Does this game get better?

[starcrunch061]

I was excited to start this, but in the opening couple of hours, it pales in comparison to White Witch. The first Ni No Kuni had rich character development from the opening minutes; I understood and sympathized with motivations of everyone involved, and when the explanations for the motivations of the villains came out, it only enhanced the experience.

 

By comparison, Ni No Kuni II starts like an NES RPG. "Hey, kid in another world that I just got randomly teleported to...I want to help you on your quest that I know nothing about, because...stuff!" I thought I had accidentally skipped a cut scene or something but...nope. 

 

What gives? Why the wild praise? Does the storytelling improve immensely as the game progresses?

 

 

[KillLaGil]

i dunno i stopped reading dialog and skipping through cutscenes at chapter 5, those pirate dialect are hard to read and turned me off so much, those waiting games when building kingdom is not fun eitherm, why the f they slapped mobile games quirk to this game. if i dont care about trophy i probably drop this game mid way, thats my opinion

[Sir_Bee]

A little, but not enough to go from hating on it to loving it.  It is very cheesy and cliche the whole way through, but then again I thought the first was as well.

 

I enjoyed my time with the game, but I wouldn't say I loved it.  It was a fun mindless break from playing games that required constant attention and focus.  And I thought the animations and characters were cute and fun.

[starcrunch061]

Just now, KillLaGil said:

i dunno i stopped reading dialog and skipping through cutscenes at chapter 5, those pirate dialect are hard to read and turned me off so much, those waiting games when building kingdom is not fun eitherm, why the f they slapped mobile games quirk to this game. if i dont care about trophy i probably drop this game mid way, thats my opinion

 

Did you like the first Ni No Kuni?

[KillLaGil]

1 minute ago, starcrunch061 said:

 

Did you like the first Ni No Kuni?

didnt own ps3, i wish i can play that game

[Gamer-Girl-Noire]

It gets slightly better but you won't get the same vibe as 1 where the cast where genuinely likeable and had relatable motives. Like most if not all are just as shallow by the ending. 

[starcrunch061]

Just now, Mikoto_railgun01 said:

It gets slightly better but you won't get the same vibe as 1 where the cast where genuinely likeable and had relatable motives. Like most if not all are just as shallow by the ending. 

 

Man - that's too bad. Level 5 is up and down for me (they created two of my favorite games of all time, in Dark Cloud 2 and Dragon Quest 8, but also one of my most hated in White Knight Chronicles).

 

I miss the turn-based battle of Ni No Kuni. I wish they had tried to improve some of the systems there instead of just importing the Dark Cloud/Rogue Galaxy battle system here. I read a thread saying the game was too easy. I decided to start on Extreme difficulty, and at least in the first two hours, I have to agree (although, since the game is 100 hours, that's probably not a fair assessment yet).

 

But I could live with that if I just had some idea of why, say, the President of the United flippin' States seems unconcerned with a nuclear missile that hits a large city, and instead thinks that his best course of action is to hang around in a completely new world helping a kid stranger become king. And this is the main character!

 

Oh well. I'll still finish it, but this one will go in the pile of lackluster Level 5 games, like Rogue Galaxy and the original Dark Cloud.

[Gamer-Girl-Noire]

The main plot is only about 30 hours or so. The 100 hours Is for the platinum cause you'll be waiting around for the town to be built up. 

[Gommes_]

Unfortunately no. I loved the first part but this was something else. If you want you can read my little review in the recent platinum topic.

 

 

[starcrunch061]

1 minute ago, Gommes_ said:

Unfortunately no. I loved the first part but this was something else. If you want you can read my little review in the recent platinum topic.

 

 

 

<sigh>

 

This certainly feeds my fears. I hope I can find more in it than you did, but a lot of those comments resonate with me (notably, the written dialogue which is replaced by a single word or phrase which apparently captures it).

 

Still crossing my fingers on this one, but I'm getting worried. Hopefully, a few fans will post here and lift my spirits?

