PSP: Jeanne D'Arc = Deep Fried Awesome (beware spoilers)

I understand what you guys are saying, but I'd much rather have a FIRE EMBLEM-style cast made up of distinct personalities & I don't mind if they're fixed in their jobs (it's not like halfway through LOTR Aragorn decides to become a mage... ).

Right now, I'm really into playing BRAVE STORY... I don't know why I've put so much time into it, though, because it features one of my least favorite RPG tropes-- the random battle.

I have also spent a lot of time at Gamefaqs, only for FFTA.

Matt - I'm not that into Advance Wars/Fire Emblem style games; too much strategy, not enough developing my own characters, I think. Don't get me wrong, I'm into TRPGs for the tactical battles as well, but those types don't do it for me to the same degree.

Re: Brave Story - looks like a fantastic traditional JRPG on the PSP, but I think I'm done with traditional JRPGs. Glad you're having fun, though!

And another question to add to the mix: Where's DSGamer in all this?

Scaphism wrote:

And another question to add to the mix: Where's DSGamer in all this?

Does he own a PSP this week?

Fedaykin98 wrote:

I have also spent a lot of time at Gamefaqs, only for FFTA.

Matt - I'm not that into Advance Wars/Fire Emblem style games; too much strategy, not enough developing my own characters, I think. Don't get me wrong, I'm into TRPGs for the tactical battles as well, but those types don't do it for me to the same degree.

I think Gamefaqs is an awesome resource, but it annoys me to HAVE to use a guide or FAQ to be able to play a game. That was one reason why I got PO'd at the original FFT and gave up on it.

I hear you about Advance Wars-- I mean, there's really no story there beyond fighting. Fire Emblem is a little better plot-wise, which is a step in the right direction... but I made the reference because I DON'T MIND how they handle characters in FE-- you know, a certain character joins you, and he's an archer. I WANT a heavily plot-driven game, which is why I like having (or don't mind playing) fixed characters. That's part of why I think I am so enamored with JD'A right now... it has great presentation, cool anime cut scenes, etc.

Re: Brave Story - looks like a fantastic traditional JRPG on the PSP, but I think I'm done with traditional JRPGs. Glad you're having fun, though!

It is very traditional, and I'm surprised I am enjoying it as much as I have been. Like I said above, I hate random battles with a passion... but so far I've put up with it.

zeroKFE wrote:
Scaphism wrote:

And another question to add to the mix: Where's DSGamer in all this?

Does he own a PSP this week? :P

Poor guy-- he gets a lot of crap, although it may be somewhat deserved I don't think he has one anymore, but it sounds like he'll gear up for Disgaea.

Something about FFTA just completely clicked with me. I did put it down at one point, but overall I spent 60+ hours, and that's a ton from me. I played past the "first ending" to the game, got the guy who sells cards to join my party, along with that one girl I think (who is also from the real world), and couldn't seem to ever get any new missions after that - just repeats of stuff I had done, and offers for quests I didn't have the items for.

I played pretty far into FFTA, but I can't remember WHY I quit... there was some huge thing that happened... lost my save or something like that.

I really liked it for the most part, but I remember really hating the "random battle rules" thing.

Those rules stunk but rarely bothered me.

Updated my firmware last night - that program you linked was the easiest PSP hacking ever, Matt!

Tried the first battle from the demo this morning - great production values, although it's very simple so far. I was a little shocked that there were load times, since it was located on the memory stick.

I'll get back at y'all once I've played the second battle.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Updated my firmware last night - that program you linked was the easiest PSP hacking ever, Matt!

Tried the first battle from the demo this morning - great production values, although it's very simple so far. I was a little shocked that there were load times, since it was located on the memory stick.

I'll get back at y'all once I've played the second battle.

Yeah, that upgrade/downgrade program is pretty solid.

re: JD'A -- I gotta admit, I didn't remember any abnormal waiting/loading times. It seemed pretty quick to me.

Holy schneikes, I finally played the second level of the demo today - that Jeanne D'Arc is some kinda deep fried awesome! I am totally there. When's it drop?

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Holy schneikes, I finally played the second level of the demo today - that Jeanne D'Arc is some kinda deep fried awesome! I am totally there. When's it drop?

