Super Robot Taisen

[sylvie]

Anyone on here into these???

There's like 70 installments in this series.

I bought a cheap SUPER ROBOT WARS J (gba) english cart from China, and it finally arrived yesterday. Really into it (played it very briefly years ago) but it seems like the most complex TRPG i've ever seen.

Pretty curious about a lot of stuff so if anyone here plays, post here....

 

[@M]

I think I tried a few of the GB ROMs maybe a decade ago, that's it. Didn't get into it.

 

[BlackaneseNiNjA]

Hell yes! I absolutely love this series. The Super Robot Wars “Z” series (ps2,psp,ps3) were some of my favorite entries. The Original Generation games and their remakes are a blast as well if you aren’t as familiar with the usual licensed mecha that appear in the series.

Despite the intimidating number of entries in the series, you can really jump right into any of the sub-series from a gameplay and even a story perspective since the sagas are usually self-contained/parallel universes anyway.

They can be really deep, but it is also possible to complete them without engaging with the more complex aspects of the combat systems/unit customization. Mastering the sub-mechanics of each entry usually just makes them a bit easier. They tend to be very long games and the sorties can be a bit long and difficult for players who are not used to playing strategy rpg’s in a more conservative play-style. For example, you can be extremely aggressive in the Disgaea games, but since enemies can counter-attack in these games, that same aggressive style will get you wiped out in SRW.

Super Robot Wars J was a fun entry (I believe that is the one where Tekkman Blade, Aki, and Pegas made their debut in the series).

 

[sylvie]

Awesome! I was hoping (and expecting) you, specifically, would be into this series.

I'm pretty interested in getting down and dirty with this one. I hated the Disgaea series but was really into Tactics Ogre (did you know I made the most popular Tactics Ogre forum on the net when I was about 14?? Go ahead, google it)

Anyway, I can't seem to find much helpful stuff besides GameFaqs for J. Since there's so many in the series it makes it hard to find guides for the mechanics on specific games.

So far I've found out that the 3 'favorite series' you pick at the beginning boost the respective units. Since i don't know jack about most of the series included, I picked the Banpresto Originals (seemed like a smart choice for a newbie) and the two series I'd never heard of: Tekkaman Blade and Blue Comet SPT. Hopefully this wasn't a retarded choice-- I figured it didn't matter that much

What do the terrain type letter initials stand for? Are they rated with 'A' being strong?

There's also some weird letter 'tabs' in green or yellow next to weapon/attack names on my units, I don't know what they mean

It doesn't seem like there's a way to farm for EXP or money. I'm wondering if this means that money is finite and if I should be very careful with unit upgrades? I assume I'll get some way stronger mecha later on, so I'm thinking maybe I shouldn't upgrade my initial units now, aside from the one I chose at the beginning.

How come sometimes I'm not given the ability to attack on a unit's turn, even though my EN bar is full?

Whew, thats it for now I think...

I'm used to playing TRPGs conservatively cuz all the games in the genre I like have pretty punishing counter attack implementations which has made me a bit of a snake against the CPU but not a master. I sweat bullets with these games !

 

[sylvie]

Also can we talk about how good the soundtrack is?

 

[BlackaneseNiNjA]

Awesome! I was hoping (and expecting) you, specifically, would be into this series.

I'm pretty interested in getting down and dirty with this one. I hated the Disgaea series but was really into Tactics Ogre (did you know I made the most popular Tactics Ogre forum on the net when I was about 14?? Go ahead, google it)

Anyway, I can't seem to find much helpful stuff besides GameFaqs for J. Since there's so many in the series it makes it hard to find guides for the mechanics on specific games.

So far I've found out that the 3 'favorite series' you pick at the beginning boost the respective units. Since i don't know jack about most of the series included, I picked the Banpresto Originals (seemed like a smart choice for a newbie) and the two series I'd never heard of: Tekkaman Blade and Blue Comet SPT. Hopefully this wasn't a retarded choice-- I figured it didn't matter that much

What do the terrain type letter initials stand for? Are they rated with 'A' being strong?

There's also some weird letter 'tabs' in green or yellow next to weapon/attack names on my units, I don't know what they mean

It doesn't seem like there's a way to farm for EXP or money. I'm wondering if this means that money is finite and if I should be very careful with unit upgrades? I assume I'll get some way stronger mecha later on, so I'm thinking maybe I shouldn't upgrade my initial units now, aside from the one I chose at the beginning.

How come sometimes I'm not given the ability to attack on a unit's turn, even though my EN bar is full?

Whew, thats it for now I think...

I'm used to playing TRPGs conservatively cuz all the games in the genre I like have pretty punishing counter attack implementations which has made me a bit of a snake against the CPU but not a master. I sweat bullets with these games !

