tigerwolf

That post looks so whack on my phone in dark mode ngl

I'd much rather listen to DQ 1-4 and Mother before Rockman 2, too!

I bought the physical on Switch from PlayAsia. But I'd previously bought 1, 4, and 6 on Steam. I'm glad I got the PlayAsia version because I prefer the ESRB-free packaging and the pixel art printed on the interior. Whereas the one from the Square Enix website for NA has ugly ESRB logos everywhere and the interior only has a warning on it. Pretty lame imo: https://youtu.be/YiuaIIPPZTA The key advantage for Steam was being able to fix the font. Even though I appreciate that SQE added a pixel font for the console collection, it's still not the same. With the Steam version you can just change the font file. I followed this guide: https://gameranx.com/features/id/290283/article/final-fantasy-6-pixel-remaster-how-to-fix-the-font/ Using the actual SNES fonts for games like FF4 and FF6 made it far more enjoyable to me. I played through both on the Steam Deck, and it was a thing of beauty. Personally I just find their font choices both difficult to read on a small screen and inauthentic to the original experience. Check out the original vs modded font on the Phantom Train pic. This alone made the Steam version more worthwhile to me. In the Ultros pic you can see their new official pixel font. It's better but still a bit hard to read if you're an old man like me. That said, I'm not sure if the new XP/Gil modifier or Turn Off Encounters modes are available in the Steam version or not. Anyways hope that helps a bit.

Paw Patrol: On a Roll, sadly. #parentinglife

For me it's less about nostalgia and more about familiarity. I go back to the same games because they're comforting and I know exactly what to do without reading rules and learning. It's the same reason I'm less and less inclined to play new board games: learning a new game can be a taxing chore. I appreciate replayability. For the games I go back to most, there's a great deal of randomization so each game session is surprising. Romance of the Three Kingdoms II is my favorite game for this reason. There's a lot going on, but it's a very simple game to learn and high variability to gameplay sessions. Every time I play there's a surprise and I like that. Final Fantasy IV, V, VI are definitely nostalgia plays all about music and living in those worlds for a while. But it gets harder and harder to replay FFIV because I've completed it over 100 times. Music is everything so these days I just play the OST. Final Fantasy VI: Worlds Apart was a huge revelation to me. It forces the game to be fresh again. Randomizers do lack some of the original story soul, but when you've beat a linear game too many times you kinda need that refresh. Inindo is a super flawed game with tons of really bad design, ugly art, and irritating caves. But I love the randomness of the recruitable NPCs that wander around Japan autonomously. It's only slightly randomized, but it still feels fresh each time and for some reason makes me want to replay it. Even though it's one of the most grindy RPGs of all time. I also love games where victory is inevitable. Where I just have to grind enough and I know I can get there. That's just my personal preference, though. So TLDR - music, replayability, and not skill-based

I appreciate the banter - it's refreshing to have that UK voice in there. Personally I only watch UK comedy these days, as I find so much North American comedy is about saying something stupid then laughing as loud as possible about it. Rather than actual joke writing or banter like you get with UK stuff. Then again, I'm a Canadian git who lives with a Brit, so I am biased. As someone who doesn't play a lot of homebrew, I do find the comparisons to other games helpful. That way I can sort of roughly imagine what the game is like, especially when I've never heard of it and have never seen any screenshots or gameplay footage. I wonder if it would be helpful to include a comparison point in the title of each episode? Instead of just the title of the game by itself. That way there's more of a hook to learn more about what the game is about. Like if you said "Alfonzo's Arctic Adventure: Like Nobunaga's Ambition but with Waifus!" or something more accurate but gives me more reason to listen. (Besides your sultry radio voices, that is.) Also, where do I get my HBGC pint glass?

I just recently rediscovered my love of LEGO Fabuland. And of course since it's both LEGO and was only around in the 80's, it is now much more expensive than I expected it to be. I wrongly assumed that Fabuland stuff would cost about the same as other toys like 70s Fisher-Price Little People. And I was quite wrong. Fabuland is super pricey now. Recently indulged myself and picked up a few Fabuland figures just to relive that bridge between LEGO and DUPLO. I still get a kick out of them and find them kinda charming!

Sorry I didn't see this before. I just would've recommended Game Deals, so I believe you chose wisely! PS - are you the same CodeMonkey as the one who makes nice Unity videos on YouTube? If so, keep up the good work with your channel! I appreciate the Unity store sale vids.

