How is the Tactics Ogre remake? And did you ever get Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light?
I know [about Isaac]!!! I read people at a Golden Sun site saying his beard was better than Chuck Norris'. I took a look at his design and was stunned at the awesome that was Isaac. Speaking of Isaac, him and Garet will be temporary characters so at least we will be able to play as Isaac for a tad. One of the villains [Spade] reminds me - design wise - of Grobyc from Chrono Cross.
I wouldn't say rusty more than "how did I was able to pull that off, anyways?" Hadn't gone very far on FFII, I must admit, so anything I got I mostly read (trying to finish FFI on the PSP, then afterwards I'll get on FFII). Actually, whether I was right on the idea of Leon having slaughtered Ric(h)ard was what I really had a doubt for. It would allow for a nice crossover feel, given that Kain was sorta shoehorned as a reference on later FFII remakes, and it would be a really strong motivator on both people; a rivalry between two people from different places because of uncannily similar events happening in both. It would be like Zidane and Garnet figured out the legendary story of Ramuh was actually a story from Firion's world (Josef's story, IIRC). Or Yuna in Gunner attire making a mention of "Shinra did that!?" when Cloud speaks about Shin-Ra. BTW, GS: Dark Dawn seems like it will deliver. There's gonna be a whole bunch of characters, and 30-year-older Isaac looks impossibly cool.
I'm not entirely sure that Leon was brainwashed into serving the Emperor. On what we - the players - can gather it seemed that Leon joined the Empire because those who are strong should rule/survive. Even when he comes to, after the Emperor's resurrection or at the end of the game he doesn't mention that he was brainwashed. At the latter he does say that too much has gone on between the party and him and that is why he couldn't stay and celebrate with them. He does imply that he may return one day to which Firion replies that he will be greeted with open arms. It did seem you were a little rusty on FFII.
True, true. I haven't checked out the Eternal Sonata soundtrack.
I'd say the battle presentation and battle graphics were also of very high quality. It showed a depth of quality rarely seen on the GBA, and rarely seen on further portable games. Also pleased that Sakuraba returns to the composing helm. Have you heard the soundtrack from Eternal Sonata, by any means?
I hope that Golden Sun: Dark Dawn has a really great soundtrack as did its predecessors; that was one of the great qualities of those games. I just looked up the composer of the next Golden, Motoi Sakuraba, whom did the first two Golden Sun games so I am pleased he will deliver again.
The answer kinda eludes me. Banon, mechanically, is meant to work as a mage (and as a White Mage at that), but without any kind of magic. He sounds like a faith healer in any case, perhaps practicing either very rudimentary magic (much like how Gau summons the power of the wild to cast all kinds of spells, even Blue Magic), or a very, very, very advanced form of science. I'd defer to Gau's grasp of "magic" in that sense, given that Gau can manifest magical power simply by tapping into the source of the wild. Then again, that would require the explanation of Sabin's martial arts (Fire Dance, Aurabolt, Mantra and Spiraler have a strong magic bent), or Mog's Dance abilities (a rudimentary form of tribal Geomancy).
So I restarted Final Fantasy VI today, after beating Final Fantasy IV DS yesterday, and I have a question pertaining about Banon and would like your thoughts on the matter. What exactly is "Pray" that Banon knows? Is it some form of rudimentary magic? He could be a descendant of the magi whose ancestors did not stay in Thamasa, if it is magic based. Or would it be some form of divine power, given to him by the god/goddesses? There is a High Priestess in Figaro, though the religion of the world isn't delved into much from what I recall. But even if it was some form of divine power, would it still not be magic?
Would you rather sleep on a bed of rusty nails or poisonous darts?
I'd counter with how "Setting the Trap" (instrumental, John Williams, Home Alone soundtrack) builds the scene. It would be dull to see how, say, Kevin builds his home defense without the way the movie fits. Yet, the song itself has a strong, independent feel; you can enjoy it on your own without the need of a movie. In that sense, while it is a strong and independent piece, it also completes (not compliments) the scene. Nobuo's battle themes in a way become awkward because there is no scene that catches their feeling appropriately. Consider placing a close-combat battle theme and synch the strikes with an arbitrarily chosen beat of any of the songs; few if any scenes would match the speed. Yet, compare, say..."Who Am I?" (which, while not a battle theme it IS a Uematsu score) and place it on a horror movie, specifically on a scene with a dissociative identity disorder-suffering character or paranoid is around; almost a perfect fit. Uematsu's themes don't merely compliment, but complete the scene on a videogame. So does the songs of other composers. I'd say I also forgot Yuzo Koshiro (but he doesn't work for Square), or Yoshino Aoki (but he works for Capcom).
Take for example "Decisive Battle", "Fight On!", "Force Your Way" the boss themes from VI-VIII and then the boss themes from FFXII and FFXIII. Could you see the songs from VI-VIII fitting into a movie? They are great songs but they would be awkward; now the boss themes from FFXII and FFXIII would fit in a movie. A lot of Nobuo's FF work would be awkward in a movie hence why I said his music didn't have that essence while the other two do have that essence in their FFXII and FFXIII respectively. It is a stylistic difference between Nobuo and the other two. Nobuo's music still captures the feeling but it can take the focus away while with Hamauzu and Sakimoto their music is more complimentary and less over-bearing. You forgot Koichi Sugiyama.
