Do you level up too high?

Does anyone else here find many RPG games too easy to level up in? Maybe it's because I started playing RPG games with the first Dragon Warrior, which required hours of leveling up to progress anywhere - because I always level up way too high.

I'm currently playing through FFVII for the first time. I just got to the Temple of the Ancients (almost at the end of Disk 1), and already Cloud is at level 40. I didn't even try to level up this high. I've even fled from hundreds of battles to stop characters from leveling up too high, but I'm still leveling more than I want. This results in the game being much too easy. I hate when RPG games are not a challenge! Probably the main reason I have this problem is because I always like to spend time in each area to see all the monsters, steal from all the monsters, manipulate all the monsters, etc.

Who else out here has the same issue with RPG games? :)

I am the Queen of Unintentional Leveling. Like you, my Cloud & co were over level 40 by the end of the first disc.
For me, it always happens on first playthroughs, probably cause I get lost and end up fighting millions of extra monsters.

over leveling is always better than under leveling.

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Originally Posted by dodhungry

over leveling is always better than under leveling.

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QFT
Especially in the earlier FF's. Not so much, but still better, in later FF's.

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Originally Posted by dodhungry

over leveling is always better than under leveling.

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I enjoy more of a challenge though. Besides, it's always easy to level up if you suddenly find yourself unable to progress further without dying.

I haven't had to spend extra time anywhere in FFVII yet to level up. After I complete all there is to complete in one area, I'm always on a higher level than I probably should be.

there's no such thing as over leveling unless the game allows you to break the level cap established by that game usualy 99... Lvl 40 at the Temple of Ancients? that's still low in my opinion, heck, i always gain about 10 levels before moving on anywhere, usualy about lvl20 or more before i ever leave Midgar, and 30+ by Junon... Killing the Midgar Zolom a few times before crossing the mountains really helps those levels go up fast, don't need no Chocobo to cross the swamp, if ya do then you cheat yourself out of the Enemy Skill Beta early on which is quite possibly the best Enemy Skill that early on... now this of course does not apply to games like FFVIII where the enemies level up with you in which case you want to take the opposite approach and try not to lvl up as much as possible... really when i see threads saying things like the Demon Gate or RAAPS were hard i always question why they think this till they mention their levels which are usualy abysmal... honestly i've never tried playing anything under-leveled, i usualy grind an area untill it no longer benefits me...

I don't usually run unless I really don't feel like a genocide, but even then it's rare depending on the game. And yet I still over level most the time it seems just through getting all the treasure in a dungeon and fighting most of the enemies along the way. Usually I have to try my best to not over level so the final bosses are actually a challenge. :(

the way i see it the heros should be able to take anything in their path without fail, they're the heros... i personaly hate the Game Over screen, i have only seen a couple in my life, and consider seeing it a major failure on my part, most of my games i have never seen it on like every FF i've played, i mean if you see a Game Over screen in an FF there's something wrong... if it weren't for me wanting to see every ending on Chrono Trigger i would have never seen it there either but in order to see every ending i had to lose at least once, gawd it took a long time to lose, lol... yes i never run, running seems pointless to me if you run how can you possibly lvl up and make your characters the uber mega badasses they're supposed to be, you can't save the world with a pack of weaklings...

Depends on the FF....

7 Alarm in junon, yes
8 Anywhere, yes
9 Not really
10 Not at all
10-2 Yes
12 Level 42 before getting Balthier? Yes

it's easy to get overlevelled in some of the games, just taking some time away from the main story is enough to do it. Especially in VII where alot of the good equipment you get later on is available very early on in the game, like the hardedge in Shinra HQ, Grand Glove in Mythril Caves, golden armlet from dragons, i always get the urge to steal all of them, and before you know it, you're level 40 before disc 2. Not to mention you get the enemy skill early on so it's another incentive to explore all the enemies you can and hunt down those with the skills.

Lately I do use run to balance out the equation. I like a little bit of challenge, it makes the battles more exciting, but too much can overdo it. With RPGs I do enjoy just playing through them, I think that's the best way to get the most out of it. I think XII had the best balance, if you take the time to explore like the developers intended you should be alright on both the level and money fronts.

no, i don't level too high. in fact, i do the least amount of leveling i can to try to beat the final boss and only try to level if i cant find a way to beat it. its how i roll fool.

