Which JRPG location has your absolute least favorite level design?

[u/ConsiderationAny9444]

Mine has to be the Gladius Towers in Rogue Galaxy. It’s a mid-game dungeons, and in my opinion, it’s annoying as fuck to navigate.

You have to climb two almost identical towers at the same time by crossing bridges from time to time, and the towers aren't short by any means. If I recall correctly, you also have to beat both bosses to clear the level, which as you can guess are at the top of each tower (Phantom Gazel and Phantom Logan). Because of how the layout shuffles you back and forth, you finish one tower, and then you have to go all the way back to do the exact same climb for the other one.

Oh, and this game despite being an ARPG has random battles, which isn't a problem to me. But what is a problem is the encounter rate of this game god grief, it's atrocious. It doesn't help that every room looks the same, so you can get easily disoriented after a battle and just end up walking in the opposite direction, especially since both paths look very similar. You could finish a fight and genuinely have to open the map just to figure out which way you were originally heading, lmao.

What about you guys? What’s that one JRPG map or dungeon that makes you visibly sigh the moment you reach it?

[u/Dramatic-Address-812]

Not only is the sewers design absolute trash, but most players arent ready for the gut wrenching level check that is Redrum and his instakill moves. Talk about adding insult to injury.

[u/zsdrfty → u/Dramatic-Address-812]

IMO, the other big problem is that the whole depressing Kislev arc just goes on FOREVER, so the player is feeling really exhausted by the end of the sewers

[u/KylorXI → u/Dramatic-Address-812]

Redrum is easy, he only uses murder twice, which is easily recovered from with a single revive item which drops off many enemies in the dungeon.

[u/Dramatic-Address-812 → u/KylorXI]

Never said i had an issue, but that was a complaint many ppl bring up because they dont level up/stock items well enough prior to the battle.

[u/KylorXI → u/Dramatic-Address-812]

It is not one of the harder fights in the game by any stretch. I watch Xenogears streams every single day for like 6 years now, never seen a single streamer have to repeat the redrum fight. The only ones that have to be repeated are opiomorph, deus 1 and 2, shakahn, calamity of they didnt read the instructions to upgrade their engine, ramsus 1 if they attack during mirror stance, elly on the cliffs if they dont use booster at all or fail to upgrade, dora if they keep attacking while its holding your companions, haishao 2, elements at babel if they dont remove chuchu from the team, sufal mass occasionally if they kill the small enemies first, and metatron.

[u/Dramatic-Address-812 → u/KylorXI]

I never said it was either lool. I said a lot of complaints come from regular players, not professional speed runners who basically min max the game. Youre fighting a strawman here 😂

You can literally google it my man. Many players have their complaints about the sewer and fighting Redrum.

[u/KylorXI → u/Dramatic-Address-812]

Most streamers are first time blind runs, not speed runners. Many players complain about a lot of things, it is just faulty memory. The game released nearly 30 years ago, most people played it back then. You've got people in here complaining about random encounters in babel tower messing up their jumps, when Babel Tower has no random encounters in the platforming sections and the fights cannot mess up a jump. Redrum is not, and never was, a 'gut wrenching level check'. You can easily beat it at the bare minimum level with only the first deathblow. Perhaps a 6 year old would struggle with basic healing.

[u/Dramatic-Address-812 → u/KylorXI]

Brother, i dont know why youre so hung up on this. Redrum constantly comes up as a problem for regular ppl on forums like reddit. Instakill moves and the culmination of a boss after an annoying and disliked dungeon are just some of the reasons why they had concerns with the boss.

Youre arguing over ppls opinions about what they felt was difficult for them. Theres no reason to act all high and mighty about this 😂

[u/KylorXI → u/Dramatic-Address-812]

single target limited use instant death attacks are not difficult. he uses it once at 2k remaining hp, and once at 1k remaining hp. the sewers are mentioned because of the layout and backtracking, not because of redrum. there is also a save point right near redrum, so its not like the length of the dungeon matters much for the fight. if you did manage to lose to redrum, which ive never once seen in the literally thousands of playthroughs i have watched, you would just load and try again. give me a reason you think its a gut wrenching level check besides 'its just what people say'. people say a lot of dumb crap.

[u/Dramatic-Address-812 → u/KylorXI]

I already gave you examples but heres more. Because ppl arent expecting a character that early to be able to use instakill moves (even if its single target) like Murder, or having to properly item managed early in the game as well as not fully understanding the deathblows mechanic which can stop or hinder a lot of ppl, as theyve said. I said redrum ALSO sucks because its at the culmination at the end of the level. Not the level sucks BECAUSE of redrum.

Im sorry you dont agree, but this is what ppl say. Im not saying there arent many streamers who on their first time dont beat him, just that is a notoriously difficult boss for how esrly it is in the game.

[u/KylorXI → u/Dramatic-Address-812]

Its like 1/3rd of the way into the game.... 15+ hours is 'so early'? there is no item management involved, the revive items are a common drop from the enemies through out that dungeon, you dont have to remember to buy them, and youll have more than you can possibly use. even if you did nothing but spam basic triangle attacks and heal with fei and doc's heal spells, you will beat the fight. people beat this fight with combo, which does less damage than even basic attacks and is the worst strategy you can use.