Luminos564

Oh, so they made the conscious decision to remove it because they got pressed for time and wanted to meet some speedy deadline release? Bull. Fucking. Shit. Remind me again how long it took vanilla CP to get localized? Oh that's right, it was 6 months back then too which also resulted in the Library mode being cut. The last thing anyone over at Arc System Works or Aksys gives a flying dog turd about is getting the game out so that non-JPN/importer players have a localized version to play sooner. If I could wait 6+ months for vanilla CP, full of translation errors and lack of Library mode (hello Tutorial claiming Amane's Drive absorbs opponent's health instead of causing chip damage) and be expected to pay premium then I'd have gladly done the same for CF if it meant having the dub available. "Made a tough decision" my ass. Bet you anything that even IF they get the game out in November (because delays can happen; just ask FFXV) it'll still be loaded with tons of grammatical and translation errors. Xrd SIGN and Revelator are proof enough of that. Because apparently proofreading and spell check are entirely alien concepts over at Strangely Compelling or whoever is in charge. Oh but you want that shiny LE don't ya? Well pay up $100+ even though it no longer has your preferred audio available. Ugh, this whole situation has left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I'm just gonna go and pound away a couple lagers until it goes away.

Except with Atlus you usually know not to expect dual audio in their games, unless they're only publishing it and/or another company is involved in the development process. I can count on my hand the amount of Atlus games I've played that had dual audio as a feature. But BlazBlue is different, it was dual audio from the start for the localization. From the humble beginnings of Calamity Trigger to Chronophantasma Extend, we've always had it. Now all of a sudden Arc System Works decides "Ehhh, nope. No English cast for you"? Especially for a game that signifies an end to a 7 year-spanning tale for one major character? A theoretical Extend version being dual audio might not even work either. Remember, when they do these updated versions, they usually add in even more story content or more characters. Because full-price for a simple balance patch would not only be insane, but nobody would buy it so they need to add in reasons for it to justify the price asked. In addition, as Ogiga pointed out: we have a substantial amount of voiced content. If they could not be arsed to include the dub now, why would they bother with an updated release that would no doubt have even more voiced content? It becomes a situation where an Extend version (which they potentially make for far less) would suddenly cost them just as much as if they were releasing a whole new installment (although this is more of a guess since I obviously do not have access to their budget information). Ultimately it becomes a situation where it plain sucks to not have your preferred audio option available. I switched to perma-English around the time Platinum became a thing because good Lord can I not stand the ear-piercing harpy shrieking she (Luna) does in Japanese. This isn't a point against her Japanese voice actress, Aoi Yuuki, whom I am perfectly willing to listen to elsewhere but I just cannot stand it in BlazBlue. But at the end of the day, now I am at a cross-roads. Do I get the game anyway since I legitimately want to see the conclusion with my own eyes or hold my wallet for a potential Extend edition that has my preferred audio and even more content a year down the line?

Well...this bit of news is a bitter pill to take. I mean, I had my worries when both Patrick Seitz and Christina Vee stated they weren't called in yet, but to hear it straight from the horse's mouth is difficult to accept. I'm with Vulcan on this; Central Fiction is the end entry for Ragna's story. A grand finale of sorts. Up until now we've always had dual audio and for me personally, Ragna just isn't the same without Patrick Seitz's take around for me to listen to. Not having English VAs around this time would just feel "incomplete" for me.

Fun thing about Mai having her personal stage is that it features a pretty bigass skeleton of a long-dead creature. To me it looks like some giant-fawkin'-dragon but that's not important right now. I do find it rather curious how the last 2 ladies revealed (Es and Mai) both had a gigantic creature in their backgrounds. Es has a very much alive Black Beast literally chewing the background scenery and Mai has this huge skeleton just chillin' until it moves when you weren't suspecting and you die another time in Lothric...wait, wrong game. This might be entirely coincidence however, but wouldn't it be cool if they were connected in some way?

