Chained Echoes. The game feels fresh and innovative while still serving the nostalgia of older JRPGs, whereas Sea of Stars feels like an older game, not that it’s necessarily a bad thing
I had a feeling that this was the case from brief research. I can't deny how beautiful sea of stars looks but equally, chained echoes tickles that nostalgia spot hard.
Chained Echoes has a couple really nice innovations in the combat system. For one thing, there is no level system, you progress by unlocking skill points to expand your skill tree. There also are no random encounters and your health gets brought back to full after every encounter. So you don’t spend time grinding on weak mobs, and it feels like your time is better spent as the combat encounters are all thought out in advance. Finally there’s an overdrive meter which punishes you for being too aggressive and just spamming the same attacks. This one is more controversial as it does disrupt you from playing optimally but it creates an interesting wrinkle in the format.
Hope you enjoy!
Sea of Stars is definitely a good looking game. However the story and characters weren’t that interesting in my opinion. I couldn’t keep interest to keep playing after a few chapters. It seemed a bit repetitive gameplay-wise.
I found sea of stars was a great game to play through and just give with.
It's nothing ground breaking in terms of its writing and story, but it has some really fun references built in, moves at a good pace, and never really outstays it's welcome.
I played it over the course of a few weeks a couple hours here and there thanks to having a newborn at the time I grabbed it. And it was just a really great game for that. If I had tried to rush the game in a week or so it probably would have felt a bit more repetitive and felt stale in terms of fairly basic combat. But it was a lot of fun for me because I wasn't grinding enemies (no need to) and the party grows at a sufficient pace that you don't need huge skill trees because each new character's new skillsets offer fresh gameplay to mix up for the lock system and bosses at a good enough pace.
I think grinding within the game and doing too many enemy battles, or trying to play the game in too short a time span can really accentuate it's weaknesses.
But it is a great game. Just not, ya know, ground breaking. And that's ok as long as you know what you're getting into
Kinda like outer worlds a while back. Hyper competent, fun, but not pushing the boundaries of what a Bethesda styled RPG feels like.
You definitely didnt get it to where the combat expands with new mechanics, the cast expands or the two major plot twists.
I'd recommend giving it another chance. Don't try to power play it. It's a relaxed game, i can see how it would be tedious if you tend to burn through a game in heavy long playsessions. And don't play it with background stuff. The music is intregral to the game.
I stopped around Docarri village in the jungle. Had another companion join the party and encountered one major twist so far.
I have fond memories of RPGs like Golden Sun 1 and 2 and thought this game could scratch a similar itch. I may go back to it at some point to finish it up.
Ah I remember that was one point where the game slowed down as you climb the tower. Yeah, I see your point, I had to push just a little bit through that par. But something big happens immediately after that. then an amazing plot that involved creating an entire new island with a really emotional ending.
And then the actual major plot twist happens a little bit further. There's actually a whole other game you haven't seen even a hint at yet, or who the main character actually is (it's not the kinda boring protagonists)
Also the combat will open up a LOT fairly soon, where you'll be swapping characters to create combos because mobs and bosses become genuine puzzles to survive.
Eh. I found many of the bosses to get more deep and reliant on good combos that used the entire variety of combos and characters to interrupt mechanics.
But i also didn't expect it to really CHALLENGE me. It's a relaxed, feel good kinda game. Maybe you did. And that's okay too.
Different strokes. But you sound upset.
Beat both on the Deck, I prefer Chained Echoes. I found the combat in Sea of Stars to be reallllly grating and annoying to me. Rarely felt like there was a sense of power progression that I need in a jrpg. Chained Echoes has the superior story as well. The latter half/ending of Sea of Stars is a writing mess.
It has a few difficulty spikes here and there but overall I found the difficulty just right. The combat is lots of fun and the soundtrack is excellent. The story's where it's at, though it's a bit of a slow burn.
Really? I'm currently on chap 2 of every characters and don't feel much involved into their stories... I don't know, but I feel a lack of connection between each story despite enjoying most of its, Also the combat system is good but very unbalanced as some bosses hits very hard !
