Enchanted Arms First Impressions

[rrmorton]

I'm 13% through the game and I'm here to report: the female characters are uniformly, across-the-board, 100% f&#@ing irritating. I'd rather listen to flamboyant Makato for an hour than either of the two females (the money grubbing pipsqueak from the combat arena and the chick from the jail cell) for five seconds.

The only female character I'd want to hang out with is the evil queen.

[Destructor]

I'm 13% through the game and I'm here to report: the female characters are uniformly, across-the-board, 100% f&#@ing irritating. I'd rather listen to flamboyant Makato for an hour than either of the two females (the money grubbing pipsqueak from the combat arena and the chick from the jail cell) for five seconds.

The only female character I'd want to hang out with is the evil queen..

Without giving much of anything away, odds are you'll reconsider that as time passes.

[rrmorton]

Good! I sure hope so. 

The concept and plot are well done but the individual scenes are really hackneyed and jarring. To name one example, just what the hell was that bit about "the pain pain pain pain" followed by tummy rumbling? I don't care what language that's in; it makes no sense. 

I also think it's pretty absurd to run down a hall towards three armored guards just standing there blocking a door, then pressing the A button to talk to them and having Atsumo cry out, "We've been spotted!" No shit, Sherlock. 

[metallicorphan]

i just got this game because of you guys on here and its terrible ..i blame you lot

nah,only joking,haven't unwrapped it yet,LOL...i like most JRPGs FFs,golden suns and star ocean so i am betting this will rub me up the right way

what i cant understand is that its coming to ps3,when it says 'only for xbox 360' on the front cover

[Misguided]

what i cant understand is that its coming to ps3,when it says 'only for xbox 360' on the front cover

It wasn't announced for PS3 until recently.

[metallicorphan]

lol,only came out last friday for us

okay,played this for about an hour,its quite good,mokotos voice isnt as annoying as i thought it would be,the fights are quite interesting at the moment nd the graphics are okay,nothing amazing but do the job fine

just entered the festival and at the moment am looking for 4 golem tickets

[Misguided]

lol,only came out last friday for us

okay,played this for about an hour,its quite good,mokotos voice isnt as annoying as i thought it would be,the fights are quite interesting at the moment nd the graphics are okay,nothing amazing but do the job fine

just entered the festival and at the moment am looking for 4 golem tickets

One of the cool things (at least to me) is that I'm over half way through the game and I'm still having to develop new tactics needed to get through the fights.

[Doopri]

okay silly question: SP points? it looks like there isnt a "pool" and each character, including golems - have their own.  is this right? and lets say my golem has something like 2000 - i should probably just dump them into stats because they cant learn skills right? and its not like im keeping another character from getting those SPs because they are "owned" by that individual.  is this correct?

[disarm]

okay silly question: SP points? it looks like there isnt a "pool" and each character, including golems - have their own.  is this right? and lets say my golem has something like 2000 - i should probably just dump them into stats because they cant learn skills right? and its not like im keeping another character from getting those SPs because they are "owned" by that individual.  is this correct?

. 

that's all correct...SP are specific to each character, and there's no reason to save them up for golems.  as for your characters, keep enough SP to learn new skills, but spend the rest on powering up their parameters.  adding points in the right areas can make a pretty big difference in the strength of your character.  maybe someone who has finished the game can chime in with a final opinion, but at ~30 hours in, i'm really having no shortage of SP to learn all the skills and power up my characters well.

Flippin out like ninjas

Spoiler for Hiden:

This power the ninjas have that they get to use even when they get taken down is kicking my butt. Is there any way to prevent them from using it?

i just got past the ninja hideout part and it was without a doubt the most difficult part of the game so far for me...