Yeah it was kinda inevitable that there would be one more character around since the roster leaves it pretty obvious (Es is located on top of the left half, while the other side is uneven). Half-surprised her 3rd related character isn't Nine though considering what happened in Lost Memories. But then again, there was no mention that this Es is the very same one we came to know in XBlaze either. So I guess now it's just a waiting game to see who's behind the big question mark. Fingers crossed that

Oh don't get me wrong Ogiga, I fully agree that XBlaze's Black Beast is a bit of a farfetched idea. I was merely going on a hypothetical situation where, if the Black Beast cells were utilized to make artificial humans and if Ragna himself was one of their number, then the source of said cells must have come from an origin way before the world started looping. The ultimate question however though would be: what was the actual method of this? It can't have come from a Ragna and Nu-13 fusion, because that had yet to happen. And if it didn't happen at that time, then from whom and where did they get it? But as you said, artificial humans are not exactly new and although the Library recounts the ones made with Black Beast cells, that doesn't rule out potential ones made without them either. Nor do we really know the circumstances in which Ragna could be classified as "artificial" as well. For all we know, once upon a time and before all of BB-verse went to Hell, he might've been just another jolly, regular kid. Might have even cracked a smile while being the big brother to Saya and Jin. Again, we know virtually nothing about who or what he was before being the feared Grim Reaper and his life sucking were a constant in his daily life...repeatedly.

Oh I didn't mean that the samples came from the Black Beast when it showed up and was dealt with by the Azure Shrine Maiden explicitly. Rather, my point was that if Ragna is the artificial entity crafted from the Black Beast cells, then the origin of said cells had to have come from somewhere and for me, XBlaze's Black Beast is the only real primary source. How someone could get their hands on it is anyone's guess, but considering time travel seems to require passing through the Boundary and since that Black Beast is still there...well you get what I am saying, yeah? Of course, that scenario raises even more questions since at the moment, travelling through the Boundary in BlazBlue's timeline is pretty difficult since you need something like the Tsukuyomi unit to do it safely, and even that has adverse effects like memory loss. It's pretty difficult to imagine anyone traveling there and somehow managing to pluck out a sample. Even Kokonoe, arguably one of the most knowledgeable people in both science and magic, can only barely salvage Hakumen from the Edge, let alone something from even deeper within. And that's not even getting into the eggheads who were sending in Boundary Interface units to try and explore it, only to fail miserably and getting Take-mikazuchi to blast them from orbit.

Depends on which Black Beast you're referring to. The most common one to BlazBlue is the resulting fusion between Ragna and Nu-13, which rampages during the Dark War and is inevitably put to rest by the 6 Heroes. But, IIRC there was also another Black Beast. One that was wholly different from that fusion. Now, I know XBlaze isn't technically directly involved with BlazBlue, but seeing as how Es is a part of the tale now and since her original world also had a Black Beast, it might be entirely possible that one such entity was once formed in BB's own universe, had its cells studied and thus these artificial humans were created. The loops only persisted since Ragna and Nu-13 repeatedly fused, thus necessitating each repeat of the Dark War. And now that we know that the 2 mentioned aren't the only way to get it made (Hazama/Terumi and Noel fusing will suffice, as will Arakune after apparently swallowing enough Nox Nyctores weapons or just use Nine's magical method of agony), it does not rule out that maybe someone done really messed up way back before any of these loops took place and made said "original". If Ragna in all iterations is indeed artificial and the necessity of the Beast Cells in his creation is a must, then the source had to have come from somewhere in another point in time. The questions however remain as to "how" and "why". ... Time travel is such shenanigans I tells you.

