Board 8 > azuarc ranks 66 games played in 2020 [predix] [prize] [vgm]

Topic List
Page List: 1, 2, 3, 4
azuarc
11/21/20 11:39:30 PM
#103:


Tsk, hotel pinata

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/22/20 2:30:40 AM
#104:


26. Night in the Woods
Genre P&C Adventure, mostly

Gameplay: 5
Rest of Game: 8
Engagement: 6
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 3

Total score: 27/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_yyu-kqfBs

My first reaction to Night in the Woods was that the graphics look like bad cut-outs, a la early South Park. Turns out the animations in the game are far smoother than South Park and completely by design, and that this gives the world a highly stylized feel.

Night in the Woods is the story of Mae, a college drop-out returning home at a time when her parents are fighting to not have their home foreclosed on (in part because of loans they took out to send their daughter to college) and when the whole town seems to be gradually shuttering. The writing is the strongest point, where Mae and the rest of her anthropomorphic friends stumble along in an aimless twenty-something way through some of their jobs, a happy-go-lucky attitude toward adventure, and the depression of realizing what it means to grow up.

Along the way, theres a bajillion minigames, some of which are welcome and some of which are plain annoying. Getting to play a Guitar Hero-esque version of Mae strumming the bass in her friends rock group was fun, and theres an optional classic arcade style game installed on her laptop you can play at any time, but I swear if I have to wander around Maes fever dreams looking for random spots in an awkward platformer section one more time

Actually, thats a big part of why I ultimately gave up. Night in the Woods is incredibly charming and the sarcastic humor in the dialogue carry it a long way, but eventually I got tired of the aimlessness. Maes decision-making is awful, by design, but between that and the lack of a real narrative arc, you start to wonder why youre even doing any of it. Youre basically playing Seinfeld: The Game, except the so-called show about nothing had more going on in its episodes than NitW, which is more about stumbling through the events untilIm not sure what. And I got tired of waiting to find out.

Should you play it?: If you put story first and like character-driven novels, then sure.

Next: The anti-party party

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Shonen_Bat
11/22/20 2:41:08 AM
#105:


Should you play it?: If you put story first and like character-driven novels, then sure.

This is fine.

Been interested in NitW for a while but I've heard people say that, to put it lightly, it's not for everyone.

---
Hello again.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/22/20 2:58:05 AM
#106:


It was the third or fourth night of dream sequences that finally did it for me. I like the game's bleak humor, but when it detours from that, NitW starts to feel like a complete waste of time, and nowhere is that more on display than those stupid "find the musicians" passages where your only reward for the whole thing is some strange vision at the end that is maybe artistic or more likely just pointless.

To be clear, when NitW is doing what it does, it's a lot of fun because there are some truly silly moments that work and everyone is sarcastic AF. But it tries to stretch that out with these other bits that, most of the time, just really didn't need to be there.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
andylt
11/22/20 8:02:51 AM
#107:


I like Night in the Woods but found it a bit overhyped, the gameplay does get tedious imo. It's worth playing if you like the vibe and the writing though. The dream sequences do come together for a cool scene further on and it definitely does have an arc, it's a shame you didn't finish as it sounds like you were getting to the business end of the plot anyway. I couldn't find the motivation to replay it to do the little different choices here and there though, it's a shame you can't skip ahead to a certain day.

Next is Jackbox I guess. I liked the Oar Umpires clue too >_>

---
Congrats to azuarc, Guru Champion 2020!
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/22/20 9:54:03 AM
#108:


25. The Metronomicon Rock the Dance Floor
Genre RPG-themed rhythm

Gameplay: 4
Rest of Game: 5
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 27/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSADNWroahk

I enjoy rhythm games. I rarely seek them out. I fell in love with Amplitude and bought a PS2 just so I could play it. I was an avid Guitar Hero/Rock Band aficionado. But ask me what other rhythm games Ive put time into and the lists pretty short.

Lately it feels like its become a trend to mash-up rhythm with other genres. Crypt of the Necrodancer, Sayonara Wild Hearts, and Beat Hazard have led up to this JRPG hybrid. In Metronomicon, the intentionally ridiculous story centers on four graduates of the school of music who are now going to go out and attempt to fight back against all the monsters in the world that throw raves and dance parties by beating them at their own game. Along the way, youll level up, gather equipment, gain new allies, and have to ultimately create a build as you advance through the plot. (Or the high scores list online.)

Metronomicon uses a DDR-esque four arrows system for its gameplay, but the fact that each party member has their own track makes it play more like Amplitude. The interesting wrinkle here is that rather than removing that player's line immediately, completing one phrase of the track charges up your party member to do their level 1 attack. Complete a second in a row, and theyll switch to level 2 instead, and then level 3 goes off automatically since theres nothing beyond. Those moves are mostly attacks, but could also be a heal, a taunt, a support buff/debuff, or any of the other myriad of moves you see in turn-based RPGs. The enemies stroll up to you one at a time as the song progresses, but. Inflict not enough damage, and theyll start to pile up. Kill them quickly enough, and someone else takes their place. You lose if one of your party members gets KOed before the song ends.

As near as I can tell, all the tracks in Metronomicon are licensed from lesser-known artists. There were a couple names that made me go oh, maybe Ive heard of them?, but nobody particularly renowned. The soundtrack is solid, though. I probably wouldnt buy the game just to serve as a music album, but you certainly could.

Ultimately, the controls are decent, the gameplay is in some ways an improvement on Amplitude, and the silliness of the setting and the artwork keeps you engaged and motivated to continue. Theres sometimes a little too much going on visually, and once in a while the game did become more than I could handle, but seldom was that because of poor rhythm skills. Challenge is fair, and the core controls are solid and easy to use, which is honestly the biggest selling point for me.

Should you play it?: Do you like rhythm games that ask you to do more than just mash the beat?

Next: Second verse, same as the first

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
PIayer_0
11/22/20 12:38:18 PM
#109:


I also had to drop NitW because my hard drive died

I liked it enough to go back and finish it at some point (I did make it to the...inciting incident in the story), but the dream sequences and dialogue-driven gameplay are very much discouraging me from catching up any time soon.

