Messages

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: May 29, 2023, 12:44:05 pm »

37. Star Ocean: The Divine Force

This game is divine indeed. It's probably the best game in the series. My favorite? No. But, it's the most polished, accessible, and a major step up after Integrity and Faithlessness (which I really liked). I already got a few of the possible endings, finished the game on Universe difficulty, and farmed a bunch of Fol for the post-game content which is likely to be filled to the top. I really liked Laeticia's side of the story, but I have a feeling I'll like Raymond's once I start it. I'll probably start his journey after I finish all of the post-game related stuff/trophies. At any rate, this is an easy game to recommend to newcomers and fans of the series.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: May 24, 2023, 10:52:17 am »

36. Little Witch Nobeta

Souls-like games are a dime a dozen nowadays, but this one is somewhat unique and in that it's a lot more forgiving, the narrative isn't vague, and the leading character is downright adorable. Watching Nobeta go through so much crap from start to end made the gameplay struggles worth it. The biggest struggle was that around the halfway point, you're in this endless maze/corridor that is blacker than pitch and just unfun to navigate. I'll talk more about it when I write a review but that's around the point all of its holes started showing. Thankfully, the game is short. Definitely a surprising game that I'm glad I picked up on a whim.

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General / Re: Gamer reviews/ rankings page

« on: May 19, 2023, 08:09:13 am »

My website has reviews o' plenty!

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: May 12, 2023, 07:54:28 pm »

35. Virtue's Last Reward - platinum'd

Sometimes, I like to replay a game to see certain parts again, maybe get a few easy trophies and a platinum if it's on a modern Sony console, or a little bit of both. I found a copy of Virtue's Last Reward on Vita and thought I would be able to do just that. I figured, "Hey, it's mostly a VN. I can skip through most of the fluff and get to good stuff." Not so much. It turns out I can't skip text unless it's already been viewed once. And my god, I forgot how slow this game moved. It's also not fun to mess with on Vita since the touch screen ain't great. The puzzles themselves were still fun, but everything else? Man, this game is like a person so up their own you-know-what that they can't be bothered by anything. They just love to tell the same story over and over, by with different word choices. It's weird how a replay can alter your perception of a game.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: May 01, 2023, 11:22:55 am »

34. Mega Man Battle Network 2

A mega (heh) improvement over the first game, but also padded a bit more. The scenarios near the end really outstayed their welcome. Otherwise, a great way to continue the story and to continue my journey with the Battle Network games. It'll be a minute before I start MMBN 3 because this one kind of burned me out. But, I'm excited to see what else they add as the series continues.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: April 25, 2023, 10:30:25 am »

33. Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2

Inti Creates does it again. I enjoyed the first one more, but this one was still a good time. In terms of content, this one was way ahead of the predecessor. But, that's really about all of the improvements. Everything else is the same. Classic looks, great tunes, and a challenge that's right for everyone. I kind of wish that the episodes didn't require going through the same stages, but the powered up bosses near the end helped a bit with that.

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General / Re: Your Largest Purchase Pause?

« on: April 24, 2023, 10:54:09 am »

It varies for me. For new releases, it will vary depending on the game and when its release day is.

For older games, I think the longest is a few months or so at a time.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: April 24, 2023, 08:54:22 am »

32. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

Whew-boi. Where to begin with this one. I'll write a review at some point, but for now I'll say that this was a lot. I was under the impression that the Paper Mario games were more on the laidback side, but that's not the case here. That's telling if this is the best in the series. The game wasn't difficult, but it was padded. I ended up mashing the B button just to get to the end of each dialogue sequence. That would inevitably mean I would be forced with more backtracking and (mostly) unavoidable combat. There's no denying that the game is polished, clever, and an all around fine RPG. But man. The game just wouldn't freaking end. If the other games are like this, then this isn't the series for me.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: April 23, 2023, 03:44:57 pm »

A friend had a birthday party at an arcade. I spent most of the time on pinball or just dabbling in miscellaneous fighting games that lasted a few rounds. The majority of the game time was spent with this game below.

