What's up, pussycat?

Not much to report today. I'm bushed with work, and slowly earning the deep hatred of all Zelda fans the world over (oops), but there's no Big Topic of Debate being thrashed at the moment. Hm.

To import or not to import

First of all, I'm glad to see that the GIA is up, running, and beating the shiitake mushrooms out of RPGamer, of which they couldn't get a simple news article about the fate of Lunar and it's delay for a week after it came out, but I'm already going off on a tangent.

I'm just glad to say that I live on Long Island, and that importing video games around here is about as easy as bending over and tying your shoelaces. Do you think, or does anyone else think, in your own opinion if importing is worth it? I've been eyeing FF5 and Seiken Densetsu 3 for the SNES, plus the converter as well, and...well...this is the pretty much last chance I have to buy these games. Should I really go for it? I mean, there are many upsides to it but in the end, do you think that importing these games that will never, in no way, be released here ( way to go, SquareSoft ) be worth it in the end? I'm ready to put the $130 on the counter and fulfill my long dream and I only have three more days to decide. What are your thoughts? Thanks for any help you can give me!

Dark Paladin


Well, there are a few things you should consider. I, for one, enjoyed both games immensely, and recommend them highly. I own them both, and still pull them out periodically and give them a go. In light of that, I'd advise you to go for it. A few things to keep in mind, though. First off, especially in FFV's case, you lose a huge amount of the experience if you can't understand the words on the screen. After all, what's an RPG without a story? I'd advise you to find a very complete walkthrough or complete script to the games if you want to play through them - you can muddle through without them (I did), but why hamper your experience, neh? Secondly, despite its illegality, I'd be remiss not to mention that modern emulation offers copies of these games, translated and quite playable. I can't advocate emulation, gloriously handy though it often is, but it should be noted that such things exist. Lastly, keep in mind that there's lots of fantastic games out there, in English, that you probably haven't played. FFV and SD3 are excellent games, make no mistake, but are they worth $130 to you if you can't understand a word of them?

As with all game purchases, a bit of forethought is advised. In your shoes, I'd probably find game scripts and buy the games. But it's your call. Oh, and feel free to ask gameplay questions in the future - I'll see what I can do for you. :)

What's coming, what's not

Hey hows it going? Kudos to you guys on the site so far it looks like ithas a lot of potential. Anyway here are my questions...

1) Is there any chance that we will see Grandia ported to the Us for thePlaystation?

2) Is any confirmed on Star Ocean 2 and Dragon Quest 7 coming here? Itwould be shame for the US gamers to miss out on either game.

3) Whats up with Lufia 3? I hav'nt heard anything about it in a while, itwould be really bad if this thing got canned...


Answers, por favor:

1. This is a toss-up. On one hand, Working Designs has an excellent relationship with Game Arts, creators of Grandia, and would almost certainly translate the game. However, Game Arts is currently at work on Grandia 2 for Dreamcast, which makes it unlikely that they'd be porting the original to PSX, especially in light of how optimized Grandia was for the Saturn hardware. So, in short, probably not.

2. Star Ocean 2 is confirmed for release sometime in the spring. Deagon Quest VII is not confirmed for release, though I'd lay odds on Atlus trying to get the rights to port it...

3. Lufia 3, due to financial troubles of its producer in Japan, is still in limbo. Sorry.

Xenogears subtext

I just noticed this in Xenogears: Bart and Margie, being King of Aveh and Great Mother of Nisan, are supposed to marry, right? However, Bart repeatedly calls Margie his "cousin". Not only that, but Margie calls the previous Great Mother her "mother" without capitilization, meaning that since the Great Mother marries Aveh's king,she is Bart's sister!!!O_oInbred RPG characters. What's the world coming to?

-Mandoric


Eeeeeugh. Not a pleasant thought. From my interpretation, Margie and Bart are just cousins, not brother and sister. While marrying one's cousin is a little iffy in our culture, it was actually quite common throughout history. Xenogears, being a mix of medieval and futuristic cultures, apparently kept this little practice. But I don't think they're brother and sister. That'd just be too disGUSting.

A plug for translation info

Hey, if you want an interesting look at how translations work and stuff, go towww.imagineradio.com and check out the archives of IGN Asylum... there's aninterview with Yas Noguchi, the translator of Tales of Destiny. It's reallyinteresting (and funny); I suggest you check it out.