---
-Abraham Lincoln
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/22/20 12:44:28 PM
#110:


Y'know, in writing, they generally say that the inciting incident should take place within the first three chapters of a novel. If we place the word "chapter" with "hour" for a video game, it's not really a surprise NitW feels like a miss. I played a stand-alone version from itch.io, so I don't have my playtime logged, but I was certainly past at least five.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/22/20 9:16:30 PM
#111:


24. Muse Dash
Genre Rhythm

Gameplay: 5
Rest of Game: 7
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 3

Total score: 28/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0tTOirdl0A

Muse Dash took me a little bit to get my head around. In essence the controls only have two options during gameplay, up and down, that you hit throughout the songs, which makes it a more visually impressive version of Taiko no Tatsujin. The stages feature your character dashing across a course as obstacles approach, which you attack with either a high or a low strike. Miss your timing and you take damage instead. The game has a lot of pastel or bright blue and pink, and although Muse Dash didnt trip my eyes as bad as SWH, it did take me a little to adapt.

The one consistent theme about Muse Dash is that youre constantly unlocking things. New renditions of your character, new items to choose from for your passive bonus, and of course, new songs. Each track has several difficulties and challenges to complete on each. I found it irritating that many songs forced you to play on medium before you could try them on hard, and the challenges are all difficulty-specific, which means technically I should have also been playing through everything on easy, too. But beyond that, the game is cute, the animations are fluid, the controls are responsive, and theres not a lot to complain about.

Should you play it?: Do you like simpler, straightforward rhythm games?

Next: A genre that has appeared exactly once already

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/23/20 4:15:30 PM
#112:


23. Kingdom Rush: Frontiers
Genre Tower Defense

Gameplay: 7
Rest of Game: 7
Engagement: 7
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 2

Total score: 28/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AH96SmNlGRY

As mentioned, my TDS history began with Defense Grid, but for many, Kingdom Rush serves as their introduction to the genre. If it didnt, its certainly a good stepping stone to branch out to next. The gameplay in KR is extremely limited, and occasionally a pinch frustrating, but it has some interesting takes that keep it fresh.

And the developers obviously figured out that if it aint broke, dont fix it, because theyre in the midst of producing their fourth Kingdom Rush game that is more of the same. Frontiers has even more of a high fantasy feel to it than the original, as you dip into a few other cultures and upgrade your basic towers into elite versions themed around shaman tribes and Assassins Creed. Plenty of cheeky, light-hearted humor abounds.

The specific twists of KR are that you control a hero on the battlefield, and that rather than some version of a slowing tower, you instead have a barracks that puts guards in the enemies paths to fight them. You can send your hero to jump in and have a short cooldown reinforce skill to toss out a couple extra troops to keep the bad guys in your kill zone. Towers can only be built at select nodes, disallowing you from blocking paths or creating mazes, so the amount of creativity in KR is very limited, but it does mostly everything else well.

Should you play it?: If you like a tower defense game that can sometimes distract you by looking more like an RTS, then sure.

Next: 200+ times mightier

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/23/20 5:49:00 PM
#113:


22. 20XX
Genre Rogue-lite platformer

Gameplay: 7
Rest of Game: 6
Engagement: 7
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 3

Total score: 28/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVBxqwtRHhc

than the number nine.

Full disclosure I suck at Mega Man games. And 20XX makes no effort to disguise its status as a Mega Man knock-off. The main character, Nina, is basically Rokko-Chan. The aesthetics, the music compositions, and the fragments of story we get are all throwbacks to MMX or MMBN. In short, Fire Hose Games set out to create a Mega Man clone, and that is precisely what they delivered to you.

Exceptthey didnt. Mega Man has no continuity between playthroughs and the stages arent procedurally generated, with randomized equipment and bonuses available throughout, plus the occasional bonus level, a currency system mid-run to purchase extra health or equipment, and extra options that can be unlocked with a high enough performance.

No, 20XX is better than a Mega Man game. Its a MM game with a ton of replayability for reasons other than just perfecting the speedrun. The movement is smooth. The game is only ever frustrating when I do something wrong. The art is attractive. The music rocks. Ive had runs where Ive nearly cleared all nine preliminary levels and gotten to whatever lies beyondand let us return to my opening disclaimer I suck at Mega Man games. Dont mistake that for the game being easy. No, not hardly. But it invites you to get better at it. If youve ever thought but bosses in Mega Man are hard and I dont want to learn the right order to do stages in, come try 20XX.

Should you play it?: Unless you are unconscionably awful at platformers, I advise you to give it a try.

Next: You dont know it.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Shonen_Bat
11/23/20 9:22:38 PM
#114:


20XX sounds fun. ...Yeah, that's all I have to say. It's Mega Man.

Guessing Lenna's Inception is next, though the fact that I know it might make it a bad guess :p


---
Hello again.
... Copied to Clipboard!
Kenri
11/23/20 9:35:48 PM
#115:


I feel like it's too early for Lenna's Inception, though I don't have a better guess.

Maybe "you don't know it" is a joke and it's Phoenix Wright. <_<

---
Congrats to BKSheikah, who knows more about years than anyone else.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/23/20 10:07:22 PM
#116:


21. The Jackbox Party Pack (1-6)
Genre Online party game

Gameplay: 6
Rest of Game: 4
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 28/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BxQcZqoGeQ

Ive joked that prior to the rise of Fall Guys and Among Us, Jackbox games should take the title for best game to play during the coronavirus pandemic. Because, I mean, how else are you going to join up with your friends and create stupid memes like pushing the phrase Where beef? through an entire tournament bracket?

Jackbox has a little bit of everything, and although a number of games are hit or miss, and inevitably the group will want to play one of the miss games like Role Models, Joke Boat, or Civic Doodle, its usually not hard to steer them back to Fibbage, Trivia Murder Party, or the game that started this craze, Quiplash. (Or, if you want to go back even before that, to You Dont Know Jack.)

In terms of substance, theres very little here. The game mechanics are stripped down. The art is often deliberately janky. The writing is perhaps the high point substantively. However, nothing can beat the way this brings eight people together over their internet-capable devices to draw horrible pictures of Edible Hair or a Missed High Five.

Should you play it?: If you can read this, you must be on the internet, which is about the only real reason I could think of to say no.

Next: An ARPG

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
NFUN
11/23/20 10:11:14 PM
#117:


jack

---
You shine, and make others shine just by being near them.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/23/20 10:13:54 PM
#118:


Spreadsheet updated, predix updated, last 20 options moved to the bottom of the predix screen in case anyone decides to hop in and fill out a last minute one. ArkOfTurus got The Metronomicon right and creeps a bit closer to Shonen_Bat.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/24/20 1:28:15 AM
#119:


20. Cat Quest
Genre Adventure RPG

Gameplay: 6
Rest of Game: 7
Engagement: 7
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 3

Total score: 28/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K923_4Fzu3g

I went into The Purring Quest expecting it to be a gimmick. It was better than I expected.

