When do things pick up?

[ande6842]

Does someone knows when the game is supposed to pick up? I'm 30 hours in and on Chapter 3, and yet I still feel like I'm just starting the game. Not much is really happening, and so I'm gradually losing my interest to keep going forward. Don't get me wrong, the writing and characterization are still brilliant, but the pacing's left something to be desired so far. At least FC introduced new places and characters on a regular basis, but SC doesn't have that luxury. I actually feel like I'm still playing FC to some extent and that SC hasn't even started yet, which I guess makes sense considering this was originally meant to be one game.

At this point, I'm just waiting for things to get going. To anyone who's finished the game or at least has gotten far enough along, when would you say things start to pick up?

[Mr. Manual]

The current pacing continues until Chapter 5, when the society awakens a motherloving DRAGON.

[GuppyForce]

Chapter 4 is significantly better than all the chapters before it, particularly the start and the end of it. And then Chapter 5 blows everything away (both in terms of emotions and awesomeness). After that Chapter 6 is where the main plot starts kicking in (similar to the end of Chapter 3 in FC). Keep in mind that this game goes up to chapter 9.

[Missilepom]

I'd say Chapter 3 is where things start to get interesting. Chapters 1 and 2 are generally considered the two weakest chapters in the game, similar to its FC counterparts

[Plerr]

I loved chapter three, personally. IMO it picks up there, slows down a bit again in 4 (though there are really interesting moments) and then from 5 onwards the plot goes full-speed.

[Meredius]

Well I don't feel too bad for being at 23hrs in and just starting chapter 3. :)

I think it was also a concern of mine too : usually in games you never revisit anything. Here... it's familiar yet different. There's something to be said about that and I do like re-meeting characters and the game actually reflecting events.

I was wondering how they could add new things in since we knew the landscape but I'm pleasantly surprised. I do agree that "moving on" to another region is really needed though and I'm curious how things will pick up steam from here on out.

I think I saw that chapters 3-4 were shorter so the pace should accelerate a bit.

I really liked the prologue too since it was !somewhere else". I hope this happens again.

[Cid]

end of Ch. 3 things get a little crazy

[ande6842]

Thanks all. From the sound of it, around the end of Chapter 3 is where things finally start to get going. (The key word being 'start'.) In that case, I guess I'll keep plowing through it for now. Again, thanks.