Rumor: Lost Odyssey sequels on the way

by Scott Jon Siegel { Feb 29th 2008 at 10:30AM }

Will the epic Japanese RPG Lost Odyssey be a one-off piece of gaming history, or is the title destined for franchising and perennial iterations? As much as we wish it were the former, a brief quote from a Microsoft exec suggests that the "odyssey" may only be getting started.

Speaking with the executive officer for Microsoft Japan's Home & Entertainment division, Nikkei Trendy reports that the company is pleased with the sales of Lost Odyssey, and expects the popularity of the "series" to grow over time. While this could very well be a miscommunication, it's certainly logical to assume that Microsoft would want to extend the life of one the 360's few JRPGs.

[Via ALLRPG]

Tags: lost-odyssey, microsoft, mistwalker, sequelitis

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

DMeisterJ @ Feb 29th 2008 10:34AM

I hope not, I don't really like the game too much...

That said, it is an okay game.

a.j. @ Feb 29th 2008 11:10AM

i'm staying in because it sucks outside, but it's pretty nice out.

Alienhead @ Feb 29th 2008 12:48PM

A true gaming retard.

DMeisterJ @ Feb 29th 2008 1:03PM

Harsh much?

Lots of okay games shouldn't have sequels. Just because a game doesn't suck, doesn't mean you want more of it. Case in point, Dynasty Warriors. The games aren't bad on their own merit, just that it does nothing new. And Lost Odyssey already hasn't done something new, that a sequel would just be more derivative.

AvelaTT @ Mar 1st 2008 5:01PM

Why is it that everyone nowadays equates innovation with enjoyment? OK, there's not much if anything new in Lost Odyssey, but that doesn't mean it's not an enjoyable game with a deep story and a system that we're all comfortable with. I've already ended the game twice with all 1000 points and I still find it enjoyable.

People need to relax and just enjoy things instead of criticizing something just because someone else had a bad opinion of it.

samfish @ Feb 29th 2008 10:35AM

Well, the first Mega Man game was a flop, I remember reading, so I guess it can't hurt to give this game one more shot, at least.

Princess Skittles @ Feb 29th 2008 10:38AM

Awesome game, I will get the sequels.

deaftly @ Feb 29th 2008 10:39AM

Lost Odyssey is like a better FFX, which in my book is just awesome.

Intentless @ Feb 29th 2008 12:55PM

Doesn't take much to be better than FFX....

Jerk Face @ Feb 29th 2008 10:47AM

Harsh! This game is certainly not terrible. I think a sequel could be a welcome addition to the 360's library.

NATO_Duke @ Feb 29th 2008 12:05PM

Yeah agreed. I like the game, though i have a ways to go in it. That said, I seem to recall them saying a long time ago that this was to be a series.

Pureshooter @ Feb 29th 2008 12:16PM

I'm with Jerk Face. I've heard great things about the game from friends and it has gotten some good reviews as well. The worst thing about it seems to be the load times, but if you're playing an "epic" RPG you shouldn't be making other plans anyway.

FidliousWong (Oatmeal Defense Force) @ Feb 29th 2008 12:40PM

I've only had load times destroy two RPGs for me.

The first is KOTOR. But that's primarily because I'm not too keen on western RPGs most of the time anyway and the unbearable up to 2 minute sectional load times drive me insane. Of course most of my distaste for western RPGs is they come sooo close to table top gaming without giving you the sheer choice of doing anything you want. I'm always Chaotic Evil... they are fun. So if a drawf decides to make racists comments about Half-Orcs... my barbarian tends to light his beard on fire... None of my DMs like this aspect of my characters. Prolly the reason why I haven't played in years...

The second was Skies of Arcadia on Dreamcast. Load loads and excessively high encounter rate drove me up the wall on that one. Couldn't do it.

Pureshooter @ Feb 29th 2008 12:50PM

Skies was great, but those load times were definitely tedious.

Morrowind almost did it for me. Those load times were horrific.

