the_wizard_666

On 10/3/2022 at 11:01 PM, Code Monkey said:

Who summoned me?

 

 

That's a nice poster!  I'm just seeing this for the first time, but man, this shows why we have to keep opening sealed games, even when they're already listed!  I personally opened the sealed Shockwave, and it had no inserts at all, as mentioned previously.  So this either came out of a copy of Chiller and was stuck into Shockwave later, or some print runs didn't bother with a poster.  Either way, that's pretty damn cool to know that exists!

I'm seriously wondering why you want to delete it, but you do you I guess.

My goal of getting a first-time completion of at least one NES game per day in January has now been achieved.  Additionally, I used a game from my Backlog Challenge list to do it...Godzilla 2 is now in the bag!  I actually started it on the 29th, after beating Roundball, but as I was running out of time on the 30th, I cashed in my one remaining (known) gimmie victory by knocking off Ski or Die (just need to finish each event with a score, just like Skate or Die before it).  I then kept working on beating more Godzilla 2 scenarios, just finishing around 20 minutes or so ago.  The last few scenarios were dicey for sure, though the final one was almost a relief.  The 11th scenario was the worst...a shit map, combined with very limited units, made for a rough ride...especially when I made an early screwup and had to adapt on the fly.  Still, I eked out the win, moving on to the final one, where you have to fight every enemy aside from Mothra.  It sure wasn't easy, but it was cake compared to the one I'd just knocked off. 

Overall, I'd say Godzilla 2 is a solid 8/10.  It's simple enough to pick up and play, but had far more depth to it than Desert Commander, along with more varied scenarios.  Though the RNG would have me getting pissed off occasionally, it was never bad enough where I'd get frustrated.  Overall, I'd recommend it as a starting point for anyone interested in strategy games, as it's just complex enough to be fun, but nowhere near as in depth as even the simplest of Koei games.

Speaking of strategy games, Godzilla 2 was the final strategy game I hadn't beaten, so I've now completed the entire genre! 

Anyway, barring me shooting for an extra game or two later on, here's my list for January 2024:

*NOTE* The numbers are which entry number each game is on my list.  I didn't do any, but I have separate categories on my list for PAL, Famicom, unreleased games, and homebrew games, and have a running total at the bottom showing my overall completions (all categories combined).  I'm now at 343 games, so hitting 350 this year is highly likely.  But I may take an NES break soon enough...beating 32 games for the first time in a month (plus a bunch of other completions I did for the NES Completions thread that were NOT first time completions, thus not being eligible for this list) has me thinking it's time for a break

Also, since all the NES games I've had on my list this year were also on my list from last year, that puts me at 5 completions from last year's list (added to the 3 I did last year, that makes 8/40, or 20% completion).  I'm debating continuing to track that or not, since although I made the list in 2022, I didn't actually work on a game until mid November, so it could still be interesting to see what I get done off that list down the line.  That said, I think it may take away from me focusing on games from this year's list.

Anyway, I suppose now I can focus on knocking off the rest of Oblivion, and maybe getting back to Wizardry V as well, as that's fallen by the wayside while I kept my streak going.  To think, I was gonna stop at two weeks

2 hours ago, nerdynebraskan said:

It's not just you, dude. This game has always been hard for me, too. I rented it growing up, and always stalled out on the second stage. And the one time I seriously tried to beat it for this challenge, I had to ragequit on Montana Max's mansion. This game is a mindfuck like Kiwi Kraze, with the graphics being so cutesy and the difficulty being so brutal. But this one stings a little more for me, as I haven't been able to beat it and do have childhood nostalgia for it.

I was actually gonna go for it a few days ago, but it frustrated and annoyed me to the point where I said fuck it.  I was on the second boss.

1 hour ago, DefaultGen said:

Battle Tank is done

Not only is this game beatable, it's not terrible. I will take my 17 points though.

IMO best strategy:

  Hide contents

1 tank - 150mm (or Wire)
2 tanks - Wire. It hits when they are a single pixel so use it while they're far away.
1 helicopter - 150mm (or Wire)
2 helicopters - Smoke then .50 cal while they're stunned. Aim with the radar. Easiest fight in the game.
Mines in stage 9/10 - .50 cal
Every boss - Smoke once, then .50 cal the whole thing. Don't bother with a second smoke or 150mm.

The HQs are refueling stations. Don't shoot them. Run into them when you're low on health.

 

Damn, that was gonna be the first game I went for in February.  Though I'm not sure if I would've liked it enough to actually finish it

2 hours ago, Lago said:

Now every time a game on Rare Replay says arcade I am going to question it.