I doubt it would happen, but while we're dreaming and since you mentioned Tecmo, sign me up for the Koei Evercade cart

What the heck haha

Thanks for tagging me so I can join in the fun! Once the challenge is done I will see if I can create an mp3 of it all together instead. A bunch of the tracks on YT only exist as full-CD uploads, and their Clip feature doesn't support playlists for whatever dumb reason. Kind of annoying, but at least the music is there. Just means the YT playlist is full of stuff unrelated to my mixtape here. Liberty or Death (SFC/SNES) - Title Mr. Gimmick (NES) - Happy Birthday Leading Company (SFC) - Toma's Bossa/Track 5 Pokémon Conquest (DS) - Map Theme #2 Saiyuki; Journey West (PS1) - Daily Smile Gorby no Pipeline Daisakusen (NES) - Stage 1 (Procession of the Sardar) Tamashii no Mon Dante no Shinkyoku yori (Gate of Souls - From Dante's Divine Comedy) (PC98) - Wise Man's Hill Legend of the Mystical Ninja (SFC/SNES) - The Happiest Place in Japan! Tetris Attack (SNES) - Yoshi's Stage (Yoshi's Island Prologue Alternate Version) Shogun (C64) - Title Call of Cthulhu (SNES) - Twilight Park Guacamelee! (Steam) - Temple of Rain Actraiser Renaissance (PS4) - Birth of the People AD&D Eye of the Beholder (SNES) - The Prophecy Marsupilami (Genesis) - The Circus Boss Bomberman Bomberman (NES) - Stage Theme Super Bomberman 4 (SFC/SNES) - Level 2 Saturn Bomberman (Saturn) - Samurai World Bomberman 64 (N64) - Green Garden Theme Qix (Amiga) - High Score Pressure Cooker (2600) - Main Theme Bump 'N' Jump (NES) - Scene Theme #1 Micro Mages (NES) - Dreamy Dragon Quest IV (Arranged) - In A Town [Tokyo Symphonic Suite] Bonkers (SNES) - Luxurious Yacht Golden Axe (Genesis/MD) - Path of Fiend Jaki Crush (SFC) - Main Board Theme Super Mario Kart (Arranged) - Battle Theme Acapella [Smooth McGroove Version] Thunder Force III (Genesis/MD) - Stage 3: The Grubby Dark Blue The Stanley Parable (PC) - Exploring Stanley The Legend of Zelda A Link to the Past (SNES) - Ganon Super Mario RPG (SNES) - Culex Cyber Shadow (PC) - Title Theme Here is a YouTube playlist until I finish up the video mixtape. Unfortunately, most of the tracks can't be played in YouTube Music, so I'm stuck with video versions instead: I will post writeups shortly and keep editing this post as I go.

Thanks @Jeevanyou're a great host. Happy new year to you!

Holy crap you are a SNES completion machine @the_wizard_666! I'm sure you'd run circles around me in this library, including the Koei games. I don't like challenges in my games, I like chilled out consistent progression. I've been trying to beat Aerobiz again, and it's certainly more annoying than Supersonic. PS - enjoyed the Drunk Friend episode with you @Reed Rothchild. I'm with you on the wrestling games.

Aerobiz Supersonic now complete! It's another classic Koei ending. That is to say... a slideshow of pictures. As much as I love Koei, they make the dullest endings in the history of gaming. I would've filmed the whole thing but my toddler was listening to Peppa Pig and squealing in the background.

I am most certainly a fellow Koei fan! A collector, even. I basically only buy Koei stuff these days, actually. I got the easy ending, not the hard mode one. I used to think it was related to the intro image of Oda, but now I wonder if it's more related to the game time? Not sure if you know. It was a bit easier to play with the Ascii Grip controller so I could play on my phone while grinding up my levels. In the 90s I used a Memory Controller so I could program Fight > Throw with a single button. This time I just played the old-fashioned way with a one-handed controller. I think there's a reason this particular Koei game is rated more poorly than the rest of their catalog, even in Japan. Some great ideas in it, but overall it is super-flawed and unrelenting in its desire to be obtuse.

I just beat @Reed Rothchildto the punch and completed the game. Some bad video footage of most of the lame ending here: If you do choose to play @Renmauzo, here are a few tips: - the caves are long and sucky. Use maps without shame. - SNES Central has a walkthrough that includes recommended levels you should be at for each cave or optional quest: https://snescentral.com/0/1/8/0180/walkthrough_casmaster.html - do not skip grinding. You need to grind levels whether you like it or not. - stay in the first cave and grind until you reach Level 7. It will feel long, but it sets you up immediately to be able to recruit allies into your party. - every single point matters. If you find an item with a 2 point gain on any stat, upgrade without pause. The game's levelling is tight and 'swingy'. You will notice a huge difference in your power and defense with every level up. - in the early game, steal. Make friends with Sohei, and feel no shame about taking their Gold Suits. The sooner you can get higher-power weapons and armor, the better. - many weapons have powers when you use them as an item. You NEED these items, as they often end up far more powerful than your attacks. For example, the Health Rock near the end of the game casts Heal 3, which gives you 50HP of healing for every character in your party. But without using up your previous magic points. - Sleep Bombs have a 100% success rate for putting enemies and bosses to sleep. At 350GP each, they are the biggest bargain in the game. A MUST for the final two bosses. - having at least one healing character and a strong fighter like a Swordsman or Ronin is key. You want your healer to have Wings, so you can cast that spell to teleport from city to city. You really want to save as much game time as you can. The earlier you get to Nobunaga, the better. He gets more powerful in later years, it seems. - enjoy the fun of befriending people in Inns, spying for daimyo, and joining wars. Somehow this is the most interesting aspect of the game to me -- the meta-game

