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Just picked up Tales of Symphonia Chronicles today and i couldn't be any happier because growing up this was probably my favorite GameCube game. (Also the first Tales of game i played) It's pretty much exactly the same just HD and a couple minor changes, probably more though I've only played through it for about 3 hours so far. I don't care much for the sequel though I already played it on the Wii years ago and i was bummed because of the controls and i found the new characters annoying, the story was pretty stupid too. Other than that I've mostly just been playing Cod: Ghosts on my 360 with my friends although if it weren't for the new Extinction DLC i probably would have stopped playing it a while ago. Also just pre-ordered FFX Remastered as well so i can't wait to play that game again. Two of my favorite childhood games getting re-released this year is like a dream come true aha.

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Too be forgotten is worse than death - Freya Crescent

I just played through Assassin's Creed II: Brotherhood, and am now going through ACII: Revelations. While the AC games are good (and once you start them, you'll want to finish them all just to watch the storyline unravel), my only advice is: don't play any 2 back to back.

I finished the first one right when it came out. It was awesome. By far the most repetitive of them all, but everything was fresh, new, and mysterious.

I played AC2 when it came out also (more or less). It was also really good, and got rid of some of the repetitive nature of the missions. Still pretty "samey" as laszlow puts it.

AC2 Brotherhood and Revelations are like huge expansion packs of AC2. They're practically the same game, but in a different environment and 3 or 4 relatively small changes to the gameplay. Again, good, but don't play them back to back.

I'm interested to see if AC3 made more drastic changes, but I just can't play it next. I'm thinking of going back and replaying Dragon Quest VIII before my phat PS3 dies.

Played most of Just beat Guacamelee!

Things I like about it:
* nice music
* richly colorful visuals
* well-designed visual style and interface, in general
* funny script (with lots of references)
* nice bosses (especially X'tabay and Jaguar Javier)

Things I don't like as much about it:
* platforming/movement challenges.

The combat is pretty cool, though the knockback is a bit annoying. But it's the platforming challenges that really irk me -- especially since

Possible spoilers: highlight to view

you actually need to do them to get the good ending.

You know that something nasty is in store when someone names their brutal bonus area "Tree Tops".

This post has been edited by Glenn Magus Harvey on 4th March 2014 21:49

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

.........and then I went and got through the Tree Tops section anyway. And got the good ending. And it only took an hour. Though watching a youtube video and studying the pattern did help.

What also helped was that the game does have many places in it where you can take breathers. For example, horizontal platforms that you can rest on, or the fact that you can hold the grab button (Z for me)* to stick to a wall indefinitely without sliding. This made it possible to think through the next sequence of button presses I had to do and mentally prepare myself for them calmly.

And now, hard mode is unlocked!...except I'm never going to touch it. Though a rematch with Jaguar Javier is an inviting prospect...

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I recently did a playthrough of Dysfunctional Systems, episode 1: Learning to Manage Chaos. It's a good visual novel with great art, a serious story, and strong writing that lends itself to intriguing characterization and thought-provoking decisions. There's a few of the extras that some people might not like -- I certainly didn't -- but I'll still recommend the VN as a whole based on the strength of its narrative and presentation. And it's a very good story. For what it's worth, here's what happened on my playthrough:

Possible spoilers: highlight to view

I chose to rebel against Cyrus. I challenged his plan, and after several decision points in the argument with him, we went to President Barnaby's office, where I off-handedly suggested testing the nuclear fusion bomb in the ocean. But then it turned out...it was a true fusion bomb, and in a runaway chain reaction, it caused the destruction of the entire world.

Crud.

I also got radiation poisoning. And ended up throwing up and sleeping in. It wasn't a good day at all.

Note: I don't know what happens if you pick the opposite choice for that first decision. It may be the same or different.

FYI:

1. The game (or visual novel, if you don't consider VNs to be games) is currently selling for 99 cents, this week: https://dischan.org/product.php?productID=8 . You can get the soundtrack along with it. This is episode 1.

2. The devs are raising money for episodes 2 and 3, in this kickstarter here.

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

Seiken Densetsu 3. It's been so long since I last played it that I forgot how much more difficult it is than Secret of Mana. I like it. I don't think the soundtrack is as good, though.

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Console RPG Cliches

Mass Effect 3.

Best of the series so far, though I'm still early on. These games just capture my love of space and the future.

