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[autoduelist]

I'd go with the gunner (shotgun for aoe). The shotgun has a normally low attack, so getting an heirloom for it might prove a good move. A weapon for a kid would cost around 25K. It's up to you if you want to buy it now.

It is cheaper to buy an heirloom for a weaker clan member. That's what I did.

okay. gunner is a go. will i have a choice with the gunner heirloom as to whether it's bullet or shell?

as for cost, the only reference i have is my first game -- i could buy bracers for my leader for 18.5k, or for his daughter at 3.5k. At the time i went for my leader, but now from my understanding it would have been better to get it for the daughter since she would level up faster. not that it matters, this game was lost by accident w/o a save (bubble switch).

 

[LX_Theo]

okay. gunner is a go. will i have a choice with the gunner heirloom as to whether it's bullet or shell?

as for cost, the only reference i have is my first game -- i could buy bracers for my leader for 18.5k, or for his daughter at 3.5k. At the time i went for my leader, but now from my understanding it would have been better to get it for the daughter since she would level up faster. not that it matters, this game was lost by accident w/o a save (bubble switch).

Yes

 

[Ventara]

okay. gunner is a go. will i have a choice with the gunner heirloom as to whether it's bullet or shell?

as for cost, the only reference i have is my first game -- i could buy bracers for my leader for 18.5k, or for his daughter at 3.5k. At the time i went for my leader, but now from my understanding it would have been better to get it for the daughter since she would level up faster. not that it matters, this game was lost by accident w/o a save (bubble switch).

Oh wow, that's pretty cheap. I guess I got my heirlooms too late. Anyways, I you should be able to choose between shotgun and rifle, but I can't confirm since I didn't buy a heirloom weapon for my gunner.

Yes

Oh, well, there you go.

 

[Shouta]

Finished the game, my latest gen of chars made the last boss easier. My gunner managed to do 1600x3 per Secret Art to the last boss after proper buffs, lol. So good.

Here are my last chars. Martial Artist, Gunner, Dancer in that order.

 

[lupin23rd]

Just got the fourth instrument, and now I

Spoiler

have to go and save a damsel in distress - is there any difficulty spike here or can I just go ahead and do this assuming I didn't have much trouble with the boss of the fourth feast

?


Also I just expanded my clan to maximum size (16?) - how many characters are you guys rolling with? I've got a good 3-4 with two heirlooms and they are starting to learn a lot of secret arts so have I feeling I know where I'll be focusing my energy clan-wise.

 

[Ventara]

Just got the fourth instrument, and now I

Spoiler

have to go and save a damsel in distress - is there any difficulty spike here or can I just go ahead and do this assuming I didn't have much trouble with the boss of the fourth feast

?


Also I just expanded my clan to maximum size (16?) - how many characters are you guys rolling with? I've got a good 3-4 with two heirlooms and they are starting to learn a lot of secret arts so have I feeling I know where I'll be focusing my energy clan-wise.

You should be good, assuming you didn't just scrape by in the last fight.

I usually have a clan between 6-8 members, Nueko included. It's probably best to keep it tight and go with 6, which is what I'm planning on doing as I prepare for the last dungeon. And yeah, once you start investing in certain trades, it hard to switch, lol. I started with Fencer, Martial Artist, and Archer. Add in Gunner and those 4 are the only trades I've ever used, due to heirlooms and passing on secret arts.

 

[Augemitbutter]

so far, i haven't found a bad class to play. every role is effective and enjoyable. only one i haven't unlocked is the monk.

 

[Ventara]

Just found out I can equip multiple heirlooms on someone. I don't know why I thought it was 1 heirloom per person. Too late now.

In other news, got my first 2 Ujigami, though neither have very good stats. Still working on raising the overall stats of my clan. I'm trying to get everyone to have physical stats above 700 (with equipment). It's slow, but I'm getting there. Switched to 1 new clan member every 5 moths (not counting Nueko), and it's been working fine.

 

[lupin23rd]

Any good ways to grind money out quickly?

