Atlus' Weird Dating Sim RPG | Thousand Arms (1998) Retrospective | Gaming Through the Years (Patreon)

Thousand Arms is one of the strangest RPGs to come out of the late ‘90s, and one that’s largely been forgotten. Mixing dating sim elements with traditional turn-based combat, it’s a game full of bold ideas and surprising charm. In this retrospective, I discuss how sometimes a flawed experiment is more interesting than a safe success.Time codes:0:00 - Last Time on the Channel...0:55 - Atlus & the History of Dating Sims5:00 - Dating & Forging9:07 - The Logic of it All12:54 - The Story16:16 - Tone, Humor, & Localization Changes25:45 - Game Flow & Exploration27:33 - The Battle System30:22 - What I Think Works (and What Doesn't)34:21 - The Overall Vibe39:27 - ConclusionEndcard Artwork by OcaRockaRina (Twitter)Shin Megami Tensei, Revelations: Persona, Thousand Arms, Persona 3 © 1992, 1996, 1998, 2006 AtlusTokimeki Memorial, Metal Gear Solid © 1994, 1998 KonamiFinal Fantasy IV, Final Fantasy X © 1991, 2001 SquareResident Evil 2 © 1996 CapcomDragon Ball Z © 1989 Shueisha, Toei AnimationDigimon Adventure © 1999 Bandai, Toei AnimationPokémon: Indigo League © 1997 Nintendo, OLM Inc.Featuring Music by:Ayumi HamasakiKazuhito KikuchiDaisuke MiyachiAtlus Sound TeamBentley JonesThis video exists for the sake of analysis and review and is thus protected under Fair Use.