AMAZING RPG for PS1 | Star Ocean: The Second Story | Star Ocean Retrospective 

My dad bought this for me as a present, even though I had never heard of it and didn't ask for it. It's hands-down one of my favorite games from my childhood.

I have memories of playing this game til 3 a.m. on hot summer nights with the breeze blowing through the window, oddly specific but I didn't have a care in the world back then. Great video!

I've probably played through this game 20+ times. Easily my second favorite RPG of all time, following Suikoden 2.

And 3 years later we got a remake of this one available in a few months.

The remake has been announced recently. And the good news is that it is given the HD-2D treatment (or the Octopath Traveler treatment to be specific). I'm not joking here.

I often joke to my friends that Star Ocean 2 is the best Star Trek game ever made. On that note, Galaxy Quest is the best Star Trek movie ever made! lol But seriously, SO2 is my #1 favorite game of all-time. It's a special game that deserves more love. Thanks for making a great video! Is it weird that I still scrounge around for videos about this game 20+ years later?

“Except Opera” WHAAAA? She was my favorite! That flamethrower attack was so ridiculous

Great review I love this game it brings back so many memories. I’m gutted to see your no longer uploading, you make really good content

You successfully talked about why this game is one of my favorite RPGs of all time. Now I’m sad that I don’t have a way to play it. Awesome job buddy!

This is one of my favorite games of all time. So excited for the remake. This is a great video. Thanks for posting! 🤗

I may be a couple of years late but just wanted to say this is my favorite JRPG of all time, and I've played all of the major and some unknown titles. One last thing, Opera has literally 3 of the best skills in the game and my favorite character in the entire series, just saying.

Already played a million times. Now im gonna wait for Second Evolution R.

Great review! It's been a decade since I played it and you've reeeeeally inspired a want for me to go back and replay :)

Yeah I remember a little of it. But it's been so long. One day I have to play it again. You did a great job too

It's absolutely amazing to see a truly in depth review of this done so well, but it's also a great treat to watch someone experience it for the first time like this. I say that because at this point in my life (I've been playing this game once a year for almost 20 years haha) I can do it with my eyes closed, so your fresh perspective rocks. My favorite part was your incredibly honest reaction at the end of "Its just fucking amazing!" Which to me sums it up perfectly. Hard to believe what this company pulled off without "Final Fantasy" money. Incredible video and very thorough review, and like I said, brother keep it up. Your videos and commentary are on par with dudes like Completionist for example, but with so much more genuine honesty and excitement for the games and thier mechanics. I CAN'T WAIT for this Blue Sphere review, never played it and am so curious!

Great review! I was a little skeptical when you were giving a play-by-play of the plot at first, but loved how it was only used as an introduction to SO2 while explaining everything else in your 2nd half of the video without spoiling too much. Though I'd say that the psp version is the definitive version of SO2 because of the redone translation, new voice actors, overhauling text dumps to concise animation cutscenes, and new and improved attack battle animations. Despite that. Id say that the ps1 is still good as well. Anyways, I've been looking for new channels to subscribe to and I usually search for reviews of my favorite games. Glad to say that you've earned my sub and looking forward to seeing future videos!

"Opera just sucks." Blasphemy! Opera wasn't as good as some other characters, but her Alpha on One killer move was one of the best in the game as it was a multi hit move that was fire and forget, and she was the absolute best fighter for engaging flying enemies because she just shot them without having to leap around. She's also the only fighter character with a whole-party heal.

I enjoy Motoi Sakuraba. He also did most of the Shining series soundtracks, and is doing part of the upcoming Eiyuden Chronicle. I can understand if you're a younger player and/or didn't play classic JRPGs, but anyone that played JRPGs up through at least around the mid-00s would have known him.

Great review of my favorite game of all time!

Easily my favorite in the series. Nothing since has been able to recapture that magic. Well, except First Departure, but that was SO1 done in the style of SO2.

2nd story is one of the best jrpg of the playstation era and also one of the most underrated. I've probably replayed this game more than any other jrpgs ever made. My fav team was claude, dias, ashton, and rena because three of them can wear the best weapons in the game.

One of my favourite games of all time. Bought it on boxing day in 2001 with some money I got from my grandma as a Christmas gift. Put fucking hundreds of hours into it over the school holidays.

Woah I really thought you had thousands of subscribers. The quality of your review was incredible. I'm looking forward to that review of Blue Sphere!

I've just beaten The Divine Force all the way up to Ethereal Queen, and while the game overall feels really good, Star Ocean: The Second Story is still the high point for me.

