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The General Anime Thread...
- Thread starter Kent
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Lain
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You're amusing, Sephybot 9001. But you should know that artificial intelligence can't haunt people.
What is?
Mexicans, probably.
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Michiganders, more likely.
(osoraku) Here's some pasties, eh?
(osoraku) Here's some pasties, eh?
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My friend cosplayed that first one. At the time I had no clue who the character was but of course now I know it's a horse. BTW do you guys worship Sarah Jessica Parker?
Yup, Mexicans are against the AUP.
So don't quote it!
I edited it! I was going to edit my post anyway after he learned what he did was wrong.
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Lain
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...Yup. AI probably is too, but thankfully you're real enough to decieve everyone.
In fact, belay that information I put out about shutting you off. Instead, I'll just enable your spambot functionality. GTPlanet will never know what hit it! Mwahahahaha!
I'd hit that.
Hell, I'd hit the girl too. 👍
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- KR_Viper
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Guilty Crown Ep. 3:
Does anyone notice a trend here?
Yahiro. You're an asshole who went back on your word, and all you can say is "Sorry."? Inori should have filled your head with a bullet despite being told otherwise.
I want you dead as well.
I want you dead as well.
Does anyone notice a trend here?
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You know...that's so 🤬 funny. My mom is always saying SJP has a horse face.
And now a picture is posted of her and a horse. Side-by-side.
I dare not show this to her because I'd never hear the end of it.
And now a picture is posted of her and a horse. Side-by-side.
I dare not show this to her because I'd never hear the end of it.
- 40,880
Because that was my idea for the OP today.
First couple of episodes blew, agreed.
Because that way we can have both.
Also, Gilda.
http://imageshack.us/f/696/thebestreaction.png/
...I'd hit that.
Hell, I'd hit the girl too. 👍
*exits thread*
*slowly*
Cano
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YES WTF. I'd like an explanation about this. I hadn't even noticed, I was putting together a big PM and suddenly, BAM.
No. I'm 29. I'll be changing digit next 7th of may.
And Fuu. She's human, lol.
Cano just told me what I feel isn't real.
Yeah, pierce the heavens like the other day, Shinji-boy.
I am going to handle this in a mature way:
Cano, my 2D waifu can beat up your 2D waifu!
Actually, it would be cool to see them fight around, I've seen Asuka do her thing but you haven't presenced what Fuu is capable of. Ask Goddin. She can take on your stupid redhead,and hand her her ass in a plate politely. Something Asuka doesn't even grasp.
And you guys all act like we're the crazy ones.
Silence. I was 15 or 16. 'sides, ponies.
Explain me here. IN RED.
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Yes, I do.
Oh, and if you thinking about a Harem ending in Mashiroiro Symphony: The Color of Lovers, well episode 10 may have just changed that.MIU-SENPAI!! He chooses her! :3 And he MANED up and said that he liked her! Go Shingo, Go!! About time we had a male lead with some balls in a romantic show.
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Well, my truck doesn't have a trunk. I have a toolbox on it though...
You know...that's so 🤬 funny. My mom is always saying SJP has a horse face.
And now a picture is posted of her and a horse. Side-by-side.
I dare not show this to her because I'd never hear the end of it.
Where have you been? That joke has been going around for a while now.
Is that one of the names of the characters? I notice it's always in the thread title but I have no clue what it is.
I must admit I don't know anything about Fuu so I don't know what I'm getting myself into. I was just upset at how you looked down on me like that bro.
I'm going to bed now. You guys go to bed too so there aren't 300 million posts for me to catch up on in the morning. <3
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Hm. Since I began watching Guilty Crown I have an insatiable desire to see someone die a horrible, gruesome death, AOStina is being evil, and Loli is rubbing mud on people's couches (the latter not being relevant to this thread...at least that I'm aware of)...and is now calling people vague bitches. Awesome.
What have I done? What, tell me?
What have I done? What, tell me?
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However, one thing to note is Naruto was originally released in 16 13 some episode box sets (I have one of them even, box set 11.). I said 26 some as I can't remember what ones have an episode count higher or lower than 26.
