Games You Played Today Oratorio Tangram

King of Posters King of Posters 2000
2569

Finally reached the throne in Nuclear Throne. Had to check what the final boss does in youtube because it turned out that “Super Bazooka + BRRRAP + Scarier Face” is a really nasty combo for bosses with giant hitboxes. Wish getting a melee weapon was more common, because is the most enjoyable way to play for me. Had a shovel for most of this run and it’s bliss.

Also finished Iconoclast, really liked it! It gets melodramatic at times, but I was fine and even enjoyed some of that melodrama. It’s a bummer though that so many cool characters die, like Agent Black and Royal (who was a brat but was going somewhere) but frigging Elro of all people gets to live. Could have been better? Yeah, soundtrack is not as memorable as the Noitu Love 2 (only remember Agent Black’s Boss themes), some bosses were not very good at communicating what you were supposed to do… but I am satisfied with the game after such a long wait.

2 Likes
2570

I find Odyssey depressing because it makes me think my fun and joy receptors are broken. It just feels like a Ubisoftian open world game based on Galaxy - get the star chips, catch the rabbits, investigate glowing patches on the ground, plant the seeds, etc. in every kingdom. If it’s to be a successor to M64 the reliance on abstract warp pipes betrays the open design goals - why not integrate these challenges into the world? Why not cut down to 120 moons that are actually platforming? There are some late game moons that approach Glottis vomiting levels of obscure bullshit.

I played some Sunshine in Dolphin to check that, yes, FLUUD is more kinetically interesting than the hat throw. Sunshine is all about mid-air course correction and I love it.

2 Likes
2571

The only 3D Marios I’d finished before Odyssey were 3D Land and 3D World so on that front I’d call it a success. I think the design and challenges are a little loose and unfocused but it gets by largely on the weird variety. I’m sure this falls apart if you try to get every moon, but who the fuck wants to get everything in a 3D platformer?

2572

I do think that Mario Odyssey falls apart for completionists, but I deeply respect that it’s a game that is okay with you being done whenever. Sure there are lists of things to do, but most completionist activities go unrewarded in this game. Nothing special for getting all moons in a world. No tooltips reminding you of your completion percentage. All the levels unlocked at, what, 500 moons?

I think that’s the main differentiation between this game and a lawn mowing simulator.

2573

I 100%'d the game and then played through again, shrug emoji (but Rudie is right that the lowpoly food land is a low point and I can’t pinpoint why besides that the clear “path” goes all over the place due to different gates oh I guess I pinpointed it)

why do y’all want there to be one mario

1 Like
2575

Late N64 trained bad gamers

2576

Legend of the Dark Witch was on sale for like a dollar, so I’ve been playing that. As far as slightly janky Mega Man clones go, it’s probably more fun than Mega Man.

1 Like
2577

I thought it was so bizarre there isn’t even an icon on the map to show you’ve 100%ed a world but I guess I should be thankful since I was able to leave satisfied after beating all the postgame levels. I think the painting moons were the ones that I would’ve really had to force myself to go after.

2578

My main gripe with Oddysey is that most of the platforming challenges don’t feel that challenging. When you find some of the hidden areas for moons they explore some fun ideas but are done and over before they feel fully explored. I would’ve liked some more areas like darker side of the moon but without being an endurance challenge like it is.

1 Like
2579

Yeah, that’s kind of a complaint I have with a lot of games. Some cool mechanics, but the actual in game usage can often be underbaked. I haven’t played Odyssey, mind you. I’m just riding out this sentiment.

Like Portal 2, for example. Could have been quite a bit more complex than it was. And it would have been delicious.

2580

A counterpoint is that there is a gliding lizard who says “Skree, Skree!” and controls like a moist paper airplane

8 Likes
2581

I would sure play the heck out of some Odyssey Lost Levels DLC

2 Likes
2582

During the weekend, I finally took a dive into Rime. After initially booting it up about two months ago. It’s fine. Its obviously trying to be like a Team ICO game. And you know, the fact that is obvious, I think that means they succeeded at something. I actually bought the game as soon as the steam version was available. But only played it just now. However, it has some problems. I also REALLY LOVE ICO. So, I might be a harsher critic than some. I’m also not finished, yet. So, my opinion could end up more positive, as a complete game.

  1. In Rime, You have completely free control of the camera. Which I totally get, at this post modern stage of game development and trying to get people to like your game. However, it sort of robs the game the sort of postcard nature which ICO has.

In ICO, the direction the camera is facing, is semi-fixed. You can pan a certain amount this or that way, but you can’t really move or rotate the direction it is facing. So, every area is deliberately framed. Which gives each area an immediate visual signature. And it allows the game to really focus down on neat visual elements. It also allows ICO to sneak through the fact that you aren’t doing a whole lot but running and climbing from here to there, in a labrynth. The fact that you cannot freely rotate and look at everything, somehow keeps you from wishing for more complexity or something. I realize my wording here only half realizes the point.

Rime has plenty of great possible angles in it. But, just running around in complete freedom, you don’t always GET visual character that you could be. there are moments where the camera fixes itself in place and I’m often then reminded of the mood and tenesion I’ve been missing. Often having to stop and look for it, myself. Rime also has many areas which are generallhy much larger than ICO. But you aren’t necessarily doing proportionately more. So, It kinda feels like you are running around a lot, not doing enough, in spaces which often feel bland, due to too much freedom with the camera.

  1. I stopped playing, because the first major opponent in the game, is responsible for some really annoying, lazy gameplay. And I did not have the patience for that kind of stupid. I will finish the game. I mean that day, I stopped playing.

