Ah, heretics, both of you! The Sega CD version sounds a little over-produced. The TG version is more raw and punchy, but also imperfect in that the volume normalization is too strong. I can actually understand why you might prefer the Sega CD version, but were the TG volume issues mixed out it would be the clear, hands down winner.Sarge wrote: By the way, the Sega CD version's soundtrack has been redone, it sounds a bit different. It's actually the version I prefer, at least as far as sound goes.
Games Beaten 2016
Re: Games Beaten 2016
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Exhuminator
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Re: Games Beaten 2016
First off, I would only say I'm only marginally good at shmups. I suck horribly at bullet hell style shmups for example. Thankfully Lords of Thunder is not one of those.alienjesus wrote:Oh hey, that was quick.
You're clearly better at shmups than me - I thought Lords of Thunder was reasonably challenging myself, it took me a little while to finish that one
Which armour did you use? I'm a water armour kinda guy, but I like earth on a few of the stages.
My trick was first figuring out what stage was the easiest. Then I picked the water armor because it shoots backwards as well as forwards. Then I initially spent the starting crystals on powering up my weapon so I could start off very strong. Using that combo on a simpler stage meant that I could garner a lot of crystals off the get-go. From there, I just kept spending my crystals on continues from the shop. Thankfully you get checkpoints at bosses, so I could always fall back to the continue stockpile when needed. I didn't have too much trouble until the final boss. Which I only beat by war of attrition.
There are a lot of little reasons why I chose the TGCD version over the SEGA CD one. Primarily I didn't want to deal with the slow down of the SEGA CD version. Also in the SEGA CD version, when you get hit, your character cringes and can't shoot for a moment, but that moment can cost you! Here's a good article on all the minutiae: http://www.sega-16.com/2006/06/side-by- ... ografx-cd/
PLAY KING'S FIELD.
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Juan Aguacate
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Re: Games Beaten 2016
So the first thing I posted in this thread was for Ronin on the PS 4. Here's the latest thing I've beaten:
A King’s Tale: Final Fantasy XV
This game feels like a SNES game. It's a side scrolling beat 'em up, but what makes it stand out is the tactical combat. You have to use different tactics to beat each enemy and the game smartly incorporates a lot of what you do in regular FF games into the combat. Flans have to be hit with magic for example, Marlboros need to be prioritized on the battlefield because they'll hit you with status effects if you don't kill them quickly, Tonberry attacks have to be dodged or it's instant death, etc. It plays exactly like how a Final Fantasy beat 'em up should.
You can also summon allies as temporary assist attacks. You can also use limit breaks. This is all dependent though on you scoring many hits without taking a hit in return in order to fill up the bars that make these things available. There is some incentive to try and play the game with some finesse. A cool twist to your limit break attack is that any ally you've summoned prior to using your limit break will actually join in on your limit break making it more powerful and taking out more enemies (particularly the more powerful or annoying ones). There are summon spells in the game, but you don't directly control them, the story incorporates them into the game in a fun way though.
The story is amusing. It's set up in a way that feels like The Princess Bride, with an older version of your character narrating the story of your past exploits to a child, who I believe grows up to be the main character in FF XV as this game is technically a prequel. As the old guy recounts his adventures, you play through them. The dialog in this game is actually fun and charming, but being an old school beat 'em up the story is not too intrusive. You get some in stage dialog and some cut scenes between levels that really look like something from a SNES game. The music too, sounds very much like something an old SNES game would sound like.
The game has a few minor issues. The air combos have horrible animation and the timing for them always feels off. Visually the game looks a bit more like a Flash game than a SNES game and the animation can look pretty poor at times, with the air combos being the most glaring example. It doesn't hold the game back much though as it's very playable aside from those awkward air combos. And surprisingly, the hit detection feels more spot on than in most 2d beat 'em ups. There's no co op. The game also only has one boss fight and is pretty short.
Fortunately, you do unlock some special challenges when you beat the game, giving you more combat scenarios where you can try to beat the levels with a high rank and fulfill optional objectives to get a gold star for each stage. These challenges will test your understanding of the game's mechanics and how to tackle each enemy type. And it'll test your skill in other ways, like gold star challenges for not getting hit, or beating a stage very quickly.
