Vagrant Story Retrospective | An Extremely Comprehensive Critique and History
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- Опубликовано: 14 май 2024
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In 1999, two men wait outside of a cinema, one is responsible for Metal Gear Solid and the other for Final Fantasy. They quickly strike up a friendship and believe that together they will conquer the video game industry and take the medium to new heights
Within five years - one had cemented himself as a legend and the other had disappeared entirely
Today we'll be exploring the mystery of Yasumi Matsuno and his final video game, Vagrant Story. It's a tragedy that will take us through the history of Square and the RPG genre, telling a tale of a man who rose to the top and came crashing back down again
It's part critique, part retrospective, part review and part history lesson - obviously full of spoilers and obviously full of my opinions
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Credit for the incredible thumbnail goes to the immensely talented - @MicahTheBrave
All media in this video is used for the purpose of review, commentary or criticism and is defined as fair use under US Copyright law.
=== Chapters ===
00:00:00 - The Wanderer (Introduction)
00:03:26 - Matsuno at Quest
00:18:19 - Matsuno at Square
00:27:36 - Vagrant Story Development
00:38:57 - Dawn over Lea Monde (Openings)
00:57:25 - Risk and Reward (Gameplay)
01:10:12 - The Duane Incident Report
01:20:12 - Into the Catacombs (Complexity)
01:32:27 - Silver, Steel and Fire (Crafting)
01:42:59 - Sunset over Lea Monde (Ambiguity)
02:03:59 - Legends of Localisation (Translation)
02:13:58 - The Grand Cathedral (Revelations)
02:28:56 - Come Home, Agent Riot (Endings)
02:39:43 - Eternal Recurrence (Repeating)
02:48:04 - Matsuno after Square
02:58:44 - The Vagrant (Conclusion)
===
#vagrantstory #finalfantasy #retrospective 
Игры
Matsuno originally studying foreign politics in college feels like it explains everything to me.
As soon as I discovered that it all fell into place!
An essential part of the Matsuno puzzle.
I knooooowwwwww
@@IFinishedAVideoGamepll😊79
It's like Steve Jobs studying types and magazine layout design. All information you gain through life can give you a unique perspective that will help you to succeed.
While he's only mentioned briefly in the video, I thought some others might be interested in hearing more about Hitoshi Sakimoto (composer from Quest). He is well known among Sega Genesis / Megadrive fans as having crafted some of the most exciting and dynamic soundtracks on consoles full of excellent soundtracks. What not as many know is that he also developed the software he used both to compose and to play back his music, the Terpsichorean Engine. There was a much deeper overlap between software development and composition than typically encountered in modern times with DAW software and complex digital audio playback. I've personally dived fairly deep into the sound chip driver code of Terpsichorean from Gauntlet IV and Verytex and I wish more people could appreciate the elegance of his work.
In gauntlet IV, for example, the yamaha YM2612 is driven entirely from game processor, freeing the z80 sound coprocessor to be used exclusively for sound effect playback. The effect playback code itself is incredibly elegant, supporting playback of four different PCM formats in
Thanks for adding that! It's super interesting to hear - I really need to sharpen up my audio knowledge!
WOW! Now that is something worth looking into. Since the soundtracks within games are what captivates most memorable experiences, knowing how they worked is something i never thought about.
What an absolute underrated gem of a game, it's wild how well the comic book aesthetic still holds up 20 years later.
Absolutely! The graphical presentation is just incredible for the platform. To think that someone could make THIS with the same building blocks as Gauntlett Legends and Driver 2!
Realistic graphics are nice but a killer art style will last forever.
@@IFinishedAVideoGame😮
She’s from south Midgard
@@IFinishedAVideoGamet tp0t0c
Hironobu Sakaguchi and Yasumi Matsuno were some of the greatest storytellers in the medium. I like to think in an alternate universe Sakaguchi and Matsuno are still at Square giving us amazing titles.
Oh I have no doubt Square would be a different company if those two never left.
Oh absolutely. Those guys leaving really does mark the end of my personal love affair with the company. While they've made some decent games since there - the magic just isn't the same!
You can add Tabata to the list. With a pittance of a budget and a worthless console, he made FF type zero. Imagine what he could have done with more money and a ps3... would have been way better than cringe hallway 13.
I'd add Tetsuya Takahashi and the Mrs. to that list.
I'll never understand why the Final Fantasy movie failed. I loved it, and honestly I think it was such a brave and amazing effort by Sakaguchi and I hate that it ruined him in Square's eyes. I don't think Final Fantasy has ever been the same since he left. It just feels too edgy now. But I guess that's what happens when Mr. Belts and Zippers got a hold of the franchise (for those who don't know the old memes, I'm talking about Tetsuya Nomura).
I always feel sorry for Matsuno. He made an incredible masterpiece that most people will never finish, and got his campaign setting stolen by a huge corporation who just does whatever they want with it.
To be fair to Square Enix, they did invite him to write scenarios set in Ivalice for the FFXIV expansions, so it's not like that bridge is completely burned.
That's what happens when you sell something.
Someone else owns it.
That's not stealing ffs.
@@Valchrist1313 thanks reddit
Honestly I think he's fine with it. Considering he left FF12 with Minagawa and then came back to work on Tactics Ogre and FF14, it's clear he still has a good relationship with them but just doesn't want to work on big projects!
The reason almost nobody will finish it is due to Matsuno's pathological inability to stop himself from destroying the playability of his games by sticking every cruelly player-hostile decision that strikes his fancy into every one of them. I feel no pity for him; he decided what was important to him and committed to it.
In any case and regardless of the details everything. I hope Matsuno is living a fulfilling life and enjoying his day to day life these days.
Absolutely. He deserves it after giving us such special experiences on the SNES and PS1!
I cannot echo this strongly enough. For all the hype and career success Kojima had/has... Matsuno is the guy who made three of the games that first made me realize "videogames are ART" as a teenager. It's just not possible to come away from Tactics Ogre, FFT, or Vagrant Story and not feel like you've just read a classic piece of literature, or any other truly GREAT work of art; like you've experienced something one-on-a-kind that will stay with you forever... and that is so, so rare in the gaming space, especially with how AAA Western BS is today.
I truly hope he is and has been happy in his daily life... he's already given the world more than enough, given works of the highest level of beauty and perfection to any of us who are capable of appreciating them... he deserves nothing but the best from life. I hope he has... whatever he would want to have, whatever would make him happy.