*oh, the game runs pretty badly on PC, too. Its not AWFUL. But, it definitely runs noteably worse than it should, on pretty good hardware. I hear the PS4 version chugs, too. And it really shouldn’t.

4 Likes
2583

I’m hoping that this will exist at some point. No lie.

2584

like 99% of 3d games should not have full camera control imo

9 Likes
2586

been watching my girlfriend play breath of wild a lot. So many guardians of the forest: little glowing spirit rabbits, fairies, the koroks, fireflies, tonnes of different statues, the massive dragon things. Don’t like that u can get free items by shooting arrows at the dragons and rabbits. Howcome when youre journeying through the world and you see the dragon ur horse doesn’t stop in its tracks and bow, and u watch the dragon slowly fly past. Wish u could pray to more stuff, or offer ur respect u know.

Watching her walk around Kakariko village and seeing like the big shrine with the old lady sitting on three cushions and the wind chimes and all that stuff it just felt so cool like i wanna live there and farm pumpkins with that guy u know. I wished it was a place u could really live and spend time in rather that like a place u hand in a couple main quests and move on. Playing a bunch of persona 5 lately I kinda wish more games gave u a sense of home like that does. Having a limited amount of things u can do in a day and having that actually be important, and coming home to ur house every night… it just feels real nice. I wish big open world games like this had more chapters where sometimes u were just hanging out in ur hometown for ages. Or maybe i would just like them to have literally any kind of substantial pacing change at any point. its just this endless, futile, gradual ticking off of a gargantuan checklist with no breaks. I want the zelda equivalent of persona 5’s ignoring all ur demon slaying friends texting u saying “can we go to the dungeon today?” and instead u spend the afternoon chilling with a friend in the diner, then the evening chilling with a different friend in the same diner.

Game seems cool though. Glad im watching someone else play it and can just soak in the overall mood and ignore the minute to minute stuff.

13 Likes
2587

You should try Stardew Valley, the game is all about developing a single village that you never leave. There’s lots of content but it’s the form of alternate seasons, festivals, NPC behaviors and events, and so on. And there is a bit of Miyazaki film animism influence in it too. You can play it either as an intense efficiency simulator to maximize the value out of every hour of every day or just chill out, hang out at the bar and do some fishing, and it doesn’t penalize you for choosing the latter path

2588

Hey so i am on the train for the next 28 minutes so gonna talk about Magic Knight Rayearth for the Sega Saturn which I played all the way through in the original japanese!

It’s a pretty pleasant game. When I first started playing it my wife (oh zero percent otaku power level) ran into the room because she heard the theme song. That was probably the highlight of the whole game.

The game looks great. It was a real early Saturn release so Sega just went crazy with what they could do with 2D unbound. Yeah let’s give all the sprites 8 different directions. The opening dungeon is the most questionable aesthetically and then it is just a parade of real good pixels.

Almost every single line is voice and what isnt is the inspect descriptions but there are individual descriptions from each of the girls for everything you can inspect! Holy crud! Just show off their personalities. And then through the whole game their armor gets upgraded and changes their sprite.

So if you don’t know the game it is a linear zelda clone. Three girls are seperately chilling in Tokyo Tower when a god calls on them to get transported to a fantasy world where they need to rescue the godess and kill the big bad. We have normal girl, nerdy girl, and snooty girl. And they are all pretty likeable! And they all take to being unstopable superheroes that have to save this world that isn’t theirs real quick. If they do save the godess they will be returned to Tokyo.

Each area in the game is about 40 minutes long which made it real comfortable for pick up and play after school. And pretty closely structured to an Anime. Introduce the town and the villian, go through a dungeon, experience mild tragedy and resolution. Sometimes you gotta learn how to run and then run so hard you break walls.

Now this was an early J-release but guess ot is better known as the last western Saturn release courtesy of Vic Ireland and Working Designs. I looked up just enough of the dub to go yikes yikes yikes. It really embodies that whole we gotta make the characters swear to show they are serious.

EXAMPLE

The recurring succubus (she is dressed like Morrigan) has made our girls real mad by doing bad stuff. The J dub has glasses exclaim, “You Obaasan!!!” You old lady you…woman over the age of 30 possibly. The other girls comment she must be real mad. Our succubus goes “Me?? And Old lady???”

Vic and company translated this as “You Skank”! To which the boobs vampire goes “wh-what? What does that mean?”

There was quite a bit of punching up a game for 10 year old girls to be for 16 year old nerds that hunger for the next Suncoast visit. All bad changes. The game is charming in it’s most purity. So sorry if you can’t read Japanese I guess! You have no need to play this simple charming game anyways.

So let’s talk a little bit about the insane mixed audience that I take it most CLAMP stuff goes for. The collectible in this game is a bunch of jewels and if you get all the jewels you get some things you don’t need. 4 of these are ?sexy? pictures of the adult librarian helper lady with the cute mascot thing. Like her sleeping or a lab experiment blowing up. The final image is…her as a little kid crying in front of wet bed sheet while the mascot laughs. Who the heck was that for huh?

Like I don’t know or understand what a CLAMP property means but after playing this pleasant game maybe I do a little?

Also this game is on the short short resume of Reiko Kodama and wish she did more video games.

16 Likes
2589

I remember emulating this (english dub) for five minutes in SSF while I was testing compatibility, and on like the first screen there’s a girl who makes a menstruation joke. I was like “oh! an actual game for girls” (and other people who menstruate, don’t @ me)

thank you for sharing this

2590

My and my buds used to rent Rayearth VHS bootlegs in highschool. I think they were fansubbed, but they mighta just been in Japanese. I can probably still sing the themesong, even though I don’t know Japanese.

Okay I tried, but the Evangelion tune came out :confused:

ANIME

2 Likes