FidliousWong (Oatmeal Defense Force) @ Feb 29th 2008 12:58PM

I gave Morrowind a shot (came with my video card), but nothing about the First Person Slasher with Story does it for me. Possibly because I was five hours in and still lost.

You get off the boat, you get your freedom, you wander a town filled with 200+ people that have 14 different conversations with no indication of who is who, and you just amble about until you stumble into some story. Then you proceed to get lost again....

But I killed a frog in the forest... so I'm proud of that at least...

AwesomeStuff @ Feb 29th 2008 4:09PM

Anyone who downplays Skies deserves a bat to the mouth. That game is what dreams are made of....full WIN. THATS a game sequel I would wait outside launch day for...well, maybe not wait outside (because its cold out now..) but ya know what I mean.

Dustin @ Feb 29th 2008 10:49AM

Haven't played it yet, but plan on spending some time with it as soon as I ever get myself to finish Mass Effect (yeah... still playing it, so what?)

Imagine if LO turned out to be a trilogy or something... they could advertise how many hundreds of hours of gameplay you would spend on it, but then in fine print make a footnote about how many of those hours would be spent reading text.

Rubix42 @ Feb 29th 2008 10:55AM

I hate that Lost Odyssey catches so much flak from the community. It is by far one of the best laid out JRPG's in a long time.

I think so many people want the "new fancy feature X" in games these days that they have a hard time accepting "extremely polished, ain't broke don't fix it" games that are pulled off well.

The reviews of this game were downright terrible, and fall into this in every way. Almost every single reviewer bashed the game for being old fashioned, which is a design decision. In actuality I have yet to meet a JRPG fan that does not enjoy the game. People need to realize that not every developer feels the need to bow to gaming trends by mixing genres unsuccessfully.

Princess Skittles @ Feb 29th 2008 11:00AM

Face it, if the game had been called Final Fantasy: Lost Odyssey, it would have gotten 9s across the board except for "that guy" that gives it a 6 at a desperate grab at attention for his little web site.

ViagraFiend @ Feb 29th 2008 11:03AM

I was really going to pick this up and have heard mixed reviews. Some of my favorite games are FFVII, Phantasy Star IV and the like. Is this game in that style or what? I'd buy it, but there are too many games to waste my time and money on one that isn't good.

Van Faulk @ Feb 29th 2008 11:16AM

What i find funny is that people are all bitching about how "old fashioned it is" (even though I say it is too modern, as the lack of overworld pisses me off) would pay 60 bucks for a remake of FF7 with LO graphics and voice acting. And it would almost certainly get 9s.

FidliousWong (Oatmeal Defense Force) @ Feb 29th 2008 11:18AM

The reviewing industry as a whole spends so much time bitching about needing something new each and everytime. I think the only recent game not to get widely attacked in this regard was Uncharted... and Yahtzee made up for that by invoking Godwin's Law.

Personally, I want to play this, I'm just waiting for the Jaspers.. then I have to catch up on games I didn't get to play (or finish... GRRR!).

FidliousWong (Oatmeal Defense Force) @ Feb 29th 2008 11:21AM

Faulk, what I find funny is how many overly elaborate fictional scenarios you make up on a daily basis to argue your point.

Most JRPG fans have been drooling over this, Eterna Sonata, and Tales of Vespiera as well as the possibility of FFVII:Remake. Seriously, quit making up these scenarios.

Derick @ Feb 29th 2008 12:42PM

I bought it with the intention of tiding me over until FFXIII came out and I loved it. I will be replaying it at least one more time. It fits well if you are a final fantasy fanatic and you can definately tell that it has the minds behind some of the better FFs.

Now if only Square would take notes about character design, although at least with FFXIII they decided to make the lead an ACTUAL woman, and not a girl with a guys name. I think that Lightning (shudders) has more balls than all of the leads, since Squall, put together. I guess after all of the girly-men posing as leads in the Final Fantasy games I wasnt expecting Kaim to be so... cool? He has Squall's mannerisms down well.

