Since I've begun my journey along with the Haikyuu boys season two, I thought I'd also take another gander at the other post rounding out my top five most viewed lists: collectable card games. Unfortunately, I haven't been playing much of those recently, since I found my old DS and have been playing the OG of gotta collect them alls, Pokemon. Still, there are some new anime-themed ones I've tried out so here they are.
4. One Piece Treasure Cruise
Is this game just coasting on the charm of the One Piece story? Pretty much. If this was a stand alone game with another average fantasy backstory then I would definitely not be playing it. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to keep playing it for very long because my love of One Piece can only take me so far before the weight of the annoying battle system breaks the deal.
Pro: It's really easy to get Ultra Rares (4 Stars) and they're pretty decent, especially when levelled up, but the 5 stars are where the real show's at. Spoiler alert those aren't easy to get.
Con: The battle system works on a timing mechanic but it's sound based rather than rhythm/musical based. So you have to keep paying attention to it, but it's not like Puzzles and Dragons where have to at least think about it. Like you have to pay attention but it's also kind of mindless at the same time. It really wears you down. I don't need the combos just give me an auto mode
Pro: Japanese voice acting
Con: They give you such small inventory space omg. And random minor/side characters whose initial stats suck but I'm assuming you're supposed to evolve them except THERE'S NO INVENTORY SPACE FOR THEM OR THEIR EVOLUTION MATERIALS???
Con: Evolution materials
Pro:Being able to use your favourite characters to create the dream team, and everyone using their signature attacks.
A lot of the cons I had before about FFRK were erased in the last two major updates.
There's a wider range of abilities and characters to use them. Remember when I was complaining about Rydia being my only viable mage? Well I was right to say Terra is owning that magic, Yuna is killing it with the summon mage, Lightning is a fantastic spellblade user and Aerith indeed is replacing my white mage.
You still have to check a guide for enemy weaknesses, but let's be real none of us is wasting our mage uses on the pre-boss monsters. Instead, they now let you see the weakness and target scores of the boss before entering the dungeon.
Plus, they also now show the HP of all enemies so we no longer have to sit there hitting the boss just hoping it would die soon.
Not to mention they made managing the new characters a lot easier by adding a remove all equipment/abilities function because before I got so sick of individually removing all of a character's equipment that I just never switched characters.
The new friend system is super helpful for helping with the bosses and weaknesses, although it's luck that determines when that friend with the elemental bonus shows up.
They upped the level limit and added Record Materia as bonus abilities for characters who've broken that limit so I no longer feel like my exp is being wasted.
Then they also made a mastery function for limit breaks, so it's not a waste when you get multiple unique limit breaks.
The ATB can be slowed down or sped up which is a godsend, but even more so the Auto Battle mode was actually made automatic, so I don't have to worry about going into a dungeon and forgetting to put it on Auto making my characters sit there and take damage.
It's so easy to get mithril. At the time of this writing, I haven't seen much of a break in between promotional log-in events for bonus mythril so it's really easy to save up.
It's completely easy to get new characters, sometimes in one day. But there's harder dungeons for more rewards. As for me, I tend to stop at the second or third to last difficulty in the elite versions but I'm pretty satisfied by that already. Plus, they now put the difficulty level in numbers so it's easier to estimate how much you can take on.
The events can get pretty repetitive, especially if all your doing is collecting the characters and not their Record Materias because after a certain level it's just pressing things and little Auto do its work.
There's a wider range of abilities and characters to use them. Remember when I was complaining about Rydia being my only viable mage? Well I was right to say Terra is owning that magic, Yuna is killing it with the summon mage, Lightning is a fantastic spellblade user and Aerith indeed is replacing my white mage.You still have to check a guide for enemy weaknesses, but let's be real none of us is wasting our mage uses on the pre-boss monsters. Instead, they now let you see the weakness and target scores of the boss before entering the dungeon.Plus, they also now show the HP of all enemies so we no longer have to sit there hitting the boss just hoping it would die soon.Not to mention they made managing the new characters a lot easier by adding a remove all equipment/abilities function because before I got so sick of individually removing all of a character's equipment that I just never switched characters.The new friend system is super helpful for helping with the bosses and weaknesses, although it's luck that determines when that friend with the elemental bonus shows up.They upped the level limit and added Record Materia as bonus abilities for characters who've broken that limit so I no longer feel like my exp is being wasted.Then they also made a mastery function for limit breaks, so it's not a waste when you get multiple unique limit breaks.The ATB can be slowed down or sped up which is a godsend, but even more so the Auto Battle mode was actually made automatic, so I don't have to worry about going into a dungeon and forgetting to put it on Auto making my characters sit there and take damage.It's so easy to get mithril. At the time of this writing, I haven't seen much of a break in between promotional log-in events for bonus mythril so it's really easy to save up.It's completely easy to get new characters, sometimes in one day. But there's harder dungeons for more rewards. As for me, I tend to stop at the second or third to last difficulty in the elite versions but I'm pretty satisfied by that already. Plus, they now put the difficulty level in numbers so it's easier to estimate how much you can take on.The events can get pretty repetitive, especially if all your doing is collecting the characters and not their Record Materias because after a certain level it's just pressing things and little Auto do its work.