Seems I've been spending too much on heirlooms, and when I wanted to betroth my current clan head, my top choice is like 125000

Don't want to pick some of the other options because I'm not sure if they are in the same clan and I don't want the good one to disappear

Also curious because I see a couple trophies about having 2 million ryo, and also spending 10 million in other lands (I wonder if adopting / hiring / betrothing counts for this?)

It's kind of amusing and creepy that I can deify a character into a god, and then later take that character's kid and do the divine rite with their parent... haha

 

[Ventara]

Any good ways to grind money out quickly?

Seems I've been spending too much on heirlooms, and when I wanted to betroth my current clan head, my top choice is like 125000

Don't want to pick some of the other options because I'm not sure if they are in the same clan and I don't want the good one to disappear

Also curious because I see a couple trophies about having 2 million ryo, and also spending 10 million in other lands (I wonder if adopting / hiring / betrothing counts for this?)

It's kind of amusing and creepy that I can deify a character into a god, and then later take that character's kid and do the divine rite with their parent... haha

Wait, the candidates disappear after a while? Are you sure? I've had some guys on my list for a few years now. They don't even age, lol. Anyways, I don't know how to grind 125K in a month (that's a lot, btw. It's around 40K for me. Does he have max affinity for everything?), but when I need money, I just go to the tower dungeon and loot the chest and beat up the monsters for the remainder of the time. I can net at least 40-50K that way.

Edit: Wait, did you mean them disappearing after you bethrot to another one of their clan members? I don't think they disappear that way either. Just the one you betrothed will disappear. Better save beforehand just to be sure.

 

[lupin23rd]

Wait, the candidates disappear after a while? Are you sure? I've had some guys on my list for a few years now. They don't even age, lol. Anyways, I don't know how to grind 125K in a month (that's a lot, btw. It's around 40K for me. Does he have max affinity for everything?), but when I need money, I just go to the tower dungeon and loot the chest and beat up the monsters for the remainder of the time. I can net at least 40-50K that way.

Edit: Wait, did you mean them disappearing after you bethrot to another one of their clan members? I don't think they disappear that way either. Just the one you betrothed will disappear. Better save beforehand just to be sure.

I meant after you betroth anyone in their clan, yeah. There was a message saying saying "clan X is off the list, no more adoptions/betrothals for them!" so I assumed it was not longer possible.

I never did that betrothal and the chick seems to have disappeared, so I guess I married one of her clan? Anyway I found some better and more expensive people... lol

 

[nemisis0]

Anyone who is intrested I found a retail version, it's safe as I have used them before and they also have an eBay shop but it's much more expensive and they accept paypal on the site as well.

http://www.buygame2.com/en/product/22761

 

[Augemitbutter]

the last stretch can be pretty tough. some dudes charge up and hit me for like 1k dmg. i need more training!

 

[Ventara]

I'm getting Ujigami a lot more frequently now. Probably around 50% chance that a clan member becomes an Ujigami when they die now, which is great as they're a lot cheaper than the gods. Also, just got my first guy with all stats above the 3rd line, so that was cool. I might tackle the final boss soon.

I meant after you betroth anyone in their clan, yeah. There was a message saying saying "clan X is off the list, no more adoptions/betrothals for them!" so I assumed it was not longer possible.

I never did that betrothal and the chick seems to have disappeared, so I guess I married one of her clan? Anyway I found some better and more expensive people... lol

That's strange. She should still be on the list. Maybe I'm mistaken? I'll have to test it out later. And lol, you found even more expensive guys than the 125K guy?

Anyone who is intrested I found a retail version, it's safe as I have used them before and they also have an eBay shop but it's much more expensive and they accept paypal on the site as well.

http://www.buygame2.com/en/product/22761

Awesome! Thanks for posting. The price is better than I expected. Do you know how shipping is, and roughly how much it'd cost for this?

the last stretch can be pretty tough. some dudes charge up and hit me for like 1k dmg. i need more training!

