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Post by Sarge on Dec 18, 2020 17:15:01 GMT -5
There is something to be said for a quick action fix, though. Soul Blazer delivers on that front. Alcahest seems cut from the same cloth, although I don't think it's quite as good, myself. Very arcade-y with a smattering of RPG elements.
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Post by Ex on Dec 18, 2020 17:26:08 GMT -5
There is something to be said for a quick action fix, though. Sure that's what I love Ys games for. But I can't think of any Ys game that's better than ALttP. For me ALttP is not only the best Zelda ever made, it's also the best 2D action-RPG ever made. So perhaps I'm biased. |
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Post by toei on Dec 18, 2020 18:01:50 GMT -5
Ex Brain Lord has more puzzles, and more complex puzzles, than AlttP, and I also prefer it, so that's not the reason. I usually prefer ARPGs with puzzles. SNES Zelda is really just a collection of dungeons with an awkward set-up (why do you have to travel all the way to that damn witch to fully restore your health? Why doesn't it refill fully when you die?) and no story. The dungeons are decent, but they're not Alundra-level, nor are the puzzles. Alcahest is cool. I remember it being fun, but it's so short that I don't really have any specific memories.
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Post by Sarge on Dec 18, 2020 18:24:28 GMT -5
It's more the fusion of elements in Zelda that make it great. There's an actual, palpable sense of discovery on the overworld - hidden items are everywhere, and it's fun to figure out how to get at them. Most games in the Ys vein don't have nearly as significant exploration elements. They're more like differently-flavored mazes.
I'm not sure that I'd say Brain Lord's puzzles are that much more complex (although they probably are). And Brain Lord doesn't feel as good to play, either.
Also, I pretty much never travel to the witch to refill. Hearts drop often enough from bushes and enemies that you can top off pretty quickly, not to mention all the fairies scattered about.
I still think the dungeon design is top-notch in LttP, and I doubly think that's true for the sublime Link's Awakening (my personal favorite).
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Post by Xeogred on Dec 18, 2020 18:54:26 GMT -5
I'd take all the Quintet stuff over Brain Lord without hesitation. I think you guys forgot how bad the random boulder maze is in that game, along with the ridiculous platforming in some parts with a bunch of moving platforms requiring pixel perfect jumps and timing. 
It was still cool overall though.
Alcahest was neat, my biggest takeaway from it is that the OST is INCREDIBLE. Wish the Kirby composer did more EPIC serious/darker stuff like this.
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Post by toei on Dec 18, 2020 19:38:36 GMT -5
None of the dungeons in AlttP struck me as particularly cool or remarkable in any kind of way. It's a very bland game, in my opinion. I do like Link's Awakening a lot. That one actually had a more tangible world and actual flavor and personality. I found that Minish Cap's overworld was much more fun to explore since there were more abilities involved, and more variety of things to find.
I didn't struggle with any maze or platforming in Brain Lord, either. I'd place it behind Soul Blazer, but ahead of Terranigma (this may be due to the mistake I made in following a walkthrough at the time) and definitely Illusion of Gaia.
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Post by Ex on Dec 18, 2020 21:22:54 GMT -5
why do you have to travel all the way to that damn witch to fully restore your health? There are other ways to instantly fully restore your health, such as using Faerie Springs, or drinking a Medicine of Life (red potion). Saying ALttP has no story is false. There are multiple animated cutscenes with story text, and there are many NPCs with unique dialogues to converse with throughout the game. ALttP doesn't have as much story text as Quintet action-RPGs though, I'll give you that. Edit: I do appreciate that you enjoyed Brain Lord, toei. It's an unsung hidden gem IMO. |
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Post by Sarge on Dec 18, 2020 21:52:47 GMT -5
I'll agree that Brain Lord was one I was happy to finally get under my belt. Very underappreciated and forgotten game.
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Post by toei on Dec 18, 2020 23:20:25 GMT -5
AlttP has the barest of stories, less so than most NES RPGs even. It has one town, and none of the NPC dialogue ever changes throughout the game. Aren't the other NPCs just a couple of shopkeepers here and there? You don't really converse with them, they just sell you stuff. And what are the couple of 2-second "animated" story scenes even about? "Save prancess lol". For all intents and purposes, that's essentially "no story". Like Super Metroid.
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Post by Ex on Dec 18, 2020 23:24:23 GMT -5
toei I think the real problem for you with ALttP and SM is they didn't release on the TG16.
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