This isn't the first hours long retrospective on Vagrant Story that I've watched but I'm honestly shocked at how much more I've learned from this one compared to others. The in depth detail on the game itself more than suffices whatever interest the video title would draw but you go out of your way to put us into the history of its development and impact the work has had on its creators and industry. Thank you for your hard efforts in creating a masterwork of a game retrospective.
Thanks so much. I really poured a lot of love into this video as it's a subject and game I'm very passionate about! Hope I did it justice and gave RUclips the definitive account of just why it matters!
I truly can't think of a game on PSX that blows me away more than Vagrant Story. Everything about it is truly astounding, though what always impresses me most is the use of the engine. It looks amazing for the time and it's file size is mind blowing.
It's incredible isn't it. The combination of camera angles and clever use of the polygon models makes you yearn for a world where directing skill was prioritized over studios spending millions on graphics. Vagrant Story legitimately looks better than the vast majority of games that released generations after it!
Jade Cocoon. In it's own way.
This may be the earliest I've even been to a video, see y'all in 3 hours.
I’ll race you
Hope you enjoyed it! I was editing for 18 hours straight yesterday to hit 6PM today so you'll have to be the first to let me know if I messed anything up!
Matsuno's story is so unfortunate. Hideo Kojima's regard for him wasn't just words, and everything Matsuno touched was absolute gold. Case in point was Naoki Yoshida's asking him to write what is still to date the most positively regarded 24-man raid content and exploration content in FFXIV with Ivalice and the Bozjan Resistance. Not to be hyperbolic, but in my mind, everything that "the big three" (Matsuno, Sakimoto, and A. Yoshida) touch is absolute gold and I'll always be there for it.
I admit though that if I hadn't been such a shill for Squaresoft in the late 90's, I might have missed Vagrant Story. Marketing for anything in the 90's that wasn't a massive blockbuster movie was pretty lackluster, and I actually had a conversation about this with my older brother about just how many amazing musical artists from the 70's didn't make headwinds at all because they weren't armed with the viral marketing and streaming services of today. Then of course there was Playstation 2 release hype... Man, we got a masterpiece of a game and hardly anyone remembers it.
As always, I love your writing and editing style, and I'm constantly learning new stuff about games I played ages ago, but this one is really special to me, so thanks so much for making it.
Thanks so much. Matsuno has been one of my favourite directors since I was kid and I've always really wanted to put together a video that did his work and the tragedy of his career justice!
Hopefully I managed it! Thanks for watching!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame I'm glad you did.
I only recently have been going through all of the games he wrote the scenarios for. I had only played FF12, but between Tactics Ogre and Vagrant Story, it's like I've been missing something and now I can't get enough of it.
Thank you.
Why, I'm Hardly Anyone!
Vagrant story is my favourite game of all time.A 3 hour video on it makes me really happy. Thank you for this treat.
Hopefully I do it justice! There is just so much to talk about!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame You did. You have to do now FFT!
I remember beating Guildenstern's final form by catching him in an endless chain as he swoops across the arena, nickel-and-diming his health 1 point at a time for about 10 minutes.
That's hilarious - I've seen a few people say that they just got good enough at chaining that they could whittle down any foe! I kinda like that I never got good enough at it that I had to hunt around for weird alternatives like odd affinity boosted break arts and spamming healing items!
Was just about to make this same comment! The extreme stress of landing the 1/2 damage chain ability on the exclamation point during his Bloody Sin attack is a core memory for sure, lol
I always took it for intended and never realised there was any other way. I beat most bosses like that tbh. Time to replay this game the way it was intended
Wow, you did not disappoint! so many details and behind-the-scenes information on this one game from over 20 years ago. Thanks for putting so much effort into both the editing and research on creating this documentary-style video. I remember as a kid reading in a gaming magazine about Matsuno leaving FFXII due to an illness, and it was such a vague and mysterious reason for something very uncommon in Japanese game development. Thank you for clarifying the details of that. Again, I can't wait for your next video, its honestly such a treat to get these retrospective videos, especially for these games I enjoyed as a kid and teenager. Keep up the great work!
You're welcome! I really wanted to go extra deep with this one as Matsuno has always been a character I've been absolutely fascinated with. Fingers crossed this can turn more people onto his incredible body of work!
Matsuno just had to take a really long vacation. In Lea Monde.
i wish a money guy would come along and fix the videogame industry and put the right people back in charge.
Lol. Money guys are the problem. Billionaires do not like you or care about you and have enough money coming in from broken buggy games it's almost the full market. They make millions from this. Now AI tech bros everyone thinks they can make games and standards will fall more. It's unfortunate. But I do hope the indies get more funding and backing to support their games not the corporate slop of fortnight and others where you own nothing.
This is the level of gaming journalism I'm looking for. Well done, sir!
Thanks so much my friend!
Damn what a good week this was for top tier retrospective videos
Another common Noah fan W
I can finally sit down and enjoy Noah's latest video. I might not vibe with everything he makes but hearing him wax lyrical about Fallout is one of life's small pleasures
It blew my mind to find out that this game is in the same world as Final Fantasy Tactics and FF XII. I really wish more FF titles would be in Ivalice. I love the sceneries and the amount of lore in each game. Also the fact that there's many different prominent races in Ivalice that adds so much character to the games.
Low-key the greatest JRPG ever made. Artistically, one of the greatest games ever made in general.
I can't disagree. Even with it's flaws I just love how cinematic and ambitious it is
I want this game remade for a moeden pc
@@IFinishedAVideoGamethe presentation alone is enough to outweigh the flaws. The cinematography here is way ahead of its time
high-key
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That final scene where Ashley Riot masks himself as the VKP inquisitor and is dressed in his black attire struck me with such style that it inspires me to try to create a character based upon that idea alone
It's honestly an incredibly cool scene - I can't believe it was made with just the PS1's hardware!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame agree , very cool and mysterious. who know next story behind
Been insanely busy lately so won't be able to watch this right away. I want to give it the time and attention it deserves rather than breaking it up too much. I Really love your presentations, in-depth and well-structured with steady pacing. Just wanted to compliment your work and add to the algorithm. I follow several game retrospective channels and these long-form reviews are right up my street. They take an incredible amount of effort on your part and the reason they are watchable is because the quality is so high. I hope your channel keeps growing and you keep enjoying what you do.
