Topic: What is the last game you beat? Thoughts/impressions?

[ThePerm]

Grand Theft Auto V - 9/10-really fun. Wish there was more Franklin stuff. Did not feel like he developed enough.

[Order.RSS]

All right 2018 will be the year I clear the accumulated backlog! For real this time!
Starting wiiiiith Bomberman '94, on the TurboGrafx-16 virtual console!



I'm gonna assume everyone here is at least familiar enough with Bomberman right? Well, when the new Switch game released I wanted to play it but not make 'the switch' just yet, so I got this on virtual console as a compromise.

Gameplay is about the same as usual; you wander around on a grid-like area, place bombs to hopefully clear away obstacles and enemies if you time it right - or just blow yourself up because you weren't paying attention...
Sometimes you find power-ups that extend the reach of your blast, allow you to place more bombs simultaneously, temporarily freeze enemies in place, and a few more which I never really figured out. There's a couple more nuances, like ridable mounts which serve as an extra hit you can take, and it being advantageous to not bomb every block in the level because they let you collect bonus point coins for every block left intact.

However, this is ultimately very much a typical Bomberman game. There's a 3-4 hour story mode with 5 worlds (about 19 levels), plus a secret last level/world thing, and each one has several unique enemies with their own properties, new locales, a topical boss battle, etc. I kind of expected the ice world to also have slippery floors, but luckily that wasn't the case (that'd be awful since Bomberman does require a degree of precision). My favourites were the water world and the Dracula's castle themed one.
Fair warning: the game isn't very hard, but the absolute final level is both quite long and has a really tough bossfight. Either bring a bunch of lives, or save-scum your way through with restore points like I did.

Overall a very solid Bomberman game that I'd never played before, and would easily recommend - it holds up rather well! All I gotta do now is find 4 more people for that sweet 5-player multi action! Rating: 7.5/10

[Order.RSS]

Double post SORRY but I have a few nights off this week and wanna start 2018 off by finishing some games.
Today I spent about an hour on Ghost Blade HD, enough to finish it thrice in easy mode.


This is a super busy, very colourful vertically scrolling shooter in the classic sense. 5 Levels, 5 continue credits, 3 possible ships, 3 difficulty levels, 1 pulse-pounding EDM soundtrack and endless laserbeams to decorate your own personal bullet hell.

What's neat about this one is that it used to be a Sega DreamCast homebrew game first, and the HD release came to Wii U just weeks before Breath of the Wild released. Given the amount of shmups on the Switch, I fully expect this to get ported at some point.

The game itself is exactly what you expect, but it's quite a quality product. The 3 different ships all feel suitably different (small & fast; medium with wide ranging shots; and one with very precise aiming), and it has a lot of options under the hood. You can display this in tate mode, change transparencies, invert buttons, change the images on the side of the screen, and in the credits I even saw an alternate soundtrack mentioned?

Complaints: loading times feel a tad long maybe, sometimes it's hard to see bullets between all the chaos, I hate the 'metal bikini look' on the standard background (see above), and the most petty complaint of all - I wish it played a cool sound effect before doing the "WARNING!" end of stage boss introduction. Now it's just a second or 2 of silence before the soundtrack kicks back in and that feels out of place.

If you're into shooters, this is a good option on Wii U (and hopefully Switch later on?), also for newcomers. I was able to beat all 5 levels on my second attempt (using every credit I had), so I'm sure the harder modes will satisfy genre veterans too. Is it the best shmup on Wii U? No, Sky Force Anniversary is a more complete package, and I personally prefer zoning out to XType+ over the frantic stress induced by Ghost Blade.
That said, it's great to see such a polished product from a small team who are willing to release things on the freaking Dreamcast and Wii U of all platforms (ok I guess it's also on Steam, PS4 and Xbone but shhhh).
Rating: 8/10

[ejamer]

Ys: Memories of Celceta (Vita)


Finished the game this morning. Had been dragging it out a bit, hoping to get a few more trophies and just kind of grinding to power up the various player skills... but finally decided to polish off the final boss.


Let me get this out of the way: the game isn't groundbreaking in any way. Graphics can be kind of muddy, world design is all quite linear, and neither gameplay nor story are deep or riveting in any way. However, the combat is a solid blend of using attacks/blocks/dodges/special powers and it can be very empowering once you get enough experience. For a somewhat mindless Gauntlet-style game where explore a maze-like world and constantly beat up on enemies, the whole package is very enjoyable.