1. Love Live! School Idol Festival (English)
Welcome to Idol Hell.
Pro:The art is super cute and the girls are super cute. Get your waifus
Con: It's hard to get SRs and URs in the English version because they have a smaller pool of cards right now
Pro: Smaller pool of cards means less fodder Ns and Rs so you get those idolized and maxed out really quickly without your inventory being crammed full
Con: I can't tell which cards I've maxed or idolized already, which isn't a problem in the Japanese version because they put symbols there to let you know. Come on EN there's clearly a solution! You have the technology! Why must you continue this way.
Pro: Although they kind of have a limit break mechanic, at least it only takes two cards and you don't even have to max level them first
Con: Harder to get Love Gems than in the Japanese version
Pro: Apparently not as competitive because of the lower number of users, but considering I haven't actually gotten close to the top two tiers I'm not a great judge of that for myself.
Welcome to Idol Hell.
Pro:The art is super cute and the girls are super cute. Get your waifus
Con: It's hard to get SRs and URs in the English version because they have a smaller pool of cards right now
Pro: Smaller pool of cards means less fodder Ns and Rs so you get those idolized and maxed out really quickly without your inventory being crammed full
Con: I can't tell which cards I've maxed or idolized already, which isn't a problem in the Japanese version because they put symbols there to let you know. Come on EN there's clearly a solution! You have the technology! Why must you continue this way.
Pro: Although they kind of have a limit break mechanic, at least it only takes two cards and you don't even have to max level them first
Con: Harder to get Love Gems than in the Japanese version
Pro: Apparently not as competitive because of the lower number of users, but considering I haven't actually gotten close to the top two tiers I'm not a great judge of that for myself.
Con: When I'm playing Score Match and I get a perfect combo but lose to a bunch of people who a) don't have a full combo and b) aren't even fucking using the same colour lead as the song. Look I'm not even that bothered you won without a full combo. You have a lot of URs I get it that's capitalism for you. But come on at least have the decency to have the same coloured lead!!!
Pro:I can actually read the story. Also, full voice acting for the main story and the main girls' side stories. Game does a good job of introducing you to the characters and general story without you needing to have watched the anime, which I did after playing the game.
Pro: A pretty comprehensive community, with companion sites and wikis galore.
Con: There's only like two event types so it kinda gets old real fast. Especially for token collecting ones where you have to play the same event song over and over again. How much do you want your waifu
Pro: Game mechanics are easy to grasp and there's varying levels of challenge. Plus the songs are all pretty cute.
Con: Absolutely exhausting to collect them all. There is a reason why they call it idol hell, emphasis on the hell. HOW. MUCH. DO . YOU. LOVE. YOUR. WAIFU.
Pro: Eli Ayase best girl fight me
Pro: A pretty comprehensive community, with companion sites and wikis galore.
Con: There's only like two event types so it kinda gets old real fast. Especially for token collecting ones where you have to play the same event song over and over again. How much do you want your waifu
Pro: Game mechanics are easy to grasp and there's varying levels of challenge. Plus the songs are all pretty cute.
Con: Absolutely exhausting to collect them all. There is a reason why they call it idol hell, emphasis on the hell. HOW. MUCH. DO . YOU. LOVE. YOUR. WAIFU.
Pro: Eli Ayase best girl fight me
Pro: The art is super cute and the girls are super cute. Get your waifus
Pro: Easier to get SRs and URs because they have a larger pool of cards
Con: Too many goddamn fodder cards so your inventory fills up with Rs and Ns instantly
Pro: Lots of friendship points I guess, because you already have a full inventory so you can't use your friendship points to summon more. Is this a con or a pro?
Pro: New seal shop makes it easy to clean out Rs and SRs. [Pretends like I even have any SRs to spare]
Con: Too many goddamn fodder cards so your inventory fills up with Rs and Ns instantly
Pro: Lots of friendship points I guess, because you already have a full inventory so you can't use your friendship points to summon more. Is this a con or a pro?
Pro: New seal shop makes it easy to clean out Rs and SRs. [Pretends like I even have any SRs to spare]
Con: The landscape is too competitive. The tiers are on a completely different size than the English version
Pro: Way easier to level up than in the English version becasue they cut the experience needed
Pro: New accomplishments make it easy to get lovecas
Pro: Way easier to level up than in the English version becasue they cut the experience needed
Pro: New accomplishments make it easy to get lovecas
Con: There's only like three event types. Granted, that's one more than the English version so that's something. I really only play the Japanese version for their Medley Events anyway
Pro: More songs available than the English version, especially for Expert
Pro: Game mechanics are easy to grasp and there's varying levels of challenge. Plus the songs are all pretty cute.
