AhhhhDrew!

Well, questions I have, answers one would expect. But then again, this is you we're talking about (j/k).

1) Does Ergheiz suffer the same fate of Symphony of the Night--in other words is it too loosely RPGesque to be Vaulted here on the GIA? I mean, that Quest Mode has two characters, a town, with NPCs reminiscient of Panzer Dragoon Saga, a very cool system of levelling up having to do with eating and nutrients and a system very much like Deep Dungeon games. It's definitely an action/RPG, but does the rest of Erghiez prevent it from getting noticed on the GIA? That's a shame, if so. That Quest Mode is a gem. Especially since you can play the whole thing more than once and the dungeons regenerate, creating something truly unique each time.

2) I thought Chrono Cross had another funky "System" to it something like the old Combo System. This seems to be shown in the movie of Serge's and Glenn's X Strike, but I have not been able to download it. Could you clear the air and say whether or not it does include combo-like elements akin the to the old CT? (Do we even know yet?)

3) Just _what_ is so bad about Faye Wong's song in FFVIII? Sure, it is sentimental, but it carries a great feeling and emotion to it without being too sappy. I think the problem is all the annoying iconoclasts who think they're jiving against popular opinion these days when most of these people would be surprised if they actually said what they felt rather than going along with the flow of opinion.

-Link, go beyond reality....and bring me a piece of water back.

Ok, let's face it. Eyes on Me is a horrible song. Very horrible. It sounds like a Barbara Streisand, or some dumb Disney song. I stopped wanting Final Fantasy VIII when I heard it.

It goes against all Final Fantasy tradition. I've always looked at Final Fantasy games as great silent films. I always feared that Squaresoft would do something like this, or even worse, give voices to the characters. (Could you imagine a serious RPG with Brave Fencer Musashi type voices?).

It's going to be even more interesting to see how it will do with people over here, seeing as Final Fantasy is pretty mainstream now. I can just imagine it, normal old American Joe beats the game, and sits back to relax and reflect as the credits roll. Then all of the sudden, he hears that first line, sickeningly overemphasized. 'Shall I be the one for you.' "What the hell is this?", American Joe asks in confusion. I thought this game was cool, and at least moderately hip. He then shuts off the Playstation as fast as possible, and shuns everything Final Fantasy for the next five years because he always flashes back to that horrible moment. Let's face it, bubbly pop songs do pretty well in Japan, but in America, that sort of thing is directed to pre-pubescent girls and women over thirty five. I don't know about you, but I suspect that most people that will be playing Final Fantasy VIII will be guys, probably aged 16-24. (In fact, it's proven that this is the majority of the 'gaming community'). What will people who listen to stuff like Eminem, Offspring, and Korn think of a song that, as one of your readers pointed out, it hauntingly similar to *shudder* 'My Heart Will Go On'?).

All I can do is hope that Square won't make a mistake like this with a popular series like Final Fantasy again, but that doesn't seem likely. Those Japanese Square executives are more likely to say, "To hell with those uncultured, white bastards, trying to tell us how to make our games. We'll just make sure that they don't get ANY of our games!". At which point a fellow Square exec will lean over and whisper something in his ear. "Fine, fine, " the first exec would say, "but whatever games we give them, we'll make sure it has an incredibly poor translation! Bwahahaha! Hey, I just got a good feeling."

I'm not a Square basher or anything, but I just think that they've been a little too cocky as of late. Whatever happened to the game companies loving their fans, ala Working Designs, whom often state, "Without you fans we're nothing!" I think its about time we should SquareSoft who their boss really is, the fans. Maybe then we can stop seeing poor translations and horrible marketing decisions.

Hey Drew,

I know that you've said before that you don't have much control over the ads that you show, but I just want you to know that any site with a banner of a monkey flying from side to side saying that you can win $20 if you catch the monkey, gets a thumbs-up in my book.(How's that for a run-on sentence?) If you're not sure what I'm talking about or have never seen that banner, than you're missing out on something really good, either that or you must think I'm wierd.

Evermost Sincerely,
-The Guy on the Couch

Hey Drew!

First off, I just bought the FF Tactics OST and I'm listening to it as I write this! I might snag the Xenogears OST, even though I haven't even played it. Aren't game soundtracks great?

Ok, I was watching the telly and happened to come across MuchMusic's Spotlight on The Smashing Pumpkins, one of my all-time favourite bands. Then I thought about Squaresoft. What the hell do these two things have in common? I'll tell ya: the attitude of their fans. With the giant tempest revolving around issues like FF 7 bashing, RPGs becoming more like movies, whether Square should stay with Sony, etc., I realized what was happening with the fans of games as well as music and movies.

Billy Corgan suggested that the reason their last album, Adore, did not do well was because certain Pumpkin fans were expecting the Siamese Dream or Mellon Collie fare. The listeners had become so attached to certain 'eras', any creative change from the norm would simply be outrageous.