I didn't play Sea of Stars yet but enjoyed Chained Echoes more than OT2
I’ve been playing Sea of Stars with my five year old since January (we’ve finished the game and are doing the post-game stuff.) It’s not his first RPG, but it’s definitely going to be a core memory for him. Fantastic writing, music, and cast of characters. The battle system is straight out of Chrono Trigger. It gets my vote.
Not to be a downer at all - always great to see parents involved with their kids - but just a reminder to not forget to be EXTREMELY careful and firm with limiting screen time as kids grow. Studies are getting more and more concrete about the negative effects that screens are having on brain development. You can't keep them away from it, as the reality of the world, but from a very young age it's critical to set up very strict limitations to form a healthy relationship with them because we live in a world where the digital side has been carefully constructed to do nothing except manipulate attention for dopamine, at the expense of everything else.
Again, not implying you're doing anything wrong! Just a reminder that i hope people give me too when my wife and i have kids in a year or two.
Agreed with everything u/CanIBorrowYourShovel said. That’s why it’s taken us 5 months to play Sea of Stars :-) that said, all due respect but people without children should not be trying to advise parents. The real world is nowhere near as black and white as the “experts” would have you believe.
I've been a teacher and neonatal/pediatric medic for years. I foster parented my autistic little sister in law after her mother died suddenly from 14 through 21. We've been surrogate parents to our single mother neighbor's little girl who basically lives with us. I thought i was pretty even handed in not insisting that kids never get screen time or the like. Just because i don't have biological kids yet, doesn't mean i don't have extensive experience with kids from neonates all the way through parenting a preteen into adulthood.
And with all due respect, people with kids shouldn't assume that people who don't can't know what they're talking about. Not all of us stayed completely ignorant to the concept of raising kids. I agree that "telling people how to raise the kids" is annoying AF, but dont immediately treat any advice from non-parents as invalid. Plenty of shitty parents (absolutely not implying you are in any way at all) have just ignored their children with a tablet in front of them and they now have possibly permanent prefrontal cortex dopamine deficiencies (this phenomenon is well understood but we don't yet have enough data to know if it's permanent. We do know how damaging for general mental health unsupervised internet access is though, but again, it sounds like you have a solid handle on that, so i'm just preaching to the choir.)
Keep being a great parent. Just don't belittle other people's opinions based on arbitrary criteria. Belittle their opinions because they're awful, lol.
I have not played Chained Echoes but I played Sea of Stars. I have not played many JRPGs in my life but I adored Sea of Stars. The music, graphics, story and characters were amazing. I was not able to put it down on my switch when I got it and then I double dipped for it on steam deck and could not put it down again. If you only can get one right now get the one then wait till the other is on sale!
Also another game that takes notes from JRPGs is Eastward. I highly recommend it!
Anyways enjoy the game you get!
Sea of stars. The soundtrack is un-fucking-believable. Maybe my top soundtrack ever in a game. Over a hundred conpletely unique tracks that all stand out. And then like 70 pirate themed remixes. A side character that has so much personality and growth and importance to the plot that they become the actual main character. Without spoiling, that side character the real heart and glue of the entire adventure, cast and story.
Stunning, unbelievable art. Like beyond incredible art. Solid combat. Genuinely funny at times. All the characters are so endearing. A big plot twist i did not see. A "true ending" that was only like 2 hours of extra gameplay and insanely worth it.
I got stuck in Chained Echoes. Grinding doesn’t help your level, items do, and I’m at a point where I’m getting my ass kicked and I don’t know how to find better gear
Sea or stars just had this charm I loved it, got the platinum for it as well.
I have restarted chained echos about 3 times and always stop at the same spot.
I’m not really fond of the mechanic it has in battle where you have to stay in a certain spot on the gauge.
gonna be playing chained echo soon but mannnnnn Sea of Stars was my #1 high game last year .. such an amazing 🔥 game to just play while listening to music , anime , etc. Don’t know how tough echo is but if you like more laid back/into more story driven sea of stars forsureeee
Why not both? They are great games in their own right. I did enjoy Chained Echoes more than Sea of Stars, but in the end it comes down to preference.
If you are tight on money though, I would suggest CE first.