After many hours of painful grinding, neverending caverns, irritating status effects, and endless random encounters every 2-3 steps, I finally did it. I completed Inindo: Way of the Ninja. First time I've actually finished this game since the early 90's. There's not much to say about it that Reed hasn't already written. I'll just say that while I am fascinated by the ideas in this game, it took a great deal of willpower and stubbornness to force myself to complete this thing. I took a crap smartphone video of some of it. Couldn't be bothered to film the complete ending, but I might try to get better footage via the Retrotink to computer later. In any case, if you want to see how dull the ending is, check it out: https://youtu.be/BzP5T1tlr74

Very glad to meet a fellow RTK2 fan! It's my fave game. And you're right - Destiny of an Emperor is a better JRPG. One day I need to finish the fan-translated sequel. The only downside is that Destiny doesn't scratch the Edo-era Japan itch.

A well-written and thorough overview of a deeply-flawed game there. Well done @Reed Rothchild- not much to add to that writeup. The main thing missing is the very odd choice in the game where you get Easy or Hard mode when leaving the first dungeon. You either see Nobunaga looking unscathed, or a bandaged one with fire behind him. This sets the course for the entire game. If you're unlucky enough to roll the Hard Mode, then all random battles seem tougher, and the end boss ends up way more challenging. For a game that's already a candidate for Most Grindy Game Ever, it's certainly not ideal. It's the Koei meta-game that's most interesting about Inindo for me, and what keeps me coming back. The spreadsheet of managing relationships between characters and daimyo is a neat idea I've not really seen in a lot of other games. And the passage of time is interesting, too. That you have the first half of the month to get a job, then the last half for completing work, then the grand strategy map shows up for the end of the month, showing the overall strategy of each daimyo. On paper, it's intriguing. In execution, it's lacklustre, stiff, and grindy. But somehow it keeps me hooked for some reason. I think it's because it's the only Kou Shibusawa Koei game that touches on what happens "on the ground" in-between all the grand strategy. It's an unhealthy relationship, I confess. Tedious but fascinating.

I admit it. I have this self-defeating obsession with Inindo on the SNES. I know I play these games with some serious pro-Koei bias and rose-tinted glasses, but for some weird reason I keep coming back to this game. It's cryptic, sluggish, grindy, and has some of the most mind-shatteringly awful dungeons in the history of RPGs. It has terribly slow UI. The graphics look worse than an NES game. The instruments in some of the songs are shrill and grating. But it may also have one of the most unique blends of game mechanics in the 80s-90s. Autonomous NPCs that hunt you down to steal your gold. Building relationships with daimyo, then acting as their secret spy or saboteur. Joining soldiers in wars. Forging friendships with other NPCs so you can either have them help you in dungeons or steal all their items to make a quick buck. The stupidest part is that I almost always give up the game in the first third, forget about it for a few months, then start a new save. I'm trying to force myself through the game to the end, but it's such a slow grind to build up my party's levels. Am I the only one who's fascinated with this game? Or are there other folks like me with a penchant for oddities.

Finally remembered to take a pic to prove that I own an amazing VGS T-shirt. And if I have to take a pic of my ugly mug, I thought it could help make the picture more acceptable by bringing along my favorite game. Except apparently I'm an inept photographer as well as the game is out of focus. Oh well. At least I have a damn cool shirt.

Yeah that sounds quite cool!

Yeah! This guide is my fave because of the utterly amazing comic art inside

I am completely obsessed with classic video game randomizers at the moment. You? Is anyone else here as intrigued by these? Final Fantasy VI Worlds Collide is my current addiction. Playing or watching seeds. This FF6WC thing breathes so much life into this game, and completely subverts expectations. It's the kind of thing I'd love to have physical cards for. Like fave pro tournament run, etc.? What do you think? Am I alone in this unhealthy obsession? Just curious on people's opinions about randomizers and/or randomizer carts!

I usually approach Kickstarter as a collector. Specifically I will only back a video game or board game if there's a limited edition thing I can only get as a Kickstarter backer. In the case of homebrew, I'm typically tempted by a limited print run physical copy. But I did back a few digitally instead, such as Nebs N Debs. I back for the cheaper digital copy tier when I'm just voting to say "yes please, great project idea, here's a vote and a tiny sliver of money". I think many folks have been burned by Kickstarter projects. I know it's been best for me when I just back it then forget it. The Kingdoms of the Dump campaign has been my favorite so far. There's a steady stream of sneak peeks on their Instagram and Kickstarter, where they post ongoing project updates. This makes it fun to wait vs. a nuisance. It feels more like I'm part of their process. TLDR yes you can