Yeah. there's definitely a spike in difficulty near the end. I myself was just able to beat the guy in the tower after grinding a few years.

 

[Augemitbutter]

I'm getting Ujigami a lot more frequently now. Probably around 50% chance that a clan member becomes an Ujigami when they die now, which is great as they're a lot cheaper than the gods. Also, just got my first guy with all stats above the 3rd line, so that was cool. I might tackle the final boss soon.

feels like 80% to me. i get asked pretty much every time

 

[Trigger]

After a certain point your stats are so high on average that everyone becomes an ujigami. I think half of the pantheon list are now members of the clan.

 

[LX_Theo]

Is there any reason to NOT make a clan member an ujigami?

 

[Ventara]

Is there any reason to NOT make a clan member an ujigami?

Yeah, I'm wondering this, too. I thought there'd be a limit, but Trigger just wrote that half of his pantheon consist of Ujigami. That's a lot.

 

[autoduelist]

So I missed my first festival. I was grinding till the very last moment, and serious ran out of time while on the festival icon. I assume missing it isn't a big deal? I'll just be another generation in?

Also... how many clan members seems to work? I have 3 (sons/daughters of my initial team) but Kochin is always telling me to make more. How many do you all recommend?

Also, am I crazy or would 3 gunners be amazing? My gunner (shell) clears every room except bosses at this point. The other 2 (martial artist, archer) do cleanup, but 3 gunners seems like it would ridiculously OP.

The game seems too easy so far, looking forward to difficultly spikes. My starting dungeons are mazes though (dragon pass... crystal springs, i think)

 

[Ventara]

So I missed my first festival. I was grinding till the very last moment, and serious ran out of time while on the festival icon. I assume missing it isn't a big deal? I'll just be another generation in?

Also... how many clan members seems to work? I have 3 (sons/daughters of my initial team) but Kochin is always telling me to make more. How many do you all recommend?

Also, am I crazy or would 3 gunners be amazing? My gunner (shell) clears every room except bosses at this point. The other 2 (martial artist, archer) do cleanup, but 3 gunners seems like it would ridiculously OP.

The game seems too easy so far, looking forward to difficultly spikes. My starting dungeons are mazes though (dragon pass... crystal springs, i think)

Missing the first festival locks you into the bad ending.

I have 6. 4 for my party, and 1 old member training a new clan member. Going over isn't a big deal, but you'll want to save up your devotion.

Gunners are pretty good. Might as well give it a try and let us know how it goes.

Oh, and I was kidding about the bad ending. You can just do the festival the next year. No repercussions.

 

[autoduelist]

Missing the first festival locks you into the bad ending.

lol. if this were true, I'd delete the game. I already had to start over once when my son accidentally changed games w/o me saving.

thanks for the feedback! I guess I'll make more kids. I always prefer dungeoneering over making more of the little ones.

 

[lupin23rd]

That's strange. She should still be on the list. Maybe I'm mistaken? I'll have to test it out later. And lol, you found even more expensive guys than the 125K guy?

I think characters with perfect stats (full affinity bars) max at ~132700 lol

 

[Trigger]

Is there any reason to NOT make a clan member an ujigami?

None that I can see. It all comes down to whether you think it's worth having them as an option for baby making later on. I've beaten the game and entered post-game without seeing any downsides so far. It's been pretty cool to see all the random titles ujigami can have.

 

[Gu4n]

Right now, I'm wrapping up Onigami with a new generation of warriors. I'm at the tenth clan head now, but it's starting to feel as if I'm barely making progress. Maybe I just have to be patient.

 

[BlitzEngineer]

So I just picked this up, only about 3 months in but I'm really enjoying it so far even if many of the systems are still kind of arcane to me. Is the game good at explaining itself or should I be looking into online resources to really understand the mechanics? I'll probably go back to the early pages of the thread and read up some, but if anyone has a good basics guide if there are any pitfalls to avoid that would be cool.