Thanks very much. I really appreciate those kind words, especially when I've just come off the back of a huge week of editing to get this beast out!
Excellent, glad this underrated gem is getting some love! Also, it’s a bit late but congrats on 100k mate, well deserved
His writing is absolutely beautiful
Thanks very much! I'd originally aimed to get there by the end of the year so it feels incredible to do it six months early!
I wouldn't say Vagrant Story is underrated it scored very high on release, perfect scores at many places, and is rated highly among the gaming industry.
@@rickylovesyou it's underrated in comparison to the other Squaresoft titles - I'd consider it a cult classic - those who know it absolutely love it, but it doesn't have the same level of prestige and recognition as the Final Fantasy series or other, more conventional JRPGs
Matsuno studying foreign policy and his first job being an international journalist explains SO much. I'm really impressed with this video, VS is my favorite collection of cutscenes of all time, and not only there's a bunch of production and post-release information I didn't know, but you've managed to pace the ABSURD amount of systems that need to be explained pretty well as you cover the rest of the game. Congratulations again on the 100k!
Thanks very much! Yeah I really worried while writing this that there was just a huge amount of "explaining" so I tried to wrap it around story moments or personal anecdotes. Hopefully it works well and keeps it interesting!
Nor fully caught up to speed on who matsuno is. Not my kind of genre. Why does it explain so much? Is it writing style related?
@@venepskeuten9206 All of his games have massive political high stakes intrigues which you the player is immediately absorbed into. Not only that, he mixes that with interesting and memorable characters. His characters are very fleshed out to the point you understand the "bad guys" perspective and the morally grey areas the 'good guys' have to tow to overcome the situation.
Yasumi Matsuno is one of the most underrated creative figures in the entire industry. After playing the FF Tactics games as well as Vagrant Story, I finally understand why Naoki Yoshida has such a deep admiration for him
Absolutely - I almost wish that Yoshida used him more! Minagawa was the art director for FF16 and I wish that Matsuno had been more involved with the script writing!
For all its flaws Vagrant Story is a game I'll never forget and one I still hold out a faint hope will get a sequel. The games aesthetics are sublime and the story wonderfully written and presented. Your video is a worthy tribute as well as an excellent critique. Thank you.
Thanks - that really means a lot especially as I've really tried to make a video that properly captures the experience (for all those that can't get past it's jagged edges)
Honestly I'd be happy if VS was re-released on Steam. Bet it would sell like hotcakes today, assuming Square didn't mess it up.
Matsuno is my idol. I have made D&D campaigns based on his settings and storytelling techniques.
I have immersed myself in every game of his.
I love his writing and worldbuilding so incredibly much.
I hope, cope, and pray that we get Final Fantasy Tactics Reborn, and Vagrant Story remade as a Soulslike.
That'd be so sick ;_; LOL
Can you elaborate on the DND part? Vagrant Story automatically became my major plot center for my DND campaign. I almost didn't even think about it at first and now I can't stop thinking about it.
Wanna share thoughts on it? I'm currently trying to interpret much of the story in order to expand and build on it.
The ending is such a strong setup for a sequel that never came. I don't think this masterpiece could be remastered, or even matched, in execution.
There are of course great and amazing games out there, but there is only one Vagrant Story.
Absolutely - it's a shame too as the potential sequel that Matsuno had come up with is very intriguing!
If they had put a Mission Briefing option on the main menu it would make the whole thing even more like Metal Gear Solid, since some people would call it Medieval Gear Solid as joke already.
Well it makes sense considering both games revolve around secret agents with mysterious pasts tracking down a nemesis that they are closer to than they realise!
Had no idea that FFT's reputation had fallen off over the years 😂. Still my all time favorite game
Yeah I think it's in a similar place to Vagrant Story in that people love the concept and the narrative but accept that actually playing through it comes with some real bumps in the road. The difficulty spikes, the weird mechanics, the points of no return.
I personally love it but if someone said they didn't I would struggle to disagree!
It hasn’t. It’s just one dudes opinion. People clamor over that game still.
Bro, this is some immensive amount of work you put into this script. I am glad I found your channel as you are some of the best second monitor content out there.
Thanks very much! I feel like so much "long form" content out there is really pretty low effort so I always try to pour everything into each video. That's why they take so long to make!
I love this game, it has my favourite narrative for a single game, though my favourite narrative over a series goes to Legacy of Kain. I loved these both so much that I recorded the cutscenes mixed with some gameplay onto VHS so I could watch them as movies. Later I recorded them to DVD, then finally uploaded them to youtube (along with the Sands of Time trilogy) as playlists (due to having a ten minute limit at the time). I've been pretty in depth over Vagrant Story as a result, I'm still pleased with myself from when I realised that all the weapons in the game were named after alcoholic cocktails, except for Rosencrantz's weapon 'Pussyfoot' being the only one named for a _non-alcoholic_ cocktail (as he has no magic).
So yeah, I love this game but I did have a hell of a time playing it at first, I think I actually completed it before I even realised how the analyse spell worked. I'd use it then not know that you needed to go into Ashley's own status menu and press the shoulder buttons to see his enemy's stats, I just got confused over what it was supposed to be doing before finally giving up on it.
I've actually written the script for a primer on how to play Vagrant Story which was made into a video on the Resonant Arc channel for their podcast series on the game (Vagrant Story | 10 Tips To Get Started) just last year and I had a devil of a time trying to break the whole thing down into an understandable format. There are still one or two things I would have changed, most notably explaining how the readout of the weapon stats work on the attack screen. The readout will say something like *EGD/FIR/Beast* telling you that your blow will use the values for blunt, fire and beast but the tricky thing is that there is a different reason for why each of these values are chosen against their rivals. In explaining this to Mike at Resonant Arc we kept talking (well, typing via discord) in circles over what we were trying to communicate when I realised he had misspoke the explanation. In essence he thought the readout was telling you what would be most efficient but it doesn't, after a lot of back and forth we stumbled in the right direction and I felt my poor explanation was the cause of the confusion but in his words the system was 'insane' in its complexity. (it was corrected before the video went live luckily)
Because the readout tells you what Class of enemy you are facing it seems reasonable to conclude that the Affinity section would be telling you which element is most effective as well but this is simply not true, the element used is always whichever is currently highest on the weapon with any other elemental values completely disregarded. If you approach the readout thinking it is telling you _what_ to use (based on it telling you what enemy you are facing) then you are coming at it backwards. What is is telling you is which values _will_ be used regardless of how well they will be used.
