also done by Basiscape.
Here's a quote from Producer Yamamoto Akiyasu that sums up my thoughts perfectly: "『オディンスフィア』のときから僕は、「こんなド直球で愛を語るシナリオってあるか？」と思っていましたが、『十三機兵』にはそれらの倍以上の主人公がいて、それぞれの愛憎が入り乱れているさまが描かれています。... ゲームというメディアに限らず、いろいろな創作物の中で、ここまでの視点で、ここまでのボリュームで、ここまで広く深い愛を提示している作品がほかにありますか？僕はないと思うんです！"
Highly recommended!
Oooh, that was on my ‘to play at some point' list, now it’s zoomed to the top, dang! I’m here for it! Odin Sphere in Japanese is a joy from start to finish, especially if you pick up the PS4 Leifthrasir version. It’s gorgeous.
Delete^_^ I'm sure you'll appreciate the similarities between it and Odin Sphere. If there ever was a game I wish I could forget so I could experience it again for the first time... >_< I look forward to reading your thoughts about it!
DeleteI do have Leifthrasir, but I think I'll first dig into Vanillaware's origins with Grimgrimoire and Princess Crown... I'm especially interested in spotting the similarities between Princess Crown and Odin Sphere.
I can understand why. Their worldbuilding is stellar, so it would certainly be a fun project to see how it grew and changed through their earlier works. I've just about convinced myself that it's time to give Odin Sphere a (Third? Fourth?) playthrough, as I can't talk about it this much without having another run. Argh.
DeleteI would love to hear your thoughts about it whenever you do revisit it! At the risk of being too forward, my email: poste(period)electronique(at-sign)[the Google-owned mail server]. Hopefully that avoids me from getting flagged by too much spam... It'd be great to continue conversing.
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