Post by Yuri on Dec 16, 2014 6:29:43 GMT
I figured I would start up something here that would be mostly me giving recommendations in a variety of nerd related areas. My bigger areas of expertise are anime and jrpgs and with some good knowledge of light novels and visual novels. I have a preference for plot and characters in the things that I enjoy most, but I have a pretty broad range of what is good for me. I've been playing jrpgs starting with Final Fantasy 1 and Crystalis over 20 years ago and I have been watching anime and fansubs since 2000. I have a pretty large amount of knowledge and I'm opening it up to allow the community here to take advantage out it. I will be posting a recommendation a couple of times a week across a different genres and mediums. I'l be posting my own but everyone is also free here to give their own recommendations or ask for one more specific from me. So with that out of the way, I'l give one from each category here to start off the first post with.
Anime
It's been quite awhile now since Macross Frontier has come out and it's not talked about as much as it once was. For a more accurate description take a look at the MAL link. Macross frontier is a show that I believe can have some element to it that nearly anyone can enjoy. It's got some great animation and some really amazing music to go along with a story and characters that can really draw you in. The director of the series changes after the first 2 episodes and so the tone shifts a bit as a result. They manage to pull out a pretty good combination which really highlights the story, action, music and romance in the series and can be enjoyable even for those who aren't a strict fan of any of the particular genres. It's not necessary to have seen the previous Macross series in order to understand this one, as it's fairly independent. This is one of the few anime that really shines with bringing out the integrated music.
RPG
Suikoden 2. It was only mere weeks ago that it was one of the rarest and hardest to obtain jrpgs ever and would continue to remain out of reach for most people. There was a sudden announcement, and then finally 15 years after it's release, Suikoden 2 made it's way to PSN last week. It's a brilliant narrative of a young boy who gets trapped in the middle of a war. War is a main focus of the Suikoden series and 2 is no exception. It weaves it together with politics, characters and other elements like betrayal to bring you one of the best written and executed jrpgs of all time. The depth of the story and world still puts modern jrpgs to shame. It has an immense cast of characters, 108 of which are capable of being recruited to join you and many more that are part of the story. If you are not familiar with the Suikoden series, then you are in for a treat. Suikoden 2 builds off of Suikoden 1, but it's not required to play 1 to fully enjoy 2. Widely considered one of the greatest jrpgs ever and mentioned along with greats such as Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy 7 it is not something you should pass up.
Light Novel
Light novels these days are getting a lot more attention as many of them are being turned into anime adaptations. Some of you may be familiar with Fate/Zero, Sword Art Online or *gasp Log Horizon which are both based on a source material of light novels. LNs are a different kind of book that focuses more on characters and actions in comparison to a regular novel. There is less complexity and they are intended to be a "light" and easier read. Even if you've seen the adaptation of a series, read the LN. It's got a ton of information, scenes and detail the anime just couldn't include. The Baka-Tsuki android app is recommended for reading.
Toradora
Christmas is almost on us and since I can't recommend the greatest Christmas movie of all timeDie Hard I will go with something else. Toradora is primarily a romantic comedy that follows the school setting format. For things written by the japanese these kinds of things are often a dime a dozen. Toradora however manages to do it in a way that will keep you coming back for more. The anime itself is rather popular and quite good but the LN gives you a whole different depth. There are many additional scenes, characters and the reasons why they do things are explained and it gives you a much fuller story. There really isn't a whole lot to say about this one. If you enjoy rom coms then definitely go check it out.
Visual Novel
Little Busters
Ah studio KEY. The same people who brought you things like Air and Clannad. Little busters is a 50 hour long visual novel which recently got a rather poor anime adaptation. The VN starts off as many others do from KEY with strong, light hearted comedy and it does this very well. It assembles a pretty large central core of main characters and allows you to explore them individually via character routes. After completing each of the character routes you unlock what is known as a "true" route which takes place after all of the rest known as Refrain. In Clannad this was known as After Story. Little Busters takes place entirely within a school and is based primarily on the interactions of the characters and with a prevailing theme of friendship. While it may seem a little simple, don't let that deceive you. Remember where I said Clannad After Story? This is written by the same guy, Jun Maeda who has the capability of breaking your feels in only a couple of minutes. Little busters is a feels roller coaster that will leave them in a twisted mess by the end. 4 out of 4 of your admins have suffered some form of PTSD as a result of Little Busters and it's story is often measured in the number of days or weeks it will incapacitate you. The best part? It's entirely worth it. A story that can still evoke strong feels with a mere OST years after finishing it is just too good to pass up.
