Someone here said that I should play more because the game "picks up"... And yeah, I can buy that, I'm just wondering, is it good game design nowadays to make games that are deliberately dull in the beginning just so it can seem good when they get better later? Isn't it better to have a game that's just overall good? :s

Therein lies the problem. Abyss's start itself is dull because there not too much plot and Luke really isnt very likeable at the beginning(I'm guessing the main reason you didn't like Abyss is because of how Luke acts). A main whole of the plot is the extreme character development of Luke and how it effects Luke and the other charcters. To that end they made the begginning rather dull, I think they could have done it a better way but in the end Abyss ends up being a good game so I really dont care abotut he rather dull begginning anymore.

I honestly think that you should pick it up and play againwonce you hit the good parts(especially after Azukerith) I'm sure you'll end up liking the charcters and the plot.

I you really don´t like Luke, then I don´t understand how you have Dissidia Tidus as an avatar. Tidus has similar weaknesses to Luke in the beginning. Both games start similarly the same, but Abyss has the most groundbreaking changes of the main character, in fact I can´t think of any other jRPG where the main character matures and becomes so responsible.

What's with all these assumptions? I never said I didn't like Luke, in fact, I like him quite a bit.

Well it seems therein lies the problem, the game isn't for you. I'm guessing you are of a younger generation? Abyss isn't deliberately dull, this is the pacing of the game, newer generations don't enjoy slower paced entertainment.

By your bolded assumption, you would say Wall E is only good because the beggining is slow and boring and picks up after. No Wall E is a fantastic movie and the slow pace in the beggining is beautiful and artistically carried out. Wall E actually scores higher on Metacritic than The Dark Knight and deserves to. It has more depth and is more solid, but Dark Knight still makes more money and is more popular because of it's fast action.

The same can be seen in Simpsons versus Family Guy, Simpsons pacing is slower with less jokes and more thought out ideas. Family Guy is fast slapstick comedy, a style more popular today, but not necessarily better.

I think you should retry Abyss and try to understand the themes and pace, (don't force yourself if you really don't like it) but just give it another chance because it's an amazing game that can broaden your horizons and expand your mind. (Did I just say you can learn from a video game...)

Basically what I'm trying to explain is that you need to look at the whole part of the game and not bits and parts of it. See how these bits and pieces all fit in together and how it makes the story better. Take a step back, stop looking at the pixels and see the entire picture in it's beauty.

AGAIN, what is with all these assumptions?! I don't know what you mean precisely by "newer generation", but if you mean SNES-generation then yeah, that's where I'm from. Actually, NES-generation even (Never had one, but played some at my friends' house). I know of pacing, and I know very well games tend to start out slower (well, most good games), but this isn't the case here. I think that Abyss is dull in the beginning, not "slow".

i'll second this

Majin I specifically said I'm guessing, yes to a degree I am assuming but I'm still giving the reason of doubt that you might not be. There's still little to no information on what you think is dull. People are assuming because you don't give us much information. If the majority on this thread are assuming something than it's most likely not a problem with us but with your post content.

So please help us help you, do you find characters dull, story dull, graphics dull, gameplay dull, voice acting dull (it is). We need more details and specifics and until you give them to us we can only assume by what you post. Even when you say what you find dull tell us how you find this specific area to be dull, this thread is 3 pages long and all we've figured out is that you do like Luke, and you find the game dull. example, "I find the story in Abyss dull because of it's generic and cliche nature, the characters feel lifeless and this idea has been overdone to death." Give us something like that!

Sorry Grahamhsu, I'll try and be more clear.

Well, first off, I definitely think the graphics are dull. I think the overworld looks so empty, and while Symphonia had it's own style I feel like Abyss does not. However, I don't care so much about graphics, so it's not a big issue for me regardless.

As I said in my first post, the load times really tick me off. Sometimes it takes like 20 seconds of loading for it to just save my game or something.

The story... I have a feeling I'd like the story more if I got into it more. The beginning of it is alright, but nothing spectacular. I was intrigued that they had some gang of villains, and even though it's somewhat cliche that doesn't really bother me.

As for the characters, I like Luke and Guy, but most of the others I either just don't really care about or they really annoy me. Examples of characters I find annoying are that little weird creature that Luke constantly tells to shut up, and that little girl who's in love with Luke.

The music doesn't grip me like Symphonia did. There's nothing inherently wrong with it, I just don't get the same feeling I did from some of the tracks in Tales of Symphonia.

The enviroments don't really catch me as interesting, and the villages feel like pretty generic places in general while I got a specific feeling from each location with Symphonia... It's hard to explain. It was like when I played Tales of Symphonia, even though I'd never touched it before, it quickly gave me a sense of comfort and familiarity, while Abyss just feels cold and distant. I guess.

^That's understandable colors in Symphonia are more vibrant and the game in general is much more upbeat. I agree load times can be long but usually I multi-task while I play so I don't really sit around and wait for the load.

How far into the story are you, there's a twist in the story that just shocked me. The ending of Abyss contains a lot of controversy as well. I remember when I finished there were huge debates about the ending.

I was annoyed by the little girl as well, but in most RPGs I don't pay attention to side casts much (this is why I didn't understand the Yuffie obsession in FF7). Most of my attention in Abyss was focused on Luke and Tear's development, which I felt was really well done.

As for the music I don't have much to say, in general when it comes to music in games, or in the car I actually don't listen, I just hear the music. (As a music major, when I listen to music I figure it out structurally, harmonically, and when I hear it's just background noise to me.) Only Mario Galaxy has really ever caught my ear to the music because it pushed the extra edge using a real orchestra.

Anywho from what I've read from your post above I think I can safely recommend you to pick up Tales of Vesperia or at least rent it. Vesperia's world from what I've played so far is extremely colorful and interactive, and the cast of characters is quite interesting. It'd also be nice if you would tell me your thoughts on Vesperia if you ever do try it out, so I can beat myself up or say hey I did a good deed for the month. =)