Games Beaten 2017
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ElkinFencer10
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Re: Games Beaten 2017
Agreed with that, Exhuminator-senpai.
Exhuminator wrote:Ecchi lords must unite for great justice.
Re: Games Beaten 2017
I'd say there are different successes if comparing story between the two. Where I'd say Spec Ops particularly succeeds though is incorporating gameplay into the morality of the game. Not that you really get a choice, or that you're supposed to feel good about it...but that's sort of the point. SOMA incorporates some similar elements.
Meanwhile, I'd say that Naughty Dog writes actual characters better...if you set aside their illogical ability to wipe out a small army in the search for trinkets. TLOU probably does better in that ludonarrative dissonance department, but it's still not as integrated.
Meanwhile, I'd say that Naughty Dog writes actual characters better...if you set aside their illogical ability to wipe out a small army in the search for trinkets. TLOU probably does better in that ludonarrative dissonance department, but it's still not as integrated.
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Exhuminator
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Re: Games Beaten 2017
isiolia wrote:TLOU probably does better in that ludonarrative dissonance department
TLOU at least does it better than ND's other series about a treasure hunter serial killer.
PLAY KING'S FIELD.
Re: Games Beaten 2017
First 25:
Second 25:
51. Tron ni Kobun (PS1)
52. Tantei Jinguuji Saburou: Shinjuku Chuou Kouen Satsujin Jiken (via PS1 "Early Collection") (FDS)
53. Tantei Jinguuji Saburou: Yokohama-kou Renzoku Satsujin Jiken (via PS1 "Early Collection) (NES)
54. Real Bout Garou Densetsu Special (Saturn)
55. Jumping Flash! Aloha Danshaku Funky Daisakusen no Maki (PS1)
56. Akumajou Chronicle: Akumajo Dracula (Arrange Mode) (PS1)
57. Koukaku Kidoutai (PS1)
I guess I haven't updated in a while.
Real Bout Garou Densetsu is stellar. I've never been a huge fan of SNK fighting games; I respect them, but have really only every put much time into KoF Dream Match '99 on the Dreamcast, and to a lesser extent Last Blade 2. I love Last Blade 2, but generally I don't prefer SNK's brand of fighting game. RBS feels a bit different from SNK's usual effort, though. It feels a bit more Street Fighter Alpha inspired, in presentation, but with the traditional Garou trappings in the gameplay. I played as Franco Bash--the kind of character I would usually never touch--and had a tremendously fun time with it. Is it the best fighting game ever? No, not likely. Is it a lot of fun, with some superb graphics and presentation? Yes, yes, a thousand times, yes. I also quite enjoyed the extended music video with Blue Mary after the credits.
Jumping Flash! was a bit of a mixed bag for me. Partly because I had gotten a slightly bum copy of the Japanese version together with the Japanese version of Jumping Flash! 2--which I later realized includes the US version of Jumping Flash! on a second disc. My Jumping Flash! [JP] disc has a nasty habit of freezing when the invincibility power-up cools down, or when picking up the time stop power-up, but the US version of Jumping Flash appears to have slightly modified stages with more platforms, at least from what I saw in the first stage. So, after a number of attempts at playing the JP version ended abruptly with the game freezing on stage 1-2, I persevered by not picking up any of the invincibility or time stopping power-ups. For the most part, Jumping Flash! is an interesting idea that's executed fairly well. That is, until stage 5-1. I hate that stage so very much! --I actually have to break into this mini-review with a live update: I just watched a video of stage 5-1 of the Western release, and it is WILDLY different from what I played. The platforming is just radically less difficult, but also, I'm going to feel a little stupid if the Japanese version has a triple jump, because I was pretty sure I could only manage a double jump. I was going deathless up until stage 5-1, where I died so many times that my frustration level was at an all time high. I eventually made it through with one life to spare, but it was nothing short of a miracle, I assure you.
The other gripe I have with the game is the 3D maze stages. I eventually figured out (on the final boss) that pressing down-right or down-left will make Robbit turn more quickly, but even if I had realized that earlier, I still think the maze levels would have been some of the low points of the game. Ultimately I find Jumping Flash! to be just kind of all right. Certainly it's not bad, but I don't think it really does anything exceptionally well either. In comparison to most early attempts at platforming games in 3D it's practically the best game ever, though, that I will say. --Never forget, stage 5-1.