I'm pretty sure I said that information in the first post

I wrote:

The demo give you two random missions to play, but I think it definitely gives a taste of gameplay and left me drooling with anticipation for the game's official release on 8/21/07.

So what made you change your mind? after the first battle, you seemed pretty non-plussed.

The first battle was totally simple and boring! The second battle gave you tons of different types of characters and tons of fun abilities. I LOVE that the archer has a healing shot, for some reason. I just had a ton of fun. The production values are through the friggin' roof!

A week and a half is too long to wait.

I've played the second battle about 4 or 5 times now and I'm totally sold. The first few times were fun to check out the various abilities - one time it was simply to see the Mage's Inferno Skill (hits every enemy on the battlefield).

The last few times I tried to do it without anyone dying. I managed to do it by using the Transform skill to heal party members who were hurt, but I realized I could do it without transforming as well.
Finally did on my most recent try - I killed every enemy, didn't lose a single companion, and didn't transform with either of the characters who can. That was a good self-imposed challenge.

Some basic tips:
[*]Avoid being counterattacked whenever possible. Jeanne in particular has low hitpoints. If you use her "Crescent Arc" ability it has a 100% hit chance and the enemy can't counterattack. It's also useful for dealing with those Qrows with high evasion.
[*]You have 3 characters who can heal: Jeanne, Archer, and Mage. Use them.
[*]The gazelliaths are the most dangerous enemies in that battle. They do a lot of damage and they have the best movement range, which means they will be able to get behind your ranks and attack your weaker characters, probably from behind. That made them my highest priority target.

[*]There is a hidden treasure on the battlefield if you move to a certain spot and either wait/perform an action there. The treasure appears to be random.

Again, thanks for the heads up about this demo, it's sold me on the game. Now I just need to find some time to play it along with all the other great games coming out soon and ace the LSAT. No sweat.

Is there a difficulty selector? I didn't lose a party member on my first try!

Based on the demo, I think EGM should have given this game much higher marks.

Bumping this thread is good for all of mankind. I hope this game isn't too niche to see big success, because it deserves it. Everyone who owns a PSP should get it unless they just hate the whole idea of the genre.

Day one purchase, no question, and this is at a time where I'm completely engrossed with WoW. TRPGs are so perfect for portables, though. I will probably play this the whole time I'm on the plane to PAX.

Is there multiplayer? I could totally see myself playing a few matches at PAX.

speaking of liking something for no reason-- I got a kick out of the characters talking with those little word bubbles during the battles.

I can't find anything that mentions multiplayer...

I'm glad everyone seems pleased with this game. Just goes to show how if these companies would actually release demos (and not in an ISO format) they could reap the benfits. How many of us would be looking to buy this game so eagerly without having played the demo?

With the onlsaught of AAA titles this fall and 2 other huge brands in TRGPs coming out in just a few weeks/months this would normally be a big pass and hope to catch it on sale/clearance down the road.

A really good demo has turned this into a strong possibility of a day 1 purchase for me.

@Fed.

The AI seemed really good at zeroing in and eliminatnig wounded party members. It's a fundamental strategy of this type of game - focus damage at the biggest threats to eliminate them early. Spreading damage out is generally inefficient. The AI of this game seemed to "get it" pretty well.

Matt - I think the word balloons are slightly fun. I can totally see how they appeal to someone who digs the JRPG vibe.

You're so right about the demo, and I've been clamoring for more demos forever - so glad Xbox Live has really advanced the cause. I went from "Jeanne D'Arc is just some TRPG in the shadow of FFT, FFTA2, and Disgaea, with a plot/characters I don't care about" to "ZOMG When can I buy this?!?!!?" I also thought "This is the kind of thing I bought a PSP for," because I don't think the graphics could be done on a DS (although I do think the DS has plenty of graphical power for this genre). I haven't felt this warm and cozy about my PSP since I bought GTA:LCS.

Where was this demo released? Obviously we had to go out and get it ourselves...it's almost crazy that they made it but didn't release it to the general public, which is the same argument I made in the thread about exclusive 360 demos.

This demo ought to be EASILY available to everyone with a PSP. Also, and I'm sure they would never go with this for piracy reasons, how cool would it be if there was a PSP-to-PSP transfer cable that let you trade demos to your friends? More for the younger demographic.