Sadly, this game was a Gamestop pre-order bonus. I'm hoping it eventually gets released as DLC for FF XV though, even if it's just a season pass bonus
A King’s Tale: Final Fantasy XV
This game feels like a SNES game. It's a side scrolling beat 'em up, but what makes it stand out is the tactical combat. You have to use different tactics to beat each enemy and the game smartly incorporates a lot of what you do in regular FF games into the combat. Flans have to be hit with magic for example, Marlboros need to be prioritized on the battlefield because they'll hit you with status effects if you don't kill them quickly, Tonberry attacks have to be dodged or it's instant death, etc. It plays exactly like how a Final Fantasy beat 'em up should.
You can also summon allies as temporary assist attacks. You can also use limit breaks. This is all dependent though on you scoring many hits without taking a hit in return in order to fill up the bars that make these things available. There is some incentive to try and play the game with some finesse. A cool twist to your limit break attack is that any ally you've summoned prior to using your limit break will actually join in on your limit break making it more powerful and taking out more enemies (particularly the more powerful or annoying ones). There are summon spells in the game, but you don't directly control them, the story incorporates them into the game in a fun way though.
The story is amusing. It's set up in a way that feels like The Princess Bride, with an older version of your character narrating the story of your past exploits to a child, who I believe grows up to be the main character in FF XV as this game is technically a prequel. As the old guy recounts his adventures, you play through them. The dialog in this game is actually fun and charming, but being an old school beat 'em up the story is not too intrusive. You get some in stage dialog and some cut scenes between levels that really look like something from a SNES game. The music too, sounds very much like something an old SNES game would sound like.
The game has a few minor issues. The air combos have horrible animation and the timing for them always feels off. Visually the game looks a bit more like a Flash game than a SNES game and the animation can look pretty poor at times, with the air combos being the most glaring example. It doesn't hold the game back much though as it's very playable aside from those awkward air combos. And surprisingly, the hit detection feels more spot on than in most 2d beat 'em ups. There's no co op. The game also only has one boss fight and is pretty short.
Fortunately, you do unlock some special challenges when you beat the game, giving you more combat scenarios where you can try to beat the levels with a high rank and fulfill optional objectives to get a gold star for each stage. These challenges will test your understanding of the game's mechanics and how to tackle each enemy type. And it'll test your skill in other ways, like gold star challenges for not getting hit, or beating a stage very quickly.
Sadly, this game was a Gamestop pre-order bonus. I'm hoping it eventually gets released as DLC for FF XV though, even if it's just a season pass bonus
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Exhuminator
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Re: Games Beaten 2016
Knocked out two Genesis platformers last night:
124. ESWAT: City Under Siege | Genesis | 1990 | 4/10
So this is a port of an arcade game I gather. A pretty bad port apparently. I can appreciate the futuristic dystopian setting, and wearing a jetpack mech suit as well. But the level designs are so incredibly bland, with never ending generic enemies, and cheap hits galore. The graphics are boring, and the OST is barely even there. Some parts of ESWAT were truly infuriating, and to say this game hasn't aged well would be an understatement. But still, ESWAT is not entirely unlike Shinobi or Robocop at times, so that still counts for something.
125. El Viento | Genesis | 1991 | 7/10
Pretty crazy platformer by Wolf Team, about a sorceress running around killing all sorts of things, using her bladed boomerangs and magic spells. The plot involves the mafia resurrecting Cthulhu monsters, not even joking. Very distinctive though rough graphics, with plenty of cool programming tricks. The cutscene graphics are pretty good. Frantic and haphazard gameplay that's often sloppy with its enemy placement, but the wildly varied levels keep things interesting. The difficulty is pretty ridiculous, you'll need to master Annet's ninja dash run to stand a chance. Not the best platformer on Genesis, but it is unique enough to warrant a try. El Viento means "the wind" in Spanish, just putting that out there. And Earnest Evans makes a cameo in this game because this is part of a pseudo-trilogy by Wolf Team involving Earnest and Annet. 8 MEG POWER SUCKA
124. ESWAT: City Under Siege | Genesis | 1990 | 4/10
So this is a port of an arcade game I gather. A pretty bad port apparently. I can appreciate the futuristic dystopian setting, and wearing a jetpack mech suit as well. But the level designs are so incredibly bland, with never ending generic enemies, and cheap hits galore. The graphics are boring, and the OST is barely even there. Some parts of ESWAT were truly infuriating, and to say this game hasn't aged well would be an understatement. But still, ESWAT is not entirely unlike Shinobi or Robocop at times, so that still counts for something.