With some of the recent Castlevania discussion around these parts, I decided that I wanted to tackle one of the last, non-handheld, classicvanias I had yet to beat--and beat it I did! --Sort of. Akumajou Chronicle: Akumajou Dracula is better known in the west as Castlevania Chronicles. The Japanese version offers Roland GS sound emulation in addition to the internal X68k FM synth, and Roland LA, but at the expense of art that's unlocked by playing through the Arrange Mode (maybe?). In Japan, the original X68k Akumajou Dracula is put up on a pedestal with Akumajou Dracula (Famicom), Akumajou Densetsu, and Akumajou Dracula X: Chi no Rondo as the greatest of the classic style -vanias. (Yeah, no one likes CV IV, because it's too easy, and looks like crap.) It's also considered to be perhaps the toughest Castlevania game outside of Haunted Castle, although some protest that the difficulty is not much, if at all, greater than Castlevania on the NES (which is probably accurate). At any rate, I embarked on my journey through Akumajou Dracula with the intention of beating the original mode, and through a mighty effort, managed to get to stage 5--a whole half-way through the game. (Sarge, I don't know what sorcery you performed to finish in 6 hours, but hats off to you for that).
Reluctantly, I decided to at least play through the Arrange Mode, which is apparently a bit of a disappointment for fans of the X68k original, with a few changes that are seen as problematic. One of those things, in particular, is the arranged soundtrack, and I'd agree. I did not care for the arrangements in the Arrange Mode, but pressing L1 and R1 while selecting Arrange Mode brings up the same sound selection screen available when starting the Original Mode. --Another live update: Apparently the sound emulation in Chronicles is just horrendous in general. Arrange Mode is a FAR easier experience, with no enemies doing more than 3 points of damage (by comparison, everything does 4 damage by stage 4 in the original mode), not even good ol' Drac'y, and knock-back is completely removed from some sections where it would result in death by pitfall, like the raft up to the boss of stage 2, or the giant-bat bridge in stage 8. All told, the Arrange Mode is almost as easy as CV IV. Actually, I take that back; Nothing is that easy. It's probably about as difficult as Castlevania Rebirth: A solid challenge, but not quite as difficult as most other games in the series.
I found Akumajou Dracula (X68k) Arrange Mode to be fairly interesting. I mostly enjoyed it, although the CG ending was mildly upsetting, and there's one spot in stage 7, where you have to jump up to a platform with three spiked crushers on the ceiling, that I can't work out how to possibly make it through without taking a hit on the first one. Akumajou Dracula (X68k) is definitely the most sinister, and darkest Castlevania, with just a tremendous amount of violence, abuse, and psychedelic imagery in the backgrounds. That seems to be one of the main draws to the game, for Japanese fans, is the amount of detail, and ratcheting up of the dark elements in the set pieces. The background details in the stages apparently change with successive loops through the game, too.
Personally, I don't feel that this is the best of the classic Castlevanias (Chi no Rondo, and Akumajou Densetsu are too good for that) but I feel it's pretty solid, and definitely the best of the "remakes" of CV (NES). It's much more of an arcade experience than most of the other Castlevania games, though. Learning the stages, enemy locations, and patterns is pretty integral to beating the game. In fact, after beating the Arrange Mode, I went back to Original Mode, and breezed through stage 5. After that, it's death by 1000 baby dolls in the tower, though. I intend to keep plugging away at the original mode, but even if I can get past the doppelganger without him hitting me, like in the Arrange Mode, stages 7 and 8 have me shook. I find that most of the difficulty is in just getting through the stages, though. For the most part, the bosses are pretty easy, but health management throughout the stages is way more than half of the battle. One tactic is apparently to farm flea men in the first stage until they drop an herb that can be used as a subweapon to heal. I don't know how I would deal with the Wolfwoman, or Death without the cross, though.
My most recent conquest was Koukaku Kidoutai. I am a big fan of GitS. So, in so far as I got to virtually pilot a Fuchikoma, it was a dream come true. For all I knew going in, I was the Major, but Exact couldn't let me have that. No, I had to be 'the new guy'! It took a few missions before I even realized that the new addition to Kouan Kyuuka was actually me--. (Damn you, Exact!) For the most part, it's a pretty fun outing as a lovable Fuchikoma, raining down leaden death upon the terrorist groups of Niihama-shi. This is another one where knowing the stage beforehand is kind of needed in order to be successful, at least in some of the earlier missions, like disarming the explosives in mission 3, and just all of mission 4. Apparently there's some unlockable picture of the Major for beating the game without failing a mission, and I kind of want it, but even though I know exactly how to beat missions 3 and 4, I'd still estimate my chances of beating either one of them on any particular attempt at about 50%.
The story and art in the game are really driven by the GitS manga, but as far as I can tell, Shirow Masamune had essentially zero involvement with it. There's not a lot going on with the story, either, and to a certain extent, it's a bit disappointing. I was pretty happy to play it, mostly because I'm a bit of a glutton for GitS, but Exact was sure to make their involvement clear with the bottomless pits in mission 12. That was actually the biggest problem with the game for me, but it mainly forced me to look up that holding down both the strafe buttons allows for faster movement forward and backward. That would have been nice to know earlier, and I could have read the manual--and I should have read the manual--but, meh.