I went into Cat Quest expecting an actual game, albeit perhaps one lacking in substance. It had no shortage of things to do.

Bottom line. Dont underestimate cat games.

Cat Quest features a kitty who goes on a quest to search for his abducted sister, and ends up doing a billion sidequests and exploring dozens of microdungeons along the way. The game is nothing revolutionary, but it has just enough strength mechanically to hide behind the whimsy and cuteness of the art and the humor. I beat the game in about six hours, but it was a very active six hours during which I hacked and slashed my way past all kinds of enemies, cast a plethora of spells, and witnessed at least 87 different puns on the word cat.

Should you play it?: Neko and Ashes give it two paws up.

Next: The game with the highest confirmed playtime.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Hbthebattle
11/24/20 1:39:42 AM
#120:


Soda time

---
Congrats to azuarc for winning the GotD Guru!
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/24/20 10:19:35 AM
#121:


Sorry, hb. I goofed and didn't look ahead. Yeah, that clue would have been for Soda Dungeon. I saw that in the write-up last night without the word "confirmed" and assumed it was SD2, so I added that in there. In actuality, though...

19. Hearthstone
Genre CCG

Gameplay: 6
Rest of Game: 7
Engagement: 10
New to Me: 0
Playtime: 5

Total score: 28/40

Song selection: https://youtu.be/vPguoeYTvMI?t=108

How can I write a review of a game Ive been playing since 2014 and still come back to on an almost-daily basis? Hearthstone isnt an MMO, but its changed so much since its inception, making it a very difficult game for a newcomer to jump into. I am, however, not a newcomer and Ive stuck with the game through pretty much every meta, even if Ive only been highly active for a couple of them.

For the rest, I either log in, complete my daily quests, and save up my gold, or I play one of the alternate game modes. I was originally an avid arena player. Lately, my passion has been battlegrounds. Recently, a new game mode, Duels, has been added as an off-shoot of Blizzards Slay-the-Spire-esque single player modes. Plus, theres always the weekly Tavern Brawls. Lots of different ways that dont even require collecting cards. That said, Im also on a mostly-F2P account. I cant say I havent spent a dime, but Ive mostly benefited from a whales-and-minnows system that lets me enjoy a game for free.

Hearthstone, for the uninitiated, is a Magic: The Gathering-inspired card game built around Blizzards Warcraft series. The heroes, the classes, the actual card designs are all centered around the Horde and the Alliance (and everyone else) of Azeroth. But where MTG fails in many regards because it was the first of its kind and designed in 1994, Hearthstone has iterated on the design with persistent damage, no wasted space in your deck for land, and by avoiding the clunky, bogged down system of actions, reactions and counterreactions. The result is a streamlined system that, because its electronic, also allows for a lot of other interesting (or obnoxious) wrinkles, foremost represented by the gazillion random effects in the game. Why, you can practically here Ulti raging from here.

The rest of us deal, just as weve dealt with the company being increasingly taken over by Activision and their brand of capitalism. Ive played Blizzard games since 1994 and the release of Warcraft 1. Ive enjoyed Diablo, WoW, and now Hearthstone for a mostly uninterrupted string of 26 years. Even as other games come and goHearthstone is home.

Should you play it?: If not for the extra 5 points in the new to me category, this would be top 10. HS is a very tough game to break into, though, because of how much accumulated knowledge there is over seven years. Notwithstanding that if you want to be competitive at standard, you'll probably need to do some whaling to break in.

Next: A game with ironically good visuals

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/24/20 8:31:55 PM
#122:


18. Ori and the Blind Forest
Genre Metroidvania

Gameplay: 7
Rest of Game: 8
Engagement: 6
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 3

Total score: 29/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnB4mFmlaCM

Ori was one of the first games, chronologically, that I played for this list. I decided I wanted to play a metroidvania, and Ori came with high recommendation.

The opening few minutes are among the best Ive seen in any media for creating an emotional response from the viewer. After that, when the game actually starts, its hard not to be dazzled by the vivid art and vibrant soundtrack. Oris capabilities are a bit limited initially, and it took me an hour to really get used to what I could and could not do, but once I got myself grounded, the only thing keeping me from falling in love was the (very good) level design the devs certainly intended for you to be challenged every step of the way and use the geography to accomplish that.

I played through what I imagine was the first third of the game while juggling a couple other titles, then invited a friend over and had them play because I wanted to show off my new monitor and to convince them they werent actually bad at platforming. They got most of the way to where I did before stopping, andI never came back. Actually, I came back once, looked around, decided I didnt know where to go next, and left again.

On the bright side, I can thank Ori for winning me GotD2. Sure, the biggest, most decisive picks were Witcher to the semis and Xenoblade out of its division. Those are the picks everyone remembers. But I also only beat Jona by 1. If I hadnt taken Ori > DA:I, I would have been eliminated in round 3 without enough room to come back from Jonas extremely impressive bracket. Thanks to Ori, I had 12 points to come back with 11 to make up. I only picked it because I had played Ori and recognized its greatness, at least compared to a Dragon Age that isnt Origins. A pity that isnt properly reflected on this list.

Should you play it?: Watch the first five minutes, and tell me you arent invested after that.

Next: A return to glory

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
andylt
11/24/20 9:18:01 PM
#123:


I forgot Ori beat Dragon Age lol, that was a nice upset. It's wild how many of these games you didn't even get close to beating though >_>

Guessing uhh, Spirit of Justice.

---
Congrats to azuarc, Guru Champion 2020!
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/24/20 11:52:06 PM
#124:


andylt posted...
It's wild how many of these games you didn't even get close to beating though >_>

Yeah. What can I say, I've been easily distracted. What tends to happen is I pick one game that I play for incredible amounts of time, and it takes something else to jar me free from it. So I'll try a game, play it for a bit, and if it doesn't manage to pry me away, then I go right back where I was. Back to Hearthstone. Back to Civilization. Et cetera.

A lot of these games, by all accounts, should be captivating enough. Celeste and Ori are phenomenal games. I respect them tremendously. But whatever my headspace was at the time that I played them, I either had too many other options or I was just wasn't transfixed quite enough to continue.