Really like the aesthetic, and for the amount of depth that there seems to be I'm really pleased with the price-point.

 

[Sera O]

So I just picked this up, only about 3 months in but I'm really enjoying it so far even if many of the systems are still kind of arcane to me. Is the game good at explaining itself or should I be looking into online resources to really understand the mechanics? I'll probably go back to the early pages of the thread and read up some, but if anyone has a good basics guide if there are any pitfalls to avoid that would be cool.

Really like the aesthetic, and for the amount of depth that there seems to be I'm really pleased with the price-point.

Putting the time in to read Kochin's collected wisdom is a good idea. There's a daunting amount of material there, but it is definitely worth it, and I wish I hadn't left it until I was half done.

 

[Shizuka]

Retail english release from Asia, just $30:

http://www.play-asia.com/oreshika-tainted-bloodlines-english-paOS-13-49-en-70-8ji5.html

 

[autoduelist]

A couple questions --


1) Got a little deep into a dungeon and one of my characters got ganged up on and had their stamina dropped to 0. I healed them up, they were young, and their vigor is still 100. I'm curious if there were any long term effects due to stamina being at 0, though. Does anyone know? His stats are a bit less than his two clanmates, but he's a different class so it's hard to know if that's just how it is.

2) Is there a link to any decent online maps? I thought I could memorize them, but nope. I'll map them myself if I have to, but I'm used to grid paper mapping and these are a bit more... twisty.

3) I bought a wooden key from the store. Good idea? it was like 5k.

4) I'm confused by how much time taking a boat to another village/labyrinth takes. If I take a boat and fight for one round, that still only takes one month right? That is, there's no travel time? Does fighting for a clan badge take a month or is that fight free? Does visiting the town cost a month?

5) Is it worth visiting other player towns? So far i've only gone to the one provided in game.

6) Is there a penalty for taking a goal from Kochin but not reaching it? Sometimes i simply can't find what i'm supposed to kill. it doesn't seem to matter but I'm curious.

7) If i take a senior citizen on a mission and they die, does it matter? Seems like a better death for a warrior than letting them stay at home. It also seems like it might be a faster way to get my heirlooms moved on. I've heard dying will get your item cursed (probably to prevent such shenanigans) but i could still game the system by getting their vigor down but not letting them die on the road (or simply not taking their heirloom along on their death mission).

8) can one character only use one summoning ball? i keep forgetting to use them (never need to)... should i just sell them? i know there is a trophy for using like 100... so i'm wondering if i can just spam them.

9) Recommended town investments? i don't really buy stuff from in game stores (i hoard money and rely on dungeon lewt). i invested in just enough to get some heirlooms, but now i'm in hoard mode. should i still be investing anyway?

10) Regarding bequeathing.... I'm confused, because while I see the option in my menus, every time a character with heirlooms actually dies the bequeathing is automatic. so why would i need the menu option?

11) kochin mentioned there are 2 tourneys a year. How can i tell when they are? i'm not seeing it.

 

[Ventara]

Retail english release from Asia, just $30:

http://www.play-asia.com/oreshika-tainted-bloodlines-english-paOS-13-49-en-70-8ji5.html

Nice. Wasn't sure about using the other site, as it seems to charge 3% for CC and Paypal. Will buy, though I'm pondering if I should wait for it to get cheaper.

A couple questions --


1) Got a little deep into a dungeon and one of my characters got ganged up on and had their stamina dropped to 0. I healed them up, they were young, and their vigor is still 100. I'm curious if there were any long term effects due to stamina being at 0, though. Does anyone know? His stats are a bit less than his two clanmates, but he's a different class so it's hard to know if that's just how it is.

2) Is there a link to any decent online maps? I thought I could memorize them, but nope. I'll map them myself if I have to, but I'm used to grid paper mapping and these are a bit more... twisty.

3) I bought a wooden key from the store. Good idea? it was like 5k.

