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Post by Ex on Mar 14, 2022 14:38:23 GMT -5
Armored Core 3
Dark Souls <-Beaten
Digital Devil Saga 2 Dragon Quest VI (DS)
Final Fantasy VIII <-Back Burnered*
Valkyria Chronicles III Metal Wolf Chaos <-Starting Tonight
Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner
*Not feeling FF8, it didn't hook me after 4 hours. I don't think FF8 is a bad game or anything. I'm just not in the mood for a slow-burn turn-based JRPG at present. Some high-octane mecha smashing sounds good right now.
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Post by Xeogred on Mar 14, 2022 19:30:04 GMT -5
I'm determined to beat FF8 again this year!
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Post by toei on Mar 27, 2022 17:18:24 GMT -5
So, a few weeks ago I bought a new laptop. My old laptop, on which I do almost all my gaming these days, was incredibly busted due to carelessness and a few unfortunate accidents. At the end the regular headphone port had a jack stuck inside, so I'd had to order a USB converter that you could plug headphones in. It was a cheap device made in China and sometimes my computer would shut down if I plugged the headphones into the adapter directly (workaround: unplug the adapter from the computer's USB port, plug the headphones into it, then plug it back into the computer). My battery was down to about 90 minutes of autonomy and took longer to fully charge, and the charger's cable wasn't quite long enough to use it comfortably while charging. The screen's hinges were torn off at the bottom, and broken wires actually hung out. Mysteriously, that didn't seem to actually affect the computer in any way for a long time. I had taped it over to cover it and try to hold the screen in place. Eventually the screen started messing up and I had to press around a specific spot at the bottom to bring it back to normal, like how people who drive old cars are sometimes the only ones who know how to start their car. The whole thing was incredibly redneck/ghetto/whatever you want to call it. I finally gave in and bought a new laptop. I spent a bit more this time, and it's more powerful. Enough so that I can now emulate whatever can be emulated from the PS2, PSP, etc, where before only maybe 30-40% of PS2 game ran at full speed. I've also looked more into DS emulation (which wasn't an issue of power, but of trying to find way to make the two screens look decent together on one screen). Anyway, I don't have time to play everything I'd want to play, but I've revised my 2022 goals:
Devil May Cry (PS2) Grand Theft Auto III (or another 3D GTA - I know III is likely the worst of them, but it's the most historically important and I have no interest in the top-down games) (PS2) Onimusha (PS2) Retro Game Challenge (NDS) Silent Hill 3 (PS2) Tenchu 2 (PSX) Tokyo Beat Down (NDS) Way of the Samurai 2 (PS2) Yakuza 3 (PS3/PS4) *Another turn-based RPG (candidates: Glory of Heracles IV, Tenshi no Uta, Dragon Quest XI) *A From Software game (candidates: EverGrace, Kuon) *Yakuza: Black Panther (PSP) if the complete fan translation is released before the end of the year, or another new fan-translation
Already beaten: Exile 2: Wicked Phenomenon (Turbo CD) Final Fantasy VIII (PSX) Nanashi no Game (NDS)
That adds up to 15 altogether. Thankfully, outside of RPGs, most PS2 games still weren't super long from what I can see on HowLongToBeat (I usually look at the Main+Extra field, cause I like to do some or most side content of interest but I don't usually go for the pointless time-consuming completist stuff), so a total of 15 might be doable. I really don't think I'll tackle DQXI this year, it's probably as long as 10 of those other games put together.
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Post by Xeogred on Mar 27, 2022 20:55:04 GMT -5
I still want to get to SMT DDS (at least the first) and DQXI this year, but yeah those will be some big ones. I'm still playing Elden Ring now... and will be all over Xenoblade 3 later this year. Those dang modern games!!!
I think my old Dell Latitude from circa ~2006 still boots up, but feels like hot lava after a minute. I wager you got a pretty good deal on a new laptop? I was looking into them again myself recently and was surprised at how far like $500 or less can go with them thesedays. Compared to phones and consoles, I guess lower PC prices wow me more because they can do a lot more in ways... I dunno.
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Post by Ex on Mar 27, 2022 20:55:17 GMT -5
Glad you finally got rid of the clunker and updated to a decent rig. Between DeSmuME and melonDS, I've had success emulating DS on PC. They both offer ways to orient the two screens and resize them as well. >Devil May Cry (PS2) Very interested in your take. I've never played much of any DmC. >Grand Theft Auto III I wouldn't bother personally. I don't think GTA started to get interesting until GTA4 at the earliest. Without getting too far into elitist asshat mode, I'll just say the GTA games enjoyed high sales due to catering to the absolute lowest common denominator. I don't think your tastes fall into that demographic. >Nanashi no Game (NDS) I beat this one a while back. It's a great concept but a crappy game. Maybe the sequel is better. >Onimusha (PS2) I think you will enjoy this one. I beat it many years ago. The PS2 version is the way to go, the Xbox version is broken. >Retro Game Challenge (NDS) The little I've played of this, it was good. I'd like to tackle it and its sequel someday. >Silent Hill 3 (PS2) Never played, but the female protagonist is nice. >Tenchu 2 (PSX) >Way of the Samurai 2 (PS2) >Yakuza 3 (PS3/PS4) >Yakuza: Black Panther (PSP) I think you will enjoy all of these. I've not finished any of them though. >Tokyo Beat Down (NDS) Nice presentation, repetitive gameplay... >*Another turn-based RPG (candidates: Glory of Heracles IV, Tenshi no Uta, Dragon Quest XI) I'd enjoy your take on DQ9 (I've beaten it) the other two no idea.I doofed. >A From Software game (candidates: EverGrace, Kuon) I've beaten both of those. Kuon is okay but overrated. EverGrace is not amazing but I enjoyed it, the game's very unique with an unusual atmosphere. I enjoyed (and beat) its sequel Forever Kingdom as well. Forever Kingdom is a big improvement and a hidden (yet tarnished) gem.
