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- Square Enix
- I like the Tales games, so Namco I guess? I don't really see them as an "RPG company" though. And I hated Abyss, so...
- Game Freak (So basically Pokemon. Though I see Pokemon as sort of being its own genre.)
And after playing Xenoblade, Monolith Soft is definitely on my radar, and I'm looking forward to X next year.
- I like the Tales games, so Namco I guess? I don't really see them as an "RPG company" though. And I hated Abyss, so...
- Game Freak (So basically Pokemon. Though I see Pokemon as sort of being its own genre.)
And after playing Xenoblade, Monolith Soft is definitely on my radar, and I'm looking forward to X next year.
Likes:
Wazi the pa
Monolith Soft.
Usually from Monolith Soft I expect Tetsuya Takahashi (so, that means awesome super-deep worldbuilding, an interesting plot, some wacky philosophical stuff, and more likely than not robotic girls and mechs).
A lot made sense to me when I noticed that Takahashi worked on Chrono Trigger and FFVI, two of my other favorite games, before he went on to make his own. He hasn't gotten the same recognition that Sakaguchi and Nomura have, but he is one of the best remaining RPG Designers, definitely. He has a very particular style that not everyone likes, but I've loved all his stuff so far.
Also Squaresoft. While I don't know if all their games are "good" (they had a period where they were putting out tons of non-FF games that were often unfinished), they are interesting experiences. I always wonder what SaGa Frontier would have been like if it had all the story content finished because I really enjoyed that game (awesome OST!!), though it was often confusing. Wish it was available on PSN.
I tend to enjoy a lot of Atlus games, too, but mostly of the MegaTen and Persona variety.
Usually from Monolith Soft I expect Tetsuya Takahashi (so, that means awesome super-deep worldbuilding, an interesting plot, some wacky philosophical stuff, and more likely than not robotic girls and mechs).
A lot made sense to me when I noticed that Takahashi worked on Chrono Trigger and FFVI, two of my other favorite games, before he went on to make his own. He hasn't gotten the same recognition that Sakaguchi and Nomura have, but he is one of the best remaining RPG Designers, definitely. He has a very particular style that not everyone likes, but I've loved all his stuff so far.
Also Squaresoft. While I don't know if all their games are "good" (they had a period where they were putting out tons of non-FF games that were often unfinished), they are interesting experiences. I always wonder what SaGa Frontier would have been like if it had all the story content finished because I really enjoyed that game (awesome OST!!), though it was often confusing. Wish it was available on PSN.
I tend to enjoy a lot of Atlus games, too, but mostly of the MegaTen and Persona variety.
I’d love to say Monolithsoft. Were they to release a new game tomorrow, I am far, far more likely to pick it up almost immediately at full price without too much intensive deliberation. Ordinarily I’d refrain from giving any company my money straight away when they've only produced one project I've enjoyed (and that is because I have never played any other Monolith game, no Baten Kaitos or Xenosaga), but I think they’ve earned that after producing Xenoblade. To this day it remains one of my favourite RPGs and games of all time, and the game I have dedicated the most time, attention and love to all of last generation. Is one game enough to come to the mentality that this company cannot do anything wrong? Absolutely not. Even the seemingly infallible can stumble in the most conspicuous of ways, and one output of theirs I have loved may not necessarily mean their future and other past outputs would generate the same feeling. But Xenoblade X is looking like a stellar follow-up to its spiritual predecessor, and I love what I'm seeing.
BioWare I am currently not too sure about. If you came to me sometime after Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2 were released and asked how I would rate this Canadian developer, I would have enthusiastically stated that they can do virtually no wrong at this point. If folks like Casey Hudson (he has left, I know) state that X will be the case, I would have has little reason to question him on that and expect Y instead. But then, Dragon Age 2 and the lies of Mass Effect 3 appeared, and I'm starting to have doubts for a BioWare that - I dunno - must be under the tight stranglehold of EA that things turned out the way they did. I am looking forward to Inquisition, their next IP, and I am most definitely looking forward to the next Mass Effect, so I am transparently lying if I claim I haven't got BioWare included on my special list somewhere, but it’s depressing to think that no Jade Empire or the likes of it would be made in this day and age. Not when the conglomerate masters at EA is fixated on the belief that an RPG inspired by strange foreign cultures will never strike it big and sell gazillions.