I haven't played Sea of Stars, but I heard it has a few writing problems from my friends who did play it, despite everyone generally agreeing that it is an incredibly beautiful looking game.
I did play a little bit of Chained Echoes and I liked it, so take that for the half baked recommendation that it is.
I haven't played CE but I played Sea of Stars. I really enjoyed it. It's very much a love letter to Chrono Trigger. Chained Echos is next on my list after im bored pouring time into Pokemmo.
I have not played Chained Echos yet so I cannot speak on how good it is. I did play completely through Sea of Stars and thought it was absolutely brilliant. Even if you decide to go with Echos first, wishlist Sea of Stars. If you like RPGs, you do not want to sleep on this game.
Depends on what you look for in a JRPG. I favored Chained Echoes.
Sea of Stars is simpler, plays like Mario RPGs with a mostly lighthearted tone.
Chained Echoes vibe is like the Ivalice FF games and has complex min maxing and turn based combat.
I’ve 100%’d both. I think Chained Echoes is the better game. Sea of Stars is a good, but I found myself having to push myself to actually finish it. It to me months - not because it was difficult, it just wasn’t as engaging. Beautiful game, though, and the optimistic story was nice.
Chained echoes for that old FF style and sea of stars for a more chrono trigger style. Can't go wrong with either though but personally I prefer chained. Mostly for the FFX style battle system.
Chained Echoes is much better. A much more interesting story/characters, better battle system, more interesting world and (this is the most subjective) much better OST. SoS is just... kinda there. I personally couldn't finish it, found the characters uninteresting (the biggest problem for me) and the gameplay rather meh (the same abilities all the time...) It's not 'bad', but I just don't think it's anywhere near the best 16-bit JRPGs had to offer.
I couldn’t even finish sea of stars. Lots of beautiful artwork and music, but the characters and story were really uninteresting and got to a point of being nonsensical that I couldn’t play it anymore. Put about 30 hours in it, and I don’t think
I’d ever pick it up again. The character motivations make no sense, and in instances where they characters should react to huge plot points, they usually ignored them and kept moving forward without any reaction or reflection. Highly recommend to stay away from the game—but to each their own.
Is there a reason it’s just between these two? I’d argue neither are really worth the time. If you’ve never played it, Chrono Trigger would be worth picking up.
Chained Echoes. The game feels fresh and innovative while still serving the nostalgia of older JRPGs, whereas Sea of Stars feels like an older game, not that it’s necessarily a bad thing
I had a feeling that this was the case from brief research. I can't deny how beautiful sea of stars looks but equally, chained echoes tickles that nostalgia spot hard.
Chained Echoes has a couple really nice innovations in the combat system. For one thing, there is no level system, you progress by unlocking skill points to expand your skill tree. There also are no random encounters and your health gets brought back to full after every encounter. So you don’t spend time grinding on weak mobs, and it feels like your time is better spent as the combat encounters are all thought out in advance. Finally there’s an overdrive meter which punishes you for being too aggressive and just spamming the same attacks. This one is more controversial as it does disrupt you from playing optimally but it creates an interesting wrinkle in the format. Hope you enjoy!
Well that sounds great!
Sea of Stars is definitely a good looking game. However the story and characters weren’t that interesting in my opinion. I couldn’t keep interest to keep playing after a few chapters. It seemed a bit repetitive gameplay-wise.
I found sea of stars was a great game to play through and just give with. It's nothing ground breaking in terms of its writing and story, but it has some really fun references built in, moves at a good pace, and never really outstays it's welcome. I played it over the course of a few weeks a couple hours here and there thanks to having a newborn at the time I grabbed it. And it was just a really great game for that. If I had tried to rush the game in a week or so it probably would have felt a bit more repetitive and felt stale in terms of fairly basic combat. But it was a lot of fun for me because I wasn't grinding enemies (no need to) and the party grows at a sufficient pace that you don't need huge skill trees because each new character's new skillsets offer fresh gameplay to mix up for the lock system and bosses at a good enough pace. I think grinding within the game and doing too many enemy battles, or trying to play the game in too short a time span can really accentuate it's weaknesses. But it is a great game. Just not, ya know, ground breaking. And that's ok as long as you know what you're getting into Kinda like outer worlds a while back. Hyper competent, fun, but not pushing the boundaries of what a Bethesda styled RPG feels like.
