Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (346)

Ernest Raviede, 35 years old adventurer and archaeologist from Tetragenes; recklessly exploring ancient ruins all over the universe in his quest for historical knowledge.

Ernest is a minor character with hardly any moment in the spotlight; he's also hard to use effectively in combat, making him a severely disappointing prize for the stuff you need to go through for recruiting him.

We don't know the exact reason why Ernest landed on Expel, but his archaeological interests surely played some part in it: the first time our friends meet him, he'd just come out of Cross Castle from an audience with the king, in which he requested his permission to explore the ruins by the Col lake. The party explored the ruins later on while following Opera, who was in turn searching for her beloved Ernest after Claude had told her where they had met him; of course Ernest had already left the place, but there were clear signs of him having been there (like a blown-up wall and marks of an illegal rifle on two large monsters). Apparently he went for the Hoffman ruins after that, but in neither case did he take any of the treasure.

Opera fell in love with Ernest, probably for his adventurous, Indiana Jones-like charm and stuff, but he doesn't seem to care much; he does care for her safety though, but that may be mainly because of the difference in age (and/or the fact that she's a woman and that she tends to follow him anywhere, even in dangerous situations). Always calm and composed, Ernest prefers to work alone, and he doesn't seem to have any interest beyond his job. His whip always at his side, he wears a white coat (looks more like a labcoat than a trench coat) and ordinary exploration clothes in the artwork: his game sprite looks a lot different, as he looks like he's wearing a night-gown or something.

This concludes the Star Ocean 2 series. There won't be any more posts about Funny Bits for a while.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (345)

Leon Geeste, 12 years old prodigy in science and Heraldry; he's apparently a Felpool, the only one on Expel, but nobody seems to notice.

Showing signs of his own genius mind at a very young age, Leon is introduced by his parents, both scientists, to the world of scientific research. Supported by the King of Lacour, he's given everything he needs to put his talent into practice, but something doesn't feel right in all that: after all, Leon is but a child still, and having to do research work at such a young age, with all those royal formalities and absolute lack of kids his age to play or at the very least talk with, he had to skip his childhood entirely, with the added result of becoming an arrogant brat. Moreover, we find out that the king has him work in the military department to build a weapon of devastating power; but noone, not even Claude and his friends seem to find anything wrong with a kid helping build such a weapon, so let's just ignore that.

Meeting with Claude and going with him on a mission, Leon finally realizes his limits, and also experiences having some friends for the first time, with whom he can talk normally. He comes back changed from the trip to the Hoffman ruins, but that's not all fate has in store for the little Felpool: having to take part in the mission to invade the continent of El, the demons' preemtive strike takes them by surprise and everyone on the warship falls overboard. Leon is found by Claude on the shore of El, and they soon reunite with Rena and the other adventurers, but there's no trace of Leon's parents; the kid was about to give in to desperation, but Claude helped him regain his senses. At this point, Claude thinks it's best for Leon to tag along, and he gets involved in all the events that follow. At least he didn't have to blow up along with Expel, unlike a certain swordsman.

Under his labcoat - which drags on the ground because it's too long for him - he's dressed like any other kid his age (I think... It's hard to make some details out on the game sprites); the artwork depicts him with a parchment in his pocket, which I'd wager is just some paperwork from the castle. We don't get to see his tail here either: maybe he gets away with being a Felpool because everyone thinks those ears are fake and his parents made him hide the tail (or had it surgically removed, Sayajin-style). Leon specializes in Heraldry of the element of Water and dark arts, and it's particularly impressive (or chuckle-worthy) to see him invoke the Word of Death upon his foes (too bad it rarely even works).

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (344)

Opera Vectra (no reference to the car model), 20 years old, daughter of a rich and noble Tetragenes family; we don't know much about her current occupation, but her hobby is gambling.

Departed from her planet to chase after her love interest, Ernest, Opera crash-landed on Expel: she wasn't concerned about the prospect of not being able to get back as much as finding the elusive explorer. Claude and the others meet her by accident in a tavern, where she's trying to buy information with drinking contests, and after telling her what they know about Ernest, our heroes decide to go after her - Claude in particular, since he understands she's an alien on Expel and might have some means of space travelling. To the disappointment of our Earthling, Opera's ship is broken beyond repair, but Ernest should have one, so they stick together in hopes of finding him during their travels.