Even though, as far as using the GitS property, I wasn't completely sold on the experience, I'm not sure I would have even enjoyed the game as much as I did without the license. It's a bit like Jumping Flash! for me, in that it's pretty fun, but I would hesitate to call it anything particularly special. The whole package ends up working pretty well, but I personally feel like it could have been something more, just maybe not with Exact at the helm.
Second 25:
51. Tron ni Kobun (PS1)
52. Tantei Jinguuji Saburou: Shinjuku Chuou Kouen Satsujin Jiken (via PS1 "Early Collection") (FDS)
53. Tantei Jinguuji Saburou: Yokohama-kou Renzoku Satsujin Jiken (via PS1 "Early Collection) (NES)
54. Real Bout Garou Densetsu Special (Saturn)
55. Jumping Flash! Aloha Danshaku Funky Daisakusen no Maki (PS1)
56. Akumajou Chronicle: Akumajo Dracula (Arrange Mode) (PS1)
57. Koukaku Kidoutai (PS1)
I guess I haven't updated in a while.
Real Bout Garou Densetsu is stellar. I've never been a huge fan of SNK fighting games; I respect them, but have really only every put much time into KoF Dream Match '99 on the Dreamcast, and to a lesser extent Last Blade 2. I love Last Blade 2, but generally I don't prefer SNK's brand of fighting game. RBS feels a bit different from SNK's usual effort, though. It feels a bit more Street Fighter Alpha inspired, in presentation, but with the traditional Garou trappings in the gameplay. I played as Franco Bash--the kind of character I would usually never touch--and had a tremendously fun time with it. Is it the best fighting game ever? No, not likely. Is it a lot of fun, with some superb graphics and presentation? Yes, yes, a thousand times, yes. I also quite enjoyed the extended music video with Blue Mary after the credits.
Jumping Flash! was a bit of a mixed bag for me. Partly because I had gotten a slightly bum copy of the Japanese version together with the Japanese version of Jumping Flash! 2--which I later realized includes the US version of Jumping Flash! on a second disc. My Jumping Flash! [JP] disc has a nasty habit of freezing when the invincibility power-up cools down, or when picking up the time stop power-up, but the US version of Jumping Flash appears to have slightly modified stages with more platforms, at least from what I saw in the first stage. So, after a number of attempts at playing the JP version ended abruptly with the game freezing on stage 1-2, I persevered by not picking up any of the invincibility or time stopping power-ups. For the most part, Jumping Flash! is an interesting idea that's executed fairly well. That is, until stage 5-1. I hate that stage so very much! --I actually have to break into this mini-review with a live update: I just watched a video of stage 5-1 of the Western release, and it is WILDLY different from what I played. The platforming is just radically less difficult, but also, I'm going to feel a little stupid if the Japanese version has a triple jump, because I was pretty sure I could only manage a double jump. I was going deathless up until stage 5-1, where I died so many times that my frustration level was at an all time high. I eventually made it through with one life to spare, but it was nothing short of a miracle, I assure you.
The other gripe I have with the game is the 3D maze stages. I eventually figured out (on the final boss) that pressing down-right or down-left will make Robbit turn more quickly, but even if I had realized that earlier, I still think the maze levels would have been some of the low points of the game. Ultimately I find Jumping Flash! to be just kind of all right. Certainly it's not bad, but I don't think it really does anything exceptionally well either. In comparison to most early attempts at platforming games in 3D it's practically the best game ever, though, that I will say. --Never forget, stage 5-1.
With some of the recent Castlevania discussion around these parts, I decided that I wanted to tackle one of the last, non-handheld, classicvanias I had yet to beat--and beat it I did! --Sort of. Akumajou Chronicle: Akumajou Dracula is better known in the west as Castlevania Chronicles. The Japanese version offers Roland GS sound emulation in addition to the internal X68k FM synth, and Roland LA, but at the expense of art that's unlocked by playing through the Arrange Mode (maybe?). In Japan, the original X68k Akumajou Dracula is put up on a pedestal with Akumajou Dracula (Famicom), Akumajou Densetsu, and Akumajou Dracula X: Chi no Rondo as the greatest of the classic style -vanias. (Yeah, no one likes CV IV, because it's too easy, and looks like crap.) It's also considered to be perhaps the toughest Castlevania game outside of Haunted Castle, although some protest that the difficulty is not much, if at all, greater than Castlevania on the NES (which is probably accurate). At any rate, I embarked on my journey through Akumajou Dracula with the intention of beating the original mode, and through a mighty effort, managed to get to stage 5--a whole half-way through the game. (Sarge, I don't know what sorcery you performed to finish in 6 hours, but hats off to you for that).
