Shining Force: RPG Review for the Sega Genesis, Mega Drive, and iphone (with gameplay!)

[misterneckbreaker88]

this game gets boring quick. i played for awhile i started chapter 2 . its repetitive. you lose a battle to gain exp points and level up until your strong enough to win the battle, and you lose characters. enemys fuck u over getting 2 attacks on you, and 7 times out of 10 your attack misses. am i playing it wrong. im at the church seeing ghoul for first time....

[robadue57]

@misterneckbreaker88

Difficulty does spike at that point in the game. See if you can get Tao in there to use her blaze magic against the undead opponents as they are weak against that. Might have to level up a bit and use the egress spell to restart the battle with a stronger force. Imagine the gameplay isn't for everyone & if you aren't digging the tactical combat than you might not like the series that much. Props for trying it at least!

[misterneckbreaker88]

@robadue57 im still playing it. played it for hours . ive managed to get to end of chapter 7. im getting hang of tactics. i just lucky to get by in some fights. i watch few vids of this, i dunno how people level up so well. if you egress you lose lots of coins and too if you are defeated, im worried im gonna end up not able to revive my guys. if i finish this im definately gonna play shining force 2.

[misterneckbreaker88]

this is on the mega drive collection 360. i was browsing the games and come across this.. this is a good one to get started on rpgs. i tried ff13-2 and didnt know wtf i was doing, shining force is simple. i have just started it, and liking it so far. im getting volunteers joing my force its nice. ken and han is my favourite guys so far.

[robadue57]

@misterneckbreaker88

Definitely a good title to start with for people new to the world of RPGs, specifically tactical strategy games. Ken and Han are great for their ranged attacks. Had been looking at the 360 Mega Drive collection myself as there is so many retro titles on there. Need to price that again.

[misterneckbreaker88]

@robadue57 its worth getting. shining force in original cart form is pricey. same for 2nd shining force. ,, shinobi 3 is pricey . i got it for £10 its a cracking set to have if you like your retros.

[robadue57]

@misterneckbreaker88

Can be quite expensive to snag some of the carts in that collection without question. I'd been looking to snag a copy of Phantasy Star IV for awhile, but could never find a really good deal on it (that being like five bucks, haha). So the collection is definitely the way to go, Shinobi 3 is a perfect example of that. Have the Xbox 360 set in my amazon shopping cart, haha. Did you beat Shining Force I? Curious to hear what you think of Shining Force 2

[misterneckbreaker88]

@robadue57 i have just started collecting megadrive games. i did manage to finish shining force 1 it was a good game, a guy on youtube helped me out with tips i enjoyed it i started shining force 2 a week ago i have not played it much, its good game music is more better. i also bought shining force 2 for megadrive.

[MikeJustesenFilms]

Big fan of Shining Force. Oh the many hours i put into this game.

[robadue57]

@MikeJustesenFilms

I hear you man! This game can be so addicting and now that I have it on my iphone... well the temptation seems to follow me wherever I go, haha. The art style of the original is great too. Glad to hear you're a big fan too, stay cool man, peace!

[MikeJustesenFilms]

@robadue57 Yeah its simply great. Got the Genesis game, the steam version, the pack on Xbox (Sonic Collection) and the GBA remake. Its fantastic.

[robadue57]

@MikeJustesenFilms

You have the GBA remake, how is that? I've never actually seen gameplay of that version before, but know it has a different art style (from screenshots I've seen) and even a few new characters possibly? Is it worth snagging a copy of or are you a bigger fan of the original?

[MikeJustesenFilms]

@robadue57 Bought it on some asian gamesite a few years ago. Art style is different, yeah, but you get used to it, and after a while it grows on you. In my opinion its a bit harder, specially at the end, where there was a few new enemies added, same as characters. But its worth picking up for sure. Its fresh, even though the original is the better version.

[robadue57]

@Thetranslatorguy

Not your style eh? Certainly isn't a title that everyone will gravitate towards. Final Fantasy Tactics is a great game for sure. I remember when it first came out and being so amped up for it since it combined the Final Fantasy world (which I'm a huge fan of) and tactical battles, resulting in all kinds of awesome! Personally I really enjoy the genre as a whole and like trying a lot of the entries it has to offer such as Fire Emblem, FF Tactics, Vandal Hearts, etc.

[MrThisplaceisweird]

You can get FFT on the iphone now too! Someone told me to get this instead but the combat looks a bit simple?

[robadue57]

@MrThisplaceisweird

Such great news! I'm psyched that they are porting over this genre of game as it works great on the iphone hardware. Combat is simple, as this is an early offering in the genre/series, but has its charm and is still rewarding. I find it very fun & the price at last check on the iphone was only ninety nine cents (in the US at least) for the full game! FF Tactics is $15.99, which is still a great deal, but a bit more of an investment. Can't go wrong in my book. Peace! *Chris

[gqunit69]

the best 1 is the sf3 seris on saturn

[robadue57]

@gqunit69

I really wish they had released the 2nd & 3rd parts of the Trilogy in the US, would have loved to finish playing through it. Have you played parts two and three? They even had a premium disc you could get for the trilogy that would allow you to play all the bosses in from what I understand. Have been tempted in the past to buy the Japanese versions of it, but that would be quite the undertaking to work my way through. Shining Force 3 is an excellent title though! Thanks for posting!

