Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (121)

My, Celine, how smart and acute you are today! I really hope this is some sort of translation mistake: the first time we saw her was right inside the castle!

Since it's not really out of their way, our heroes stop by Cross to say hi... ahem, to report to the king; what they've seen and done so far would certainly make an entertaining story for the royal family, except it's not quite the right time to relax. We shall keep it brief and leave right away tomorrow morning, is it OK with everyone?

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (120)

I think this one doesn't need any comments.

I'm a bit of a conservativist when it comes to usable items in RPGs: often times I end up with tons of unused healing items in my inventory at the final sequence of the game. Of course this only applies to RPGs with an unlimited (or very large) storage for said items. In Star Ocean 2, which does have an unlimited inventory, it's more or less the same thing, but it's not because I'm saving healing items: there being a limit of 20 items per type, and needing them quite often, my inventory instead fills up with a huge variety of more or less useful knick-knacks. The one you see above is an example of an item which, by simply having it with you, boosts your success rate with certain item Creation skills, without disappearing after you use the skill (unlike the required materials).

Basically every single specialty has its own "helper" item (often more than one), and typically you can obtain them through the Machinery skill; one bad thing about it is that you'll often end up creating more than one helper item of the same type (they don't have a cumulative effect), but one good thing is that you can usually sell the spare ones for big bucks. Helper items, however, are just one kind of item that can clutter your inventory. Maybe I'll talk about some others later.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (119)

I finally had to do some research in order to understand what Precis meant by this; a name like Pooh Bah initially suggested me some weird character cited in pop culture, so imagine my surprise when I found out that he's actually a character of an opera play. I didn't know Precis was so well educated in the arts of planet Earth.

Our group needs to get through Salva once again to continue with their journey (this is the last time, I promise!), but no sidetrips are made, therefore there's no necessity of comments on my part.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (118)

At this point I can't help but wonder who's dumber: Claude for not realizing Precis is after him, or Precis for making a really terrible job at hiding it?

Claude and Rena are back in Arlia: they want to give their final goodbye to their loved ones before going to the front. Westa and mayor Regis can't help but show their marvel at what our heroes have become, but feel some regret at letting them go towards such dangers nevertheless (actually, I'm kidding, none of that happened). Meanwhile, Opera and Ernest are giving a final look at the crashed spaceship, in case Opera forgot to take some of her things; Celine is taking her time to relax a bit in this quiet and peaceful village, but is still thinking about their mission and asks herself whether she should push Claude a bit to end this side trip quickly.

Lastly, Precis is gathering some more intel about Rena, since she seems a bit too close to Claude for her tastes (this despite the player's desperate attempts at keeping her at a safe distance - you know, blue hair and all...). As Claude, you eavesdrop their conversation/argument, and have a choice to answer the question that Precis keeps asking an ignorance-feigning Rena, that is whether he has a girlfriend. The choices are either one of the two girls (wishful thinking) or none at all, and you can guess the outcomes pretty easily.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (117)

I honestly don't know what I was thinking when taking this screenshot...

Salva's famed jewelry doesn't even compare to the No. 1 specialty in town: Freckled Girl Yuki's Jam! It's so special that you can't even normally buy all the flavours she has, you have to activate this Private Action with Precis in order to discover some hidden ones. But you don't want to try what Precis got, that's for sure; how do you make jam with habanero pepper anyway?

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Ok, since you wouldn't believe me regarding Opera, there she is! Right inside Alen Tax's mansion, and I bet she isn't looking for water!

Nothing to add this time: Salva would be a quiet little town if it weren't for all the refugees from Click, monsters in the mine (how people manage to live in a mining town when there are monsters in there, I have no idea), and the mayor's son who is free from his father and can do whaterver he pleases (I still think that magical stone was just a trick to get away with it).

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See, he cares about her a lot! That's why he's walking around the town entrance while Opera is feverishly looking for something to dring inside one of the houses (I'm not kidding this time, she does just that).

All the way back to Salva, our heroes are thinking about getting to Arlia and then visit all the towns in Cross from there, except Click (I'm not sure you can get to the hill near the submerged town, but I'm not going to check, it's too far away). Alen Tax seems to be doing fine, by the way, and the frat party they were holding is still unattended, but for the rest, everything is OK: monsters still haunt the mine, and Freckled Girl Yuki still hasn't become a famous singer.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (114)

Has it changed while we were away? I don't think so. And if Opera meant that somebody told her that this wasn't a forklift, then I haven't the slightest idea of who told her that, nor when.