As much trouble as the game originally gave me I still loved every minute for the story it was telling and when I saw Ashley walking off into the rain in his new badass longcoat at the end I don't think I've ever topped that feeling of satisfaction in a game's ending...
Discovering the extra narrative elements in the ultimania translations years later though, that made me love it even more.
That's extremely cool that you worked with Resonant Arc on that video. I was a huge fan of their retrospective series and enjoy the podcast quite a lot as well (when I get the time to sit through one!)
Can't agree more with you on the ending. Matsuno really had an eye for cinema - it's interesting to think what Square Pictures might have produced with him in charge had Spirits Within not bombed so hard!
@@IFinishedAVideoGameit was more to do with Sakaguchi’s decision to hold back the release of FFX that put the company in the red, not so much The Spirits Within. It’s very hard to reel back this narrative now that it’s been spread so widely in articles and video essays.
He had also begun his formation of Mistwalker prior to the movie. Company politics post merger with Enix is to blame really.
Why in gods name are they not remaking this.
I bought this game based on the CG ad alone. I didn’t understand a thing about it, never quite realized how in-depth it’s mechanics were, but damn, game’s still one of my top games ever played, with one of my only sticklers being how laborious crafting is just by how often it forces you to save while doing it.
Fantastic retrospective. Really appreciated the background info and even the “what happened to him now?” segment.
Thanks very much! I had wanted to make this video for a long time and when the two stories started to intertwine I knew I was onto something!
I’ve never played Vagrant Story but I love watching your videos, and I especially loved your segment about the localization for this game! More and more I see criticism of creative localization, which is sometimes criticized as ‘inaccurate’ simply because it isn’t a 1:1 translation, but this game’s English script seems like everything I’ve ever enjoyed in a good localization. Im happy to know Alexander O. Smith has had such a long and successful career in the field!
Absolutely! I get really frustrated when people talk about wanting 1:1 translation because it really shows a profound misunderstanding of how language actually works.
I've got a real bee in my bonnet about it because my girlfriend speaks 3 languages and has done translation work in the past. It's really nowhere near as easy as just converting the words over!
@@IFinishedAVideoGamehear hear
What an absolute superb treasure you've put together here. I've loved Vagrant Story for years, and to see you honor it in such a way truly does justice to the legacy it deserves. Over the past week I've been watching this piece-by-piece during my lunch breaks. You brought me nostalgia in a way I'd never expected. In-depth, smartly written, and without any fluff, you've truly taken this retrospective look to a masterful level. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for this magnum opus report of a legendary game.
That's really awesome to hear - thanks for taking the time to comment! I used to watch long videos just like this back when I was working too so it always warms my heart to hear people are doing it with mine!
I Finished Your Channel. I’ve watched/listened to it all. I’ve already started PD saga, Sands of Time is sitting in my Steam library, and I might even brave a horror game (Parasite Eve) thanks to your channel. Thanks Matt for your amazing work here, and for livening up my commute these last few weeks. Excited for whatever you’re working on next
That's really cool to hear. Glad I could be of assistance on your commutes as that's exactly what I used to do back in my corporate life! Next video should be out on Sunday!
Such a waste that Matsuno burned out and retired, he should be the Kojima of RPGs, his fanbase is so massive I've played all games he's responsible for, even the 3ds eshop Crimson Shroud, he should be having free reign to develop games in this generation, even if it was a small indie studio, I'm sure people would shower him with money if he opened a kickstarter
Unfortunately he was actually involved in a kickstarter project at one point (Unsung Story) but he left halfway through the development and the finished product was really not all that good!
I sadly think he's just been out of the game for too long at this point. Development is so different in 2020 to 2000 and I'm sure many of the skills that made him so successful just aren't that useful now!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame Yeah, sadly his golden days are behind, I just wish we could have gotten more out of it.
Absolutely - it's a tragedy really as he was so profoundly talented
You have found a focus on tragic stories (the downfall of parasite eve and castlevania, for example) that I think often go overlooked due to the industry's nature, where the creators only rarely become celebrities and drama unfolds over years and sometimes decades. I'm so glad you are making these.
Thanks very much. I really enjoy making these ones where the franchises have been unfairly lost to time. The industry has a graveyard of incredible experiences and I want to make sure that people who love video games don't forget them!
I think it's definitelly worth stating that as well as your reviews of the games themselves which are as comprehensive as they get, something that desserves equal praise is the way you build up to them by going into detail on the history behind the games and all the behind the scenes stuff it really does a great job hyping up the game to come
It's honestly my favourite part of the videos. I do really enjoy talking about engaging and interesting games but there is something about the history of this medium that I feel gets really ignored. Hopefully I'm doing them justice and turning people onto the process behind them!
Vagrant Story and Tactics Ogre are two of my favourite games ever, along with FFXII. To know that Matsuno studied foreign politics makes the depth of the narrative and cohesion so much more understandable now. I'm barely even 30 minutes in, and this video is already a greatly researched documentary. Great work!
Edit: I have to correct you on the section of weapon crafting. You say that you can accidentally downgrade a piece of gear because the end result is not disclosed. That's not true. You can hover over the new item, found above the 2 materials used for crafting, to see whether or not it's worth it to craft. You can also hover over the ‘OK’ button to see the same item before confirming.
Edit 2: Tactics Ogre: Reborn did not add crafting. It improved the already-existing crafting system that is in Let Us Cling Together.
Thanks very much! Glad you could learn something cool from this!
Dude yes, I haven't even watched yet but I'm so glad you're covering this absolute diamond of a game
Hope it lived up to the excitement! I put a lot into this one so hopefully there is stuff in there for multiple watches!
Really, I need to pick this up again. It was awesome when I was 12 when I first played it will be now I am 35, and I understand so much. It is always good to relieve childhood experiences through adult understanding
As long as you're happy to consult a guide every now and then - I'm sure you'll have a great time with it and really appreciate it!
Your retrospectives are Easily my new favorite series. I listen twice, once awake and also while I’m trying to sleep.
I'm honored - hope this one lives up to the others!
I've spent thousands of hours on watching RUclips videos.
Quite a lot of them meaning a lot to me, enriching my life with their entertainment, nostalgia, perspectives etc.
