Board 8 > transience's top 100 games -- please insert disc 2.

(+) Yeah! (+)

End of Disc 1 (the flashback) and Start of Disc 2 Xenosaga III are too good. like criminally good. The soundtrack is indeed amazing, easily among the very best in gaming.

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Aww yeah, FF Tactics, the best FF game! At least, the best from a gameplay perspective. I go back and forth a little between that and FF6 which has different strengths.

And I totally agree with you the one thing I would change is the pacing of the progression. I think I'd just give out fixed amounts of JP for winning story battles so there's no reason to do dumb stuff like throwing rocks at your own guys for JP, get rid of random battles completely (but maybe throw in an arena to let people do some extra fights instead), then you know exactly how much JP everyone will have at any point in the game and you can adjust the progression so that there are always interesting choices or at least things to be going for.

Totally agree with everything you said about MM2.

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The highest compliment I can give Breath of the Wild is that to this day its still a game I think about. When Im playing other games, when I want something relaxing to play, when I think about the idea of adventure and exploration in games. I think you nailed it about the hill. BOTW engages a part of video games, I think, has been a bit lost over timethe joy of discovery, irrespective of reward. If I spend 30 minutes getting to that hill, and theres nothing there but a nice view or somewhere I havent seen before, thats okay. Im not disappointed that it didnt lead to some sweet gear, even if I think it might every time. Just the best.

Mega Man 2 is the Chrono Trigger of platformers for me. Its such an endlessly playable and fun time! Im surprised it isnt higher.

I really liked the Xenosaga games when I played them. I'm not sure how well they hold up

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11.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-jiaINYEjA

2000
GBC

I dont have history with Pokemon but I damn sure do for Dragon Quest. This is my version of Pokemon Red or whatever. I love the monsters in the Dragon Quest series so damn much and it works perfectly to eschew the humans and just focus on what makes these games so good.

I really really enjoy taking monsters from nothing and turning them into maxed out killers through the careful use of breeding charts and stat raising. Youll typically start out with something like a slime/dracky/anteater and then start puzzling out what to do from there. Eventually youll end up with some godbeast that can gigaslash the enemy and heal your whole party to full.

The randomly generated maps work perfectly with the aimless story and lack of direction. You just kinda wander, get new monsters, get stronger over generations and fuck shit up. Its so good.

The combat depth kinda isnt there, and thats good - not everything needs to have a deep combat system with tons of strategy. You basically just damage race the enemies and you do that by carefully planning out several generations of monsters. Theres some strategy to it but youre not going too far out of your way to mix and match skills across your team or anything like that. Big attack spells and big healing spells will do, and I like that. This game is some of the best comfort food gaming around.

Every time I play this game, Ive got a breeding chart wiki open in one tab and a spreadsheet open where I meticulously plan out the next 3-4 monster generations for each of my guys. Every playthrough is a different setup depending on what Ive managed to catch. Its so goddamn addicting. There isnt a game out there that hooks me quite like the original DQ Monsters.

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2/2 baby

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rumor has been spreading that the icon knows a couple of things

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Im trying to envision a world where I was into DQM instead of Pokemon Red/Blue.

heroicmario posted...

Im trying to envision a world where I was into DQM instead of Pokemon Red/Blue.

you end up exactly the same, except without enduring - in heroic mario terms this means lasts for a couple years before going in hibernation - nostalgia for RBY

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Sounds right. Maybe I import more DQ games along the way.

maybe i should get around to playing terry's wonderland...

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Are we talking the 3DS remake? Am I remembering wrong, or do you not have quite a few imported 3DS DQs? Maybe that was Theatrhythm? I cant remember, but I know it was something!

Absolutely love DQM. My mom got it for me and my brother one Christmas after asking a if they had anything similar to Pokemon at GameStop; good on that random employee for the rec!

I remember figuring out the fastest way to get every monster starting from just generic monsters of each (non-boss) family; iirc Darkdrium was like 80. My brother also made a website a few years back that lets you look that up to practice SQL: monster-db.com/efficient_path.php

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yeah there's an english translation for terry's wonderland

i did import a japanese 3ds and grabbed theatrhythm and 11, although the reason i bought a japanese 3ds was to play monster hunter generations

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heroicmario posted...

Im trying to envision a world where I was into DQM instead of Pokemon Red/Blue.

I was both! Love both those games.

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I played through the 3DS remake. it's not quite the same but it's very good and more modern and worth playing.

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iiicon posted...

yeah there's an english translation for terry's wonderland

i did import a japanese 3ds and grabbed theatrhythm and 11, although the reason i bought a japanese 3ds was to play monster hunter generations

Oh... oh no. The one on Switch? You know, I wouldnt even sweat it. You can never be too sure with Capcom.