Just got a ps1 and a copy of this. Im gonna dive in on my next day off

With the combat there is an automatic mode without the targeting, and you can move freely without holding square. With the party system you can choose both Noel and Chisato if you have enough space for both of them.

Oh god. So many hours on this game. So many late nights and early mornings.

You can push the analog button on the dual shock to use the analog stick.

I love this game so much. It's like a JRPG ate a low budget movie. The PAL version had analogue control. It must've been added to that version along with being able to hold X to speed up item creation. Also the "Claude has increased" text had the words "a level" added to the end, but it would still say "Claude has 2 increased a level" if he gained more than one :P

This is the game that really got me into jrpgs

A fun view. It's Analog Controller Compatible, it's even listed on the back of the case. ))

This game is truly a masterpiece. I believe that if it got the same media and marketing attention that ffvii got, peoples jrpg would have this in the top 3 every time. The real beauty of this game is definitely not attainable in 1 playthrough, but 3. I have defeated the Iselia queen on universe and made my peace with this game. That being said, it is always on my pc and my hard copy and strategy guide always sit out in my game case. There is an ocean of stars to enjoy in this, few people have really seen it all! Love your review. Like and sub just for showing this legend such love.

Fun bit. You can actually recruit chisato and Noel on the same play through as long as you have two open slots

Great video

It is actually beneficial to have as few talents as possible. There are some exceptions though. Celine cannot learn the love of animals talent. She does however a very, very, very slim chance of having it from the start. Some talents can never be acquired by some characters (specifically, blessing of mana for non-magic users). For all other learnable talents, you gain bonus skill points after acquiring talents.

THIS IS AN ABSOLUTE FINAL FANTASY AND XENOGEARS MURDERER! My best RPG during my Teenage years!

You can set it to where you can run freely without holding Square and get rid of the target system. Love this game so much.

This ain't a hidden gem. Star Ocean as a whole series is so popular!

ive mastered this game and have no one to share it with thanks for the video

I can't wait for your Blue sphere review

I found star ocean 2 in a shoebox in a burnt down abandoned house when I was a kid. At this time I was new to gaming, had only played FF8,7, and maybe 9 but I think finding SO2 happened before FF9 cane out. My older sis brought over her BFs ps1 and FF8 was one of the games and I fell in love with RPGs. But SO2 was SO BAD when I first played it.. the art style, the different tone of the story, the battle system! WTF THIS ISNT FINAL FANTASY! (I also got FF Tactics and HATED IT at first due to not being like FF78&9) well needless to say my budding tastes in games grew after a bit and I went back to SO2 and fell in love hard. I consider it one of my favorite RPGs and it is likely the RPG I have played through the most. After beating SO2 I even went back to FFT and appreciated it for what it was and fully recognize it as a masterpiece. Any I’m rambling, love this game. Love it love it love it.

I just hit play... Brother, if you remember my comments on your last Star Ocean video I can't tell you how excited I am. Prolly my most anticipated visual media (besides Star Trek Picard) of the last few months! I'll be back after the video for my comments!

wooowwwww memories! thanks for the video !i remember the ancient days long before game faqs and stuff i went to EBXat the mall a and asked if there was a strategy guide for it the cashier asked me if i had the bandit gloves and i said no he told me to come back the next weekend and hed have a gifyt for me as we both loved jrpgsand regulasrly geeked out about them the next weekend i came back and he gave me a pocket notebook with all the instructions in pencil as well as random tips from other games like ogre battlewehich was amazing!!!he also asked me if i had done any of thePAs in the game i said no and he suggested a restarti did and never got ashton again he had no clue how to get him what a neat game at a neat time!

I was getting nostalgic for this game and this video was just what I needed.

Whoever is watching this in 2024, Second Story R dropped for multiple platforms late 2023 and it's great!

I’m actually streaming through this game now after finishing the first one and I gotta say, it’s amazing and I’m mad I didn’t play it sooner.

Dungeon crawling made simple: learn specialty FAMILIAR. Allows you to call a eagle, while in dungeon, to do a door dash on items for you! Also, who knows of the combo magic skills???

I always figured they called it the 2nd story cause they were going to port the first game to PS1, you know if this one sold well. Like how the Final Fantasy series was constantly porting itself.

My best all-time PSX favourite

Two things that would've made your experience better: 1. Pressing the center button on PS1/2 controllers would've turn the analogs on; enabling you to free run. 2. You could've changed battle setting to auto target the enemy nearest to make combat more seamless. Source: I own the game.