Glad to have played it, and will probably go back to play through some more with the clear data at some point. Won't appeal to everyone though, and it looks like Ys VIII Lacrimosa of Dana (which is on my short list of games to play) will be a better overall experience.

[ejamer]

Finished a couple more short games this weekend.


Zoda's Revenge: Star Tropics 2 (Wii VC) - Talked about this game a bit in the "what are you playing" thread, and didn't have a kind assessment. But now I think that was a bit harsh. As an adventure or RPG game, it's not very good. But as a straight action game it's actually pretty solid.


I do still have issues with the game. The story is pretty terrible from start to finish. It's not like the first game was a great epic or anything, but this is a clear step down. The lack of knock-back and short invincibility afterwards can feel pretty cheap if you ever make contact with an enemy, and there is that one boss on a field of arrows that just seems like a lazy and terrible design.


Still not something I recommend, but no longer something I regret playing.




Risk of Rain (Vita/PSTV) - This game has really grown on me, after middling first impressions. Despite having all the potential negatives of a rogue-like, where the RNG might seem to be out to get you, the action is very solid and enjoyable. I wish that stages were more varied, but the many playable characters (with smart differences in how they play) and the cycle of unlocking new stuff ensures the game has great replay value.


Even though I've beat the game with one character, still actively playing (and really enjoying) it... so I guess that's worth a recommendation.

[Ian Sane]

So over the weekend I beat Virtue's Last Reward for the 3DS.

The ending is essentially "buy the sequel, fucker!" which... worked as I have Zero Time Dilemma coming on it's way from Amazon.  Okay, I legitimately enjoyed this game and it's predecessor 999 enough that I was planning on completing the trilogy anyway, though maybe not this soon.  I could probably have let someone get it for me for Christmas.  The ending leaves enough dangling that I would really have hated it if I played the game when it was current and had to wait four years for the sequel.  I had to Google the ending I got to confirm that, yes, this unresolved cliffhanger IS the ending.  I've never had to do that with a game before.  Honestly the "is this the ending?" feeling kind of hurt my whole opinion of the game.  As I was playing it I considered it superior to 999 but now I'm not so sure.  The gameplay is much more user-friendly and thus is more fun to play but the story in 999 is much more satisfying.

There is a key part of the ending that I have issues with.  Marking these as spoilers though as this is key stuff you should absolutely not read if you haven't beaten the game!

The big twist in the ending is that the main character, Sigma, is actually an old man having had this 22 year old consciousness transferred into the 60-something year old body of his future self.  At first this seemed completely ridiculous but later when I looked up discussion about it I found there are lots of subtle references to it from the other characters that seems odd at the time but you don't really question.  In that sense it's kind of brilliant - tell the player that the character is 22 years old and he'll totally buy it and find it odd whenever someone calls him "grandpa" or remarks how he's been in school for a long time but will never make the assumption that the character is something different than he says he is.  The game is almost entirely first person, the main character is the only one without voice acting, and you only ever see your hands.  All the cutscenes with the main character in it are at an angle that doesn't show his face (or they're flashbacks).  I didn't even find this odd as it assumed the camera angles were to provide immersion and make it feel more like I'm the main character.

But there are some major issues with it that make it unbelievable.  Seeing young hands is covered because it turns out the arms are cybernetic with artificial skin so the skin is made to look young.  But does he only ever look at his hands?  At no point did he look at any other part of his body?  Didn't he presumably have to go to the bathroom at some point during the multiple days the game covers?  What if his pant leg rode up and he saw his old legs?  And how does Sigma just never happen to see a reflection of himself?  There are mirrors that are dirtied up to cover that but what about reflections in water or in the numerous glass or shiny metal items in the facility he's in?  At no point did he not see a glimpse of his reflection and think "what the hell?"  And finally his appearance as an old man is too extremely different than his young self for him not to notice.  His hair is noticably longer, kind of like a mullet.  I notice when my hair is getting long even without a mirror because I can feel it on my neck.  Okay, maybe he noticed but assumed he had been asleep long enough his hair had grown out.  But the real kicker is that old Sigma has a cyborg eye.  Not one that just fills his eye cavity but a big honking monocle like thing that protrudes from his head.  He somehow never touches it (or maybe his robot hands are programmed not to notice?) and no character at any point says "hey how did you get that cyborg eye?"  The thing is that old Sigma didn't need to have such radical changes to his appearance and this concept would have been much more believable.  Ditch the eye (aren't cyborg arms enough?) and keep his hair the same length and MAYBE I can buy this.

