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Ar Tonelico II: Get In the Bath, You Crazy Bitches
Aroduc
regular
regular
S-stupid. Just hurry up and do it.
Sorry. It's just... I've never done this before. It's embarassing! Just hurry up. S-sorry. Stop apologiz--AHN~~ Not so rough! S-sorry. I'll go slower. Is this okay? Nngh. I'm... okay. Just... hurry up. I'm trying. I'm going to push it all the way in now. AAAHN~! That hurt, you idiot! S-sorry. Stop-AH! Stop apologizing and finish already, you clumsy oaf! One more push... there. Aaaahn~~<3--Cloche has gained 10% damage to Red Magic--
The world of Metafalss sits on the top of a giant tower. Civilization grew there, but the Goddess decreed that their ambitions for prosperity were too arrogant and their crops faltered and other disasters began to flourish. One disaster she inflicted was a disease known as Infel Phira Dependency, which strikes the singing maidens called Reyvateils and drives them to endlessly sing, destroying everything around them. There is still hope, as there is a legend that a Holy Maiden's song will bring the people to Metafalica and prosperity will engulf the world. However, as the IPD epidemic worsens, a new faction begins to rise to fight the Goddess and seize their fate with their own hands.
And yes, Ar Tonelico really is that sexy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoODv8LVib8
Ar Tonelico 2's story takes place in a completely different part of the world from AT1 and about 18 months later. There's not much of anything that you need to know from AT1, although there are a few cameos, especially in the Cosmospheres (which aren't 'reality' anyway). Spica, for example, is a shopkeeper now, and (ACTUAL SPOILER FOR AT1 AS WELL AS AT2)
Jacqli is Mir.
But otherwise, there's not really any overlap.Protagonists
Croix Bartel
Croix's parents were killed when he was a child and he grew up with a Revyteil named Luca. After he left his home to combat IPD outbreaks. Croix became Luca's boyfriend, but hasn't seen her since joining the knights four years ago. He becomes the personal bodyguard of the Holy Maiden Reyvateil priestess Cloche as the civil war between the two factions spreads and the IPD epidemic worsens.
Cocona Bartel
Cocona was taken in by Croix after her parents were killed during an IPD outbreak and has become his adopted sister for the last couple years. While she hasn't been trained, she does have Reyvateil powers and can use them along with the skills that Croix taught her in order to fight at his side.
Leglius Branchesca
Croix's direct commander. He is straight as an arrow and follows his orders no matter the cost. He has had unfortunate encounters with IPD outbreaks in the past and has a zero tolerance policy on containment, and eradication of the infected Reyvateils.
Amarie Gelade
A wandering adventurer who has had a tragic experience with the IPD epidemic in her past. She's very unfriendly to just about everybody and is hiding her true motives.
Shun
He calls himself the Servant of God. He doesn't trust anybody but his master and he fights to protect her welfare and the welfare of her Tower.
He calls himself the Servant of God. He doesn't trust anybody but his master and he fights to protect her welfare and the welfare of her Tower.
Reyvateils
Luca Trulyworth
Croix's bubbly and cheerful childhood friend. Her mother took Croix in after he was orphaned and the two eventually became a couple. She works as a therapist helping Reyvateils and their partners through diving together. She's very cheerful, but she's hiding something in her past.
Cloche Leythal Pastalia
The tsun tsun dere dere head of the general Reyvateil division and Croix's general boss. She's extremely arrogant, but her singing ability is top notch and she does have a soft spot in her heart for children and cute things.
Jacqli
An arrogant pure blood Reyvateil who has a dim view of humans. She possesses a strange knowledge of the Tower as well as powers that seem even beyond Reyvateils.
An arrogant pure blood Reyvateil who has a dim view of humans. She possesses a strange knowledge of the Tower as well as powers that seem even beyond Reyvateils.
Battle System:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAZxpbDJjlo
Barebacking on the general Valkyrie Profile system, battles play out in a sequential realtime exchange. During the attack phase, your frontline characters can attack by pressing their button (X or []) and the direction held on the D-pad determines the attack they use. IE, for Croix: Left-X is a couple basic hits, Up-X is a rocket dash for one strong hit, Down-X is a machine gun for lots of weak hits. Chain together both of your frontliner's attacks to give yourself more time in the round, which means more attacks. Right is reserved for Reyvateil support.
IN ADDITION TO THIS, each attack is associated with a different way of building harmonics for your Reyvateils or frontline characters.
Up: Harmonics (Upgrades Attack skills)
Left: Burst Tech (Upgrades Burst Gauge which upgrades Songs)
Down: Psych (Synchronizes the Reyvateils and lets them use combo spells)
Right: Care (Improves MP usage)
Unlike the first game where you just had to build a gauge up through any attacks, you actually have to respond to your Reyvateil's moods in order to upgrade the overall Synchronization between your party and the Reyvateils. If your Reyvateil is feeling needy, you're going to have to Care for her instead of attacking if you want to boost the Synch gauge and go to the next level of attack skills and song charging. Meanwhile, your Reyvateils chant spells which typically VASTLY outstrip your frontliners for damage, but Reyvateils are fragile and quickly killed without support, and they require time to recharge their magic.
That's just the bare bones of the Attack Phase. In the Defense Phase, the enemy gets to counter attack and your frontliners must protect the Reyvateils. A swing gauge appears for both pairs and you'll have to press the appropriate button as the attacks hit. A perfect press means all damage is nullified. Even a Great press protects the Reyvateil from almost all the damage. Miss, and you're both taking full damage.