Still my favorite video game. I prefer the remake now, but I avoid using the new 3-hit combo cause it invalidates a bunch of killer moves. Opera doesn't suck, but she requires a lot of work. She needs alpha on one and a bunch of metalwork for her extra moves. She's the best in the game against airborne enemies. Her normal attack is just shooting them. Getting her secret healing star up in proficiency breaks the game. If heals 4995 at max proficiency, pauses the fight like a spell, and heals everyone. She opens up the battle party for 4 melee fighters while relying on items for status effects. It's a little silly

The music and OST of this game surpassed all other Star Oceans. I'm serious.

Just dropped in because I couldn't believe someone called this a "Hidden" Gem.

This game has some of my favorite videogames music

You can use your analog stick I used to set up Auto fighting and outo healing and leave my PlayStation running get two rubber bands to hold the analog sticks running around doing circles in the world map and level up like 30 50 times when I would come back from school

Does anyone know where I can find the audio sound bytes that used to be off the screen straight from the main menu? Is there any resource online that has them all available? I specifically want the "Spicule" and "Ohh it's hot" sound byte. There are videos online of people fighting them and him saying it, but there is music in the background. I was to use that in a song. I'm a music producer.

Warrior of light....EVERYONE LOOKS AT ASHTON

If you play this then you would know about Valkyrie profile. They came out the same timesnd botrhare still great classics to play

I absolutely love this game

I try to get as much use out of the phase gun before it breaks.

Hell yea this shit was dope bro 🙌 u got my follow

Oh... the memories of item crafting in this game. Me, sitting in front of the TV, mesmerized by the 3D animation of the item transforming before my very eyes. Then shouting in agony as i received the junk decoration for the 10th time in a row. Its disappointing they removed this 3D items look in the PSP remake. I hope they upscale it and bring it back in an HD remaster....

Ashton is my fav char in this game, also favorite to play as

Were you playing on an emulator? Was wondering if your controller was not mapped correctly because I remember using the analog stick to move in this game.

I didn't mind that the AI didn't use items, I would get PO'd if they used one I would have preferred to save & perhaps thats what the designers also felt. Maybe adding a "use items" off/on option in the strategy windows would have been good. On Skills, relatively early on there is a skill that increases the speed and efficiency of leveling up other skill points. I don't remember clearly what its called but its bought 3 or 4 towns in I think. Suggest looking it up. I was a bit discouraged the first time I played through when I realized that the skills I took lots of time to grind up, could have done the same in less than half the time! Get that skill, level it to 10 ASAP, THEN bother with leveling up other stuff.

15:48 I think its 80% chance to cure and 20 to fail.

This is my favourite rpg! And my second favourite game! First being patapon

Imo best soundtrack of any game!

Do you think they will port this to the switch?

i always pick rena so i can get dias as a character lol

...good job

I don't know why your controller sticks didn't work with your setup, but this game definitely supports it. I spent way too much time playing this game. Were you playing on an emulator?

if you didn't get Ashton, it's because you took Opera. that's one of those either/or choices.

A reviewer who swears? Subscribed!!!!!!!

One of my favorite JRPG of all time but it sure buries the first few hours of the game with unskippable dialogue.

What was that arpeggio at the beginning lol a straight ff rip for sure

Found this three years after you posted but needed to let you know that Opera is the best character in the game, she literally allows you to break the game and never take any damage.

This game and breath of fire 3 and ff9 and ff tactics my all time favorites

Funny how PS1 was the best console for RPGs for about 20 years, but now it's dethroned by the SNES, when you count the huge library of translated games.

I played it on the emulator and even with the help of state saves couldn't beat the final boss. Then I said to myself: "Screw this! I know the game has like 99 endings and want to see which one I would get, but I will just watch one on RU-vid".

My favorite along with ff7 at the time. Memories 😊

EnSign 😮

I bought and this game when I was younger like to again if I can get the game since all I have these days is the ps4 and switch

I need this game so bad🥲can I download it on pc? Please advise

Ah jams quarterly video 😂😂😂

17:16 "After getting her, I went to do all the private actions I could with her..." - Uh-huh... 😏

BEST GAME

Just bought a complete copy of this game for 35 bucks. Hope it's worth it.

Not really a hidden gem...it was already known as one of the best

I love star ocean 3 but i have to admit after this game tri ace have been trying to reinvent the wheel since 2nd story and havent been able to since, still better off than the tales series in my opinion tho even integrity and faithlessness was better than zesteria and arise thats how far tales has fallen in comparison.

I lost this, Legend of Mana, and Dragon Warrior 7 to an evil ex. I should have never traded in old games or let people borrow them.

this game was designed before the analog dualshock was part of the markets.

It has analog stick controls and WHO THE F doesn't play on full active mode?????

Boooo!! Play it again with Rena