Author Topic: So does Johnny Depp know... (Read 5774 times)

jonhammstein · « **Reply #30 on:** Nov 12, 2016, 02:19:18 PM »

I tried emulating Chrono years later, but I just couldn't get into it. I watched a friend of mine play through some of it, and he showed me an enemy called a "tubster", which we found endlessly amusing. It was a long, long time before that one fell out of use.

I'm finally playing FFVI after all these years. The Steam version. Have you seen it? Apparently it's a port of the mobile version, and a lot of people were upset about the "updated" graphics. I think it's probably the most convenient way for me to experience it at this point though, and I don't really mind the altered sprites. And the hi-res character portraits are pretty nice, honestly.

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #31 on:** Nov 13, 2016, 09:04:46 AM »

There was a Chrono Trigger port for DS some time back that had a new translation. If I had a DS I'd have bought it, but as such I just bought a copy for my niece when she got a DS. But the Android/Apple port was reportedly asstastic. Seeing as I maxed out all characters on the PSX port with its horrid load times, I've proven my ability to overcome convenience issues with games I really like. But this is coming from someone who has on his bucket list acquiring or constructing a full arcade cabinet of Ms. Pacman.

As for FFVI, I never got into Final Fantasy, mainly because I've never been into RPGs that much. CT was a major exception, and I only played through and beat Dragon Warrior/Quest 1 because I got a free copy of it with my Nintendo Power subscription back in the day.

B E C K · « **Reply #32 on:** Nov 13, 2016, 12:59:17 PM »

Yeah, the retro NES looks cool and all but I was all "okay, but why?" I guess if you have a hard-on for the look of it, it scratches that itch. Or, uh, "rubs that out." Pwft!

Hey, joe, try playing CT again and name everybody after one of us. I think I've done that a couple of times with CT and FF. It's fun. But, yeah, in terms of JRPGs, it's actually super short so it'll probably be easier to play than tackling FF6. (You only add more time if you choose to replay it with Game+, which is pretty cool because you're just replaying the whole game and keeping all your shit.)

I admit, I never finished FF6. I always got to the end with the giant tower full of shit and I got bored. There's sooo many playable characters in FF6. Like, they were pulling a MCU before the MCU existed. Who did we really need: Terra, Locke, rune girl, hot brothers, and Ninjerk. I mean, that was, like, it, right? Did we also need monster, cute monster, old fart, child of ninjerk, feral nell, sir dead-family, weirdo, and fucking gambler? I mean, we needed gambler's ship but we didn't need him to come with it. At least with FF4 we get Cecil Maincharacter, Rosa Sparks, spear guy, she-grew-up-fast, and Prince Ninjerk with everyone else fuckin' off at the end. Oh, well, they were trying something different with FF6. I can respect that. I'm looking at it in major retrospect anyway.

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #33 on:** Nov 13, 2016, 09:14:55 PM »

The NES Classic is undone by it's 3 foot controller wire. WTCHOP is that crap all about? My setup has wireless controllers.

Anyway, CT is a classic. Even the admittedly goofy localization we got is charming. It didn't really play like a standard RPG for me, which is why I bothered. I remember the weekend I played it the first time back in 2000. I started on a Thursday afternoon, played all night, went to class Friday, came back and played it until Sunday night when I beat it. Fun time.

B E C K · « **Reply #34 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 06:27:36 AM »

I remember one of my cousins bringing CT over to our house and Merla was actually the one who was all "hey, hey, wot's this? can's we borrow it?" I've always like to watch people playing video games more so than me actually playing them myself but I actually wasn't interested in this one until Merla played it. I was kinda bummed at the time to find that CT was unusual to its genre. I came across this article a couple of days ago where someone was all "why has CT endured, there are better RPGs" but, yeah, the whole "it didn't play like a standard RPG" was a huge part of the appeal. I tried, like, Breath of Fire (forget which one) and a few others and I found the experience really boring. Similarly, FF7 never appealed to me and, by disc 3 or so, I was done with FF8. I watched a playthrough of FF13 and just YUCK.

I did, however, have one experience similar to what you're describing with FF4. This guy in my high school accounting class recommended it to me and I just loved that game so much I blitzed through it. To this day, I don't remember that dude's name at all. Just that he liked Journey, FF, and was a bit of a creeper to me and my friends and kept trying to touch our shoulders.