Nobody's spying on our group anymore, so they can delay their journey to the eastern front a bit and take their time to get back to Cross. I know I said I wouldn't have come back, but guess what, I've changed my mind, and I'm glad I did before it was too late. I've already messed up big time by recruiting Ernest (not that Noel would have been much better).

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Protecting you from what? Leon's mother didn't seem to be in any kind of danger, neither did she and her husband seem to have provoked the king's wrath or anything.

Ok, so, being the noble heroes that they are, Claude & friends decide to help the soldiers of Lacour in fending off the monsters' invasion. Before that, though, Claude thinks it's wise to check that everything's alright: we start off with Leon, who seems busy working on the Lacour Hope with his parents (their collective hair colour makes the lab look a lot more lively). Next, we shall journey back to the towns we've already visited in Cross and Lacour, to make sure the people we know and love are fine. If you still don't get it, we're approaching a so-called "point of no return": I think I've already mentioned it, but even explorative games like most RPGs have turning points in the story that make travelling to some previously visites places impossible. In this case it will still be possible for us to "get back" here, but it's an extra. On we go, in search of any treasure or Private Action we may have missed on Expel!

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (112)

Claude is unusually sharp here: this is arguably one his best displays of acumen though, so don't expect much better later on. There's something off in this scene, as well, but it's just a feeling I have, I can't put my finger on it. Maybe it's those two soldiers, or perhaps it's the blue carpet.

King Lacour had apparently ordered his spies to find out more about our heroes; presumably he couldn't get any intel on Claude being the Warrior of Light (that, or he doesn't believe that legend), but all he got was good things about them. So we're free to go!... not! Since Claude and his firends have been a great help already, why don't we offer them absolutely nothing as a reward and instead ask them for something more? How about asking the runner up of the Tournament of Arms to help the soldiers at the El front? How about sending four girls and a three-eyed Indiana Jones wannabe with them as well?

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (111)

...Now you know why I hate the king of Lacour. Actually, taken out of context, this sentence sounds harsher than it is, but surely it's no way to start a conversation where you actually want to ask for help.

Leon shows the king that their mission has been successful, his mother and father next to him: the kid thought he'd get some praise from his parents, but all he gets is an 'Act properly in front of His Majesty, Leon'. As a consolation, his father asks the king for Leon to come with them to the lab to work on the Lacour Hope. Meanwhile, Claude is still wondering about their situation, but is hopeful that the king will grant them his permission to leave and reach the continent of El. His hopes seem to fall rather sharply after the king's last comment (see screenshot), but let's just wait and listen closely, it might not be as it seems.

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Claude: No problem for me, I've already looted all the treasure chests in the whole castle.
By the way, are those two on the left soldiers? They look so weird close-up.

From Hilton to Lacour it's just a short walk, but you cannot ignore all those dangerous monsters roaming the plains. The castle town is still deserted, but the enemy hasn't reached it yet; that's no reason to take it easy though, as there's a lot of work yet to be done, and Leon knows it. On the other hand, Claude and the others are looking forward to the reward the king of Lacour might offer them for their help, or at least some congratulations and his trust.

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I don't understand the point of this sentence: it's the first time Leon ever says that to that soldier, and as a matter of fact he didn't do this alone. Lastly, if it weren't for the ship here, would he have resorted to swimming there?

One more party character and one more sea trip after, the group is back in Hilton. Now that I have watched this screen for an unreasonable number of times, I'm a bit bugged by the bridge that leads to town: what lies beyond that bridge? There has to be at least another small part of the town that we cannot visit. Why can't I see it? Why?! Whyyyyyy?! Now I'm seriously pissed! But, nevertheless, I already know I'll be coming back again to this small place, no matter how many bad things I find in it.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (108)

This is the only thing about Ernest that I find sincerely awesome: he swings his whip through a sort of dimensional gate to hit the enemy from a distance. If you ignore the fact that this ability isn't that useful and practical in battle, the mere concept of having a portable wormhole at your disposal thrills me.