[ejamer]

...  The gameplay is much more user-friendly and thus is more fun to play but the story in 999 is much more satisfying.
...

Totally agree here.


Haven't played Zero Time Dilemma yet; secretly hoping the whole series will get re-released in one package, with the updates to 999 that Vita version saw. Not sure how likely that is though... I've also been waiting for a Layton compilation and there doesn't seem to be any movement there either.

[ejamer]

Yay!  Finished my 4th game of the year, putting me nicely on track to reach my end of year goal.


So what are my final thoughts on Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Wii U)?  Mixed.


The game is super cute, but the challenge is very low. They try to make up for that by adding several different challenges to accomplish for each level - finish the level, collected all gems, beat the target time, and a bonus goal to get a checkmark. Most of the time, these varied goals and the creative level design work well together to hold your interest and encourage you to see what will happen next. Having bonus stages pop up randomly (or at least it felt random to me) is also a nice diversion.


Where does the game falter? Often, especially in later levels, multiple goals in a level can't be accomplished in a single run through. It's nice to have a reason to revisit levels, but having to revisit them at least 4 times seems excessive. The challenge also never really ramps up all that far (granted, I stopped doing time trials early on... they might be more challenging, but weren't the much fun for me).


Is it a game worth recommending? Depends on what you want. I'm glad to own it, but glad I didn't pay full price. Games don't have to be hard to create a sense of accomplishment... but sometimes the lack of challenge here made it feel like "keep busy" gaming rather than something I was passionate about playing.

[broodwars]

Finished the Shadow of the Colossus remake. Beautiful remake of an excellent game, despite some small issues related to the game's original design like some generally obtuse Colossi encounters & one Colossi fight that's just shittily designed (#9 with the geysers. It's a pure crspshoot if the Colossus going to be in the "right spot" for it to work).

[Luigi Dude]

Where does the game falter? Often, especially in later levels, multiple goals in a level can't be accomplished in a single run through. It's nice to have a reason to revisit levels, but having to revisit them at least 4 times seems excessive. The challenge also never really ramps up all that far (granted, I stopped doing time trials early on... they might be more challenging, but weren't the much fun for me).


Is it a game worth recommending? Depends on what you want. I'm glad to own it, but glad I didn't pay full price. Games don't have to be hard to create a sense of accomplishment... but sometimes the lack of challenge here made it feel like "keep busy" gaming rather than something I was passionate about playing.

You missed the best part of the game then.  The time trails is where the game offers it's challenge and shows just how well designed the levels are.  The later levels especially will require you to have quick reflexes and skills to complete in time.  If you were looking for a challenge you really missed out by not sticking with them since they really pick up in second half of the game.

Plus did you do the true final level, Mummy Maze Forever?  That was the Champion's Road equivalent to this game and will literally add several hours by itself because of the intense challenge.  I agree that just doing the main game is lacking in difficulty but it more then makes up for it in the optional content for those looking for it.

[Evan_B]

I'll have to head back to check out Mummy Maze Forever, then.

[MagicCow64]

Mummy Maze Forever is one of the hardest video game things I've ever completed, and probably the only rogue-like I'll ever **** with. It's basically like a whole different game.

[ejamer]

The mummy maze levels were fantastic - although I didn't spend much time with post-game content after finishing, I can get behind those being maybe the coolest part of the game. (Will likely go back at some point for a bit more, but haven't had much time since finishing it to play games.)


But saying that time trials are the best part of the game doesn't work for me. Sure, they could be challenging - but I find that rushing through levels and memorizing quickest paths to be the opposite of fun. Finished the time trials for the first chapter, and didn't care enough to continue. It's awesome if they work for you though.




Went back to Risk of Rain (Vita) today and beat that game again. The more I play that game, the more I enjoy it. Lots of stuff unlocked, but still lots of characters classes yet to play.

[Evan_B]

Mummy Maze Forever is one of the hardest video game things I've ever completed, and probably the only rogue-like I'll ever **** with. It's basically like a whole different game.

What the hell this sounds incredible. I need it right now.

[Mop it up]

So what are my final thoughts on Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Wii U)?  Mixed...

Oof, you're now 0 for 2 when it comes to some of my fave games. It's a pity, just when you were starting to get back onto my good side...

[ejamer]

So what are my final thoughts on Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Wii U)?  Mixed...

