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My Thoughts on Golden Sun - Reloaded: Discussions and Suggestions

Started by Fionordequester, 03, September, 2017, 10:04:57 PM

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Fionordequester

So since I've been on a Golden Sun kick this last month or so, I've decided to give this rebalancing hack a try.  Caledor wishes to make a game where unleashes and summons aren't the be-all, end-all strategies they always were in the main game; and we're going to see how well it accomplishes that!  As such, I'll be judging it on two things...

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1) Does it change the way I play the game?

2) Does it have a good difficulty curve (not too tough, not too easy)?
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While doing this, I will be posting videos of me fighting bosses and random encounters in order to show evidence for my points.  So let's get this started!

Fionordequester

#1
So here's my first video, right now!  Isaac and Garet were LVL 2, and Ivan was LVL 4.  My purchases so far were...

Isaac: Open Helm (+10 Defense)
Garet: Open Helm (+11 Defense)

And the time it took me to kill the boss with both strats was...

(With Brute Force): ~1 minute and 56 seconds

(With Delude):
~3 minutes and 16 seconds



Basic summary: I liked the fact that I had to buy equipment to help Isaac and Garet survive...but I'm worried about what I'm seeing in regards to debuffs.  Golden Sun is a series that is ruled by burst damage, to the point where even Dullahan essentially amounts to a slightly more complicated summon rush.  Debuffs have pretty much always been slower AND less effective than just brute force; and I'm worried this hack may fall into the same trap.

Long Summary: I tried a strategy that used Delude, and one that used brute force; and the brute force method won out.  This is because giving Ivan the Seer class, it...

-------------------------

1) Lessened his DPS by giving him Whirlwind instead of Bolt Ray

2) Made it so that Garet couldn't use Venus and Flint (which themselves did a lot of damage)

3) Didn't accomplish much with Delude.  The Bandit bypasses the accuracy check completely when using Slice, and that's the most dangerous move he has.  

4) Gave the Thieves and their boss more time to spam Herbs on each other; which dragged out the fight
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Golden Sun, as well as most RPGs besides Dragon Quest, are ruled by burst damage.  Random encounters are fragile enough that it's usually more efficient AND more effective to just bum rush them; and bosses tend to be immune to any status ailments you care about.  As a result, there's no incentive to use debuffs in any RPG you play besides Dragon Quest, which generally makes it so that raw offense isn't the way to go.

This boss here was a very unique one in this regards; it was the only one I saw that was both vulnerable to status ailments AND had enough HP to where status ailments would actually help in the long run.  I felt that if there was any place where I might've wanted to take a more tactical approach instead of doing what I usually do, that this would be it.  However, Delude wasn't effective enough to be worth the hassle.

So I would like Delude to be buffed in some way.  Maybe make it like Dragon Quest, where it's accuracy is the same across ALL enemies?  Make it so that it's GUARANTEED to last a while (again like Dragon Quest)?  Maybe cut the enemy's accuracy down to 5% instead of 30%?  I don't know what the best way to buff it is; but it needs it.  

Physical attacks are only a tiny fraction of the attacks that the player will face; so I'm thinking that Delude needs to be PRE-TTY darn good at blocking what little it CAN block.  Otherwise, there's no reason to bother with it.

Thanks for reading, and God bless you  :happy: !

Fionordequester

Caledor asked me to write down my full thoughts in addition to posting them on the videos; so I just greatly expanded the first Bandit post.  Hope this helps  :happy: !

Awec

I think this is too early in the game to be analyzing it to be honest.
In my run, I found burst damage quickly became less feasible and I had to rely on Paralyze a lot, and use debuffs extensively against bosses. It was tough.
Delude probably could afford a buff though.
I. Am. A. Spoon.
Yes, a spoon that is awesome that is a Jupiter adept that is one of the Anemos that lives on the freaking moon.
What of it?

Caledor

This is not really surprising cause i haven't done anything yet in order to improve delude from the player's POV, mainly because anything I decide to do at this point would require a pretty big code change. The first thing that comes to mind is to make Delude similar to Seal (it would disable EPAs).