Ah, the hilarity that is Litchi pouncing on an unsuspecting female victim in a drunken stupor. A longstanding BlazBlue tradition since the days of CT no less. However, as prime a target that Es would likely make in this scenario, I fear I must disagree. Litchi's 1st victim was Noel, who probably would have invoked Mu-12 (ver. Nihilism) prematurely if it weren't for the nearby Liao Jiu willingly sacrificing himself for the greater good. Her 2nd victim was the straight arrow Tsubaki, whom she blackmailed over the loss of some overcooked waterfowl. Her last known victim was Bullet, a drill sergeant and not one to fool around. What do all these 3 ladies have in common? They were all uncomfortable with Ms. Litchi being all touchy-feely with them and their wardrobe. Their overreactions were the payoff. With Es it'd probably go something like this: Litchi: Oh my, what a lovely lady you are. Oh by the Heavens you must try this! (Slaps Mu-12's outfit on Es) Es: Although the garments allow for more flexible range of movement, I feel rather exposed and drafty, thus lowering my combat proficiency. Kindly return to me my original outfit. You see where I am going with this? Es wouldn't even flinch at the idea of getting put into that situation. So I propose that instead of having her around, we toss in Izanami instead . And then have the gag reel go completely overboard because not only will Izanami be really into the whole idea but she'll also freak Litchi out. Thus finally the first 3 victims getting sweet revenge by proxy.

The thought occurs that, since ASW now has to juggle both Guilty Gear and Blazblue, the budget just might not be there for both and thus corners must be cut somewhere. I know they have separate teams (Team Red works on GG and Team Blue on BB), but the money still comes from one source. I don't know if many remember but about 7 years ago, ASW still didn't get the rights to Guilty Gear back so they made Blazblue in order to fill in that 2D fighting void that people relied on SF4 for. But now they have both IPs and both are successes in their own right. However, I suspect that when Blazblue was conceptualized, it was done so on the assumption that they weren't going to get Guilty Gear back and so they poured in as much of a budget as they could and focused on Blazblue instead. Thus leaving them unprepared for when GG was reacquired. Then Xrd SIGN came along, reworked the whole series from the ground up and in the meantime, ASW decided they were going to establish their own North American branch as well. Now this is just my personal speculation and I am likely missing the whole picture. Their lack of communication is not helping matters either, leaving fans to naturally assume the worst. It might also be that they're currently trying to plan out how to handle Es having an English voice (since XBlaze was JPN audio only as well) or it could be that they still haven't gotten to making the schedules for the dub voice actors. Japanese companies tend to have this rather...unprofessional idea that they should only work on localization after the Japanese version is finished and out on Japan store shelves. It doesn't excuse not keeping your fans worldwide in the loop, but it's a possibility of what's currently happening.

In fairness, GG Xrd SIGN's dubbing was...not very good. It was filled with more hit-and-misses than your local baseball team. For every Sean Connery Slayer, we had a gravel-munching Sol. For every Elphelt we had a perma-raspy Venom. For every Zato we got monotone Ramlethal. Which isn't to say it was the VA's fault as chances are the direction is more to blame. For what it's worth, Revelator being Japanese language only at the least provides consistency. Am I sad to see English Elphelt gone? Or that I'll never get to hear Dizzy in English? You bet your Roman Cancel I am. But at the same time, it wasn't that big a deal since I grew up with Guilty Gear back when it had no dubbing done so it was a more easy thing to adjust to. However, Blazblue is another story. That series started with dual audio in the localized versions. To not include it in what is the penultimate chapter for one of the characters is...well, a mighty fine disappointment. I'm sure the game will be great and everything but the story spanned some 7 years already. We've consistently had English dubbing 7 straight years. And now all of a sudden you stop? That's bound to raise a few vocal chords.

Hmm, so basically what we've heard/speculated before is more or less correct: Es is acting as the gatekeeper for the Azure as well as Ragna's potential "guide". Her role as some sort of "Mediator" intrigues me though. Perhaps she's going to be a much more neutral character as opposed to siding with any one faction?

CT are your regular Groundhog Day loops "past events repeat themselves" albeit with varying degrees of change between each one. IIRC, Noel managing to survive the blast is what catapulted the idea that the world could break out of them. Continuum Shift has the cast peering into multiple timelines (or rather, multiple possibilities) from the CT True End starting point. Once more, Noel is the one that plays center stage since she can choose which timeline will be the "canon" one.