125. El Viento | Genesis | 1991 | 7/10
Pretty crazy platformer by Wolf Team, about a sorceress running around killing all sorts of things, using her bladed boomerangs and magic spells. The plot involves the mafia resurrecting Cthulhu monsters, not even joking. Very distinctive though rough graphics, with plenty of cool programming tricks. The cutscene graphics are pretty good. Frantic and haphazard gameplay that's often sloppy with its enemy placement, but the wildly varied levels keep things interesting. The difficulty is pretty ridiculous, you'll need to master Annet's ninja dash run to stand a chance. Not the best platformer on Genesis, but it is unique enough to warrant a try. El Viento means "the wind" in Spanish, just putting that out there. And Earnest Evans makes a cameo in this game because this is part of a pseudo-trilogy by Wolf Team involving Earnest and Annet. 8 MEG POWER SUCKA
PLAY KING'S FIELD.
Re: Games Beaten 2016
Games Beaten 2016
First 50:
Battleborn - PC
140 - PC
Last Duel - Arcade (PSP)
Alien on the Run - 3DS
Undead Bowling - 3DS
Chain Blaster - 3DS
Runny Egg - 3DS
Bound - PS4
Parasite Eve - PS1
Destiny - PS4
Destiny: The Dark Below - PS4
Destiny: The House of Wolves - PS4
Destiny: The Taken King - PS4
Otomedius Excellent - 360
Crimsonland - PC
Planet of the Eyes - PC
Destiny: Rise of Iron - PS4
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing: Final Cut - PC
Eve Valkyrie: Gunjack - PSVR
Elegy for a Dead World - PC
SOMA - PC
The Typing of the Dead: Overkill - PC
Until Dawn: Rush of Blood - PSVR
Actual Sunlight - Vita
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare - Jackal Assault VR - PSVR
Letter Quest: Grimm's Journey Remastered - Vita
Thumper - PSVR
Burrito Bison: Launcha Libre - iOS
Trackmania Turbo (VR Campaign) - PSVR
Gears of War 4 - Xbox One *new*
Total: 80
Previously: 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010
I have played and enjoyed all previous Gears of War campaigns, and this one was no different than those in any substantive way (though I thought it was a little on the easy side on the default difficulty). The game is gorgeous, controlls well, and is very much a straightforward shooter in every way that matters. The story is functional and somewhat interesting, the set pieces are well done, and it feels like a AAA game should.
That gives me 80 heading into December. I'd like to knock out 20 more next month to get to an even 100, but I may be pushing it if I do - especially since I have a fair amount of 2016 games I want to finish. Still, I've already matched my total from last year, so that's something.
First 50:
140 - PC
Last Duel - Arcade (PSP)
Alien on the Run - 3DS
Undead Bowling - 3DS
Chain Blaster - 3DS
Runny Egg - 3DS
Bound - PS4
Parasite Eve - PS1
Destiny - PS4
Destiny: The Dark Below - PS4
Destiny: The House of Wolves - PS4
Destiny: The Taken King - PS4
Otomedius Excellent - 360
Crimsonland - PC
Planet of the Eyes - PC
Destiny: Rise of Iron - PS4
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing: Final Cut - PC
Eve Valkyrie: Gunjack - PSVR
Elegy for a Dead World - PC
SOMA - PC
The Typing of the Dead: Overkill - PC
Until Dawn: Rush of Blood - PSVR
Actual Sunlight - Vita
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare - Jackal Assault VR - PSVR
Letter Quest: Grimm's Journey Remastered - Vita
Thumper - PSVR
Burrito Bison: Launcha Libre - iOS
Trackmania Turbo (VR Campaign) - PSVR
Gears of War 4 - Xbox One *new*
Total: 80
Previously: 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010
I have played and enjoyed all previous Gears of War campaigns, and this one was no different than those in any substantive way (though I thought it was a little on the easy side on the default difficulty). The game is gorgeous, controlls well, and is very much a straightforward shooter in every way that matters. The story is functional and somewhat interesting, the set pieces are well done, and it feels like a AAA game should.