[Elvick_]

If you’re out for story and character development... no. It honestly doesn’t. Every character is the same when they start to when the game ends. Despite the game literally claiming otherwise at one point, it literally doesn’t know it’s own story events.

 

This is game is mechanically pretty decent, albeit with flaws. But story and character, it’s got nothing. Every party member outside Roland and Evan are largely inconsequential to the story. Especially the pirates. They serve a temporary use, and at most would’ve needed to be guests to help here and there (only the two smart characters). But they could’ve not been in the main party and it wouldn’t matter. 

 

The story should’ve been that way frankly, then they could’ve maybe developed the only interesting character dynamic in the game between Roland and Evan. Having the rest just temporarily join for their chapter then buggering off only to show up if needed for a story reason again. 

 

Dont bother if you want a good story. I was very, very very disappointed and I went in with very low expectations due to the lacklustre trailers. Nothing grabbed me as much as the first Ni no kuni trailers. Oliver crying, the White Witch, every new trailer for the first game grabbed me instantly. But nothing for 2 did. So I figured the story would be weak. I never imagined it would be this bad though.

edit; Since someone else did, I dug up my Platinum post where I kinda reviewed my thoughts. I also posted on .org about the story but it has spoilers. But it's there to check out.

 

Edited August 30, 2018 by Elvick_

[NetEntity]

Well, there goes my interest. I guess I should stick with Arslan Senki as far as the "boy king" stories go.

[starcrunch061]

1 hour ago, Elvick_ said:

If you’re out for story and character development... no. It honestly doesn’t. Every character is the same when they start to when the game ends. Despite the game literally claiming otherwise at one point, it literally doesn’t know it’s own story events.

 

This is game is mechanically pretty decent, albeit with flaws. But story and character, it’s got nothing. Every party member outside Roland and Evan are largely inconsequential to the story. Especially the pirates. They serve a temporary use, and at most would’ve needed to be guests to help here and there (only the two smart characters). But they could’ve not been in the main party and it wouldn’t matter. 

 

The story should’ve been that way frankly, then they could’ve maybe developed the only interesting character dynamic in the game between Roland and Evan. Having the rest just temporarily join for their chapter then buggering off only to show up if needed for a story reason again. 

 

Dont bother if you want a good story. I was very, very very disappointed and I went in with very low expectations due to the lacklustre trailers. Nothing grabbed me as much as the first Ni no kuni trailers. Oliver crying, the White Witch, every new trailer for the first game grabbed me instantly. But nothing for 2 did. So I figured the story would be weak. I never imagined it would be this bad though.

edit; Since someone else did, I dug up my Platinum post where I kinda reviewed my thoughts. I also posted on .org about the story but it has spoilers. But it's there to check out.

 

 

Wow. So many things that I noticed in the first couple of hours seem to persist throughout the game. The laziness in animation strikes me, too. The characters themselves look OK (although with nowhere near the detail that the original had), but the environments are boring, and sometimes just flat-out lazy.

 

The Guardian said that this game has the best visuals of any game ever. CGMagazine that this was the the best JRPG released in ages (does "ages" go back to the release of Persona 5, which whips this game in pretty much every category I can think of currently?). I have to wonder if they were playing the same game as me.

 

Oh well...

[Gommes_]

12 minutes ago, starcrunch061 said:

 

Wow. So many things that I noticed in the first couple of hours seem to persist throughout the game. The laziness in animation strikes me, too. The characters themselves look OK (although with nowhere near the detail that the original had), but the environments are boring, and sometimes just flat-out lazy.

 

The Guardian said that this game has the best visuals of any game ever. CGMagazine that this was the the best JRPG released in ages (does "ages" go back to the release of Persona 5, which whips this game in pretty much every category I can think of currently?). I have to wonder if they were playing the same game as me.

 

Oh well...

 

I also had to think about the countless reviews praising this game. For quite some time I have the feeling that many sites and magazines rate second parts pretty high if the first one was a (sleeper) hit, no matter what. Since they missed to acknowledge the game the first time, they compensate it now to please the fans and not to risk a shit storm. They maybe overlooked the first part and didn't get its appeal. They still don't get it but have to review a game many people wanted for a long time, so...

