Jonnas

After 10.000 years, this thread is free! Time to conquer N-E! *ahem* Sorry to necrobump this old thread, but I happened to see Dragon Quest IX at a nearby store for 30€. This has always been a title that put a high emphasis on interconnectivity, social networking, and sharing. Since I never put any importance in that when it came to JRPGs, I've always put a mental block in it whenever I considered it... ...My question is: Is the game good in its own right without all of that multiplayer stuff? Obviously, internet services no longer work for the DS, so I'd be playing this exclusively solo (and at an unspecified point in the far future), but if the game is good as its own single-player experience, I think I might go for it.

I appreciate the offer, but I truly have no stable time in my life right now Thank you, in any case It's called balance, Glen It's a risk-and-reward situation, and you can use it to steal coins from other players all the time. Yeah, it's slow, that much is true, but I will admit no slander on Goomba's Greedy Gala!

And now... A Jonnas NSO Update Last time, I talked about multiple bad games that... were obviously bad even before I touched them But there are a few games there that I haven't really given a fair shot before, and they're generally well regarded. So I decided to do those next. The NES Classics So I went and tried to play the original Metroid. I knew going in that I never really jived with this game. Yeah, I still don't. Samus feels clunky to play, the environments are monochromatic and forgettable, navigation through the world is confusing... and when I picked it up, the first thing that got to me was that Samus can't crouch nor aim down, meaning she can't even shoot zoomers (the mini-lavos spiky creatures, not the generation). So, she's a slower, less fun Mega Man. I tried my best to play it, but I really did not enjoy any of my time with it. I understand a lot of what makes Metroid Metroid was already present here, but I do not enjoy playing this. I do really like Metroid II, but this one just does not gel with me. Next, it was The Legend of Zelda. I explored the map for a while. Moving around is fun, if a bit clunky (the d-pad from the joy-cons probably didn't help, admittedly), and it is a challenge to clear each screen of enemies... but the fact is that I never really found anything of note, beyond a couple of caves with shops inside. I did die 5 times, however. I also know, from cultural osmosis, that several clues are super cryptic (some relying on the instinct of "oh, maybe this bush/wall can be burned/bombed"), and that the dungeons should be completed in order, despite the open-ended structure. I can see that this is a game that requires a lot of investment on my part, and if I was still the age of drawing maps for pen&paper adventures, I'd likely be more into this. Sadly, not only do I lack the time for that, I never really played video games that way. Furthermore, the idea of exploring a whole big map, only to be told that the dungeons have a set order does not appeal to me. As such, I conclude that this is just not for me either. Next, a game that I thought would capture me more: Zelda 2 - The Adventure of Link. This one's structure is more linear, even if still cryptic, so I thought I'd be able to progress a bit more. Indeed, I played it for two sessions. Took me a bit long to reach the first palace, and once I did... I realized the true horror of this game: combat sucks, it's really unfun. Link feels a tad slippery, and his sword got no range. Not too bad when you're dealing with random encounters in the overworld, but in the labyrinthic palaces? Where it feels more like a gauntlet than a maze? Every single slime I barely couldn't stab, meant another blow onto Link's health, and nobody drops health in this game. Plus, the palace is huge, but there's no map. I had such a bad experience with the first palace (I ended up relying on rewind just to drag myself to the boss), I realized I wasn't going to enjoy this one. I now second anybody who says this game should be remade, just make combat bearable, please. (For the record, I'm not discarding the possibility of revisiting any of the games mentioned above. I just understand I need a specific mentality to handle any one of them) Finally, a strong note to end on: Kirby's Adventure. I had played the remake on GBA, but never the original. I always felt like the GBA game was a simple, but forgettable game, so I was never in a rush to play this one. Well, I can honestly say that the NES game is actually much better than the GBA remake! This is partly due to perspective: a short Kirby game on the GBA is inherently less impressive than a game that pushed the NES to its limit, and did things no other title on the system was doing. But it's also just how much more charming Kirby is on the NES, how the silent storytelling feels more at home on the NES, and just how marvelous some graphical tricks feel here. Taking this title on its own merits, I had a lovely time beating it and trying to 100% it (had to look up a guide for one of the secrets, I'll admit), it was that enjoyable. Unlocked a Hard Mode by the end, but that'll be a story for another time. 5 stars (As a bonus, here's Sakurai's take on his own game) A Party of Marios I mean, I played Mario Party before... Mario Party 4, that is! Plus, a couple of matches from the Switch titles. One thing that I remember from the Gamecube days is that a lot of people kept saying that N64 Mario Party was sooo much better, and I got curious. I certainly have my own set of gripes with MP4, and thanks to the NSO, I can now compare for myself, with a single match of each. No more fitting trilogy for Mar10 day. Mario Party 1 is definitely the first of its kind. Mini-games attribute coins seemingly at random (and sometimes they take coins from the losers), there's no items, and the only real choices you get to make involve branching paths on the board. This party feels anarchic. Mario Party 2 is bonkers. Now there's items, but god damn, so many mini-game spaces! Battle mini-games, item mini-games, Koopa banks abd Bowser collecting random taxes left and right... Compared to MP1, the rules of the game are better defined, and mini-game rounds are more consistent, but it's somehow more insane, I could barely keep up with it. The costumes are cute, though. This party feels reactionary. Mario Party 3 is much more reasonable. Mini-games and items feel balanced, there's fewer wacky events happening all the time, and there's a semblance of strategy now. Also, a Story Mode, but I know that's not fun in this series Anyway, after a match of multiple strategic decisions where I barely managed to eek an advantage in the last 3 turns, the game decided to award 3 stars to the CPU in last place, making them the winner, and rendering the previous 20 turns pointless. This party feels corrupt. General pros: These 3 games are really fast-paced, that's pretty cool. The menus are really creative and charming too; General cons: Mario Party 4 is sooo much better. ------------------------------ And with that, I have officially cleared over half of the N- What's that? Nintendo just added 3 Game Boy games this week? Instead of clearing that threshold, I'm now exactly one game short from clearing half? ... Dr.Mario (Game Boy) is exactly the same game as the NES version, except the pills are white, black, and gray. That's cute. And with that, I have officially cleared over half of the NSO! 120 games down, only 119 to go, baby!