Opera finds Ernest right outside the Hoffman ruins, possessed by some evil spirit, and after a short scene which reveals something more about the two Tetragenes' personality and relationship, Ernest is saved (by a blast of Opera's cannon, no less) and the two are back together. Being the adventurous type he is, though, Ernest can't resist the chance of going to investigate the Sorcery Globe with the group, and Opera tags along, also to show her friends gratitude for having helped her so far.

Opera's outfit is certainly unfit for exploration (I could say the same for most of the party, to be fair), but she makes up for it with Kaleidoscope, a high precision multi-ammo rifle, which can shoot different kinds of rays depending on the disk she puts into it. The aiming goggles (yeah, the bunny ears you see in her game sprite) allow her to mark her target in any light condition and with the utmost precision, so it's very rare that she misses a shot; but it's also rare that she actually shoots, for she loves to use the rifle as a blunt weapon for some reason. Her being blonde doesn't mean she's an airhead, although she seems to like pretending to be one, possibly using this to her advantage.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (343)

Precis F. Neumann, age 16, lives in the eccentric town of Linga with her father. She loves tinkering with machines in a world where hardly any of them exists.

Always cheerful and energetic, Precis decides on a whim to follow Claude and the others in their quest; whether she does this for her instantly developed crush on our male protagonist, because of her technical interest in the Sorcery Globe, or because she saw this event as a good excuse to leave town and go on an adventure is anybody's guess, but I'd say it's a combination of all of them. She doesn't really take an active part in the main story of the game, but she makes sure you won't be able to ignore her, what with her loud dialogues and wealth of Private Actions.

Even though few people could think it possible, Precis dresses even more weirdly than Rena and Celine combined: what stands out the most is her robotic equipment, with a half exoskeleton filled to the brim with accessories (including, but not limited to a huge hammer), clown shoes or something (presumably with shock absorbers), and a Sony Dual Shock controller to control all her electronic stuff. She wears some kind of work suit, and you can see her tights ripped on her knee, a sign of her clumsyness. You can't see it in the artwork, but she also carries Bobot, everyone's favourite radio-controlled car - as Claude loved to refer to it - with her anywhere she goes; or, rather, she's busy chasing after it most of the time, which suggests us it's either seriously broken or it's got a will of its own. Her game sprite widely differs from this drawing: the colours are all different and, instead of the exoskeleton, she carries a backpack.

Precis's interest in Claude probably generates, aside from physical attraction, from the fact that he showed some curiosity towards the neat stuff she works on, instead of staying away from her and from her machines like everyone on Expel does. Of course, for an Earthling machines like that are nothing special, and for Claude (who's decently knowledgeable in science subjects) it's normal to see someone working on them; however, a machine geek is still a geek, and Precis geekery, coupled with her hyperactivity, makes sure her love for Claude is one-sided (at least by default, since the player can change that).

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (342)

Celine Jules, 23 years old, adventurous explorer and Heraldic mage in training - one of the most outrageously dressed at that.

Her mantle and circlet floating in the air, kept up only by her incredible Heraldic power, are a testimony of Celine's skill with the arcane arts of magic; in this portrait you can spot the tattoo used in Heraldry to draw upon one's magic, right below her... I mean between her... It's too embarrassing to say aloud, but you can certainly see it for yourself.

Seemingly attracted by hidden treasures in abandoned ruins or ancient caves, Celine spots Claude and Rena in Cross: one way or another, they end up exploring Cross Cave together, and after some insistence by Claude, she decides to accompany them in their epic quest to investigate the Sorcery Globe. Very formal in her speech, proud and self-confident, Celine has some moments in the spotlight during the Mars crisis, but then she fades from the scene, only having a support role in the Tournament of Arms in Lacour and little more.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (341)

Rena Lanford, last survivor of the ancient Nedian race, healer and time traveller. You can't get any better than that.

This lass has endured a sad fate. What will the eternal passing of time expect of her? After being beamed from her home planet to Expel several billion solar years into the future, Rena is adopted by a local family and raised there while being hidden her true origins (well, the fact that she was found somewhere in a forest at least). Lost her adoptive father, she learns the truth and starts thinking about her real parents and the reason why she had been abandoned. The occurrance of several 'natural' disasters all over the land, and Rena's fateful encounter with the legendary Warrior of Light who's said to bring everything back to normal is her best opportunity to start a journey to find out more about her past.

Rena has to come to terms with several things in her life, the loss of her father first and foremost, so she develops a strong character (not to mention her physical strength, but that is barely touched upon, as it's noted in a single Private Action); her mysterious healing powers, while being a source of 'diversity' in relation to other people on Expel, actually give her means to help people in need, making her more accepting of them, if not more altruistic. But fate keeps throwing hardships at them, starting from the deep disappointment she feels when Claude states he's not the Warrior of Light she had thought him to be. The revelation of the existance of outer space and aliens, and of her being one of them - from an ancient past, no less - only make it harder for our little Nedian... I'm sorry, but writing it like this makes it sound even more ridiculous tha it already is; enough with her past.

