Skies of Arcadia/Awesome

"Vigoro: No fair... I didn't have my cannon... or my... armor.... Aika: On Pirate Isle, we have a saying. "A man doesn't make excuses for his shortcomings.'' And judging by that saying, you've got a ways to go."
 * The opening sequence complete with ship battle.
 * Vyse and Aika's introductions makes for a pretty cool opening, but Dyne's introduction... *Bang* "That's funny, I only count four of you." This game made it clear from the start that even the secondary characters were going to be awesome.
 * Okay, you start out raiding a Valuan ship, kill its guards, defeat a war beast named Antonio, rescue a Mysterious Waif named Fina, and bring your ship home to its base IN A HOLLOWED OUT ISLAND.
 * Your first ship battle, an entryway to new levels of awesome.
 * Now you have infiltrated Valua, snuck in through the catacombs, killed an acid-spitting monster, rescued your friends and family and killed their would be executioner (without rest after the acid monster). You realize Fina's not with them so you do the logical thing... jump on the train and beat up the guards to get to her. You get cornered by the toughest mofo in the game and escape by your friends blasting the train in half.
 * Pick a storyline-based ship battle. Standouts include Belleza for strategy and Vigoro for ballsyness... wait that came out wrong.
 * Interestingly, both are... oddly shaped.
 * Not to mention the multiple De Loco defeats. Watching that sadistic bugger go nuts and fall into the clouds, angrier each time, was always fun.
 * Liberating a Slave Race.
 * Centime gets one for.
 * Taking Grendel out... by making him fall over....
 * For clarification, Grendel is a giant humanoid Gigas that breaks islands with its bare hands. I shudder to think what would happen if it found the "Giant's Hammer" Discovery.
 * Heroic Sacrifice,
 * Doubles as a Crowning Moment of Sadness.
 * It's pretty satisfying to kick Vigoro's ass considering he was trying to RAPE AIKA!
 * Aika's after battle Reason You Suck Speech to him counts, too.

"Vyse: Moonstone Cannon FIRE!"
 * The second escape from the capital of Valua. The first one, squeezing out through the huge gates just as they close, trapping the Valuan ships inside was one thing, blasting through the gate with your shiny new Wave Motion Gun as you steal the very latest Valuan flagship was another altogether.


 * Enrique's showing Cruel Mercy to Muraji as the latter begs for his life and the subsequent game of Chicken with Vigoro.
 * The pirate attack on Crescent Isle, many invasions of Valuan space, the amazing Colosseum rescue, descent into the local equivalent of the deep ocean to search for Fina's ship, that first entrance into the Dark Rift... more awesome-for-your-buck than most RPGs out there.
 * Don't forget about Attacking the last of the Valuan Armada with  is pretty damn awesome too.
 * The Gondor Calls for Aid moment is epic, as it shows how much of a Captain Vyse has become. To show how respected he has become, the trope is actually inverted. That's right, in the world's moment of desperation, the aid unanimously calls for Gondor!
 * The entire game is pretty much one big Crowning RPG Of Awesome. This comic summarizes it pretty nicely.
 * Belleza sacrificing herself to blow up Galcian, taking him out just when it seems like he's about to get away. and he can't do jack shit about it.
 * Belleza sacrificing herself to blow up Galcian, taking him out just when it seems like he's about to get away. and he can't do jack shit about it.