Reluctantly, I decided to at least play through the Arrange Mode, which is apparently a bit of a disappointment for fans of the X68k original, with a few changes that are seen as problematic. One of those things, in particular, is the arranged soundtrack, and I'd agree. I did not care for the arrangements in the Arrange Mode, but pressing L1 and R1 while selecting Arrange Mode brings up the same sound selection screen available when starting the Original Mode. --Another live update: Apparently the sound emulation in Chronicles is just horrendous in general. Arrange Mode is a FAR easier experience, with no enemies doing more than 3 points of damage (by comparison, everything does 4 damage by stage 4 in the original mode), not even good ol' Drac'y, and knock-back is completely removed from some sections where it would result in death by pitfall, like the raft up to the boss of stage 2, or the giant-bat bridge in stage 8. All told, the Arrange Mode is almost as easy as CV IV. Actually, I take that back; Nothing is that easy. It's probably about as difficult as Castlevania Rebirth: A solid challenge, but not quite as difficult as most other games in the series.
I found Akumajou Dracula (X68k) Arrange Mode to be fairly interesting. I mostly enjoyed it, although the CG ending was mildly upsetting, and there's one spot in stage 7, where you have to jump up to a platform with three spiked crushers on the ceiling, that I can't work out how to possibly make it through without taking a hit on the first one. Akumajou Dracula (X68k) is definitely the most sinister, and darkest Castlevania, with just a tremendous amount of violence, abuse, and psychedelic imagery in the backgrounds. That seems to be one of the main draws to the game, for Japanese fans, is the amount of detail, and ratcheting up of the dark elements in the set pieces. The background details in the stages apparently change with successive loops through the game, too.
Personally, I don't feel that this is the best of the classic Castlevanias (Chi no Rondo, and Akumajou Densetsu are too good for that) but I feel it's pretty solid, and definitely the best of the "remakes" of CV (NES). It's much more of an arcade experience than most of the other Castlevania games, though. Learning the stages, enemy locations, and patterns is pretty integral to beating the game. In fact, after beating the Arrange Mode, I went back to Original Mode, and breezed through stage 5. After that, it's death by 1000 baby dolls in the tower, though. I intend to keep plugging away at the original mode, but even if I can get past the doppelganger without him hitting me, like in the Arrange Mode, stages 7 and 8 have me shook. I find that most of the difficulty is in just getting through the stages, though. For the most part, the bosses are pretty easy, but health management throughout the stages is way more than half of the battle. One tactic is apparently to farm flea men in the first stage until they drop an herb that can be used as a subweapon to heal. I don't know how I would deal with the Wolfwoman, or Death without the cross, though.
My most recent conquest was Koukaku Kidoutai. I am a big fan of GitS. So, in so far as I got to virtually pilot a Fuchikoma, it was a dream come true. For all I knew going in, I was the Major, but Exact couldn't let me have that. No, I had to be 'the new guy'! It took a few missions before I even realized that the new addition to Kouan Kyuuka was actually me--. (Damn you, Exact!) For the most part, it's a pretty fun outing as a lovable Fuchikoma, raining down leaden death upon the terrorist groups of Niihama-shi. This is another one where knowing the stage beforehand is kind of needed in order to be successful, at least in some of the earlier missions, like disarming the explosives in mission 3, and just all of mission 4. Apparently there's some unlockable picture of the Major for beating the game without failing a mission, and I kind of want it, but even though I know exactly how to beat missions 3 and 4, I'd still estimate my chances of beating either one of them on any particular attempt at about 50%.
The story and art in the game are really driven by the GitS manga, but as far as I can tell, Shirow Masamune had essentially zero involvement with it. There's not a lot going on with the story, either, and to a certain extent, it's a bit disappointing. I was pretty happy to play it, mostly because I'm a bit of a glutton for GitS, but Exact was sure to make their involvement clear with the bottomless pits in mission 12. That was actually the biggest problem with the game for me, but it mainly forced me to look up that holding down both the strafe buttons allows for faster movement forward and backward. That would have been nice to know earlier, and I could have read the manual--and I should have read the manual--but, meh.
Even though, as far as using the GitS property, I wasn't completely sold on the experience, I'm not sure I would have even enjoyed the game as much as I did without the license. It's a bit like Jumping Flash! for me, in that it's pretty fun, but I would hesitate to call it anything particularly special. The whole package ends up working pretty well, but I personally feel like it could have been something more, just maybe not with Exact at the helm.
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Exhuminator
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Re: Games Beaten 2017
Great taste as always Pierrot! 
A few thoughts...
Yeah Jumping Flash! isn't exactly Mario 64. But for its time (one of the very first polygonal platformers), Jumping Flash! was wildly creative and you've got to love that vertigo. I had a good time with Jumping Flash! when I beat it earlier this year (on PSP).
I think Castlevania Chronicles (Original mode) is more difficult than NES Castlevania. Chronicles is so full of trolling enemy placement, it really annoyed me. You've got to play super defensively, but then you run the chance of running out of time if you go too slow.