Spoiler for Hiden:

their guaranteed combo every time more than one attacks, along with that little bit of retribution when they die, is a brutal combination.  as far as i can tell, there's no way to avoid the death attack other than anticipate it a little and put your weaker character behind some cover.  add in that other golem with the big hammer that hits for >600dmg, several types that are resistant to Atsuma's fire-based attacks, and a ton of fights between heal points and i was in a little trouble in that area.  by the time i reached the heal station right before fighting Oboro, Atsuma was my only main character with any VP left, and i'd also lost the mage guardian, vampire, and poseidon...was seriously hurting for my guys back and a few more decent golems.

[Misguided]

i just got past the ninja hideout part and it was without a doubt the most difficult part of the game so far for me...

Same here. I also had my first team wipe shortly thereafter on a boss fight, but once I understood how that particular fight worked, I managed to get through it on my second try. The hideout was a real nailbiter, though.

[depward]

I want Fellow to come in here and post some dang impressions - I see him playing it from time to time!

[Fellow]

Oh crap! I've been spotted. 

Give me until the weekend, and I'll post some thoughts on the game.

[Misguided]

A pet peeve with combat:

At this juncture (about 70% of the way through) it is far less common to end combat in one round. I've had fights extended a number of times recently because I wasn't careful enough about the combo bars. I launch an attack to get a front rank guy out of the way, then unload on the one in back, only to have a combo attack give the one in the back cover long after the meat shield would have been toast, otherwise. It should be avoidable most of the time with a bit more care, but it can happen at inopportune times.

P.S. Getting an over-break on a boss doesn't get old.

[Dante Rising]

A pet peeve with combat:

At this juncture (about 70% of the way through) it is far less common to end combat in one round. I've had fights extended a number of times recently because I wasn't careful enough about the combo bars. I launch an attack to get a front rank guy out of the way, then unload on the one in back, only to have a combo attack give the one in the back cover long after the meat shield would have been toast, otherwise. It should be avoidable most of the time with a bit more care, but it can happen at inopportune times.

I refuse to put any weight behind the words of someone with the name "misguided". 

[Misguided]

I refuse to put any weight behind the words of someone with the name "misguided". 

Hey, pal. I'll have you know I earned that name. 

[disarm]

i thought the ninja hideout was a challenge...until i faced the Lord of Earth tonight.  that was the most difficult battle of the game so far and was the first boss where i really had to use a lot of items to survive.  after getting my ask kicked probably a half-dozen times, i finally found a strategy that worked...but that one battle still lasted almost 20 minutes.  i'm still loving the game though and can't wait to see what kind of twist they put in the combat next

[Misguided]

i thought the ninja hideout was a challenge...until i faced the Lord of Earth tonight.  that was the most difficult battle of the game so far and was the first boss where i really had to use a lot of items to survive.  after getting my ask kicked probably a half-dozen times, i finally found a strategy that worked...but that one battle still lasted almost 20 minutes.  i'm still loving the game though and can't wait to see what kind of twist they put in the combat next

Haven't gotten there yet, but I think I may be just moments away. I'm curious, if you use items in a fight, then lose and restart, are the items lost?

Spoiler for Hiden:

The Queen of Ice has the magicore and I'm headed back to the LoE's temple.

[disarm]

i thought the ninja hideout was a challenge...until i faced the Lord of Earth tonight.  that was the most difficult battle of the game so far and was the first boss where i really had to use a lot of items to survive.  after getting my ask kicked probably a half-dozen times, i finally found a strategy that worked...but that one battle still lasted almost 20 minutes.  i'm still loving the game though and can't wait to see what kind of twist they put in the combat next

Haven't gotten there yet, but I think I may be just moments away. I'm curious, if you use items in a fight, then lose and restart, are the items lost?

Spoiler for Hiden:

The Queen of Ice has the magicore and I'm headed back to the LoE's temple.

any items that you use are returned if you get wiped out and start over...would be incredibly unfair otherwise.  there are no surprises as to when you'll face LoE...it will happen exactly when expected, so make sure you've stocked up on God's Ambrosia, picked out a strong party, and saved your game.  luckily, there are both a store and save point right outside.  it's a long battle and takes a lot of strategy to survive, but it's just another example of the great combat system

[DamageInc]

I just beat him yesterday and it was a long fight. I used numerous potions, but in the end the entire party survived.
I am at the top of the Sage's tower right now.

