Official PoPoLoCrois thread

[1CCOSA]

::uses Phoenix Down on thread::

Just started this. Since I evidenty don't finish games anymore, it probably won't be long before I stop. For now though, it's rad and cute. And I like it.

Still haven't gotten around to buying this so I look forward to your impressions.

[Compass]

Whoa! There's some super-cute stuff going on in this game! All over the place. Like the little radish guy, how he bobs and looks like he's smiling. Or the brown mouse. I can tell I'm gonna get some hefty cuteness helpings out of this one. I need it too since I don't think I've had a proper fix since Disgeaa.

I really love this art style, and don't think it looks out of place on the PSP at all. The game's world is the very definition of charming, and everything has that clean hand-drawn look. The only problem with the graphics is a weird shimmering effect that's very noticeable sometimes while running. The music kinda sucks too so far. Load times/frequency can be a bit of a pain. None of these are deal breakers though. I can see the random battles getting tiresome, as they always seem to do, but that comes with the genre. Overall, this is pure old-school RPG gold. If that's your thing, get off the fence.

I doubt if blueskied will see this, but I'm curious what alterations were made in the trip from PS1 to PSP (minus spoilers if that's even possible). Although, I should probably quell my curiosity 'cause then I'll start missing whatever was changed/removed; currently, in my ignorance, I'm quite pleased.

[g0zen]

::uses Phoenix Down on thread::

*Miss!*

[Ashen Victor]

Whoa! There's some super-cute stuff going on in this game! All over the place. Like the little radish guy, how he bobs and looks like he's smiling. Or the brown mouse. I can tell I'm gonna get some hefty cuteness helpings out of this one. I need it too since I don't think I've had a proper fix since Disgeaa.

PoPoLo has a lot of charm and personality to it. it seems like no matter where you go, nearly everything is animated in some small way and that's some good detail right there. of course, with all that's going on on screen, it tends to lead to slowdown. it pops in and out every so often.

I doubt if blueskied will see this, but I'm curious what alterations were made in the trip from PS1 to PSP (minus spoilers if that's even possible). Although, I should probably quell my curiosity 'cause then I'll start missing whatever was changed/removed; currently, in my ignorance, I'm quite pleased.

i was wondering the same thing, too (having played through the PSP version). there aren't any faqs detailing any of this, but from what's available for the PSone at GameFAQs and then going through the PSP version yourself, i think most of it has to deal with things/characters/quests towards the end of the game. and also, some of the story in the PSone version was switched around and reedited to make the PSP story flow better. then there're some spells that seemed to have been removed, and etc., etc.

and the loading really does get annoying. it can go from very quick to kinda long for whatever reason. oh, and i think during the last scenario or so in the game, there's a bug that blacks out the map. it's not a crippling thing or whatever, it's just "wtf?" other than that, it's probably my favorite game on the PSP right now. even with whatever problems it has the story, personality and charm really outweigh all of that. and those cutscenes are fucking fantastic! there are two in particular later, later on that almost had me shedding a tear or two. really great game. ~ love Narcia ~

[Compass]

Yes, Narcia is the cutest.

i was wondering the same thing, too (having played through the PSP version). there aren't any faqs detailing any of this, but from what's available for the PSone at GameFAQs and then going through the PSP version yourself, i think most of it has to deal with things/characters/quests towards the end of the game. and also, some of the story in the PSone version was switched around and reedited to make the PSP story flow better. then there're some spells that seemed to have been removed, and etc., etc.

Well, here's a post from gamefaqs' resident PoPo fanboy, Wyrdwad, which should shed some light on the differences between the PS1/PSP versions:

The PSP PopoloCrois game is based on TWO Japanese PS1 games (1996's "PopoloCrois Monogatari", and 2000's "PopoloCrois Monogatari II"). The Ice Demon Chapter is based on the 1996 game, and the Goddess Maira Chapter (and small parts of the Dark King Chapter) based on the 2000 one, with the rest of the Dark King Chapter consisting of brand new material.

The problem is, the PSP version is UTTER CRAP compared to the original PS1 games, as well over 50% of the 1996 game was cut (for comparison's sake, the original 1996 PS1 game lasted well over 30 hours, whereas the ENTIRE PSP GAME doesn't even typically last that long!), and quite a bit of the 2000 game was as well... and they were major, MAJOR cuts, too, oftentimes eliminating a LOT of story and character development (the Ice Demon Chapter is easily the most boring of the three, now, but it was absolutely FANTASTIC in the original PS1 game!), and quite a few whole dungeons, some of which were among my favorites in the original games.