LiK @ Feb 29th 2008 10:56AM

i hope so, i love this game. more more more~

Vegeta (aka Ska Oreo) @ Feb 29th 2008 11:02AM

this is good, and since Lost Odyssey is actually doing well on the 360, perhaps will see some more Jrpgs on the console.

Erwos @ Feb 29th 2008 11:04AM

I love how the 360 is always as having "few JRPGs", when it has more than any other current-gen console.

xFenixKnightx @ Feb 29th 2008 11:05AM

I see alot of people on my friendslist playing it so guess its popular. Wonder what the sales numbers are so far. It certainly is a beautiful game thats for sure.

lanky @ Feb 29th 2008 11:23AM

http://vgchartz.com/games/game.php?id=7637

250k worldwide. Ain't bad, but not entirely impressive.

xFenixKnightx @ Feb 29th 2008 11:47AM

Thanks, yea thats not too bad. For a new IP which is a JRPG I think its decent. C'mon Japan, guess if its not FF then they dont like...

FidliousWong (Oatmeal Defense Force) @ Feb 29th 2008 11:39AM

250,000 for a hardcore JRPG, especially on 360, is a triumph. Don't sell it short.

xFenixKnightx @ Feb 29th 2008 11:41AM

Thanks, its not so bad considering its a new IP of a JRPG. Who knows this could slowly turn into another greta franchise for 360.

NATO_Duke @ Feb 29th 2008 12:15PM

Yeah Fenix, its pretty fun - just hard to find the time to devote to it as you cant play it for 30 minutes and walk away having done much.

imnotshyjustquiet @ Feb 29th 2008 11:07AM

I'm glad they are going to keep the story going.

Lost Odyssey is not a perfect game, but it isn't as bad as it has been made out to be by the critics. It is often lyrical, funny and very entertaining. And it's a long journey from start to finish, which I like very much. Full of mazes and the like, it isn't for everyone. I happen to like relaxing with this game after a long tension-filled day.

I think it will remain as one of those IPs that you either love or hate...how wonderful we get some diversity in gaming styles and content. We need more of it. I mean, how many "war" games can they possibly create that will not be derivative / repetitive.

anjelic_alex @ Feb 29th 2008 11:16AM

I picked up this game the other day. In the first 40 minutes, it felt like there was maybe 10-15 minutes of actual gameplay.

Fixed camera angles and random battles all scream 'last gen' and 'poor functionality' to me. Why is it almost every JRPG does this? Is it so hard to make the camera move around so I can see my surroundings? Or for me to see my enemies instead of randomly running into them on a seemingly barren landscape?

I love how people will excuse this as "if it ain't broke don't fix it", when they really just cling to the system because their fav JRPG of old used that system 10 years ago. Nostalgia dosn't make for great gameplay.

samfish @ Feb 29th 2008 11:20AM

Or maybe people just have different taste than you do..?

Derick @ Feb 29th 2008 12:49PM

I love fixed camera angles... and I dont know why.

I got hooked on them back in Resident Evil, the original, and imo the best.

As for random encounters. Im a bit torn on that. I like it becuase it stops people from getting places they arent a high enough level for, but I dont like for the same reason.

Baligouxji @ Feb 29th 2008 11:18AM

*sigh* It seems like no one quite understands traditional JRPGs. Not every RPG needs a real time, completely controled, pseudo action style combat system. If you want that then play a real action game. LO is an amazingly well done RPG, and I'm glad most people are ignoring the reviews.

tmacairjordan87 @ Feb 29th 2008 1:04PM

i think all that people are asking for is not to be put to sleep by a video game, that's all.

Monthenor @ Feb 29th 2008 11:22AM

I think Microsoft just realized the franchising potential of a truly immortal lead character.

anjelic_alex @ Feb 29th 2008 11:26AM

By all means, have different tastes. Dosn't change the fact tha there are elements that detract from the actual gameplay that never seems to change in JRPGs. I can deal with random battles, and turn based games. A minor annoyance, but when done right can be enjoyable. Eternal Sonata was turn based and very fun.