I also tried a bunch of games that genuinely didn't interest me or didn't have an appreciable amount of content, which fill up the ranks of the bottom third.

It's worth noting that from this point forward, there's only one game remaining that I can truly say I did not come close to finishing. One, I reached the boss and didn't win. One doesn't have an actual end. The rest, I've hit the credits roll. So Ori should mark the end of this recurring theme, finally.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/25/20 12:01:30 AM
#125:


17. Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption
Genre P&C Adventure

Gameplay: 4
Rest of Game: 9
Engagement: 6
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 3

Total score: 29/40

Song selection: https://youtu.be/9NzVXWee5zg?t=2637 (I couldn't find isolated tracks)

In 1989, 8-year-old me stood in a Radio Shack, watching the vibrant 16-color animations of an EGA world known as Heros Quest I: So You Want To Be a Hero. Apparently my dad was no less impressed with it, because when my birthday came around, that was my bi-annual game. Not long after, for copyright reasons, all those game boxes were withdrawn, and repackaged as Quest For Glory.

It would take me years before I would have the capacity to understand and complete a Sierra quest game. By then, my friend would have gotten QFG2, and QFG4 was soon to arrive in stores. I eventually learned the ins and outs of the original, beat 2 and 3, and fiddled around with 4 (technically completing it but never feeling like I beat it,) before the series went dark. Sierra had fallen on tough times, and the designers, Lori and Cori Cole, had a falling out with the Williamses. Quest For Glory V did get made about 5 years later to conclude the series, but it looked radically different and Ive never gotten around to playing it. Evidently, the Coles never let go of the QFG universe, though, because their passion project emerged 20 years later in the kickstarter game Hero-U.

In Hero-U, you play as Shaun, a red-headed young punk of dubious character who gets caught during his first mission for the thieves guild and gets dragged out by a mysterious benefactor into being a new student at Hero University. Since hes not strong enough to be a fighter or paladin, not adept enough to be a magic user, and not skilled enough at anything else at all to be placed in one of the other tracks, hes entered into the totally-not-the-rogue class, known as the disbarred bards. There, he makes friends (or enemies, or frenemies) of the five other students, butts heads with the disciplinarian, sneaks his way into various dungeons attached to the school, and ends up saving the day on several occasions. Because the game is blatantly, yet unofficially set in the Quest For Glory universe, theres tons of references to the previous games, plenty of point-and-click adventure, and oh-so-many puns.

You had better like puns.

One of the biggest detractions to the game is that the scheduling and the daily cycle is very rigid, and often inhibits the sort of exploration and mischief you want to get yourself into. Nearly every day, you wake up and attend class in the AM. Then you usually have either a training session or an elective that takes up your PM. You have maybe an hour before dinner which Shaun makes sure never to miss and then a few hours before bed during which you conduct most of your extracurricular activities. The game has both a lot to explore and not a lot, depending on your perspective, and the combat isnt exactly the most inspired. Still, I had a pretty good idea what I was getting myself into, and once I had played through once, completing a second PT took less than a third of the time.

Rogue to Redemption had been envisioned as the first of several adventures at Hero-U. Unfortunately, it sold terribly and there wont be any others to follow. I have mixed feelings about the finished product, so I can understand how this may have happened, but my brand loyalty to Quest for Glory does make me sad that I wont get to experience another adventure like it. Unless I go back and play QFG5.

Should you play it?: Probably not, unless youre a big point-and-click fan. I logged 26 hours, for reference.

Next: Virtual keysanity

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Kenri
11/25/20 12:30:16 AM
#126:


Z3R next maybe? I know keysanity is a thing in OoT randomizers.

---
Congrats to BKSheikah, who knows more about years than anyone else.
... Copied to Clipboard!
Shonen_Bat
11/25/20 12:46:36 AM
#127:


Sounds right. Z3R has that as a mode too.

---
Hello again.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/25/20 1:04:00 AM
#128:


Well, if there's no mystery, sure, we can squeeze one more in.

16. Z3R (A Link to the Past randomizer)
Genre Action-adventure

Gameplay: 8
Rest of Game: 8
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 0
Playtime: 5

Total score: 29/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3w6cPNAELU

Its Link to the Past, except every item has been pulled from its chest, shuffled up in a bag, and then dealt back out in some random combination that means you might finish Turtle Rock before Eastern Palace simply because you never found a bow. (Or maybe you didnt need to finish Eastern at all, because it was a pendant and you found dark world access without killing Aganhim.)

I have no idea which game had the first randomizer. I know some people are big on Zelda 1. Theres a decent ZOoTR community. Randomizers have sprung up for a great many non-Zelda games as well, particularly FF games. (Free Enterprise, Beyond Chaos, etc.) However, I saw a Z3R race a few years ago during AGDQ and I was immediately hooked. The funny thing is that I had never played Link to the Past before that, and had to learn the game before I could learn how to play it randomized. Oh, sure, I had played LTTP, but as a kid, and I sucked at it, believing that green guards were the most horrible and unfair enemies ever, and how is anyone supposed to just get past this stupid castle at the beginning?

Now I play variations of it where I end up trying to kill Ganon with 8 hearts, no armor or safeties, and only the master sword for a weapon. Fun times.

Of course, its not that the other hearts arent available, or the armor, or the silver arrows. Its just that the goal is to go fast, so I never found them and didnt stop to look. Theres an extremely avid race community for rando, and Ive now watched a dude on Twitch for over two years who does nothing but play Z3R seeds, three each night. (Feel free to check out coy_stream, 9 PM eastern onward, every night but Fridays.) It isnt the game Ive played the most of since 2018, but it has definitely been a presence. To my shock, I actually beat Coy and like 15 other people in a race a couple weeks ago, which has certainly been the highlight of my experience with the game since Im an intermediate player at best.

But you dont have to be good to enjoy rando. Sometimes just the mystery of knowing that everything is different from the childhood game you remember is amusing enough. Never fear, though, the game will always be completable.

Should you play it?: Cmon, what are ya, cucco?

Next: A game that has nothing to do with time travel

Super helpful hint, btw. Applies to every remaining game but 1.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Shonen_Bat
11/25/20 1:20:41 AM
#129:


I love Z3R. For a while I just played game after game. I got kind of burnt out on it unsurprisingly but I'll probably go back sooner or later.