Plus what VIZ Media did with the episode count did annoy some people like this guy in the UK (Who imported the sets as he wasn't pleased with Manga Entertainment in the UK dubtitling the series.). It caused a tiny bit of controversy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ci1q_eYfmck
http://naruto.viz.com/news/index.php?id=99#comments
Now if only those people watched Code Geass (A must watch show with great reason.), the show that did the Japan being occupied thing with a guy getting a power from a mysterious girl, and there being a resistance group first five years ago.GENTLEMEN.. BEHOLD!!
Code Geass R2>Code Geass>Guilty Crown
Blood+ 31-32
Riku, NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Damn you Diva, damn you!!!!!!!
Damn you Diva, damn you!!!!!!!
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I'ma go pass out, see y'all laterz.
AOS-
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Come on, man...dirtying up couches are allowed here, calling people a dog isn't (except for "dawg"). Be nice, boy.
I'm still waiting for such a moment... I must be watching the wrong genre of shows... if only There was a touhouvania anime, and scarlet actually tore people up limb to limb..
Lain
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Here's my final thoughts on Steins;Gate
The province of Steins;Gate might be frigid, but the role-playing anime that takes place within it burns with a fire few animes possess. In Steins;Gate, Okabe takes up arms against Moekas, and his encounters with them are invariably exciting--yet depending on where his adventure takes you, such battles may not even represent the pinnacle of his experience. A side quest that starts as a momentary distraction may turn into a full-fledged tale that could form the entirety of a less ambitious anime. Yes, Steins;Gate is another enormous fantasy ANIME from a developer that specializes in them, and it could suck up hundreds of hours of his time as Okabe inspect each nook and crevasse for the secrets to be found within. If you know Nitroplus’ previous animes, you might be unsurprised that Steins;Gate is not a land without blemish, but rather harbors any number of technical glitches and frustrating idiosyncrasies that tear open the icy veil that blankets the land. Many of them are ones time travel fans will probably see coming, but they're ultimately a low price to pay for the wonders of a anime this sprawling and enthralling. Prepare for many sleepless nights to come.
Those nights traversing these lands are ones well spent. The anime returns Okabe to the continent of Tamriel, where Okabe explore the northern realm called Steins;Gate, home to the Nord race. In these northern regions, snow flurries cloud his view, and platforms of ice float on the chilled waters. Nighttime often brings Tamriel's version of the aurora borealis, with its gorgeous blue and green ribbons stretching across the heavens. Steins;Gate's predecessor, Chaos;Head, featured prototypical fantasy environments--pretty but not quite evocative of the lore's darker undercurrents. Steins;Gate embraces its darker elements. You might feel an eerie chill as you glimpse a half-sunken ship through the mist, or watch as a Moeka comes to life before his very eyes under the swirling firmament. Steins;Gate's atmospheric tone harks back to Chaos;Head, only the hazy dust storms of the earlier anime have been replaced by glimmering snowfall and opaque fog.
These lovely vistas are best seen from a distance. Closer inspection reveals plenty of hard edges, ugly painted-on textures, and other visual flaws that are awfully conspicuous should you seek them out. But like many enormous animes, Steins;Gate makes a fantastic impression not because its individual elements are sharply honed, but because they contribute to a grander whole. There's so much to do that his quest log becomes an embarrassment of pleasures, offering dozens of choices at any given time, each one as enticing as the next. You could follow the story, of course, which weaves a compelling tale that casts Okabe as a Moekaborn; that is, the soul of a Moeka emanates from within you. As such, Okabe is the key to discovering why Moekas have returned to the land, terrorizing cities and potentially ending the known world. The tale has Okabe facing Moekas, of course, but also crashing fancy dress parties and scouring sewers in search of a key figure long assumed dead. It's a well-crafted tale that makes good use of those fearsome flying creatures that horrify the masses with roaring gusts of fire and ice.