One unrelated question - I'm 3.5XMM or whatever now - I read someone saying you can get rid of the Sony logo on bootup? Where is that? Am I missing out on other cool options? Is there a web-based manual or something I should read? Thanks!

I have no idea where this demo showed up originally... the Playstation Underground? Maybe it was only sent to game magazines? I have no idea. sony has released demos before, but I'm guessing that you have to go through them for some reason... and even Sony seems to have really slowed down the production of demos. Again, no idea why. If I had a system that was selling well but had low software sales, I'd be releasing demos of every dang game being produced and letting people try them for free.

So far, Sony has tied their demos into having a specific firmware as well... which seems just as stupid. Why limit your audience? It seems like they spend so much time worrying about piracy they totally lock down any chance to expand. I admit that piracy IS a big concern for them... just that they havent bothered to figure out a way to offer demos without the other stuff.

As for your transfer cable idea... you know the PSP has GAME SHARING, right? You definitely should be able to transfer demos to a friend that way (if it was allowed). Only problem, I guess, is that the JDA demo was like 350MB... kind of a big file to share with someone

When you're using the DAX or the M33 firmware, hold down the R trigger when you power up the PSP. That will bring you to the settings menu. From there, you can play around with various options, like turn off the Sony logo, turn on "no UMD mode" for ISOs, set your PSP to run at 333mhz all the time, etc.

Fed, I think if you power off your PSP, then power it on while holding the right trigger button, you'll pull up a bios configuration screen. I believe that gives you the option to disable the Sony Logo on startup and various other options.

http://www.metacritic.com/games/plat...

Many of us have already tried the demo, but the official reviews are starting to roll in... so far, the game is sitting at a very excellent 87% on Metacritic, with 7 reviews counted.

I'm still jamming my way through BRAVE STORY, but I should be finished in time for JDA. Looking forward to it.

SommerMatt you're making me want to take the dust off my PSP and start putting it to use again. I'm going to have to get my psp up to date with the scene and try that demo out now.. I've just been busy with other things , my wii , but mostly world of warcraft eating up all my gaming time o_O

CURSE YOU WOW

What can I say... the PSP has really become my only console lately (my PS2, xbox, and GameCube don't get touched... my DS is also gettign dusty), and I'm always looking for stuff to do with it. Lots of great games are out or COMING out soon. If you haven't done so, upgrade to a custom firmware and have fun with all the stuff you can do with it.

IGN.com posted their review today-- a glorious 9.0/10

http://psp.ign.com/articles/812/8126...

Closing Comments
Extremely deep gameplay. Balanced tactical strategy and fast paced action with rich game mechanics. An intriguing twist on a well known tale. These three statements only scratch the surface of Jeanne d'Arc, which manages to deliver on all of these fronts. Packed with challenging strategic play and tactical action, Level-5's latest title is a phenomenal game that will keep you engaged for hours. If you've been eagerly awaiting a game to end the Strategy RPG drought on the PSP, look no further: your title has arrived.
Level-5 is known for producing high-quality RPGs, and their foray into the PSP realm doesn't stray far from their previous works.

This is a Level-5 game? Hell, that's all I needed to know...

JohnnyMoJo wrote:
Level-5 is known for producing high-quality RPGs, and their foray into the PSP realm doesn't stray far from their previous works.

This is a Level-5 game? Hell, that's all I needed to know... ;-)

As I noted before, there's a definite similar graphical style between JDA and DQVIII (no Toriyama designs, alas, but still cool cell shading). Only one more week!

Cannot wait. I'm so psyched.

Hey Matt, is there an easy way to rip this to UMD for faster play, under the current firmware? I'm buying it, no question, but I'd prefer to play with no load times.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Cannot wait. I'm so psyched.

Hey Matt, is there an easy way to rip this to UMD for faster play, under the current firmware? I'm buying it, no question, but I'd prefer to play with no load times.

I can't wait either. I just finished FF1, and was contemplating starting FF2 until I realized I needed a break between games that are so similar.

So it's puzzle quest for me until Jeanne.

As for ripping umd's: It's definitely possible, but I haven't looked much Into it and it appears to be a major pain. A much easier way would be to just buy the game to put your concience at ease and then download the ISO.