B E C K · « **Reply #35 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 06:32:16 AM »

Quote from: Rodent of Unusual Size on Nov 13, 2016, 09:14:55 PM

The NES Classic is undone by it's 3 foot controller wire. WTCHOP is that crap all about? My setup has wireless controllers.

3ft? What the fuck is anyone gonna do with that? My current set-up has my TV 4ft off the ground and 5ft away from my bed or chair. I'd have to move the NES to a tray table or something. Man, even the cord length went back to 1985.

jonhammstein · « **Reply #36 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 10:35:35 AM »

Thinking about it some more, maybe I did play through a lot of CT myself, but it was a long time ago. I think I made it to Lavos and gave up, because I didn't feel like powet leveling in order to stand a chance. A lot of my JRPG experiences ended like that. Final dungeon/boss, quit.

jonhammstein · « **Reply #37 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 10:41:58 AM »

That actually reminds me of a couple particularly bitter experiences I had on the PS1 -- the original Persona and Breath of Fire III. I really, really liked both of those games, but upon reaching the end bosses in each, I realized there was no conceivable way for me to defeat either of them. Like, it wasn't even realistic. That's something I've always despised about JRPGs -- the end game grind. Typically by the time I had reached that point, I just wanted the game to be over, and there was no way I was going to run around in circles for hours on end just to beef up my characters.

I used to be crazy for JRPGs, but having that same thing happen to me over and over eventually killed my interest almost completely.

B E C K · « **Reply #38 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 04:55:32 PM »

Quote from: joerammstein on Nov 14, 2016, 10:35:35 AM

Thinking about it some more, maybe I did play through a lot of CT myself, but it was a long time ago. I think I made it to Lavos and gave up, because I didn't feel like powet leveling in order to stand a chance. A lot of my JRPG experiences ended like that. Final dungeon/boss, quit.

No way. Fighting Lavos was the most fun shit ever.

Quote

That actually reminds me of a couple particularly bitter experiences I had on the PS1 -- the original Persona and Breath of Fire III. I really, really liked both of those games, but upon reaching the end bosses in each, I realized there was no conceivable way for me to defeat either of them. Like, it wasn't even realistic. That's something I've always despised about JRPGs -- the end game grind. Typically by the time I had reached that point, I just wanted the game to be over, and there was no way I was going to run around in circles for hours on end just to beef up my characters.

I used to be crazy for JRPGs, but having that same thing happen to me over and over eventually killed my interest almost completely.

Can't really disagree with you. CT's actually pretty friendly when it comes to leveling up tho'. There's only so much you can do and then you're maxed. You don't even need to be at max level to stomp all over everyone in a Game+. I can't imagine being maxed on any other game I've played. But yeah, I get you.

Not a jrpg, but I remember playing away at Alundra for years. I liked the feel and the general gist of it. I just played a bit of it at a time whenever the mood struck me. By that time I had work, was online, I think I had started up school again, so I wasn't gonna be playing every day or even every week. Then I reached the end and the end boss felt impossible. After I tried a bunch of times to beat him (or even to reach him again), it was like, meh, "fuck this. I had a lot of fun playing but I don't care to finish this."

jonhammstein · « **Reply #39 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 08:26:33 PM »

Alundra is another one I tried and failed to get into on multiple occasions. I was initially interested in it because it looked like it could scratch that LttP itch, but it wasn't quite there. I don't know that I progressed much beyond the first dungeon. It had some nice visuals, unlike its sequel, which went full-on polygon. Barf.

Another PS1 JRPG I remember playing was Thousand Arms. It had these low-res line art sprites that looked pretty sweet back then. It was a little odd, you were this anime dude with various anime chicks in your party, and you would go on dates with them to powet them up and unlock new battle abilities. At the time I felt like a lech for playing it, but in retrospect it was super tame. Can't remember if I ever finished it either.

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #40 on:** Nov 14, 2016, 09:44:37 PM »

There were only a couple places you could really grind on CT. One of the sidequests that took place in the future was a grind level, and if you played the Black Omen from the future and beat it three times you could amass lots of experience and items. I remember snagging tons of Megaelixiers by equipping Ayla with the Charm Top and charming the Ruminators in the Omen. This was always funny to me, since it was basically Ayla flashing monsters for item drops.