4) I'm confused by how much time taking a boat to another village/labyrinth takes. If I take a boat and fight for one round, that still only takes one month right? That is, there's no travel time? Does fighting for a clan badge take a month or is that fight free? Does visiting the town cost a month?

5) Is it worth visiting other player towns? So far i've only gone to the one provided in game.

6) Is there a penalty for taking a goal from Kochin but not reaching it? Sometimes i simply can't find what i'm supposed to kill. it doesn't seem to matter but I'm curious.

7) If i take a senior citizen on a mission and they die, does it matter? Seems like a better death for a warrior than letting them stay at home. It also seems like it might be a faster way to get my heirlooms moved on. I've heard dying will get your item cursed (probably to prevent such shenanigans) but i could still game the system by getting their vigor down but not letting them die on the road (or simply not taking their heirloom along on their death mission).

8) can one character only use one summoning ball? i keep forgetting to use them (never need to)... should i just sell them? i know there is a trophy for using like 100... so i'm wondering if i can just spam them.

9) Recommended town investments? i don't really buy stuff from in game stores (i hoard money and rely on dungeon lewt). i invested in just enough to get some heirlooms, but now i'm in hoard mode. should i still be investing anyway?

10) Regarding bequeathing.... I'm confused, because while I see the option in my menus, every time a character with heirlooms actually dies the bequeathing is automatic. so why would i need the menu option?

11) kochin mentioned there are 2 tourneys a year. How can i tell when they are? i'm not seeing it.

1.) No long term effects. Young clan members will bounce right back from a low vigor (unless it is REALLY low).

2.) Sorry, I don't know this one. I just run around until I find the right path and then never explore anything past that.

3.) For 5K, sounds good. I personally haven't bought any, as I just travel to other dungeons if I hit a dead end, but having a key to go a bit further in might come in handy.

4.) No travel time. Fighting a clan or visiting a town costs no time.

5.) Not really. I visit their residence to recruit good clan members, but that's it. Though there's no downside to visiting their town.

6.) No penalty.

7.) Doesn't matter. I mean, they'll be weaker if their vigor is low, so you might have a harder time in the dungeon, but that's it.

8.) I think it's one per dungeon visit, so if you're aiming for the trophy, better start remembering to bring them with you.

9.) I say invest in the shrine. Boosts the power of the Gods a bit and slightly reduces the cost.

10.) In case there is no other clan member with the same trade as them, it'll go into your inventory, at which point you can bequeath them.

11.) They're in January and July. You'll need to unlock them by going through the story a bit. To participate, select "Take the Field" option during the festival and there should be an option to participate in the festival. Make sure you do, as it gives major devotion if your clan is strong enough (up to 24K for the Winter festival and 48K for the Summer festival).

 

[Prelude.]

So am I missing out on anything neat online-wise if I'm importing the asian version?

 

[Ventara]

So am I missing out on anything neat online-wise if I'm importing the asian version?

I think there's that DLC that adds 2 gods, but they're not good so I never used them. Other than that, you should be good. I believe QR codes created are region-free as well.

 

[Prelude.]

I think there's that DLC that adds 2 gods, but they're not good so I never used them. Other than that, you should be good. I believe QR codes created are region-free as well.

What about the dungeons thing?

 

[Ventara]

That'll work, too.

 

[Prelude.]

That'll work, too.

Oh, nice. Thanks.

 

[autoduelist]

SNIP lots of answers

Thank you so much. Lots to love about this game.

 

[Arzehn]

Do heirlooms no longer increase in power after the original owner dies? The new owner is gaining levels but the power on the heirloom is no longer increasing.

They do. It's just that sometimes they won't gain anything when leveling up. One of my heirlooms didn't gain anything through 2 generations, and then kept going up every level for the next generation. It's weird. Maybe there's some formula to it?

Ah yes, just got an increase on it. Hm...

 

[Ventara]

Do heirlooms no longer increase in power after the original owner dies? The new owner is gaining levels but the power on the heirloom is no longer increasing.

