So...just had a 17 hour marathon of G.U. 3, damn you all for making me play it...so addicted....>.> been playing it since I posted last, so addicting....
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Zen VulgarityWhat a lovely day for teaSecret British ThreadRegistered Userregular
edited July 2008
So, G.U. is entertaining?
I'd like to see the story of the original four, but the gameplay is just awful.
I'd like to see the story of the original four, but the gameplay is just awful.
Read the let's play then?
Very entertaining. It has a ridiculous amount of depth, and you'll probably end up trying to 100% each volume because it's just so damn tempting. Plus saves carry over, so you get bonuses.
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Zen VulgarityWhat a lovely day for teaSecret British ThreadRegistered Userregular
edited July 2008
I noticed the LP that SA has doesn't actually finish the game.
Is there anywhere else I can get the gist of what happened outside of maybe a wiki?
I noticed the LP that SA has doesn't actually finish the game.
Is there anywhere else I can get the gist of what happened outside of maybe a wiki?
Well, .hack//Another Birth is a set of 4 books that follows the story of the first four games from the perspective of BlackRose, one of the main supporting characters. If you don't want to spend money, wiki would be your best bet.
Huh...(G.U. Volume 3 Major Spoilers)
Yata was a former Dot Hacker? Interesting...
PunkBoy on
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2) I hear that the combat in the original series is horrible. Just how exactly does it play that makes it so horrible?
3) If I start on GU, am I really missing anything?
1) Each of them are a good 20+ hours if you don't try to speed through and just enjoy yourself.
2) The originals are just slow and clunky and lacking some helpful battle mechanics that make it a lot more enjoyable.
3) You won't really miss anything you especially if you watch the terminal disk summaries that came with the first GU game. GU is pretty much made for people who didn't play the original games so as long as you spend like 3 minutes reading some stuff on wikipedia to get familiar with the universe or watching the aforementioned terminal disk you will be good to go.
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I never asked for this!
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Zen VulgarityWhat a lovely day for teaSecret British ThreadRegistered Userregular
edited July 2008
Oh.
Really rb?
I think I'll just do that then.
And that Tri-Edge guy looks way too much like Kite to be a coincidence.
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited July 2008
The Terminal Disk came only with the special edition, right? Sigh, I knew I should have gotten that.
IMPORTANT: Read the plots of the first four games on wiki, but I suggest that you don't read the character pages. Really.
PunkBoy on
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Yeah the terminal disk was with the special edition of the first volume. It also came with a pretty cool Haseo figure. I'm sure all the terminal videos are online.
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Zen VulgarityWhat a lovely day for teaSecret British ThreadRegistered Userregular
edited July 2008
I'll look 'em up.
If anything, there's the main plot wiki pages.
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited July 2008
Heh. It may be just me, but I think it's hilarious that Apkallu is basically Deviant Art.
"WOW. SUCH A GOOD PICTURE."
"OMG I LOVE YOUR STYLE!"
"I LOVE THE DETAILS!!!"
To be fair, though, most of them are actually really good pictures. And I really do wish the real internet was as nice as the .hack internet.
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Holy shit, that caught me by surprise. (Vol. 3 spoiler)
Saku is actually a split personality of Bo?!
This series has some really crazy stuff.
I laughed when you first commented on that character, because you pretty much got it spot-on without even knowing it.
Haha, I immediately thought about that post when that scene happened.
Damn...(Vol 3. Spoilers)
As soon as I thought things were wrapping up, more questions pop up. Who the hell is Zelkova? Yata was one of the people that fought the virus in R:1? Why isn't Shino and Alkaid back? What the hell's going to happen in the real world? It's like the apocalypse. And what has happened to Ovan?
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited July 2008
Woo, just beat Volume 3. I really liked the ending. Overall, I think this was a great series of games, and I look forward to whatever's next.
I'll admit it. The ending made me misty eyed.
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Im still going through it, Im going back and forth between G.U. 3 and Eternal Sonata...and as of tomorrow, Persona 3...bah, will I ever finish an RPG? lol.
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Zen VulgarityWhat a lovely day for teaSecret British ThreadRegistered Userregular
edited July 2008
P3 FES can easily take over 100 hours.