B E C K · « **Reply #41 on:** Nov 15, 2016, 04:55:43 AM »

Hmmm, cave chick using her body for items. Wow, it really is the oldest profession in the world. Still irritated that there wasn't an alt ending where Schala is saved. Things that make me angry about CT in order from angriest to plain hmmph:

1. Chrono Cross
2. The PS1 ending cinema to CT that shows everyone is fucked even though you saved the world and might've gotten one of the good endings
3. Not being able to save Schala

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #42 on:** Nov 15, 2016, 06:43:27 PM »

1. I never played Chrono Cross, as I hated watching the horrid 3D graphics that were the norm in the PSX generation.
2. The PSX version of CT was a travesty. Even playing the same disc via emulator is a pain in the cock, as the load times are actually hard coded. Even the Classics version on PS3 has it.
3. I take it you don't buy the idea that Schala = Kid?

B E C K · « **Reply #43 on:** Nov 16, 2016, 04:07:18 AM »

Quote from: Rodent of Unusual Size on Nov 15, 2016, 06:43:27 PM

1. I never played Chrono Cross, as I hated watching the horrid 3D graphics that were the norm in the PSX generation.
2. The PSX version of CT was a travesty. Even playing the same disc via emulator is a pain in the cock, as the load times are actually hard coded. Even the Classics version on PS3 has it.
3. I take it you don't buy the idea that Schala = Kid?

1. Yeah, I never actually played it because I hated it everything about the look of it.
2. I know this is heresy of some sort, but I never really noticed the difference.
3. Nope. Also don't like Kid. Also, if I accept her as Schala, then I have to accept all the other crap that happened to the beloved CT cast. In Beck-canon, CC never happened.

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #44 on:** Nov 16, 2016, 09:07:10 PM »

1. Yeah. I wish they'd moved from SNES/Genesis straight to Dreamcast era.
2. If you ever play one and then play the other, it's not just noticeable: it's jarring.
3. All I know is what I've read. Since I never played it, I don't care either way. They copyrighted "Chrono Break" a while back, but they let it lapse, along with hopes for a new sequel that might possibly iron things out.

jonhammstein · « **Reply #45 on:** Nov 16, 2016, 09:45:54 PM »

I think I finished Cross, probably not the true ending though. It's not a bad game, in fact it's quite good, but as the follow-up to a beloved classic, it fails miserably. It's really nothing like Trigger, at all.

Almost as if...

"What did people enjoy about Chrono Trigger?"
"Well, probably this, this, this, this, and this."
"I see, I see. We'll put none of that in Chrono Cross!"
"Uh..."
"NONE OF IT!!!"

I loved the PS1 era, warts and all.

B E C K · « **Reply #46 on:** Nov 17, 2016, 05:56:16 AM »

^ Yeah, that. In all fairness to CC, I heard it was actually good game on its own. But if you're approaching it from wanting "CT feels," there's a whole world of disappointment in it.

Quote

If you ever play one and then play the other, it's not just noticeable: it's jarring.

I have but I think I did it with so many years in between that I never noticed. I do recall now that I had noticed some lag with a couple of the big fights. Like with Son of Sun and Lavos. But I just so happy to playing CT again that I brushed it off.

I love how a Johnny Depp topic became something so much better. Hey, guys, remember that group or something that wanted to remake CT in 3D and Square all "no >=("

jonhammstein · « **Reply #47 on:** Nov 17, 2016, 10:27:48 AM »

I remember Magus' character model, but not much else. Wonder how far along they actually were?

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #48 on:** Nov 17, 2016, 07:20:25 PM »

There was a demo out at one point.

As for a comparison between the original and PSX versions:

jonhammstein · « **Reply #49 on:** Nov 17, 2016, 11:22:52 PM »

I remember they pushed it pretty hard when it came out, TV ads and everything. The commercial showed off most of the game's flashiest moments, then ended with this obviously ultra-Japanese dude simply stating, "Ku-lo-no... Tu-li-ga..."