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The clouds ran away, opened up the sky
And one by one I watched every constellation die
And there I was frozen, standing in my backyard
Face to face, eye to eye, staring at the last star
I should've known, walked all the way home
To find that she wasn't here, I'm still all alone

-Atmosphere "Always Coming Back Home to You"

Quote (Tidu-who @ 16th March 2014 10:36)

Mass Effect 3.

Best of the series so far, though I'm still early on. These games just capture my love of space and the future.

I thought it was too. Where are you at in the game.

Also, okay look, I know only a few people bought a Wii U... but you need to buy one just for one game:

Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze (or DKC5). It's impressive.

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Praise Be To Helix!

Quote (BlitzSage @ 16th March 2014 12:32)

Quote (Tidu-who @ 16th March 2014 10:36)

Mass Effect 3.

Best of the series so far, though I'm still early on. These games just capture my love of space and the future.

I thought it was too. Where are you at in the game.

Also, okay look, I know only a few people bought a Wii U... but you need to buy one just for one game:

Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze (or DKC5). It's impressive.

I'm pretty early on, I don't see a completion % anywhere, but I just saved some biotic students with Jack. I've done all possible side missions (I'm guessing the huge number of sidequests they give you on the Citadel can't be completed until you have access to more worlds). Now I have to host that summit sans the Asari. So far I have James, Javik, Liara, EDI, Garrus, and Ashley's still in the hospital.

I'm wondering at what point the loading screen that shows 50% for each area of space versus the reapers, actually starts changing and moving.

I'm glad that they've gone back to a lot of the ME1 characters. Ashley and Liara are great to have around the ship again. I didn't connect with a lot of the ME2 characters, I think there may have just been too many. Thane, Samara, and others were kinda eh. The exception being Mordin, he was awesome, great character.


I've heard the new DK is very difficult, any truth to that?

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The clouds ran away, opened up the sky
And one by one I watched every constellation die
And there I was frozen, standing in my backyard
Face to face, eye to eye, staring at the last star
I should've known, walked all the way home
To find that she wasn't here, I'm still all alone

-Atmosphere "Always Coming Back Home to You"

I will say that DK: Tropical Freeze is probably my no.1 reason to want a Wii U right now. No.2 is Super Mario 3D World, and nos. 3 through 10 equate to "the promise that Nintendo will make something good for the system." I don't think it's worth getting one yet, but there will be a healthy library of games for it. Eventually.

Currently playing: the 2011 Mortal Kombat game. I've owned it for over a year, but only started playing it a few days ago. It's surprisingly strong mechanically, and the characters have really strong variety. I like it, but if you don't like 2D fighters, aren't interested in Mortal Kombat's mythos, or avoid extremely violent games, then you need not try. I'm past the halfway mark in story mode - I got a trophy for doing so, but I'm not sure how far I am from the end. Will definitely play through the story and then mess around the arcade ladder for a bit. Good times.

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this is a blog mostly about comics and videogames
END SPOILER

Quote (laszlow @ 16th March 2014 20:28)

I will say that DK: Tropical Freeze is probably my no.1 reason to want a Wii U right now. No.2 is Super Mario 3D World, and nos. 3 through 10 equate to "the promise that Nintendo will make something good for the system."

I didn't even realize Tropical Freeze was out. I have a Wii U but not the cash or the time on hand right now to pick the game up, but it looks fantastic.

I've said it on a couple CoNcasts, since we talk about this topic to start each one, but I'm currently playing Final Fantasy XIII-2. I'm not sure I agree with some CoN chatters that it's better than the first in the series, but I'm also not finished yet. It's still an underrated game in my eyes, just like the first.

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"To create something great, you need the means to make a lot of really bad crap." - Kevin Kelly

Why aren't you shopping AmaCoN?

Quote (laszlow @ 16th March 2014 20:28)

I will say that DK: Tropical Freeze is probably my no.1 reason to want a Wii U right now. No.2 is Super Mario 3D World, and nos. 3 through 10 equate to "the promise that Nintendo will make something good for the system." I don't think it's worth getting one yet, but there will be a healthy library of games for it. Eventually.

My friend's waiting til next Christmas maybe to get one. By that point, the catalog might have some more behind it and these new games will be marked down. For him, it's kind of a money thing too like with Ranger. It was probably my main reason, right along with getting Earthbound. But honestly, as much as I want to see it succeed, I can't convince you or my friend or anyone that it's worth it right now.

