Aksys Games Forums » Topic: Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!

brunogaia on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

brunogaia — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 06:31:48 +0000

Levi said:
If you look on page 4 (at least its page 4 in the PS3 booklet) of the direction booklet it does speak about the class divisions caused by Armagus, the formation of Ikaruga Federation and the civil war that ensued.

Fair enough: good for PS players...
In MY booklet (French version, 360) the story entry is so flimsy it makes your eyes water...
If I had the time, I'd scan and transmate it so that you can understand how my frustration transformed into just wrath ;)
Still think BB's great though. AND plot-wise too. SO it's even more of a shame what they did in the French booklet!!!

Comandante on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

Comandante — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 21:42:45 +0000

brunogaia said:
Thanks for the tip! But still, I can't understand how game designers can accept to see a game come out with a BIG PART of the world explained on various OTHER pieces of items and/or other media, meaning that the basic buyer will not have access to crucial infomation.

If you've worked in the game business you learn that while many people (designers and the like) would love to put in all kinds of information. Sometimes problems with budget or communication can get massive parts dismissed in favor of the beloved release date. No one's fault really, they probably had enough story for two or three games but only enough room to tell a third of the story. It's similar in Battle Fantasia. There's enough material there for a full RPG but it's cut down to fit in a fighting game. I vote for BATTLE FANTASIA THE RPG! ;-) Anyway, looks like Levi has some good answers that I'll have to check out.

Levi on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

Levi — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 20:26:19 +0000

First off I totally meant DeathSmiles not Agarest >_>. Secondly, I can definately understand your frustration with plot elements being spread over different media and a lot of/all of the media not being released outside of Japan. I do think that Calamity Trigger gives you MOST of the information you need to understand the world. You mention the Ikaruga Civil War in your orginal post. I'll assume you have Aksys localization of the game. If you look on page 4 (at least its page 4 in the PS3 booklet) of the direction booklet it does speak about the class divisions caused by Armagus, the formation of Ikaruga Federation and the civil war that ensued. The "Teach Me, Ms. Litchi" parts of the game also contain an amazing amount of information, and between the arcade modes and all the character story modes the game does get pretty well filled out. Part of the reason I love Arc System Works is their attention to detail. When you start up a stage you have little sayings in the corner that drop hints. Zap some of the characters with Rachel and you'll see some interesting things with their sprites, for example Carl. Are there some gaps? Yes, you end up infering a lot of this though. Any questions at the end of CT will probably be answered in CS, which will leave you with new questions. One thing that I did find was a problem for me was that the BB universe is so GIGANTIC that I end up losing track of info. It ends up being fine, it's just a bit of a pain heh. I would say that ASW is actually assuming you have a brain, they don't just feed you the story on a platter, they make you stop, think, and piece things together. That being said, Aksys if you ever found the intestinal fortitude to localize the settings and materials collection I would pay....and pay dearly.

brunogaia on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

brunogaia — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 19:39:46 +0000

Thanks for the tip! But still, I can't understand how game designers can accept to see a game come out with a BIG PART of the world explained on various OTHER pieces of items and/or other media, meaning that the basic buyer will not have access to crucial infomation.
I think it's a bit of a lack of respect: it sort of implies that some fighting game players give so little attention to the world in which they fight that they'll never even wonder why they can't make sense with the plot or part of it.
Oh, oK I can feel some people muttering SF, KOF, and what about the nonsensical turns the plots of many other games have TEKKEN over the years.
But still, I wonder, when will the industry eventually realize that there are adults out there playing their games and not all of them are overgrown teenagers with no education at all!
As an example I'm 34, French, married, a teacher with a master in English literature, with a rock band that goes onstage and I still strive to find a LOT OF time to play and I hate being taken for a dummy just because I still like fighting games after turning 30 years of age!
Not saying that I hate Aksys for that, don't mistake me.
Blazblue is great and is way better than many fighters out there plot-wise.
But I still find it infuriating to be unable to find my information within the sleeve and to HAVE TO check out Wikipedia to understand the world.

Levi on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

Levi — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 16:08:31 +0000

In Japan there was a Settings and Materials collection released. The thing had a ton of info as well as unused character designs and cool stuff like that. I know some of the folks on Dustloop have gone through and translated it and posted a lot of the info. I'll drop a link to the topic on DL, if Belisarius or any other mods do not approve, feel free to abduct me and bring me to that niffty torture chamber below Aksys headquaters...you know where you got the gear for the BSDM Edition of Agarest.

I should point out that this thing is FULLL of spoilers, so beware. I believe there are even spoilers in here for Continuum Shift :/
Link to S&M Collection

King Reaper on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

King Reaper — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 15:30:59 +0000

I haven't finished the game 100% either, but I assume a lot of it is stuff that the game leaves you to figure out on your own, and a lot of it is stuff that's explained in Continuum Shift.
I dunno, I'm just guessing.

brunogaia on "Does anyone out there know where they explained the basics of BB's story?!!"

brunogaia — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 14:10:40 +0000

I mean, I may be dumb, and I've not finished the game a 100% but I still don't know where any mention is made of the fact that the Ikaruga civil war was started by a sort of class divide between those who had and those who didn't have Armagus..
Apart from Wikipedia, which states this, I've never seen the Ikaruga civil war clearly explained anywhere within the game.
Same for a lot of important plot ellements by the way.
The "basic plot" in the booklet is sooo measly that anyone doing without Wikipedia basicaly enters a game without a story, which happens to be one of those bad things BB is not.
I know the story is not what matters most in a fighting game but still I'd be delighetd to know where those Wikipedia guys got their crucial information when it's not to be found anywhere else!!!