[marcdaniel0321]

Hey glad to see you making reviews again. I enjoy your style of reviewing.

[robadue57]

@marcdaniel0321

Thanks a lot! This was one of videos I wanted to make right from the start as I am such a big fan of the game and ultimately the series. Have such a backlog of games I'd like to share with people as there is so many crazy good games out there. The Strategy/RPG genre is perhaps my favorite as well since for me it has such high replay value. Been unlocking some of the hidden stuff in Shining Force CD lately, so the madness continues, haha. Thanks for commenting!

[arkrial]

Your video and presentation is really good. But you're really quiet sometimes. Speak up, bro!

[robadue57]

@arkrial

Something to upgrade for future videos for sure! Getting the levels correctly is a challenge I've tried to improve upon. As I want to match levels from the video & narration portions as they are recorded separately. Haha, had a guy in one of my other gaming videos post that it was too loud so clearly I still need to find that solid middle ground! Appreciate the feedback & will try & project a bit more next time. Want to have a quality result, so thanks for the tip! Peace! ~ Chris

[Matzeschloe]

No nothing special, in the moment i play a Golden Axe remake. I will make a video about it. Can you tell me what screen video recorder do you use`? On the London airport i by me a lexicon about the greatest gaming consoles and games of all time.

Very interesting stuff:), i the moment i read it. It´s in english and a good language training for me. peace:)

[robadue57]

@Matzeschloe

Definitely want to checkout your Golden Axe remake footage when its ready! For my video capture I use my digital video camera. I run the game console through my VCR and then hook up the output from the VCR to my video camera and record it. From there I log it into my computer using Adobe Premiere and capture/edit the footage there! Does make for some extra steps, but the quality is good and I didn't have to buy a capture card, etc. Do you have that option with your gear?

[Matzeschloe]

@robadue57

Ahh you use a rel console for your record, thats a good idea.

I record all my videos on the PC with emulators and recording software.

But the quality is often very different, i think. In the moment i search for better software for make this things better. You will laugh when i tell you that i have no TV in my flat, but i have a good PC.

Adobe Premiere is a very professional Software, good choice man!

[robadue57]

@Matzeschloe

I see, so you use some screen capture software. Yeah my process is a little more in the ways of manual labor, haha. Don't blame you for sticking with a PC monitor as most of the video watching (thanks to youtube!) I do now is on the computer and I don't really watch regular TV anymore other than sports. So having a TV hasn't been that vital for me either. Although it is really nice for classic gaming! What do you use to record your footage right now?

[Matzeschloe]

I like the cover of the game, they looking amazing. To make good videos we need time, the target is not making thousands of videos but videos with heart.

In the moment i play Sonic 1 for the Mega Drive, i know some people can see it anymore. But from time to time i love it^^. The last time i play shortly SNES games on my emulator, but nothing special.

What are you playing currently?

[robadue57]

@Matzeschloe

Played through the first two Sonic games last year, so I know where you are coming from! Its still worth playing today certainly! "What are you playing currently?" Haven't sat down to start one of the PS2 games that I picked up yet. Been in an RPG mood lately so I'm leaning towards Dragon Quest VIII. Have heard its a really long game though so I might play Rygar first as I'm trying to focus on one game at a time these days, haha. Any new racers catching your eye lately Matze?

[Matzeschloe]

It´s cool to see a review from you again, you should do this more;)

Ahh a few weeks ago we talked about Shining Force and now here is it.

I must confess back in the days i never played RPG´s on my consoles. I think i miss many things when is see your video.

Nice collection Chris, i defently check out this game in the near future. The fighting scenes are looking amazing.

peace :)

[robadue57]

@Matzeschloe

Would be a really nice addition to your Mega Drive collection I think! Also the game is turn based so you can play it in a relaxed thoughtful way. Which after a long day of work can be just the thing to do to unwind, yet keep the mind active, haha. The fighting scenes are very cool & the game footage is only from the 1st couple battles as they get even cooler later on!

Will see about making some more videos, hmm, which to review next??? You playing some SNES games these days?

[AaronClaudeMiller]

Good stuff. Loved shining force 1 and 2. Never finished 3 because it got stolen but I loved what I got to play.

[robadue57]

@AaronClaudeMiller

Thanks! Sucks you weren't able to finish Shining Force 3, would be awesome if it comes out for download someday, I'd want to play through it again. Definitely with you that the original three games are awesome, wish they hadn't changed the series from a strategy RPG. Much appreciate the comment. What were some of your favorite characters in the first or second game? Peace! ~ Chris