I wish SE could carve out a sustainable, profitable fanbase to make bringing over all the smaller DQ games worthwhile.

The most impressive thing about Xenosaga Episode III is that it had begun to convince me this might not have a trainwreck of an ending, and then the ending was so bad that it ensured I would never attempt to replay them ever again

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I tried the 3DS remake of DQM and I ran into the problem I expected I would - the switch from 2D to 3D slows down the gameplay. This is the main reason I prefer the 2D Dragon Quest games to the 3D ones, actually.

Also the randomized dungeons in the original are unbeatable.

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Leonhart4 posted...

The most impressive thing about Xenosaga Episode III is that it had begun to convince me this might not have a trainwreck of an ending, and then the ending was so bad that it ensured I would never attempt to replay them ever again

this was me after mass effect 3

though it "only" took a couple of years for me to make my peace with it enough to replay the series

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I also love all of the bosses that reference parts of DQ1-6. I actually ended up experiencing the nostalgia in reverse when I played the mainline games afterward!

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I'm at about a decade and counting!

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heroicmario posted...

Oh... oh no. The one on Switch? You know, I wouldnt even sweat it. You can never be too sure with Capcom.

that's ultimate, the g-rank expansion

i bought monster hunter generations at launch when it wasn't clear it would come worldwide, and if it did, likely wouldn't arrive until after the g-rank expansion came out in japan, as had been the pattern at the time. not wanting to potentially wait 18 months for the next monster hunter game, i bought the cheapest n3ds lite i could import and some japanese eshop credits to pick it up.

a couple months after i did this, capcom announced the worldwide launch of generations, and put it out shortly after that. whoops!

at least i was able to get some time in the japanese g-rank expansion before world came out

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10.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWLivVN849w

2005

PS2, 3DS

DQ11 is better in every mechanical way but it just cant touch the feelings that DQ8 can elicit. The characters, the feeling of exploration and the rolling music are flat out amazing in DQ8.

The story, which is never DQs strong suit, actually plays super well here. There are some legitimately affecting moments as you play through this game. Some of them are plot related, like a specific character dying or the feeling of finally taking down the big bad guy, but the one that sticks with me the most is actually when you get the ability to fly. The sweeping music and the freeing feeling of being able to go wherever really hit me hard. Thats what happens when you get immersed in a wonderfully realized world

Like DQ11, trying to craft the best gear for an area is a game unto itself as you treasure hunt for rare ingredients. Unlike DQ11, DQ8 actually has a decent difficulty level, especially when it comes to some of the bigger bosses. Theres a real reward to building out your guys with the right skills and equipment. This game shines the most as an exploration RPG but theres a gameplay and customization aspect to it thats a lot of fun too.

There are some clunky aspects to this game, like battle speed and wait times on the alchemy pot, and thankfully the 3DS version exists to help iron them out. You used to have to work to get the good stuff in 8 but now you can pick and choose what you want when you want. The 3DS version smooths the edges down and makes this an all-time RPG.


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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cU1OxBdlFdE

The ability to choose this option in the DQ11 Switch version made exploring in that game way more fun than it would have been otherwise.

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Yeah the music is probably the weakest aspect of 11. It's not bad, but it's very repetitive and not up to Sugiyama's usual standards. 8's, in contrast, might be the series' best.

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I think I stopped in DQ8 before a notoriously difficult boss battle. I bought the 3DS version last year with the intent of eventually replaying and beating the game

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was it Dhoulmagus?

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transience posted...

was it Dhoulmagus?

Yeah, where he retreated into a cave after being wounded or something. My memories are fuzzy.

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yeah, that fight is probably the hardest in the game. as it should be! if you get multiheal with Angelo, it gets a lot easier.

to take things full circle, I loved getting him on my team in the 3DS remake of DQM.

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9.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrbGwU5Zx4M

2015
PC, Xbox One, Switch

Ori trades Metroids stark isolation for a more mystical, almost Zelda-like dreaminess. Everything here is just gorgeous. Its interesting to contrast the two because both accomplish atmosphere super effectively but in totally different ways.

Oris soft skin is misleading though as the game is tough as nails, certainly harder than any Metroid game. It isnt so bad for the first couple of hours, but before you know it youll be saving in each room as you take on tougher and tougher platforming challenges. I dont think anything in Ori is out of control hard but you have to be precise.

Ori really focuses on platforming above all other things, essentially neglecting traditional weapon-based combat and doing away with boss fights. Instead, youre dealing with escape rooms, ones that are hard as hell and test you as much or more than any boss fight in this type of game.

When Ori is at its best, youre gliding gracefully across the game world with a fantastic moveset thats basically best of class in the genre. Metroidvanias are known for their traversal so to say that about Ori is damn high praise.