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Originally Posted by SmackEm's

no, i don't level too high. in fact, i do the least amount of leveling i can to try to beat the final boss and only try to level if i cant find a way to beat it. its how i roll fool.

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So you pretty much miss all the extras when you play through RPGs? Either that, or you have your face glued to a game FAQ so you can get all the mandatory stuff at max speed. I don't like either way, personally. :tongue:

I always enjoy exploring and finding all the items myself the first time I play through FF, and only read game FAQs if my curiosity is really high about something I might have missed (like new characters). This is probably why I end up fighting hundreds of monsters and end up on a level that makes the game no challenge at all.

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Originally Posted by Elly

the way i see it the heros should be able to take anything in their path without fail, they're the heros... i personaly hate the Game Over screen, i have only seen a couple in my life, and consider seeing it a major failure on my part, most of my games i have never seen it on like every FF i've played, i mean if you see a Game Over screen in an FF there's something wrong... if it weren't for me wanting to see every ending on Chrono Trigger i would have never seen it there either but in order to see every ending i had to lose at least once, gawd it took a long time to lose, lol... yes i never run, running seems pointless to me if you run how can you possibly lvl up and make your characters the uber mega badasses they're supposed to be, you can't save the world with a pack of weaklings...

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I personally don't think an RPG is nearly as fun if it's no challenge. A few game-over screens on bosses are fine with me, because it only means I need to use a different tactic to kill them. Games like FFVII always have save points like 2 seconds away from the bosses anyway. I haven't found myself stressed during a single battle, unlike the good ol' Dragon Warrior days. Anyone remember those days? You would have to walk for 10-15 minutes just to reach a very hard boss that might kill you many times before you succeed. Worst part was, there were no save points except at the Castle you start in. Those were the days of a real challenge, when you felt your heart pounding during a boss battle. :D

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So you pretty much miss all the extras when you play through RPGs? Either that, or you have your face glued to a game FAQ so you can get all the mandatory stuff at max speed.

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yep. i do use a Game FAQ. i dont have a whole lot of time to play final fantasy and I wanted to play all of them. I started about 2 years ago and i go on and off. but im fine with it, its still good

I started with Dragon Warrior too, and so I've done way too much grinding over the years. I actually hate level grinding anymore. So its not something I tend to practice in games these days. In fact I also hate encounters period unless the fighting mechanic is really enjoyable. Which is way too rare. So it all boils down to me usually having too few levels. Which makes the games suck. But that's what they get for relying on tired old ways :} I rarely find the plots very interesting anymore anyway... Sad but I don't think I'm missing out... I should wish I had your problem though haha..

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Originally Posted by dodhungry

over leveling is always better than under leveling.

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*Disagrees* Being way underleveled is far more fun. Like the other day I was talking to my friend who couldn't beat the Elite 4 in Diamond with level 60 pokemon and I was all like, I BEAT THEM WITH LEVEL 40-50s NOOB xD And he was all like :(

Or my "no fighting random encounters" in ffiv hard type, that was fun stuff. (I still never finished that >.<)

I never tried to level in VII...my levels just went up as I went along. I found Sephiroth to be rather easy...much easier than Sin in FFX (*I had major issues getting into Sin. Then I realized that I had sphere levels left over to use, and hidden aeons to acquire ::slaps face::).

I don't tend to overlevel intentionally, but it has happened on a few occasions. Then again, I tend to explore every part of each new area I come across in a game - especially in an RPG. So, usually I end up fighting more monsters than usual, and as a result getting a slightly higher level than normal for that part of the game.

I'm always way behind in FFXII xD

I only ever level up when I have to, eg. when a boss keeps killing me over and over again. This is because I am lazy and random batles often just get on my nerves, so I do the bare minimum amount levellng that I need to in order to mov forward.

Then, when I have beaten the game, I get bored, max my team's levels out to 99 and have them kill each other. :D

If I overlevel, I usually do it when I play the game second time around. Mainly because that's when I play for the sidequests and optional dungeons/bosses, so I need higher level than when I was just going through the plot.