I still have yet to see the story directing you to a temple. I tried the Fire Temple at level 39 back in the beginning and got my butt kicked.

Guess I will have to wait and see

[Misguided]

I still have yet to see the story directing you to a temple. I tried the Fire Temple at level 39 back in the beginning and got my butt kicked.

Guess I will have to wait and see

I believe someone said the temples are optional.

[Fellow]

Just for you, Depward!

Okay, I've clocked in about 20 hours on this game, and am 32% according to the progress bar. Basically, it just confirms something I already knew from the get go - I'm slow as molass.

Things I like:
Concept of Golems
Fighting engine
Crispy graphics
Two language tracks
Save anywhere (about damn time, even though I constantly have to point to the HD for the save)

Things I don't like:
Execution of Golems
Lack of variety in music (where da music at??)
Paperthin story
Everlasting tutorial almost to the point of retardation (to do anything, I have to press the A button, I get it, okay??!?)

I think at the point I am, I'd have to say the strongest part right now has been the beginning. The graphics started off very strong, and I was left scratching my head wondering what the reviews were tripping on, saying the visual splendor was lacking. As I've progressed in the game, they've become more and more generic, except of course in hi-res! Still, there's enough good stuff here and there to motivate me to push forward and see the rest of it.

Nothing really special about the story. It opened up strong, but has teetered off into a "go here, do this, go here, fight that" pattern. Your teammates aren't really that interesting either. I already have a relatively good idea how it all will end. No biggie. Again, the character interaction was a bit more interesting in the beginning, but I'm only at 32%, so things could change. Most of the action is basically delivered through speech, instead of animation, which is a bit of a shame. Budget/time constraits, I imagine.

I like the fighting engine. It's feels good to be back in turnbased, after all these latest RPGs are trying to push for real-time. Very simple at the core, but still offers enough tactics to keep it fresh depending on who's in your team at the time. And, because the placement of your troops is different every time, the same exact placement/tactic simply won't work.

Speaking of troops, the golems, which seem to be the game's main forte... Here's the thing. I love the concept behind golems. I think it's awesome that you get to collect all these different behemoths, and use them in combat. I personally cackled(yes, cackled) in glee when I first used Primrose. The problem is, almost all of them are useless. Also, they're not really that unique either. The huge majority of them are just enemy critters. When you enter a new place, you come across maybe 3-5 new enemy types, so you can pretty much guarantee that somewhere, you'll find the corresponding golem versions of them.

Now, even though they do grow with you, and you're able to pump their stats a bit, eventually they'll be redundant when you snag the next batch. Hell, some you can skip entirely. And I was really hoping they'd develop some new skills as they grow, but unfortunately that's not to be so. I honestly think, if there's to be a sequel of some kind, they cut down on the number of golems to maybe a couple of dozen, make them ALL unique, and have them grow in strength and skill with the rest of the party. As it is, I usually have 3 main characters, and one golem. Sometimes maybe two golems. The rest are being horribly neglected. Potential's there.

Bottom line, it's a solid game. Is it worth $60? Ehh... Maybe not. $40, though, sure. That said, I don't regret spending the money I did for it, because I'm clinically insane, and I love RPGs. Mostly the latter. I just hope they'll have an opportunity to do a sequel of somekind, and finetune all the blemishes from an otherwise vaseline-coated surface.

[depward]

Agreed with Fellow 100%.  Just had to confirm my thoughts with what you thought!

[Destructor]

I honestly think, if there's to be a sequel of some kind, they cut down on the number of golems to maybe a couple of dozen, make them ALL unique, and have them grow in strength and skill with the rest of the party. As it is, I usually have 3 main characters, and one golem. Sometimes maybe two golems. The rest are being horribly neglected. Potential's there.

