#I don't have a switch so I can't play the port. nor do I have the original consoles for the older ones

[heartbeetz]

I bought the crash original trilogy remakes on steam a while back specifically bc of Anton. I should play at least one of the wario lands at some point too. Learning my roots...

[x-rds]

Yeah we kinda prefer the ds for things like "having different mechanics that the remasters can't replicate"

Like for 999 and for hotel dusk, some parts require you to do things with the ds that I don't think a remaster could easily replicate (and the remaster actually screwed up the final puzzle for 999, it doesn't have the same emotional impact as the ds version. Also, talk to me about 999 I'm as normal as any introject could be about it.)

But the part with the audio makes sense, seems like the game relies on music a lot to keep up the "hip and trendy" atmosphere. And it's very good, I think one song in particular reminds us of another game but I'm not sure what.

Oh and I actually have some questions about the release. I was reading a small excerpt from Game FAQ about it's release. Apparently there was little to no advertising for the game, but because word of mouth about the game spread so much it sold out on it's release day. Just because all the game stores ran out of copies for it. Is this true at all? Is there anything else talking about it's release date?

Oh we need to play 999, it’s been on our list of things to play for a while. Maybe once we get a chance to bring our DS back from the states we will.

But yeah, music themes are a huge thing in the game both in atmosphere and in worldbuilding so they really wanted it to sound good haha.

Hmm, I’m not sure about that bit - I’ve read a lot about it and I don’t remember seeing anything about it selling out day one, nor anyone talking about that online, but I suppose it could have! I do know it had a bit of advertising - but it wouldn’t surprise me if it wasn’t a lot. Subsequent releases and the sequel all had pretty poor advertising as well. (When the switch port was coming out, I’m pretty sure Nintendo did the bulk of advertising for it - which frustrated a lot of people. SE didn’t even show it for E3 that year despite it being their game, and it showed up just shortly in the Nintendo ‘coming to Switch’ reel...)

That said, word of mouth definitely did a lot for it. The DS release did ok but not amazing in Japan (maybe a failure of advertising again, I’m not sure, but based on their track record...) but it did far better in English speaking countries - perhaps thanks to the great localization. The game is good in Japanese - but a lot of flavor is added in the English version thanks to the script localization that I think really enhanced it. (There’s one bit that’s a spoiler so I won’t say it yet, but there’s a small script mistake only in the DS version that a lot of people really liked because it felt like a sneaky hint instead of a mistake and I’m sad they removed it from subsequent versions because it was great.)

[problemswithbooks]

bnha is weird because it wants me to take the abuse seriously but not to take the death or murder seriously? is this that personal thing?

I think it's just a writing issue.

All most all of the characters I like in shows or books are villains. I'm not generally put off by characters killing a lot of people, or even just being 100% evil. I'm not usually annoyed by a random kill count, and having their past actions sort of brushed aside if that's the route the story wants to go.

The problem with bnha is that Hori is both trying to make the villains sympathetic and redeemable, yet continuing to focus on the suffering and pain they inflict on innocent people. He also keeps upping the severity of their actions without having any of the LoV show any sort of remorse, guilt of even just questioning their actions ever.

Horikoshi didn't have to show those kids crying and screaming in the rubble, or Ochako looking at all the destruction in quiet devastation. He didn't have to put Shigaraki's speech about how Heroes don't save people, over panels of Heroes saving people from his attack. He didn't have to put Toga asking if Heroes didn't consider Jin a person because they killed him, over buildings being tossed around and destroyed by Machia, who she is riding. He didn't have to do any of that.

If you downplay and brush off the actions of characters it generally signals to the audience they aren't supposed to be that important. In Bungo Stray Dogs (anime, I haven't read that much of the manga), the Port Mafia are terrible and kill a whole lot of people, but it's not really focused on. Akutagawa kills an entire police station full of people, and the most we get is one of the good guys looking at it and getting angry. It doesn't effect that character for long and it's not an issue for him in later episodes, nor are we shown those peoples' grieving loved ones.

So, it doesn't bother me when the Port Mafia works with the good guys sometimes. Their actions sometimes are even played for comedy rather then as something horrific and they're quickly integrated into the story as sometimes allies. It's also a story that is heavily about changing and being able to make up for unforgivable things. Within the first season, a former assassin used by the Port Mafia joins the good guy team and it's revealed that the main character's mentor was a former member of that organization and switched sides to do good.

It sets the precedent early on that there is an option for these characters, who have done a lot of bad things (that the story doesn't even focus on), to change and be accepted back on the good side if that's what they want. And even if they don't want to leave the Mafia, they're fun and will help if it'll save the city they all live in.

Hori has never done this. He's always focused on the violence and suffering his villains cause, while simultaneously establishing that villains can only be stopped by being punched really hard. Izuku never talks any villain down, not even Gentle, who barely counts as a villain. No villain has switched sides. Even Stain, who just helped out the Heroes, says he's doubled his kill count and wants to be killed as he leaves--he's not really different then he was when he first showed up and he's not suddenly welcomed onto the team.