But it is fantastic. I thought they'd never top what they did with the level design in DKCR, but they did. The minecart levels in this one are unbelievable. And there's a level in the opening of the third area... I won't spoil it, but me and my friend were so blown away by the graphics and music we could barely even play the level!

Quote (Tidu-who)

I've heard the new DK is very difficult, any truth to that?

I am the biggest DKC fan ever. I grew up playing them, and to this day (probably my most unpopular gaming opinion) I think DKC is the best platforming series (at least 1 and 2 and now R and TF). And DKC2 is my second favorite game ever.

So anyways, when other people talked about the difficulty in Returns I didn't understand it, at least until the last boss on single player (he was cheap with 2 players).

This one is the first one I've really had trouble with, and with two players it's almost impossible! The second area boss is harder than the final boss of Returns!

Quote (Tidu-who)

I'm glad that they've gone back to a lot of the ME1 characters. Ashley and Liara are great to have around the ship again. I didn't connect with a lot of the ME2 characters, I think there may have just been too many. Thane, Samara, and others were kinda eh. The exception being Mordin, he was awesome, great character

I liked the ME1 characters the best. The only one I disagree with you on ME2 is Thane. I loved him. Other then that I agree about ME2, though I'll say that I loved ME2's sidequests.

Oh, speaking of that, the sidequests... they build up. There are tons of fetch quests (in fact, too many IMO)

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Praise Be To Helix!

Let's see, I've been playing:

- Walking Dead Season 1
- Walking Dead Season 2
- Tales of Destiny (forgot how boring this is)

Also ordered the first two Uncharted games -- they're pretty acclaimed, but I dunno anything about 'em, really. Been thinking about getting Heavy Rain, too, but I think I read the killer's identity last year, so I've been firmly on the fence. If anyone can speak to its awesomeness/crappiness, do tell. =)

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It's gonna be a glorious day
I feel my luck can change

Earthbound. Found it in the virtual console on the Wii U. My life is conquered now. ._.

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I'm your Mama Terra, come hang out with me around the internet!

Retro gaming cosplayer with a focus on Terra Branford.

I finished FFXIII-LR a week ago. I found it to be good, minus the self righteous side quest givers. I never usually skip dialogue in game but I made an exception early on when I realized most of their talking didn't contribute any vital information that didn't appear in the summary. I really enjoyed the battle system, I found myself using mostly the same schemata throughout the game but once in a while I would just delete them and start fresh. I was kinda disappointed with the Ultimate Lair because I had already slain all the last ones but the boss fight was good. Aeronite was also a tough fight, I just bought out all the Turbo Ether that people would put up and went into the fight with at least 10 of them. This is one of the only Final Fantasy games where you actually don't have the Gil to spare, lot's of grinding. I would pull Last One's into a Chaos Infusion to help boost me up. A solid game, got the Platinum, put it in the shelf.

Before LR I was playing Lollipop Chainsaw. What a fun game! Essentially, you're a high school cheerleader who's school is under a zombie invasion. You, and your family, are zombie hunters and thus try to rid the school/town of the invasion. The game has it's challenges based on the difficulty you select and I found myself picking a few favorite combos to carry me through the game; however, I had no issues repeating the stages over and over to farm medals(coins) or go trophy hunting. At first the game seemed kind of stiff but as you unlock combos and your dodging skills improve, the movements iron out and you obtain good control. The game is really cheesy, but every once in a while, I like cheese.

At the moment I am playing South Park, the Stick of Truth. I just started my second play through last night. It's a turn based RPG with interactive input in order to have a successful attack or defense. The battle system is great, with plenty of party members, weapons and armor to suit your playing style. The game has a lot of references to the show and goes beyond creative thinking to put you in a unique position throughout the story. Definitely worth picking up for any fan out South Park.

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Yeah, I barely post.

Super Smash Bros. Melee :3

You might've heard of it..

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www.youtube.com/blinje
The victor sacrificed the vanquished to the heavens

Got back into Diablo 3 with the Reaper of Souls expansion. They've enhanced the gameplay greatly from what I remember, it's refreshing. Much better game than when D3 first came out. Haven't finished Act 5 yet or begun adventure mode, which looks amazing.

Shadowrun Returns: Dead Man's Switch and Dragonfell.

The best part of Shadowrun for me is the Karma system. You finish a mission, you get experience, and instead of gaining levels and corresponding stats to that, you buy a skill with the xp and in turn the stats change. Anyone else know of a game like that?

