A remaster on PC when? This game (and the quadrilogy in general) desperately needs a PC port with seamless mouse and keyboard controls.

>>11829221 (OP)
Don't forget Fragment.

I don't think anyone could stomach the monotonous slow gameplay in the 2025. It was bad even for the time. GU improved it somewhat, but still wasn't great.

No idea how the fuck this series went on for as long as it did.

>>11829221 (OP)
I genuinely couldn't get trough Infection, i like the premise, but i don't think i can defeat my general dislike of mindless grinding to properly make it trough.
As such, it shall remain an investment, until i can scam a collector for more cash.

mucking early game Mimics...

Why not just play the countless other superior PC games instead? There's no point in PC portbegging when it's already got the best library games by far, much higher quality than that of console plebs, who are stuck playing watered-down imitations of PC greatness.

Aren't there exp/whatever multiplier cheats to decrease the grind?

I'd love a remaster, but judging by the babies shitting themselves over the grinding in this thread I doubt it will happen. We don't get to enjoy niche games anymore since retards don't like anything that doesn't give automatic gratification or doesn't have a battle pass.

>>11829221 (OP)
Ah yes I love these games, where's the modern remaster so I can finally play them for the first time?

>I NEED A REMASTER OF A PS2 GAME!!!!!
PS2 is barely even retro. WTF even happened to this board?
>THE GRINDING!!!!
It's an MMORPG simulation, grinding is part of the RP in this RPG. I shouldn't have to explain this as it's really painfully obvious.

>>11829221 (OP)
>quadrilogy
not a real word
the term is tetralogy

No, it doesn't. I've played the GU trilogy on Steam and those games are best left back in the 2000s. The remaster of GU even has exp boosters + reworked mechanics (more damage, different animations), and it's still a grind to play through. I imagine whoever played those games back in the 2000s had nothing better to do with their time.

https://files.catbox.moe/gap3qd.mp3

I did an audio recording of my feelings of the series a while back. Its got some tips in there for people who are interested in playing it too.

Tldl: it has great atmosphere, great ost, and a really cool premise. The actual games are extremely monotonous. As other anons said, I dont really think it needs a remaster. Its fine playing through them with emulation.
>>11831653
Yuuup. I still think the animation work on the cutscenes was really impressive, and as a anime it works, but the gameplay to get to the cutscenes is extremely monotonous, especially if you learn how to cancel your attacks. If there was a well balanced hard mode I think it might be fun, but being able to infinitely combo the same basic attacks gets old real quick. Hell, even a double rengeki system where you had to time out you and your parties attacks would have been something. The other issue is, even though I think the story and characters are generally better, the whole feeling of being caught up in an internet urban legend is completely lost. It doesn't feel like you're just a player who got sucked into a bunch of crazy rumors, its more of a straight up anime mmo plot. Still good, but it just loses that certain hook the older games had (though all they really had was that hook in terms of the plot).

Its a series with a lot of ambitious ideas that just never managed to capture any of them.

>>11829278
Pseudo console mmo was a novelty for a time. Then modern JRPGs began to head in the direction of modern MMO design ideas.

>>11832123
When the GU remaster was released, I noticed people asked in some boards (including here) why the sidequests in all three games are essentially the same, and I remember a reply from a series veteran: "you think the sidequests are boring because you're playing the 3 games back-to-back. Now imagine you're in 2007 and the next game only releases 4 months from now. That's how it felt. You did the mind-numbing sidequests because you had nothing better to do".

For anyone who never played the GU Trilogy, the sidequests are:
- find Lucky Animals (50 encounters and complete the list)
- find Mecha Grunty (50 times)
- bounty hunting (defeat 7 chaotic PKs and 50 PKs total)
- deliver Bikman's flyers (you have to talk to every NPC in the game)
- bikes races (starting from vol 2)

Those quests are in all volumes, and there are unique rewards (specially for the Mecha Grunty quest) in every volume. There's also an Arena, but it doesn't get much usage after the 1st volume.

>>11832123
I remember you; you were the anon who replied to my post about a month ago regarding .hack. I'm curious about that anon's suggestion because it does feel like the original four games could have benefited greatly from a PC port. You have to go through a lot of tedious menu cycling just to issue commands to your non controllable party members.

>>11831445
Latin prefixes are significantly more recognizable than Greek, anon.

>>11831434
>It's an MMORPG simulation, grinding is part of the RP in this RPG

"It's not supposed to be fun" does not elevate it to high art, it simply makes the unfun game unforgivable. Early MMOs were not fun to play, only a way to socialize online before social media took over. A single player game aping that same gameplay loses the only part that remotely made it worth suffering through.

