The 2021 Backlog Challenge

[Reed Rothchild 3,000]

22 minutes ago, Abelardo said:

Yes I got the real ending, after the 3rd playthrough I wasn't having it so googled tips on how to approach the game and finally settled to use a flowchart, turns out I was lucky to hit the prerequisite ending in the 3rd playthrough so I just had to do the real ending, I only missed one of the bad endings. I knew it was a visual novel so no surprises there, perhaps a little wordy at times, but the ending had too many twists for my taste and personally felt like a BS ending, some folks might like it but not me.

I'll check out Virtue's Last Reward if I get in the mood for some point and click puzzles, thanks for the warning on Zero Time Dilemma.

I'd say do ZTD as well, especially if you want closure, but agree that VLR is the best game

[Abelardo 86]

31 minutes ago, Reed Rothchild said:

I'd say do ZTD as well, especially if you want closure, but agree that VLR is the best game

I might play at least the sequel someday, right now I'm a little burned out, besides I'm trying to stick with my backlog (I'm getting used to Xenogears camera by now and beginning to enjoy it). Danganronpa seems nice too, thanks @Gloves, might give it a try as well someday, looks like it would be a good idea to get a Vita to play the series.

[Gloves 3,994]

3 minutes ago, Abelardo said:

I might play at least the sequel someday, right now I'm a little burned out, besides I'm trying to stick with my backlog (I'm getting used to Xenogears camera by now and beginning to enjoy it). Danganronpa seems nice too, thanks @Gloves, might give it a try as well someday, looks like it would be a good idea to get a Vita to play the series.

Danganronpa Trilogy on PS4 is a good way to play if you have a PS4, else yeah Vita is where they originated. They're also on Steam.

[Shmup 324]

Keio Flying Squadron 2 for the Saturn beat. Such a wacky platformer but was so much fun. I did like the shooting levels as a nod to their SHMUP roots. I’d highly recommend this game, 9/10. 

To beat my list I need to average beating a game in just a little over two weeks. So far I’m on target and I’ve been playing a few RPGs at the same time so I can make progress and swap when I need to take a break from one. Also I need to find a replacement for Secret of Mana.

[Sumez 704]

13 hours ago, Shmup said:

Keio Flying Squadron 2 for the Saturn beat. Such a wacky platformer but was so much fun. I did like the shooting levels as a nod to their SHMUP roots. I’d highly recommend this game, 9/10. 

Maybe I should give that game another chance.

I thought it looked cool and bought an English language copy years ago when it was still cheap. I played through the first few stages and thought it played horribly, and I haven't touched it since  

[fox 595]

mid Jan update:
Beat Extra Fitness mode in Ring Fit Adventure.  I guess I should have put this on my backlog, technically I beat it last year, but I have been working on the New Game+ mode and cleared it.  Main quest took 3 months, I beat the second quest in 2 1/2 months though I feel like I could have beaten it sooner if I didn't get a stringer in my hand/wrist that prevented me from playing much  last month.  Wonder how long it will take me to beat the final quest?

Haven't been feeling much new stuff lately.  Gave Planet Coaster, Crash, and Tony Hawk a try.  Not bad, but sent them back I just didn't see myself finishing any of them.  Been firing up some old NES titles for the beat all the NES game contest on the site, having some fun there.  Also Cyber Shadow is coming out this month so looking forward to that.

Edited Sunday at 10:07 PM by fox

[Shmup 324]

38 minutes ago, Sumez said:

Maybe I should give that game another chance.

I thought it looked cool and bought an English language copy years ago when it was still cheap. I played through the first few stages and thought it played horribly, and I haven't touched it since  

I actually had the same feeling, the first two levels were not very interesting but the further I got in the better it got. It’s got a great variety of levels and some very wacky stuff that you’d expect from the Japanese. Give it another go when you get a chance.

[Murray 786]

On 12/22/2020 at 11:27 AM, Jeevan said:

Earthbound -- Never played it but have been obsessed with it since I was a kid.

You beat Giygas yet? 

[Webhead123 142]

1 hour ago, Murray said:

You beat Giygas yet? 

I've been thinking about Earthbound again lately. I rented it back when it came out but, as a rental, I was never able to get through the whole game. But even incomplete, I always remember how charming the game was. But something has been stirring in me recently that has me wanting to tackle it all the way to the end. Maybe this year is the year.

[Jeevan 2,489]

2 hours ago, Murray said:

You beat Giygas yet? 