I really like Fennekin's line. That's an unconventional design for a fox creature of any kind, and it works really well. Not sure why Braixen is more popular than Delphox, but I like them both. Really cool witch, and excellent addition to Pokkén. Froakie's... Well, Greninja's line really, is pretty cool on its own as well. Sure, Smash Bros. exposed Greninja a lot, but it's a legitimately great design. Unfortunately for it, I like witches better than Ninja Plus, the existence of Ash-Greninja lowers the entire species' score. Chespin's line is decent. I don't really like Chesnaught's white colour, though, makes it look needlessly mechanical (when they already have a shell/shield, no less), and it's just garish, really clashes with the light green (the colour scheme that Chespin and Quilladin had going was perfectly fine, don't know why they would change it at the end) Overall, a pretty strong generation when it comes to starters. Chesnaught alone is better than the Gen V starters.

I'm just now going through your recent reviews, and... That's not a brand new wrestler, that's Jushin Liger. There's probably a few other real-life wrestlers in that cast, if so.

Man, this one hit me like a brick. He was a living legend, but not one that had retired yet. He was still working on Dragon Quest, and a new Dragon Ball series, and there's a new game coming out based on one of his Manga, and... he was still quite prolific. And by all means, he had the best of reputations. You know how rare that is, with a career that long? By all means, a true treasure. This sucks Rest in Peace, Akira Toriyama.

I thought Unova was only New York? Is it based off the entire mainland? Snivy's line is great, I dig Serperior's design. I don't care much for the vestigial arms, but they're barely visible, so whatever. I just wish they were all legless. Oshawott's line is like Mudkip's, but less messy. At least Samurott looks properly quadrupedal (even if Dewott looks super bipedal), and I like the funky beard. Tepig's doesn't do much for me. Cute pig, but I'm not into that sumo boar. No reason to make it fighting-type either, the pig from Journey to the West isn't famous for fighting or anything. The fiery what? *re-checks the design* Oh! Because he has no neck! I've always seen that as a fiery collar, since it covers the shoulders ...I mean, a black "pattern" around the crotch usually just means highly concentrated hair EDIT: I'm sorry, I hadn't seen the following page, and... I... No, I don't think I will

Huh, turns out there are now three distinct fighting game series with a Min Min on the roster. What are the odds? In a more serious note, the 32/64 bit generation was wild. Releasing two distinct fighting games (in then-recent 3D, no less) in the same cartridge? How does such a thing even happen?