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited July 2008
So, couple questions about the post game:
I'm assuming the Forest of Pain is a pretty important post game quest, so I should really do that. Also, do I find out about Haseo's true past after some event? And I'm really curious who Yata was 7 years ago, do I find out about that as well?
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I'm assuming the Forest of Pain is a pretty important post game quest, so I should really do that. Also, do I find out about Haseo's true past after some event? And I'm really curious who Yata was 7 years ago, do I find out about that as well?
The Forest of Pain is a good quest for a number of reasons. First, you'll get some good gear, although that's less important post game. Second, you get Tabby's member address. For a special marriage event, you need to have every single member address.
The two ones you have to actively hunt for are Tabby's and Natsume's. To get Natsume, you need to kill all seven Chaotic PK's. Afterwards, Natsume has a chance to show up as a PK in a battle area. She showed up for me the first one I tried. Defeat her, and then check the forums post game for her location. Someone will make a post that she was spotted in the alley on Breg Epona. You'll get her member address there.
And the third reason why the Forest of Pain quest is worth doing is because you get the secret ending to the game.
As far as background history, the game never explicitly tells you who they were. To get the whole story, you need to watch the animes and the read the mangas/books. A lot of the fans have pieced things together. You can always just look at a wiki to find out who they are. Haseo, for instance, is Sora from the first version of The World. He was in .hack//SIGN, and he was an immature player killer.
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Wiseman. It's sort of revealed in some of the cut scenes in GU. When Yata talks about the dothackers, you see some screenshots with Wiseman in them.
This is also the reason all the residence of Netslum know Yata so well. Yata's/Wiseman's been hanging out with 'em for a while after all. (and unlike most of the other dothackers, Yata actually IS a hacker.)
It should also be noted that WIseman/Yata has always been a little... well, weird. And yes, Haseo and Yata are the same age .
Haseo
Haseo was officially revealed to be Sora in some of the character information books. In a way I'm annoyed that it's never really stated in the games, but in another way... Well, he lost memory of it, so it sort of makes sense that it's not really brought up in the games.
By the way, Kuhn...
...is a character from .hack//Liminality, AKA "Seig" AKA Tomonari AKA Mai's boyfriend .
Oh yeah, and about Silabus...
Before I played game 3 of GU, I was CONVINCED that the guy was infected by AIDA. I know now that I was wrong but... dang that would've been cool!
I just imagine Silabus cheerfully killing everyone... Heh, heh...
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
Wiseman. It's sort of revealed in some of the cut scenes in GU. When Yata talks about the dothackers, you see some screenshots with Wiseman in them.
This is also the reason all the residence of Netslum know Yata so well. Yata's/Wiseman's been hanging out with 'em for a while after all. (and unlike most of the other dothackers, Yata actually IS a hacker.)
It should also be noted that WIseman/Yata has always been a little... well, weird. And yes, Haseo and Yata are the same age .
Haseo
Haseo was officially revealed to be Sora in some of the character information books. In a way I'm annoyed that it's never really stated in the games, but in another way... Well, he lost memory of it, so it sort of makes sense that it's not really brought up in the games.
By the way, Kuhn...
...is a character from .hack//Liminality, AKA "Seig" AKA Tomonari AKA Mai's boyfriend .
Oh yeah, and about Silabus...
Before I played game 3 of GU, I was CONVINCED that the guy was infected by AIDA. I know now that I was wrong but... dang that would've been cool!
I just imagine Silabus cheerfully killing everyone... Heh, heh...
Heh. Your last spoiler reminds me of one of the comments from the comic you linked to:
Hm, I should start the Forest of Pain soon...any suggestions on party members?
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Hm, I should start the Forest of Pain soon...any suggestions on party members?
It doesn't really matter much. Take whomever you want to level up. Every five levels (up to 50) you can return to a city hub and change party members. However, it's always good to have a character who can provide healing during battles and after level 50, you'll need it since you won't be able to leave (and return to where you left) to stock up on healing items.
And the Forest of Pain does drag on. If you don't have one, get a first strike mod for Haseo. Skipping unwanted or unnecessary battles is pure heaven.
Well, finally started moving to acquire this series on the cheap. We'll see how it goes. If I win any of the auctions I might scoop up .hack//sign from amazon, since its been a while since I saw it and I recall it being pretty good. I figure with each game being 20 hours, I can pull that off in a weekend. And if the combat sucks, I can just do what I did with Lost Odyssey and go through a few bottles of rum while I'm at it. Rum makes everything better.