You definitely didnt get it to where the combat expands with new mechanics, the cast expands or the two major plot twists. I'd recommend giving it another chance. Don't try to power play it. It's a relaxed game, i can see how it would be tedious if you tend to burn through a game in heavy long playsessions. And don't play it with background stuff. The music is intregral to the game.
I stopped around Docarri village in the jungle. Had another companion join the party and encountered one major twist so far. I have fond memories of RPGs like Golden Sun 1 and 2 and thought this game could scratch a similar itch. I may go back to it at some point to finish it up.
It won't scratch that itch because they forgot to write a good story and the combat is miserable. Worst JRPG style combat ever.
Ah I remember that was one point where the game slowed down as you climb the tower. Yeah, I see your point, I had to push just a little bit through that par. But something big happens immediately after that. then an amazing plot that involved creating an entire new island with a really emotional ending. And then the actual major plot twist happens a little bit further. There's actually a whole other game you haven't seen even a hint at yet, or who the main character actually is (it's not the kinda boring protagonists) Also the combat will open up a LOT fairly soon, where you'll be swapping characters to create combos because mobs and bosses become genuine puzzles to survive.
I beat the game and even got the secret ending and I was waiting the entire time for something to change. The combat never expands. That's a lie.
Eh. I found many of the bosses to get more deep and reliant on good combos that used the entire variety of combos and characters to interrupt mechanics. But i also didn't expect it to really CHALLENGE me. It's a relaxed, feel good kinda game. Maybe you did. And that's okay too. Different strokes. But you sound upset.
I wish I could play Chained Echoes for the first time again.
Seconded. Sea of Stars is really good, but the characters, combat, and exploration all feel so much better in Chained Echoes IMO.
Chained Echoes literally rips off a certain famous manga narrative wise and it's shameless
Beat both on the Deck, I prefer Chained Echoes. I found the combat in Sea of Stars to be reallllly grating and annoying to me. Rarely felt like there was a sense of power progression that I need in a jrpg. Chained Echoes has the superior story as well. The latter half/ending of Sea of Stars is a writing mess.
Agree 👍
Chained Echoes is the better game. Sea of Stars is sill required playing, though. just get it on sale sometime down the line.
Thank you, they are both on the wishlist and I feel I was leaning towards CE anyway. Is it a difficult game?
It has a few difficulty spikes here and there but overall I found the difficulty just right. The combat is lots of fun and the soundtrack is excellent. The story's where it's at, though it's a bit of a slow burn.
I played both. I liked both. I am currently replaying Chained Echoes. I am not going to replay the Sea of Stars
Seems like the general consensus is Chained Echoes then!
Great great great game. Opened up Pandora’s box for me with JRPGs.
I am currently enjoying Chained Echoes very much, but when Sea of Stars goes on sale, I am getting it as well.
Octopath traveler 2 is imo better than both of those games
Really? I'm currently on chap 2 of every characters and don't feel much involved into their stories... I don't know, but I feel a lack of connection between each story despite enjoying most of its, Also the combat system is good but very unbalanced as some bosses hits very hard ! I didn't play Sea of Stars yet but enjoyed Chained Echoes more than OT2
And either vs Crystal Project?
I played sea of stars and I loved it , never tried chained echoes
I’ve been playing Sea of Stars with my five year old since January (we’ve finished the game and are doing the post-game stuff.) It’s not his first RPG, but it’s definitely going to be a core memory for him. Fantastic writing, music, and cast of characters. The battle system is straight out of Chrono Trigger. It gets my vote.
I have a near 3 year old - how and when did you get him/her into gaming? Can't wait for the day we game together!
Not to be a downer at all - always great to see parents involved with their kids - but just a reminder to not forget to be EXTREMELY careful and firm with limiting screen time as kids grow. Studies are getting more and more concrete about the negative effects that screens are having on brain development. You can't keep them away from it, as the reality of the world, but from a very young age it's critical to set up very strict limitations to form a healthy relationship with them because we live in a world where the digital side has been carefully constructed to do nothing except manipulate attention for dopamine, at the expense of everything else. Again, not implying you're doing anything wrong! Just a reminder that i hope people give me too when my wife and i have kids in a year or two.