That's it for the first post here. Details are a little light on some but they all have links to where you can find them and with a little better synopsis. Suikoden 2 would feature spoilers with a more detailed story description so it was left light. This thread is open for people to comment or ask questions or for other recommendations.
Anime
It's been quite awhile now since Macross Frontier has come out and it's not talked about as much as it once was. For a more accurate description take a look at the MAL link. Macross frontier is a show that I believe can have some element to it that nearly anyone can enjoy. It's got some great animation and some really amazing music to go along with a story and characters that can really draw you in. The director of the series changes after the first 2 episodes and so the tone shifts a bit as a result. They manage to pull out a pretty good combination which really highlights the story, action, music and romance in the series and can be enjoyable even for those who aren't a strict fan of any of the particular genres. It's not necessary to have seen the previous Macross series in order to understand this one, as it's fairly independent. This is one of the few anime that really shines with bringing out the integrated music.
RPG
Suikoden 2. It was only mere weeks ago that it was one of the rarest and hardest to obtain jrpgs ever and would continue to remain out of reach for most people. There was a sudden announcement, and then finally 15 years after it's release, Suikoden 2 made it's way to PSN last week. It's a brilliant narrative of a young boy who gets trapped in the middle of a war. War is a main focus of the Suikoden series and 2 is no exception. It weaves it together with politics, characters and other elements like betrayal to bring you one of the best written and executed jrpgs of all time. The depth of the story and world still puts modern jrpgs to shame. It has an immense cast of characters, 108 of which are capable of being recruited to join you and many more that are part of the story. If you are not familiar with the Suikoden series, then you are in for a treat. Suikoden 2 builds off of Suikoden 1, but it's not required to play 1 to fully enjoy 2. Widely considered one of the greatest jrpgs ever and mentioned along with greats such as Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy 7 it is not something you should pass up.
Light Novel
Light novels these days are getting a lot more attention as many of them are being turned into anime adaptations. Some of you may be familiar with Fate/Zero, Sword Art Online or *gasp Log Horizon which are both based on a source material of light novels. LNs are a different kind of book that focuses more on characters and actions in comparison to a regular novel. There is less complexity and they are intended to be a "light" and easier read. Even if you've seen the adaptation of a series, read the LN. It's got a ton of information, scenes and detail the anime just couldn't include. The Baka-Tsuki android app is recommended for reading.
Toradora
Christmas is almost on us and since I can't recommend the greatest Christmas movie of all time
Visual Novel
Little Busters
Ah studio KEY. The same people who brought you things like Air and Clannad. Little busters is a 50 hour long visual novel which recently got a rather poor anime adaptation. The VN starts off as many others do from KEY with strong, light hearted comedy and it does this very well. It assembles a pretty large central core of main characters and allows you to explore them individually via character routes. After completing each of the character routes you unlock what is known as a "true" route which takes place after all of the rest known as Refrain. In Clannad this was known as After Story. Little Busters takes place entirely within a school and is based primarily on the interactions of the characters and with a prevailing theme of friendship. While it may seem a little simple, don't let that deceive you. Remember where I said Clannad After Story? This is written by the same guy, Jun Maeda who has the capability of breaking your feels in only a couple of minutes. Little busters is a feels roller coaster that will leave them in a twisted mess by the end. 4 out of 4 of your admins have suffered some form of PTSD as a result of Little Busters and it's story is often measured in the number of days or weeks it will incapacitate you. The best part? It's entirely worth it. A story that can still evoke strong feels with a mere OST years after finishing it is just too good to pass up.
That's it for the first post here. Details are a little light on some but they all have links to where you can find them and with a little better synopsis. Suikoden 2 would feature spoilers with a more detailed story description so it was left light. This thread is open for people to comment or ask questions or for other recommendations.
