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GAME: Time and Eternity

enurtsol wrote:

It hasn't got good reviews even on RPG sites like RPGamer and RPG Fan.

Neither did Neptunia or other similar 'moe anime' RPGs with sizable fanbases. Just because they're RPG sites and may like parental approved kid-friendly Ghibli adventure like Ni No Kuni doesn't mean they still can't switch to think-of-the-fictional-children mode when they see other anime games with fanservice and stuff. Being an 'RPG site' makes no real difference in that regard.

No, the goal posts have to be moved. Soon these games can't be reviewed by anyone, because no ones opinion is objective enough.

But it's funny, I rather read a review from someone who isn't some super diehard fan, because they probably will be more fair then that who would basically forgive every flaw because the character has red hair and that's cute plus a popular voice actor voices her.

the fanserivice is tasteless and creepy(which of course would be a good reason to dock the game,

For one thing, the two heroines rarely get past stereotypes. Red-haired Toki is a pleasant, reasonable royal, blonde Towa is a temperamental brawler who occasionally drops her guard, and it's no surprise when the game ties them both to insipid fantasy-wife fulfillment. Meanwhile, Zack plays the part of the pervy dullard in one of those anime comedies seemingly written by and for 12-year-old boys who want to see naked women without entirely understanding why. It's a strange mixture of the risqué and the chaste, right down to our hero hatching wet T-shirt fantasies about the woman he's going to marry.

Time and Eternity leads nowhere interesting, as time-travel clichés are exhumed and dull supporting characters flit in and out. There is a germ of novelty in the idea of two minds struggling to control one form, but it's never explored beyond a sexist fantasy of getting two wives for the price of one.

configspace wrote:

That said, having not played the game yet, but seeing and reading about it, and following the hype, I believe some of the criticism after filtering out the hyperbole. This is my take: Pros: - anime aesthetic and story Cons: - clunky, limited, repetitive animation - clunky, very limited mechanics, limited environment, boring gameplay

As someone who has played the game before the US release (I own the JP version and it's pretty straightforward to play without needing to be fluent in Japanese), I can agree with this. Do I find it fun? Sure, even though some of it bugs the hell out of me. Is it rough around the edges? Yes, quite rough...the game certainly needs some more polish. It's a great concept that I hope, one day, another one can be made on a better budget.

Animation - I like it even though its clunky. Reminds me of old SEGA CD games like the opening of Popful Mail or Time Gal. The lip-syncing problem is pretty funny though (dunno if NISA fixed that in the English dub). I do agree that the limited number of animations can get rather boring.

Gameplay - Sure it's repetitive (a lot of games are repetitive though - interesting/good gameplay does ease on that) and I can see why some people can be turned off by it. The battle system is pretty neat, but they can be longer than what they should be which can be annoying (why do I have face 4 of the same powerful enemies with attack patterns that extend the battle?). The skills system isn't bad though.

To me, the game has an old-school charm to it. I grew up on RPGs so I can look past the flaws and enjoy it since it's pretty traditional just with a sort of modern coating on it.

Do you not understand that we don't know how NISA allocated the print run or how large it was?

I'm pretty sure they're talking about the LE, which 1) Can't be bought from another retailer and 2) Did sell out at their store before the release date

Sure, you can still get new copies of NISA games from other places, but their LE stock selling out is likely a good indicator for NISA. Maybe not it terms of a general release, but with the gamers they are trying to reach.

It doesn't dock the game based on execution, but rather docks the game based on intent. And the people who are served by Kotaku's review will not buy the game regardless, unless the entire design changes, therefore these kinds of "let's dock or heavily pan some media because I find A, B, C offensive" wind up being a useless review (at least without filtering such hyperbole out).

Has it ever occurred to you that these reviews help readers decided that title x is not, in fact, for them? Now personally, I took one look at the design aesthetic in Dragon Crown and ran the crap away as it clear was not for me. On the other hand, I probably wouldn't have bought Neptunia or Cross Edge had I paid attention to reviews prior to preordering (I basically pre-order any JRPG that NISA puts out). The idea that a review should only provide the perspective of those who will end up liking it is silly (and I say this as someone who does not generally find much value in reviews).

For these types of games, you likely know if you are the target audience way before any review you read. No matter how glowing a review is, if you hate fanservice and cute anime girls you'd avoid the Neptunias and Time & Eternitys since they are aimed a niche demographic. Thats why for stuff like this the only reputable reviews are people IN that niche demographic since everyone else will hate it regardless.

RyanSaotome wrote:

For these types of games, you likely know if you are the target audience way before any review you read. No matter how glowing a review is, if you hate fanservice and cute anime girls you'd avoid the Neptunias and Time & Eternitys since they are aimed a niche demographic. Thats why for stuff like this the only reputable reviews are people IN that niche demographic since everyone else will hate it regardless.

What you're ignoring is that it's entirely possible to be in the demographic that likes cute anime girls and still hate a specific game. Which is why the same rpgamer reviewer who was criticized earlier for their time and eternity review gave the arland trilogy such high scores. Personally, I've been looking forward to time and eternity since it was announced in Japan. However, everything I've read makes it sound like zac is the worst male lead since lyner from ar tonelico. While I do have some friends that really enjoyed the combat aspect, they have been many other issues raised that make me wonder if I bought a dud. not liking a specific game about cute girls doesn't mean you hate the genre.

This game has the most generic modern anime art style I've ever seen. If I saw those characters designs in a new season preview chart I'd immediately resolve to not watch it.

Edit: I just watched a video of this to see what Todd was talking about with the animation, and dear God it looks hideous. It's like watching a super low-budget zero-effort anime that's been converted into Flash, circa 2005.

Quote:

It applies similarly to Dragon's Crown (see Kotaku and other like minded sites) and likewise here. One needs to filter out Todd's entire anti-fanservice paragraph--something that again, would be seen as a Pro rather than a Con--to get to pertinent criticisms.

No his point was that the Sorceress was completely unnecessary and retarded. She wasn't even hot, god damn, just grotesque.

Your dick doesn't need to be satisfied every second to enjoy a game. At the very least, Neptunia's characters are sexually attractive.

For these types of games, you likely know if you are the target audience way before any review you read. No matter how glowing a review is, if you hate fanservice and cute anime girls you'd avoid the Neptunias and Time & Eternitys since they are aimed a niche demographic. Thats why for stuff like this the only reputable reviews are people IN that niche demographic since everyone else will hate it regardless.