Even when Okabe isn’t pursuing story quests, though, the core narrative dogs Okabe as Okabe trot sacross the land on foot or on horseback. Okabe might travel to a quaint hamlet only to discover that it's under siege by a hovering beast. The townspeople join Okabe, aiming their arrows and fireballs upward, and not all of them may survive the encounter. These battles impress upon Okabe the terror in which the populace lives, and thus give Okabe a reason to be a hero to them. But plenty of narrative delights have nothing to do with Moekas, and some of them could have formed the main story of a lesser ANIME. Following an early lead takes Okabe to a lonely house occupied by a single child with a disturbing request. The story that unravels has Okabe acting as a predator and eavesdropping from an unimaginably sinister hiding place. Other story threads embrace the element of choice. Okabe can take sides in the ongoing conflict between Imperial forces and the rebellious Stormcloaks, and then assault enemy camps and rescue prisoners jailed by the enemy. And in one memorable if minor quest line, Okabe can kill a creepy cannibal--or join her and her cohorts at the table.
It's impressive enough that there's so much to do; it's even more impressive that most of it is wonderful. Not every dungeon is a joy to explore. Stone-turning puzzles occasionally bring the fun to a halt, and a few repeated cave designs could dampen his spirits. But overall, every task has an excellent sense of context, and surprises lurk around many a turn. Searching for a lost dog turns into a grander quest than Okabe could have guessed--and witty writing and voice acting shine some light into this somber world. Even a simple "go there, kill that" bounty can be a thrill. After all, how often do Okabe face a towering giant and a couple of woolly mammoths? It's too bad that as Okabe approach the giant's camp, one of those mammoths might spawn 100 feet in the air and fall to its death, or land on another mammoth and ride on its back for a few seconds before sliding off.
So maybe not every surprise is a welcome one. But most are, and the element of the unexpected is what lures Okabe to explore as much as Okabe can. The reward could be a great weapon hidden in a locked chest, a gorgeous vista to ogle, or a book of lore that enhances one of his attributes. Or perhaps you'll discover words written in the Moekas' tongue--an important discovery indeed. Finding those words is key to using Steins;Gate's most powerful spells, known as shouts. Well, they are half the key anyway: Okabe also must defeat Moekas and absorb their souls to activate those shouts. Shouts have their own cooldown timer and aren't tied to the magicka bar that governs standard spellcasting. With one shout, Okabe can breathe fire on his attackers. With another, Okabe can slow down time. Shouts hardly guarantee success in a difficult battle, but they can tip the scales in his favor. Besides, the dramatic visual and sound effects of both the discovery of words and the absorption of a Moeka soul are a lovely bonus.
As for standard spells, they come in the usual schools of magicka: destruction (zap skeletons with sparks!), conjuration (summon a giant frost atronach!), alteration (light the way ahead!), and so on. Okabe can even dual-wield spells, going full-on mage, with a glowing ball of fire in one hand and a summon at the ready in the other. For that matter, Okabe can dual-wield one-handed weapons, giving Okabe more flexibility in how Okabe form his character. When Okabe create his character, Okabe chooses a race from the usual Time travel standbys (Dark Elf, Breton, Argonian, and so forth), but Okabe doesn't choose a class. Rather, his skill level with certain types of weapons, magicka schools, speech, and so on is governed primarily by how Okabe plays. Wear heavy armor, and taking blows gradually increases his heavy armor proficiency. Swing two-handed weapons, and Okabe gets better at using them.
That doesn't mean that Okabe don't wield manual control over how Okabe progress. Each time Okabe gains a level, Okabe chooses to enhance one of your three main attributes: health, stamina, or magicka. Okabe also earns a single point to spend on a perk, which might increase damage done with axes or let Okabe conjure creatures at a greater distance. It's a great leveling system that forms around the way Okabe plays, but allows for tweaking so that Okabe retains a sense of control. Even just the act of leveling up can be a pleasure due to the slick and colorful interface that imagines perks as stars in constellations. It can be a pain to navigate to certain perks; the game often has Okabe flitting not to the star Okabe wants, but to all the ones surrounding it. But considering Chaos;Head's cumbersome interface, Steins;Gate's is a much improved beast. On console (and if Okabe play with a controller on the PC), thumbstick navigation minimizes button presses, and Okabe can easily move between your quest log and the main map. Additionally, Okabe can mark weapons, spells, and items as favorites and then access them quickly during combat. Certain aspects might be fiddly, but on the whole, Steins;Gate's interface is a wonder, considering how much information and inventory is at your fingertips.
