xellos667 wrote:edit: I'm around half of the show, and quite frankly it's kinda embarrassing. If you do a show about a subject in particular, at the very least, bring someone who knows something about it, or do some research.
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EDIT2: last part is about some of the compilation and they kinda get this right (at least better than the cannon game)...but not totally. Finally we get forum users comments, and those are better IMHO than the actual staff comments about Phantasy Star.
I just finished listening to it, and I agree with all of this, especially the part that I bolded. The lack of knowledge of these games
was embarrassing.
I also took some notes of their comments while listening.
PSI:
-The female reviewer didn't seem to know the correct sequence of actions at the beginning of this game.
-She pronounces Alis "AY-liss."
-The reviewers agreed that the game does not hold up well over time.
-While the first-person dungeons were interesting, they were ultimately too confusing.
-They liked Alis as a protagonist.
PSII:
-It never felt like you were making any progress in the game.
-There was a lack of understanding of Nei's origins. One reviewer pronounced her name "Knee," and another described Neifirst as Nei's "clone" and "evil twin," and said she was "AI." (Note: I don't consider bioengineering AI.)
-You have to really love this game in order to put in the time for it.
-There was more grinding in PSII than FFI or DQIV.
-The story and characters were great.
-The sci-fi setting was unique for the time.
-Traveling back to Paseo to retrieve new characters was annoying. (My note: No, it's not. You teleport.)
-The fact that the characters had real jobs and that those jobs were useful for the game was interesting.
PSIII:
-Pronounced Rhys "Rice" and "Race" and "stupid name." (Note: Rhys is a Welsh name pronounced "Reese" for anyone who's wondering. It's often anglicized as "Reece.")
-The multi-generational system was a cool concept.
-The tech system was interesting.
-The battle music was atrocious.
-The game has good replay value due to the generational system.
PSIV:
-The reviewers agreed PSIV was the best of the series.
-The battle system was the most interesting.
-They loved the vehicles and the vehicle battles.
-The female reviewer loved Chaz and Rika; she thought Chaz was a lovable goof and Rika was interesting because she had to learn about humans and human emotions during the course of the journey.
-She also liked the teacher/pupil relationship between Alys and Chaz.
-The comic book-like cut scenes were great.
-There was more plot than any other game. (Note: Disagree. Not more plot, just more script.)
-The difficulty level was very balanced.
-The grinding was kept minimal.
-The reviewers like the side quests, but mistakenly thought that Tinkerbell's dog was a pig.
-They thought Wren was the same Wren from PSIII.
-The game has aged well.
Editing: I want to point out that xellos is right about the reviewers admitting they didn't complete the games except for III and IV. Even then, one reviewer admitted to only playing about an hour of PSIII. Another reviewer admits to giving up on PSI shortly after getting Noah into the party, the female reviewer says she quit PSII well before Climatrol, while another says he got to Dezo but quit shortly thereafter.
Let us know if you do a PS podcast, hugues. I'd love to listen to it!