At the beginning of our story, Rena is thought to be an ordinary Expellian living in a small village and dreaming about the Warrior of Light. Her outfit is, for some reason, quite out of the ordinary, at least as elaborate as the best Heraldry masters in Mars. In the artwork depicted above, you san see her carrying a dagger, which is never seen nor mentioned anywhere else in the game. Other than that, she wears a red mantle, which she uses to defend herself, and a crescent hairpin, which she had since she was found in the forest. No trace of her pendant (i.e. the Quadratic Key), which she must have placed under her shirt.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (340)

Claude C. Kenni, your typical 19-years-old and stereotypical JRPG hero. He can wield one-handed swords and knows fearsome "Ki techniques"; he's quite tough, yet he's smart enough to get good grades in school.

The way he's dressed might make him look weird, even considering he's an Earthling from 2450 A.D. (he looks quite normal when compared to his companions): he sports an Earth Federation jacket, white trousers and some weird-looking shoes, probably all part of the uniform of the Calnus crew. He likes to wear his dark t-shirt outside his trousers (looking at his game sprite, at first I thought he was wearing one of those full-body space suits), and has a red bandana.

Claude isn't as heroic as one would expect from the Warrior of Light: although very altruistic and polite, he's competitive and stubborn, somewhat possessive, and not quite self-confident. He may also sound quite stupid from time to time, but I blame the writers of this game and/or the English translators. Our hero develops his leadership qualities during the course of his adventure; the unexpected loss of his father doesn't deter him from his mission, and he also manages to make a 12 years old boy and a 16 years old girl follow him to the end through their dangerous quest for the salvation of the Universe.

All in all, Claude isn't that bad as the main hero of the game, at least he's not as whiny as the other modern JRPG heroes. His voice though...

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (339)

Didn't expect that from Leon...

After being 'kicked' back to Nede, our heroes... No, their adventure is already over, it's just that I'm having some fun with them. The only stuff you can do now for fun is exploring the Cave of Trials, defeating Indalecio at his full power, and fighting in the Battle Stadium. I thought it'd be a good idea to make Celine fight through the Survival mode (50 duels in a row), thinking it'd be a great way to give her battle experience quickly; it turned out pretty bad, with her gaining only a couple of levels in about 20 fights, lasting half an hour or so. Survival mode isn't good for spellcasters, as they have no decent spells against single foes (Leon's Gremlin Lair is still pretty good, but by itself it won't get you very far, and it still takes long to cast).

This concludes my playthrough of Star Ocean: the 2nd Story. I'm going to close these Funny Bits with an overview of the characters I've used for my adventure.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (338)

I really can't understand Claude: why would he say that to that cute little penguin? Besides, isn't it obvious what it's saying?

As mentioned before, Vern Vern is one of the differences in this virtual Expel, and it's also your key to return to Nede once you're done with your tour. The other major difference is that the Synard is waiting for you just outside of town. Know what this means? Other than not being ripped off by the ferry toll anymore, of course. You can finally land on the fourth continent of the planet, normally completely inaccessible. What's there, you ask? The Cave of Trials, a so-called "post-game dungeon": it's an additional challenge for players who've already finished the game, where your characters can become even stronger and acquire even better equipment (it still wasn't common practice in JRPGs back then, but a bunch of Dragon Quest games had those). It's extremely advisable that you go through them before attempting to defeat limiter-off Indalecio. I won't go through that this time, because there isn't any funny stuff inside (well, there's Puffy, but that's not worth the effort necessary to reach her).

One more thing: if you have Noel and/or Chisato among your characters (which I don't, unfortunately), you can see what these two are doing during Private Actions in the towns of Expel; there isn't any particular even with them, but they have new lines of dialogue. Be sure to visit Hilton and Lacour with them, as they have their best lines there. What's that? You can't find Chisato in Hilton? Look better!

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (337)

I wonder why he's mad at that, though. Maybe Vern Vern has already kicked him in the face.