My minimal computer game knowledge is limited to the C64 and Apple IIe.  Oregon Trail, Number Munchers, and Lemonade Stand for the win.  

It could be referring to Xbox Live Arcade, which is what they called the online store.  Jetpac Refuelled was an XBLA release.  I'll have to fire up Rare Replay again to see the context.  But the only arcade games I can recall on the disc are Battletoads and Killer Instinct. 

9 minutes ago, Lago said:

Thanks for the info!  Was it released in the UK arcade?

 The thrust kept getting me.  Sometimes I’d take off like a rocket, heh. Other times not so much.

It was only released on the ZX Spectrum, the BBC Micro, and the Commodore VIC-20.  While the VIC and Spectrum both existed in North America, they were nowhere near as popular as they were in Europe.  And with Ultimate Play the Game (now Rare) being a British developer, it's just a case of "it never made it over here."  I do recall playing it in high school, but it could've been a freeware "port," an emulation, or some other thing that was prolific in the '90s.  Since I didn't have my own computer at the time, I just had whatever people downloaded on the school computers

But yeah, no arcade release whatsoever.  Just a few British computer releases, and the Rare Replay release.  Oh, and it's also on Jetpac Refuelled from the Xbox Live Arcade (coincidentally, also part of Rare Replay) as bonus content. 

17 minutes ago, McBryce said:

What are these words

 

Okay, that specific page is pretty bad I could read most of the rest, but that one is just brutal  

1 hour ago, Lago said:

I wasn’t sure how to count this but I thought it’s a game on a compilation disc that I own. So, in the end, I decided I would count it.  With that being said I completed (played until I felt sufficient)JetPac a couple of nights ago. Jumped back in and played long enough for the picture.

It is on Rare Replay for XBox One.  It was originally released in the arcade in 1983.  This was the first time I had heard of it. As per the times the goal was high score.

If I would have seen it in the arcade I’d have put a couple of quarters in.  

 

I probably would've too, but it was never released in the arcade.  It's honestly a pretty sweet game, but I'm so damn bad at it.  Only reason I got through all 16 stages was because of the in game cheating that Rare Replay allowed.  Still, it's such an awesome game...just a pity it never really got any attention here.

1 hour ago, DefaultGen said:

This is why you're a fighter pilot and I am not.

It's just the epilepsy warning.  I dunno, maybe it's because I have poor eyesight that I can read it?  Like I'm so used to everything being blurry as hell that my brain just fills it in?

Oblivion update: In the interest of moving things along quickly, as well as being frustrated at losing an hour to the game not automating for some reason, I decided to rush through a couple more Oblivion gates.  I also did the mission to acquire the Great Welkynd Stone.  There are two gates remaining, Skingrad and Leyawiin, but I may skip them in favor of just getting on with finishing it.  I like the game, but I am about ready to move on to something else.

My NES streak also continues after knocking out Roundball: 2-on-2 Challenge.  I think as far as basketball games go, it's somewhere in the middle of the pack.  It's neither exceptionally good nor absolutely terrible.  Just average all around.  I did find it pretty easy overall, with the worst part simply that it takes three wins to knock it off.  I could see myself playing it again sometime, but likely only for easy points in the NES completions thread

3 minutes ago, McBryce said:

Also, if anyone owns a manual for this, it sorely needs a re-scan. The one on DigitPress is barely legible.

I dunno, I can read it just fine on my phone.  No offense intended here, but maybe you need glasses?  Like its a little blurry, but far from "barely legible" imo.

Roundball: 2 on 2 Challenge is done.  Not bad, but not great either.  Just a run of the mill basketball game that doesn't do anything special, but doesn't fuck anything up either.

2 hours ago, Khromak said:

I still have almost 50 games left on my list of games I'd like to beat this year that are still on the list. Some for points, some first time clears for me personally. That definitely won't happen, I'm sure other people will clear half+ of them before I get to them, but they should get done one way or the other.

I think we're gonna crush it this year! Maybe once we finish the list we can add bonus games later in the year to celebrate.

Must be nice.  I've been sniped left and right I've been focused on first time beats, but every time I go to do one someone ninjas in on me  

Since my last update, I've only played a small amount of Oblivion (though I may play a bit shortly).  All I've done is acquire the next key item, the armor of Tiber Septim (can't remember it's in game name, but that's functionally what it is).  I'm not sure if I'm gonna get the next step or knock off a few Oblivion gates first so I can mix it up a bit, but regardless, not much to report there.

