So finished FFXII....onto The Legend of Dragoon

[Dincrest]

I rather liked Legend of Dragoon.  I'll admit, the first two disks are a bit of a slog, but disks 3 and 4 are really good.  This is one game that starts kinda meh, but ends really well.  http://www.rpgfan.com/reviews/The_Legend_of_Dragoon/index.html

[LINK398]

Just got on to the second disc and so far this game is awesome. Their is something about it....I mean the story is not complicated which I like and the gameplay is just so fun. I think one of the problems with RPG's of this generation and the last one is that they try to make themselves so complicated that either I have no idea what's going on or they try to be so original and different that it's just dumb. Both gameplay and story wise and the games of the playstation generation and before it were just great. The game so far isn't too difficult except for some boss fights but the game isn't too easy it's a nice balance

[Dincrest]

My issue with LoD is that the additions are finicky and require hair-trigger precise timing.  And, yeah, some of the bosses can be brutal.  Grand Jewel for example.

[LINK398]

Yeah this game was fun in the beginning really started to like it and the gameplay especially. Then my second disc wasn't working at a certain spot so I stopped until a friend let me borrow his copy of the game. Started playing again and it's getting kinda....not convoluted just dumb I guess is the word lol Especially after Dart looses his Dragoon gem thing and the party has to retrieve it. Then all the backtracking through previous visited dungeons....I mean why couldn't they let the character walk over them if he has already visited them. It's like walking along a very long line (Even though I liked FFXIII) the lenus fight just made it worse with her running away after the battle

[Legaia]

Legend of Dragoon was the first RPG I ever returned after playing. I couldn't get myself through the first disc due to getting bored with it. Bought it again years later and got through the entire game and I can't say that I'm too big a fan of it. The novelty of the battle system got old pretty quickly and the bad localization made it really hard to get invested in the characters. Some of the translations were laughably bad (i.e. Boss character after being defeated: "I was proud to receive your fist, master!" Haschel: Quiet! Talking makes you die!") XD

Turning into dragoons is usually pointless as well. I think all the love for the game these days comes from the rose-tinted glasses. I was pretty surprised at all the excitement for its release on PSN. Although it wasn't all bad. Best part of TLOD for me were the graphics for water, which were pretty awesomely done.

[Annubis]

I think all the love for the game these days comes from the rose-tinted glasses.

The game has few great moments/scenes, which are sadly spread around hours of not so much fun.

The music is great though.

[Frostillicus]

Congrats on finishing FFXII, OP. It's among the many games I've started, but never finished. The difficulty seemed to really ramp up at one point, and I just didn't have the time those days to grind and grind. I'm sure I'll pick it up again someday, as it seems to be a solid entry in the series.

Never played LoD. Sounds like a love it or leave it kind of game...

[Dincrest]

Like I said, Legend of Dragoon requires patience.  First impressions are not the strongest.  The localization isn't great.  The battle system requires finicky hair-trigger precision when pressing buttons to unleash combos or you do no damage.  The story only starts getting good around disk 3; the first two disks are a slog.  Disks 3 and 4 are good and the ending is solid.  What's the lesser of two evils?  A game with a stellar start that loses steam toward the end, or a game with a bumpy start that gets awesome toward the end? 

It's a game that has to grow on you.  It took a long time, but it grew on me.  I've played plenty of superior RPGs, but even some superior RPGs that are great on paper didn't quite tickle my mojo like LoD did.  It's like either dating a perfect woman but there's no chemistry and you're miserable in the relationship, or dating a flawed woman with whom you have great chemistry and you're happy with. 

Again, I think I conveyed all that in my review. 

Oh, and Legend of Dragoon had the best commercial.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEs2OlW25Ao

[Raze]

I suppose that the biggest problem with FFXII's story isn't that the soap opera drama was dialed back so much as there wasn't anything willing to take its place.

I'll add that there shouldn't have been something to take it's place and that if anything, a political story calls for turning the drama up to 11, not getting rid of it. Instead of having nice guys doing bad things give me some Algus or game of thrones level douchebags.

[sandiny0ursh0es]

I'm a huge proponent of Legend of Dragoon. If you like battle systems that, like someone said, reward you for mastering it and are skill-based (you have to have really good timing to get the most out of your attacks, like with Shadow Hearts' Judgment Ring system which I also adored), then fighting battles will be fun. Localization sucks and story is generic, but personal preference, I don't care much for things like that in an RPG - I'm more picky about gameplay design.

I tried a replay of this game recently since it was super cheap on PSN. The game does seem to move at a more glacial place compared to what I remember... but I still had fun with it.

The game certainly has its flaws, but I still love this game. :)