That gives me 80 heading into December. I'd like to knock out 20 more next month to get to an even 100, but I may be pushing it if I do - especially since I have a fair amount of 2016 games I want to finish. Still, I've already matched my total from last year, so that's something.
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Key-Glyph
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Re: Games Beaten 2016
I just caught up on something like 80+ pages in this thread. It took me several days! I had thoughts along the way, like, "Wario Land was the first Mario game I truly loved," and "Famicom Tantei Club II has some killer music, that's so cool someone played it," but I've forgotten most of them now. Can we at least agree that games should cut it out with the double subtitles?
Anyway.
01. MagMax (NES)
02. World of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (GEN) [2-player]
03. Sonic Spinball (GEN)*
04. Sonic Spinball (GEN)* [complete]
05. Comix Zone (GEN)*
06. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (NES)
07. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Manhattan Project (NES)
08. WCW World Championship Wrestling (NES)
09. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)
10. Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES)
11. Wario Land: Shake It! (Wii)
12. Animal Crossing: Wild World (DS)
13. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist (GEN) [2-player]*
14. Gunstar Heroes (GEN)
15. Columns III: Revenge of Columns (GEN)
16. Contra: Hard Corps (GEN)
17. The Legend of Zelda (NES) -- Summer Games Challenge
18. Metroid II: Return of Samus (GB) -- Summer Games Challenge
19. Bases Loaded II (NES) -- Summer Games Challenge
20. Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (GB) -- Summer Games Challenge
21. Shenmue (DC) -- Summer Games Challenge
22. Super Bust-a-Move (PS2)
23. Super Spike V'Ball (NES)
24. de Blob (Wii)
25. Animal Crossing: New Leaf
* = replay
Anyway.
01. MagMax (NES)
02. World of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (GEN) [2-player]
03. Sonic Spinball (GEN)*
04. Sonic Spinball (GEN)* [complete]
05. Comix Zone (GEN)*
06. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (NES)
07. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Manhattan Project (NES)
08. WCW World Championship Wrestling (NES)
09. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)
10. Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES)
11. Wario Land: Shake It! (Wii)
12. Animal Crossing: Wild World (DS)
13. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist (GEN) [2-player]*
14. Gunstar Heroes (GEN)
15. Columns III: Revenge of Columns (GEN)
16. Contra: Hard Corps (GEN)
17. The Legend of Zelda (NES) -- Summer Games Challenge
18. Metroid II: Return of Samus (GB) -- Summer Games Challenge
19. Bases Loaded II (NES) -- Summer Games Challenge
20. Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (GB) -- Summer Games Challenge
21. Shenmue (DC) -- Summer Games Challenge
22. Super Bust-a-Move (PS2)
BogusMeatFactory wrote:If I could powder my copies of shenmue and snort them I would
Re: Games Beaten 2016
Super Spike V'Ball is one of my favorites. I've gotten good enough to blaze through it most of the time without continues on that highest difficulty. There are definitely some exploitable weaknesses on that AI.
As for the music? Definitely vintage Technos there. I can hear some strains of the music in Double Dragon II: The Revenge. Good stuff.
As for the music? Definitely vintage Technos there. I can hear some strains of the music in Double Dragon II: The Revenge. Good stuff.