---
Hello again.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/25/20 10:16:32 AM
#130:


15. A Hat in Time
Genre 3-D platformer

Gameplay: 9
Rest of Game: 9
Engagement: 7
New to Me: 2
Playtime: 2

Total score: 29/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXBcBugpHZg

Like a couple other listings, AHiT is taking a beating because Ive played it before. The game is amazing, and ought to be near the top of the list, except I only touched on it briefly this year to check out the second DLC.

A Hat in Time feels like a love letter to Super Mario 64 and the other semi-open world platformers that grew out of it. The art and animation is vibrant and engaging. The musics fantastic. The controls handle wonderfully. The story and the humor are adorable. Theres very little I can say negative about the game, beyond the frustrating moments where I wasnt able to execute precisely the way I wanted towhich is typically on me.

The game begins with your character, Hat Kid, on her spaceship, in transit tosomewherewhen an unfortunate mishap leads to all of her ships fuel in the form of hourglasses spilling out onto the nearby planet and landing her in Mafia Town with the goal of trying to recollect them. After grabbing up to 10 there and completing the Mafia Town storyline, there are three other worlds that follow. The second is very tightly plotted, arguably too much so. The third is just right. And then the fourth gives you no guidance whatsoever and just says hey, go explore!

In the vein of SM64, DK64, and the like, once you have enough timepieces, you can move on to the final boss, where you clash with your nemesis, Mustache Girl, who looks like Little Red Riding Hood with a big handlebar and has an Australian accent. She initially befriends you until you decide you just want to recover your fuel and continue your journey rather than using the power of the hourglasses to bend time to your will, and fix Mafia Town.

Along the way, Hat Kid fashions several new hats from yarn found throughout the levels, adding to her skillset. She traverses challenge levels. She gets all kinds of bonus items and collectibles. She rides a Roomba around her ships bridge, just because you can. There are select stars you might not like, but overall, theres very little about the game to turn people off.

Should you play it?: FOOOOOOOOOOOOL! You blew it! You totally screwed yourself! Nobody enters this review and leaves in one piece! Tell you what, though. Ive got a piece of paper here. Dont worry about the details! I just need you to enter your credit card info right here at the bottom!

Next: Double your pleasure

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/25/20 7:23:45 PM
#131:


13 & 14. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney & Phoenix Wright: Spirit of Justice
Genre Point & Click Mystery

Gameplay: 4
Rest of Game: 7
Engagement: 9
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 30/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDP4ds-ozOI + https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-i5tt2-V2SE

After finishing Danganronpa V3, I thought, might be nice if there was more where that came from. Of course, like a dumbass, it didnt even immediately occur to me to check out Ace Attorney, which I had still never played. Id played Aviary Attorney, mind you, but not the games that inspired it.

But as luck would have it, in 2019, the Ace Attorney Trilogy went up on Steam, and around the time I finished DR, it went on sale. So I bought it, gave it a try, liked the first two cases, and then got hung up trying to navigate my way through some garbage about moving around a TV studio while trying to figure out what the hell to do to solve some mystery about something something Steel Samurai something something weird creepy angry old hag security guard something somethingand finally gave up and started playing with a guide because I couldnt find the trigger to advance the story.

Im sure I dont have to explain to anyone here what Ace Attorney is. Phoenix Wright is a new lawyer, sponsored by his boss, Mia Fey. She guides him through the first trial, the tutorial, before involuntarily handing you the reins. Mias sister appears and serves as your kooky assistant for the rest of the game, while you match wits with various prosecutors, most notable among them being Miles Edgeworth. Hes more of a rival than an enemy, though, and when you reach the final case and have to square off with his mentor, Von Karma, you realize exactly how Edgeworth became the man he is. Then theres a really long bonus case at the end of the first game, before we rinse and repeat, starting all over again with Spirit of Justice.

Theres not a lot to say different about Spirit of Justice. Its basically the same (occasionally obtuse) gameplay, the same ridiculous witnesses on stand, the same patchwork of guessing your way through the right sequence to produce the reaction you want in court. Im holding onto Trials and Tribulations, which earns higher marks, but in general, I would describe the first two Ace Attorney games as a fun romp that is easily frustrating when played without a guide. I also feel like I should be ashamed for playing with a guide, but I just got too damn sick of running up and down the halls of that stupid studio, clicking on everything and having the plot go nowhere.

Should you play it?: You already have.

Next: A simple dungeon crawler

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
andylt
11/25/20 7:29:32 PM
#132:


Er... do you mean Justice for All? Spirit of Justice is the sixth numbered game! T&T on top of the original trilogy is correct though.

---
Congrats to azuarc, Guru Champion 2020!
... Copied to Clipboard!
NFUN
11/25/20 7:30:40 PM
#133:


andylt posted...
Er... do you mean Justice for All? Spirit of Justice is the sixth numbered game! T&T on top of the original trilogy is correct though.
nah, he played it in the correct order: 1 6 3 5 2 ok fine 4

---
You shine, and make others shine just by being near them.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/25/20 9:49:50 PM
#134:


><

That wasn't even a one-time typo. I have it in my spreadsheet as Spirit of Justice, too.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
andylt
11/25/20 9:55:27 PM
#135:


In your defence, the Ace Attorney subtitles are all very bland and interchangeable. None of them even mean anything in particular.

---
Congrats to azuarc, Guru Champion 2020!
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/25/20 10:05:01 PM
#136:


I blame everyone else for not noticing and pointing out my mistake in the three weeks leading up to this moment.

Anyway, closing in on the top 10.

sidenote: a 4 for gameplay in Phoenix Wright games feels surprisingly generous.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/26/20 2:01:50 AM
#137:


12. Soda Dungeon 2
Genre Idle battler

Gameplay: 5
Rest of Game: 5
Engagement: 10
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 30/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frotyRfLY6g

Lol at that scoring breakdown. But I dare you to find one other game where I (according to Steam) logged over 200 hours in a two-week time period. Mind you, there are only 168 hours in a week. Thats not to say that Soda Dungeon is anything brilliant. Its cute. Its fun. And it plays itself if you want it to. (You do, after the first few dungeon runs.)

The original Soda Dungeon tells the tale of a bartender who owns a tavern that only sells soda. Each flavor entices a particular class of adventurer to appear, so as you add different types of soda and fix the place up, you start to get more clientelewhich you then commission to explore the nearby dungeon, and dive as deep as you can go. Soda Dungeon 2 expands on this format. Theres more equipment, deeper dungeons, and a story about traveling between multiple dimensions and starting over anew in each one. You win when you finally reset for the tenth time and defeat the Dark-est Lord.