Ah, that makes more sense. Didn't get that feeling at all from the article that DCubed linked to, as it simply says this was a remake in development. Thank you for the context

...My eyes refuse to believe that's real. Not the "Fortnite spinoff" part of it, as that would indeed be something that publishers would try to do with this IP. No, what boggles my mind is that they have the gall to call it a remake of TS2. Do words not have any meaning anymore!? If you ain't showing Syberia, you ain't showing shit!

Oh, so it's an informed attribute... I mean, I accept stuff like Machamp's 1000 bullet-punches, so that's fine. But I dare Game Freak to draw some bugs and birds on that turtle's back! Make it feel gargantuan.

My personal attachment to these starters is basically zero. And I don't find any of them to be that hot. Turtwig line is okay. I like the concept of a large tortoise that carries an ecosystem on its back, but the art itself always looked odd to me. It's just the one tree? And it's not even centered? Would be cool if Torterra had caterpies and stuff living on its shell, but instead, it's just the one uneven tree. Chimchar line is admittedly consistent, and I can't find much fault in it. I'm just not that into fighting monkeys (unless they have a magic staff that can alter its size). Piplup... I liked this little critter when I first saw the trio. Penguins are cute and lovely. Empoleon, however, is a mess, in the sense that it does not look like an animal. It looks like a machine or a scarecrow that's meant to only somewhat resemble a penguin, and I don't like it one bit.

Never thought I'd see the day where Virtual Wario Land would be made available in proper playable form... Will keep an eye on this.

Does that mean that people who like to go to concerts with company are even ducks?

Pretty vital. With the enormous backlog I have on my Switch, there's no way I'm grabbing another system if I can't bring it over.

From Gen 3 onwards, my opinions aren't as strong. Still, I definitely liked Torchic far more than the others. That lil' chick is cute as heck. Combusken looks like ass, but Blaziken looks pretty dang cool, and I respect him taking up Hwoarang's moveset in Pokkén. Fire/Fighting was novel at the time, which helped. Just wish that hair looked more natural (the curtains, I mean. The drapes look bushy enough). Treecko probably has the most consistent line out of all of them, and Sceptile looks pretty cool and confident (can't get over Treecko's little stubby fingers/toes, though, are these supposed to be pods like a gecko's? They don't look right at all). I see Grovyle has gained a lot of popularity from other media I haven't consumed, which is nice, but I don't feel too strongly about him. I appreciate his excessively long teenage-metalhead-hair, though. Mudkip... doesn't work for me. Speaking as a Quagsire fan, the typing is excellent, and I think the animal is supposed to be the same as Wooper, but the design is so busy! Looks like a dog with too many accessories. Marshtomp looks a bit better, looks like he's getting his shit together... aaaand Swampert happens. I thought we were going bipedal, but then Swampert shows up with this weird-ass curved posture where we don't know if he prefers to be standing or stay as a quadruped. Looks like evolution (real-life evolution, I mean) pranked him by giving him the most uncomfortable skeleton his body could have.

I mean, yeah, is this only in Multiplayer? Why is it "foot" instead of "feet"? These matters are never discussed in articles. Indeed, that was a good one. Instantly wishlisted. Unicorn Overlord I tried for significantly less time, as I've just lost a lot of patience with RPG demos. I just wanted to check the general gameplay loop and feel, and that was enough to impress me. Wishlisted as well.

Somehow, none of my predictions came true But it was a pretty solid showing: Gonna try out the demos for Pepper Grinder and Unicorn Overlord; The 5 Rare games are games I have never really played, so to my NSO backlog they go; Penny looks good, though my priorities are elsewhere right now (same thing goes for Another Crab, really); Pretty cool to see Epic Mickey return, honestly. Wishlisted; I already have Pocket Card Jockey on the 3DS, so I won't repurchase it, but it's really dang good!; Monkey Ball, Endless Ocean, and MH Stories aren't my cup of tea, but I'm happy they're there. All in all, pretty decent.