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i think dq11 has taken over the dq8 spot for me of super playable dragon quest that doesn't quite hit me nearly as hard as some of the more affecting vignettes in other dragon quest games

still very, very good though. wish it had a proper mobile port or a switch version

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i am untouchable

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Oh hey I started this game a couple weeks ago before I went home for Christmas.

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I was surprised when I replayed some of DQ8 a couple months ago. I expected 11 to have kinda duplicated what 8 brought to the table, but I put it on and immediately felt that pull to drop 80 hours on it again. I even found that some of 11's enhancements actually took away from the core feeling of exploration, which was weird.

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5 > 6 > 11 > 7 > 3 > 8 > 4 > 9 > 2 > 1

Is where I end up I think.

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5 > 3 = M > 8 > 4 > 11 > 1 > 7 > 6 > 2 > 9

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ori is on my shortlist of "games i need to get and play now that i have a switch"
looking forward when i get around to it

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5 > 3 > 7 > 4 > 11 > 8 > 6 > 9 > 2 > 1 imo

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Guess I'll repost mine from last topic

7 > 6 > 5 > (8 ? 11) > 4 > 3 > 9 > 2 > 1

M and M2 in some order probably between 6 and 5?

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8.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUxcQUGlAg0

2007
DS

AA3 is the zenith of the series. Each case is interesting and its one of the few games that doesnt have a bad case pulling it down. (Im not crazy about case 2 like others are, but its not bad.) Its also the first game in the series to have a cohesive narrative across the game as opposed to isolated cases.

The Feys take center stage in AA3 and that narrative is by far my favourite in the series. Their storyline has been the core of the entire original trilogy but everything just comes out here, culminating with a whopping 7 Feys in the final case. Its almost like Xenosaga 3 where the table is set in previous games and then everything goes from there.

The final case wraps up the trilogy in a way that both knots every loose end and exceeds my personal expectations for what they could have done. I really love that case. Very few games nail the landing quite like this one.

You could have ended the series after this game and it would have been completely appropriate, and maybe even preferable given what a high note this game went out on. Im glad they made the Apollo Trilogy because I very much like those games, but when I think of Ace Attorney Im really thinking about the Feys and this games final two cases.

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Ori is really cool but I never finished it just because of the platform it was on (I don't have an XBone or Switch so I'm stuck playing it on PC, and platformers I really want to play on my PS4). I should do it anyway because it was really good.

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Aw yeah, Trials and Tribulations! Case 5 is totally off the rails but boy is it good! I mean when you get down to it, "off the rails" is basically the best description of the whole franchise. This topic has definitely convinced me to get the android versions so I can finish the series.

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Oh man I didn't expect another Phoenix Wright game.

I'm pretty stoked about having the trilogy now and going in 100% blind. A playthrough topic might be at hand.

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7.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umt4ZESWSeQ

1984-2019
Every platform ever

Everyone who plays Tetris exists on a spectrum. On one side is single-player marathon Tetris and on the other side competitive multiplayer Tetris. On one side is NES Tetris or Tetris Effect and on the other side is Tetrinet or Tetris 99.

Me? Im all the way on the competitive end. Tetris 99 reminded me of just how much I adore competitive Tetris. Marathon mode is fun but it feels more like work. I need a goal in order to play Tetris and a high score or a cool style doesnt always cut it. Competitive Tetris at a high level, with garbage being thrown back and forth at ludicrous speed, is 100% my jam. I can play competitive Tetris for hours, any day, and not ever really get bored or miss a beat. Im not world class but Im good enough to win in Tetris 99 here and there.

Tetris is just a perfect game. There isnt a lot to it but the skill ceiling is so high, especially when pieces come tumbling at you and you have to make split second decisions. High-level Tetris is a rush and nothing captures that better than Tetris 99. For me, there probably isnt a better feeling in games than winning against 98 other people in Tetris 99.

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tetris has grown on me as i've gotten older, and of course it's a timeless classic

but man tetris attack/puzzle league/panel de pon/whatever the heck it's branded as now is by far my favorite puzzle game of all time, and it's not even close. it hits that competitive puzzle spirit much better than tetris does for me, because it really feels designed around the back-and-forth of a 2-player versus match

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okay now i'm confident i got all 12

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now put 'em in order

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Nelson_Mandela posted...

Oh man I didn't expect another Phoenix Wright game.

I'm pretty stoked about having the trilogy now and going in 100% blind. A playthrough topic might be at hand.

Not everybody has Trials and Tribulations as their top Ace Attorney game, but its probably over 80%...!

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i did, kinda! i just got the order wrong.

really surprised by celeste over ori

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