So much so I consider them a work of art by themselves.
Most of those meaningful ones are about gaming history, design, philosophy and the like.
And this one here just jumped to be one of my absolute favourites.
Such a detailed video about what I consider to be one of humanities greatest works of art, about one of the very few persons I consider myself a fan of (one of the other few being Kojima-san ironically).
This is truly beautiful and I wanna thank you deeply for making this!
I watched it once now and will definitely watch it dozens times more in the future.
That's really nice to hear - hopefully this video can go into that category for you!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame it did not too long into my first watch of the video. It's absolutely amazing, thank you
It always endlessly amused me how much Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are foils to each other. In both of their motive rants they are saying much the same thing but Rosencrantz blames all the world's troubles on the rich nobility while Guildenstern blames the world's trouble on grasping commoners.
Something else that I really liked was the obvious explanation for why Lea Monde is destroyed in the ending, the city itself is a grimoire and in the game once a grimoire is read it dissolves to nothing and imprints its magic permanently onto its user.
I absolutely love the comparisons you can draw between the "villains" and their conflicting motivations. I really haven't played many other games that place this much effort into subverting expectations it crafts!
Also that's a fantastic point about Lea Monde I hadn't considered. You're totally right that it's crumbling after the dark has been imprinted
I always get excited when I see a new video from you. The amount of time and effort you put into these isn't lost on me. Appreciate you 🙏
I appreciate you saying that. I know long form content is ten a penny these days but I really try to pour enough effort into it so you know the runtime is justified
I still listen to the music of Vagrant Story.
The Ending music is a masterpiece. Every time I listen to it brings back memories of my own room in my parent’s house.
It's beautiful isn't it? I still crack it on all the time while writing!
One of my beloved Childhood games.
Thank you for all this effort that you put into this video.
The German Community dosen't know much about pieces like that.
You're more than welcome. Hopefully it can help more people discover just how cool it is!
I always thought it was fitting that your profile pic is a picture of silver surfer, a character filled with so much dread and existentialism. And the fact that you make these long videos after playing all the games in a series, But i could just be overthinking this.
I mean you've basically nailed it completely. That's exactly why I use it!
I absolutely adore the direction and cinematography of the cutscenes in this game.
Phenomenal video btw😊
Thanks very much! This was a real passion project and I wanted to share just how beautiful standard definition could be!
Yay!!!! You finished it. I’m so looking forward to watching this. Cheers!
Thanks my friend. Hope it lives up to the wait - it ended up taking a little longer than I expected!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame I loved it and appreciate all the work you put into it. I especially liked the beginning and the story about Yasumi Matsuno and all his works. He really just wanted to make new and challenging ideas into worlds for players to enjoy. I may geek out about this stuff too much lol but the backstory really sets the stage for this amazing game and story. Bravo!
Also, I didn’t buy the PS2 immediately but I did pick up this game and was just mesmerized by it. I can’t remember if I ever finished it but this has me itching to go back and play through it completely.
At a certain point as I was watching this, a tear came to my eye. Your video is exceptionally good. Even great. You nailed the mythos of the game, you understand Matsuno's masterpiece, and your in-depth research has made me realize a lot I didn't know about the behind the scenes of the greatest game of all time. The use of the game's motif at the beginning of the chapters was perfect! Excellent work man. You've got a subscriber.
That's really nice to hear. I absolutely love this game and really wanted to make sure I did it justice! Hopefully it can introduce new people to the weird world of Matsuno!
They should bring this back, SERIOUSLY, imagine a remake of this. or atleast give us a remaster.
We can only dream my friend
I absolutely loved this game when it first came out! I still have it and my memory cards and have recently played it for a 5th continuation play through on my PS2.
Not sure if I missed it in this video or if it didn’t say but once you beat the game, you can obtain Guildenstern’s final boss weapon, the Holy Win. It is obtainable on second play by entering The Iron Maiden B2 with less than 150 health and defeating the Last Crusader at the entrance to B3. The drop rate for The Holy Win is between 1 and 3%, and as such, it is extremely difficult to obtain.
This weapon is OP and has great reach. Best weapon in the game by far!
A few people have brought up that weapon! I had no idea it existed and wish I'd have at least attempted to farm it so I could have mentioned it in the video!
I think the most mind-blowing detail about this game is one that never gets mentioned: the total file size for this game is under 100mb. That's insanely efficient for just how much content the game provides, and really shows off that the use of the game engine itself and its "painted faces" for cinematics is more than just an artistic stroke, it was a practical one as well.
You know - that is actually an amazing point that I wish I'd included. There really has been a crazy sea change in storage size since then!
I'm about 52 minutes into the video (fantastic work so far btw), and to throw my 2 cents on the Durai quote at the beginning, it connects Vagrant' Story's concepts of "body" and "soul" with the story's main themes.
While Vagrant Story's lore deals a lot with literal lost souls tainted by The Dark forcefully attacking the living for fresher bodies to inhabit, it *also* serves as an extended metaphor for humans' tendency to manipulate and subjugate others for their own ends.
The common thread between every faction in Vagrant Story is that those with power deceive their followers because the "bodies" of the latter (or: an individual's capacity to serve their master) are valued more than their "souls", which we can define as the hopes, fears, and agency of those being manipulated.
Ashley is said to have no soul because he's waived his right to his own body, he'll fight and die in service of the VKP, and they've warped his mind so that he may continue to do so. It's only by holding onto the love he had for Tia and Marco that Ashley's soul resurfaces. Sydney chooses Ashley because the latter fights out of devotion to those he loves rather than any desire to subjugate others, which mirrors what Sydney is doing for Duke Bardorba.
So again, to reiterate, I think the Durai quote at the start is there to frame the conflict between those with ambition and the people they subjugate, and it does so in a way that begs the audience to consider the horrific nature of this subjugation
That's very interesting. I think you're right in that it's more of a thematic lead in although I would question it's positioning - it's odd that it arrives just before the Greylands report and not at the very start of the game!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame
Placed where it is, the Durai quote puts a hard stop to the breakneck pace the game's had up to this point; for a moment, the player is given a chance to take their mind off of the intricate plot and instead consider the nature of one's body and soul; which, beyond the thematic content of the game, is also important to understanding Lea Monde as a setting, more so than Duke Bardorba's Manor.