OTHER NEW SHIT
Once you discover the cure for IPD, the berserk Reyvateils can be recruited into Cloche's battalion. The more IPD infected Reyvateils you rescue, the more they can synchronize and support your active Reyvateils by diving into each and then recruiting her. She'll then have some request for you to accomplish before she'll join you. There are 100 in all, each with their own story and issues that need to be sorted out.
- Find and defeat IPD infected Reyvateil
- Dive into her and earn her trust
- Recruit her into Cloche's battalion
- Gain her Hymn Code to add her powers to your own.
Grathnode crystals can release their power and augment Reyvateils as well. The catch... you have to get 'em wet. You're given a large hottub, and depending on where you place your grathnodes and where you make your Reyvateils bathe in relation to them, the abilites that they'll absorb will change. Additionally, you can toss in toys, like rubber ducks into the bath to stimulate conversation between your Reyvateils, which will increase their teamwork and ability to support each other in battle. Then, add in the bath oil and let your Reyvateils... uh... bathe. While spying on their conversations of course. Be careful though, a grathnode crystal that helps Cloche may give Luca a penalty, so balance them well. You can also have them install Dualithnode Crystals physically into their bodies during bathtime.
RETURNING STUFF
The Cosmosphere is back. The world of a Reyvateil's soul, holding her innermost secrets and fears. You can dive into it to untangle traumas from their lives and enable them to craft new magic and new costumes to dress them in to make them all pretty. This time around, progression in the Cosmosphere of your Reyvateils directly influences the ending and conversations in the story. Relieve one of all their traumas and accept her love (or let her down gently) and your interactions will change appropriately.
Synthesis remains relatively unchanged. Put ingredients together, get new thing. Your Reyvateils will teach you new things as you adventure around the world (or just find new recipes in chests). Depending on which Revyateil you have assist you with the synthesis, items may turn out looking... weird.
Comes out on January 21st for the PS2.
Remember to wear a condom.
Aroduc on
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And yeah, it does sound/look weird, but it's just harmless innuendo and there's no sex involved at all. Aroduc is making it out worse than it is. :P
Instead, you actually enter the psyche of the Revytails' minds to strengthen them/learn more about them. And boy are they troubled young women.
Until they strip down to their bath towels and chain you to a wall at any rate. ^^
Also I like how it's following the same thing the first game did with the main Reyvatails of "Choose your favorite: B-Cup Girl or D-Cup Girl".
Eh. Neither are really anything like Aurica or Misha in terms of personality. Both have their own angsty parts of their Cosmospheres, but Cloche is essentially a queen and Luca is lord of all that dive, so they're nowhere near the out and out balls of existential (or just straight up) angst that Misha and Aurica were respectively. Cloche's your basic combative girl who wants to be won over and Luca's just the girl next door.
However, their stories are also much more connected than Aurica and Misha's were, so there's not really as much of a divide as there was in AT1. Revyateil #3 is off in her own little world.
Serious spoiler Re: Luca and Cloche
Also, the weapon merchant wants to sex you up. But that's neither here nor there.
Gaming and Non-Gaming 2009 Resolutions
Okay, yours is more informative(and slightly more deranged).
You win this round.
Also, it's worth mentioning that Ar Tonelico has really, really good music and vocal work.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bi_sejUB3O4
This game is a guilty pleasure.
(2:30 or so)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJOLN-07EEw
2 - I imagine my wife would kill me if I brought said game into our house.
Steam ID : rwb36, Twitter : Werezompire,
Y/N
this
It's tough to get actively excited about a Gust product, but I might check it out eventually.
The battle system seems better than the first, but just based off of that video, it stills seems painfully easy. And without the juggling or anything from Valkyrie Profile, it seems it could grow stale nearly as quickly as the first game's system. Especially since those attack damage numbers were almost completely negligible compared to the song damage. Is the psychomagnetic burst stuff based on reaction at all, or does it basically come down to having to press x this turn instead of o? I couldn't really make out how that actually worked.
Is there anything as remotely adorable as Hama? Honestly, despite all my other misgivings, my purchase decision depends most greatly on that question.
The art compilation was an excellent call. You are a saint.
There's some reaction stuff involved, but it's more like paying attention to the graph in the bottom right than juggling the enemy around. Damage is more or less balanced like the first game. Through most of it, the Reyvas will vastly outdamage your melee characters, but it'll get pretty close to even towards the late middle, especially as you upgrade attacks (level 15, 30 and 45 I believe). The closest thing to Hama is Luca's mind guardian, but she's not as adorable. Cloche's is a female professor person and the third Rev's is... not cute at all. Amarie does have a sentient pet pillow though.
(She'd say so herself, but that might be shilling.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7XPzcxnIow
Cocona's Photon Saver... my ass. I know a Nanoha ripoff when I see it. :P
I have now purchased every localized Gust game aside from Atelier Iris 2.
I am ashamed.
What the hell, shouldn't she have nipples there!?
Japan!!!!!!! *shakes fists in air*
CONGLATURATIONS!??!!?
BRAWL: 1160-9686-9416
They're also in Japanese, slick.
According to Wikipedia she's 11
Way to go, PedoPuff
My only complaint is perspective can be really weird sometimes. Everyone apparently sleeps in gigantic beds. The forest also merged with Paper Mario or something because that's all I could think of as I went through. Oh, and Croix runs like an idiot out of uniform. He looks really stupid. That's just nitpicking though.
Is Croix a better protagonist than AT1's? Because that guy was almost unbearably stupid.
XBL Gametag: mailarde
Screen Digest LOL3RZZ
It'd help, but it's not needed. There's only one important overlapping character, and even people who played the first game don't actually know much about them. The rest of the cameos are either shopkeepers or in the cosmospheres (ie, not real anyway). And no shared locations or whathaveyou.
Moar like metal phallica if you ask me.