Con: Can't read Japanese.
Pro: But no actually the English speaking community is pretty on top with translations available. Plus after playing the EN version there's not too many things you need a translation for anyway. The only place is the story, which I just completely fast forward through.
Pro: More songs available than the English version, especially for Expert
Pro: Game mechanics are easy to grasp and there's varying levels of challenge. Plus the songs are all pretty cute.
Con: Can't read Japanese.
Pro: But no actually the English speaking community is pretty on top with translations available. Plus after playing the EN version there's not too many things you need a translation for anyway. The only place is the story, which I just completely fast forward through.
Con: Absolutely exhausting to collect them all. There is a reason why they call it idol hell, emphasis on the hell. HOW. MUCH. DO . YOU. LOVE. YOUR. WAIFU.
Pro: Eli Ayase best girl fight me
Pro: Eli Ayase best girl fight me
Con: The battle system works on a timing mechanic but it's sound based rather than rhythm/musical based. So you have to keep paying attention to it, but it's not like Puzzles and Dragons where have to at least think about it. Like you have to pay attention but it's also kind of mindless at the same time. It really wears you down. I don't need the combos just give me an auto mode
Pro: Japanese voice acting
Con: They give you such small inventory space omg. And random minor/side characters whose initial stats suck but I'm assuming you're supposed to evolve them except THERE'S NO INVENTORY SPACE FOR THEM OR THEIR EVOLUTION MATERIALS???
Con: Evolution materials
Pro:Being able to use your favourite characters to create the dream team, and everyone using their signature attacks.
Con: You can't put two different versions of the same character into your team. Like fuck you if I want an all-Zoro team don't fucking stop me
Con: Characters come in versions of their attacks, which means you can't just get one Luffy and expect him to know all the Gomu Gomus or whatever. It makes sense..from a profit standpoint. From a consumer standpoint? Fuck you.
Pro:Anything One Piece about it. Seriously, a great, interactive way to re-live the story of One Piece because once you've read like 700+ chapters or watched a thousand episodes you tend to forget everyone's origin stories. Like Coby? Who even.
Con: Characters come in versions of their attacks, which means you can't just get one Luffy and expect him to know all the Gomu Gomus or whatever. It makes sense..from a profit standpoint. From a consumer standpoint? Fuck you.
Pro:Anything One Piece about it. Seriously, a great, interactive way to re-live the story of One Piece because once you've read like 700+ chapters or watched a thousand episodes you tend to forget everyone's origin stories. Like Coby? Who even.
5. Idolm@ster Cinderella Girls: Starlight Stage
I played this for maybe two hours just for the sake of this post, and to to compare it to SIF so don't count on me fully understanding the metagame. There is no English version and I don't want to really go look up tutorials and translations for another hell of productive wastelands.
Pro: 3D Animated dances in the background while you play a Live. Cute idol dancing.
Con: It's fucking distracting holy shit. But if you turn it off, or switch to 2D, it seems like a waste??
Pro: The art is cute! Of course it is! There are cute chibi versions and cute idol versions! Go get your waifu
Con: Loading screens everywhere
Pro:There's like stories and kind of dialogue going on between you and the idols you're managing? Tbh 'Producer-kun' is like the only note of Japanese I understood. Also of course voice acting everywhere
Con: Not a lot of songs available in the beginning
Pro: Evolution materials. On one hand, they're a pain to collect always, on the other hand if they're all it takes to 'idolize' a card THEN I'M ALL FOR IT. Anything to escape being under the mercy of the RNG.
Con: Not sure how events are supposed to be played but right now all it seems like there's one song and you keep playing it until the card you want drops? Seems repetitive
Pro: Not much variation in game mechanics, but not a bad thing. Easy to pick up. And the straight line format seems easier to deal with on mobile than SIF. The interface and everything are all super cute too
Con: Kind of hard to get to know the characters. There's three to choose from in the beginning but I can't tell who's supposed to be a main character. There just seems to be a ton of characters everywhere
Pro/Con: Interior decoration means cute af rooms but also means more things to spend money and time on
Pro/Con: There seems to be a mechanic for fusing cards, but at the same time you also level them up just with experience from playing songs? Kind of confusing...
Bonus: Pokemon is the ultimate gotta collect them all. And it doesn't even have in app purchases. (Remember that next time your cycling up and down one road to breed something or walking repetitively in one spot trying to find a shiny.)
Pro/Con: There seems to be a mechanic for fusing cards, but at the same time you also level them up just with experience from playing songs? Kind of confusing...
Bonus: Pokemon is the ultimate gotta collect them all. And it doesn't even have in app purchases. (Remember that next time your cycling up and down one road to breed something or walking repetitively in one spot trying to find a shiny.)
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