Additionally, I think the hard shift from spy thriller flavored fantasy action to a quote discussing the ethical nature of man from a theological perspective clues the audience in that the story is about to shift gears in a major way once Ashley reaches Lea Monde. Things become less about putting a stop to Mullenkamp, and more about the mystery surrounding the city and the people who seek its power.
@@IFinishedAVideoGame As a side note, I see that you've also looked at various franchises I love, namely Parasite Eve, Castlevania, and Prince of Persia. Looking forward to sitting through those when I get the chance!
Hope you enjoy them!
Given Tactic's Ogre Reborn, the very likely upcoming Final Fantasy Tactics Reborn, I do hope Vagrant Story Reborn is in the near future.
Let's hope. Even just a Final Fantasy Tactics Reborn would be amazing at this point.
PS1 was the greatest home console of all time
It's certainly got to be up there! I think it's probably between that and the SNES for me
Yet another game I've barely heard of, and probably will never play. Your videos give me a deep understanding of historically significant games.
It's what I love to do! Welcome to the weird world of Yasumi Matsuno!
Vagrant Story, MGS1, Silent Hill 1, and FF7 are the only PS1 games I still have to this day. I return to them every few years or so, and outdated control schemes aside, they all hold up so well!
I hope that we see another renaissance in this kind of game design. The indie scene is belting out some amazing stuff atm, but I'd love to see what the generation that grew up with the above listed games has to offer as they grow older and reflect on their inspirations.
I think we're going to have to wait until a point where indie developers can easily make passion projects in 3D for that to happen. It's clear that big studios are going after the live service / blockbuster AAA model rather than wanting to push boundaries. Thankfully there are still some pretty cool mid-sized games being published!
I’ve wanted to play this game for so long. And when I say play this game, I mean THIS game. No ground up remake. I want PS1 texture warping, early 3D camera and borderline obtuse gameplay. Gimme gimme gimme.
Cause it won’t just be playing an old game. It’ll be reigniting the time in which it was made. The Zeitgeist going on around when Vagrant Story was birthed, the mood, the soul, that is what art does as well as speak to the individual. It’s pieces of history. Pieces of us.
And video games are art, right? 🤔
This ain’t me dismissing the criticisms in the vid by the way. Or criticism in general. I just feel any work of art, no matter how great, should wear the faults it may have like a hair shirt in order to preserve how it came into being.
Oh no I completely agree - that's why I left things ambiguous at the end. I'm not sure a remake would necessarily capture exactly what makes Vagrant Story so damn captivating!
This is honestly one of the best video essays I've ever watched, I just found the whole story captivating.
Thanks so much. I'm really pleased with how it turned out so it's amazing to hear people are enjoying it
Sadly I never played this game, it came out while I was in the military and I did not own a Playstation at the time of me returning home.
I forgot this game even existed, but looking at it now I have a strong urge to find a way to play it, it looks amazing, in more ways than one.
First of all it's absolutely gorgeous to look at, most, if not all other PS1 3D games looks very dated, and while Vagrant Story also looks dated, its art direction and style is so amazingly strong it still holds up today I think, and detailed backgrounds are simple beautiful. And second of all, the story setup piqued my interest.
I stopped the video after you showed the "tutorial" section of the game, because I assume you will dive into the story, and I want to see if I can find some way to play this before spoiling myself :D
I'll return to watch the rest when I've either managed to play the game, or given up in my quest to play it.
Honestly you should do it! I'm sure you'll enjoy it although it might be worth watching me explain some of the mechanics as there are certainly some traps in there!
WOW - the revelation that Solstice and Tactics Ogre share any connection is mind blowing to me, let alone that Tactics Ogre started with a different title entirely. Solstice was one of those games i wanted to play incessantly as a young young kid, if you want to hear something truly incredible for the NES check out the opening theme for that game.
Your retrospectives are works of art. The depth with which you deliver into the subject and the obvious passion with which you speak on the games you present is genuinely a marvel.
Thanks so much. This really was the definition of a passion project so I hope some of it can bleed out into the people that watch it!
50:42 Legendary line.
Such an amazing game from my childhood I’ll never forget.
And this is gaming journalism at its finest that dives deep into what went into the making of this gem
I still own Vagrant Story... i remember my brother maxed out the Timer on the Save File and STILL was finding secrets and perfecting his already OP equipment. Vagrant Story is, at least in my eyes, a "Perfect Game". A game that has long lasting value and replayability that exceeds it's price tag....a game that, all things considered with this game industry, is deserving of a remaster...but should NEVER get it, for to do so would no doubt destroy/butcher/ruin what is already a masterpiece.
EDIT: i was about to comment on Crimson Shroud but i see ya mentioned it. I LOVE that game! It's like playing D&D to a degree and despite it's budget-ness, it still oozes that "style" Matsuno has in his games. The story isn't too bad either.
I think the replayability is something that always really surprises me about Vagrant Story. That new game plus mode really is quite worthwhile!
Sadly I'm not as big of a fan of Crimson Shroud. It's a clever idea but just not really what I want from that big beautiful imagination in Matsuno's head!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame true..if set up next to VS and his other games, it pales in comparison.
But given that Crimson Shroud was part of some sort of budget/challenge promotion with Level 5 (I think, I just remember there were a handful of "small" 3DS titles made with Crimson Shroud as some kind of promomotion)... it is still impressive in it's own right.
The 3D is good. The game mechanics still have a depth and complexity to them on top of the "old school dice rolling"...the game has atmosphere and style, even though it is far less than VS, FFT, etc, the music has its familiar stylings from all his other games tracks...and the story is still filled with a bit of intrigue and mystery.
To nutshell it..Crimson Shroud is a lighter helping of Matsudo, rather than a full blown course like VS and the Tactics series. It does lack the ambition, size and budget of his past games...but it's still a game with his mark on it: experimental, deep, interesting and familiar.
It's not perfect but neither are his other games under critical eye (as mentioned from the flaws in VS).
I'd say give it a another once over...if you want. :)
OMG I loved this game and I love you for making this video! ❤ I grinded all the way to the perfect Damascus 1h sword and 2h holy win sword. This takes me back I would pay full price for a remake
You crazy person! I had come quite close to going for hagane Dread armour - I can't imagine how long it must take to get the Damascus versions!
Wow, thank you so much for this! This is one of my favorite games ever, and to hear about its beginnings to where we might end up just tugs at my heart strings.