In fairness to Tsubaki, Ragna has never actively denied that he is a criminal nor did he ever plead his case to her. Heck, up until Celica came along, he didn't even consider the possibility that he is capable of being a heroic figure or use the powers he was given for anything other than personal vendettas and mass destruction. Oddly enough, even before his character development, he doesn't mind Tsubaki's temperament. As their Act III interaction shows, although he would not allow her to bring him down, he does ultimately appreciate the fact she looks out for Jin. Tsubaki's line in the trailer about not being able to trust him does imply to me that the two were able to somehow form the shakiest of alliances. Or at least, someone convinced her to let him be for the time being. It'd make no sense otherwise. Perhaps Ragna ran his gameplan by her or some such deal and she only got angry once she realized what it entails? We do know Ragna is playing the Wish-Blocker at the BB all-star slamfest but when you consider that it means he now has to stand in the way of everyone's desires (including Jin's whom Tsubaki supports), it's not unusual that she'd be cross with him.

Alrighty yeah, that makes much more sense than what I had sounding in my head. Thanks for that. I kinda hope they become, if not "friends", at least "allies" or come to an understanding. Tsubaki has been going through a character arc of her own and if Act 3 is any indication, she seems to finally be trying to make her own conclusions as opposed to going "Jin-niisama" like a brainwashed cult dolt. But ultimately, I guess we will see when the story mode is out and go from there. I am so spoiling myself in October so damn much.

There's also Ragna doing an epic fist clash with Terumi within what looks like a void where the Azure exists. That's so anime, I just shat out Shonen Jump. Come to think of it, it seems the trailer set-up all the grudge matches that we're likely to expect (or not, since trailers can often lie). But we've got, Ragna vs. Terumi, Tager vs. Bullet, Tsubaki (as Izayoi) vs. Nu-13, Ragna vs. Nine, Kagura and Jin vs. Azrael (Azzu-nyan is a big boy, he can handle it), Valkenhayn vs. Relius and lastly Arakune vs. Litchi (she's crying, so I assume she's finally decided to put down the sentient sludge for good). Last thing of note, either I am hearing things but Tsubaki refers to Ragna as a "King of Death / Death King". It's her first line after Jin says something I cannot even begin to make sense of. Her line goes something like (and I'll apologise for not being able to write kanji out) "Ragna the Bloodedge...yahari anata wa shii'ou dekinai". Though, maybe it's better to wait for someone who knows the language to give out the details.

The more I think about it, the more ASW's decision to exclude the English DUB sounds "sensible". While yes, it does suck that the English VA cast was dropped and it will inevitably cause its fans dismay, certain situations call for drastic measure. I mean, let's be honest: if their decision to include them hinges on the story mode being "complete" and then delaying the game, it would probably have pissed off even more people. Much as I liked certain certain characters in English, I can deal not having them if it means I get the game at the (relatively) same time as the Japanese players. And even though ASW made claim they're not planning on adding an English DUB for Revelator, there's always a chance they can backtrack and include it at some point in time later. Wouldn't be the first time ASW lied/changed their mind on something...

Presumably, he wants the Susano-O unit back. Possibly because Amaterasu is currently "empty" and can no longer issue commands to the Susano-O unit itself (remember, it was tasked with following Amaterasu's commands and Haku-men could only ignore it via Power of SEIGI Order). To do so, he's nabbed that fancy Rubik's Cube thingamabob from Clavis' grave.

Hmmm, on the one hand I will indeed miss the Sean Connery Slayer, Liam's Axl, English May and Elphelt. But on the other hand, I can also say goodbye to gravel-munching Sol, monotone Erin Fitzgerald Ramlethal and perma-head cold Venom. The rest were either forgettable or just "serviceable" to me. But still, that's quite a bit of English VA talent to drop. Kinda would have liked to see if they got better as the series went along but alas. Then again, they could always add them back in once the whole story mode is done and whatever.

It hasn't really disappeared or anything. It's not visible because of the "static" effect ASW overlaid on the image itself. I'll grant you that the girl's body is in rough shape. Who knows what happened to her from all the cycles of being inside that "coffin". But her body isn't cut off or anything like that (Mori is sadistic sure, especially if it means Ragna needs to offer another limb, but I doubt he has the gonads to do that to a "Noel"). That's just the hard shadows at work. I decided to look up Ragna's arcade run recently. His conversation with Amane is...actually pretty damn uplifting. It also alleviated some of my worries. I thought, based on the descriptions, that Ragna was resigning himself to a sacrificial altar to stop the Entitled. But his tone is not one of a man resigned to one last brawl, but a defiant young man that plans to see things through to the end. It's also quite a bit telling just how much he's grown over the past games. He knows the Black Beast is a threat but rather than take the easy method to slow down his corrosion via Amane, he states that if he did so then it'll just be repeating the same course as before. His plan is also a more optimistic one, which as someone pointed out in comments, pits him in direct confrontation with Jin. Jin's entire M.O hinges on blowing up "god" (read: Amaterasu and the girl within) in order to recreate a world completely free from "singular influence". As in, there wouldn't be any one singular entity that has control over the world's progression like Amaterasu did and instead it is governed by the "many". Ragna however doesn't want the world to be destroyed and recreated. He instead opts to accept the world as it currently is (Rachel would be proud), faults and all. He understands that the Amaterasu unit is flawed, but at the same time he doesn't see fit that it should be destroyed or used by others to fix their mistakes of the past.

Exactly that. Eventually more DLC "episodes" (or if you prefer: "chapters") will be released for Revelator at a later date and it'll be free to download. I imagine people would be utterly furious to learn that not only is Revelator's story barely over 2 hours long but then had to shell out more cash for next story bits.

It's nothing much really. Takehaya Susanoo-no-Mikoto (which is what Terumi refers to himself during the Astral) is just an alternative name given to the storm god Susanoo for Shinto myth. He's also not the only one. Izanagi is sometimes referred to as Izanagi-no-mikoto as was Izanami. Amaterasu for reference is also known as Ohirume-no-michi-no-kami so take from that what you will.

Wasn't Celica in charge of healing both Jin and Noel post Berserk-Ragna sticking his Dead Spike up their Monoliths? I just assumed she completed her task since Jin's looking pretty darn spry in CF. And joking aside, Ragna seems to have gone through a much bigger character arc following his amnesia. He's still very much Ragna, but at the same time different. For one, he's certainly more calm and composed, only letting out his rage when it'd make sense to do so (like against Saya). Perhaps he has also gotten over his fear of ghosts the same way? I'd laugh my ass off if some of the joke endings in CF attempt to pull the past pranks on him from the other games, only for him to be completely unfazed.

Added to the last bit, why have we never asked ourselves: who are his mommy and daddy? And if he was not born naturally to human parents, then who/what created him? It's a bit weird that we're this far into the game and this sort of thing was not ever brought up before. Especially considering how drenched in anime tropes Blazblue actually is. We know he refers to himself as Jin (biological) brother when Tsubaki pops the question, but how certain of this can he and in turn, the audience, be? Memories are rather easily manipulated in this series so while he may believe that to be the case, the truth might not be so. So what can we describe him? We know he has a human shape and skeleton. He certainly needs to eat, drink, breathe and he definitely doesn't take well to being stabbed, slashed and pummeled with large metal objects. But then again so did XBlaze's Touya (CE) and he was never human to begin with. Just the Original Grimoire given shape from the wish of a distraught young lady. Rachel's plea to promise her that he would always fight on "as a human" is also somewhat odd. Normally you could take it to mean that she doesn't want him to lose his humanity (no doubt by turning into a Black Beast) but at the same time, you could make claim that she wants him to remain as he is now, as opposed to "what he might have been before". P.S: Also, this is kinda off-tangent but in the timeline where Rachel bit him, what were half-vampire Ragna's powers? I assume this is the Wheel of Fortune drama story but I don't really know much about it.

I never said it was . I only meant that his Azure arm is from a corpse that "was once fused with Nu-13 in a previous loop". If remnants of Nu-13 remained within the arm we'd have probably seen it brought up by now. Honestly, I think that "something" which was made from the stolen remains of Nu-13 at the time is probably key to most of these questions. Or it could be a whole new Plot McGuffin that overcomplicates the whole process to another level. Whatever the case, a Black Beast is seen in Es' stage and I'd bet bottom dollar that it'll be important come console release, if only because it would need to explain most of the mysteries surrounding the Black Beast, Ragna, the Murakumos and the rest.