(Don't worry, this isn't just going to be a copy+paste from tumblr, I went a little more in depth and clarified some things)
But first: obligatory playlist
This is a collection of songs that have some really stellar animated music videos to match
Tracklist + links to said music videos is here (I... would've linked to it on rakatakat's blog but she's currently at a temp url sooooooooo)
ALSO THIS REALLY NEAT MUSIC VIDEO WHILE WE'RE AT IT
YEAH!
so let's talk ATR for battle/party mechanics first. In the tumblr post I did Dead Inside Endgame mechanics but the ATR stuff is the really fascinating stuff
The party functions in a sorta KH/FF12 hybrid style. Battle is real time and you can only have three party members in at a time, but you can swap between characters whenever and it's only game over when all party members are down
Each member also has a different moveset/attack style, sorta like Dissidia, I guess. I attributed it to Dissidia in the initial post but perhaps that isn't the best analogy
Party Members
Riku - Riku is an absolute glass canon. his attacks are devastatingly powerful but his defense isn't that great and he cannot heal. When you're Riku you have to rely on shitty computer AI to keep you healed which is a severe letdown to the power his attacks offer because he just can't stay alive
It's a little like R/R except there is no Mickey sleight to keep you alive. You really do have to rely on shitty computer AI.
Also:
1) darkness based attacks (his strongest) drain his health with use, cumulatively if used with frequency, and more HP the stronger the attack is. It's a little more like AC3's "Tyranny of King Washingtin" animal powers mechanic than what I've seen in some FF games about darkness-based attacks
2) if you are fighting a thunder-based enemy you are screwed. You are horribly screwed. Riku gets hit and you lose control of him for quite a while--at least until getting attacked a second time a la R/R's "failed a duel" mechanic
this can be overridden by purchasing a thunder armlet, but that is one of those items that's incredibly-hard-to-find or requires-ridiculous-amounts-of-synthesis or is-extremely-expensive so it's almost not worth getting. (It also isn't available before Part 2)
Sora - Sora is pretty well rounded and a general jack of all trades. His attacks are weaker than Riku's, but, then again, everyone's are. I have other Special Thoughts concerning him, but currently, they are spoilers, so that is info for another day (which I may never remember to post anywhere but tumblr)
Kairi - Kairi handles like Tifa in Dissidia, and I guess comes off as a "scrapper". She's all fists and quick attacks--pretty strong quick attacks, actually. She's got a good defense against physical attacks, but not so much against magic attacks. She's Specifically Weak to magic attacks, actually, and if you have any magic warding items, they might be best going on her
She can do basic level magic, and Cure (all party members but Riku can Cure, actually) but if you're controlling her you probably never use said magic except to keep yourself alive
Namine - NAMINE IS REALLY COMPLICATED BUT HER MECHANICS ARE PROBABLY MY FAVORITE!!!
First let's talk Namine's fighting style--Namine is written to be a deliberate foil of Kairi when it comes to battle. While Kairi is all "up close in your face" and can be felled by distance magic attacks, Namine is the exact opposite. She's the one casting distance magic attacks, and is Super Weak to physical damage. She's also the most reliable healer, and probably has a FF13 style paradigm shift option between "ravager" and "medic", aka between "offense" and "defense". She is the only character with this option--Sora and Kairi's magic and whether or not they cure you is based purely on an AI which is probably as good as Donald's.
Now for the mechanic which is kind of absurd but really grew on me
Namine is Really Against fighting after being Rewritten and, as such, you have the "battle gauge" (name unofficial--perhaps "stress gauge" would be a better name) which steadily fills as the battle wears on. As soon as that gauge fills completely, she's out of the battle, you have to swap her for a reserve party member. Once she's out of the party and out of battle, the gauge starts depleting, and over time it will be at 0 and you can put her in the party again
The gauge can be depleted in-battle with the "soothe" command which calls a character over to calm her down. If you are controlling Namine, a character will be called over at random (Kairi with the most likely chances, Sora with second most, Riku with third most). If you are anyone else and Namine is in the party, the soothe command will pop up periodically, likely the higher the gauge is filled, and when you hit it you'll go over to soothe Namine. Obviously, like other reaction commands in KH, you can choose not to hit it and/or miss hitting it entirely
If I wanted to be REALLY PICKY about the mechanic, not only are you most likely to trigger Kairi's soothe command, but it's also the most effective, with Riku's being the least. Why? Because Kairi and Namine get along Slightly Better than Namine and Sora, along with Riku being the dude she was Rewritten to kill and so when she's stressing in battle it's really not good for her to be anywhere near him because she will panic more
Also, I'd love for when the gauge starts reaching critical levels, a "pounding" starts. In Assassin's Creed 3 (and perhaps in other Assassin's Creed games, though I wouldn't know because I've only played 3), when your HP reaches critical the colors distort and the screen pounds. You'd really have to see it to know what I mean, but that's exactly what I'd love to happen when Namine's gauge reaches critical. The pounding, of course, only happens when you're controlling Namine.
Roxas - I'm super on the fence about whether or not Roxas is an available party member just because he's going to come off as even more over powered than Riku. I'm not 100% on these trope terms but I feel like he's a combination of a Tank and a Scrapper. He lands a lot of rapid succession attacks, especially because he's dualwielding about 80% of the time.
Also, apparently a key trait of the Tank is taunting enemies so that their attention is on you and not your fellow party members so that you can take the damage, and that is definitely Roxas. So much so. Sometimes not even because he means it.
He most likely functions as a guest/support character who can be in your party (probably as a fourth member) and you can mess with his taunt controls mid-battle, just like you can swap Namine from Ravager to Medic.
He's less reliable than Sora or Kairi to heal you, but his Cures are more powerful and refill more of the HP gauge
(There is a chance Roxas has his own bits of story where you can play him, but you play him alone with no assist so, for the most part, his over powered....ness isn't so bad)
Other notes:
Honestly, if you're not Riku, you don't want him in your party, because your designated healer will spend a lot more time curing him than curing you
Riku/Namine/someone else is a good party, especially if you're Riku, but if I get to be really picky about Namine's gauge I would say it fills quicker if she is in the party with Riku--unless that is absurdly too far, which it might be. This gauge is pushing enough limits as is.
When it comes to dialogue it functions in a KIU style (them talking over the battle/while moving) because, honestly, I wouldn't settle for anything less. All four of them (+supports/assists) will talk regardless of who's in the party, just because that seems easiest on the plot. Also, miss-able dialogue is the bane of existence for a lot of gamers
I really don't feel like going over Dead Inside Endgame notes now so if you want those you'll have to go to tumblr
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