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"So, are you a fan of the Fett?"

"Nah, I'm more of a Star Wars guy."

Deus Ex ?

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www.youtube.com/blinje
The victor sacrificed the vanquished to the heavens

Quote (chevleclair @ 27th March 2014 16:02)

Shadowrun Returns: Dead Man's Switch and Dragonfell.

The best part of Shadowrun for me is the Karma system. You finish a mission, you get experience, and instead of gaining levels and corresponding stats to that, you buy a skill with the xp and in turn the stats change. Anyone else know of a game like that?

I haven't finished it yet, but the story in Dragonfall is top notch. One of the grittiest games I've every played, I feel they did an amazing job taking advantage of the cyberpunk theme.

Plus the music and graphics are a very good representative as well, modernized old school feel. I'd recommend it to anyone that likes turn based RPGs.

With the recent release of the excellent shmup RefleX on Steam, I decided to revisit it, and also check out the other two entries in its trilogy, the Tale of Alltynex -- KAMUI and Alltynex 2nd.

FYI, RefleX is a shmup with the distinctive feature of a reflection shield. Blue bullets (and orbs and small lasers) can be reflected, generally dealing far heavier damage than your own weapons. (Red bullets can't be reflected, while purple bullets can't be reflected but can be destroyed.) There are no bombs, but you have six shields per life (only one life per credit). Using the reflection shield uses up a bar that is recharged when the shield is inactive; it also recharges faster if you aren't shooting.

The sprite graphics make the bullets show up very well. The game -- a heavily modified remake of the dev's own earlier game, Reflection -- is pretty story-intensive too, presenting narrative through key events in the plot, though it helps to look up the details on the internet (such as on TV Tropes). Using up all your continues gives a game over...but for every game over, the game gives you an extra continue, so between that and getting practice just playing the game, you can get farther and farther, little by little. And the music's also good.

So yeah, I definitely recommend it. Especially with that continue-adding feature, which makes you want to come back and play it even if it flattens you (and it will). The two-button control scheme -- one to shoot and the other to shield -- also make it very easy to pick up.

RefleX is, story-wise, the second game in its trilogy. So I decided to check out the other two -- Alltynex 2nd being the first, and KAMUI being the last.

I played the demo of Alltynex 2nd. Like RefleX, it's got an intuitive two-button control scheme, one to shoot and the other to use an energy-sword melee attack. If you shoot, you automatically (and near-instantaneously) switch to a form that is faster and auto-absorbs these goodies that some enemies drop; if you melee, you automatically (and near-instantaneously) switch to a form that is slower and doesn't auto-absorb them. You also get two special attacks, which uses up part of the energy bar; letting it fill makes your normal attacks more powerful, though. Melee deals far more damage than shooting and even cancels bullets, but doesn't give you yourself any immunity and doesn't hit as fast. You get one shield per life, but multiple lives per continue; continues are limited, though.

Like Reflex, Alltynex 2nd is a remake too, of the first Alltynex game. And a fun fact: Alltynex 2nd is the only entry in this trilogy that uses polygon-style graphics rather than sprite graphics.

I also checked out KAMUI. Just like the others, it has no bombs but a two-button control scheme, by which you have three attacks -- shooting, an auto-targeting lightning attack, and a powerful beam attack. However, the special feature in this game is depth: the lightning only attacks (and only the lightning can attack) things in the background, which can of course attack you as well. Button 1 is normal forward shot, button 2 is lightning, and pressing them both together gives a beam that does high damage (and cancels bullets) forward but can't last very long; the power or duration of these special attacks is limited by a shared bar that autorefills at a variable rate.

KAMUI seems to come with unlimited continues (which is why I just beat the game, actually), but two lives per continue and a default of (I think) five shields per life (though I think you can get more). You can occasionally collect powerups and shields from defeated enemies. Also, apparently, you can put in your own audio CD for music?
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As a person who isn't experienced with shmups, I nevertheless quite enjoyed RefleX, and it seems that the other two games are also a lot of fun. One key factor, I think, is that these games use only two buttons, making for a simple, easy-to-pick-up control scheme. (Also, the lack of bombs, while it seems crippling, actually allows more focus on dodging and choosing the right weapon.)

