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Ack
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by Ack Mon Sep 06, 2021 3:04 pm

1. Frog Detective 2: The Case of the Invisible Wizard (PC)(Adventure)
2. Revulsion (PC)(FPS)
3. Nonogram - Master's Legacy (PC)(Puzzle)
4. Sekiro (PC)(Action-Adventure)
5. Grim Dawn (PC)(Action RPG)
6. Grim Dawn: Ashes of Malmouth (PC)(Action RPG)
7. Grim Dawn: Forgotten Gods (PC)(Action RPG)

8. Viscera Cleanup Detail: Santa's Rampage (PC)(FPS)
9. Viscera Cleanup Detail: Shadow Warrior (PC)(FPS)
10. Shrine (PC)(FPS)
11. Record of Lodoss War - Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth (PC)(Adventure)
12. Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone (PC)(Action)
13. Red Alliance (PC)(FPS)
14. The Forest (PC)(Horror)
15. Pixel Puzzles: Japan (PC)(Puzzle)
16. 12 is Better Than 6 (PC)(Top Down Shooter)
17. Torchlight II (PC)(RPG)

18. An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire (PC)(RPG)
19. Port of Call (PC)(Walking Sim)

20. NeonCode (PC)(Walking Sim)
21. Carrion (PC)(Adventure)
22. Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger, and The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist (PC)(Walking Sim)
23. Helltaker (PC)(Puzzle)
24. Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Martyr (PC)(RPG)

25. Castlevania: Bloodlines (Switch)(Platformer)
26. Treachery in Beatdown City (Switch)(RPG)
27. Zeno Clash (PC)(Action)
28. Borderlands: Enhanced Edition (PC)(FPS/RPG)
29. Ion Fury (PC)(FPS)
30. Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (PC)(FPS)

The Old Blood is another of the more recent slate of Wolfenstein games that MachineGames developed for Bethesda. It serves as a prequel to The New Order, which goes into an alternate history WWII in which the war continues through 1946 and eventually ends with the Nazis rulling the world. While we're not there yet with The Old Blood, things are heading in that direction, and what you see is things going from bad to worse for the Allies, even as your mission is technically successful.

This being a prequel, it also feels like just another set of levels for The New Order, albeit with a few changes. The weapons are a little different, and there are challenges to complete for permanent upgrades, but they're fairly simple. There is also a new melee weapon, the pipe, which can be used for breaking down or climbing certain walls as well as crushing Nazi skulls. But ultimately, it's the same enemies, the same AI, the same kinds of secrets, the same stealth system, the same self-reflective narration. The big differences now are a lack of a hub area between levels and Nazi zombies. Because yes, there are Nazi zombies. Of course there are.

I enjoyed The New Order a lot, but The Old Blood doesn't really do enough to make itself stand apart from its predecessor, which led to me often feeling I had already played this and getting bored more easily than I had with the previous title. Which isn't to say it's a bad game; it's very good at what it does, I've just seen it before.

That said, it still lets me bash metal pipes into the faces of Nazi scum, which is always a win.
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by ElkinFencer10 Mon Sep 06, 2021 6:25 pm

Games Beaten in 2021 - 87
* denotes a replay

January (12 Games Beaten)
1. God of War - PlayStation 3 - January 1
2. God of War II - PlayStation 3 - January 2
3. God of War: Chains of Olympus - PlayStation 3 - January 3
4. God of War: Ghost of Sparta - PlayStation 3 - January 4
5. God of War III - PlayStation 4 - January 6
6. God of War: Ascension - PlayStation 3 - January 9
7. God of War [2018] - PlayStation 4 - January 16
8. Epic Dumpster Bear 2: He Who Bears Wins - PlayStation 4 - January 16
9. God of War: Betrayal - Mobile - January 17
10. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit - Switch - January 18
11. Muv-Luv photonflowers* - Steam - January 22
12. Muv-Luv photonmelodies♮ - Steam - January 27


February (5 Games Beaten)
13. Gun Gun Pixies - Switch - February 1
14. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel - PS4 - February 8*
15. Pantsu Hunter: Back to the 90s - Vita - February 13
16. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II - PS4 - February 17*
17. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky - Steam - February 23


March (3 Games Beaten)
18. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC - Steam - March 4
19. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky 3rd - Steam - March 7
20. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III - PS4 - March 21


April (7 Games Beaten)
21. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV - PS4 - April 5
22. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 00 - Steam - April 7
23. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 01 - Steam - April 10
24. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 02 - Steam - April 11
25. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 03 - Steam - April 13
26. Neptunia Virtual Stars - PS4 - April 18
27. Before Your Eyes - Steam - April 18


May (9 Games Beaten)
28. New Pokemon Snap - Switch - May 2
29. Resident Evil 8: Village - PS5 - May 8
30. Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Switch - May 15
31. Torment: Tides of Numenera - Xbox One - May 18
32. Pepsiman - PS1 - May 20
33. Super Blackjack Battle II Turbo: The Card Fighters - Switch - May 20
34. Reel Fishing: Road Trip Adventure - Switch - May 23
35. Planetscape: Torment - Steam - May 26
36. Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne - Switch - May 31