Obsidian is a strange one. They are not known for creating the most technically accomplished and tight, fluid experiences of their triple-A contemporaries, but their games typically possess stronger writing. You notice that when you play Fallout: New Vegas after Fallout 3, Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer, KOTOR 2’s characters and writing next to the first KOTOR’s. Philosophical exploration of motivations are more present, as most notably in KOTOR 2’s case, the deconstruction of the banality of black-white morality. Alpha Protocol meanwhile, is a case of intriguing ideas, but disappointing execution. A case of well-intended ambitions, albeit perhaps too lofty ones. It’s a shame that it never launched as a franchise from thereon; it is easily one of the more underrated little gems of last generation precisely because after a series of technically polished but “safe” games, it’s just as good to sit down with one that while unrefined, has tried to be eye-catchingly different. I really hope Obsidian has another crack at something like it, but Pillars of Eternity doesn't appear to be it.
Oh, and, if Square-Enix announced Dragon Quest XI (with intention to release it outside of Japan), and Dragon Quest VII for 3DS, I will likely pick them up without question. In fact, I dunno whether this is admirable, or silly, but I've decided to pick up as many Dragon Quest games from iOS as I can (bar VIII, which allegedly runs like crap on the newest iPads, let alone on my first generation Mini) just to support their western push. I realise many people have qualms and quandaries when it comes to mobile platforms, but as long as we are GETTING Dragon Quest games, I will support it. So on that front, I do have Square-Enix on the list too. Final Fantasy? Eehhhhh. Kingdom Hearts? I have to get into that series first.
BioWare I am currently not too sure about. If you came to me sometime after Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2 were released and asked how I would rate this Canadian developer, I would have enthusiastically stated that they can do virtually no wrong at this point. If folks like Casey Hudson (he has left, I know) state that X will be the case, I would have has little reason to question him on that and expect Y instead. But then, Dragon Age 2 and the lies of Mass Effect 3 appeared, and I'm starting to have doubts for a BioWare that - I dunno - must be under the tight stranglehold of EA that things turned out the way they did. I am looking forward to Inquisition, their next IP, and I am most definitely looking forward to the next Mass Effect, so I am transparently lying if I claim I haven't got BioWare included on my special list somewhere, but it’s depressing to think that no Jade Empire or the likes of it would be made in this day and age. Not when the conglomerate masters at EA is fixated on the belief that an RPG inspired by strange foreign cultures will never strike it big and sell gazillions.
Obsidian is a strange one. They are not known for creating the most technically accomplished and tight, fluid experiences of their triple-A contemporaries, but their games typically possess stronger writing. You notice that when you play Fallout: New Vegas after Fallout 3, Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer, KOTOR 2’s characters and writing next to the first KOTOR’s. Philosophical exploration of motivations are more present, as most notably in KOTOR 2’s case, the deconstruction of the banality of black-white morality. Alpha Protocol meanwhile, is a case of intriguing ideas, but disappointing execution. A case of well-intended ambitions, albeit perhaps too lofty ones. It’s a shame that it never launched as a franchise from thereon; it is easily one of the more underrated little gems of last generation precisely because after a series of technically polished but “safe” games, it’s just as good to sit down with one that while unrefined, has tried to be eye-catchingly different. I really hope Obsidian has another crack at something like it, but Pillars of Eternity doesn't appear to be it.
Oh, and, if Square-Enix announced Dragon Quest XI (with intention to release it outside of Japan), and Dragon Quest VII for 3DS, I will likely pick them up without question. In fact, I dunno whether this is admirable, or silly, but I've decided to pick up as many Dragon Quest games from iOS as I can (bar VIII, which allegedly runs like crap on the newest iPads, let alone on my first generation Mini) just to support their western push. I realise many people have qualms and quandaries when it comes to mobile platforms, but as long as we are GETTING Dragon Quest games, I will support it. So on that front, I do have Square-Enix on the list too. Final Fantasy? Eehhhhh. Kingdom Hearts? I have to get into that series first.
I feel similarly about Bioware, but I still have a lot of faith in them. Was Dragon Age 2 better than Dragon Age: Origins? Not by a long shot, but they were willing to try new things, experiment with new story-telling strategies and gameplay mechanics. Same with ME3. I was disappointed by a lot of aspects of the game, much like everybody else, but I'm glad that they listened and acted on the overwhelming response from the fans. I think Fleur is right to suggest that they've been gimped by EA in certain respects -- EA is a company whose philosophy I do not like -- but that doesn't mean there's anything wrong with Bioware.