>>11832174
Right, that's always the hard thing to keep in mind. A lot of the monotonous side content was there to tide you over while waiting for the next volume. They weren't released all at once, so to play them back to back isn't exactly as it was intended. Wether that's a good excuse for the content that is available is up in the air.
>>11832236
Seems to me like you'd almost need something closer to a remake than a remaster/pc port at that point, problem is that these really aren't the sort of games to get remade or remastered. They're in a weird spot for most I think because even though there is either the nostalgia or sentimental value, they just aren't good games. The story is heavily reliant on external material, the gameplay (while I ended up liking it more than GU's) gets monotonous quick and is heavily reliant on menu surfing like you brought up, about the only thing it had going for it was just the premise, ost, and atmosphere. Also, the eng dub gets a special mention for being genuinely good. Heck, the majority of the final games play time was meant to come from core farming and if it was remastered they'd probably just give them to you... which, would still be a good thing.

If we were in a better era for gaming, I think I'd rather they just try their hand at another .hack series. Its annoying because, like I said, the premise for these games and the animes is so good but they can just never stick the landing. Feels like after GU though it would have gotten more over the top rather than the sort of reserved nature that IMOQ had. There was almost a light horror element to the IMOQ games that was lost in what followed, though I think they tried ro preserve it a bit in the Ihara clips.

Actually, come to think of it, there was a .hack game after GU. Maybe I'll play Link next, though after GU I'm kinda spooked to play more. That series became more of a slog than IMOQ from a purely gameplay perspective.

>>11829221 (OP)
The only reason I'd want a PC remaster is in the hopes someone autistic enough could mod the game(s) to make it good. IMOQ has ideas I love but you couldn't pay to suffer through playing them again. They were so adamant about kickstarting a franchise that they spread their handful of ideas so thinly they might as well not exist.

>>11833076
Link was probably the worst game I've ever completed, it was shocking how bad it was after how much I enjoyed the PS2 games and Little Tail Bronx

>>11833076
LINK sucks. It’s basically a dothack fangame with how many unnecessary characters it has. Yet every battle consists of just you and some jackoff with a supportive ability that you like. It’s hardly an RPG

>>11832376
Nobody can definitely say what is "fun" or not. Some people enjoy grinding (for me it's depends), so I'm sure many people enjoyed .hack.

I mean just look at Runescape

>>11833714
It reminds me of the Tales of Mythology series (also on the PSP), which were games made mostly for fanservice - so you can fight together with your favorite characters.

>>11833779
I think that’s a good analogy. I never made it far into radiant mythology. I can say that LINK has a much better story but RM feels more like an RPG.

>>11833304
>>11833714
I'll just hold off for now then. The completionist in me is screaming to play it, but I'm still recovering from GU's gameplay. For an experiment, in GU I did an entire dungeon late game just pressing the attack button non-stop and nothing else to see if I'd win. Not only did I win, but I almost never got hit. For as monotonous as IMOQ got, GU is almost a million times worse simply for the fact its horribly unengaging outside of maybe the avatar fights which aren't exactly fun either.

It really is wild to speak so badly about something I hold such a sentimental attachment to.

Doesn't .hack have an anime series? I'm not familiar with any .hack, I'm just saying if I were to bother I'd probably watch the anime. These games are no good, from what I understand

>>11834842
Yeah just watch one of the animes like SIGN. It’s also awful but Toonami was all we had and I guess this is all they could get at the time.

>>11835040
Its annoying how something can be so soulful yet still suck.

>>11835040
>Animes

>>11829330
I got through the first three, even did the post-game content for them, but stopped sometime early in the 4th one due to one of the places I needed to go requiring a shitload of virus cores I did not have and I lost will to grind for them.

I do want to finish it someday just for the fuck of it though because I like the concept and story, even if the execution leaves a lot to be desired.

>>11834842
>Doesn't .hack have an anime series?
Several, also manga and IIRC the entire series started out with a novel called AI Buster. In fact, the first four PS2 .hack games were known for coming with two disks. One was the game and another was a DVD that contained an episode of a 4-episode anime that was showing what some other characters were doing in the real world while you was also doing stuff in the game, as well as other extras about the game.

IIRC first came the book, then the first anime .hack//Sign, then the PS2 games (and the 4-episode anime that came with them), and I don't recall what order the other anime and game series came after that. The first set of PS2 games take place shortly after the end of the first anime, you basically start the first game seeing some events that happen after the last episode of the first anime.

>>11835040
>.hack...is it just a game...or something far more dangerous?
Toonami could make the lamest copycat shonen anime seem cool with their promos.

>>11836160
Nevermind, just did a YouTube search and that's from an ad for the game. I'm pretty sure I must have seen the ad on Cartoon Network back in the day. My point still stands.

>>11835474
Oh bro... if you didn't do the core guide through your playthrough you are really in for a rough time. Its a MISERABLE grind in the final games. They legit expected most of the game time to go towards grinding cores and balancing your infection level.

I'm trying to think if it would be worth starting over fresh or suffering through the grind... probably still the grind, but just barely. Quarantine does have a solid ending animation and a couple feelsy parts. Nothing groundbreaking, but it's serviceable enough. More so than part 2 and 3. Just be ready for the horrible core grind and look up some equipment tips. I do not envy you.

I will say though, it is satisfying getting these off the backlog. Less so GU.