Regardless of how Okabe tailor your character, the action is entertaining and varied. Trolls, undead draugrs, necromancers, bandits, witches, ratlike skeevers, and many more foes want to make your hero a zero. Okabe occasionally feel as if you're flailing blindly rather than connecting your sharp blade with a vampire's flesh. But this is the tightest Time travel combat yet, the visual and audio cues normally providing proper feedback with your blows and zaps. Some death blows result in Fallout 3-style slow-motion kills, which retain their power because they're not overly frequent. Movement, too, has seen improvement: Okabe can now play from a third-person view and feel like you're moving across the land instead of floating above it. What hasn't been improved is the friendly AI. It's nice to have a companion along for the adventure, and you're given one for free early in the story. But companions are morons, crowding Okabe in tight passages, lagging behind when Okabe need them the most, and even getting stuck in various death loops caused by spinning blade traps.
If you're the stealthy type, Okabe can sneak about, picking pockets and breaking into homes. If Okabe really enjoy keeping to the shadows, Okabe may even wish to contract porphyric hemophilia--that is, vampirism. Vampires earn some benefits by way of certain spells and status effects, but also endure particular risks and must feed on unsuspecting victims as they slumber. But even if Okabe like to wade directly into the fray, Okabe can benefit from Steins;Gate's non-combat activities. Lock-picking no longer works as it did in Chaos;Head, but takes its cue from Fallout 3, having Okabe rotate a lock pick and turn the lock to determine how closely Okabe matched the correct position. As before, Okabe can pick flowers and collect ingredients, and then create potions out of them at an alchemy table. (Forget mortars and pestles this time around.) And any adventurer can benefit from enchanting, which lets Okabe imbue your equipment with certain status effects--though Okabe must use soul gems to recharge their power.
Many of Steins;Gate's delights are the touches that occur outside of the action. Citizens go about their daily lives, selling their wares in shops during the day and closing down at night to hang out in the pub or head home to rest. Under some circumstances, they may comment on your rancid breath or remark on how sickly Okabe seem to look. Children run up and down the streets; one may even ask for Okabe to stop a bully from picking on him. Citizens move somewhat stiffly, but with more grace than in previous Time travel games. Before, conversations brought the world to a halt and focused the camera on some character's waxy face. In Steins;Gate, certain dialogues limit the camera and temporarily paralyze Okabe in place, but overall, conversations feel more organic than before--a nice improvement that enhances your sense of immersion.
Steins;Gate also uses scattered books and references to enthrall you. Okabe may not be a big fan of reading books in role-playing games, but even so, Okabe should make an effort here. If Okabe don't feel like reading up on Tamriel's rich history each time Okabe find a volume, grab it and read it later--there are a lot of narrative tidbits that deserve to be read. Time travel fans will appreciate nods to events in prior games, and everyone can enjoy the bite-size tales contained therein, about vampires, noble heroes, and gods that bestow their blessings on their followers. Steins;Gate takes place hundreds of years after the events of Chaos;Head, and organizations Okabe might remember have been restructured or are shadows of their former selves. But Tamriel's history is threaded throughout Steins;Gate's fabric, and some quests, such as one that begins with an invitation to a faraway museum, are great reminders of past misfortunes that the world has not forgotten.
