Infinite Undiscovery

Yet again... I stand corrected. I received the October issue of Game Informer today. Square-Enix and Tri-Ace have joined together and created Infinite Undiscovery. Obviously, with my lack of hi-speed internet, I was completely unaware of it's release on September 2, 2008. GI says that the battle system was a hit dead on but the story was "well-worn especially from the developer behind games like Valkyrie Profile and Radiata Stories." Even with the help of Tri-Ace, Square-Enix still managed to kill the potential. It goes on further to state that the lip-synching was very poor, dungeons were repetitive, and the voice acting was simply "painful." Although, I will give them credit for the audio score. Somehow Square... or whats left of it... always manages to pull out an amazing soundtrack.

They had very few good things to say about the game. It sounds like the battle system closely resembles that of the Star Ocean series. Credit goes to Tri-Ace, since Square-Enix obviously had very little to do with that aspect of the gameplay. It says the only thing to keep you enthralled in the game is the depth of the combat and character skill customization, do not depend on the plot. It's really a disappointment to see this happen to three of the industry's greatest developers lower their standards, or lose the pride in their work even, make such a cliche' game. Sure... I obviously have some tentative feelings toward Enix. But they do deserve credit for Dragon Warrior, Dragon Quest, Act Raiser, and The 7th Saga. I never said they never developed any good games. I just think they were much better off as partners and not a single corporation. It seems Tri-Ace is on an indefinite path to the same fate.

GI rated this game 8 of 10.

Minus two points for repetitiveness of story and dungeon design IMO.

Final Thoughts For The Day - Tri-Square-Enix

Chrono Cross Vs. Star Ocean: The Second Story

First off, let me say, Tri-Ace did an AMAZING job together with Enix. Couldn't have planned it better myself. The battle system was a very new and bold step towards free-range battle. Something Square-Enix has yet to perfect. The only thing they had was their epic fail in a real-time battle system. Although, Final Fantasy XII had a wonderful plot and a great idea behind it... It was just a little sketchy. Star Ocean 2's plot was also very captivating. But the customization behind the game was the real key to the win. It was just full of endless possibilities in every aspect.
Chrono Cross was a little less customizable. The battle system not so genius. But hey, everyone enjoys a little traditional gameplay every now and then. The elements made the battle system BEARABLE. The story was just... indescribable. Especially if you had played and beaten Chrono Trigger and the less popular text-based, japanese only RPG Radical Dreamers. The entire playthrough of Chrono Cross is full of cameos. Cameo appearances = L33T imho. Also, if you like having a choice between PC's, Chrono Cross is the game for you. Over 44 different playable characters with over 44 hidden skills to collect. Sounds fun right? Only catch... You have to play through the game several times to get all the characters and all the hidden elements. Each time with a different story line. Thank you Squaresoft.

Final Thoughts For The Day - Squaresoft + Tri-Ace = L33Tness. To bad it'll never happen = [

Enix Kills

Hi everyone, I've played every Final Fantasy to date and any other RPG I could my hands on. But by far my favorite was Final Fantasy VII. Yes, I know, the graphics were horrible... even for its release date. But the gameplay was phenomenal. I have no idea why Square-Enix doesn't do a re-release of the game. I guess because all the little pansies that want to keep the game in the mindset of classic. Sure, the game was great, but that doesn't mean it couldn't be re-released and the original PSX version wouldn't have the same impact on someone's personal collection. Take Final Fantasy IV for example. It's been re-released like... 3 times. Every time it's been close to the top of the sale charts somewhere. Enix has released very few games that stand up to Final Fantasy standards. Off the top of my head what? Star Ocean and Dragon Warrior? Both great games but pff...... No where near squaresoft's accomplishments... Squash both series with Chrono Trigger.

Final thoughts for the day -- Enix is killing Square.