On the NES front, I've kept my streak alive for the month, with four new additions (one for each day), the final of which is relevant to this thread (in addition to being my 300th US completion).  First was Totally Rad, which was a lot easier than I had expected and was actually pretty good overall.  The only hard part was the mini boss you fight just before the final boss, but other than that I really enjoyed the game.  It's highly recommended to anyone!  Second, I did Tennis, albeit on the lowest difficulty.  You have to win 2/3 sets against two opponents to win.  Not terribly difficult on the low difficulty, but I don't know if I like the game enough to go higher.  I also only played the singles mode, as I couldn't be arsed to play Doubles mode for no real enjoyment.  Then came Volleyball, which was a bit of an effort, having to win 3 out of 5 sets.  There's a bit of a learning curve, but after figuring out a way to cheese points off the serve roughly 60% of the time, I managed to pull off the victory.  Finally, the relevant-to-the-thread update - I knocked off Desert Commander.  I was simultaneously impressed and disappointed by it.  Impressed because there is a surprising amount of depth to it.  Disappointed because the AI was absolute trash, and you could cheese it with a few fighters and a crapton of bombers.  The last two missions I took a couple AA guns as well, with both being crucial to me getting the extra hits I needed on the enemy HQ.  I feel like it would've been better with more competent AI, but it's a solid effort nonetheless.  I could see myself playing it for fun, maybe making some challenges for myself to beat levels with different unit combos, etc.  But for now, it's back on the shelf.

So now I'm looking to finish off January with a completion on my list for each calendar day, and then from there I'll decide how far to continue pushing the streak based on what I feel like firing up.  I do want to knock off some longer/tougher games, but I also don't want to just arbitrarily end the streak.  We'll see how far the will to continue takes me come February 1

Took a lot less practice than I thought...Volleyball is done.  At some point I realized I could relatively consistently get points off the serve when my team was on the left court.  It required near pixel perfect timing, but it was doable.  Just had to get good enough to get the ball back whenever I missed the timing.  I ended up winning in four sets, losing the second set but sweeping the third.  The fourth was pretty tight, as it required me to actually get points the "proper" way, but I was occasionally getting points on serves there too, which helped.  Most of my points in that set came from blocking their spikes, but that was also a bit of a crapshoot because it required almost perfect timing as well to execute.  All told, it's actually a pretty fun game overall, just kinda tough to get the hang of.

Also, this was one of the rare instances where I wanted to snap a photo.  Unfortunately, I wasn't fast enough to get it out before it transitioned back to the title screen.  C'est la vie.

As soon as taxes got mentioned i realized you aren't aware that I'm Canadian.  There's no inheritance tax here.  It's also not classed as income, so my family isn't going to have that concern at least.  But yeah, I should probably look into putting it in writing.  My family all knows my wishes, but it never hurts to have a paper trail.  

47 minutes ago, guitarzombie said:

Also the way it looks, looks like I'll have to beat Mutant Virus AGAIN, eh?

Well I sure as hell ain't putting my thumbs through that again lol 

1 hour ago, NESfiend said:

Beating it in 2 hours is definitely an accomplishment if you had not played it before. It isn't real difficult, but there are frustrating spots like the bats on mission 6. And mostly the last level - its a long and tough run to sinclair without a lot of power ups unless you map out where to go for them, which I didnt and doubt you did.   

It isnt a leave it on over night type game generally though. I just didnt get to it until late night with finishing off side pocket and then getting on my work pc. Probably 11 or close to it before I started, so it was ambitious to try to complete it and make bed at midnight. I would have stayed up later and polished it off if I thought there was any chance in hell it would get knocked out while I was at work. Ah well. Glad to hear there is another human being that enjoys it. The flying aspect is awesome! Takes a run and gun sidescroller and really spices it up

Sounds like I started when you finished, depending on the time zones.  I started at about 1 am and finished shortly after 3 am.  I had played it a few years back, but only got to level 3.  The hardest part for me was execution.  I am actually pretty good at pattern recognition, it's just my manual dexterity is the shits.  I solved the bats on my third attempt at level 5.  As for level 6, there's a conveniently located full health pickup not far off the beaten path, and reasonably close to the end...close enough that I had half health the first time I made it to Sinclair.  The second time with low ammo, I ended up figuring out the punching thing that ultimately worked better for me.  But yeah, it was pretty simple, just came down to pattern recognition in most of the tough spots.

Oh, and I couldn't figure out how to predict the way the mines would explode.  That would help immensely in some spots.