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited July 2008
Where can I find the First Strike mod? I haven't seen any in drops or treasures, yet...
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Where can I find the First Strike mod? I haven't seen any in drops or treasures, yet...
Just bring lots of smoke screens with you. The layout of each room is the same, so you'll know exactly where you to go each time (the exit is directly above or below where you entered, so you basically follow the shape of a U). If you ever get into any battles you don't want to deal with, just use a smoke screen. I avoided nearly all the battles in the latter half of it as they became ridiculously hard to kill the enemies. Also bring lots of speed talismans so you can rush right through those areas. Also, it's not necessary to complete the challenges for every four levels. They don't give you any good rewards. The good rewards come from beating the three special bosses you'll fight.
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Where can I find the First Strike mod? I haven't seen any in drops or treasures, yet...
I think you get it in the first city hub (can't remember the name) in the shop before the plaza fountain where the endgame cutscenes with that one character is* (heading away from the @HOME locations). At least that's where I remember getting one.
I wish I could be more specific, but I haven't played this since it came out. But I remember it's a weapon mod (I believe it only takes one slot) and it makes it so enemies won't react until you attack them first (good for the bonus damage, good for avoiding fights).
*Endgame spoiler
The cutscene with Shino talking about Ovan and stuff.
EDIT: It's the Material Shop in Mac Anu. I think the item is only available in part 3.
Also, Dashui is correct. Smoke screens work just as well, however, the first strike mod means never running out.
Thanks for the advice., everyone. This is gonna take a while...
Well they don't call it the Forest of Pain for nothin'. :P
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited July 2008
I've been meaning to do this for a while, and I guess now's as good time as any. For anyone thinking about getting into the G.U. games, these are my reasons why I believe you should:
-Really awesome weapons: I'm talking chainsaw weapons. Like, huge chainsaw swords, chainsaw scythes, and chainsaw dual swords. And yes, you get to use all of them, plus a totally kickass fourth weapon I won't spoil here. (It's kind of funny Gears of War came out around the same time)
-A surprisingly very good story: I admit, I was skeptical. How the heck do you make a compelling story about a fake MMO? Well, turns out that G.U. does it. It had twists I didn't see, interesting characters, good voice acting, and overall it felt like it was well put together. I shouldn't have been surprised, considering how huge the franchise is, but it was a welcome one. And yes, there were points where I got misty eyed.
-Immersion: The game goes all out making you feel like you're part of this universe. Not only do you 'log in' to the game, you also post on forums talking about the game, look at fanart from players, exchange e-mails with party members, and even read news stories and watch news clips of current events. Lots of little details add a lot.
-Fun combat: Combat in G.U. is somewhat simple, yet extremely addicting to me. Each weapon has their own advantages and disadvantages, and combat is very action oriented, like a simplified Devil May Cry or something (there's probably a better example somewhere). There's also plenty of customization options, and the "PvP" combat usually turns out to be some epic fights. The Arena has plenty of memorable fights that are a lot of fun. Also, you can "pre-emptive strike" enemies by running them over with your motorcycle. Which can be customized with different parts. So eventually I was driving through fields, slamming into enemies with my souped up, stealth motorcycle. How freakin' cool is that?!
-Gorgeous cutscenes and great music: Honestly, I'm tempted to get the G.U. soundtrack. Overall, the music is very well done, and has a good variety. The cutscenes are very pretty looking, and hold up well to next gen cutscenes.
There are probably a bunch of other things I want to say, so I'll leave them to whenever I remember them .
TL;DR: .hack//G.U. is a lot of fun. If you're interested in the concept, I definitely suggest you play the games.
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I agree with you fully PunkBoy, G.U. really is quite amazing, it was a HUGE upgrade over the original 4 games and I can only imagine what the next set of .Hack games will be like, I cant wait.
Oh and Zen, yeah I know, Im told, Im sure Ill finish these games...eventually....Im on chapter 5 in Eternal Sonata, ummmmm... I think in G.U.
I just found out about Sakubos insanity and I may be a teeny bit further cause I know I just sent an email to Saku saying to stay (even though thats like telling the poor kid to stay insane because I like his other personality... BUT I wont be a judge of character...good for you Haseo!
and in P3 god...Im basically nowhere atm, I have like 13 hours on it, Im loving it completely, I think Ive reached floor .....32 at max so far >.> got a while...so eventually...eventually...