Fionordequester

Quote from: Caledor on 04, September, 2017, 05:04:54 PM
This is not really surprising cause i haven't done anything yet in order to improve delude from the player's POV, mainly because anything I decide to do at this point would require a pretty big code change. The first thing that comes to mind is to make Delude similar to Seal (it would disable EPAs).

That'd probably be the ideal option; no idea how viable that is, though, since I never learned hacking.

Aile~♥

The code change that would be necessary to make Delude viable is a pretty big one, you'd basically need to make all enemy-targeting Monster Skills be replaced by the Attack command while Delude is active in addition to its normal effects.
(Alternatively, you need to make it so it's somehow possible to give enemies weapon unleashes. That is, make it so any ability slot that is filled with Attack can also be given a chance to trigger a specified other ability instead.)
[sprite=16, 6, 0]:P[/sprite]

Lloyd: Easy as pie.
Genis: Sweet!
Presea: ...Sweetie pie...
Zelos: Let's not start on this again...

[spoiler=epic mindscrew][/spoiler]

Fionordequester

#7
Just some miscellaneous observations...

1) I understand why Ivan doesn't have Whirlwind by default anymore (limited slots per class, wanting both a single and multi-target for him)...but I don't think that's good game design.  I know most've us have played this game before, but I still believe in designing games as though it's a player's first time; and unlike Growth, Whirlwind is necessary for getting through the story.  So instead of Bolt, I would make WHIRLWIND the single-target attack that costs 3 PP, just like how Growth is now.

2) I would change the item description of "Elixirs" to mention that they cure CURSE as well as stun, delusion, and sleep.  For those curious, that wasn't Caledor forgetting to mention a change he made; that was part of the ORIGINAL game as well!  Got a lot of game-overs against Caledor's Manticore before learning THAT crucial detail!

3) If possible, I would use a text editor to reduce how much time the prologue takes.  I actually cut together my own take on how the Prologue would take; one that reduced the time spent in Vale from 1 hour and 7 minutes, to about 49 minutes.  I could show you if you like!  But yeah, you'd be amazed at just HOW much text you can cut without ANYTHING being lost!

Fionordequester

#8
Oh yes...I also made a lot of progress; got all the way to Colosso in fact!  I'll make detailed posts in regards to my thoughts soon; but for now, here're the levels I was at when I beat each boss...

Saturos: LVL 7 for Isaac, Garet & Ivan; LVL 10 for Mia

Tret: LVL 8-9 for Isaac, Garet & Ivan; LVL 11 for Mia

Killer Ape: LVL 11 for Isaac, Garet & Ivan; LVL 12 for Mia

Hydros Statue: LVL 13 for Isaac, Garet & Ivan (I think); LVL 14 for Mia (I think)

Manticore: LVL 14 for the first three, LVL 15 for Mia (I think)

Kraken: LVL 16 for everyone (I think)

Aile~♥

Quote from: Fionordequester on 05, September, 2017, 12:04:16 PM
Just some miscellaneous observations...

1) I understand why Ivan doesn't have Whirlwind by default anymore (limited slots per class, wanting both a single and multi-target for him)...but I don't think that's good game design.  I know most've us have played this game before, but I still believe in designing games as though it's a player's first time; and unlike Growth, Whirlwind is necessary for getting through the story.  So instead of Bolt, I would make WHIRLWIND the single-target attack that costs 3 PP, just like how Growth is now.
Another thing is that Ivan's class is Bolt User. He's supposed to be very strongly electricity-themed in his base class.
[sprite=16, 6, 0]:P[/sprite]

Lloyd: Easy as pie.
Genis: Sweet!
Presea: ...Sweetie pie...
Zelos: Let's not start on this again...

[spoiler=epic mindscrew][/spoiler]

Fionordequester

#10
Quote from: JamietheFlameUser on 05, September, 2017, 04:07:37 PM
Quote from: Fionordequester on 05, September, 2017, 12:04:16 PM
Just some miscellaneous observations...