I'm a big fan of GITS as well, and I beat the PS1 GITS game you're talking about many, many years ago myself. I remember enjoying it a lot, because you get to pilot a Fuchikoma, and you drive vertically up walls and on ceilings and such. I also loved the animated cutscenes in PS1 GITS, top shelf stuff. GITS PS1 is a good shooty shoot action game, though not the best GITS game if you want to play as the major. In that regard, my favorite GITS game is the PS2 one, Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex. I think that one is incredibly underrated, and I seriously enjoyed it. Give KK:SAC a shot if you've never played it man.
I vaguely remember that. Wasn't it based off this image?
The USA ad for this game was something:
Also, there's an official GITS PS1 artbook worth owning: https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Shell-Offi ... 4063198294
Very nice stuff in there.
A few thoughts...
Jumping Flash! / Certainly it's not bad, but I don't think it really does anything exceptionally well either. In comparison to most early attempts at platforming >games in 3D it's practically the best game ever, though, that I will say.
Yeah Jumping Flash! isn't exactly Mario 64. But for its time (one of the very first polygonal platformers), Jumping Flash! was wildly creative and you've got to love that vertigo. I had a good time with Jumping Flash! when I beat it earlier this year (on PSP).
Castlevania Chronicles. / It's also considered to be perhaps the toughest Castlevania game outside of Haunted Castle, although some protest that the difficulty is >not much, if at all, greater than Castlevania on the NES (which is probably accurate).
I think Castlevania Chronicles (Original mode) is more difficult than NES Castlevania. Chronicles is so full of trolling enemy placement, it really annoyed me. You've got to play super defensively, but then you run the chance of running out of time if you go too slow.
My most recent conquest was Koukaku Kidoutai. It's a bit like Jumping Flash! for me, in that it's pretty fun, but I would hesitate to call it anything particularly special.
I'm a big fan of GITS as well, and I beat the PS1 GITS game you're talking about many, many years ago myself. I remember enjoying it a lot, because you get to pilot a Fuchikoma, and you drive vertically up walls and on ceilings and such. I also loved the animated cutscenes in PS1 GITS, top shelf stuff. GITS PS1 is a good shooty shoot action game, though not the best GITS game if you want to play as the major. In that regard, my favorite GITS game is the PS2 one, Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex. I think that one is incredibly underrated, and I seriously enjoyed it. Give KK:SAC a shot if you've never played it man.
Apparently there's some unlockable picture of the Major for beating the game without failing a mission, and I kind of want it
I vaguely remember that. Wasn't it based off this image?
The USA ad for this game was something:
Also, there's an official GITS PS1 artbook worth owning: https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Shell-Offi ... 4063198294
Very nice stuff in there.
PLAY KING'S FIELD.
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prfsnl_gmr
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 12198
- Joined: Mon Jun 01, 2009 10:26 pm
- Location: Charlotte, North Carolina
Re: Games Beaten 2017
1. Shantae 1/2 Genie Hero (Wii U)
2. Blek (iOS)
3. Bloo Kid 2 (3DS)
4. HarmoKnight (3DS)
5. 3D Fantasy Zone II W (3DS)
6. Fantasy Zone (SMS/3DS)
7. 3D Fantasy Zone Opa Opa Bros. (ARC/3DS)
8. Fantasy Zone II: The Tears of Opa Opa (SMS/3DS)
9. 3D Classics Twinbee (NES/3DS)
10. Rainbow Bell a/k/a Twinbee (ARC/DS)
11. The Legend of Zelda:Breath of the Wild (Wii U)
12. The Guardian Legend (NES)
13. The Clash at Demonhead (NES)
14. The Goonies II (NES)
15. Day of the Tentacle Remastered (iOS)
16. Mario Kart 64 (N64/Wii U)
17. Drancia Saga (3DS)
18. Chain Blaster (3DS)
19. Color Commando (DS)
20. Ace Mathician (DS)
21. Jump Trials Supreme (3DS)
22. Dragon Quest VII (3DS)
23. Fairune II (3DS)
24. RBI Baseball (NES)
25. River City Tokyo Rumble (3DS)
26. Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara (Wii U)
27. Arkanoid vs. Space Invaders (iOS)
28. Device 6 (iOS)
29. Transformers: Human Alliance (ARC)
30. Metroid Samus Returns (3DS)
31. A Ride Into the Mountains (iOS)
32. Super Mario Run (iOS)
33. Legend of Kusakari (3DS)
34. Banjo Kazooie (N64/360)
35. Go! Go! Commander Video (iOS)
36. River City Knights of Justice (3DS)
37. Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS)
38. Tomb Raider Go (iOS)
39. Lume (iOS)
Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS) is a charming series of bite-sized platforming challenges with mechanics inspired by both Mario Bros. and Bionic Commando (or Umihara Kawase, if you prefer). It is a lot of fun; the challenge scales appropriately; and it is deserving of its good reviews.