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited August 2008
Slightly related, so I want to share with all of you:
I do hope that I unlock glasses more like Pi's, but the round glasses will be an obvious match for Ovan. And I planning on making Silabus, mostly because I'm pretty sure his VA does one of the custom voices.
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Zen VulgarityWhat a lovely day for teaSecret British ThreadRegistered Userregular
edited August 2008
Haseo is only Haseo if he yells "SKEIIIIITHHHHHHHH"
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PunkBoyThank you! And thank you again!Registered Userregular
edited August 2008
Well, to be fair, the custom voice I chose for him is kind of an asshole, so that at least fits. ;-)
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Well, I won the auction, I scored the original 4 games off ebay for $80 total. A bit high for my taste, but all in all not bad considering it would have run me more off amazon marketplace with questionable quality, and most sellers on ebay wanted twice that. Should be getting them today. Any basic advice you have to offer?
Posts
Also, one of the bosses is called "Deepone." Lovecraft reference?
I'd like to see the story of the original four, but the gameplay is just awful.
Read the let's play then?
Very entertaining. It has a ridiculous amount of depth, and you'll probably end up trying to 100% each volume because it's just so damn tempting. Plus saves carry over, so you get bonuses.
Is there anywhere else I can get the gist of what happened outside of maybe a wiki?
I thought Wavemasters were useless until I actually assigned them to a target. Now I'm considering rolling with Mistral and Elk all the time.
I'm level 20-ish and maxed out Ryu Book III.
Well, .hack//Another Birth is a set of 4 books that follows the story of the first four games from the perspective of BlackRose, one of the main supporting characters. If you don't want to spend money, wiki would be your best bet.
Huh...(G.U. Volume 3 Major Spoilers)
Q's:
1) How long is each game in the series?
2) I hear that the combat in the original series is horrible. Just how exactly does it play that makes it so horrible?
3) If I start on GU, am I really missing anything?
2) The originals are just slow and clunky and lacking some helpful battle mechanics that make it a lot more enjoyable.
3) You won't really miss anything you especially if you watch the terminal disk summaries that came with the first GU game. GU is pretty much made for people who didn't play the original games so as long as you spend like 3 minutes reading some stuff on wikipedia to get familiar with the universe or watching the aforementioned terminal disk you will be good to go.
I never asked for this!
Really rb?
I think I'll just do that then.
And that Tri-Edge guy looks way too much like Kite to be a coincidence.
IMPORTANT: Read the plots of the first four games on wiki, but I suggest that you don't read the character pages. Really.
I never asked for this!
If anything, there's the main plot wiki pages.
"WOW. SUCH A GOOD PICTURE."
"OMG I LOVE YOUR STYLE!"
"I LOVE THE DETAILS!!!"
To be fair, though, most of them are actually really good pictures. And I really do wish the real internet was as nice as the .hack internet.
I never asked for this!
No kidding? That is awesome, but some of those conversations are creepy.
Still, I absolutely love that board in the game. There's some good stuff in there, especially Team Haseo which you can get in volume three.
This series has some really crazy stuff.
I laughed when you first commented on that character, because you pretty much got it spot-on without even knowing it.
Haha, I immediately thought about that post when that scene happened.
Damn...(Vol 3. Spoilers)
The two ones you have to actively hunt for are Tabby's and Natsume's. To get Natsume, you need to kill all seven Chaotic PK's. Afterwards, Natsume has a chance to show up as a PK in a battle area. She showed up for me the first one I tried. Defeat her, and then check the forums post game for her location. Someone will make a post that she was spotted in the alley on Breg Epona. You'll get her member address there.
And the third reason why the Forest of Pain quest is worth doing is because you get the secret ending to the game.
As far as background history, the game never explicitly tells you who they were. To get the whole story, you need to watch the animes and the read the mangas/books. A lot of the fans have pieced things together. You can always just look at a wiki to find out who they are. Haseo, for instance, is Sora from the first version of The World. He was in .hack//SIGN, and he was an immature player killer.
This is also the reason all the residence of Netslum know Yata so well. Yata's/Wiseman's been hanging out with 'em for a while after all. (and unlike most of the other dothackers, Yata actually IS a hacker.)