1) I understand why Ivan doesn't have Whirlwind by default anymore (limited slots per class, wanting both a single and multi-target for him)...but I don't think that's good game design.  I know most've us have played this game before, but I still believe in designing games as though it's a player's first time; and unlike Growth, Whirlwind is necessary for getting through the story.  So instead of Bolt, I would make WHIRLWIND the single-target attack that costs 3 PP, just like how Growth is now.
Another thing is that Ivan's class is Bolt User. He's supposed to be very strongly electricity-themed in his base class.

Even so, I looked through the Reloaded thread, and found at least one player who was stuck outside Go a Cave because he couldn't figure out how to get Whirlwind to appear.  He thought you had to grind levels.

I think removing the chance of arrested game progression like that always trumps thematics.

Caledor

Quote from: Fionordequester on 05, September, 2017, 04:22:11 PM
Quote from: JamietheFlameUser on 05, September, 2017, 04:07:37 PM
Quote from: Fionordequester on 05, September, 2017, 12:04:16 PM
Just some miscellaneous observations...

1) I understand why Ivan doesn't have Whirlwind by default anymore (limited slots per class, wanting both a single and multi-target for him)...but I don't think that's good game design.  I know most've us have played this game before, but I still believe in designing games as though it's a player's first time; and unlike Growth, Whirlwind is necessary for getting through the story.  So instead of Bolt, I would make WHIRLWIND the single-target attack that costs 3 PP, just like how Growth is now.
Another thing is that Ivan's class is Bolt User. He's supposed to be very strongly electricity-themed in his base class.

Even so, I looked through the Reloaded thread, and found at least one player who was stuck outside Go a Cave because he couldn't figure out how to get Whirlwind to appear.  He thought you had to grind levels.

I think removing the chance of arrested game progression like that always trumps thematics.

I think i made crystal clear that only players experienced with GS should play the mod, and djinn swapping to get utility psy is a core mechanic. There's a link to the class doc in the opening thread, the Bolt User's psy line is in red to emphasize the changes made with the latest patch. Whirlwind is an utility spell and as such is basically innate (learning level: 1-2), it would be very strange for it to suddenly require grinding. Those are a lot of pointers already.

This "chance of arrested game progression" is the same as repeatedly failing to beat some boss cause you're stubbornly trying a strategy that doesn't work anymore due to changes i made. If it doesn't challenge people to try to find new solutions it shouldn't be called a difficulty patch IMO.

On elixir: it should be "removes temporary status conditions" or something like that. there are probably more minor mistakes like this one still cause i don't play with the english version. I have to rely on you guys' reports to fix them.

On prologue's length: how would you use a text editor? to remove dialogue? if so that's pretty personal, and changing anything beside gameplay is out of the scope of the mod.

leaf

Quote from: Awec on 04, September, 2017, 04:29:46 PM
I think this is too early in the game to be analyzing it to be honest.
In my run, I found burst damage quickly became less feasible and I had to rely on Paralyze a lot, and use debuffs extensively against bosses. It was tough.
Delude probably could afford a buff though.

It's never too early to analyze, since it's entirely possible for something to be balanced later on, while being imbalanced early, or vice-versa. It's a matter of progression.