The old man tells Claude and the others to just close their eyes and relax; shortly after doing so, poof! Our heroes find themselves in Arlia! Thanks to this extremely sophisticated virtual reality technique, everything looks and feels real. Everything on Expel, which has been reconstructed from their memories is exactly like they remember it before going to Eluria (except some slight rockhopper penguin inside who goes 'pigya' (Evangelion reference?). This penguin, named Vern Vern (I suspect it's not a good translation of the name, but whatever), is here for a reason: if Claude tries to talk to it, you're given the option of making him say 'You silly Vern Vern' for some weird reason, and this would make the penguin so mad that it'd run around in rage, dash at Claude, and tackle him towards the game screen, thus interrupting the VR simulation. It's basically a way to return to Nede. The other difference is that now the 'lovey-dovey newlywed couple' has a son.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (336)

We're talking Matrix-level virtual reality here, only without the cumbersome cable plugged into your neck. The Nedians are really something!

If you wandered around in this area you'd meet someone who tells you there's an old man who believes he has the power to 'restore the memories of the hero' or something; I don't know if it's a reference to a specific story or videogame, but you could say it's a cliché enough character in RPGs. Meeting this aptly labeled Mysterious old man before reaching the last Save Point, he simply says 'Shall I recover your past memories? It's a joke'; however, if you have the patience to return here after going all the way through Fienal, he becomes more serious about this. He says there's this fashionable technique which can create a virtual reality from one's memories, and he can do this for you on the spot, without any sort of equipment (Heraldry?). Accept his offer and... guess where you'll end up.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (335)

Yeah, they shouldn't sit on the ground, at the very least to avoid obstructing passages.

Why are we back at the Battle Stadium? Our friends didn't really explore this part of Fun City yet, so here they are. There are some spectators here because there's someone fighting in the arena at almost any time. Here you can also find signs of there being Nedians who smoke... Weird, we've been everywhere on this planet and yet we couldn't see anyone smoke cigarettes; instead it seems there are at least some who regularly spend their time here.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (334)

Claude: Alright *stabs her*... Oh, before you die, why me, of all people?

If you go all the way back from the last Save Point in Fienal to Central City (it's a really long walk, I hope you don't mind... No, there's no way to get out more quickly), you'll meet Filia here. You might remember her for her accurate prediction of the disaster that struck the town of Clik. Wait a minute, that was on Expel! How in the world... Well, it doesn't matter, she seems to want your help.

She abruptly says she wants you to kill her, and tries to explain this insane thought of hers by mentioning how she's linked to the Ten Wise Men. As it usually happens in these cases, you get no chance to even choose what to do, because she disappears shortly after that; all you learn is that she's the daughter of Dr. Lantis, the man that created the Tewn Wise Men. Oh, you also learn that Filia was 'programmed to be unable to get her own life'... Does it mean she's an android or something? Who cares? She left an equippable accessory behind!

This event has the effect of changing the last part of the game: the secret research data in North City (which you can only unlock with some private Actions with Chisato) would have told you explicitly, but you may also deduce by yourself that Dr. Lantis is Indalecio, turned into an android to lead the Ten Wise Men in his plan of total destruction; what you don't learn with just this scene is that he's decided to do all that because of revenge against the people who killed his daughter and covered their crime. I won't bore you with all the information you can get from the secret data, just know that obtaining it doesn't actually change anything in the story. This event with Filia, instead, causes Indalecio to absorb her consciousness and to erase the limiter factor that sealed his real power.

Fighting Indalecio with this 'limiter' erased nets you a slight variation of the ending sequence; more importantly, it makes the final battle a lot harder. And by that I mean A LOT harder! His speed increases dramatically, he can now easily cast any Heraldry spell while moving (and at that speed it's almost impossible to disrupt his chanting), he's physically stronger, and he can also petrify his opponents with his attacks. Winning this battle is no joke, even on the basic difficulty (the game has two hidden difficulty levels, and at the last one, 'Universe', he's almost unbeatable, no matter your characters' level); if you plan to fight 'Limiter-off' Indalecio, I'd suggest you try going through the Cave of Trials first. What's that, you say? Well, where should I start...?

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The words sound a bit corny... Also, it's not very encouraging to hear that their adventure has just begun, seeing as they've already saved the universe.

After the credit roll, with a CG video of the planets our heroes have visited (following a Synard that flies around), the game ends with this screen. It's been a long ride, but I don't want to stop just yet: there are a few extra screenshots I wanted to pick from what you could call 'the aftergame'. I think I may have already mentioned that once you reach the last Save Point in the game (which is right before the final battle with Indalecio) something changes, and since my last save was right there - of course - I wanted to show some more funny parts about it.