Same with Square fans. I rarely pre-judge people but some Square-heads are obsessed up in their old-school SNES nostalgia days to the point where they've become retarded. Some gamers I know still rant about FF 4 like it was made yesterday. It's like a Streetcar Named Desire but worse (hmmm, I wonder if I can coin the term "streetcar syndrome"...).

It's fine to critique and constructively-criticize new Square titles but when you're still stuck in a past 'eras', you're opinion is questionable.

Thanx for reading, people!

-Your friend, S@int 7
columnist, [Mind Games!] (tm)

Just want to give you a quick pep up. I think you're right about the Xenogears/FF7 thing, in that FF7 doesn't lay the whole story out for you. The same for FFT. And there's one more game, which is perhaps the ultimate example of leaving it up to the reader to interpret it how he likes - Silent Hill. My friend and I had a good 2 hour post-mortem ICQ chat on that one. And you know what? I loved it. I really appreciated it how those games didn't just spill it all out.

The same type of thing can be seen in movies. Why's the Matrix so popular? Because the plot isn't spelled out. Sure it is in a way, but not to the extent of other movies like Godzilla (groan) or the later Batman movies (double groan). That's why I'm also looking forward to the Thirteenth Floor, eXistenZ and the Blair Witch Project (all not out in Australia yet) - because those movies, from what I've heard of them, won't be the type that'll splurge it all out. Similarly, that's why I'm looking forward to CC, RE3, and so on.

-yasha (if you look closely in the red dress scene in the Matrix, you might notice the fountain has a slight yellow tinge. That was me. I swear.)

Drew,

I tried to resist writing, but the exhortation at the end of your last column was just too much for me ;).

Anyway, I agree whole heartedly with DkPhoenix. When I fire up the playstation, it is my intention to play a game. Not to watch one. If I wanted to see a movie, I would go to AMC and shell out twenty-some dollars. If I wanted to read endless text, I would pick up a book.

Games are games because of the interaction and control. I would never pick up a game and say "Gosh! This storyline sounds dark, convoluted, and melodramatic. I should buy it." However, it seems that plenty of American gamers do (ex: Xenogears). Even in FF7, which I enjoyed, the plot truly didn't interest me. I think Square's games are missing plot interaction. Sure you can run (where they allow you) and fight (monsters carefully adjusted to your current skill levels), but you have no control whatsoever concerning the plot. Anyone who thinks that you put the pieces of the plot together in Xenogears or even FF7 is crazy. You just run to the next location and watch the next ten minutes of video. Freedom of movement and NPC interaction are at all-time lows.

I'd like to see a return to the style of the older and less linear games, like the Ultima series. They had no videos and little dialogue, but I was far more the Avatar than I ever was Cloud or Fei. I know I seem like the stereotypical American gamer that Square mangles it's games for, but I would rather play Quake than sit through another ten minutes of the preachy video found it today's "rpgs".

May the flaming commence
-Blue Meg-

Yes, I am a Xenogears fan writing to talk about it, but no this isn't a flame.

There's been a lot of people talking recently about how Xenogears should have been a book or a movie of some kind, because of lack of interaction. I agree, the player did not have as much influence as with most games, however I found that it was interactive enough to allow me to become deeply involved in the storyline. And while I did not really effect the events that happened, I found myself believing I did because of the way the game pulled me into it's world.

I think that it all comes down to a matter of taste, really. I can say without hesitation that Xenogears is my favorite game of all time. But I know that there are people out there for whom it's the worst game they've ever played. One man's trash is another man's treasure.

So my point is, even if you don't dislike something in a game, it doesn't mean that it's something that should be fixed. There are lots of games for every interest group. Let the other people have some sometimes.

-Justin

Maybe you can clear up something for me. I'm quite confused. All these letters I've been reading have been talking about Square going this way or that. Is it impossible to develop for SONY and Nintendo? Dolphin and the PS2 will both have machines that will be able to handle any game Square would want to develop. Doesn't Capcom develop for both currently? Please explain to me why Square would have to choose between companies.

-Pendy (who will drop a 20 ton anvil on his head from a large building if DQ7 is not released in America)

I have my doubts about the GIA's theory concerning the picture of Lucca and the message refering to her as 'oneesan' (ooh-nay-san). While it seemed like a good theory that Lucca has acquired a younger sibling, upon watching the demo finaley movie I think there is a different explanation.

When Serge enter's the room where Lucca's glasses are laying on the floor and an ominous figure is standing there, you can see that there are in fact 5 bunk beds in the room. This is bedding for 10 people! Most likely some or all of these are the children who are responsible for the drawings.

My theory is that Lucca and her family have taken in some children for some reason, and that they call Lucca 'Big Sister'. I'd love to hear other theories about the 10 bunks and who they are for, because I'm sure I'm wrong as well. I'm really interested in if/why Yamaneko is burning down the house ^_^, but that is what the demo movie is supposed to make me feel right?