Tomb Raider Go (iOS) is fantastic. It is tremendously fun and well-designed, and it does a great job translating the basic “Tomb Raider experience” into a turn-based, isometric puzzle game. The basic game is a bit too easy, but the two bonus areas offer a very real challenge. I highly recommend it, and I am very much looking forward to the other games in the Go series.
Lume (iOS) is a completely free point-and-click adventure/puzzle game with delightful, paper-based, stop motion animation. It is fun while it lasts, but it didn’t last as long as it took me to download the updates for all of my PSN games (i.e., about 45 minutes). Still, you can’t beat the price, and I am looking forward to the more robust sequel, Lumino City.
2. Blek (iOS)
3. Bloo Kid 2 (3DS)
4. HarmoKnight (3DS)
5. 3D Fantasy Zone II W (3DS)
6. Fantasy Zone (SMS/3DS)
7. 3D Fantasy Zone Opa Opa Bros. (ARC/3DS)
8. Fantasy Zone II: The Tears of Opa Opa (SMS/3DS)
9. 3D Classics Twinbee (NES/3DS)
10. Rainbow Bell a/k/a Twinbee (ARC/DS)
11. The Legend of Zelda:Breath of the Wild (Wii U)
12. The Guardian Legend (NES)
13. The Clash at Demonhead (NES)
14. The Goonies II (NES)
15. Day of the Tentacle Remastered (iOS)
16. Mario Kart 64 (N64/Wii U)
17. Drancia Saga (3DS)
18. Chain Blaster (3DS)
19. Color Commando (DS)
20. Ace Mathician (DS)
21. Jump Trials Supreme (3DS)
22. Dragon Quest VII (3DS)
23. Fairune II (3DS)
24. RBI Baseball (NES)
25. River City Tokyo Rumble (3DS)
26. Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara (Wii U)
27. Arkanoid vs. Space Invaders (iOS)
28. Device 6 (iOS)
29. Transformers: Human Alliance (ARC)
30. Metroid Samus Returns (3DS)
31. A Ride Into the Mountains (iOS)
32. Super Mario Run (iOS)
33. Legend of Kusakari (3DS)
34. Banjo Kazooie (N64/360)
35. Go! Go! Commander Video (iOS)
36. River City Knights of Justice (3DS)
37. Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS)
38. Tomb Raider Go (iOS)
39. Lume (iOS)
Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS) is a charming series of bite-sized platforming challenges with mechanics inspired by both Mario Bros. and Bionic Commando (or Umihara Kawase, if you prefer). It is a lot of fun; the challenge scales appropriately; and it is deserving of its good reviews.
Tomb Raider Go (iOS) is fantastic. It is tremendously fun and well-designed, and it does a great job translating the basic “Tomb Raider experience” into a turn-based, isometric puzzle game. The basic game is a bit too easy, but the two bonus areas offer a very real challenge. I highly recommend it, and I am very much looking forward to the other games in the Go series.
Lume (iOS) is a completely free point-and-click adventure/puzzle game with delightful, paper-based, stop motion animation. It is fun while it lasts, but it didn’t last as long as it took me to download the updates for all of my PSN games (i.e., about 45 minutes). Still, you can’t beat the price, and I am looking forward to the more robust sequel, Lumino City.
Re: Games Beaten 2017
Exhuminator wrote:Yeah Jumping Flash! isn't exactly Mario 64. But for its time (one of the very first polygonal platformers), Jumping Flash! was wildly creative and you've got to love that vertigo. I had a good time with Jumping Flash! when I beat it earlier this year (on PSP).
Yeah, it's a fun idea, and can be pretty visually stimulating at times. I'm actually kind of looking forward to playing the NA/EU version, because it seems like it's fairly different, and maybe some of the later levels are a bit better designed.
Exhuminator wrote:I think Castlevania Chronicles (Original mode) is more difficult than NES Castlevania. Chronicles is so full of trolling enemy placement, it really annoyed me. You've got to play super defensively, but then you run the chance of running out of time if you go too slow.
You could be right. Part of me wants to say that the Original mode in Chronicles is just insane levels of difficult, but I think that's probably more to do with my expectations for the game. I'm not sure the source material was really above trolly enemy placement (birds and flee men, for instance). I think it could just be more the expectation that NES Castlevania is an older, challenging game, and its notoriety as a good challenging game makes those instances of troll enemies less pronounced. Chronicles doesn't have the benefit of the respect and/or admiration of nearly everyone in existence. Personally, while I thought enemies were really tough to deal with on first encountering them, most of the time, with enough patience and attention to their mannerisms, they became very manageable.