It's really one of my favourite games despite objectively having so many things wrong with it! I really wanted to do something that paid tribute to Matsuno so hopefully this does just that
So glad you did this video! vagrant Story is a "hidden" gem for many and should get the attention it deserves. One of the best RPGs ever in gaming history.
Vagrant Story has been in my list to play game for a very long time now, I'm debating on whether I should just watch this entire video or play it by myself first (which I really have trouble finding the time), what do you guys think?
Honestly, while the story is good, knowing it wouldn't stop you from enjoying this game. It's one of the most flavorful, love baked games on the PSX.
I would recommend watching the video. I've made it specifically with a view to providing a substitute to playing the game. You'll get a taste of the gameplay and the main strokes of the story and can then head in and get the full picture if you want!
No spoilers but it holds up very well over repeated playthroughs so you'll still get a lot out of it!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame Hey thanks for the reply! I'll be sure to watch it
I have waited for this video for months, ever since I threw out four video ideas and you said three of them were in the works. I had high hopes this was one. I'm still holding on to the hope that Onimusha is another.
Vagrant Story is such a phenomenal game, and I think both a testament to the industry then and how far it has fallen now. The fact that I, and many others, have such fond memories playing VS to the point that it still feels great to play 25 years later illustrates how great the game is. That there are so many great games from that era of gaming that meet the same replayable standards speaks to the quality of games and the caliber of storytelling of the time. That I can only think of a handful of games that have that replay value today, and many of them are FromSoft titles, is a sad statement for today's gaming landscape.
I've played Vagrant Story so many times over the past 2 ½ decades, and I still don't feel I've completed the game. It is, by far, one of my all time favorite games in 44 years on this rock. I've completed the game and lost the save file to time, moving losses, and data corruption numerous times. I know the story by heart, but still get lost in that damned forest. I still need to make the highest tier armor and weapons. I still need to max out all the break arts. I would love to introduce my wife to the game and see how she enjoys it (or doesn't, but I don't see that happening).
As usual, your retrospective is amazingly well researched, incredibly comprehensive, and remarkably enjoyable. I look forward your next video.
I'm happy to confirm you were indeed right! We'll have to see about those others!
Absolutely agree about VS being a damning indictment of where the industry is today. This wasn't even a premier release for Square and here we are waxing lyrical 20 years later! I'm just not sure that many AAA games that come out for current gen consoles will have that sort of legacy
@@IFinishedAVideoGame Current generation games absolutely won't have that type of staying power for two reasons. 1) The games of today are not of the same quality. Sure some games like Balder's Gate 3 and Elden Ring may be exceptional exceptions. And there are definitely games worth playing, but the majority will only get played once or twice and added to the pile of games I say I'll play again, but likely won't. 2) The biggest problem with today's games is the industry's obsession with DRM. Once they shut down the servers it doesn't matter if you have a physical copy of the game, you're not playing that game. You may get lucky, like the PS3 Demon's Souls community, and someone puts up a server for love of the game. But that's not often the case, and it's not wise to bank on that. And I could be mistaken, but I feel like I was just reading about Microsoft soon to be shutting down Xbox 360s marketplace? So all those digital games I never finished were money well spent. Is it any wonder why so many gamers are wary of digital only consoles, the disappearing physical media, and the practice of purchasing a license to play a game as opposed to owning the copy you bought or indefinite leases on consoles?
I couldn't agree more. I'm a physical gamer by nature and I really struggle to get on board with the digital only direction of the industry. Alan Wake 2 for example is going to be digital only and EGS only. I just really struggle to want to be involved with that!
It's high time I did my yearly replay of this game, and for those people that found the barrier of entry a little high, fret not, I'll be streaming this game on my channel real soon!
Enjoy! I think I'll need to give it a long break considering I must have played through it maybe 4 or 5 times capturing all the footage I needed!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame I think I'm still working on crafting that Dread Armor. Still only got Jazeraint gear.
It was extremely tempted to go through it another time just to get the Dread set and show it off in my video but I just wanted to move on haha
Vagrant story was a gift from my then fiance (now wife) over 20 years ago. She got me the game and the guide and lets just say that even till this day, we stll dont talk about it lol.
I absolutely loved this game. Even the what some consider to be the convulted crafting system and the complexity of the affinity system, weapon health, weapon leveling; it was so deep and unlike anything i had ever played before. I spent hours/days/weeks farming weapons, gems, hilts. I practiced chains endlessly on the dummies that you encounter in each area and the story/presentation -- so wonderful! Your video essay in my opinion gives this masterpiece its rightful due.
That's really awesome to hear. Call me sentimental but I think if I'd been gifted a classic 90s game by my wife it would only serve to elevate it all the more!
This game is so beautiful it'll probably never look bad, and i like to think it inspired the guys who made xenoblade chronicles 1 on the wii, as they also did as much as they could with what they had, and created a game much more beloved than the final fantasies we had on ps3
I've never actually played the original Xenoblade - I need to get to it at some point!
This is amazing, thank you OP. I first tried Vagrant Story when I was a teenager, was heartbroken I couldn't play it because of a defect CD back then. I was so close to crying like a baby when I recently found a ROM of it and now spending my gaming time playing it. I genuinely appreciate the work put into this video.
I'm glad you be of service and introduce you to the rest of this masterpiece! Hope it was worth the wait!
My favorite game.
Hope I do it justice!
Have been keeping a tab opened on this video for months. Usually by this time I just lose interest and close it, but something told me to keep it. Finally watched, and I'm completely amazed! Thank you for such great presentation and analysis of a masterpiece! Really surpassed my expectations, as sometimes such lengthy "video essays" are just waaaay over-padded.
That's really cool to hear! I usually try to keep the videos quite tightly scripted - they tend to just be long because the subjects are so massive! I'm glad you enjoyed this one and it bucked the trend!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame yes, exactly! Couldn't lift my eyes from the screen the whole time! Not a second wasted.
I'm one of those who couldn't grasp the systems and put it down on the cellar back in the day. But just like your video, this game kept a very well guarded spot on the back of my mind.
Over the years ment people talked about many of the details, like the shakespearean dialogs and the like, and is really cool knowing about the processes and the people behind the legends! To me, unveiling the humans behind the magic makes its effects even more powerful.
Hell yeah new video!🎉🎉🎉🎉
Hope you enjoyed it my friend!
This video is a marterpiece about a masterpiece. Thanks bro!