 

I know it sounds pretty weird but this is the feeling I get

Edited August 30, 2018 by Gommes_

[starcrunch061]

1 minute ago, Gommes_ said:

 

I also had to think about the countless reviews praising this game. For quite some time I have the feeling that many sites and magazines rate second parts pretty high if the first one was a (sleeper) hit, no matter what. Since they missed to acknowledge the game the first time, they comprehend it now to please the fans and not to risk a shit storm. They maybe overlooked the first part and didn't get its appeal. They still don't get it but have to review a game many people wanted for a long time, so...

 

I know it sounds pretty weird but this is the feeling I get

 

You might be right. Although reviews are lower, I was surprised at the number of reviews that praise The Fractured But Whole as highly as The Stick of Truth. Once again, the sequel feels lazy compared to the original (though not nearly to the level that Ni No Kuni II feels).

 

I really hope I enjoy the town building. Otherwise, I'm going to start raging against Level 5 again, and that's too bad - they have given me quite a few good games.

[TJ_Solo]

Quote

Why the wild praise?

 

Some have opinions that differ from your own.

 

Quote

 Does the storytelling improve immensely as the game progresses?

 

Immensely? That's an oddly specific qualifier. 

It's best if you put this one down because games don't change in quality immensely over the course of a playthrough.

[Gommes_]

1 minute ago, starcrunch061 said:

 

You might be right. Although reviews are lower, I was surprised at the number of reviews that praise The Fractured But Whole as highly as The Stick of Truth. Once again, the sequel feels lazy compared to the original (though not nearly to the level that Ni No Kuni II feels).

 

I really hope I enjoy the town building. Otherwise, I'm going to start raging against Level 5 again, and that's too bad - they have given me quite a few good games.

 

Yep, South Park belongs to that behavior too. Loved the first one, only liked the second. But well, it could also be just tastes

[starcrunch061]

3 minutes ago, TJ_Solo said:

 

Some have opinions that differ from your own.

 

 

Immensely? That's an oddly specific qualifier. 

It's best if you put this one down because games don't change in quality immensely over the course of a playthrough.

 

While I'll be happy to look into these points later, do you have any specific likes/dislikes about this game?

 

1 minute ago, Gommes_ said:

 

Yep, South Park belongs to that behavior too. Loved the first one, only liked the second. But well, it could also be just tastes

 

True, but taste shouldn't be a catch-all for any statement. I remember Gene Siskel making a comment about this one time with people comparing a low budget Italian gangster movie (whose name escapes me - let's call it "X" for this example) with The Godfather. His point was, you are free to like X better than The Godfather. But you don't get to say that X is a better movie than The Godfather. While likes and dislikes are subjective, there are objective differences which can be called up.

 

For example, Ni No Kuni II does not have the best visuals of any game ever. It could conceivably have the best visuals of any game the reviewer has played, but this is objectively false on a variety of metrics (detail, resolution, color palette, etc.). I happen to like Kemco RPGs better than Final Fantasy XIII. But in no way is, say,  Antiquia Lost a better game than Final Fantasy XIII

 

[Gommes_]

^ Good point

[Elvick_]

26 minutes ago, TJ_Solo said:

Immensely? That's an oddly specific qualifier. 

It's best if you put this one down because games don't change in quality immensely over the course of a playthrough.

Story telling can. Lots of movies start slow, but after the trudge of the start get better. Same applies to games or books. This isn't one of those cases, but it's possible.

[starcrunch061]

4 minutes ago, Elvick_ said:

Story telling can. Lots of movies start slow, but after the trudge of the start get better. Same applies to games or books. This isn't one of those cases, but it's possible.