So although you will start with one useless Soda Junkie who will clear a couple rooms before fleeing, youll eventually add Miners, Nurses, Huntresses, Blademasters and more. And although you can control the turn-based combat, its much simpler (and faster) to hit the auto-button and let everything play itself out. The AI doesnt always make perfect decisions, and your group will eventually hit the end of the line regardless, but you can script your party of up to six to behave however you choose. Once you have the requisite tools, its possible to set up a team that can more or less continue infinitely until theyre getting one-shot.

Thing is, once you do that, your runs start to take a long time. I normally turn my computer off at night. Instead, I found myself setting up Soda Dungeon first thing when I woke up, letting it run, coming back at a couple points later in the day, and then setting up for a big run when I went to bed. Once, the team was still going when I got up ten hours later. So sure, Steam might claim I played for 200 hours, but I really only played a quarter of that at most. Still, the game is free, and its fun for a quick diversion even if you dont continue very long.

Should you play it?: Did I mention its free, and largely plays itself?

Next: The last of its kind

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Shonen_Bat
11/26/20 2:23:02 AM
#138:


Sounds kinda fun, but also a pretty easy rabbit hole to fall in.

Can't think of what the next one might be except for the other Phoenix Wright game.

---
Hello again.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/26/20 11:28:25 AM
#139:


11. Super Mario Odyssey
Genre 3-D Adventure-Platformer

Gameplay: 8
Rest of Game: 8
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 2

Total score: 31/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7A4xMjByu9s

Poor Super Mario Odyssey. Gets left out of the top 10 just because its the only game without a 5 in time played. But to be fair, if my experience with it was limited, can I really defend placing in the top 10? Maybe the game is less interesting later, or maybe games I spent more time with legitimately belong to be there.

Anyway, it made 11th on the back of catering to my childhood memories of Mario games, coupled with my desire to explore and discover.

Of the games Ive had the opportunity to experience on the Switch, SMO has easily been the most engaging. It wins the not-a-computer-game award of the year. Take the formula once laid out back in Super Mario 64, and expand on it. I honestly havent played any Nintendo games between now and the N64, so I cant compare to Sunshine or Galaxy 1&2, but one of the things that was always so awkward about SM64 was how there were exactly 6 stars, plus one for a hundred coins, and you were kicked out of the level to reset it so the game could make minor adjustments if you were going to try for a different one. (Need to add in Koopa the Quick, for example.)

In SMO, theres moons everywhere. See something interesting to explore? Moon. Found a ledge to look off of? Moon. Its a collect-a-thon gone wild! And that could have been annoying, a la DK64, if there had been too much to grab, but SMO strikes a balance, with worlds that are not too open and vacant, and not too saturated with discoveries. Id expect no less from Nintendo.

The ability to use Cappy to Kirby enemy powers into working for you puts an interesting spin, and although occasionally frustrating when you realize that some awkward puzzle just required you to absorb a bullet bill and travel just so, its also rewarding and satisfying to realize that the gameplay is about more than just platforming.

The worlds are varied and interesting, and although a few have presented some odd or frustrating solutions -- the last section I played was in the water area where you had to change outfits to make certain events trigger -- seldom have I gotten to an object or obstacle in the game and thought anything other than, let me remember thats there because I bet Ill know what to do with it when Im done with this other thing Im trying to finish first.

In short, its a game about perpetually doing, while also not allowing you to simply faceroll it. And thats precisely what any games first playthrough ought to be.

Should you play it?: Yes, if you own a Switch.

Next: A game featuring a murderer

.

Okay, folks, and that means we're down to the top 10!

Remaining games:
A Plague Tale: Innocence
Borderlands 3
DanganRonpa V3
Dishonored 2
Genshin Impact
Hades
Hollow Knight
Lenna's Inception
Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel

Get your guesses and final predictions in now.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
andylt
11/26/20 11:50:43 AM
#140:


Oh man you should play the Galaxys at least! Odyssey was a return to the 64 open world style of game that they drifted away from to make more linear adventures, so it definitely makes sense to compare them directly (but with Mario's much more advanced moveset). The little linear sublevels in each world are more like the platforming challenges of the others, it really manages to strike such a great balance between the two.

the last section I played was in the water area where you had to change outfits to make certain events trigger --

...I hope you mean Seaside Kingdom and not Lake! There's outfit switching stuff in pretty much every kingdom. It's a shame you didn't get to Bowser's Kingdom, or Luncheon.

I have only played two of your top ten (and loved both!) so couldn't possibly make a prediction here, never even heard of Lenna's Inception.

---
Congrats to azuarc, Guru Champion 2020!
... Copied to Clipboard!
Shonen_Bat
11/26/20 5:20:33 PM
#141:


Hollow Knight is the only one of these I've actually played, I got Lenna's Inception but never started it.

Feel like Hades will win, not really basing that off of anything other than 'I've heard it's great' though

---
Hello again.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/26/20 11:09:03 PM
#142:


My friend's random guesses:

1. Danganronpa V3
2. Hades
3. Lenna's Inception
4. LoH: Trails of Cold Steel
5. Borderlands 3
6. Genshin Impact
7. Dishonored 2
8. Hollow Knight
9. A Plague Tale: Innocence
10. Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/26/20 11:53:00 PM
#143:


HM. The Outer Worlds
Genre Bethesda-style RPG

Gameplay: 5
Rest of Game: 6
Engagement: 5
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 4

Total score: 25/40

Not to be confused with The Outer Wilds.

Song selection: Does anyone listen to these?

Obsidians return to open-world RPGs was the most noteworthy game Ive played since I began the countdown. (Ive also dabbled with World of Goo and finished 999.) And for me to only give a 5 in engagement for a title like this is a massive indictment for a game that I wasI cant say disappointed with. Just underwhelmed.

The idea of Outer Wilds is interesting. The writings okay, I guess, as well as the mechanics from a conceptual level. But the execution is just really not there. This definitely did not feel like Skyrim in space. (Or Fallout: New Vegas.) If anything, it felt much closer to Pillars of Eternity, another Obsidian title that was incredibly ho-hum. You log in, you start playing it, and then you feel invested enough to say, Oh, I put all these hours in. I guess I better keep going. Youre not really into it, but youre not really not into it, either. Youre just kinda going through the motions until finally you hit an obstacle or something else comes along, and you put it down, and upon recollection you realize, you were never really all that into it.