I just can't forget about the trauma and pain the LoV have caused because Hori refuses to stop showing it, and only making it worse. Back when they were only attacking the kids, and were obviously underdogs, it wasn't hard to see how they could switch sides. But then they destroyed a town, and then Japan, and now they're helping AfO be a worldwide threat. So many characters are permanently damaged from things the LoV have done, and it shows--these characters don't just brush it off most the time.

These are all the same reasons why people take Enji's abuse seriously. It's focused on a lot. We see the ongoing damage it's caused to his family. So, yeah, I can't just take the abuse seriously and brush off what the LoV does. If Hori wanted that to work he shouldn't have spent so much time showing the effects of their actions. He shouldn't have spent precious panels on children being crushed under rubble.

This is why I find people who say the LoV's kill count and actions don't matter and that it's just a story really frustrating. Of course some people will get hung up on it when Hori keeps rubbing in our faces to make his villains a threat. Maybe Hori doesn't want us to care, but he did a bad job of making that clear and so it's fair that some people just can't let it go. It just doesn't work for them, in the same way Endeavor's redemption doesn't work for others.

[chaosstar290]

Reasons try out Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore.

Nintendo's been pretty casual with porting Wii U games over to the Switch, and for good reasons. Normally, I'm not all into porting games that I've already played, but my personal favorite games on the system that lack good marketing and advertising are now getting the attention and love they deserve.

Take Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for example, one of my favorite 2D platfomers. The game originally sold 1.72 million copies worldwide on the Wii U. Not very good numbers, huh? However, the Switch port managed to beat those sales numbers with 2.25 million units sold worldwide by the end of March 2019.

So while this could be seen as a way for Big N to earn more $$$, this is also a way for those who never owned a Wii U and missed out on some of the system's best titles to give these games a shot. Now we just need a port of Xenoblade Chronicles X and The Wonderful 101...and Star Fox Zero, I guess.

But that's a topic for another time. This post is specifically for my favorite JRPG on the Wii U only to be tied with Xenoblade Chronicles X....Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE.

This'll be a long one, so here's hoping you'll stick with it until the end.

Development

Before I get into the reasons, lemme educate you guys a bit. Back in January 2013, both Atlus and Intelligent Systems made a teaser trailer for a potential Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem crossover for the Wii U.

The trailer was mostly just a slideshow with various character artwork. Despite this, there was a decent amount of hype surrounding it. But development around the game was pretty silent. That is, until we fast forward to the Nintendo Direct in April 1, 2015. We got a trailer of the ambitious SMT x FE crossover that fans were waiting for...but this was the final product.

Needless to say...neither SMT nor FE fans were happy about this. The fandoms were incredibly salty and foaming at the mouths, basically calling it a Person 4 Lite with a hint of FE. Heck, they're probably still posts on this site from 5 years ago that'll show that.

Fast forward to the games initial release, and you'll see quite a few positive reviews and thoughts about TMS. Unfortunately, the sale numbers were not all that great for the game. Obvious reasons being that it was a Wii U game, and many fans of both SMT x FE were not happy with how it turned out.

And to be honest, I wasn't feeling the game myself at first. It seemed too lighthearted and upbeat, and the J-Pop, anime-ish aesthetics were very off-putting. However, the more I saw about the game, the more I was drawn into it. Somehow all that disappointment I had about TMS originally just washed away. And considering it was a new IP, I decided to give it a chance. And hoo boy...I was generally pleased.

With that outta the way, let's get into why I'm excited for the Switch port of game, and hoping people will give it a fairer chance.

The Setting

The plot of Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is mostly simple. You start out as high schooler Itsuki Aoi, the main character of the game encountering his childhood friend Tsubasa Oribe at an audition event to become a idol. It isn't until moments later in the game that the area gets overruned by shadowy creatures known as Mirages that suck out the creative energy known as Perso-- ah I mean Performa from the other idols and audience.

Poor girl doesn't know what's gonna happen next.

Despite our main characters seeming unharmed by the effect, the Mirages drag Tsubasa into their world known as the Idolsphere. And of course, courageous Itsuki takes action to follow and rescue her.

After trying to make a daring rescue, Itsuki gets bombarded by a Mirage, but somehow manages to awaken it. Taking the form of Fire Emblem Awakening's protagonist Chrom. Itsuki does the same with the Mirage that captured Tsubasa that takes the form of Cedea from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon. The two awakaned Mirages, however, suffer from a bit of amnesia and can't quite remember who and what they are.

From there on, Itsuki and Tsubasa form a partnership with Chrom and Cedea, encountering various characters trying to reach their way to stardom while trying to draw back the opposing forces from taking over Tokyo and the world. Typical RPG stuff, am I right?