 

That was a weird comment. I'm sure that Mr. TJ would agree that stories, and even games, can pick up. I think of games like Stein;s Gate, Resonance of Fate, Suikoden V. Even play can pick up immensely. While not one of my favorites, Atelier Iris 3 has a battle system that completely changes gears about midway through, adding a ton of new options to battle and making what was early on rather turgid turn-based combat into something significantly more fun.

 

I was hoping for some non-story-spoiling specifics in this regard for Ni No Kuni II from Mr. TJ.

[starcrunch061]

So, I put in a good 6 hours yesterday. What a shame about the story of this one. This could have really filled the gap of Suikoden. I enjoy town building. The recruiting is a lot of fetch quests, but the real problem is that I have no tie to the characters I'm recruiting (as opposed to Suikoden, which often has strong backstories for characters). Skirmishes are much more fun than I thought they would be. Battle is up and down. I went to Extreme difficulty, which seems to mean "Enemies aren't so bad...unless they one-shot you with an AOE". But I enjoyed the battle against the realmwrecker.

 

It's just such a shame. With a little more work on story and a little more polish in battle, this game could have been a real contender. As it is, I think it ranks with stuff like Rogue Galaxy: OK, but not nearly the top of the pile.

[starcrunch061]

So, other than a couple of grindy things (God of War) and the last Dreamer Door, I've finished all Ni No Kuni 2 has to offer. 

 

Final grade: B-

 

The game has good ideas, but the execution ranges from lazy to downright deplorable. The "story" is a joke. The castle town is pretty fun, but it's ultimately a tease and nothing more; while I raised up every single thing that I could, I can't see how it is of any use. I made the best weapons I was capable of, and the best armor (apparently, some of the stuff only shows up in the final Dreamer Door dungeon), but it didn't really make much difference. The skirmishes level requirements make zero sense to me; I was blasting out level 50+ skirmishes with a team of average level 28. However, there was one lower level skirmish that gave me fits (the one where the bandit just runs away). I don't know why skirmishes aren't simply unlocked - waiting for the game to roll the skirmishes for you is silly.

 

The kingmaker battles were pretty fun, except for the last one. The dungeons were uneven. I liked the water slide one, and the dial one was a good idea that was only annoying because I was so incredibly underleveled (with enemies reaching as high as level 49, my main party was at level 28). The tainted monsters were really hard...at first. Then, like so much else about this game, the illusion melted away and there was really little left underneath. 

 

My tinfoil hat theory is that this game was going to be microtransaction-laden with the meta "castle" game. Both the KG and the tokens have the feel of something that was meant to be a lot, lot slower. To Level 5's credit, after the outcry against a multiplayer component, they obviously scrapped this idea, but unfortunately, didn't really do much with it.

 

It's not a bad game. It's just not a good one, either.

[starcrunch061]

Almost done. Just need to finish the final Dreamer's Door, and then...collect balls? Seems appropriate.

 

75 hours to the plat. About 8 of those were AFK - I would just leave the game on when I took the kids out last weekend so I could collect KG, which actually moved things well. Another 4 were wasted leveling from 67 to 80 - God, it takes forever to level in this game. And from what I've read, it's not all that necessary for the final (non DLC) boss.

 

Definitely a disappointing game. 

[Gommes_]

15 hours ago, starcrunch061 said:

Almost done. Just need to finish the final Dreamer's Door, and then...collect balls? Seems appropriate.

 

75 hours to the plat. About 8 of those were AFK - I would just leave the game on when I took the kids out last weekend so I could collect KG, which actually moved things well. Another 4 were wasted leveling from 67 to 80 - God, it takes forever to level in this game. And from what I've read, it's not all that necessary for the final (non DLC) boss.

 

Definitely a disappointing game. 

 

Maybe a little late but you need it for the adventure pack eventually. There is a monster in ding dong dell at level 79 which will spawn countless little versions of itself. Just kill these and flee after you killed 2 or 3. Rinse and repeat. Be warned, this monster is really hard even at a high level. Just never fully defeat it and only go for the copies and you level up in no time. In the video the fight starts at around 13 minutes into the video. This helped me to go from 85 to 99. Quickest method out there