Agreed. Heck - where I'm at, I'm usually using 4 main characters and no golems.

[Doopri]

wow we played pretty differently from each other! i find myself using atsuma, and generally 1 other main character (i was pretty early in - so it was either raiger or karin) - and 2 golems.  sometimes i had just atsuma and 3 golems.  i like to level them up so i always have a golem or two for each opposing element.  during big fights i try and use the main characters because it can get hard if im using one of my "level up" projects ( in other words, a weaker golem im trying to bulk up)

[Misguided]

I just beat him yesterday and it was a long fight. I used numerous potions, but in the end the entire party survived.

Just took him out. I lost Atsuma and Yuki right near the end when he unexpectedly fired off World Creation a second time. The best part was taking him out with his own EX attack, courtesy of Raigar.

Key to this one (like all the boss fights, really) is effective use of combos. Remember that each successive attack in a combo gets a bigger bonus.
His attacks don't do all that much damage, but watch his EX bar and make sure you can survive that attack when it goes off.

[skystride]

How do you guys have money for buying numerous potions?  I'm always broke from buying skills/cores(weapons).  This is a pre-emptive question as I'm almost to the Lord of Earth fight.

[disarm]

How do you guys have money for buying numerous potions?  I'm always broke from buying skills/cores(weapons).  This is a pre-emptive question as I'm almost to the Lord of Earth fight.

i really haven't had an excess of money at any point in the game because i've focused on buying skills and cores as well.  when i got to LoE, i just happened to have amassed a little cash that i was saving for an expensive skill...wound up using it to buy potions instead.  now that i'm a little farther, however, i've come across a support skill that increases the TB i get from combat...activate that for every character and the money starts rolling in noticeably faster.

as for my current progress, i just got to Gravekeep Holm and have come across the first battle that i'm actually incapable of winning in my current state.  a boss you face pretty early there has an essentially unavoidable attack that does enough damage to take away all my health with a single blow.  i guess i'll  have to find a way to boost my HP before i can make it any farther in the game.  while i'm sure i can find a way to win, it's a little frustrating to be somewhat stuck for the time being...

[Misguided]

I've bought all the weapon cores but can't recall the last time I bought a golem core.
I had about 60k right before I got to the Lord of Earth.
I have not used the skill that increases TB. I haven't needed money enough to want to unequip other stuff.
I am trying to put together funds to buy the wide range support skill, but if I really wanted it right this second
I could raise the funds selling gems.

Disarm, I'm assuming you're using the +20% hp skill...
Are you able to go first in the fight?
If so, perhaps a damage shield in the first round?
Does the attack affect all squares? Might creative use of gravity help?

No need to answer, just trying suggestions.

[disarm]

Disarm, I'm assuming you're using the +20% hp skill...
Are you able to go first in the fight?
If so, perhaps a damage shield in the first round?
Does the attack affect all squares? Might creative use of gravity help?

No need to answer, just trying suggestions.

while i agree that those are all good strategies in most other situations, i can tell from looking at your achievements that you haven't reached the battle i'm talking about yet.  i don't want to give anything away, but i think you'll see the difficulty once you get to the same point.  it's a situation that is unique in the game so far and i'll just have to tune my character a little before attempting the battle again.  my only attempts so far were in an totally unprepared state where i didn't know what to expect, and i haven't gone back after a reload with the chance to start off better equipped yet.  while it's a little annoying, i know exactly what i need to do to survive...it's just a matter of being prepared before i try again...

has anyone else faced the big fight in Gravekeep Holm and know what i'm talking about?  i'd be curious to know if anyone else has run into the same problem or if it's somewhat unique to my character-building choices along the way.  might be wise to PM with any interesting comments if it gets hard to avoid spoilers...