5 hours ago, wongojack said:

I'm enjoying your updates on Oblivion, but I just wanted to say - Jennifer Connelly is um . . . quite good in The Rocketeer.

Was she ever not?

19 minutes ago, NESfiend said:

You got this in the nick of time. After polishing off side pocket last night, I took a break to do some work, then played through all but the last portion of the last mission of rocketeer. Got to sinclair, but with little health, and I didnt get his pattern right away. Came close, but died. NES is still on and paused at that last section to finish off after work today. Would have been done in a few hours lol. Hope you enjoyed it. I have always loved that game despite the AVGN hate and general bad reputation

Well shit, I'm not used to being the one getting in before someone else.  Usually other people knock off the games I have in my queue    It definitely is an unexpectedly good game.  I had no idea it got hate online, but that doesn't really surprise me.  One thing I figured out is that I had an easier time punching out Sinclair than shooting at him.  I got to him with low ammo, and almost no health.  Tried to get some power ups but to no avail.  That's when I noticed he charges across the room when you get close.  So I would trigger a charge and pinch him as he ran by.  For whatever reason, if you hit him, he doesn't damage you when he runs through you. 

Anyway, is it weird that I beat it in its entirety in about two hours? I'd never previously played past the rooftop level, so I basically had to figure it out from scratch, but it sure didn't feel like a "leave it on overnight" kind of game.

Small Oblivion update: I decided to sacrifice the Sanguine Rose to progress.  The quest took mere minutes, and while it's a cool reward, it's one that would sit in a chest in one of my player homes and never be seen again, so it made sense to make it my sacrifice.  After this, I closed the Bruma Oblivion Gate and started on the optional ally recruitment.  I'd already cleared out Kvatch so I just had to go claim that unit.  Despite the optional nature of the quest, I'm going to get every possible body I can for this quest, if only to make my life easier in the long run.  I do feel like this may drag on a bit, as the main quest feels the least enjoyable part of the game to me for whatever reason, but at this point there's no real reason to take chances, and this way I can experience a part of the game that I'll probably avoid in the future if I decide to replay the game again.

In other news, my NES streak is still alive, 24 days and 25 games total.  My last mention was when I beat Astyanax.  Since then I did the following:

Kid Klown in Night Mayor World (Jan. 22): I was expecting a lot better from this one, not gonna lie.  I think it might have been better overall if it was still a Mickey Mouse game like in Japan, but still, it's just a "meh" IMO.  I still need to go back and try hard mode at some point, but for now I'm fine with it.

Skate or Die(Jan. 23):  After attempting a couple other games and running short on time to finish one, I took one of the remaining gimmies off my shelf.  I really like the game, have fond childhood memories of it, but it's definitely a multi-player focused title.  And with no default scores or AI competition, it's like a 10 minute completion.

The Rocketeer (Jan 24): This was one I'd played in the past and enjoyed, but never got around to finishing.  Definitely better than I had expected from a 90s movie tie in.  Also, having never actually seen the movie, it kind of makes me want to.  Only took about 2 hours to burn through it, but I could see myself playing it again in the future.  

As yet, I've only done one of the 10 NES games from my official list, but since I've dropped a total of 26 games from my full backlog, I can't complain.  And hopefully I'll be able to cross Oblivion off the list soon enough.

Well shit, I'd just beat a game to keep my personal streak alive at 24 days, and it turns out today's game hasn't been done yet.  Y'all can scratch off The Rocketeer.  I've been checking whenever I've been beating a game, but since I'm focusing on easy shit that can be done in a couple hours, I honestly didn't realize it hadn't been done yet   Pretty solid game, a few frustrating parts but nothing too crazy.  I started shortly after 1 am, and it's about 20 after 3 am now, so yeah, not hard at all.  Sure it's a one-life game, but unlimited continues AND passwords make this super easy to pull off if you're so inclined.  Definitely better than I was expecting for a 90s movie tie in, that's for sure.

6 hours ago, NESfiend said:

Sadly, I dont have a copy. But I think I will remedy that and try and find one on ebay. The only other pool game I own is breathru and I couldn't stand that when I bought it. 

You mean Break Time.  Breakthru is an action game   Anyway, aside from those and Lunar Pool, I can't think of any other pool games on the NES.  Probably not on the Famicom either, as it's not exactly popular in Japan as far as I'm aware.

17 minutes ago, NESfiend said:

Almost sad I got it done that quick. I was content to play pool for a couple weeks. 

Championship Pool is waiting for ya...