It's a fairly standard and slightly cliche plot with some common anime tropes, but for this game...it works. It's a plot that's incredibly silly, upbeat, and over-the-top, but again...it works for this game. And I love it. It may not be original, deep, or complex, but the story does its best to not take itself too seriously, and it doesn't fail to keep a smile in my face.

Aside from the vanilla cookie-cutter MC Itsuki, the various casts that you meet are incredibly charming, and go through their own personal growth as celebrities. Though you mileage may vary on this.

The Gameplay

The combat is the real star of Tokyo Mirage Sessions. Basically, it's your standard turn-based combat system...but with a few twists. If you've ever played a SMT or Persona game, then don't be surprised that elemental weaknesses make an appearance here. Along with that, the Triangle Weapon system from Fire Emblem also makes an appearance in the game.

But if you're not familiar with either franchise then give you a basic example how this works. Say that you've encountered an armored Mirage wielding an axe. The weaknesses on that enemy are both lightning and swords, and Itsuki just so happens to have both the necessary element and weapon equipped.

In case you're wondering...how the Triangle Weapon mechanic works in FE is that Swords beat Axes, Axes beat Lances, and Lances beat Swords.

The interesting thing about this is that once you exploit an enemy's weakness, other characters will jump in and combo extra attacks. These are called Sessions, and their not only powerful...but also flashy as all hell and it's glorious. Not only that, but there's also Duo Arts where two certain characters will sometimes perform a song that unleashes a powerful attack...which also strings up more Sessions. As broken as this sounds, it actually is pretty strategic for taking down harder enemies, and they can also form Sessions...so be careful.

There's more to the gameplay like roaming Tokyo, exploring dungeons, and upgrading your characters and Mirages by Tiki from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon as well.

There's mixed opinions on the dungeon aspects of Tokyo Mirage Sessions, but...I personally enjoyed them. Aside from the first one. Once you get past the first dungeon, they get better as the game progresses. From exploring a darker version of Shibuya where you have to avoid giant cameras from sending you back to the entrance of the of the room you currently entered, to venturing through a maze-like TV studio.

There's also side-missions that you can do with your main cast that'll help them grow and develop even further. You'll be rewarded with either a special cutscene or a special attack. Or maybe both.

The Visuals

Go go...Persona Rangers?

If it wasn't obvious from the amount of images I'm posting, Tokyo Mirage Sessions is a very colorful game. Fitting with it's lighthearted theme, the amount of colors the game throws at you makes visuals aesthetically pleasing. Heck, you could make these your personal wallpaper on your phone or something.

Sure, Tokyo Mirage Sessions isn't nearly as strong as Persona 5 graphically or even artistically, but like most Nintendo games...what their games lack in terms of detailed ultra-hyper graphics, they make up for it with giving their games gorgeous artstyles.

Also, this game has some reeeeeally good artwork.

The Music

J-Pop plays a pretty big role in Tokyo Mirage Sessions, so expect a lot of vocal tracks. If you're not into this kind of genre of music, then you might wanna stray away from this game. If you are (or if it doesn't bother you), then you're in for a treat. As someone who really isn't into J-Pop myself, the songs in this game are incredible and catchy followed by some beautiful cutscenes. Reincarnation from Kiria Kurono and Feel from Tsubasa Oribe are some of my personal favorites.

The music from outside the vocal tracks are pretty good too. The normal battle theme and the Illusion Shibuya dungeon theme are just to name a couple.

What's New?

Like I said before, Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore is a port of the Wii U version, but with added content. Any DLC that was added in the original game will part of the base game in the Switch version. But let's talk about the new stuff.

EX Story and Songs

The EX Story is basically a dungeon that you explore in short bursts. Here you'll find new costumes such as a Joker outfit from Persona 5 for Itsuki, or an Annette outfit from Fire Emblem Three Houses for Mamori Minamoto. Or you can have a much easier time grinding for EXP. Also, much like the side-stories, this dungeon will also explore the main casts' issues and help them grow.

New songs will also be added in this port. A duo song called "She is..." sung by Tsubasa and Kiria is one of them.

Sessions

By making Sessions even more powerful and ridiculous, unplayable characters like Tiki, Maiko Shimazaki, and Barry Goodman will also join in Sessions.

In addition, a Quick Session option will be added. Which is a major upgrade in my book. One of the big issues the Wii U version had was while the Sessions were fun to watch, they took forever to get through with the more characters that joined your party. There are also smaller improvements like the Switch version having faster loading times.

Conclusion

Hopefully, this long as hell post will spark some interest into those who'll give the game a shot. I know there's small nitpicks like the lack of English voice acting and censorship, but the latter is a topic I'd rather not delve deep into.

Regardless, these small cons are greatly outweighed by the large pros this charming game has. If you're an Atlus fan, a lover of JRPGs, or wanting to play something that'll ease the wait for Persona 5 Royal, I highly recommend you give Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE encore a shot.

If you're also waiting for Persona 5 to actually come to the Switch like me, this game is next best thing we've got for the time being.

This is one of the most stylish menu screens ever.