It should also be noted that WIseman/Yata has always been a little... well, weird. And yes, Haseo and Yata are the same age
Haseo
By the way, Kuhn...
Oh yeah, and about Silabus...
I just imagine Silabus cheerfully killing everyone... Heh, heh...
Heh. Your last spoiler reminds me of one of the comments from the comic you linked to:
Hm, I should start the Forest of Pain soon...any suggestions on party members?
And the Forest of Pain does drag on. If you don't have one, get a first strike mod for Haseo. Skipping unwanted or unnecessary battles is pure heaven.
Just bring lots of smoke screens with you. The layout of each room is the same, so you'll know exactly where you to go each time (the exit is directly above or below where you entered, so you basically follow the shape of a U). If you ever get into any battles you don't want to deal with, just use a smoke screen. I avoided nearly all the battles in the latter half of it as they became ridiculously hard to kill the enemies. Also bring lots of speed talismans so you can rush right through those areas. Also, it's not necessary to complete the challenges for every four levels. They don't give you any good rewards. The good rewards come from beating the three special bosses you'll fight.
I think you get it in the first city hub (can't remember the name) in the shop before the plaza fountain where the endgame cutscenes with that one character is* (heading away from the @HOME locations). At least that's where I remember getting one.
I wish I could be more specific, but I haven't played this since it came out. But I remember it's a weapon mod (I believe it only takes one slot) and it makes it so enemies won't react until you attack them first (good for the bonus damage, good for avoiding fights).
*Endgame spoiler
EDIT: It's the Material Shop in Mac Anu. I think the item is only available in part 3.
Also, Dashui is correct. Smoke screens work just as well, however, the first strike mod means never running out.
Well they don't call it the Forest of Pain for nothin'. :P
-Really awesome weapons: I'm talking chainsaw weapons. Like, huge chainsaw swords, chainsaw scythes, and chainsaw dual swords. And yes, you get to use all of them, plus a totally kickass fourth weapon I won't spoil here. (It's kind of funny Gears of War came out around the same time)
-A surprisingly very good story: I admit, I was skeptical. How the heck do you make a compelling story about a fake MMO? Well, turns out that G.U. does it. It had twists I didn't see, interesting characters, good voice acting, and overall it felt like it was well put together. I shouldn't have been surprised, considering how huge the franchise is, but it was a welcome one. And yes, there were points where I got misty eyed.
-Immersion: The game goes all out making you feel like you're part of this universe. Not only do you 'log in' to the game, you also post on forums talking about the game, look at fanart from players, exchange e-mails with party members, and even read news stories and watch news clips of current events. Lots of little details add a lot.
-Fun combat: Combat in G.U. is somewhat simple, yet extremely addicting to me. Each weapon has their own advantages and disadvantages, and combat is very action oriented, like a simplified Devil May Cry or something (there's probably a better example somewhere). There's also plenty of customization options, and the "PvP" combat usually turns out to be some epic fights. The Arena has plenty of memorable fights that are a lot of fun. Also, you can "pre-emptive strike" enemies by running them over with your motorcycle. Which can be customized with different parts. So eventually I was driving through fields, slamming into enemies with my souped up, stealth motorcycle. How freakin' cool is that?!
-Gorgeous cutscenes and great music: Honestly, I'm tempted to get the G.U. soundtrack. Overall, the music is very well done, and has a good variety. The cutscenes are very pretty looking, and hold up well to next gen cutscenes.
There are probably a bunch of other things I want to say, so I'll leave them to whenever I remember them .
TL;DR: .hack//G.U. is a lot of fun. If you're interested in the concept, I definitely suggest you play the games.
Oh and Zen, yeah I know, Im told, Im sure Ill finish these games...eventually....Im on chapter 5 in Eternal Sonata, ummmmm... I think in G.U.
G.U. characters in Soul Calibur IV!
Pi:
http://i314.photobucket.com/albums/ll419/PunkBoy412/S6300384.jpg
Haseo:
http://i314.photobucket.com/albums/ll419/PunkBoy412/S6300388.jpg
I do hope that I unlock glasses more like Pi's, but the round glasses will be an obvious match for Ovan. And I planning on making Silabus, mostly because I'm pretty sure his VA does one of the custom voices.