- Fritz Fraundorf


Thanks for the pointer, Fritz. Good interview... we really ought to get in touch with Mr. Noguchi, methinks...

What drives Link?

You mentioned that the previous Zelda games all lacked story andcharacterization--Big wrong. You've obviously never played the Game BoyZelda(Link's Awakening), which had plot, story, and development of thecharacters(plus a slight change in the ending depending if you died duringthe game!) It was better than all the previous Zelda's combined. Ofcourse, I have yet to play Zelda 64, but I shall rent as soon as possible.

Etiam, delenda est Carthago,

Caine, responsible for an attempt to blast the Sacred Cow of FFV.


I played both Zeldas on NES, Link to the Past on SNES, and Link's Awakening on Gameboy. I even watched the bleeding cartoon show. And in all that time, I never got any indication of a personality for Link, Zelda, or anyone else. Why is Ganon evil? Why is he power-hungry? What spurs Link on to save the world, heedless of his own safety? They're all just cogs to move the plotline forward, not characters. In its defense, Zelda isn't really about characterization. It's about gameplay, and it has excellent gameplay, all throughout the series (well, except for #2... maybe). Characterization and storytelling are a secondary concern. Different strokes for different games.

Assorted questions

This is the third time I've sent a letter to you at GIA since you're replied to one. In fact, you've probably read most of these questions before - when I sent them to you earlier . . . but since you're desparate for letters now, you're forced to post it.

1) Does the FF8 battle theme sound more like a boss theme to you?

2) In the last battle in Parasite Eve, there's some sort of chant going. It sounds like they're saying 'no God,' but I realized that it's probably sung in Japanese. Any word on what's being chanted?

3) In the Parasite Eve trailer, there's a lot of scenes that aren't in the game. Since FMV is so time consuming to make, why would they cut these scenes out? I can't believe that Square's planning would be so bad as to make so much unnecessary FMV.

4) Is it just me, or does PocketStation look like a complete waste of time?

5) Are you going into game development? If yes, you should hop over to SFU.

If you don't post this, I'll know that you completely and utterly despise me. :)

-CS-


1. It sounds like a battle theme. A bit more orchestral and bombastic than most, I agree, but it's not imposing and bassy enough to be a good boss theme.

2. I believe it's something like "Behold God", but I may be mistaken. Any corrections from the floor? Is this more Latin?

3. Well, for one thing, the trailer isn't all that long - 2 minutes at most. And much of the "extra" FMV probably was intended for use in the game, and was cut out somewhere in development. Not everything makes the final cut, after all. But in the end, the scenes served their purpose: it's cool-looking footage that, though not in the final game, should capture the interest of the viewer, who will presumably then consider purchasing the game itself. So, in that that, it wasn't a waste.

4. Eh. It's not a total waste of time; I've bought more useless accessories than that for game systems over the years, that's for sure. It seems like a gimmick, probably aiding to get secret items in games that use it. No biggie, but nothing that's excited me.

5. Nope. I'd make a lousy game developer. I'd shoot game balance all to hell for the sake of characterization or something equally ridiculous.

Zelda and Oreos

I used to think that Oreo's dunked in milk were the greatest thing inthe world. Then I had Chips Ahoy (not the chewy) dunked in milk. Oh!Bliss! Blow's Oreos away. I highly suggest this.

For your reference, Zelda is not attractive in this game. Not that I'veseen. Why can't they do her up like she was in the cartoon on the SuperMario Bros. Super Show that was out years ago? That was considerablymore attractive.

Also, in response to the letter titled "Zelda is God." What I want todo is write a rebuttal, but there is no way to win that battle, so I'mgoing to go on to attack what really irked me about that letter: theTitle! Zelda is NOT God. I am. It says so in the Bible. Ex. 3:14 Ithink. (blasphemy you say?)

I_Am


I'm now convinced that we should give Princess Zelda a makeover. She's been hiding her true, inner beauty for far too long behind pink dresses and orange tresses. She needs to liberate herself, and recapture her essential claim to beauty. Who's with me on this?

That'd be all for tonight. I know I'm going to get in deeeep trouble for criticizing the characterization in the Zelda series, but hey, controversy is my adopted middle name. Leastways, that's what everyone seems to tell me...

- Allan Milligan, stirring up trouble

 
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