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Post by toei on Mar 27, 2022 21:36:55 GMT -5
It's DQ11, not DQ9! I beat DQ9 on a real DS back then. I didn't really like it much. It's not awful, but it's the worst mainline DQ. Glory of Heracles III was excellent, and II was one of the only NES RPGs I enjoyed, so I expect IV to be solid (the DS reboot was drab and generic and I dropped it after a few hours). Tenshi no Uta is a Telenet RPG, so it's a bigger risk, but it want to give it a shot. It's actually one of the last games they ever made.
EverGrace is from that period of time where FromSoftware couldn't catch a break. Their games were poorly reviewed, didn't sell that well, and didn't have much of a fanbase (excluding maybe Armored Core, I wasn't paying attention to those). I remember EverGrace getting shat on in particular. But it didn't look bad to me, at least in screenshots, and now that FromSoftware is out of its misunderstood phase, I think it'd be interesting to visit these games from their long dark period. Also, even though I didn't end up playing King's Field 2 for real, the hour in put into it was enough to for me to understand the appeal. EverGrace was their first third-person RPG, and I prefer third-person, so it seems like a logical choice. Kuon I was already interested in based on the setting before I even knew they made it. Besides, horror games were pretty short in the PSX & PS2 eras and I like that about them. If all goes well I could play both Silent Hill 3 (which is long overdue) and Kuon in October.
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Post by Xeogred on Mar 27, 2022 21:58:22 GMT -5
Yeah, survival horror games tend to be short, but hot dang SH3 is awkwardly brief in a way. On one hand it makes it one of the easiest ones for me to replay and blast through, but I always think it could have used another level or two. Also not really a spoiler, but the town portion isn't much of a thing in that one either. I liked that stuff in the first two a bit so it's kind of disappointing. Not to mention it recycles some SH2 stuff. I think I usually beat it in like ~3-4 hours nowadays. I guess that's as quick as a RE1-RE3 replay can be for me, but SH3 just seems a bit lacking content wise compared to the first two SH's so I draw that comparison.
Aesthetically, monster designs, more melee weapons than the norm etc... gameplay wise it's amazing. But the story is kind of ass compared to SH1-2/4. Looking forward to your review on it.
SH4 wasn't a SH game initially and I guess it's easy to tell that's where a lot of the bigger development ambitions were going. Definitely one of the coolest stories/concepts I've ever seen in gaming, but yeah a lot of people struggle with its shortcomings. lol, very flawed game indeed but I love it. Story wise it's up there with SH2 for me.
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Post by Ex on Mar 27, 2022 22:45:23 GMT -5
>It's DQ11, not DQ9! Synapses shorted out, sorry, been playing brain burning board games all day. Yeah somebody around here has to beat DQ11. Kinda crazy none of us have yet. My excuse is I'd like to beat certain earlier DQ entries first. The HRG regulars have all beaten many more DQ entries than I. >I remember EverGrace getting shat on in particular Yeah... a lot of FromSoftware's earlier games were just dismissed left and right. Another example are the Lost Kingdom games on GameCube. I enjoyed both of them, but I've never met another fan of them on or offline. Even if From's earlier games were unpolished in ways, no one can deny they didn't exude a unique vibe. You'll probably end up enjoying Kuon more than I did. I'm not the most lenient critic on horror games. Seems the horror games I've enjoyed the most* nobody cares about anyway. Most people prefer "horror" games where you are completely capable of killing all baddies that come your way, insofar as there's a creepy atmosphere and jump scares. I prefer horror games that build up psychological dread over time, and the player completely lacks the ability to simply "kill" the scary stuff. *
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RadRedRooster
HRG Regular
Formerly known as HutOnChickenLegs
Posts: 81
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Post by RadRedRooster on Apr 18, 2022 7:19:10 GMT -5
Lost Kingdoms brings me back: I remember enjoying the title, but not playing it for more than a few hours. I was completely blown away by Tales of Symphonia, which I got around the same time, and forgot all about Lost Kingdoms. Never picked up it up again.
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Post by Ex on Apr 18, 2022 8:57:41 GMT -5
Lost Kingdoms brings me back: I remember enjoying the title, but not playing it for more than a couple of hours. I was completely blown away by Tales of Symphonia, which I got at the same time, and made me forget all about Lost Kingdoms. Never picked up the game again. I can understand Tales of Symphonia distracting you from Lost Kingdoms. I wouldn't put Lost Kingdoms in the same quality bracket as it, at least from a production standpoint. However, Lost Kingdoms and Lost Kingdoms II are very fun games. They are basically third person dungeon crawlers with CCG battle systems. Except the CCG battle system is in real time as opposed to turn-based, which sounds like it wouldn't work and yet it does wonderfully work. Unfortunately, the majority of JRPG players ignored these entries because they were on GameCube and didn't have grandiose production or series lineage. They're worth going back to though. Here's my reviews of the LK games from years back: Conversely, I've never played Tales of Symphonia. I had it on GameCube forever, didn't get around to it, then bought the PS3 remaster version. So I'll play it on PS3 someday.
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