[Misguided]

Yeah, I was just throwing out some random general ideas.
Not like I think any of this is rocket science or anything, but I seem to have had an easier time with some of the boss fights than others.
I got in a good few hours yesterday, then felt like taking a break.

Oh, one thing that had me laughing in the magma cavern:

Spoiler for Hiden:

I loved it when you come across this lone chest sitting next to the shop. There's NEVER been a chest just sitting in the open during the whole game. I though to myself, "That's got trap written all over it." Of course, curiosity got the better of me, LOL

Edit: I don't think there's anything unusual about my build. I'm using all 4 humans, with most of their points going into their main combat skill (melee for everyone except Karin) plus points in HP/AGI when I can and into EP when I have to. Aside from that I've got a few points extra in support and melee for Karin and in Ranged for Atsuma.

[Misguided]

has anyone else faced the big fight in Gravekeep Holm and know what i'm talking about?  i'd be curious to know if anyone else has run into the same problem or if it's somewhat unique to my character-building choices along the way.  might be wise to PM with any interesting comments if it gets hard to avoid spoilers...

Still haven't caught up to you, but I'm curious....in your game, is Raigar level 40 yet?

Trying to decide if it's time to head on to Graveholm or do a little backtracking...

Spoiler for Hiden:

God Orb #3 isn't that far from here. But the last one...it's way back near London

[DamageInc]

How do you guys have money for buying numerous potions?  I'm always broke from buying skills/cores(weapons).  This is a pre-emptive question as I'm almost to the Lord of Earth fight.

i really haven't had an excess of money at any point in the game because i've focused on buying skills and cores as well.  when i got to LoE, i just happened to have amassed a little cash that i was saving for an expensive skill...wound up using it to buy potions instead.  now that i'm a little farther, however, i've come across a support skill that increases the TB i get from combat...activate that for every character and the money starts rolling in noticeably faster.

as for my current progress, i just got to Gravekeep Holm and have come across the first battle that i'm actually incapable of winning in my current state.  a boss you face pretty early there has an essentially unavoidable attack that does enough damage to take away all my health with a single blow.  i guess i'll  have to find a way to boost my HP before i can make it any farther in the game.  while i'm sure i can find a way to win, it's a little frustrating to be somewhat stuck for the time being...

Hopefully this answers your question Disarm.

Spoiler for Hiden:

If you are talking about Mystery Man /( most likely Makoto ) with the Galaxy attack then Atsuma needs to have at least 1500 HP. You need to heal using the complete heal potion after each round that he uses the attack (which turns out to be every other round

The Casino is your best way to earn money. You gamble and then turn in the chips to buy potions which you can sell to the store. It takes some time, but you can make a boat load of cash by trading in potions from the Casino.

I managed to get all the God weapons before I entered the "Big Gate" for the final battle sequence. I was able to beat the Fire Temple Phoenix as well which gave me a Fire Orb. I guess you can get all four of these orbs and then enter a mega-dungeon, but it is not required to complete the story.

[Misguided]

The problem with the casino is that you go such long stretches without being able to go...is there one somewhere other than London?

[Lee]

The problem with the casino is that you go such long stretches without being able to go...is there one somewhere other than London?

Nope. That's why I have never really been it but once or twice.

Oh and the temple golems are quite nice once you build them up, but they start off really low level. By the time I could get them, they weren't a lot of use.

End game help:

Spoiler for Hiden:

Anyone have any tips on the IQ battle? She's kicking my ass, although I almost had her once, she was down to 800hp with Raigar and Karin left, but they were out of EP and almost dead. I can't keep Atsuma alive for more than two or three turns. I use the big EX attack, the one that does the most damage to one enemy, and thats about it. Everyone is level 50 and all have their god orb weapons.

[DamageInc]

The problem with the casino is that you go such long stretches without being able to go...is there one somewhere other than London?

Nope. That's why I have never really been it but once or twice.

Oh and the temple golems are quite nice once you build them up, but they start off really low level. By the time I could get them, they weren't a lot of use.