Stealth isnt very stealthy. Lockpicks use a consumable resource and being better is simply supposed to use less. Equipment upgrades dont feel rewarding. Combat is lackluster. The small world areas pack a lot into them, but simultaneously manage to feel too big and too tiny. Despite a variety of dialogue options, I never felt like I was role-playing my character. Or enjoying myself, really.

Should you play it?: Its not the best choice, merely Spacers Choice.

Next: (unchanged)

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/27/20 11:54:31 AM
#144:


Guess we'll let 'er rip, then.

10. Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations
Genre Point & Click Mystery

Gameplay: 4
Rest of Game: 8
Engagement: 9
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 31/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6pvnwwbNFA

Of the games in the top ten, I suspect T&T is the one Ill need to spend the least amount of time on. First of all, its Phoenix Wright. How many of you here havent played it? Second, its Phoenix Wright. There really isnt much to say, especially when I already hit Ace Attorney and Justice For All earlier.

But what separates Tribulations from its predecessors is the story. Whereas the first two games felt gimmicky and the cases were mostly apart from one another outside of a little bit of carryover, Tribulationss cases all present a unified narrative that tie together not just each other, but also use all of the past games characters to help further develop the world.

After AAs first case was literally Phoenixs first case, and JFA sees Phoenix experience amnesia so we can start fresh with a tutorial, T&T opens with a flashback to Mia Feys introduction to the courtroom while a young and incredibly clueless Phoenix is the defendant. Aside from casting Phoenix in a Larry Butz-like role, the trial was incredibly satisfying, seeing as Mia is always a part of the games but has been forced to take a backseat role because, yknow, shes dead.

But the villain of the first case turns out to be relevant to the rest of the games plot. We live through two cases with Phoenix that help set the stage for the big finale, before returning to Mia a second time. Her actual first case, against another rookie lawyer in the form of one Miles Edgeworth, is a fun sideshow to help present the final bits of backstory before we get into case 5.

And, oh man, what a case 5. Im already flirting with needing spoiler tags, so Ill simply say that it brings everything together with a very liberal slice of fireworks. The cases (besides the Mia flashbacks) feature prosecutor Godot, who is a fan favorite and certainly has the appearance of being a more viable nemesis than the lying-and-cheating version of Edgeworth from AA or Franziska with her foolishly fool notion of fools that she must foolishly crack with her fool whip. We also get what I have to imagine is the final arc in talking about the Fey family, a rendition of Larry who actually seems to be good at something, and a sort of redemption story for Edgeworth. For all the absurdity and the outlandish characters we get from Ace Attorney, Trials and Tribulations has taken them, past and present, and crafted them together to form one of the most masterful narratives Ive seen executed in a video game.

Im not rushing out to buy the others on handheld, though.

Should you play it?: As if I really need to issue a recommendation for Phoenix Wright on Board 8.

Next: A game from an Asian developer

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
andylt
11/27/20 12:12:51 PM
#145:


You laid out well why T&T is so good, it really is a culmination. 3-3 is the only case I don't really like but the strength of 1, 4 and of course 5 makes it feel much more cohesive than the other games. I also really liked playing as Mia! It's easily the best of the trilogy, even if 2-4 is my fav case. Agree that the series could've just ended there, though.

Guessing Genshin Impact next.

---
Congrats to azuarc, Guru Champion 2020!
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/27/20 5:34:07 PM
#146:


9. The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel
Genre JRPG

Gameplay: 6
Rest of Game: 8
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 32/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JDWIPftf1M

I ran a playthrough topic for Sen no Kiseki, so many of you already know my thoughts as they happened. ToCS is one of three sub-series within the Legend of Heroes franchise, and although I have no experience with the Crossbell arc, I found it much more enjoyable than Trails in the Sky.

ToCS is the tale of Rean Schwarzer, a cadet at Thors Head Military Academy and member of the newly-formed and mysterious Class VII. Each of Reans eight peers joins him for subquests in Thors and for various field trips Instructor Sara Valestein plans for them. In so doing, Class VII receives a taste of all the Erebonian Empire has to offer. Due to the very rapid social and technological advancement made in their culture over the last 50 years, along with the expansionist ideals of their chancellor, a great many factions and subcultures emerge and clash, and somehow Rean finds himself in the midst of the action during each of the 6 chapters for reasons it would be difficult to imagine were planned in advance.

Similarly, his classmates come from each corner of the empire, including two nobles, three others who are son or daughter to prominent figures, a child raised on a mercenary crew, and a foreigner from annexed lands. A big part of what makes the Trails games tick is the development of each characters story, both among the playable cast and from over a hundred recurring NPCs both at the academy and beyond. While Falcom definitely does not slack in making any of them feel like real people with personalities, problems, and lives, as this is one of the most Falcom things in their games, perhaps the most flavorful is the classs teacher, as Instructor Sara has a very casual attitude toward classroom learning, a proclivity to drink whenever possible, and a snarky attitude that goes on display at every opportunity. Our MC, Rean, is a mild-mannered hero type with secrets in his past, so a very typical RPG lead, but the people around him and the settings hes placed into allow him to shine....for eighty freaking hours. Oh yeah, did I mention this game is long? And thats with the dev team splitting it in two. No grinding, either. Theres just that much story.

In terms of gameplay, Cold Steel is a simplified and sped up Trails in the Sky, which means they took out the biggest obstacles from me enjoying TitS and let the player just focus on the game itself without a ton on min-maxing character builds or contending with really drawn out battle sequences. Though a part of me wants to go back and experience Trails in the Sky, I think Id have a hard time doing so...despite the fact that Cold Steel, which occurs later chronologically, spoils very little (that I could tell) of Skys story arc.

If I havent made it abundantly clear, Cold Steel is a game carried by its story arcs and worldbuilding. Falcom could have written this game as a visual novel and still had it work, albeit you would have lost a ton of exploration and freedom of choice. Part of the joy of ToCS is simply getting lost in the academy or the town outside it, talking to everyone and getting to feel like youre a part of the world around you. Plus sidequests and other bonus activities. If youre a die-hard JRPG fan, youre probably better served beginning with the start of the franchise, which would make this the sixth game youd play, but considering there are four Trails of Cold Steel games, Im content with having skipped ahead and experiencing a game that suits my attention better. I will probably play Cold Steel 2 whenever it finally goes on sale, but the first game does end in a bit of a weird place and I get the impression game two will have a considerably different vibe to it. Guess Ill find out.