Quote from: CaledorI think i made crystal clear that only players experienced with GS should play the mod, and djinn swapping to get utility psy is a core mechanic.
I agree with Fio on this. I don't think it's reasonable to expect the player to need to switch djinn frequently just to get access to core psynergy. It doesn't matter how familiar with GS you are. Expecting players to have to mess with their class setup every time they want to use whirlwind or any other utility psy is just bad design. It's at best an inconvenience to the player that doesn't need to be there, and at worst can softlock a player's progress. Even if the player realizes "the hack creator is making us jump through hoops," the problem is, they don't necessarily know what hoops those are.
[spoiler=quotes]
[9:00:50 PM] Randel Peltier: Ok...what did I do last night?
[9:01:19 PM] Kain: Something boring, repetitive, and lasted for about sixty seconds.
---
[10:45:08 AM] Salanewt: But yeah, the elemental phalluses are being... Stroked up by Saturos and co., and the energy will go towards... Mt. Muffin, where the Golden Climax will arise.
[7:28:42 PM] Salanewt: An added bonus is that Isaac and co. were trying to stop Saturos and co. because their beliefs state that Mt. Muffin should remain a virgin.
---
[9:54:21 PM] Randel Peltier: Guess the number in my head an you get to pick what I say. Number between 1-10
[9:54:28 PM] leaf: 11
[9:54:36 PM] Randel Peltier: @#$%!
---
[8:38:13 PM] Randel Peltier: Shes like this queen up on a pedastal that I have yet to court.
[8:38:29 PM] Kain: You've tried courting her.
[8:38:43 PM] leaf: and failed spectacularly
[8:38:44 PM] Randel Peltier: Ive tried...shes the best dating game ever.
---
[12:24:35 AM] Salanewt: I need to find a picture of a naked person to put on the Christmas tree next year.
---
[2:19:06 PM] Zeadra: wait... Rief's a guy???
---
[1:09:57 PM] Zeadra: well if you want to know if its a new effect or something weird, just check GS1, if side step is there maby it is the nimble dodge thing
[1:10:35 PM] Kioll: For once, you've contributed something useful.  o.O[/spoiler]

Caledor

Quote from: leaf on 06, September, 2017, 07:09:32 AM
Expecting players to have to mess with their class setup every time they want to use whirlwind or any other utility psy is just bad design. It's at best an inconvenience to the player that doesn't need to be there, and at worst can softlock a player's progress.
You are implying that said player is almost always in a class setup that doesn't have it. I agree that it should be easier to reach that and in fact it's been in Ivan's default class alone (which is an unprecedented exception) since forever, until i lacked the space for it. I would have immediately made it innate through the editor if i were able to do so, and I will probably invest some time in a future release to do it via hex editing since that's the only way.

That said, I refuse to accept that this inconvenient can halt a player's progress for more than a couple of minutes and i'll instantly dismiss any "i got stuck, this is bad"-like comments with a "you're not trying hard enough"-like response.

Quote
Even if the player realizes "the hack creator is making us jump through hoops," the problem is, they don't necessarily know what hoops those are.
The point is they are supposed to know them, cause they have all the documentation available in the first post. It's like a big FAQ section; if you're having problems of any kind, you should go there and look for hints/answers. If you lose even more time for trying solutions at random, well i can't do anything about it.

leaf

A game shouldn't need outside documentation. It's never bad to provide it, but unless it's something you have absolutely no control over, the player shouldn't need it. That doesn't change when it's a hack.

Anyway, you do recognize that it's a problem, so I'll stop harping on it.
[spoiler=quotes]
[9:00:50 PM] Randel Peltier: Ok...what did I do last night?
[9:01:19 PM] Kain: Something boring, repetitive, and lasted for about sixty seconds.
---
[10:45:08 AM] Salanewt: But yeah, the elemental phalluses are being... Stroked up by Saturos and co., and the energy will go towards... Mt. Muffin, where the Golden Climax will arise.
[7:28:42 PM] Salanewt: An added bonus is that Isaac and co. were trying to stop Saturos and co. because their beliefs state that Mt. Muffin should remain a virgin.
---
[9:54:21 PM] Randel Peltier: Guess the number in my head an you get to pick what I say. Number between 1-10
[9:54:28 PM] leaf: 11
[9:54:36 PM] Randel Peltier: @#$%!
---
[8:38:13 PM] Randel Peltier: Shes like this queen up on a pedastal that I have yet to court.
[8:38:29 PM] Kain: You've tried courting her.
[8:38:43 PM] leaf: and failed spectacularly
[8:38:44 PM] Randel Peltier: Ive tried...shes the best dating game ever.
---
[12:24:35 AM] Salanewt: I need to find a picture of a naked person to put on the Christmas tree next year.
---
[2:19:06 PM] Zeadra: wait... Rief's a guy???
---
[1:09:57 PM] Zeadra: well if you want to know if its a new effect or something weird, just check GS1, if side step is there maby it is the nimble dodge thing
[1:10:35 PM] Kioll: For once, you've contributed something useful.  o.O[/spoiler]