This is the screen where you set your character's Killer Moves, one for each dorsal trigger of your joypad. Like spells, Killer Moves improve as your characters' proficiency with them increases. You may also notice an 'LC' in the upper left box: it stands for Link Combo, the ability to chain Killer Moves in a single attack. This ability is available to characters equipping a specific accessory and by 'stealing' Killer Move abilities from another character in the battle party (even from spellcasters, for whom there's no side effect); this ability allows to chain two Killer moves together, and up to three once you obtain a key item later in the game. However, making effective use of this ability is very hard, as chaining random Killer Moves might not have any benefits, and your MPs might drain faster in the end. Bottom line: I never use it, since I don't feel losing an accessory slot (you have 2 per character) just to enable it.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (107)

Opera isn't as dumb as she looks, she knows that, having found Ernest, Claude has definitely lost any chance on her; therefore his proposal of having her travel along with them puzzles her, and she replies with this apparently ingenuous question. Little does Opera suspect, however, that Claude has already a plan D (hint: it's strongly related to Ernest's utmost love for adventure and mysteries).

Ernest Raviede (I don't really know how to pronounce his last name) is the second Tetragene I get in my party. and the first and last undesired character as well. He always carries a whip with him to keep Opera at a safe distance when adventuring; it's not that he's rude, he's just concerned about her safety. Saying that he's the least useful character in battle is an understatements: if you kill him you don't even get any experience. I won't waste any more bits in trying to describe him, as it's not worth it, I'll just add that his and Opera's decision to tag along Claude and the others wasn't exactly a great idea.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (106)

Imagining this scene with Opera saying this out loud made me smile: that question mark alone (which I figure was left there by mistake) makes the difference. Imagine that Claude is asking Opera what she's going to do now that she's found Ernest, possibly with a somewhat worried expression on his face, revealing that he doesn't want her to leave; then imagine Opera replying with this line.

We left Opera confronting a man who looks like Ernest, but apparently isn't: he says he wants the Energy Stone, and steps forward to get it from Leon, but Opera points her cannon at him. Evidently she knows this guy's dangerous. But 'Ernest' doesn't stop, and Opera, scared to her wits, fires a shot, blowing him away (boy, I should have taken a screenshot of that part, it was hilarious); however, she feels still unsure about her feelings, and realizes she might have made a mistake in shooting him. Therefore, Opera rushes to 'Ernest' to check if he's alright, but falls into his trap: he seizes her (probably with his whip) and threatens the others to harm her if they don't give him the stone.

But our heroes react very quickly and engage him in a battle (a very easy one), which reveals him to be a sort of spirit who possessed the real Ernest. The battle ends with the spirit vanished and Ernest badly hurt, but fortunately we've got our personal healing machine to aid him. A single spellcast from our kind Rena and Ernest is back up on his feet. He doesn't elaborate much about his situation, other than saying he was exploring the Hoffmann Ruins. We are also spared any heartfelt-reunion scene between Opera and her love, mainly because she knows him to be a very unromantic fellow ('Ernest wouldn't woo a woman like that' she said to the possessed Ernest earlier).

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Ooh, finally everyone's realized that Leon has animal ears! ...Not really, but it would have made a lot more sense if it were that way.

At last Opera has found his love, Ernest! Or at least it seems so, but Opera herself doesn't seem to be convinced of that; I would feel the same in front of a man wearing weird-looking pajamas and holding a whip... But I digress, despite Ernest recognizing Opera ans saying he loves her, the situation feels pretty tense; or, actually, the level of bad acting for this 'Ernest' is off the scale, even if you had never seen him before, you could tell he's an impersonator. At one point, though, he mentions that 'that kid' has the Energy Stone and asks Opera to give it to him; then suddenly everybody in the party turns to Leon. This makes no sense (no news here I guess): why would the group act this way, and why would Leon reply like this? They should have stared at 'Ernest' instead, since he could see through Leon's coat to spot the stone he had in his pocket.

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This is the beginning of a rather bad scene, in both direction and translation; what you can see here is just a taste. I don't feel like commenting it right now, just know that the guy saying 'folloed' is apparently Ernest, the three eyed person the group saw in Cross near the start of the adventure, and also Opera's love.