>>11836398
>Oh bro... if you didn't do the core guide through your playthrough you are really in for a rough time. Its a MISERABLE grind in the final games.
I played these when they were new, was really into the series. Had them pre-ordered and would pick them up the day they came during breaks between my classes in college before coming home after my last class. I doubt there was a core guide back when I was playing it.

Someday I will finish it...

>>11836487
That's 100% fair. That's basically my story with GU which is why I probably overlooked so many of its flaws back in the day. If it has been that long I'd just replay them with the core guide.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/589682-hack-quarantine-part-4/57855993

This site here is also an invaluable resource:

https://lindz.dothack.org/dothack/infection.php

Earlier I posted a link to an audio where I share some tips, but it basically boils down to:

>make sure you prioritize Elemental Weakness >>> base damage
>try and make sure your team is equipped with a diverse elemental skill set (ie: fire attack on kite, wood attack on black rose, light attack on mia)
>get a ton of antidote or whatever break confusion. If you're fighting mimics use kite as a healer and heal any party member the moment they get confused
>trading is broken so save your junk items that are higher tier, by the next game you can just trade for end game gear right from the beginning
>learn to surf menus

A lot of that is probably just a refresher if you got that far into the series. Still, you sound kinda like I do in the sense that it was a series that was always something I had meant to beat. I finally committed to it and did beat it when I was sick with covid. Its one of those series I'm always glad I committed to.

I've played all of these games but I still don't fully understand the story. What role does the white-haired girl play in the lore? And what's the origin of the game's virtual world?

>>11831434
>PS2 is barely even retro.
and that stops ANYONE?

>>11831445
https://www.oed.com/dictionary/quadrilogy_n?tl=true

It does not need a remake. Just make another game.

>>11836712
The game is just a game.
The girl, Aura, is an artificial construct created to be the Ultimate AI. Her creator leaves her in The World because of the human interactions. The plot of the first series is of another construct, Morganna, that was created solely to oversee Aura's completing. Morganna is trying to stop Aura from being completed, since it would be left without any purpose. Anyway, once Aura wakes up, she kind of coexists with the internet, doing some needed processes behind-the-scenes. Both the game and the internet itself kind of depend on her. The second series (GU) starts because Aura disappeared and CC Corp (creators of the game) want to create another Ultimate AI to help run the game and internet again.

That's pretty much it.

One last thing: there was actually a prototype of The World called Fragment. Do you remember a cutscene with a guy standing in front of a grave right at the start of Liminality? That's the creator of Fragment and Aura.

>>11836745
It seems like the creator of fragment also based Aura off his deceased child? There was also something about his wife as well. The problem with the original series is it's so cryptic and relies so heavily on external anime and LN to tell its story.

>>11836783
No, he never had any children. He tried to create an ideal daughter inside the computer world. What happened was that after creating Fragment, he created some sort of black box (incomplete Aura) that was necessary to run The World. He never told anyone what was inside the black box. CC Corp knew there was a black box, but not what was inside.

He actually had a niece that appears in one of the novels, but she has nothing to do with Aura.

>>11836783
>The problem with the original series is it's so cryptic and relies so heavily on external anime and LN to tell its story.
this is exactly what they wanted. it was a media franchise in full swing.

>remaster begging for a game that's perfectly fine as it is
>wants m&kb controls on a fucking console game
Yup, it's zoomer time.

What's with zoomers begging for remasters for every single fucking game

>>11836991
You sure? I could have sworn in IMOQ it talked about his wife and daughter at one point with allusions to her dying. There was also that weird bit at the tail end where you hear a baby being born.
>>11837102
Oh, I'm sure it is. At the time it was a completely unique concept for an IP. I think ultimately it suffered from XV syndrome where they split up the story so much that if you experience any bit of it without the others context its extremely disjointed and cryptic. GU tried to divorce itself from this with only an external anime.

I do wonder if IMOQ's story would have been better if I had all the external context. By the time I played them it had been years since I watched the anime ans read the LN's so I pretty much forgot all of it.

>>11837252
They are scared of emulation because it's a legal gray area
This is the same generation that have censored themselves from saying the word ASS in real life because Tiktok doesn't let them

Fucking Lysol generation

>>11838090
>You sure? I could have sworn in IMOQ it talked about his wife and daughter at one point with allusions to her dying.
No, Harald (creator of Fragment) was never married to Emma (author of Epitaph of Twilight ). He just loved her deeply. It's never confirmed either of them died, just that Emma disappeared and Harald did the same soon afterwards.

>>11838145
Oooh, okay. Like I said, so cryptic it seems I made up an entire alternative story. I thought Aura was based on his deceased daughter and Emma was his wife. That after the loss of one of them (or both) be became disillusioned and created both Aura but also placed a virus in The World that would test humanities worthiness (or something like that).

>>11838231
Also, any idea what that baby cry was at the ending or was it just some weird, cryptic symbolism. The theme of birth obviously had a huge part in the story

>>11829680
bot post