Anyway, Alltynex 2nd and KAMUI seem like great games, and RefleX is awesome and I know that because I've already beaten it. They're US$7.99 each; $19.99 for the whole trilogy. RefleX is on Steam already, and the other two will be soon, at some point; if you get them on other sites, the localization/publishing team -- Nyu-Media -- has promised Steam keys for pre-Steam-release buyers.

(cross-posted at It Just Bugs Me!)

This post has been edited by Glenn Magus Harvey on 3rd April 2014 21:14

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

I'll put a +1 on everything Glenn just said with regards to Reflex, i've had a few credits myself and it's awesome. Very fast paced though. I dont know how many people here are interested in scrolling shoot'em ups but maybe its doujin (japanese indie) origin will spark some interest.

Quote (Glenn Magus Harvey @ 2nd April 2014 15:40)

RefleX is awesome and I know that because I've already beaten it. 

except this
Until you've beaten it on a single credit, the game stands unconquered !

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www.youtube.com/blinje
The victor sacrificed the vanquished to the heavens

Playing Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga. It's like a Japanese RPG marriage of Mad Max and the Ramayana. Six tribes of people with weird hair in a post-apocalyptic world called "The Junkyard" trying to murder each other, with the winning group earning a trip to "Nirvana." Characters can transform into demons that are typically asuras or devas from Hindu folklore. Experience points are called Karma; skill points are called Atma; the class system is called Mantra. Lots of Hindu symbolism that I don't quite understand.

The central characters are the five warriors of a tribe called Embryon, and the players are given little context for the tribal warfare in general. Nobody seems to know what Nirvana is, or why they're fighting to get there. Each new story development increases the level of intrigue surrounding the fighting and hints at something more insidious going on behind the scenes. The characters are decent enough, but the plot hooks have me pretty interested in the story.

Combat-wise, it plays like a more difficult / unforgiving version of Persona 3, or a slightly easier version of SMT: Nocturne. You don't need to recruit demons or fuse Personas; you strengthen your characters by buying new Mantras and learning new skills. It's a peripheral series of Shin Megami Tensei, so all of the spell and item names are the same (Chewing Soul, Maragidyne, Samarecarm), but there aren't any other connections to the worlds of SMT, or Persona.

I think this game is more interesting than the sparse, open plot of SMT: Nocturne (which I'm not a big fan of), but not as entertaining as the well-rounded characters in Persona 3 or 4. Lots and lots of dungeon running and class-building, so if you're into that and are interested in Atlus's run of PS2 games, then this is worth trying out.

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this is a blog mostly about comics and videogames
END SPOILER

Currently playing the FFX HD-Remaster on the PS3 and loving it. Better graphics, new skills, the expert sphere grid, etc i wish i could have played the international version years ago ahaha, I still don't care at all for X-2 though. Other than that I've actually been playing FF7 again for the 3rd time, I just bought it on the PSN store couple days ago too. Thank you CoN for the walk through I forgot a couple of things and i'm glad i can just look anything up here if i don't remember.

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Too be forgotten is worse than death - Freya Crescent

Now that my computers are all squared away, I'm giving the Sky another rimming, but with the triple threat mod attack of Frosfall/Hunterborn/Realistic Needs 'n Diseases added and the high res pack for good measure. It's still an...unweildy mess of a game, but damn if it don't look gorgeous when it wants to!

Also I decided to go back and see how Deadly Shadows holds up, since I can't afford the new Thief and that may be a blessing by some accounts. Even a decade later, there's still very few games that approach DS' level of atmosphere. Still the only game that's gotten me to quit for being too atmospheric!

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Arts

Farts

Twarts

I guess I never posted in this thread. I'm currently right at the end of FF4DS (the DS version is harder than the others supposedly; this is actually the first time I've played FF4 at all). I also play League of Legends probably 5 days a week, and I just started Hearthstone the other day. I've got nothing in the way of cards but I'll get there eventually, heh. In addition I love the Ace Attorney series and I'm waiting on Wright v. Layton as well as whatever more DLC is coming out for Dual Destinies. I don't know what game is next after FF4, but I do have FF Tactics Advance 2 staring at me from my shelf...

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Squenix games completed:

FFIII
FFIV
FFVI
FFVII
FFIX
FFX
FF Tactics: Advance 2
Chrono Trigger
Dragon Quest 8
Dragon Quest 11
Super Mario RPG

I am basically playing Pokemon and nothing else

Pokemon X and Y
Pokemon Black
Pokemon Black 2

I also played a TINY bit of Final Fantasy 6, but i just hate the stupid tower thingy that you have to get up...rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

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Excuse me? Would you mind not talking while I'm interupting?