For the record, the stuff you can't steal is Gold (not an item, if an enemy Thief gets it, it evaporates) and weapons (unstealable by design). I don't think the chapter you were in contained any weapons, though.

So let me get this straight, this is just an updated version of the original SMT V? Which part of this couldn't have been DLC?

Very nicely done. Not an easy task, especially when you consider the amount of items that can't be stolen back. You might be thinking of the GCN/Wii games, where the system worked like that. In the GBA, it's all items, which demands one to consider their resources wisely. Regarding Lyn... there's quite a few chapters before her earliest promotion. Yeah, it kinda sucks, the next few maps would be perfect to train her promoted form.

Hell yeah, another true believer That dungeon slaps Glad to hear you enjoyed it so much This is the sort of game that sticks with a person. Well, I'm thinking the original, at the very least.

I always loved the Squirtle line. Squirtle is easily the cutest of the Gen 1 starters (well, it was, before the anime gave it rough, chain-smoking voice in the English version), Wartortle looks like a dopey teenager still finding themselves (as mid-evolutions ought to do. This is a 12-year old rascal if I ever saw one), and Blastoise is a strong, proud grown-up who knows what they're about. Love that it launches its water from hidden artillery bits, makes her look more like a tank, and allows crazy stuff like the rapid spin, or even her finishing move in Pokkén. Always liked that cool-looking pose on the original cover, too. In fact, I love that there isn't a single shot of Blastoise where they don't look confident. I don't particularly care for Mega Blastoise (where it looks excessively mechanical), or the Pokkén version (I mean, you know why), even if I love that Blastoise is in a fighting game. I've always respected the Bulbasaur line as well. Precocious Bulbasaur doing what he can, menacing Venusaur with its imposing weight, and Smash really made me appreciate Ivysaur's in-between form a lot more. Plus, the anime really showed how those Vine Whips mean business. A shame about its lack of competitive viability, Venusaur looks like such a mean tank. But the Charmander line... Never liked them. So basic. The flaming tail is their one cool feature, and even that isn't consistent, considering how often it gets drenched without ever going out. Okay, Charmander is fine, but Charmeleon has a stupid unihorn in its head, and Charizard is as generic as dragons get. Despite this, Charizard was all the rage (and still is), and its fans so obnoxious. Facts don't care for such feelings, though. Mah man I'll be hearing the PT version of this for some good ol' nostalgia. I picked Cyndaquil way back then, and never regretted it. This is a line I like a lot, with each form looking like a different mammal, but with a growth that makes sense. Plus, having flames replace what would otherwise be patches of fur (or porcupine spikes) is pretty clever. Quilava looks like an edgy-but-kinda-dopey teenager, and Typhlosion is explosive in all the right ways. I've also always thought of Flame Wheel as its signature move, and even if it isn't that great a move, it's pretty rad-looking. Totodile... isn't my style. No hate, it just doesn't gel with my sensibilities much. Croconaw doesn't do anything for me, either, why does its skin look like caveman clothes? Feraligatr looks pretty awesome, though, good thing the line ends on a strong note. I like the lack of an "o" in its name too, makes him more unique. Too bad the physical-special split didn't exist back then, he wasn't that hot back in GSC. Chikorita is a lovely design, I remember being a kid and really wanting to pick it, back when GSC was Japan-only. Bayleef is a surprisingly endearing mid-evolution, nothing dopey about it, it's just a nice-looking dinosaur with a leef moteef. Meganium is where it all goes wrong. That neck looks awful, the pink flower clashes horribly with the green skin, the movepool sucks... Bayleef looks pretty good throwing razor leeves, how does Meganium screw even that up!? Meganium alone made me go for Cyndaquil, it's that bad.

I'm sorry, I somehow missed this bit the first time around and... Oh my God How did they not know that Japan uses a different alphabet? Jesus, this is amazing

The cool thing about Fire Emblem (especially the GBA games) is that the interface and UI are surprisingly simple and direct for the genre. Despite this, the mechanics and details have a lot of depth to them. There's always a lot to explore and talk about. I see you're making good progress. Just a couple of tips: Merlinus is the only character protected from permanent death. If he dies, he just comes back next chapter (he only levels up if he survives, though); Won't spoil it if you want to figure it out yourself, but if you do want to know what to do about the named thief, click the spoiler below.