End game help:

Spoiler for Hiden:

Anyone have any tips on the IQ battle? She's kicking my ass, although I almost had her once, she was down to 800hp with Raigar and Karin left, but they were out of EP and almost dead. I can't keep Atsuma alive for more than two or three turns. I use the big EX attack, the one that does the most damage to one enemy, and thats about it. Everyone is level 50 and all have their god orb weapons.

Spoiler for Hiden:

I was able to beat her using Atsuma 6000+ HP, Raigar at 2000+ HP, Karin at 2000+ HP and Gailea at 2000+ HP. Atsuma needs a sick amount of HP because the IQ's double turn attack alone does close to 3000 dmg with Raigar's 50% dmg reduction buff! I also used Atsuma's Flare Stun attack twice on her which does uber damage especially if you use him as the last char of a combo chain. Karin just heals and Raigar uses what ever attack you can get in range. Galiea(or whatever his name is) uses life vacuum on every turn. There are a chain of battles that take place so once you go to see Toya and the IQ make sure you are stocked up on all potions.

I finally beat the game and I really enjoyed this title.

[Lee]

Finally beat it tonight. I enjoyed the game, but the end I just wanted to get it done with, so I went the easy route.

Spoiler for Hiden:

I did the holy beast shrine with the avoid encounter skill and got Omega. He makes the last battles so simple, it's practically cheating.

[Misguided]

Hey Disarm,

If that boss battle is the one I think it is, looks like you made it through.

[Sparhawk]

Spoiler for Hiden:

I'm at the part where you go off to the Sage's tower to visit some lady. How close am I to the end? I don't hate the game, and I do want to finish it, but if I have another 40 hours to go I think I'm done.

[disarm]

Hey Disarm,
If that boss battle is the one I think it is, looks like you made it through.

yep...made it through pretty easily once i finally got back to the game and powered up my character a little bit.  it was really just a matter of boosting my HP enough to survive that particular boss' big attack.  once i did that, i was able to kick his ass pretty well.  now i'm able to fight the final battle, but i'm putting it off a little while i go back to get all the God Orbs and earn a few more golems just for the hell of it

Spoiler for Hiden:

I'm at the part where you go off to the Sage's tower to visit some lady. How close am I to the end? I don't hate the game, and I do want to finish it, but if I have another 40 hours to go I think I'm done.

you definitely don't have anywhere near another 40 hours to go...actually getting pretty close to the end if you just try to push through to the finish.  you're coming up on a time , however, when they give you the opportunity to easily go back to some earlier areas to play the casino, earn some more golems, and battle your way through the elemental temples to earn God Orbs (which you'll learn a little about soon).  if you decide to backtrack a little to wrap up some side activities, you can spend a fair amount more time with the game.  otherwise, you're quickly approaching the endgame.

[Sparhawk]

Hey Disarm,
If that boss battle is the one I think it is, looks like you made it through.

yep...made it through pretty easily once i finally got back to the game and powered up my character a little bit.  it was really just a matter of boosting my HP enough to survive that particular boss' big attack.  once i did that, i was able to kick his ass pretty well.  now i'm able to fight the final battle, but i'm putting it off a little while i go back to get all the God Orbs and earn a few more golems just for the hell of it

Spoiler for Hiden:

I'm at the part where you go off to the Sage's tower to visit some lady. How close am I to the end? I don't hate the game, and I do want to finish it, but if I have another 40 hours to go I think I'm done.

you definitely don't have anywhere near another 40 hours to go...actually getting pretty close to the end if you just try to push through to the finish.  you're coming up on a time , however, when they give you the opportunity to easily go back to some earlier areas to play the casino, earn some more golems, and battle your way through the elemental temples to earn God Orbs (which you'll learn a little about soon).  if you decide to backtrack a little to wrap up some side activities, you can spend a fair amount more time with the game.  otherwise, you're quickly approaching the endgame.

Danke, that's what I wanted to hear.