Finally out of that infernal mine! Can't say our heroes have come out of this adventure really well: Leon is still shivering from fear, Celine and Precis are exhausted, Opera is in sore need of a drink, and Claude is starting to think about his planet again. At least they got the stone they wanted, and now they're just a short walk away from the ship; still, the thought of monsters invading the continent prevents their minds from relaxing. And now what?! Who's this guy just outside the ruins?

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (103)

And that's what happens when you get a little careless in this game. Remember: walk softly and carry a big Resurrection Bottle. I find it funny though that Celine's sprite overlaps the side menu while Precis's doesn't, but that might be the emulator's fault.

Explosions and cave-ins cannot stop the Hero of Light, but persistent monsters sure can! Despite the relentless casting of healing spells by our indispensible companion Rena, there are times when her powers aren't enough. The result: two party members down. They're not really dead though: although you can bring them back to health with items such as Resurrection Bottles or a spell called Raise Dead, they're just unable to fight (or else you wouldn't be able to explain why they're fine and dandy during cutscenes).

Oh, look at the time! I've been playing for more than 9 hours already! My, how time flies... Well, playing it about an hour a week sure makes it seem longer than it is. I admit that playing JRPGs this way gives an entirely different feeling; I used to play 2-3 hours a day back then, if not more.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (102)

Claude: Now wait a second... What did that soldier say back in Hilton about booby traps? Hmmm... Probably nothing interesting, and certainly not something in any way related to this conspicuously placed lever near these gunpowder-smelling barrels. What was I doing? Ah, yes, let's pull the lever here.
Claude: Motherrrrr!

The group is still in the mine beneath the Hoffmann Ruins: they probably took a wrong turn on the way back and got lost. As you can see, looking for the exit they come across several dead ends, including the one above. Among all the explosive 'traps' you can find down here, I think just one or two conceal actual secret rooms with treasure, so my rule is just to avoid them altogether. You can however try and set them all off, at the cost of a big chunk of HPs for all your characters (but nothing a 'Cure All' spell couldn't heal), to discover the right one/s. The non hidden treasure is good enough though, so I always scout around the whole place, despite the many dangerous monsters.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (101)

And I thought the previous wall painting was very suggestive of christian art! Other than that, though, looking at this screenshot made me notice the lamplight on the left and made me think: if this place is abandoned and there's noone else but Claude, Leon and the others (and it's reasonable to assume nobody else's been here since the last expedition), how is it possible that the lights are still on? Some other kind of Heraldry power? Too convenient...

Zooming through the mine back to the entrance of the Hoffmann Ruins, our heroes can't help but get mesmerized by the beautiful pieces of art this mysterious civilization left them, as if they wanted to make the older generations wonder why in Expel would they have made such a painting down here. Claude would have been ready to show off his knowledge by stating that it could have been two civilizations from different time periods who made the surface ruins and the cave paintings, or that the latter ones could have been made by heretics hiding underground; the problem is that he's exhausted by the battle agains those two guys at the mineral site, and he's trying so hard to avoid random encounters that he's started praying to that painting not to have anymore.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (100)

Bad timing on my part, but here Claude was supposed to hand the Energy Stone over to Leon: I wouldn't give such an important stone to those HANDS, especially after what's happened (if you know what I mean). Oh, I almost forgot: since we have this huge common inventory for the party's items, why bother giving it to him, just drop it in there and we're done.

After that supposedly funny scene with Leon, Claude tells him to hold onto the stone, saying something like this: "You found it, hold on to it". I couldn't guess whether Claude meant it to be a joke on the claim that Leon made about finding the stone by himself, or he was just trying to be kind and ignore Leon's attitude. Either way, I realize I've dwelled on this scene for too long, so I'll quickly move out of the way.

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Oh, yeah let's just let Claude collect the piece of mineral we need, I'm sure he knows exactly the quantity and quality we need; it doesn't take a scientist to do that after all.

While Leon is still adjusting his shorts, Claude goes ahead and collects a chunk of the mineral, instantly nicknaming it Energy Stone. Meanwhile, Rena notices that her pendant isn't glowing anymore, therefore they deduce it wasn't a reaction from the mineral; could it have been a reaction to the two monsters they beat earlier? Don't worry, we don't have an answer to this (I actually didn't bother doing some research on Star Ocean fansites, there may well be additional material that explains the game in detail).