Lets take the fixed camera angles. No excuse for that. How is not being able to move around [or having extremly limited movement] going to help the player at all? You ent up fustrated cause you can't see what you need to see, and may end up missing certain elements entirely!

It just seems to me that people cling to these outdated methods because like I said before, their favourite game did it way back when, and people don't like change.
When I worked in a game store and FF12 came out, you had no idea how many people were bitching about the new battle system. I played that game and enjoyed the battle system. It seemed to me their comments were just fueled by "its not like all the other FF's!" whining.

jojo biscuits @ Feb 29th 2008 11:56AM

"It's not like other FF's" is not whining, but a valid concern. When Square chooses to extend a series rather than start a new franchise, they have to take certain gameplay and look/feel considerations into question. When a new game in a series launches, it can be rightfully assumed that certain characteristics will be carried from title to title. Too much deviation from the expected formula may not represent a refreshing change in direction, but rather a break in player expectations and trust.

What if the next Gears was first person or the next Halo was third person? It's the same deal with the Final Fantasy change. The fundamental break from expectation was too severe for some fans.

Nintendo seems to be the most notable exception. That Mario is flexible series...

Ronni3 @ Feb 29th 2008 11:27AM

LO is a well made game. I love that it is very much similar to the older renditions of Final Fantasy. In all honesty, I miss the turned base system. A lot of new RPGs are heading towards realtime combat, like Mass Effect (which is an outstanding game) but I would also like turned based RPGs to make a come back as well. The writing in the "Dream Scenes" are a fabulous read and I definitely encourage people to consider this game instead of dismissing on this basis only. The story really begins to draw you in almost immediately. Take a chance with this game and I guarantee you will not be disappointed, unless of course you are not truly into RPGs. Basically if you were never able to play through FFI for the NES or even FFVII for the PS2 then don't even bother, but you will be missing one of the best JRPGs out right now.

CassilineKnight @ Feb 29th 2008 11:39AM

I'm so glad that I'm NOT the only one who loves this f*cking game...

I'm so down for sequels to this game.

jojo biscuits @ Feb 29th 2008 11:50AM

Lost Odyssey is one of the best games I have played in a long while. Excellent storytelling, incredible voice work and graphics, strong soundtrack and atmosphere, and beautiful gameplay.

It's ranks high on the list of FF, Chrono, and DragonQuest games and represents the direction Square should have taken with the last/next Final Fantasy game.

Mark @ Feb 29th 2008 11:57AM

Cassiline, you're definitely not the only one. About 150k copies sold in the US in 2 weeks? Of a brand new IP that doesn't have to do with blowing stuff up? I'd say that's damn good. I love this game also, it totally changed my mind about Mistwalker after the 'meh' Blue Dragon. A storyline that actually draws you in and makes you care about the people onscreen should be the #1 goal of any RPG, and I think they nailed that pretty well. The beautiful graphics and settings don't hurt too much either though. Bring on the sequels!

Demaar @ Feb 29th 2008 12:16PM

If they do make a sequel, I hope they let the teams go nuts with the gameplay and do something different. Or maybe they should do that with Blue Dragon... I dunno.

Either way, I hope Mistwalker doesn't get bogged down by expectations of a pretty-much-the-same sequel.

umm....hello??? @ Feb 29th 2008 12:33PM

picked this game up last week--am loving it. maybe by the time the sequel comes out I'll have completed this one...am only an 1.5 hours into the game. guess I'll have to cut back on MarioGalaxy/MetroidPrime3/Halo3/CoD4/BurnoutParadise/RockBand...hey, can we get some sucky games for this summer so I have time before Gears of War 2 comes out??

JJ @ Feb 29th 2008 1:21PM

I thought the game was good, not great, but good.

I like the storyline and most of the voice acting, all in all its a very solid game.

I think a sequel would be great, it at least held my attention more than Blue Dragon did.

Personally i'd give the game about a 8 or so.