Fionordequester

#15
I've completed Colosso, Lunpa, Suhalla Desert, and all the Crossbone Island stuff except for Deadbeard (who is a very well designed challenge, I'd like to add  :happy: ).  Still working out a strat for him.  But anyway...

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 08:36:14 AM
You are implying that said player is almost always in a class setup that doesn't have it.

That was generally the case for me, as I went through the game.  I found the classes that didn't have it more helpful than those that did.

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 08:36:14 AMI agree that it should be easier to reach that and in fact it's been in Ivan's default class alone (which is an unprecedented exception) since forever, until i lacked the space for it. I would have immediately made it innate through the editor if i were able to do so, and I will probably invest some time in a future release to do it via hex editing since that's the only way.

I have an idea; what if the Shaman's Rod gave it to him?  I mean, it's the ancient relic of a clan of Jupiter adepts, and Sheba ends up having to use Whirlwind to pass Moapa's test...so what if the Shaman's Rod granted it just like a psynergy item would?  Would that be a good solution?

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 08:36:14 AMThat said, I refuse to accept that this inconvenient can halt a player's progress for more than a couple of minutes and i'll instantly dismiss any "i got stuck, this is bad"-like comments with a "you're not trying hard enough"-like response.

I personally never got stuck by it.  I knew Whirlwind was in Ivan's Seer class the moment I experimented with class set-ups for the Bandit fight.  But I don't think it's unreasonable to expect that someone else might've gotten tripped up by it, just because they might've been so used to how the original game was.

For all you know, they might've seen that this was a difficulty patch, decided "oh, that means I have to do some grinding!", and then... I dunno, grinned to LVL 7 or something, thinking that that's what you were expecting of them.  That sounds odd, even to me, but...I've seen players make crazier assumptions :P .

Quote
The point is they are supposed to know them, cause they have all the documentation available in the first post. It's like a big FAQ section; if you're having problems of any kind, you should go there and look for hints/answers. If you lose even more time for trying solutions at random, well i can't do anything about it.

The outside documentation does work; because this is a fan made hack that's aimed towards experts.  I am curious though; are you planning to become a game designer, by any chance?  If so, I would argue that this is a bad habit to get in to.  For games aimed at your average consumer, the outside documentation needs to be a really cool and helpful thing that the player can read through if they wish; not mandatory.

Fionordequester

#16
By the way...no matter what nitpicks I have, I'd like to emphasize that I'm STILL greatly enjoying the hack!  A lot of the ideas behind this stuff is really cool, and it's great to FINALLY meet challenges great enough to stretch me to the edges of my creativity!  The only fights to ever do that to me in the base games were Poseidon and Dullahan.  But even then, Poseidon was only due to me being VASTLY under leveled due to regularly using Retreat Warpping and skipping Djinn; and Dullahan was only due to be banning resets for myself!

This hack isn't perfect, and I'll still be pointing stuff out in future videos...but on the whole, I enjoyed my time with this :happy: !

Caledor

QuoteA game shouldn't need outside documentation. It's never bad to provide it, but unless it's something you have absolutely no control over, the player shouldn't need it. That doesn't change when it's a hack.

QuoteThe outside documentation does work; because this is a fan made hack that's aimed towards experts.
Different opinions but in this case the documentation doesn't really help if you can't figure out the trick by yourself. I mean, i keep mentioning the "class chart" but why would you check that if you don't think "wait, maybe it's in another class"?