Exhuminator wrote:I'm a big fan of GITS as well, and I beat the PS1 GITS game you're talking about many, many years ago myself. I remember enjoying it a lot, because you get to pilot a Fuchikoma, and you drive vertically up walls and on ceilings and such. I also loved the animated cutscenes in PS1 GITS, top shelf stuff. GITS PS1 is a good shooty shoot action game, though not the best GITS game if you want to play as the major. In that regard, my favorite GITS game is the PS2 one, Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex. I think that one is incredibly underrated, and I seriously enjoyed it. Give KK:SAC a shot if you've never played it man.
Yeah, scooting up walls and things was pretty fun, though it could also be pretty disorienting the the tunnels, and such. I did like being able to avoid enemy fire while hanging upside down from the sealing, and just blowing things up. It would have been cool if they had implemented the hooks/cables for even more sweet maneuverability. When I got to the last mission, I was sure they were expecting me to use something like that. Speaking of camera rotation, I forgot to mention the most amazing thing about the game: I didn't notice a single instance of texture warping. That seems almost unreasonable for a PS1 game from that time. Too bad about the fullscreen dithering, though. I did really find myself enjoying the animation, while playing the game, but upon reflection, I felt a little had by it. There really wasn't that much, and from a plot perspective, it was enough to move the game forward, but pretty lackluster by GitS standards.
I do have the SAC game for PS2, I really should put it higher on my list of games to play, but I remember reviews being a bit wobbly when it came out.
Exhuminator wrote:Apparently there's some unlockable picture of the Major for beating the game without failing a mission, and I kind of want it
I vaguely remember that. Wasn't it based off this image?
I don't know, I just feel really compelled to unlock it. Gotta love that artwork, though.
prfsnl_gmr wrote:Lume (iOS) is a completely free point-and-click adventure/puzzle game with delightful, paper-based, stop motion animation. It is fun while it lasts, but it didn’t last as long as it took me to download the updates for all of my PSN games (i.e., about 45 minutes). Still, you can’t beat the price, and I am looking forward to the more robust sequel, Lumino City.
I might just give this a download. I played Lumino City last year, and it was all right. I think it should definitely take you longer than 45 minutes to finish, anyway.
Re: Games Beaten 2017
How did I get through in six hours? More stubbornness than sense, I'd wager. Also, I was already in the Castlevania groove from Rondo and SCIV earlier in the month. It's a really hard game, but I suppose the fact that I did burn through in that time means that perhaps it's at the same level as the NES original. Which, of course, is a tough game! It's also shorter, though, which lessens the sting a bit.
I know the spikes you're talking about. The way to do it is to jump from a small distance away from the spike press, so that you're descending as you reach the edge of the platform. Since the spikes don't come all the way down, you can duck and avoid the hit. It's tricky, though, for sure.
One other thing I'd highly recommend is to find a good weapon and make sure you at least get a Double Shot for it. It trivializes a lot of the bosses. Death drops quickly to at least a Double Boomerang. The bosses are toothless with the right weapons... but sometimes you don't get a chance to have the right weapons. Medusa is really rough without the right items, as is the werewolf. I pretty much played almost all defense in that fight, waiting until it ripped down the clock face to take my final shots.
Speaking of something that feels a tiny bit like Castlevania...
Previous games:
December:
110) Faussete Amour (DUO) (5.0) (12/4) (3 hours)
Faussete Amour is a sort of Castlevania meets Ghosts 'N Goblins meets Bionic Commando sort of game, just not nearly as good as any of the games it's snitching from.
You get a scantily-clad hero (seriously, pretty sure that's a thong), and she has a chain that functions as a whip and a grappling hook. The grappling is interesting, in that you can swing and jump off normally, but it's much more effective to hit the attack button at the right time to launch off as a whirling dervish and kill enemies with it. Toward the end, this actually becomes key for a particular jump.
There are a lot of ladies you have to kill, too. There's some mild ecchi and some body horror stuff here, too, with the demon transformations. The game trades on the disturbing at times, and there's some serious tonal dissonance that actually makes things a bit more eerie. Also, a lot of things seem to be well-endowed, including apparently the final boss, a demon goat who sports some rather large bazongas.
Much like Arthur, you lose your armor if you get hit, which sends you into what I would assume would be your skivvies. It's not much different from the regular armor, just white-colored. Die, and poof! All your clothes are gone and you lie there dead (and naked).
Of course, given that all this is in Japanese, I have no idea what's actually going on. The only thing I can gather is that there's a big bad that takes your friend, four demon ladies that you end up killing along the way, your friend that you also fight ('cause she's brainwashed). Once you beat the final boss, you meet back up with the wizard that gave you your armor and he brings your friend back to life and she gets married to her love. I guess that's it. Apologies if this "spoiled" anything, but yeah, not winning any awards here.