Oof, you're now 0 for 2 when it comes to some of my fave games. It's a pity, just when you were starting to get back onto my good side...

Just a coincidence - surely not intentional. It's not like I'm aiming to be your evil nemesis or anything...
*ahem*
at least, not yet. Just wait to see what comes next.




For what it's worth, I do like Captain Toad for the charm and cute level design; it's just the lack of difficulty in beating levels/finding all gems/reaching checkmark goals was disappointing. My stance on Star Tropics 2 also softened after accepting that it's just an action game, instead of an adventure/RPG with action elements.

[azeke]

Yume Penguin Monogatari (Dream Penguin Adventure, Famicom):


What a great game. It really is stunning how fantastic Konami's 8-bit games were. Great spritework, colours, animations and an innovative concept that can only compared to ranking systems of action games or maybe if Kirby's Epic Yarn actually penalised you for not collecting 70% of all beads.

Main character doesn't have health and can't die, your only punishment for touching enemy or their bullets is time-wasting animation of penguin (funnily) flopping around on his back. However you need to kill certain number of enemies and get hit as least as possible or else you won't progress and game will force you to replay the level.

This concept is framed as a story of a fat penguin who got dumped by his penguin girlfriend for slim and rich penguin in a top hat:



^ that's 10/10 premise right here

So now our hero goes through several levels while slimming down at the same time, and if you reach the end of a level too late or too fat -- you will have to replay it.

I only knew about this game last week from subbed Game Center CX episode. I played it most of the week on lunch breaks completing achievements. Such a fun and funny game. Did all of them except for the last one.

It's an easy, somewhat short game, controls are kinda wonky, but i really like ideas and the artistry put into it.

[lolmonade]

I wrapped up Pyre (PC) this past week.  The game stuck with me in a way I didn't expect.  The game environment, art style, music direction, and world building is fantastic, but the actual game play in-between matches of the Rites is pretty tedious visual novel style, which isn't necessarily a bad way to handle story beats, but just wasn't something I was looking for in the game.


Short summary for anyone curious about the game: You play a person banished from civilization to a land called the Downside, which is where all who break the laws of the Commonwealth are sent to.  Your sin is literacy, and you're picked-up by a band of travelers who are participating in events called the Rites, which is the only pathway for those who have been banished to be returned to civilization and their crimes absolved. 


Unsurprisingly, there is a subplot to that main thread in the game that is additional motivation to free yourselves and your companions, but there's an ambiguity as to whether or not you enabling that sub-plot is for the greater good or if you're being manipulated for others' gain.  Because of this, i'm compelled to consider a re-play, which isn't something I do often for new games. 


The Rites in the game are the core meat of the gameplay, which are 3 vs 3 matches where the goal is to basically run a ball to the opponent's Pyre spot on the map.  Each character has a unique set of abilities and speed, which makes the selection of your team members an interesting dynamic, as well as affects how you play (offensively vs defensively) as you get deeper into the game.


It's on sale for 1/2 off on steam, I have no problems recommending it at that price ($10).

[azeke]

Pac-Man 256 (Steam, PC):

It's a neat idea and a cool refresh of classic pac-man gameplay but a final end-game grind to upgrade all skills annoyed me. I guess it's more acceptable if you play it on the phone constantly, but i aint doing that for 20 hours straight.

Whatever, neat game, but grind is stupid. At least they did rip-out all microtransations stuff.

[Evan_B]

So, I took a break from the dismal angst of War the Horseman and dove into Dandara.

It's good. It's most certainly not a Metroidvania, as it shepherds players onto the critical path far too often. But it does so many really great things with the limitations of its design that it's impossible not to feel satisfied upon completing it. Well, unless you use the last sub-weapon unlock to completely cheese the final boss.

Yeah, that's a bit of a downer. So are one-hit kill moves in a game that's about methodical and deliberate movement, but what are ya gonna do. There's enough going on in this quirky title that distinguishes it from its contemporaries, but it's worth a look for its fascinating Afro-Brazilian aesthetics and inspirations. While a number of games that attempt to communicate the culture and/or heritage of a certain region (Never Alone, Year Walk) are usually a bit of a letdown in terms of actual gameplay, what exists here is pretty great, and the story is never particularly overbearing. Oh, and I may or may not have written an article about the figurative economics present in the game. Shameless plug.

Now I gotta play some other garbage to write about.

[MagicCow64]

Gonna write a pointy-headed post comparing Celeste to the End is Nigh if I can finish TEIN and work up the energy of hatred one of these games deserves. Watch this space.