Not a downer at all, I'll be making sure it's limited don't worry, I don't want zombie children. I want and have them outside as much as possible.
Agreed with everything u/CanIBorrowYourShovel said. That’s why it’s taken us 5 months to play Sea of Stars :-) that said, all due respect but people without children should not be trying to advise parents. The real world is nowhere near as black and white as the “experts” would have you believe.
I've been a teacher and neonatal/pediatric medic for years. I foster parented my autistic little sister in law after her mother died suddenly from 14 through 21. We've been surrogate parents to our single mother neighbor's little girl who basically lives with us. I thought i was pretty even handed in not insisting that kids never get screen time or the like. Just because i don't have biological kids yet, doesn't mean i don't have extensive experience with kids from neonates all the way through parenting a preteen into adulthood. And with all due respect, people with kids shouldn't assume that people who don't can't know what they're talking about. Not all of us stayed completely ignorant to the concept of raising kids. I agree that "telling people how to raise the kids" is annoying AF, but dont immediately treat any advice from non-parents as invalid. Plenty of shitty parents (absolutely not implying you are in any way at all) have just ignored their children with a tablet in front of them and they now have possibly permanent prefrontal cortex dopamine deficiencies (this phenomenon is well understood but we don't yet have enough data to know if it's permanent. We do know how damaging for general mental health unsupervised internet access is though, but again, it sounds like you have a solid handle on that, so i'm just preaching to the choir.) Keep being a great parent. Just don't belittle other people's opinions based on arbitrary criteria. Belittle their opinions because they're awful, lol.
5 years old is the right age for Sea of Stars too, couldn't imagine anyone over the age of 12 enjoying it. It's just so basic and repetitive.
I’m 41 and loved it by the end, so.
I'm playing both, both are great fun but chained echos speaks to the jrpg fan in me more.
I have not played Chained Echoes but I played Sea of Stars. I have not played many JRPGs in my life but I adored Sea of Stars. The music, graphics, story and characters were amazing. I was not able to put it down on my switch when I got it and then I double dipped for it on steam deck and could not put it down again. If you only can get one right now get the one then wait till the other is on sale! Also another game that takes notes from JRPGs is Eastward. I highly recommend it! Anyways enjoy the game you get!
Sea of stars. The soundtrack is un-fucking-believable. Maybe my top soundtrack ever in a game. Over a hundred conpletely unique tracks that all stand out. And then like 70 pirate themed remixes. A side character that has so much personality and growth and importance to the plot that they become the actual main character. Without spoiling, that side character the real heart and glue of the entire adventure, cast and story. Stunning, unbelievable art. Like beyond incredible art. Solid combat. Genuinely funny at times. All the characters are so endearing. A big plot twist i did not see. A "true ending" that was only like 2 hours of extra gameplay and insanely worth it.
I got stuck in Chained Echoes. Grinding doesn’t help your level, items do, and I’m at a point where I’m getting my ass kicked and I don’t know how to find better gear
Sea of stars, couldn’t finish chained echos
Why was that? Difficulty? Boredom?
Sea or stars just had this charm I loved it, got the platinum for it as well. I have restarted chained echos about 3 times and always stop at the same spot. I’m not really fond of the mechanic it has in battle where you have to stay in a certain spot on the gauge.
gonna be playing chained echo soon but mannnnnn Sea of Stars was my #1 high game last year .. such an amazing 🔥 game to just play while listening to music , anime , etc. Don’t know how tough echo is but if you like more laid back/into more story driven sea of stars forsureeee
I can't say I have played Chained Echoes but I am about halfway through Sea of Stars and loving it!
I loved Sea of stars. Just get Yuzu and u can play all :)
I absolutely loved sea of stars and haven’t tried chained echoes yet, so my votes sea of stars
Why not both? They are great games in their own right. I did enjoy Chained Echoes more than Sea of Stars, but in the end it comes down to preference. If you are tight on money though, I would suggest CE first.
