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Post by Ex on Mar 5, 2024 20:23:25 GMT -5
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Post by toei on Mar 5, 2024 20:32:23 GMT -5
If anyone is going to try one of those, I recommend Kinds' Adventure (that's Josh Kain in the official PS2 localization). It's got a nice cyberpunk atmosphere and is a little grittier than the others. Each of these is short, about 45 to 90 minutes depending on which and whether or not you get stuck. It's almost all text, with just a few illustrations per story. They were written by a bunch of different people so the quality varies.
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Post by Xeogred on Mar 5, 2024 20:44:14 GMT -5
That's a hilariously huge list for just PS2 spinoff materials haha. But I guess I'm not super surprised, with how big the VN/PC-98 scene seemed to be in Japan throughout the 90's. They loved digital books back then oozing with that nice pixelated charm.
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Post by toei on Mar 5, 2024 21:18:22 GMT -5
Those were different from all that. They were MegaNet games, which was Sega's first modem service early on in the Mega Drive's life (before the Sega Channel). You had to buy a modem and pay a monthly fee. Storage was limited and connection speed was low, so the games you could download from that service had to be very small. Hence the decision to do all those short text adventures, one for each playable character in Phantasy Star 2, with very limited graphics (unlike those PC-98 games). Later on they were gathered along with other MegaNet games for a compilation released in two volumes on the Mega CD (Games no Can 1 & 2). The only other games exclusive to that service I can think of is the Pyramid Magic series of puzzle games.
Actually Fatal Labyrinth debuted there too. That's the first Japanese roguelike, AFAIK. Columns, too.
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Post by Sarge on Mar 5, 2024 21:23:26 GMT -5
Oh, wait, I think I played through PSA at some point, too.
Yep, it took me around 2.5 hours, apparently I gave it a dead-on 5/10.
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Post by Ex on Mar 5, 2024 21:25:47 GMT -5
Actually Fatal Labyrinth debuted there too. That's the first Japanese roguelike, AFAIK. And it's a damned good roguelike too, even though I've never beaten it. I've gotten close a few times. The ninjas tend to get me. I did beat Dragon Crystal ( gamefaqs.gamespot.com/sms/575454-dragon-crystal/reviews/167856 ), though.
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Post by Sarge on Mar 5, 2024 21:35:37 GMT -5
I "beat" Dragon Crystal in that "I totally save-stated at the end of a good run to make it" sort of way.
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Post by toei on Mar 8, 2024 22:53:10 GMT -5
In light of of Akira Toriyama's passing, I decided to try the PS1 Dr. Slump game, which was fan-translated almost three years ago. It's described as action-adventure. I've only become acquainted with a few people in town so far, so I haven't encountered any real gameplay. More detailed impressions will follow. All I can say so far is: -The visuals are very similar to Mega Man Legends'. Big cartoony 3D graphics, very clean for a PS1 game. -The cameras are weird. You don't walk freely in town, instead you access these small areas through a menu and the camera spins by itself depending on which part of the screen you're on. You have no control over it. Because the areas are so small, I don't anticipate that it will be a problem, just something to get used to. -The dialogue is pretty comical so far. I haven't laughed out loud or anything, but a few lines have made me smile or chuckle.
Also, the game was made by Natsume, so it's likely not just some licensed trash. Their PS1 Hokuto no Ken game is a really good 3D beat-'em-up, for instance.
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Post by Xeogred on Mar 8, 2024 23:35:29 GMT -5
Hah, yeah that oozes a lot of charm. Can absolutely see the Mega Man Legends comparison. Skimming ahead though it definitely looks like this might be a mostly text heavy/adventure kind of game, that's the vibe I get at least.
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Post by Ex on Mar 9, 2024 12:09:12 GMT -5
In light of of Akira Toriyama's passing, I decided to try the PS1 Dr. Slump game I was aware of Dr. Slump but hadn't played it myself. The graphics look great, as you said they are channeling that Mega Man Legends aesthetic which has aged gracefully. Watching video of the gameplay, first impressions seems it's meant for young kids. That doesn't mean it can't be fun for an adult of course, just an observation (that may be incorrect). Looks like a cheerful vibe and that's appreciated in times such as these. I like to think the "A" on the protagonist's shirt stands for Akira. - Right now all my free gaming time has been going into Ys VIII, trying to finish that one up. It's a long game if you're doing all the ancillary stuff as I am doing. After it's done, I'll beat a few games for this theme. I'm treating this one as fan translated fourth generation games. I've got a slew of candidates to check out that aren't RPGs. I'd like to finish three this month and three next, ideally.
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