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IrishNinja
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PartridgeSenpai
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- Location: Northern Japan
Re: Games Beaten 2016
I'm glad you enjoyed De Blob, Key-Glyph 
I did notice how the music sort of progressively changes, but I never noticed how different colors did different stuff! That's SO cool! This just reminds me that I still gotta pick up the 2nd one, for I HAVE to image that has a bound jump button with the other consoles it was ported to ;p
Also, I'm not sure what you mean when you say the game never saves achievements. My game always saved my achievements, so maybe that's a console-specific issue you're having? Or perhaps you aren't checking for them in the right place? I don't wish to assume, but I'd just like to try and solve the mystery
I did notice how the music sort of progressively changes, but I never noticed how different colors did different stuff! That's SO cool! This just reminds me that I still gotta pick up the 2nd one, for I HAVE to image that has a bound jump button with the other consoles it was ported to ;p
Also, I'm not sure what you mean when you say the game never saves achievements. My game always saved my achievements, so maybe that's a console-specific issue you're having? Or perhaps you aren't checking for them in the right place? I don't wish to assume, but I'd just like to try and solve the mystery
I identify everyone via avatar, so if you change your avatar, I genuinely might completely forget who you are. -- Me
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PartridgeSenpai
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- Location: Northern Japan
Re: Games Beaten 2016
Partridge Senpai's 2016 Beaten List
1-50
51. Axiom Verge
52. Otomedius Excellent
53. JUMP Ultimate Stars
54. Dynasty Warriors 3
55. Fire Emblem if: Byakuya (Birthright)
56. Fire Emblem if: Anya (Conquest)
57. Fire Emblem if: Invisible Kingdom (Revelations)
58. Stubbs the Zombie
59. Mori Mori Slime
60. Metal Slug 7
60. Dream Mix TV: World Fighters
61. Youkai Watch (3DS)
For a game I only picked up because it was $13 on Play Asia at one point and time, I enjoyed this game IMMENSELY. It is by FAR the most competent and fun Pokemon-like I have ever played, and I can completely see why it is SO popular here and abroad (but mostly abroad ;p). I'm not sure if I'm ready to say that I enjoy Youkai Watch more than Pokemon, but I enjoyed it a lot. I'm not sure how much of that is just having something so technically competant but so different from Pokemon when Pokemon has been so similar for so long, though, however.
First things first out of the way: For those of you who might've guessed otherwise (as I did), not being a Layton game does not mean that Level-5 can suddenly write well. The story is a total pacing cluster-fuck, with new, VERY plot significant characters being introduced right up until the very last chapter, characters whom you've never even met up to that point except perhaps in passing (literally, like on the street). The story comes to the last chapter really suddenly, and even though the game tries to do things like introduce mystery characters who seem all mysterious, it doesn't use them to any noteworth effect. HOWEVER, being as this is FAR more silly and mechanically-oriented (at least in terms of its presentation) than something like Layton, I felt that the bad pacing didn't really hurt the game too much. The characters themselves are very fun and silly, especially Whisper and your main character, so you never really feel like you just hate everyone, just that you're not that involved in the overarching plot of things.
The gameplay itself is certainly not without its problems, but it's the most fun spin on the Pokemon formula I've encountered. First up is the good stuff. The game plays like a real-time Pokemon where your whole team battles at once. You have three active and three inactive Youkai at a time on a wheel-system, and you can literally rotate the wheel to rotate them in and out as they become hurt or incapacitated. Your Youkai fight completely on their own, and other than giving them items to affect their "personality" (i.e. battle move-priorities), there's not a whole lot you can do about it. Granted, different Youkai do have different moves, you don't really have an easy way of viewing all of these moves in a UI of some kind, so it works best just to try different Youkai configurations to see what works. Although, just because your Youkai move by themselves, that doesn't mean that you don't have any way of keeping occupied yourself.