B E C K · « **Reply #50 on:** Nov 18, 2016, 03:56:23 AM »

I see the lag now but sadly I guess I got used to it for the most part. I certainly would've been frustrated if I went from playing the SNES to the PS1 version immediately. But I think it helped that time went by and I just dug playing the game again so much that I didn't notice. Plus, the PS1 in general seemed a little laggy to me. You know, waiting for that disc to spin and load the next thingy. I remember playing games on my PS1 and thinking "there was none of this Loading... Loading... Loading... bullshit on cartridge games."

jonhammstein · « **Reply #51 on:** Nov 18, 2016, 10:44:29 AM »

The load times on the PS1 port of FFVI are egregious. Every time you enter or exit a battle there's this slow wipe effect, and it eventually just devours your soul.

B E C K · « **Reply #52 on:** Jun 03, 2022, 08:51:10 AM »

I believed Johnny Depp 5 1/2 years before it was cool! Where's my prize?

jonhammstein · « **Reply #53 on:** Jun 03, 2022, 05:47:13 PM »

I'm still fairly confident that Johnny Depp is probably a dirt bag, and I think Green Ambler Heard simply overreached when she tried to drag him. Like, she basically went all in and attempted to burn his life to the ground... and it came back to bite her.

I have no doubt that these two treated each other like absolute shit when they were together.

jonhammstein · « **Reply #54 on:** Jun 03, 2022, 06:02:24 PM »

Oh shit, I found the ad, and the the whole thing is in Japanese and cheekily mistranslated in the subtitles:

B E C K · « **Reply #55 on:** Jun 03, 2022, 08:53:39 PM »

Dream Project. Dragonball's Akira Toriyama. Dragon Quest's Yuji Horii. Final Fantasy's Sakaguchi Hironobu. Boku no yume something something. Square Soft. That was a real commercial that aired like that? I wouldn't know just because I only first ever heard of Chrono Trigger through my cousins, who loaned us their copy. I never saw or took note of any media advertising it at the time.

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #56 on:** Jun 04, 2022, 05:52:40 PM »

Johnny should have just reminded himself what kind of world he was going to leave for his father Keith Richards to live in when he's gone. The Green Ambler Heard relationship would have never progressed to the point it did. Just another example of why overgrown children shouldn't breed.

Anyway...hey, did anyone chell out the new Chrono Cross remaster? I'm kind of on the fence about trying it out.

B E C K · « **Reply #57 on:** Jun 05, 2022, 02:27:14 PM »

I saw this one article about a PI that was supposed to find dirt on Johnny and he was all, "no dirt other than his friends horribly use him." No shit, Magnum. Doug Stanhope already admitted as much when he was all "we didn't want to get thrown outta the ciiiiiircle!!!"

Quote from: Rodent of Unusual Size on Jun 04, 2022, 05:52:40 PM

Anyway...hey, did anyone chell out the new Chrono Cross remaster? I'm kind of on the fence about trying it out.

Coincidentally, my disappointment at not getting a proper Chrono sequel has also been remastered in high def using footage from the original 1996 masters.

Rodent of Unusual Size · « **Reply #58 on:** Jun 06, 2022, 09:42:51 PM »

From what I've seen the "remaster" consists of up-scaled but muddied graphics with new portrait art. I just don't get why Square Enix seems to hate the Chrono series so much...no quality remakes, very shoddy reissues (with the exception of the DS release), and fierce resistance to fan productions.

B E C K · « **Reply #59 on:** Jun 07, 2022, 12:18:26 AM »

I think the "dream team" needed to get back together to make the magic work again. Which is sort of sad to say because being to able to piggyback on the elements required should be a no-brainer:

-a character designer/creator to make memorable-looking characters
-music ranging from light-hearted, fun, touching, and series
-interesting scenarios; CT had time-travel. A sequel could be a sort of Groundhog Day scenario, evil clones, and/or reincarnation.
-loads of "fantastical" elements, i.e. CT had dinosaurs, robots, magical creatures, and aliens in the same game.

And I'm not saying it should be easy as any sort of knock on Toriyama, Sakaguchi, or Horii. I just think for whatever reason(s), Square didn't care about getting the proper talent together to make it happen. They tried with Chrono Cross. I'll admit that much. But none of it looks remotely appealing.