They do. It's just that sometimes they won't gain anything when leveling up. One of my heirlooms didn't gain anything through 2 generations, and then kept going up every level for the next generation. It's weird. Maybe there's some formula to it?

 

[sensui-tomo]

So apparently the demo will be releasing on psn tomorrow... what took sony this long to get it out? and was there any special content if you played the demo and imported?

 

[Trigger]

So apparently the demo will be releasing on psn tomorrow... what took sony this long to get it out? and was there any special content if you played the demo and imported?

You can carry over your progress in the demo into the main game, I think. There's an option to import demo information on the start up screen. No special content that I know of.

 

[Shizuka]

Behind the scenes interview from Playstation.

 

[m@cross]

The style and concept really has me interested in this.

Quick question though: Is it one of those games where you have to do a ton of trash combat to get places and/or to level up to do things? Also any rough average play time to finish?

 

[LX_Theo]

The style and concept really has me interested in this.

Quick question though: Is it one of those games where you have to do a ton of trash combat to get places and/or to level up to do things? Also any rough average play time to finish?

I'm not sure what you mean by trash combat. Yes, you have to level up, but that's more of a way to get your characters into fighting form. Most progression comes across generations and children being powered up from selective breeding (sounds weird out of context, I know). The dungeons are places you go in from the beginning and go deeper and deeper into. The enemies are all overworld (so you touch them to start battles), so you can run past any enemies you don't feel like fighting.

As for playtime, the difficulty setting actually change the playtime expectations (because they adjust how quickly time passes). Fastest option says it should take 30 hours. Longest says 100 hours.

 

[m@cross]

I'm not sure what you mean by trash combat. Yes, you have to level up, but that's more of a way to get your characters into fighting form. Most progression comes across generations and children being powered up from selective breeding (sounds weird out of context, I know). The dungeons are places you go in from the beginning and go deeper and deeper into. The enemies are all overworld (so you touch them to start battles), so you can run past any enemies you don't feel like fighting.

As for playtime, the difficulty setting actually change the playtime expectations (because they adjust how quickly time passes). Fastest option says it should take 30 hours. Longest says 100 hours.

Fair enough, let me explain better.

Is the game filled with a lot of random monster battles either because of forced random encounters or a need to do them so as to level up? I don't mind some random combat, but a lot of JRPGs get heavy into random fights with trash mobs as a means of leveling primarily and it devolves into seemingly endless repetitive and boring combat that is not challenging and rarely rewarding.

 

[LX_Theo]

Fair enough, let me explain better.

Is the game filled with a lot of random monster battles either because of forced random encounters or a need to do them so as to level up? I don't mind some random combat, but a lot of JRPGs get heavy into random fights with trash mobs as a means of leveling primarily and it devolves into seemingly endless repetitive and boring combat that is not challenging and rarely rewarding.

Like I said, they're not random encounters, you walk up to enemies in dungeons and instigate every fight yourself. And leveling is not needed on a large scale (you want to do a number of battles with new team members to get them up to speed, but other than that they don't even show a character's level)

Well, the main point of battling is to gather resources. Defeating enemies earns you devotion (which is used to get more powerful children, and can be earned from other means, too), items, and skills.

Its not a grind heavy game, but you do fight a lot of enemies. The game never feels like you're doing something for no reason other than to get your numbers higher than the enemy's (which is what I would categorize more grind heavy games as). Instead, it feels like you're executing your own plan. Combine that with the rush that having a set time limit on every expedition into a dungeon has, I never felt like I there was a grind.

I don't know how to explain it better than that.

 

[m@cross]

Like I said, they're not random encounters, you walk up to enemies in dungeons and instigate every fight yourself. And leveling is not needed on a large scale (you want to do a number of battles with new team members to get them up to speed, but other than that they don't even show a character's level)

Well, the main point of battling is to gather resources. Defeating enemies earns you devotion (which is used to get more powerful children, and can be earned from other means, too), items, and skills.