[Ian Sane]

Just beat Zero Time Dilemma for the 3DS.  Much like my earlier post about Virtue's Last Reward the ending has a bit of "buy the sequel, fucker" except there is no sequel yet or even announced.  Though actually I found the ending a little bit less of a cliffhanger than VLR.  Both games end with unfinished business but VLR gave more little details about what was ultimately going to happen in ZTD.  There is unfinished business in ZTD but it's very broad without a lot of details.  Without getting into details I feel like ZTD is more leaving things open for a sequel while VLR left tons of unanswered questions and very specifically teased ZTD's premise.

ZTD had a very non-linear progression that took a bit of time to understand and was initially off-putting.  But once you start to see how the pieces fit it's starts to work and ends up being pretty clever.  It has lots of twists and turns including some where afterwards you realize "oh they were hinting about that early on!"

Having played the whole trilogy now I can say that these games have to be videogames.  You couldn't make these into movies for example.  They all specifically try creative stuff that relies on the videogame as the medium.

[Khushrenada]

Just beat Zero Time Dilemma for the 3DS.  Much like my earlier post about Virtue's Last Reward the ending has a bit of "buy the sequel, fucker" except there is no sequel yet or even announced. 

Huh.

That surprises me as my impression for the couple reviews I read through on the game seemed to imply this was a conclusion to the trilogy and not that there was unresolved business. I also find that surprising considering how long it took ZTD to get released and the development company seemed to make it sound like it was a struggle to get the sales necessary to even have the third game released. You'd think they wouldn't take the risk to have fans asking for something they couldn't deliver later like it seemed might be the case with ZTD. Meanwhile, I'm still waiting for that next Rhythm Thief game, Sega!    Unresolved stories are the worst!

Yume Penguin Monogatari (Dream Penguin Adventure, Famicom):


What a great game. It really is stunning how fantastic Konami's 8-bit games were. Great spritework, colours, animations and an innovative concept that can only compared to ranking systems of action games or maybe if Kirby's Epic Yarn actually penalised you for not collecting 70% of all beads.

Main character doesn't have health and can't die, your only punishment for touching enemy or their bullets is time-wasting animation of penguin (funnily) flopping around on his back. However you need to kill certain number of enemies and get hit as least as possible or else you won't progress and game will force you to replay the level.

This concept is framed as a story of a fat penguin who got dumped by his penguin girlfriend for slim and rich penguin in a top hat:



^ that's 10/10 premise right here

So now our hero goes through several levels while slimming down at the same time, and if you reach the end of a level too late or too fat -- you will have to replay it.

I only knew about this game last week from subbed Game Center CX episode. I played it most of the week on lunch breaks completing achievements. Such a fun and funny game. Did all of them except for the last one.

It's an easy, somewhat short game, controls are kinda wonky, but i really like ideas and the artistry put into it.

I meant to comment about this awhile ago but I agree 100% that the premise of this game is awesome and your write-up and description of it makes me want this in my life as well. I would so totally play this if it got a VC or western release and I normally shun most NES era games. I'd never heard of it before now so thank you for writing about it.

[Ian Sane]

Just beat Zero Time Dilemma for the 3DS.  Much like my earlier post about Virtue's Last Reward the ending has a bit of "buy the sequel, fucker" except there is no sequel yet or even announced. 

Huh.

That surprises me as my impression for the couple reviews I read through on the game seemed to imply this was a conclusion to the trilogy and not that there was unresolved business. I also find that surprising considering how long it took ZTD to get released and the development company seemed to make it sound like it was a struggle to get the sales necessary to even have the third game released. You'd think they wouldn't take the risk to have fans asking for something they couldn't deliver later like it seemed might be the case with ZTD. Meanwhile, I'm still waiting for that next Rhythm Thief game, Sega!    Unresolved stories are the worst!

The box even says "the conclusion to the Zero Escape Trilogy" on the back but the story clearly isn't over.  Maybe the series' creator couldn't think of a proper ending so he left things "open".  Or maybe he's kind of a jerk.   Or they're being misleadingly accurate by advertising it as concluding the "trilogy" which is technically true, while the series would continue on.  The ending is such that they don't need to make more games that use the visual novel/escape the room style gameplay.  So they could use the same characters and pay off storylines with a different series with different gameplay.

[Shaymin]

Given what happens when Spike Chunsoft does non-visual novel spinoffs of visual novels... christ, I hope not.