[Gloves 3,994]

Slowly chipping away at Age of Calamity still, over here.

[Jeevan 2,489]

Now that @Murray spilled the beans.......

I beat the heck outta Earthbound.  This game is now up on the top of my list as one of my favorites......dare I say a top ten @Reed Rothchild 

I went in playing blind on this rpg having never played it as a kid, but wanting to play it since the day that I seen saw it in a nintender power.

Edited Saturday at 05:48 AM by Jeevan
Thanks Gloves :unamused:

[Gloves 3,994]

6 minutes ago, Jeevan said:

Now that @Murray spilled the beans.......

I beat the heck outta Earthbound.  This game is now up on the top of my list as one of my favorites......dare I say a top ten @Reed Rothchild 

I went in playing blind on this rpg having never played it as a kid, but wanting to play it since the day that I seen it in a nintender power.

Since the day you SAW it... 

[Jeevan 2,489]

2 minutes ago, Gloves said:

Since the day you SAW it... 

I just woke up from a nap you grammar nazi

[Gloves 3,994]

5 minutes ago, Jeevan said:

I just woke up from a nap you grammar nazi

Guilty. 

[Murray 786]

Whats up with that new avatar Glovesie? You getting into the gradin’ biz?

[JamesRobot 1,882]

39 minutes ago, Murray said:

Whats up with that new avatar Glovesie? You getting into the gradin’ biz?

[Murray 786]

3 minutes ago, JamesRobot said:

ahahaha

[Gloves 3,994]

Lol it's just me putting on my namesake. No mystery to it. 

[Reed Rothchild 3,000]

11 hours ago, Jeevan said:

Now that @Murray spilled the beans.......

I beat the heck outta Earthbound.  This game is now up on the top of my list as one of my favorites......dare I say a top ten @Reed Rothchild 

I'll allow it

[Foochie776 393]

I’m so bad at this. I’ve been caught up playing games for the NES thread.

[mbd39 759]

On 1/5/2021 at 10:56 PM, Webhead123 said:

Just finished Ghouls 'n Ghosts (GEN).

What a fantastic game! Unlike the NES and SNES titles, this one balances challenge and playability quite well. The game requires just enough of your time and attention to make it personal but doesn't get so aggressive with stiff controls and cheap deaths to make you give up. This is a game I'll probably revisit more regularly, now that I've given it enough time to settle in with me.

Feels good to finally check one of these games off my list, particularly one from this notoriously frustrating franchise.

I probably like SNES Super Ghouls n Ghosts the best. Graphics, music and level designs so good. Only real flaw is the slowdown. But Ghouls n Ghosts is the easiest and most accessible in the series. Both are light years better than Ghosts n Goblins on the NES.

 

[Sumez 704]

I find Super Ghouls n Ghosts much easier than Ghouls n Ghosts. The latter took me an entire week of practice to beat (the proper 2-ALL way), and when I sat down to do the same to its sequel I got it down the day after. It does require practice of how to handle every stage of course, but once you get the down I find it much, much easier to consistently get through.

[Sumez 704]

I beat Yakuza 4 today, and forgot to take a picture.

It's my first foray into the series, and I'm really split on it. Every single element that makes up the video game part of it is kinda shitty. All the minigames are really bad, and though the combat has good basics to it, it becomes absurdly repetitive super fast, and whenever it tries to be more challenging, it does so in super dumb and annoying ways.
Though at least the surprising approach they took for the final boss was pretty good. Ended up having to re-do that fight over and over because I didn't imagine I'd need Tanimura, and for the actual final showdown at that, so I hadn't packed him with any healing items, and had to learn how to handle each individual step of the fight perfectly.

I'm completely sold on the characters and the storytelling though. They really come alive, and the acting is superb. I'm glad they kept the original Japanese dub, because the scenes feel so much like a movie that any attempt to translate it to English would have come across incredibly goofy (see: the first PS2 game).
The story is super good for the first half of the game, but on the other hand the second half is super dumb, when every single character starts double crossing eachother again and again, and people who die don't actually die, etc. Someone who wrote the plot must have gone to the Kingdom Hearts school of unnecessary plot twists.

I'm hooked enough to seek out and play both 5, 0 and 6 before I eventually move on to Like a Dragon, though.

[Reed Rothchild 3,000]

Third time's the charm.  After Castlevania locked up twice on Death's stage, I had to abandon the NES and cart and buy it on Switch.  And yeah, I had to use the holy water on Death, fighting him legit was just not working out.