Wasting bits of time here and there playing shmups, mainly RefleX, eXceed 3rd, and Ether Vapor Remaster.

Also showed a friend Dysfunctional Systems, episode 1. He liked it.

Wanna use a new game plus to do a best-ending playthrough of Cherry Tree High Comedy Club. But it's gonna take 8 hours, and this time I know it'll take that long, so I'm procrastinating that too.

This post has been edited by Glenn Magus Harvey on 9th April 2014 12:22

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

Just beat Mutant Mudds (Deluxe edition).

This game is a platformer of moderate challenge level. There are no bosses, just 16 20 40 60 80 levels of platforming of varying difficulty.

The (excuse plot) premise is that there are invading aliens called "mudds" and you need to find all the water sprites to cleanse the world of them. As such, you have a water-squirting gun that doubles as a jetpack that gives limited hover ability.

Probably the most notable feature of the game, though, is its so-called "12-bit" style -- so called because it has 8-bit-style graphics, but features gameplay that travels between the foreground and background -- or, often, the foreground, middleground, and background, or even more layers. The game brings into focus the layer you're currently in, and blurs the other layers (even if they're in the foreground. It's a very interesting effect, and it's done well so that visibility remains pretty clear anytime this happens.

Unlike some other games' emphasis on twitch reflexes, this game has a somewhat slower and more deliberate pace, seemingly emphasizing thinking through one's actions before taking them. In that sense it is a bit like a puzzle platformer -- especially in those levels where you can't kill the enemies.

You first have 16 base levels, of increasing difficulty (I should add that the difficulty ramp is handled very smoothly). You can play them out of order if you so wish, as beating more levels (gaining more water sprites, which serve as level endpoints) unlocks more level doors. There are also "ghost" versions of these 16 base levels, which are more difficult and have indestructible enemies. Beating all 16 base levels unlocks 4 additional "space" levels, which also have their "ghost" counterparts, for a total of 40 level-select-accessible levels.

But the 20 base levels (including the space levels) each have two hidden levels within them -- one that you may be able to access as is (labeled V-land or G-land, for reasons I don't yet know) or may need one of the game's powerups to get (fast shooter that can dispel yellow walls, doubled hover time, and rocket jump), and one that you'll need multiple powerups to get. But as you play, you can only equip one powerup at a time...so how do you get to the other set of secret levels? Well, after you beat everything else (except the ghost levels), you get access to a secret character!

The soundtrack is a wonderfully tuneful set of NES-style chiptunes. I quite enjoyed them! One of my personal favorite tracks is "World 4-1". Here are some examples: World 1-1 (a nice bright starting-level theme), World 3-2 (a catchy beat and a dab of Spanish/Arabic flair), World 4-1 (a tinge of melancholy).

Overall, this is a very well-designed game. Occasionally might be frustrating since it has various timing-based platforming segments, but they are balanced by a generally pretty reasonable placement of checkpoints, which you can also turn off after you beat the game if you want the extra challenge.

(Also, rocket jump is only activate if you press up+jump and NOT left/right, but the dev says this is a feature, not a bug, apparently to accommodate people with omnidirectional controllers or something?)

But yeah.

TL;DR Mutant Mudds is a great game.

I've beaten all 64 levels of 80 so far. The last space level is a huge pain (read: quite challenging).

This post has been edited by Glenn Magus Harvey on 21st April 2014 17:08

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

Playing Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance for the GameCube. For a phase while I was in college (in 2005 or 2006) I was CRAZY about Fire Emblem. I beat FE4 (SNES emulator), FE6 (GBA emulator), FE7 (GBA cartridge), and FE8 (GBA cartridge) all over a period of less than 12 months. FE7 was my favorite; I ended up beating that thing three or four times at least. I didn't own a GameCube then, but I bought a copy of Path of Radiance anyway because I knew it would become rare and that I'd want to play it.

This is a very traditional FE game, but it's excellent. It feels easier than FE6 (which is probably too hard) or FE7 (which has a nice difficulty curve), but harder than FE8 (which is probably too easy). The cast isn't as large as FE7's, but I'm gaining new units consistently and everyone has a lot of personality. The story is pretty engaging so far, with the usual Fire Emblem stuff of multiple nations at war, with one of them threatening to take over the continent. I'm enjoying most of the character arcs I've seen thus far; Ike is a likeable main character.