That rocks! Imma see if I can find the site

Yeah the favorite series choice gives those units extra upgrade slots. The effect is kept on subsequent newgame+ playthroughs so you can always choose a different series on additional playthroughs while keeping the slots for the units you choose the first time around too.

Terrain has a major effect on unit performance in this series. The terrain rating acts as a damage multiplier and impacts their hit accuracy and evasion with S being the best, then A, B, and C as the lowest. In addition to the terrain rating, each unit has a preferred terrain type across Air, Land, Water, etc that also impacts unit performance.

In addition to units having their own unique abilities, there is also character affinities/relationships that can be leveraged for additional bonuses in battle. A blue indicator or heart means that the unit has a special relationship with that particular ally and will receive additional bonuses if they are placed next to each other.

In terms of unit movement, always keep in mind that some weapons can be used after moving, but some weapons/abilities effectively end that unit’s turn/restrict them from moving after the weapon is used. This also can work in reverse and some units are unable to attack again for that turn after they move but have no enemies in range of their current abilities.

Money and Exp is limited and taking risky opportunities to eliminate optional enemy units are ways to boost what is available in certain chapters. Stronger units will keep joining your team, so it’s a good idea to stay conservative with your upgrades in the beginning unless you are struggling on a particular chapter.

Lastly, yeeees the music in this series kicks all kinds of ass and is audio fan service of the highest order for sure lol The attack animations also become quite impressive in newer SRW entries and I never grow tired of seeing them play out in this series lol

 

[sylvie]

In terms of unit movement, always keep in mind that some weapons can be used after moving, but some weapons/abilities effectively end that unit’s turn/restrict them from moving after the weapon is used. This also can work in reverse and some units are unable to attack again for that turn after they move but have no enemies in range of their current abilities.

Is there a way to like, know what dictates this? Like is there a stat or a counter of some kind that I can refer to in order to prevent from fucking myself?

 

[SignOfGoob]

I’ve been a fan of this series since nearly the beginning. I started with EX on SFC and then worked my way back to the GB original and then forward. I stopped playing when the series moved to Switch. I have a Switch...I just never bought the Switch games for some reason.

As a long time fan I can assure you that you don’t need to play anything before Alpha on PS1. For sure SRWJ is one of the best in the series. I’m sorry you’re playing it in English though because now you’re going to get bored with the mountain of inane dialogue in the game which, IMHO, is usually so voluminous and dumb that it can only reduce the enjoyment factor.

It’s an extremely easy series to play, slightly harder than Sakura Wars you’ll have a good time with it. I’m not sure which game in the series is my favorite, either J or something on PSP/Vita. Something with Mazinger 2009 in it probably. The only “bad” stuff are the Original Generation games, which have no licensed characters in them and seem to have even more of the stupid stupid dialogue (think: Namco’s Tales series).

 

[SignOfGoob]

Is there a way to like, know what dictates this? Like is there a stat or a counter of some kind that I can refer to in order to prevent from fucking myself?

Put more simply, many units have a range weapon that can’t be fired if you move first. You’ll eventually figure out which attacks these are, they are usually massive looking things like the Zeta’s Hyper Mega Launcher, Macross main gun, etc. The game shows you if you can attack or not before you finalize your move so this shouldn’t be a problem.

 

[BlackaneseNiNjA]

Whats up SignOfZeta, it’s awesome to meet some fellow SRW fans The series is a mecha-fan’s dream and I’ve always felt you can’t really go wrong with any entry from a gameplay perspective. I’ve been playing the series since the old gameboy titles and I always enjoy when the series adds more flair, but the core systems have always been solid imho.

The stories are actually usually really well done and feature tons of fan references, in-jokes, and fanservice in each crossover chapter (especially for rival mecha-series, etc). The scripts always felt like a lot of thought and consideration went into keeping each character personality accurate and to ensure that each series was properly represented overall.

Is there a way to like, know what dictates this? Like is there a stat or a counter of some kind that I can refer to in order to prevent from fucking myself?

Yo whats up Sylvie, how’s your SRW playthrough coming along so far?

In the SRW games melee-type attacks generally permit you to move after attacking, while ranged attacks usually halt movement.

Equipped unit weapons that permit movement after use are usually marked with a “P”.

 

[SignOfGoob]

Yeah, the fan service is the problem. It doesn’t flow like a show, it flows like Tolstoy-length doujin. There is WAY too much to read. Way too much. It’s completely insane. I used to sort of pay attention in the PS1 days but it’s like reading a bible now. I do appreciate the technical tidbits and such or jokes about how silly some of the attacks are.

I think I need to play one of these again soon...maybe I’ll get that Switch one. I honestly checked out completely when Bandai left the Vita. That was a long long ride.