In battle, the things you, the player, can do will usually keep you occupied enough that you rarely have down time. First off, each Youkai has a super-move that can be used by playing one of a random series of mini-games. The top-screen action doesn't stop while you're doing these mini-games, so getting fast at them is a real strategy tactic. Additionally, when your guys get status effects (burn, slow, paralyze, etc.) you can rotate (literally) them out to do a different set of mini-games to get them back to tip-top shape. You also get extra EXP for doing those mini-games, so it's well worth it. You do need to have your Youkai's special-meter full before you can do special moves though, which is good, because some are VASTLY better than others (depending on the Youkai). You can also equip one item on each Youkai which will shuffle their stats in some way (almost every item with a stat benefit has some negative effect on some other stat, to keep them from being straight up "why the fuck wouldn't you use it"-buffs). On top of the above, you can literally 'pin' a target for your Youkai to focus on (and you can also use that pin to pop bubbles that float past the top screen for power-ups and items, no joke), as well as use items to feed to your Youkai or the enemy, which brings me to how you even catch these guys.
There is no such thing as a Youkai-Pokeball. Instead, this is much more like the awful Ni No Kuni method of catching monsters: You beat them up and then just hope to god that they decide to join you after the battle. You can give them their favorite type of food (of which there is no record or indication of in the game. You've gotta figure it out with trial and error and then just remember who likes which specific category of food) to up your chances, but it's usually never by any significant feeling margin. Especially because there are some Youkai which are legitimately very rare (like Noko) who appear very rarely, sometimes EXTREMELY rarely (there was one that will appear randomly in place of another Youkai, and I saw but two of in my fifty hours of play), this makes it a SUUUUUPER pain in the ass to actually get Youkai you really want reliably or in any meaningfully quick fashion. You can also only feed enemy Youkai (even a food they don't like) once during battle, so there's no food-spam option. This is, in my opinion, what Youkai Watch gets the most wrong about the Pokemon formula, and is my biggest hesitation with recommending the game to another fan of the genre.
That said, the above method of forcing you to fight tons of Youkai does have some useful side-effects. First off, this game has no trainers. Even though you have a party of six Youkai which you can rotate, you will never fight another Youkai Watch-kateer, so you'll only ever fight up to three other Youkai at a time. Additionally, becasue there are no trianers, the wild Youkai you fight are just far tougher than wild Pokemon tend to be. Because you have to fight Youkai very repetedly to catch them, this led to me accidentally doing a TON of grinding I hadn't intended to do, just because I wanted to catch all of dem Youkai. Wild Youkai also drop money, so I also never had any remote money problem despite all of the Youkai food I had to keep buying. It's basically the equivalent of if there were unlimited Pokemon trainers to fight, and the only way to catch Pokemon was to hope that the trainer gave you them once you beat them in battle. It's an interesting and somewhat useful side-effect, but I don't think that it outweighs the more significant problem posed in Youkai befriending (You don't capture, you befriend (with violence)!).
The last most notable thing about Youkai is that not only do they have specific ranks (six different ranks, E through S), but they also rarely evolve. Out of 220-ish Youkai, only about 15 or so evolve through levels, and another 15 or so evolve through being combined with other Youkai, and then another 15 or so by being combined with special items. This makes it so that you are quite often switching out Youkai completely to make different or sometimes completely new team configurations just because the stats on higher ranked Youkai are just so much objectively better (although it can take a little while to find a move-set that gels well with your team and personal style). If you've ever played Dragon Quest Monsters/Joker, this will seem fairly famliar to you, but I believe that Youkai watch does that system not just better, but correctly.