Really, the gameplay is the definition of average. It has points where it shines, but your main character moves very sluggishly, the grappling mechanic isn't always put to good use, and some of the bosses are pretty cheesy. (Although you can cheese them pretty well yourself once you suss out those patterns; they're a good bit simpler and easy to manipulate compared to GnG). The stages are what will get you if you're not careful, but at least poking around will net you some 1-ups.
So really, not bad, not good, just okay. I definitely wouldn't dump a lot of money into a legit copy, but I don't hate having played through it at all.
I know the spikes you're talking about. The way to do it is to jump from a small distance away from the spike press, so that you're descending as you reach the edge of the platform. Since the spikes don't come all the way down, you can duck and avoid the hit. It's tricky, though, for sure.
One other thing I'd highly recommend is to find a good weapon and make sure you at least get a Double Shot for it. It trivializes a lot of the bosses. Death drops quickly to at least a Double Boomerang. The bosses are toothless with the right weapons... but sometimes you don't get a chance to have the right weapons. Medusa is really rough without the right items, as is the werewolf. I pretty much played almost all defense in that fight, waiting until it ripped down the clock face to take my final shots.
Speaking of something that feels a tiny bit like Castlevania...
Previous games:
December:
110) Faussete Amour (DUO) (5.0) (12/4) (3 hours)
Faussete Amour is a sort of Castlevania meets Ghosts 'N Goblins meets Bionic Commando sort of game, just not nearly as good as any of the games it's snitching from.
You get a scantily-clad hero (seriously, pretty sure that's a thong), and she has a chain that functions as a whip and a grappling hook. The grappling is interesting, in that you can swing and jump off normally, but it's much more effective to hit the attack button at the right time to launch off as a whirling dervish and kill enemies with it. Toward the end, this actually becomes key for a particular jump.
There are a lot of ladies you have to kill, too. There's some mild ecchi and some body horror stuff here, too, with the demon transformations. The game trades on the disturbing at times, and there's some serious tonal dissonance that actually makes things a bit more eerie. Also, a lot of things seem to be well-endowed, including apparently the final boss, a demon goat who sports some rather large bazongas.
Much like Arthur, you lose your armor if you get hit, which sends you into what I would assume would be your skivvies. It's not much different from the regular armor, just white-colored. Die, and poof! All your clothes are gone and you lie there dead (and naked).
Of course, given that all this is in Japanese, I have no idea what's actually going on. The only thing I can gather is that there's a big bad that takes your friend, four demon ladies that you end up killing along the way, your friend that you also fight ('cause she's brainwashed). Once you beat the final boss, you meet back up with the wizard that gave you your armor and he brings your friend back to life and she gets married to her love. I guess that's it. Apologies if this "spoiled" anything, but yeah, not winning any awards here.
Really, the gameplay is the definition of average. It has points where it shines, but your main character moves very sluggishly, the grappling mechanic isn't always put to good use, and some of the bosses are pretty cheesy. (Although you can cheese them pretty well yourself once you suss out those patterns; they're a good bit simpler and easy to manipulate compared to GnG). The stages are what will get you if you're not careful, but at least poking around will net you some 1-ups.
So really, not bad, not good, just okay. I definitely wouldn't dump a lot of money into a legit copy, but I don't hate having played through it at all.
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Exhuminator
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Re: Games Beaten 2017
pierrot wrote:I remember reviews being a bit wobbly when it came out.
If someone's not a fan of GITS:SAC, then I could see how the game would have less appeal. It's a solid B+ game if you are though. Better than your average licensed action game for sure.
Sarge wrote:Faussete Amour
Was this the first game you beat on that Duo? Helluva way to christen the thing!
I am SO proud of you man. (Seriously I can't believe you beat Faussete Armour before I did.) I humbly suggest Gotzendiener or Fray in Magical Adventure CD: Xak Gaiden next.PLAY KING'S FIELD.
Re: Games Beaten 2017
Well, the first game I beat that I hadn't beaten before, yeah. I burned through Rondo, of course, but I've also beaten that game multiple times, both through emulation, the PSP remake, and I'm pretty sure I might have beaten it (or at least a significant portion of it) on the original version in the PSP game.
It's really not a bad game at all, like I said. It's not going to knock your socks off, but from some of the reviews, I was expecting it to be terrible; it wasn't.
Regarding Gotzendiener, I have already burned it (at the same time as Faussete Amour). See, I do remember your recommendations!
Surprised you haven't played through FA yet, though. I'd be very interested in your opinions on it.
It's really not a bad game at all, like I said. It's not going to knock your socks off, but from some of the reviews, I was expecting it to be terrible; it wasn't.
Regarding Gotzendiener, I have already burned it (at the same time as Faussete Amour). See, I do remember your recommendations!
Surprised you haven't played through FA yet, though. I'd be very interested in your opinions on it.