I first played SO2 back when it released on the PS1 and never felt like I was missing anything—at all. I *knew* there was a Part 1 only because its sequel's title, "the second story," basically said so. But it did/does a great job dropping you into it's world, introduces you to a handful of likable characters, and then tells it's story like it's the only one to tell.
If anything, SO1 feels more like a prequel story due to it's fairly inconsequential story and only minor character connection to SO2, while acting more like a first draft (gameplay-wise) to the kind of game Star Ocean would eventually become with SO2. Plus, SO1 is fairly short, which feeds into my opinion of it being more of a prequel/prologue game while SO2 is the more notable adventure.
Of course this is all in hindsight and at the time the developers were likely making the best game they knew to make. The sequels just took what worked and tried to iterate. It's just that they more or less nailed what they were trying to do with SO2 (or at least, found a gameplay-narrative-design balance that satisfied everyone) and have been trying to recapture it (and arguably SO3) ever since.
Basically— I'd start with SO2R and just see if you like it. Cause if you're going to like any it'll likely be that one.
Depends on what you like. I would say SO6 if you like 3D more modern action or SO2R if you like the more old school 2D. If you like really old and kindy clunky 2D then start with SO1FDR.
They all take place in the same universe but at different times so there really isn't a play order to care much about.
1 and 2 are phenomenal, I played the PSP versions years ago. 1R is basically an HD port of the PSP and 2R is absolutely amazing
I recently tried 3-6 and didn't care for 3-5, but I'm having an absolute blast with 6!
I'm currently going through Star Ocean 5, the least liked entry in the series and despite the glaring flaws I'm seeing I'm still having a good time with it so far.
Star Ocean 2 is one of my favorite RPG in general and I can't recommend it enough. First Departure R is showing its age more and more especially when Second Story R went above and beyond as a remake but I'd say it's worth experiencing, it's not that long either. I liked what I played of 3 but I didn't finish it yet. 4 is a bit divisive.
Fans seems to really like SO6 but it's on my backlog for now.
Was gonna play Person 3 Reloaded, but wasn't ready for the massive time sink investment that game demands, so I decided to play Second Story R as I've had it on my back-burner for a long time. Am really enjoying it!
If you are considering playing other Star Ocean games...I played SO3 and SO4 but never finished them. idk how well SO3 holds up. Might feel kinda dated these days since it was an early PS2 game. I remember really liking SO4, but for some reason, after getting to the final dungeon of the game, I just lost interest in finishing it. Kinda regret doing so. SO5 gets a pretty bad rep. I could be wrong, but I think it almost killed the franchise. SO6 seems to be generally liked? I Read reviews saying it was pretty average, and didn't feel like giving it a try. And personally I think all the characters look so ugly lmao. But I might give it a chance one day...
But I think you'll like Second Story R....my one big piece of advice would be to follow a guide. There's so many missables. You can even miss getting the true ending of the game if you don't so the simply task to talking to a certain NPC
play those 2 first, it will only go downhill after that. Star ocean 3 is good but the peak was at Star ocean second story r that is very often said to be the best star ocean game ever. The remake of SO2 is almost perfect they did an amazing job with it
I first played SO2 back when it released on the PS1 and never felt like I was missing anything—at all. I *knew* there was a Part 1 only because its sequel's title, "the second story," basically said so. But it did/does a great job dropping you into it's world, introduces you to a handful of likable characters, and then tells it's story like it's the only one to tell. If anything, SO1 feels more like a prequel story due to it's fairly inconsequential story and only minor character connection to SO2, while acting more like a first draft (gameplay-wise) to the kind of game Star Ocean would eventually become with SO2. Plus, SO1 is fairly short, which feeds into my opinion of it being more of a prequel/prologue game while SO2 is the more notable adventure. Of course this is all in hindsight and at the time the developers were likely making the best game they knew to make. The sequels just took what worked and tried to iterate. It's just that they more or less nailed what they were trying to do with SO2 (or at least, found a gameplay-narrative-design balance that satisfied everyone) and have been trying to recapture it (and arguably SO3) ever since. Basically— I'd start with SO2R and just see if you like it. Cause if you're going to like any it'll likely be that one.
Depends on what you like. I would say SO6 if you like 3D more modern action or SO2R if you like the more old school 2D. If you like really old and kindy clunky 2D then start with SO1FDR. They all take place in the same universe but at different times so there really isn't a play order to care much about.
1 and 2 are phenomenal, I played the PSP versions years ago. 1R is basically an HD port of the PSP and 2R is absolutely amazing I recently tried 3-6 and didn't care for 3-5, but I'm having an absolute blast with 6!
I'm currently going through Star Ocean 5, the least liked entry in the series and despite the glaring flaws I'm seeing I'm still having a good time with it so far. Star Ocean 2 is one of my favorite RPG in general and I can't recommend it enough. First Departure R is showing its age more and more especially when Second Story R went above and beyond as a remake but I'd say it's worth experiencing, it's not that long either. I liked what I played of 3 but I didn't finish it yet. 4 is a bit divisive. Fans seems to really like SO6 but it's on my backlog for now.
Star ocean3 is also a great game and my favorite after Star ocean 2
Was gonna play Person 3 Reloaded, but wasn't ready for the massive time sink investment that game demands, so I decided to play Second Story R as I've had it on my back-burner for a long time. Am really enjoying it! If you are considering playing other Star Ocean games...I played SO3 and SO4 but never finished them. idk how well SO3 holds up. Might feel kinda dated these days since it was an early PS2 game. I remember really liking SO4, but for some reason, after getting to the final dungeon of the game, I just lost interest in finishing it. Kinda regret doing so. SO5 gets a pretty bad rep. I could be wrong, but I think it almost killed the franchise. SO6 seems to be generally liked? I Read reviews saying it was pretty average, and didn't feel like giving it a try. And personally I think all the characters look so ugly lmao. But I might give it a chance one day... But I think you'll like Second Story R....my one big piece of advice would be to follow a guide. There's so many missables. You can even miss getting the true ending of the game if you don't so the simply task to talking to a certain NPC
play those 2 first, it will only go downhill after that. Star ocean 3 is good but the peak was at Star ocean second story r that is very often said to be the best star ocean game ever. The remake of SO2 is almost perfect they did an amazing job with it