31. Chicken Shift

I read the title as, well, I'm sure you can figure it out. Anyway, this was a really fun game that I spent a lot of time with. You have two buttons that move chutes that must be toggled as eggs from fall chickens at the top of the screen. These chickens are healthy; the eggs are non-stop. If the chutes are properly aligned, then the eggs land in cartons. You need to get a certain number of eggs in cartons before the level ends. Broken eggs move you close to a game over. All in all, really fun and surprising title that I never even heard of until now.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: April 20, 2023, 12:29:48 pm »

30. Mega Man Battle Network

I had a lot of back and forth about whether or not to start the Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection with the first game. I heard it was the worst in the series. I'm glad I started with this because it will (hopefully) lay out the foundation of what's to come with later entries. It was definitely rough around edges (the powerplant level can eff right off) and the encounter rate could be a bit much. Also, there was a lot of running back and forth through the towns to just advance the plot. Ultimately it didn't matter too much because I had a great time. If this is indeed the worst of the bunch, then I can't wait to see how the other games compare. I'll probably jump right into Battle Network 2.

I'm so happy you're playing these games I agree, 1 is the worst in the series. I'm afraid that some of the stuff you mentioned (encounter rates, back and forth story progression) only improve marginally throughout the series. What does improve are graphics, level design, chip selection, and other mechanics that can increase the customization options for Mega Man.

I think 2 is solid, but 3 is my personal favorite. I intend to play all of them except 2 since I played it last year. I'm personally excited to play 5 and 6 as those were the ones I had when I was a kid. I'm excited to hear what you think about the rest of the series!

Glad to hear it! Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm going to hop right into 2 and take a break after I finish that one. I'm playing a couple of other things now but since I had such a good time with BN I'm craving more of it.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: April 19, 2023, 06:22:20 pm »

30. Mega Man Battle Network

I had a lot of back and forth about whether or not to start the Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection with the first game. I heard it was the worst in the series. I'm glad I started with this because it will (hopefully) lay out the foundation of what's to come with later entries. It was definitely rough around edges (the powerplant level can eff right off) and the encounter rate could be a bit much. Also, there was a lot of running back and forth through the towns to just advance the plot. Ultimately it didn't matter too much because I had a great time. If this is indeed the worst of the bunch, then I can't wait to see how the other games compare. I'll probably jump right into Battle Network 2.

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General / Re: DK Oldies? A scandal, or just another smear campaign?

« on: April 13, 2023, 09:27:07 am »

All tea - I never even heard of DK Oldies until this topic came up, haha.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

« on: April 09, 2023, 09:18:15 pm »

29. Wild Arms 2 - platinum'd

Some games are so special that there really aren't enough words to describe how fun they are. That's the case with Wild Arms 2, which is still my favorite in the series. I first played this in around 2010; years after it was first released. I had a blast during that first run. So much so that I was worried nostalgia glasses and time would impact my run with this campaign. It was quite the opposite. The game has aged like fine wine. The only issues I have are with the font and the sometimes clumsy translation. Otherwise? Close to perfection. The game has great pacing, great characters, great combat, great graphics, great music...the list goes on. Obtaining the platinum trophy was just icing on the cake.

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General / Re: VGC's Anonymous/"General" Topic:

« on: April 09, 2023, 09:10:51 am »

Gun control does not equal taking away all guns. It means controlling access. Make them more expensive. Put a high amount of insurance on them. Add the most thorough background checks you've ever seen.

Remember, the second amendment (probably the only amendment the [edit by Cartagia] know) was written when guns were archaic contraptions of wood and metal. I'm not a historian but, I'm sure the idea of something that could discharge hundreds of bullets in seconds wasn't in the thought process.

The thought process was having a means to defend ourselves from the government should the need ever arise again as it already has happened. They didn't write the 2nd amendment to shoot bucks, that's just a bonus. If the government has every faucet of control over guns that defeats the entire purpose. The people are supposed to have the power and government is supposed to work for them, not the other way around. And the idea of of governments abusing their power is far from archaic.

The government has abused their power since the jump. That's nothing new. But. None of that matters when the handguns you're likely carrying around are just as easy to access as the ones capable of unleashing so much devastation within seconds. When I/someone is asking for gun control, it doesn't equal the soundbite of "the liberals are trying to take away our guns!" No, it's demanding common sense. That backwards way of thinking of needing an assault weapon to defend yourself from the government is antiquated.

Happy Easter, y'all!

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General / Re: VGC's Anonymous/"General" Topic:

« on: April 08, 2023, 05:27:16 pm »

Gun control does not equal taking away all guns. It means controlling access. Make them more expensive. Put a high amount of insurance on them. Add the most thorough background checks you've ever seen.

Remember, the second amendment (probably the only amendment the [edit by Cartagia] know) was written when guns were archaic contraptions of wood and metal. I'm not a historian but, I'm sure the idea of something that could discharge hundreds of bullets in seconds wasn't in the thought process.