Its not a grind heavy game, but you do fight a lot of enemies. The game never feels like you're doing something for no reason other than to get your numbers higher than the enemy's (which is what I would categorize more grind heavy games as). Instead, it feels like you're executing your own plan. Combine that with the rush that having a set time limit on every expedition into a dungeon has, I never felt like I there was a grind.

I don't know how to explain it better than that.

I think that is a fine explanation, thank you. I'll grab the demo and give it a go.

 

[Usobuko]

Playasia changed from Preorder to Pending in their status for a physical game version.

I guess there's no chance for it.

 

[autoduelist]

They do. It's just that sometimes they won't gain anything when leveling up. One of my heirlooms didn't gain anything through 2 generations, and then kept going up every level for the next generation. It's weird. Maybe there's some formula to it?

I think, maybe, that heirloom stats might be tied to character stats? So if a young one inherits weapons while still raw, early levels won't improve the heirloom. Once he surpasses his parent, levels matter more. I think this also explains why sometimes heirlooms only level a little, and other times they jump considerably (powerful kids first level up with them equipped).

Fair enough, let me explain better.

Is the game filled with a lot of random monster battles either because of forced random encounters or a need to do them so as to level up? I don't mind some random combat, but a lot of JRPGs get heavy into random fights with trash mobs as a means of leveling primarily and it devolves into seemingly endless repetitive and boring combat that is not challenging and rarely rewarding.

LX_Theo gave a good description, but I'll come at it from a different direction.

Each generation you'll take your kids into the 'dungeons' and level them up. Leveling is -super- fast at first, and then slows down to a crawl (on purpose, I think) so grinding isn't really important - that is, after you do some quick leveling doing any more grinding simply isn't time efficient. So instead, you do other clan duties (mate, etc). You then have kids with gods, which will be significantly more powerful than their parents once they are trained and leveled... but again, the first several (important) levels go quick. And then they plateau, so you stop worrying about grinding them. And heck, once they mate (and give their genes to their kids) you really don't worry about leveling them any more anyway.

So from a leveling standpoint, you never really feel like you're grinding.

On the other side, there is a lewt slot machine mechanic. It is color coded -- white = items you've already seen. Goldish = items you've never owned before. Green = special items that will automatically win the slot spin if you qualify for them.

Generally speaking, you don't 'need' the gold items - that is, you don't need to keep fighting till you get them. You'll eventually win them, or be able to buy them, so I don't really stress it. Green item qualification would take too long to explain here, but there are alternate ways to accomplish it for each item so it's not bad (one being killing a # of specific enemies (the grindy method) but there are several other quicker ways if you want).

Dungeon adventuring is 'timed' - you have a limited amount of time to run around before the month(s) are over. You can either run buy every enemy if you're looking for something specific, or fight everything if you're leveling a rookie. Combat is pretty darn 'fast' for a turn based game... very streamlined. You can have a rookie pretty much up to speed after a single month fighting, usually. And they'll likely get a couple more months leveling during other rookie training sessions, so they'll be a good level naturally once you mate them.

I generally feel like I'm 'doing' something, not grinding. The only time it feels like grinding at all to me is if i intentionally take a year off from 'story' stuff to just raise another generation of fighters... but that's me fine tuning my team by choice.

 

[thenexus6]

Demo was released in the EU yesterday, just tried it out this morning. This game is pretty cool, the only JRPGs i've ever played are Persona 4 and Ni No Kuni so I am a total newcomer.

I really like the art style and ancient Kyoto setting. I might pick this up once i've completed some games off my list.

 

[m@cross]

I think, maybe, that heirloom stats might be tied to character stats? So if a young one inherits weapons while still raw, early levels won't improve the heirloom. Once he surpasses his parent, levels matter more. I think this also explains why sometimes heirlooms only level a little, and other times they jump considerably (powerful kids first level up with them equipped).



LX_Theo gave a good description, but I'll come at it from a different direction.

