Why is star ocean second story so good?

[Powersword]

Well I was only thinking about this recently. Yes it’s got the story, characters, music, combat, crafting we all love, but then I thought there’s something else.
The part that makes the series very enjoyable but isn’t that obvious is the very sci-fi nature of it. We all love a good jrpg but with this one it wouldn’t be out of place if Claude starts using a light saber, Leon creates a laser cannon etc. As the story goes literally anything can happen in an rpg like this. Yes we see spaceships at the start but it doesn’t really dwell on that fact after Claude arrives in arlia. Almost wish that a DLC ‘could’ be added without affecting the story. I.e. a rescue team arrive to try and find Claude as a side story etc, or a team arrives looking for OPAs…

[Second Duke Revier]

For me its appeal specifically comes from the blending of oldschool JRPG and "regular" RPG elements into an action game. It's got the classic JRPG elements in the character archetypes, the spells, the enemy design, but then also lets the characters invest into alternative, non violent yet useful skills like cooking food, making medicines or forging weapons, things you would see in a more "traditional" RPG like Fallout or Arcanum. Then it blends all of that with a real time combat system involving a mixture of player skill and RPG elements, with an emphasis on the latter. Few games come close to tickling this specific taste.

[Powersword]

We see a lot of that in Skyrim which I think helped that be a success. Spending ages talking to people, making medicines catching butterflies etc. I can’t think of many jrpgs with a similar style. I remember enjoying Azure dreams a lot because of all the side missions, mini games and dating elements.

[gadesx]

They need to update Star Ocean: Blue Sphere, it's like Star Ocean 2.5
and they lost a remake for cellphones:

https://lostmediawiki.com/Star_Ocean:_Blue_Sphere_Mobile_%28lost_inaccessible_mobile_remake_of_Game_Boy_Color_role-playing_game;_2009%29

[Powersword]

Bought blue sphere day 1. Great game. Really impressive battles for the GBC

[aSoulBelow]

so Claudes name is actually Crawd mind blown

[Powersword]

Originally posted by New.hamptor:

so Claudes name is actually Crawd mind blown

Nah.. even in Japanese guide books he’s called Claude. Interesting that he’s a blond haired guy called that, literally about a year or so after a popular final fantasy game came out

[Almighty Boof]

Typically, I would think it be nostalgia, although I am curious about the amount of people who are first-timers to this Remake that don't like the game.
The original SO2 was niche, yet, groundbreaking when it comes to game mechanics. The last time Western audiences had thought of action JRPGs was probably Tales of Destiny, and it would have been Secret of Mana before that. At the time, my friend and I thought that SO2 had one of the best battle systems we had ever seen.
The colorful cast of multiple characters is also a win in my book. I actually think it was a good idea to make it so you cannot recruit all characters in one play through. Having two main characters change up some of the story dialogue also helped with the already great re-play value.
The intensity and depth of the crafting system also checked all the right boxes. While it was time consuming originally (vast improvements to time management in the Remake), completing the "right" craft or opening the "right" item always felt so good. The IC in the game is almost like its own form of grinding. SO2 also has the best IC system the series has ever seen (so good that they practically replicated it for First Departure).
The way Killer Moves improve with use (or by spending points) also grants a feeling of further character progression. They also get new animations to boot! The character progression in this game is unlike anything else we had seen at the time of the original, except for maybe Valkyrie Profile.
I also agree that the sci-fi/fantasy blend is something that is very fun, since it is not an overly done trope, and feels fresh even 20 years later.

To sum up, I think SO2 was by far the most mechanically in-depth game at the time of its original release. The Remake still hold up to similar standards. While intense mechanical games are a bit more prevalent now, most developers try to make their games easier (and by that I mean "brainless"). Many games seem "dumbed down" compared, and do not provide rich systems that keep you engaged.

[RunningWild]

It has huge amounts of replay. Multiple ways to play and enjoy it, not every run has to be the same. There's so much to experiment with and tons of ways to break the game that make it loads of fun. Not many games let you get away with that kind of stuff.

[coffeediction]

2 Worldmaps (I love JRPGs with classic worldmaps/overworld)
So many items, and not all useless, sure lots are garbage (dependiing on progression) but there is a use to almost all of them.
Lots of IC content (Altough IC in SO3 was by far more rewarding imo, minus the waiting).
Ability to overpower yourself early with some work. I never understood games where you get the best weapons/armor after everything is cleared, and have no use for the reward. Not here. Not in any SO game.
Always something new, always surprising challenge, even though I felt like a steamroller most of the time, the post-game dungeon proven me otherwise though.

I cant agree on the scifi part though, there is barely any space scenes, except near the end with some scifi locations... SO3 has much more spacey feel, and also lots of back and forth in underdeveloped worlds <-> scifi bases / spaceships ( Aquilla :'( )
Which makes you feel like you play 2 or more different genres/timelines. (Scifi, fantasy, medieval ect. which is the true nature of SO games tbh.)
Also people dont react to the present scifi elements and things they cant explain, they just go on like they've seen it all already... (Rena barely reacted to figuring where Claude is from), its a bit of an immersion killer, but hey, its a classic rpg, for that time it was released, this wasnt a thing xD

[Powersword]

Originally posted by coffeediction:

2 Worldmaps (I love JRPGs with classic worldmaps/overworld)
So many items, and not all useless, sure lots are garbage (dependiing on progression) but there is a use to almost all of them.
Lots of IC content (Altough IC in SO3 was by far more rewarding imo, minus the waiting).
Ability to overpower yourself early with some work. I never understood games where you get the best weapons/armor after everything is cleared, and have no use for the reward. Not here. Not in any SO game.
Always something new, always surprising challenge, even though I felt like a steamroller most of the time, the post-game dungeon proven me otherwise though.

I cant agree on the scifi part though, there is barely any space scenes, except near the end with some scifi locations... SO3 has much more spacey feel, and also lots of back and forth in underdeveloped worlds <-> scifi bases / spaceships ( Aquilla :'( )
Which makes you feel like you play 2 or more different genres/timelines. (Scifi, fantasy, medieval ect. which is the true nature of SO games tbh.)
Also people dont react to the present scifi elements and things they cant explain, they just go on like they've seen it all already... (Rena barely reacted to figuring where Claude is from), its a bit of an immersion killer, but hey, its a classic rpg, for that time it was released, this wasnt a thing xD

It’s a good point about Rena. I think it felt a bit deeper in the original when she finds out her parents are. Those scenes felt more beautiful than (flower bed scene etc) others areas of the game back then.. but trouble is it ‘all’ looks beautiful in this.

[Second Duke Revier]

I think Energy Nede looks fairly distinct from Expel. Especially since the art style clearly emphasizes the sci fi elements of the planet floating land slab.

[Powersword]

Originally posted by Second Duke of Aeria Revier:

I think Energy Nede looks fairly distinct from Expel. Especially since the art style clearly emphasizes the sci fi elements of the planet floating land slab.

Some seriously great 80s retro synth wave vibes from the map boundaries

[EX-Lorna]

They've put a ton of effort and content into 2.