FFXII. No random combat.

[A Black Falcon]

If you read what I'm saying, you should be able to see that I'm not really arguing here...

.... what are you TALKING about? I am only talking about enemies, enemies! I wasn't even trying to disagree, nor did I think we were disagreeing. I even agreed with you. You just took it out of context, and when I pointed out that you did, you instead just refuse to allow me to point out what I meant and say "but what you said can only be taken this way!". Look, I know what I meant, and I explained that.

Um... huh? Kind of confusing here... :)

That goes for special one of a kind steals and other stuff.

Skills that come from specific enemies, items that come from specific enemies, can you REALLY say that there is much of a difference there? I don't think so.

Oh, and as I said I don't know of any PC RPG where you get skills by taking them from enemies (I have been assuming that you mean it in the style of FF8, correct?). You do. of course, get items from them, though...

Out of context? The whole paragraph then.

Anyway, look it's just a convenience. I'm not arguing over gameplay theory here. Lots of Japanese RPGs also have lots of stuff you can never go back and get after various points. I'm just saying I like for enemies to be as available as possible for the convienience of things like stealable items and blue magic, just to list a few. It's just something I'd rather have, being able to go back to enemies without worrying I've killed them all. I never said it was a BAD thing you know.

Note - you use the word 'items'. In, it seems to me, the same way I used it... I assume that you think 'I was talking about items, what does that have to do with conversations?'... okay, it's a bit different. But only a bit. It's a very, very similar issue by any standard I can see it by, and in some cases it's the same issue -- like when the result of said conversation is getting or not getting some item, which is a common result of a conversation of the sort I am talking about.

You are comparing Japanese (Console, I assume) to American (PC, I'd imagine) RPGs, correct? Well, I've never heard of a PC RPG that has a system where you get skills by taking them directly from enemies in the style of FF8 (which is what I think you mean in your description of this). Never seen it. What I have seen is enemies with special items that only they have... that, if you do things wrong (such as, as I was describing, in a conversation; though other methods include if you try to steal from someone and fail, or if you don't know where to look for some item and then later are barred from ever returning to that part of the game), you can not get. So I'd say that my response was right on the same discussion, just on a slightly different line.

And as I implied, as I played Fallout I wished it was a bit more lenient... I like having choices in the game matter, but I'd prefer to be able to talk to someone again after making a choice which didn't lead to direct combat or something... I don't like having to load and see what else could happen, if the other choices don't seem to do anything that couldn't have also happened in that one (like, you say something and they respond and it's over but if you said something else something better might happen -- but the first case didn't lead to some catastrophic event so I don't see why I'm not just allowed to talk to them again...). And as I then said, Baldur's Gate did similar things but set it up better and made it clearer. And it also gives you access to almost all the areas in the game... there are some areas you cannot return to, but it's generally made quite clear that you will not be returning so you can prepare accordingly. As for conversations, there are still annoyingly irrevocable situations, but that's as much an effect of the fact that once a character goes 'red' (as in, hostile) that they can never turn non-hostile again in the game as anything else...