Thanks so much for watching!
You are like this really intelligent friend that would help us get past difficult areas in videogames. This video is incredibly insightful and amazing. Keep doing such a great work. Thank you for a nostalgic journey to the past!
Thanks my friend - that's very nice of you to say! Glad you enjoyed the video!
Watching this now, all these years later, I get aggravated at hearing how good this game was.
The PlayStation I had developed the accursed laser head reader failure issue when I got this game, and I was never able to play it. The initial battle area would load after there cutscenes, then I was not able to progress beyond that area since nothing else could load.
To hear the accolades, the praise, and generally see how good the same was, it's frustrating beyond words to know something as seminal as say FF8 or MGS was always sitting there in front of me, but that I never had the chance to experience.
It's indescribable.
Thank you for the indepth video, to learn about how good this story is now only motivates me to find a way to experience it for myself.
I think I turned off the block puzzle reset the instant I had the chance, checking through menues was just a thing back then.
I remember using one certain break art every time my risk got a bit too high, instead of using the consumable. I didn't interact with the systems quite as much, things were slightly harder, but I had a good rhythm and a good pace.
(I don't remember if I took down azura... but I remember I did time trial bosses, so I must have?)
I want this re-released. I want steam achievements for the challenges. I want this to thrive with content on ff14 as a crossover. I want people to know it exists, I want it to matter that I remember this, that this existed. It deserves better then my half memory.
A perfect Damascus shield will take 66 playthroughs.
It's such a shame that SE have chosen to do nothing with it. A re-release would get a lot of attention I'm sure of it!
The amount of people who don't read through the manual in the options menu is astounding. I never had any difficulties with this game as a kid, since you can always check the manual. One of my favorite games ever, 10/10.
I mean that might be the case but I don't think it's always clear how to properly implement an almost 25 page internal manual into your game experience. It's pretty fair to say this is a very complex game and the way you're introduced to it's mechanics isn't exactly natural
Incredible video. Thank you for doing this!
Sorry for spamming comments but
My GOD the opening sequence is an absolute masterpiece.
I love how the first wyvern you fight is clearly battle-worn and weakened; but the next one is not so weak.
So good!
I stand by the opinion this game is a masterpiece and more people should give it a shot if they can.
You'll always have my back up with that opinion!
Not even 1/5th of the way through and i already know i'm gonna relisten to this one several times.
You do amazing work, and i love the behind the scenes stuff telling about the people, studios, and situations involved.
I honestly cant stop listening to your videos, and now i'm very curious about any future projects (no rush, just curiosity. Take all the time you need)
Thanks so much - that's extremely kind of you to say.
Well I've had the next project announced for quite some time! It's going to be a complete franchise video about the Metroid series. Should be a big one!
@@IFinishedAVideoGame 👀 oh my lord. I will definitely be waiting with bated breath.
You do amazing work, and i've already recommended you to some friends
Thanks very much! That's awesome to hear
This is one of my favorite Square-Enix games and almost want to say the favorite from them. I love Matuno's work and the team behind him. My quitting point for this game was almost the affinity system, but ended up being the smithing, as I never knew it existed until near the middle of the game. I hit a roadblaock facing the next level of lizardmen I did no damage to because I never upgraded or changed the material that would damage them. Not understanding what was going on and thinking a huge difficulty spike, I quite the game for a year. Oddly enough, soon as I came back to it because I wanted to beat it, I found the game's first workshop not far from where I was..I'd been playing the game only with what I'd found and relying on weapon affinity until the damage was just too low and I was taking massive damage with poor armor.
Soon as I realized what the shop offered and all the options, it turned into a candy shop of destruction.
I really wanted to make sure I had a section in this video that described that exact experience! I think the Duane incident is probably my favorite part of the video!
I cannot stress enough how much I like your videos, last year when I discovered you I watched a lot of them back to back, and today I'm rewatching this one after rewatching the Eve one.
I actually haven't watched the Metroid one just because I want to play the remake first, because I know that you talk in so much detail and in such a comprehensive way that I won't be able to stop the video when the "spoilers" start, they are entertaining to watch as well as to just listen to, I hope you continue this year with many more videos (quality over quantity of course).
I know this donation is nothing in the way of money, but I just wanted to make sure you know that your content is awesome.
Thanks so much! Honestly it's not the amount but the sentiment that matters to me and it's so awesome to hear that you enjoy my stuff this much.
Luckily I've got quite a few planned for this year so hopefully you should have many more retrospectives to watch or listen to!
Dude, you have done retrospectives on two of my favorite underrated gems, Jade Empire and Vagrant Story. They were both amazing (as well as your other videos). I do wish they would give these two the remake treatment (although I get your reasons for not with Vagrant Story). I kind of feel like Final Fantasy XVI was more of a follow-up to VS than to the FF series, which I think is why I liked it so much.
I'm in your head and coming for your third favourite underrated gem!
This is one game that needs a remake.
Wow, I’ve played games my whole life and I never heard of this, we’ll done on making this, capturing 3 hrs of footage as well as writing what must be one hell of a script! Well done 👏
You're welcome. I'm glad you enjoyed it and I could introduce you to fascinating game!
New IFAVG retrospective? Today is a good day
Hope you enjoy it - a week late but finally here!
Finally, Vagrant Story. Love this game. Squaresoft was so innovative back in the days... And I love your work ❤
Absolutely - this video is really a love letter to creators who would rather innovate than make sales. Matsuno really deserves to be held in higher acclaim!
I wondered if anyone else ever wondered about Tia's necklace, though somewhat hard to make out on the character model. Why would she have "that" and was it showing the memory to be fabrication of that power, a red herring of sorts or something else?
Fantastic - didn't realise you were doing a video on VS. Can't wait to watch!
Well surprise! Hope you enjoy it!
Great video! I really loved Vagrant Story when it released and look back on it fondly. It's funny to learn about the crafting game system that I never fully engaged in. Now it all makes sense why the final boss was so hard. I remember fighting him so long that my weapon actually built up affinity so I was doing decent damage at the end.
Love the segment about the masterful localization. Really elevates the game! Keep up the great work!
It just can't go without mention. Such an under appreciated part of the industry!
I can’t wait to get into this, though I’m going to have to download for later viewing. Thanks for your hard work.
You're welcome! This one really took it out of me so hopefully it's lead to a nice detailed trip down memory lane!