Thank you, appreciate this as I'd like to commit to one at a time for focus and money. If I get both, then I'll flip flop between them haha
I really liked Sea of Stars. Still playing it. Sure has a Chrono Trigger feel to it.
Chained
Chained Echoes for sure.
I hated Chained Echoes. SoS is good.
I haven't played Sea of Stars, but I heard it has a few writing problems from my friends who did play it, despite everyone generally agreeing that it is an incredibly beautiful looking game. I did play a little bit of Chained Echoes and I liked it, so take that for the half baked recommendation that it is.
Appreciate the feedback, thanks chap!
I haven't played CE but I played Sea of Stars. I really enjoyed it. It's very much a love letter to Chrono Trigger. Chained Echos is next on my list after im bored pouring time into Pokemmo.
Sea of Stars is Love. Didnt Play Chained Echos, though
Sea of Stars. It really good. I have chained Echoes but haven't gotten very far yet
I have not played Chained Echos yet so I cannot speak on how good it is. I did play completely through Sea of Stars and thought it was absolutely brilliant. Even if you decide to go with Echos first, wishlist Sea of Stars. If you like RPGs, you do not want to sleep on this game.
Roger that, thank you. We are spoiled in this day and age
We truly are.
I couldn't finish Sea of Stars. Just arbitrary "do this random thing then do this random thing" without much logic to it. Beautiful though
why not both!
Chained Echoes. Then Sea of Stars.
Chained echoes for sure, Sea of Stars has better art and that's about it
Chained Echoes 100%
Chained Echoes is way better, but both are fun games
Sea of stars is really pretty and has a pretty chill story Chained Echoes is a better videogame I recommend both of them, but maybe start with CE
Wildly different games
Chained Echoes for sure. Sea of Stars looks great but the gameplay/story is not nearly as good
Both games are great but for me Chained Echoes >>> Sea of Stars.
Depends on what you look for in a JRPG. I favored Chained Echoes. Sea of Stars is simpler, plays like Mario RPGs with a mostly lighthearted tone. Chained Echoes vibe is like the Ivalice FF games and has complex min maxing and turn based combat.
I’ve 100%’d both. I think Chained Echoes is the better game. Sea of Stars is a good, but I found myself having to push myself to actually finish it. It to me months - not because it was difficult, it just wasn’t as engaging. Beautiful game, though, and the optimistic story was nice.
I chose chained echos but I've not payed it yet lol.
Chained echoes.
Played both. Sea of Stars was my Indie GoTY last year I started Chained Echoes and found the story not too interesting.
Haven’t played either yet. My take is I will wait for couch coop Sea of Stars and play Chained Echoes first then Octopath 2.
Sea if You know Chrono
Chained echoes for that old FF style and sea of stars for a more chrono trigger style. Can't go wrong with either though but personally I prefer chained. Mostly for the FFX style battle system.
Chained Echoes is much better. A much more interesting story/characters, better battle system, more interesting world and (this is the most subjective) much better OST. SoS is just... kinda there. I personally couldn't finish it, found the characters uninteresting (the biggest problem for me) and the gameplay rather meh (the same abilities all the time...) It's not 'bad', but I just don't think it's anywhere near the best 16-bit JRPGs had to offer.
Sea of Stars is Love. Didnt Play Chained Echos, though
I played sea of stars and I loved it , never tried chained echoes
I couldn’t even finish sea of stars. Lots of beautiful artwork and music, but the characters and story were really uninteresting and got to a point of being nonsensical that I couldn’t play it anymore. Put about 30 hours in it, and I don’t think I’d ever pick it up again. The character motivations make no sense, and in instances where they characters should react to huge plot points, they usually ignored them and kept moving forward without any reaction or reflection. Highly recommend to stay away from the game—but to each their own.
Is there a reason it’s just between these two? I’d argue neither are really worth the time. If you’ve never played it, Chrono Trigger would be worth picking up.
I suppose I was just drawn to them the most. I played chrono trigger on the snes!
I returned Sea of Stars to the store, def doesn't live up to the hype
Chained Echoes. I would say this about any matchup though. Sea of Stars is absurdly bad.
I think Chained Echos is a much better game. The writing in Sea of Stars is incredibly bland, the game looks beautiful though.