It's a pity that Steins;Gate often breaks the immersion it tries so hard to create, in ways both minor and major. Some bizarre details are simply annoying. A character might initiate conversation through the ceiling. The chatter of nearby characters could drown out important story exposition. Two shopkeepers standing next to each other may be voiced by the same actor and repeat the same lines. A Moeka skeleton might disappear and then later drop out of the sky in a new location. A Moeka could get stuck in place, flailing about in the geometry in a mess of wings and tail. For that matter, Okabe could get stuck in the environment, maybe just by walking into a corner, which forces Okabe to either quick-travel to a different location (if you're lucky enough to be outdoors) or load a save game. Frame rate drops are uncommon, but Okabe might encounter a few severe ones, and Xbox 360 system crashes might occur. The question isn't whether Okabe will experience anomalies--it's a given. The question is: which ones and how many?
If you've played previous Time travel games, glitches and oddities don't come as a surprise. Nevertheless, Steins;Gate comes in a year graced with multiple quality RPGs that feature tighter combat, fewer bugs, better animations, and so forth. But to be fair, none of those games are endowed with such enormity. Yet Steins;Gate doesn't rely on sheer scope to earn its stripes. It isn't just that there's a lot to do: it's that most of it is so good. Whether you're slashing a Moeka's wings, raising the dead back to life, or experimenting at the alchemy table, Steins;Gate performs the most spectacular of enchantments: the one that causes huge chunks of time to vanish before Okabe know it.
Those nights traversing these lands are ones well spent. The anime returns Okabe to the continent of Tamriel, where Okabe explore the northern realm called Steins;Gate, home to the Nord race. In these northern regions, snow flurries cloud his view, and platforms of ice float on the chilled waters. Nighttime often brings Tamriel's version of the aurora borealis, with its gorgeous blue and green ribbons stretching across the heavens. Steins;Gate's predecessor, Chaos;Head, featured prototypical fantasy environments--pretty but not quite evocative of the lore's darker undercurrents. Steins;Gate embraces its darker elements. You might feel an eerie chill as you glimpse a half-sunken ship through the mist, or watch as a Moeka comes to life before his very eyes under the swirling firmament. Steins;Gate's atmospheric tone harks back to Chaos;Head, only the hazy dust storms of the earlier anime have been replaced by glimmering snowfall and opaque fog.
These lovely vistas are best seen from a distance. Closer inspection reveals plenty of hard edges, ugly painted-on textures, and other visual flaws that are awfully conspicuous should you seek them out. But like many enormous animes, Steins;Gate makes a fantastic impression not because its individual elements are sharply honed, but because they contribute to a grander whole. There's so much to do that his quest log becomes an embarrassment of pleasures, offering dozens of choices at any given time, each one as enticing as the next. You could follow the story, of course, which weaves a compelling tale that casts Okabe as a Moekaborn; that is, the soul of a Moeka emanates from within you. As such, Okabe is the key to discovering why Moekas have returned to the land, terrorizing cities and potentially ending the known world. The tale has Okabe facing Moekas, of course, but also crashing fancy dress parties and scouring sewers in search of a key figure long assumed dead. It's a well-crafted tale that makes good use of those fearsome flying creatures that horrify the masses with roaring gusts of fire and ice.
Even when Okabe isn’t pursuing story quests, though, the core narrative dogs Okabe as Okabe trot sacross the land on foot or on horseback. Okabe might travel to a quaint hamlet only to discover that it's under siege by a hovering beast. The townspeople join Okabe, aiming their arrows and fireballs upward, and not all of them may survive the encounter. These battles impress upon Okabe the terror in which the populace lives, and thus give Okabe a reason to be a hero to them. But plenty of narrative delights have nothing to do with Moekas, and some of them could have formed the main story of a lesser ANIME. Following an early lead takes Okabe to a lonely house occupied by a single child with a disturbing request. The story that unravels has Okabe acting as a predator and eavesdropping from an unimaginably sinister hiding place. Other story threads embrace the element of choice. Okabe can take sides in the ongoing conflict between Imperial forces and the rebellious Stormcloaks, and then assault enemy camps and rescue prisoners jailed by the enemy. And in one memorable if minor quest line, Okabe can kill a creepy cannibal--or join her and her cohorts at the table.