Each generation you'll take your kids into the 'dungeons' and level them up. Leveling is -super- fast at first, and then slows down to a crawl (on purpose, I think) so grinding isn't really important - that is, after you do some quick leveling doing any more grinding simply isn't time efficient. So instead, you do other clan duties (mate, etc). You then have kids with gods, which will be significantly more powerful than their parents once they are trained and leveled... but again, the first several (important) levels go quick. And then they plateau, so you stop worrying about grinding them. And heck, once they mate (and give their genes to their kids) you really don't worry about leveling them any more anyway.

So from a leveling standpoint, you never really feel like you're grinding.

On the other side, there is a lewt slot machine mechanic. It is color coded -- white = items you've already seen. Goldish = items you've never owned before. Green = special items that will automatically win the slot spin if you qualify for them.

Generally speaking, you don't 'need' the gold items - that is, you don't need to keep fighting till you get them. You'll eventually win them, or be able to buy them, so I don't really stress it. Green item qualification would take too long to explain here, but there are alternate ways to accomplish it for each item so it's not bad (one being killing a # of specific enemies (the grindy method) but there are several other quicker ways if you want).

Dungeon adventuring is 'timed' - you have a limited amount of time to run around before the month(s) are over. You can either run buy every enemy if you're looking for something specific, or fight everything if you're leveling a rookie. Combat is pretty darn 'fast' for a turn based game... very streamlined. You can have a rookie pretty much up to speed after a single month fighting, usually. And they'll likely get a couple more months leveling during other rookie training sessions, so they'll be a good level naturally once you mate them.

I generally feel like I'm 'doing' something, not grinding. The only time it feels like grinding at all to me is if i intentionally take a year off from 'story' stuff to just raise another generation of fighters... but that's me fine tuning my team by choice.

After trying the demo out, I agree with most of what you say here. This is a pretty cool game and certainly worth the price. I have a number of games ahead of it right now, but once I finish Alterier Totori, I might grab it and push it next in line.

 

[Fisico]

Just finished the game earlier today, it was a total blast I went into the game without much knowledge asides from the very basic synopsis, Alfa System being the developer and the Nueko scandal the game had at its release in Japan.

Playing a few hours I quickly understood it would be the kind of game I would spend dozen of hours in, putting the story aside to improve the family generation after generation, and I liked it a lot.

+ Combats and exploration were very fast paced
+ Graphics and overal arts were top tier
+ The OST, dub and sound design were also on par
+ Every class of fighter had its strengths and its weaknesses
+ The quantity of parameters and subsystems which enter into play in this game is astounding to say the least, discovering each and every one of them and trying to make the best use of it was ultra addictive
+ Online/multiplayer implementation is incredibly good, probably the best one I've ever seen in a single player RPG as of today
+ Once you're into the game the "monthly routine" always make you want to go for the extra month because you always have something planned to improve your family.

+/- The plot is rather average in the end, once it was over I also thought that there were a few unanswered questions.
+/- Only a wish on my side but I would've loved to have an explorable 3D town with NPC and all, when you're in your city in the "Invest" sub-screen you can see with the Square button how many people live in your city and what is their job but... this information didn't amount to much in itself.
+/- I'm not into trophies (In 7 years I've only got one platinum), and it will never affect how I rate a game, but I took a quick glance at the trophies list, and come on, one trophy is asking for 100 years of playing that's beyond ridiculous...

- The camera in dungeon can be annoying sometimes
- Some dungeons clearly are better looking and more enjoyable to do than others
- Would have loved a finish who put more emphasis into what your clan have been through
- FPS drops happen here and there
- Nueko, it's not THAT bad but the way she is forced into your family isn't really done properly


I remember Sony saying that the fate of 1st party JRPG was on its shoulders before release, and the game sold on par, or even slightly better, than its predecessor so I really hope they will develop other JRPG and would be totally in for an Oreshika 3 which fix the small mistakes they've done here and there and improve the overall experience even more!
It's a shame they've sent the game to die in the American and EMEA markets.

Also if anyone want a strong character, feel free to use Fisico 12th (she had 1160 ATK for the final boss )