QuoteI have an idea; what if the Shaman's Rod gave it to him?  I mean, it's the ancient relic of a clan of Jupiter adepts, and Sheba ends up having to use Whirlwind to pass Moapa's test...so what if the Shaman's Rod granted it just like a psynergy item would?  Would that be a good solution?
The main issue it that the fastest way to gain whirlwind if you don't have it is annoying. You need to mass standby your djinn, move one, set that, use WW and revert. I don't know how much moving it to a weapon helps that. Also it is counterintuitive, cause equipping a weapon was never used for gaining utility psy, changing your class has always been the method. Fun concept nonetheless and fits with the lore.

Anyway, glad you're liking the mod and... man, you're fast! I've never been a speedrunned but i would've never expected deadbeard in 3 days! Please take your time in describing in details everything you liked and didn't like so i can use it for future reference.

PS. I'm not really planning to be a game designer, it's just an hobby of mine ATM. One i invested a lot of time into, but still an hobby nonetheless.

Fionordequester

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 07:58:40 PM
Different opinions but in this case the documentation doesn't really help if you can't figure out the trick by yourself. I mean, i keep mentioning the "class chart" but why would you check that if you don't think "wait, maybe it's in another class"?

That's very true, as well.  Good point!

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 07:58:40 PMFun concept nonetheless and fits with the lore.

Thanks.  And yeah, it isn't a perfect solution either, for all the reasons you said.  I was just thinking that, if hex editing Whirlwind in was going to be too complicated or time consuming, then my suggestion might work as a "temporary fix" in the meantime; something you could easily hammer out before doing the serious work.  

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 07:58:40 PMAnyway, glad you're liking the mod and... man, you're fast! I've never been a speedrunned but i would've never expected deadbeard in 3 days! Please take your time in describing in details everything you liked and didn't like so i can use it for future reference.

Will do; and yeah, I've gotten to be pretty good at the game.  I'm not a speedrunner MYSELF...but I regularly correspond with runners like TL_Plexa, Fretzi, CriticalCyd, and the others on their Discord channel.  In fact, I was part of the reason Plexa discovered the "Bronze Password Glitch" (described here), and I also recently discovered that Dullahan can only use three patterns worth of opening moves (the 1st being "Break/Attack -> True Collide -> Element Swap", the 2nd being "Attack -> True Collide -> Formina Sage", and the 3rd being "Charon -> Curse -> Djinn Storm").

So I do have a fair amount of skill at this game, though it's still nothing compared to what the actual speed runners can do.  Regardless, I'll do my absolute best to give you fantastic commentary!

Quote from: Caledor on 06, September, 2017, 07:58:40 PMPS. I'm not really planning to be a game designer, it's just an hobby of mine ATM. One i invested a lot of time into, but still an hobby nonetheless.

Ah, gotcha!  Oky doke then.

Fionordequester

#19
Well, that's that!  Finally beat Deadbeard AND Fusion Dragon today, so that's that done.  I have to say though; I enjoyed the Deadbeard fight...but the Fusion Dragon took a preposterously long time to kill.  I don't know if I was too underleveled or not, but...well, here's where I was at at both bosses...

Deadbeard: Ivan at LVL 22, everyone else at LVL 23

Fusion Dragon: Mia & Ivan & Garet at LVL 25, Isaac at LVL 26

But yeah, I think that blasted +50 HP regen was excessive.  Made that fight take about twice as long as it should've taken, IMO.  Deadbeard took a while too, but he was a much more exciting fight.  Fusion Dragon, on the other hand, was just kind of a slog :sad: ...

But oh well!  Expect some videos soon, and God bless you!

EDIT: Actually, one more thing.  Is a single Planet Diver SUPPOSED to be an AoE that can do 350+ Damage to someone?  I mean, USUALLY it only hit for about 180-200 to whoever it hit hardest; but OTHER times, it seemed like it would randomly do double what it normally did.  It might be my imagination, but the damage numbers seemed to fluctuate an unusual amount.

Regardless, the Dragon's ability to do two of those in a single round is probably part of the reason my strat took so long.  I had to use a strat that was safe enough to accomodate for that :sad: .