It's impressive enough that there's so much to do; it's even more impressive that most of it is wonderful. Not every dungeon is a joy to explore. Stone-turning puzzles occasionally bring the fun to a halt, and a few repeated cave designs could dampen his spirits. But overall, every task has an excellent sense of context, and surprises lurk around many a turn. Searching for a lost dog turns into a grander quest than Okabe could have guessed--and witty writing and voice acting shine some light into this somber world. Even a simple "go there, kill that" bounty can be a thrill. After all, how often do Okabe face a towering giant and a couple of woolly mammoths? It's too bad that as Okabe approach the giant's camp, one of those mammoths might spawn 100 feet in the air and fall to its death, or land on another mammoth and ride on its back for a few seconds before sliding off.
So maybe not every surprise is a welcome one. But most are, and the element of the unexpected is what lures Okabe to explore as much as Okabe can. The reward could be a great weapon hidden in a locked chest, a gorgeous vista to ogle, or a book of lore that enhances one of his attributes. Or perhaps you'll discover words written in the Moekas' tongue--an important discovery indeed. Finding those words is key to using Steins;Gate's most powerful spells, known as shouts. Well, they are half the key anyway: Okabe also must defeat Moekas and absorb their souls to activate those shouts. Shouts have their own cooldown timer and aren't tied to the magicka bar that governs standard spellcasting. With one shout, Okabe can breathe fire on his attackers. With another, Okabe can slow down time. Shouts hardly guarantee success in a difficult battle, but they can tip the scales in his favor. Besides, the dramatic visual and sound effects of both the discovery of words and the absorption of a Moeka soul are a lovely bonus.
As for standard spells, they come in the usual schools of magicka: destruction (zap skeletons with sparks!), conjuration (summon a giant frost atronach!), alteration (light the way ahead!), and so on. Okabe can even dual-wield spells, going full-on mage, with a glowing ball of fire in one hand and a summon at the ready in the other. For that matter, Okabe can dual-wield one-handed weapons, giving Okabe more flexibility in how Okabe form his character. When Okabe create his character, Okabe chooses a race from the usual Time travel standbys (Dark Elf, Breton, Argonian, and so forth), but Okabe doesn't choose a class. Rather, his skill level with certain types of weapons, magicka schools, speech, and so on is governed primarily by how Okabe plays. Wear heavy armor, and taking blows gradually increases his heavy armor proficiency. Swing two-handed weapons, and Okabe gets better at using them.
That doesn't mean that Okabe don't wield manual control over how Okabe progress. Each time Okabe gains a level, Okabe chooses to enhance one of your three main attributes: health, stamina, or magicka. Okabe also earns a single point to spend on a perk, which might increase damage done with axes or let Okabe conjure creatures at a greater distance. It's a great leveling system that forms around the way Okabe plays, but allows for tweaking so that Okabe retains a sense of control. Even just the act of leveling up can be a pleasure due to the slick and colorful interface that imagines perks as stars in constellations. It can be a pain to navigate to certain perks; the game often has Okabe flitting not to the star Okabe wants, but to all the ones surrounding it. But considering Chaos;Head's cumbersome interface, Steins;Gate's is a much improved beast. On console (and if Okabe play with a controller on the PC), thumbstick navigation minimizes button presses, and Okabe can easily move between your quest log and the main map. Additionally, Okabe can mark weapons, spells, and items as favorites and then access them quickly during combat. Certain aspects might be fiddly, but on the whole, Steins;Gate's interface is a wonder, considering how much information and inventory is at your fingertips.
Regardless of how Okabe tailor your character, the action is entertaining and varied. Trolls, undead draugrs, necromancers, bandits, witches, ratlike skeevers, and many more foes want to make your hero a zero. Okabe occasionally feel as if you're flailing blindly rather than connecting your sharp blade with a vampire's flesh. But this is the tightest Time travel combat yet, the visual and audio cues normally providing proper feedback with your blows and zaps. Some death blows result in Fallout 3-style slow-motion kills, which retain their power because they're not overly frequent. Movement, too, has seen improvement: Okabe can now play from a third-person view and feel like you're moving across the land instead of floating above it. What hasn't been improved is the friendly AI. It's nice to have a companion along for the adventure, and you're given one for free early in the story. But companions are morons, crowding Okabe in tight passages, lagging behind when Okabe need them the most, and even getting stuck in various death loops caused by spinning blade traps.