Should you play it?: This is an epic fantasy novel, in video game form.

Next: A game with random loot

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/27/20 11:17:37 PM
#147:


8. Lennas Inception
Genre Adventure

Gameplay: 7
Rest of Game: 7
Engagement: 8
New to Me: 5
Playtime: 5

Total score: 32/40

Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ba6WURSItDs

With as many cute little indie games as appear on this list, you knew one of them had to rise to the top. Maybe Bytten Studio cant compete with Supergiant Games or Team Cherry, and certainly doesnt have the resources of miHoYo, but the fact that two dudes could produce an intentionally 8-bit game with this much charm and substance in such a small package is amazing. Lennas Inception was a gift -- I had previously never heard of it -- and I was incredibly captivated with it, to the extent of learning the speedrun, something Ive never truly done for any other game. I originally had Lennas at #2 before re-ranking the top 10. Thats how into it I was at one point.

LI is the story of young Lance, the legendary hero of a land that looks surprisingly like Hyrule, as he battles his way through eight dungeons and ultimately saves them from the evil Archang--oh, wait. Shit. The games memory data got corrupted, and now everythings gotten all screwed up. Now the elder is dead, Lance is without a guide, and the people of the <GLITCHED> Kingdom are running around like headless chickens.

The actual game begins with Lenna, the school teacher of an octet of unruly kids, who briefly steps out of her schoolhouse, blacks out, and wakes to find the entirety of her schoolhouse corrupted. She cries out for the plight of her students, locates the dead elder and the package he had left for Lance, and then finds the lad and offers him a quest to rescue her kids. Except...Lance doesnt know what hes doing. At all. Like, he's holding the sword over his head in a way where he could hurt someone. So Lenna, recognizing that without the elder, the burden of the games tutorial falls on her, escorts Lance to a nearby dungeon, hands him his sword, and teaches him how to swing it.

And then Lance dies. Horribly. Right in front of her.

Uncertain what to do, Lenna takes up Lances sword and begins the quest that was meant for him, diving through eight dungeons very much akin to the original Legend of Zelda, each with their own unique item to allow progression and one or more keys to reach the boss. Going into the fourth dungeon, Lenna learns that the prince of the land is imprisoned by the bankers guild for failing to pay out his loans, and in the power vacuum, Chairman Mammon threatens to rule all with a gold-clenched fist. However, there turns out to be a lot more at stake, and the final reveal at the end of the story really blew me away.

That said, Lennas Inception isnt really about the story. I mean, the story is fantastic for what it is, but most of it is just told in little snippets at the end of each dungeon, similar to the way instruments play Ballad of the Wind Fish in Links Awakening. No, the quirk and main selling point of the game is that its generated procedurally. Everything in the game is randomized. The map tiles, the dungeon positions, their layouts, which item is in each dungeon, what the vendors sell...its all unique to your game seed. Therefore, after you beat it once, if youre so inclined, you can beat it again. And since there are three different endings to achieve, you might as well. I mean, its not a super long game. The speedruns under an hour, and thats with the runner not actually knowing what theyre in for within each playthrough.

The perfect ending to the game will require you to do a bunch of sidequests, abstain from actually killing the bosses a la Undertale, and confront a post-final boss in an attempt to finally fix the corrupted memory glitches that are threatening to eventually consume the whole game world. Along the way, theres a lot of really silly humor and easter eggs worth finding, highlighted in particular by the collectible library books, which are returned to the librarian Paige for a bonus. But you can read the books beforehand to see a monster manual, a lampoon of Harry Potter, a delivery ad for the games pizza chain (which you can call and order a pizza from -- it arrives 30 minutes later) and a parody of The Lusty Argonian Maid. The final dungeon item is also one of the most fun things Ive seen included in a Zelda clone and invites all kinds of bizarre gameplay.

For those not into 8-bit graphics and sound, you can choose at the very beginning between 8-bit or 32-.

Should you play it?: For a game that you might already own if you bought the itch.io bundle, I cant think of a good reason not to at least try it.

Next: A game where character death is baked into the design

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
NFUN
11/27/20 11:20:52 PM
#148:


azuarc posted...
Song selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6pvnwwbNFA
this isn't black coffee wtf

---
You shine, and make others shine just by being near them.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/27/20 11:23:01 PM
#149:


Yeah, that one was already taken on the pastebin. Wonder who could have done that.

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
dowolf
11/28/20 12:16:35 AM
#150:


azuarc posted...
ToCS is one of three sub-series within the Legend of Heroes franchise

Oh you sweet summer child.

(LoH 1+2 are a subseries, 3-5 are a subseries, 6 is sky, 7 is Crossbell, and 8 is Cold Steel through Hajimari. How you want to categorize things beyond that is up to you :) )
---
Nonsense. "Testing" is for when you're still guessing--and now, I have no need to guess. -- Agatha, Girl Genius
... Copied to Clipboard!
Kenri
11/28/20 12:35:20 AM
#151:


Lenna's Inception is definitely a game that needs more love.

Guessing Hollow Knight is next.

---
Congrats to BKSheikah, who knows more about years than anyone else.
... Copied to Clipboard!
azuarc
11/28/20 1:43:51 AM
#152:


dowolf posted...
Oh you sweet summer child.

(LoH 1+2 are a subseries, 3-5 are a subseries, 6 is sky, 7 is Crossbell, and 8 is Cold Steel through Hajimari. How you want to categorize things beyond that is up to you :) )

Okay okay okay.

There's...

  1. Dragon Slayer (includes Gaiden and some 2012 game)
  2. DS2: Xanadu (includes Scenario II, Faxanadu, Revival, Revival 2, Legend of, Legend 2, Xanadu Nexu, and Tokyo Xanadu)
  3. Dragon Slayer Jr (and some 1999 game)
  4. Legacy of the Wizard
  5. Sorcerian (contains 21 games)
  6. Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes (2 games)
  7. Lord Monarch (contains 16 games)
  8. Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes 2 (3 games)
  9. LoH: Trails in the Sky (3 games)
  10. LoH Crossbell (2 games)
  11. LoH: Trails of Cold Steel (4 games)
I was only referencing the last three.

Thanks Wikipedia, but seriously, WTF is Sorcerian and why have I never heard of it before?

---
Video Game Music Contest 14 champion: Idola Phantasy Star Saga - Endeavour
... Copied to Clipboard!
Topic List
Page List: 1, 2, 3, 4