The REALLY (really) annoying thing about DQM series is that you need to combine ALL monsters together to make stronger ones, and you really don't have much concept at all of just how strong or spellfully teched out this new monster will be. That process CONSUMES both parents, and you're only left with a child, so you can seriously fuck yourself over and have to do a ton of grinding for a whole new team if you get some unlucky breeds with your main team members. In Youkai watch, it's just straight up replacements, so if a new team member isn't working out, you can just swap the old guy back in, no problems. Additionally, because higher ranked guys might be a bit better, lower ranked guys can still level just as high as anyone else, and since your main team will likely be higher level than most enemies you encounter, there's an incentive to keep lower ranked veterans in your team whom you like, even though they're lower rank. For example, I had a C-rank in my team all the way up to the end of the game, just because he was such high level and a very reliable damage-dealer. Additionally, there are some REALLY good items near the end of the game that can ONLY be equpped on D-rank or lower Youkai, so the game even give you a means of making somewhat squishier, beloved lower-rank Youkai a part of the team even into the late game
Verdict: Highly recommended. If you like Pokemon, I think you will like Youkai Watch. My general rule I've noticed with these reviews is that the bigger and impression a game has left on me, the more I wanna tell you about it, so this giant wall of text should probably give you some indication of that
. Granted, Sun and Moon did just come out, and if you're still playing that, I'd agree that there's not much reason to invite Youkai into your life atm. However, perhaps when you get bored with Sun/Moon, Youkai Watch would be an excellent way to fill that Poke-void, methinks
1-50
52. Otomedius Excellent
53. JUMP Ultimate Stars
54. Dynasty Warriors 3
55. Fire Emblem if: Byakuya (Birthright)
56. Fire Emblem if: Anya (Conquest)
57. Fire Emblem if: Invisible Kingdom (Revelations)
58. Stubbs the Zombie
59. Mori Mori Slime
60. Metal Slug 7
60. Dream Mix TV: World Fighters
61. Youkai Watch (3DS)
For a game I only picked up because it was $13 on Play Asia at one point and time, I enjoyed this game IMMENSELY. It is by FAR the most competent and fun Pokemon-like I have ever played, and I can completely see why it is SO popular here and abroad (but mostly abroad ;p). I'm not sure if I'm ready to say that I enjoy Youkai Watch more than Pokemon, but I enjoyed it a lot. I'm not sure how much of that is just having something so technically competant but so different from Pokemon when Pokemon has been so similar for so long, though, however.
First things first out of the way: For those of you who might've guessed otherwise (as I did), not being a Layton game does not mean that Level-5 can suddenly write well. The story is a total pacing cluster-fuck, with new, VERY plot significant characters being introduced right up until the very last chapter, characters whom you've never even met up to that point except perhaps in passing (literally, like on the street). The story comes to the last chapter really suddenly, and even though the game tries to do things like introduce mystery characters who seem all mysterious, it doesn't use them to any noteworth effect. HOWEVER, being as this is FAR more silly and mechanically-oriented (at least in terms of its presentation) than something like Layton, I felt that the bad pacing didn't really hurt the game too much. The characters themselves are very fun and silly, especially Whisper and your main character, so you never really feel like you just hate everyone, just that you're not that involved in the overarching plot of things.
The gameplay itself is certainly not without its problems, but it's the most fun spin on the Pokemon formula I've encountered. First up is the good stuff. The game plays like a real-time Pokemon where your whole team battles at once. You have three active and three inactive Youkai at a time on a wheel-system, and you can literally rotate the wheel to rotate them in and out as they become hurt or incapacitated. Your Youkai fight completely on their own, and other than giving them items to affect their "personality" (i.e. battle move-priorities), there's not a whole lot you can do about it. Granted, different Youkai do have different moves, you don't really have an easy way of viewing all of these moves in a UI of some kind, so it works best just to try different Youkai configurations to see what works. Although, just because your Youkai move by themselves, that doesn't mean that you don't have any way of keeping occupied yourself.
In battle, the things you, the player, can do will usually keep you occupied enough that you rarely have down time. First off, each Youkai has a super-move that can be used by playing one of a random series of mini-games. The top-screen action doesn't stop while you're doing these mini-games, so getting fast at them is a real strategy tactic. Additionally, when your guys get status effects (burn, slow, paralyze, etc.) you can rotate (literally) them out to do a different set of mini-games to get them back to tip-top shape. You also get extra EXP for doing those mini-games, so it's well worth it. You do need to have your Youkai's special-meter full before you can do special moves though, which is good, because some are VASTLY better than others (depending on the Youkai). You can also equip one item on each Youkai which will shuffle their stats in some way (almost every item with a stat benefit has some negative effect on some other stat, to keep them from being straight up "why the fuck wouldn't you use it"-buffs). On top of the above, you can literally 'pin' a target for your Youkai to focus on (and you can also use that pin to pop bubbles that float past the top screen for power-ups and items, no joke), as well as use items to feed to your Youkai or the enemy, which brings me to how you even catch these guys.