If you're the stealthy type, Okabe can sneak about, picking pockets and breaking into homes. If Okabe really enjoy keeping to the shadows, Okabe may even wish to contract porphyric hemophilia--that is, vampirism. Vampires earn some benefits by way of certain spells and status effects, but also endure particular risks and must feed on unsuspecting victims as they slumber. But even if Okabe like to wade directly into the fray, Okabe can benefit from Steins;Gate's non-combat activities. Lock-picking no longer works as it did in Chaos;Head, but takes its cue from Fallout 3, having Okabe rotate a lock pick and turn the lock to determine how closely Okabe matched the correct position. As before, Okabe can pick flowers and collect ingredients, and then create potions out of them at an alchemy table. (Forget mortars and pestles this time around.) And any adventurer can benefit from enchanting, which lets Okabe imbue your equipment with certain status effects--though Okabe must use soul gems to recharge their power.
Many of Steins;Gate's delights are the touches that occur outside of the action. Citizens go about their daily lives, selling their wares in shops during the day and closing down at night to hang out in the pub or head home to rest. Under some circumstances, they may comment on your rancid breath or remark on how sickly Okabe seem to look. Children run up and down the streets; one may even ask for Okabe to stop a bully from picking on him. Citizens move somewhat stiffly, but with more grace than in previous Time travel games. Before, conversations brought the world to a halt and focused the camera on some character's waxy face. In Steins;Gate, certain dialogues limit the camera and temporarily paralyze Okabe in place, but overall, conversations feel more organic than before--a nice improvement that enhances your sense of immersion.
Steins;Gate also uses scattered books and references to enthrall you. Okabe may not be a big fan of reading books in role-playing games, but even so, Okabe should make an effort here. If Okabe don't feel like reading up on Tamriel's rich history each time Okabe find a volume, grab it and read it later--there are a lot of narrative tidbits that deserve to be read. Time travel fans will appreciate nods to events in prior games, and everyone can enjoy the bite-size tales contained therein, about vampires, noble heroes, and gods that bestow their blessings on their followers. Steins;Gate takes place hundreds of years after the events of Chaos;Head, and organizations Okabe might remember have been restructured or are shadows of their former selves. But Tamriel's history is threaded throughout Steins;Gate's fabric, and some quests, such as one that begins with an invitation to a faraway museum, are great reminders of past misfortunes that the world has not forgotten.
It's a pity that Steins;Gate often breaks the immersion it tries so hard to create, in ways both minor and major. Some bizarre details are simply annoying. A character might initiate conversation through the ceiling. The chatter of nearby characters could drown out important story exposition. Two shopkeepers standing next to each other may be voiced by the same actor and repeat the same lines. A Moeka skeleton might disappear and then later drop out of the sky in a new location. A Moeka could get stuck in place, flailing about in the geometry in a mess of wings and tail. For that matter, Okabe could get stuck in the environment, maybe just by walking into a corner, which forces Okabe to either quick-travel to a different location (if you're lucky enough to be outdoors) or load a save game. Frame rate drops are uncommon, but Okabe might encounter a few severe ones, and Xbox 360 system crashes might occur. The question isn't whether Okabe will experience anomalies--it's a given. The question is: which ones and how many?
If you've played previous Time travel games, glitches and oddities don't come as a surprise. Nevertheless, Steins;Gate comes in a year graced with multiple quality RPGs that feature tighter combat, fewer bugs, better animations, and so forth. But to be fair, none of those games are endowed with such enormity. Yet Steins;Gate doesn't rely on sheer scope to earn its stripes. It isn't just that there's a lot to do: it's that most of it is so good. Whether you're slashing a Moeka's wings, raising the dead back to life, or experimenting at the alchemy table, Steins;Gate performs the most spectacular of enchantments: the one that causes huge chunks of time to vanish before Okabe know it.
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