The character balance is... inconsistent. Ike is one of the most powerful Lord characters I've ever used in a Fire Emblem game before. Maybe the strongest ever. A friend told me that his unique sword has infinite uses, which is even crazier. Other than Ike, most of these characters seem to have reasonable stats, after checking some tables. The pre-promotes are WAY better than in older games (probably for the best), but there are a bunch of under-leveled Est characters joining me right now (in chapters 10 through 12) and that's not cool. I like the addition of Bonus EXP and how they've made Supports easier than in FE6-7-8, but I wish that characters would join at more appropriate levels. Other than Ike, my most effective characters are probably Soren and Kieran.

So yeah, bottom line, I'm kind of a lapsed Fire Emblem fan, but this GameCube one seems really good. FE fans have gone completely NUTS about the 3DS's Fire Emblem: Awakening, and I will try that one as soon as I get a 3DS.

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this is a blog mostly about comics and videogames
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Since I last posted, I beat all 80 levels of Mutant Mudds (specifically Mutant Mudds Deluxe, which has all 80 levels). Definitely, a good game, it is.

Tried out BIT.TRIP RUNNER. It's kinda cool, but either it's not exactly my kind of game, or it gets old a bit quickly, I think. At least, I'm not very good at the bit about reacting to things quickly, so the levels basically become trial-and-error memorization feats (which are the opposite of what I want when I want a game to relax or stress-release to), set to custom music (as opposed to, say, my choice of music if I download a stepfile pack for Stepmania). That said, the core concept -- platforming to the beat of the music -- is pretty cool, in my opinion, and the way they make melody notes or texture come in as you pick up goodies from the level is a very nice touch. (Too bad the bonus levels have no music...)

Played a bunch of One Way Heroics. This is an "apocalyptic scrolling RPG" -- kinda like a turn-based roguelike with JRPG elements. Screen constantly scrolls to the right every turn, and you only have a limited opportunity to explore every area you're in. Items and monsters are randomly generated every playthrough, though the world layouts are -- while also procedurally generated -- fixed based on the world name you enter (which can be an actual word up to eight letters long or some jumble of characters). The game actually tracks stats for every single world thus generated, and you can compare stats between players tackling the same world. There also seem to be some multiplayer features which I haven't explored yet. As well as worlds with special missions. I dunno how they're organized but apparently in one world the king joins you as a party member and in another you get to learn a Force power at the very beginning of the game.

One of the best things about OWH, in comparison to other roguelikes, is that it's worth it to play and lose. Not just unlocking basic gameplay features like playable character classes (you can definitely do that too, though)...you can get "hero points", which you can spend to unlock starting perks and slots in the "Dimensional Vault", and you can use the Dimensional Vault to store items between playthroughs -- and you can keep those cool items you've found even if you've lost...and bring them on a subsequent playthrough! Be warned, though, all armor and weapons have a durability limit, and it's hard to get stuff repaired.

I also played a bit of Croixleur Sigma. This is an upgraded version (and Steam release just yesterday!) of Croixleur, a hack-and-slash arena battle game where you get a choice of weapons with unique special abilities and your goal is to beat up all the monsters in several sets of levels (including boss monsters) within a given time limit.

The devs seem to have opted to make an upgraded version for the Steam release, rather than to release the original or the original with Steamworks features. This upgraded version is actually noticeably different from the original, which I can tell since I've now played both; for example, you can continue even if you game over in story mode due to losing all your HP (time-up game over can't be continued, though), and there's more story depth now, it's apparently been rebalanced, the graphics have been changed, and (for those of you who care about this) it now has voice-overs. Probably the most salient ones for gameplay purposes are a second playable character, the addition of a two-player co-op mode -- which I haven't tried out yet, but it seems like it would be fun.

Other things done recently:
* Ys Origin time attack: defeated Epona I using Yunica on Nightmare difficulty. Also defeated Khonsclard and Zava using Yunica on Normal difficulty (which I did when I played it through anyway, but I registered these wins on the time attack board now). Khonsclard is even more horribly spammy at Nightmare difficulty. Still trying to survive past two head-cycles of Gelaldy on Nightmare difficulty.
* Crayon Physics Deluxe: solved another two levels or so.

This post has been edited by Glenn Magus Harvey on 4th May 2014 06:38

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )