History VideoGame / VagrantStory

The game is easily one of the most [[GenreBusting complicated]] Squaresoft [=RPG=]s: a combination of 80's dungeon crawling with French graphic novel aesthetics, [[FloweryElizabethanEnglish Shakespearean dialogue]], elaborate ItemCrafting, RhythmGame combat and the structure of a Greek drama, with the characters dressed in... well, fairly homoerotic bondage gear. It's a gorgeous and NintendoHard game which features ''very'' mature themes compared to other ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' installments. And its English version has what's probably [[{{Woolseyism}} the most celebrated localization in video game history]].

* BlockPuzzle: Virtually every room in the game has a block puzzle to solve. This is the game that inspired the trope page in the first place.

* KillEmAll: Of the fifteen named characters that make up the cast only four are still alive by the time the credits roll.

* ArbitraryMinimumRange: The {{Breath Weapon}}s used by dragons suffer from this, meaning standing under their necks is often an excellent tactic when fighting one.

** To really understand the plot of the game you need to read the Japanese-only Ultimania guide which gives in-depth explanations to many scenes in the game as well as additional information on every character. A translation can be found [[http://www34.brinkster.com/worldshards/translations/trans.htm here]].

* AlchemicalElementals: referenced by the gemstones Ashley can find throughout the game, which include the gnome emerald, sylphd topaz, undine jasper and salamander ruby.

** To really understand the plot of the game you need to read the [[NoExportForYou Japanese only]] Ultimania guide which gives in-depth explanations to many scenes in the game as well as additional information on all of the characters. A translation can be found [[http://www34.brinkster.com/worldshards/translations/trans.htm here.]]
** Descriptions of the natures of all the monsters you fight can be found on the in-game bestiary and many of the items and accessories that you find even manage to get a brief back-story in the item menu.

* SmugSnake: Rosencrantz. His antics include [[DoubleAgent shifty allegiances]], [[GambitRoulette overly elaborate plans]] and a smarmy personality, and he seems poised to take the game home... [[spoiler: until Sydney turns the tables on him, plays him as a fool, and sics a motile Kali statue upon him, whereupon he dies like a crackhead.]]

* AwesomeMcCoolname: Just about anyone with the full name, but Ashley Riot is the most notable.

* NintendoHard: Unlike most [[RolePlayingGame J[=RPGs=]]], ''Vagrant Story'' likes to keep the player on his toes... by kicking them to the floor half an hour or so. Boss fights consistently cream poor Ashley, and random encounters are even worse. Success depends largely on mastery of the game's near-inscrutable ItemCrafting system, and there's even a random enemy with an instant death spell... in a game with only one [[PlayerCharacter PC]]. Rumours tell of gamers that actually enjoy this, but it's possible they have been conditioned to it by [[TakeOurWordForIt experiences too horrible to comprehend]].

* SmugSnake: Rosencrantz. His antics include [[DoubleAgent shifty allegiances]], [[GambitRoulette overly elaborate plans]] and a smarmy personality, and he seems poised to take the game home... [[spoiler:until Sydney turns the tables on him, plays him as a fool, and sics a motile Kali statue upon him, whereupon he dies like a crackhead.
* SpellBook: Before Ashley can learn a spell, he must read a grimoire. The more grimoires he reads of a particular spell, the better he gets at it. If he reads 4 grimoires of that spell, he'll master it and the spell will be Level 4.

* ScratchDamage: In the first run, many enemies have better equipment than you and it takes a while before you learn the stronger skills or master magic. So unless you forge new weapons and upgrade their affinities, expect a number of fights where you'll be doing a string of single digit damage attacks. After a couple of New Game+ runs and developing Damascus Dread Armor, enemies will be doing 1 point of damage to you which you regenerate back a few seconds later if you didn't reduce it to nothing with your defence skills. At this point only the spell Banish can kill you.

** [[spoiler:Ashley did not kill the Duke and never even entered the Manor. The figure seen was Sydney disguised as Ashley, the Duke killed Sydney (at his behest) then died himself due to their {{synchronization}}. Sydney's body dissolved, leaving no trace, but the Duke's did not. All the while the real Ashley was standing in the streets outside the Manor.]]

* FantasyMetals: There's Bronze, Iron, Silver, Hagane (a type of fine steel) and Damascus (a magical steel whose enchantments were unique to Lea Monde) for weapon materials (armor has the additional material of Leather which is the weakest material in the game).

* TheLostWoods: Snowfly Forest. [[TheMaze The only way to get around without a map]] involves reorienting oneself by inspecting the moss growing on trees.
** That little hint about the snowflies they give you? [[spoiler:They're not talking about directions, but ''density''.]] GuideDangIt indeed.

* MassSuperempoweringEvent: Just ''going'' to Lea Monde causes you to start to develop magical powers and extra sensory perception. Callo develops the ability to see a person's subconscious, Ashley gets a two-way clairvoyant vision with Guildenstern's girlfriend so he can see what she sees as well as a minor link with Callo, and just about everyone starts tossing magical spells before the day is out.

* AFateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:Grissom, whose wandering soul searches for a body to possess -- and finds his own cold corpse]]. By the end of the game, he's not holding together very well.

* AllThereInTheManual: To really understand the plot of the game you need to read the [[NoExportForYou Japanese only]] Ultimania guide which gives in-depth explanations to many scenes in the game as well as additional information on all of the characters. A translation can be found [[http://www34.brinkster.com/worldshards/translations/trans.htm here.]]

[[Creator/SquareEnix Squaresoft]]'s ''Vagrant Story'' is a UsefulNotes/PlayStation RPG by video game auteur Creator/YasumiMatsuno. It is available as a downloadable [=PSOne=] Classic on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork.

* LargeHam: Some characters have their moments, but none come close to Sydney. MagnificentBastard that he is, Sydney dominates every scene he's in.

* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: "Riskbreaker Ashley Riot?" Yeah, not gonna piss him off.
** He can also amass a number of titles during the replays. Such as "Blood Thirsty Conqueror" or "Grand Master Breaker." It only sounds pretentious until you realize how [[GameBreaker utterly broken]] Ashley is after ''one'' replay. By the time you get Grand Master Breaker, Ashley is the patron saint of [[PhysicalGod Physical Gods]].

** OneRiotOneRanger: [[ConservationOfNinjitsu One lone Riskbreaker against the monstrosity of Lea Monde.]]

* SceneryPorn: Yes.

** In fact, it's usually less about the power of the weapon, but many factors such as its elemental affinity, damage type, and its strength against this particular monster class (also its durability, its [[{{Experience}} Phantom Points]], and your damage stat (strength for the physical damage, intelligence for the magical one) when compared with the enemy's one. When counting the damage dealt by an attack, the game considers and multiplies all of these factors, and if ''at least one'' is not good enough - say, you're using a phantom-slaying water-affiliated mace against a Fire Elemental who is resistant to the blunt weaponry - prepare to see pathetic single-digit numbers of the damage dealt.

* SmugSnake: Rosencrantz, the wannabe MagnificentBastard who doesn't quite manage, alas! His antics include [[DoubleAgent shifty allegiances]], [[GambitRoulette overly elaborate plans]] and a smarmy personality, and he seems poised to take the game home... [[spoiler:until Sydney turns the tables on him, plays him as a fool, and sics a motile Kali statue upon him, whereupon he dies like a crackhead and the player laughs]]. Also, ''Pussy-freakin'-foot!''

* TerminallyDependentSociety

* CreepyCoolCrosses: The Rood of St. Iocus, which resembles a cross with four arms at 45 degree angles and a tiny 'sword crossgard' at the bottom. Ashley's pendant and the motifs on his pants display it, while Sydney's back is [[PowerTattoo tattooed]] with the blasphemous [[CosmicKeystone Rood Inverse]]. The base form of the InfinityPlusOneSword, the Holy Win, is shaped as such (and is wielded, in story, by [[spoiler:the first form of the FinalBoss]].) [[spoiler:Now guess what his second form looks like. ''Sorta''.]]

* TheUnfought: [[spoiler:Rosencrantz. The first fight ends with him running away and saying he [[WeWillMeetAgain won't be defeated so easily next time.]] Unfortunately, when Ashley does meet him again, it's only to see him getting killed like an idiot by Sydney.]]

* NotPlayingFairWithResources: Averted. Every monster has its Health and Mana properly calculated, and when out of the latter, it has to resort to basic attack or some unique Special Abilities. Unfortunately, some of the these end up being much worse than any standard magic available to the enemy (as in case of the FinalBoss), so you may find yourself ''actively using your mana potions on the enemy'' just to let them keep using their less dangerous spells.

** The enemies can't move during an attack, and with good timing you can chain attacks indefinitely, only each attack is weaker than the last. With enough patience you can kill almost anything by cherry tapping, including bosses, which is [[DifficultButAwesome Difficult but...]] [[BoringButPractical Boring]].

* AttackReflector: Some defensive abilities work like this, reflecting prcisely 40% of the enemy attack's damage back to the sender. This makes them much more useful than it sounds, since they do not take in consideration your stats or equipment, and can be reliably used to kill monsters, up to and including the FinalBoss, that you can only deal ScratchDamage otherwise.

** In fact, it's usually less about the power of the weapon, but many factors such as its elemental affinity, damage type, and the monster class. When counting damage, the game considers and multiplies all of these factors, and if ''at least one'' is not good enough - say, you're using a phantom-slaying water-affiliated mace against a Fire Elemental who is resistant to the blunt weaponry - prepare to see pathetic single-digit numbers of the damage dealt.

* GiantEnemyCrab: [[ThatOneBoss One in the Undercity]], [[CurbStompBattle another beneath the Cathedral]], and yet another, the Damascus Crab as the NewGamePlus BonusBoss in Snowfly Forest East. [[AttackItsWeakPoint Attack their mouth]] [[MemeticMutation for massive damage]].

* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Sydney]]

* AuthorAppeal: Akihiko Yoshida likes bondage gear. And piercings. And amputation, skin removal, torture... and of course, as he has admitted himself, butts. He no secret that he visted a BDSM club for inspiration.

* AuthorAppeal: Akihiko Yoshida likes bondage gear. And piercings. And amputation, skin removal, torture... and of course, as he has admitted himself, butts.

* AchievementSystem: The game was one of the earliest examples of this. You actually had to go through several menus to find it in the "gazette" and many of the titles you got were extremely difficult to achieve. One was for getting through the game without saving, for example.