I'd like to mention that none of the ending sequences about the characters in the game are 'canon', at least with regards to Star Ocean Blue Sphere (the sequel to this game, for Gameboy Color), but I won't mention any further details about it.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (332)

Claude didn't waste any time, did he? Well, actually it was probably Rena, what with being the last Nedian in existance and all.

The more attentive players may recognize this place: this is Ronixis's room, which Claude's flashback showed us in the Field of Intelligence. It's nice to see Claude and Rena in there... Not really, since this is just because the developers were reusing locations (if you compare the two rooms, you'll see that even the flowers in the pot look the same), but can you really blame them, with some 80 endings to manage? And some of the endings even have new locations. But enough of that...

After their extraordinary adventure, Rena decides to follow Claude to Earth, where they presumably get married; Claude takes his father's place in the Earth Federation, to his utmost satisfaction (because he actually accomplished heroic deeds that made him deserve it, instead of relying only on Commodore Kenni's fame) yet not without problems (like his father, he's now so busy with his job that he can't spend much time with Rena). Rena thought about using her unique healing powers for the good of as many people as possible, and to help in Heraldry Science research, but she now has other more important things to worry about, with her baby coming soon.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (331)

Wooo! A lot better than I expected: hot Opera on Celine action! ...Ahem, sorry. It's just that I couldn't fathom Opera going all the way back to Expel (and lying about that) only to see a friend.

It appears that having these girls always fight together in battle (my formation has always been Claude, Rena, and alternating between two couples, Opera/Celine and Precis/Leon) has paid off in the end. There really is no good way to improve their relationship with Private Actions, so that was unexpected. It's also the first time I see this ending.

Opera and Celine meet again after a while, in the town of Mars (which is somewhat unusual, since Celine is always travelling, but I guess she needed some rest after saving the universe). Chatting about the latest news, their conversation quickly falls onto their respective sentimental life: after jumping a bit around the fact that both of them are still single, they agree to change the subject. It looks like Opera has finally lost her patience with Ernest; now, either she can't settle with any other man, or she's having problems getting other guys on her own planet because of her drinking habit. Celine, on the other hand, certainly has her character to blame for that; to think that she was once engaged with 'professor' Bowman Jean... And let's not forget about her short adventure with the prince of Cross. Oh well, at least Opera and Celine still have each other... Ok, I'll stop now.

Funny Bits in Star Ocean 2 (330)

Yeah, battling hordes of demons, getting beamed to another unknown planet while your home planet has been destroyed, and fighting against the most powerful beings in the universe is nothing to the likes of Precis F. Neumann! I guess she's acting tough, anyway: do you remember that scene in North City?

Precis is back to her usual life, tinkering with machines together with her father. She may have acquired some advanced knowledge during her stay in Energy Nede (although I had the impression that she had been busy chasing after Bobot half the time), but she surely hasn't improved her methods.

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Does Leon have to wear his labcoat even when playing with his friends? He's at a serious disadvantage with it on when playing tag and Hide-and-seek.

Leon's parents are so happy to see their son coming back in triumph that they've started to care more about him as a child: so far they've had him swamped in books, always working in the lab and leading the life of an adult, but now they finally understand he would have missed the joys of careless childhood, of playing with frinds his age, and of having a loving mother and father.

All this is well and good, but isn't this a bit too late? I mean, Leon is already 12 when the game starts, and he still plays tag? I suppose on Expel they may have different habits, but I've seen no indication of that during my playthroughs.

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Here's the hard-boiled interstellar adventurer for you! Despite his rather unscientific methods, Ernest is actually very successful in his endeavours thanks to his broad experience; him getting possessed by an evil spirit was just bad luck... At least according to him.

We have ignored our Mr. Explorer for most of the story, so it's only fitting that we see him by himself now. Has Opera finally given up on him? We'll see... By the way, while this place looks a lot like the Millocinia cave where Claude's misadventures started, we don't know for sure it's the same place.

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Why are they drawn so badly here? It's the ending sequence. I know that animations are harder to do, but it's like 4 frames for each character.

The view shifts to Energy Nede seen from space. the explosions generated by the modified Crest of Annihiation soon cover the whole planet, which is destoryed in a myriad of colours, leaving nothing behind... Wait, what are those lights? Yes, it's Claude, Rena and the others, floating in space inside glowing balls of light! Ok, I know that the whole idea of Narl making Expel return by fishing it from the past was a ridiculous idea, but was this sequence really necessary?

Claude: Now! Let's return to Expel!
Rena: Yes!

They fly away, their hands touching.

The story is over, but aren't you curious to see what became of our heroes after this epic adventure? We'll find out in the next few posts.