There is no such thing as a Youkai-Pokeball. Instead, this is much more like the awful Ni No Kuni method of catching monsters: You beat them up and then just hope to god that they decide to join you after the battle. You can give them their favorite type of food (of which there is no record or indication of in the game. You've gotta figure it out with trial and error and then just remember who likes which specific category of food) to up your chances, but it's usually never by any significant feeling margin. Especially because there are some Youkai which are legitimately very rare (like Noko) who appear very rarely, sometimes EXTREMELY rarely (there was one that will appear randomly in place of another Youkai, and I saw but two of in my fifty hours of play), this makes it a SUUUUUPER pain in the ass to actually get Youkai you really want reliably or in any meaningfully quick fashion. You can also only feed enemy Youkai (even a food they don't like) once during battle, so there's no food-spam option. This is, in my opinion, what Youkai Watch gets the most wrong about the Pokemon formula, and is my biggest hesitation with recommending the game to another fan of the genre.
That said, the above method of forcing you to fight tons of Youkai does have some useful side-effects. First off, this game has no trainers. Even though you have a party of six Youkai which you can rotate, you will never fight another Youkai Watch-kateer, so you'll only ever fight up to three other Youkai at a time. Additionally, becasue there are no trianers, the wild Youkai you fight are just far tougher than wild Pokemon tend to be. Because you have to fight Youkai very repetedly to catch them, this led to me accidentally doing a TON of grinding I hadn't intended to do, just because I wanted to catch all of dem Youkai. Wild Youkai also drop money, so I also never had any remote money problem despite all of the Youkai food I had to keep buying. It's basically the equivalent of if there were unlimited Pokemon trainers to fight, and the only way to catch Pokemon was to hope that the trainer gave you them once you beat them in battle. It's an interesting and somewhat useful side-effect, but I don't think that it outweighs the more significant problem posed in Youkai befriending (You don't capture, you befriend (with violence)!).
The last most notable thing about Youkai is that not only do they have specific ranks (six different ranks, E through S), but they also rarely evolve. Out of 220-ish Youkai, only about 15 or so evolve through levels, and another 15 or so evolve through being combined with other Youkai, and then another 15 or so by being combined with special items. This makes it so that you are quite often switching out Youkai completely to make different or sometimes completely new team configurations just because the stats on higher ranked Youkai are just so much objectively better (although it can take a little while to find a move-set that gels well with your team and personal style). If you've ever played Dragon Quest Monsters/Joker, this will seem fairly famliar to you, but I believe that Youkai watch does that system not just better, but correctly.
The REALLY (really) annoying thing about DQM series is that you need to combine ALL monsters together to make stronger ones, and you really don't have much concept at all of just how strong or spellfully teched out this new monster will be. That process CONSUMES both parents, and you're only left with a child, so you can seriously fuck yourself over and have to do a ton of grinding for a whole new team if you get some unlucky breeds with your main team members. In Youkai watch, it's just straight up replacements, so if a new team member isn't working out, you can just swap the old guy back in, no problems. Additionally, because higher ranked guys might be a bit better, lower ranked guys can still level just as high as anyone else, and since your main team will likely be higher level than most enemies you encounter, there's an incentive to keep lower ranked veterans in your team whom you like, even though they're lower rank. For example, I had a C-rank in my team all the way up to the end of the game, just because he was such high level and a very reliable damage-dealer. Additionally, there are some REALLY good items near the end of the game that can ONLY be equpped on D-rank or lower Youkai, so the game even give you a means of making somewhat squishier, beloved lower-rank Youkai a part of the team even into the late game
Verdict: Highly recommended. If you like Pokemon, I think you will like Youkai Watch. My general rule I've noticed with these reviews is that the bigger and impression a game has left on me, the more I wanna tell you about it, so this giant wall of text should probably give you some indication of that
. Granted, Sun and Moon did just come out, and if you're still playing that, I'd agree that there's not much reason to invite Youkai into your life atm. However, perhaps when you get bored with Sun/Moon, Youkai Watch would be an excellent way to fill that Poke-void, methinks I identify everyone via avatar, so if you change your avatar, I genuinely might completely forget who you are. -- Me