In addition, the graphics were kinda mauled for the PSP port, with the sprites showing a much smaller level of detail than in their PS1 forefathers, and having those weird blurring and pixelization problems... and the music was stripped down considerably, with a lot of the better songs from the game's soundtrack changed or eliminated.

On the plus side, though, the battle system was altered, and is actually a wee bit BETTER than in the PS1 games, IMHO... and the anime FMVs were entirely recreated from scratch for the PSP game, and look absolutely remarkable now (although there IS content missing, even from some of the FMVs, unfortunately).

But overall, if you've ever played the PS1 games, there's really NO REASON AT ALL to even BOTHER with the PSP game... I still have yet to finish the PSP version, despite being a die-hard PopoloCrois fanboy (I'm translating the PopoloCrois anime, for goodness sakes!), mostly because my heart aches every time I encounter a scene I loved that's no longer in the game, or has been completely twisted beyond all recognition into some monstrosity (the ending to the Ice Demon Chapter comes to mind, which is SO VERY, VERY AWFUL compared to the 1996 game's ending!).

If you don't speak Japanese, though, and have never played the PS1 games... then the PSP one IS recommended, as it DOES capture SOME of the magic of the originals. But it's little more than a shadow of what you'd get out of the PS1 titles...

-Tom

[Ashen Victor]

yea, i read that (or at least tried to if it wasn't for him being such a fucking baby) a while back when i was nearing the very end of the game. he should really consider ending his life if it was butchered so badly compared to the originals. even with all the cuts and edits and this and that, the game is still really good. that guy just needs to get over it.

[Compass]

If games had cheeks, I would squeeze this one's.

[Andrew]

Bought this years ago and just got around to playing it today. Very cute and very old school. Random encounter rate is ridiculous, but I think I'm going to have a good time.

[Shine]

It's pretty okay until around the second game, after the bridge story, though the bridge isn't so hot either, it gets pretty stale from that point on.

[Compass]

Stop lying. It's great all the way through. Only the piss-poor localization holds it back.

I wrote this while in the throes of passion some time back:

I used to think Suikoden II was the be-all end-all of adorably animated sprites acting out all manner of story scenes in the cutest way possible, but hot *damn*, I do believe I’ve found a new #1.


***—SOME PoPo MID-GAME SPOILERAGE AHEAD—***
I just finished the part where you storm the Steel Devil’s castle to rescue the kidnapped children. Jilva, princess of Roma, is being held hostage, and forced to wear a familiar pink outfit. After we fight off the robots guarding Jilva, there follows a painstakingly sprite-animated scene where she meets us, and instantly falls in love with Pietro. They animated all these different expressions on Jilva’s little face — mischievousness, sparkling eyes, heart-filled eyes, disdain when she finally notices Kai (female competition!). Then there’s little details like how she holds up and looks down at her skirt when she’s explaining why she’s dressed like Narcia. Then, finally, she pulls the clothes up over her head, and casts them aside (to reveal her normal outfit underneath).


I was playing this part at work and had to struggle not to laugh too much out of pure delight. Absolutely ADORABLE stuff the likes of which I don’t believe I’ve ever seen. I love this game’s graphic style and penchant for over-animating the smallest things so much, it’s painful. The willingness to add detail and nuance to even the most insignificant of characters is remarkable. Like that ONE cat in the pantry in PoPoLoCrois whose fur is bristling as it snarls at something off-screen. There are seriously hundreds of similar examples, and I could grow old listing them all. Sometimes I’ll just move back and forth to take in Kai’s running animation.

Apologies if I already posted it elsewhere on here. Anyway, I loved this game. I even toyed with the idea of improving the script or creating videos of all the story scenes. There are SO MANY wonderful little sprite animations you only ever see once. My memory's hazy as usual, but there's a part at the very end where Narcia runs through a doorway and glances sideways at an important dead guy on her left. She doesn't stop running, but I think slows a little as she makes the unexpected discovery. Completely unnecessary, possible to miss in a blink. TOTALLY AMAZING.