June (17 Games Beaten)
37. Hentai vs Evil - Switch - June 1
38. Troll and I - Switch - June 2
39. Zombie Army 4: Dead War - PlayStation 4 - June 5
40. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - Switch - June 6
41. Military Madness - TurboGrafx-16 - June 7
42. Puyo Puyo 2 - Game Gear - June 17
43. Yakuza 0 - Playstation 4 - June 19
44. Neptunia Shooter - Playstation 5 - June 20
45. Little Samson - NES - June 22
46. Tiger-Heli - NES - June 23
47. Blaster Master - NES - June 23
48. Gun-Nac - NES - June 24
49. Rollerblade Racer - NES - June 25
50. Marble Madness - NES - June 25
51. Metroid - NES - June 25
52. Mario Golf: Super Rush - Switch - June 26
53. Metroid: Zero Mission - GBA - June 28
54. Metroid II: Return of Samus - Game Boy - June 29


July (31 Games Beaten)
55. Super Metroid - SNES - July 1
56. Where's Waldo? - NES - July 1
57. Metroid Fusion - GBA - July 2
58. Neptunia ReVerse - PlayStation 5 - July 3
59. Tetris Effect: Connected - Series X - July 3
60. Battletoads - Xbox One - July 4
61. Chicken Police: Paint it Red! - Switch - July 5
62. The Falconeer - Series X - July 7
63. Astral Chain - Switch - July 10
64. Dynowarz: Destruction of Spondylus - NES - July 12
65. Skull and Crossbones - NES - July 12
66. Sky Kid - NES - July 12
67. Top Gun - NES - July 12
68. Top Gun: The Second Mission - NES - July 13
69. Mega Man 7 - SNES - July 13
70. Mega Man X - SNES - July 14
71. Mega Man X2 - SNES - July 15
72. Second Extinction - Series X - July 15
73. Mega Man X3 - SNES - July 16
74. Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge - Game Boy - July 19
75. Mega Man II - Game Boy - July 19
76. Mega Man III - Game Boy - July 19
77. Mega Man IV - Game Boy - July 20
78. Mega Man V - Game Boy - July 20
79. Mega Man Xtreme - GBC - July 21
80. Mega Man Xtreme 2 - GBC - July 21
81. Portal Runner - GBC - July 22
82. Bubsy in Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind - SNES - July 22
83. Mega Man and Bass - SNES - July 23
84. Cotton Reboot! - Switch - July 27
85. Yakuza Kiwami 2 - PlayStation 4 - July 29


August (2 Games Beaten)
86. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 1 - Series X - August 7
87. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 2 - Series X - August 7


86. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 1 - Series X - August 7
87. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 2 - Series X - August 7

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Modern Doom - both Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal - are about as good as fast-paced FPS gets. What The Ancient Gods DLC brings to Doom Eternal is basically a whole third modern Doom game as it's a roughly 10 hour experience when you put Part One and Part Two together.

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Without getting into too much story stuff so as not to spoil it for anyone who cares about the story and hasn't played the DLC yet, the Doom Slayer basically sets out to kill Satan which will automatically destroy every demon outside of Hell. That's the basic premise. To do this, he has to find Satan's soul which has been conveniently turned into an easy-to-carry rock. Of course, nothing is ever as easy at it seems when it comes to the forces of Hell, but that gets a bit spoiler-y, so I'll just leave it at that.

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Part One mostly feels like just more of Doom Eternal - which is fantastic - but Part Two really kicks things up a notch with some intense fights. If you loved the Marauder enemy, then you're in luck because they're heavily featured here. If you didn't love the Marauder enemy (like me; I hated them), then buckle up because they're heavily featured here. Fortunately, while the Marauder makes frequent appearances, there are countless other less frustrating enemies to rip and tear. Be ready and on your A game when you go into this, though; while I am admittedly terrible at most video games, I had this set on easy and still found it to be pretty challenging.

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My only real complaint with the DLC (other than the fact that there are Marauders, and that's just because I'm bad at Doom) is that the final boss in Part Two felt rather anticlimactic. It's less that it was too easy per se - he heals himself whenever he damages you, so he's plenty frustrating until you get a feel for his attack patterns - but it just felt too formulaic to me. You're on a flat plane, and the entire battle just consists of dodge, dodge, attack, dodge, dodge, attack so on and so forth. There are no platforms or portals or obstacles or anything to try to use to get up behind him, and you can't just unload on him with the minigun willy-nilly. Figuring out his pattern and getting a feel for dodging his attacks also makes it a fairly simple affair that just starts to feel more time-consuming than anything else.

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All things considered, I don't think Doom Eternal's The Ancient Gods DLC is perfect, but it's damn close. It's definitely peak Doom for the most part with only a few bits feeling more frustrating or disappointing than fun to me. The DLC feels like it wraps up most of the story set up in Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal pretty well, so I'll be curious to see if the next game finds a way to continue the story or if they go for an alternate universe or something. If you're a fan of Doom, then The Ancient Gods is a must no matter how much you may dislike Marauders, and if you like fighting the Marauders, then playing this is a no-brainer.
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PartridgeSenpai
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by PartridgeSenpai Tue Sep 07, 2021 4:46 am

Partridge Senpai's 2021 Beaten Games:
Previously: 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
* indicates a repeat

Games 1~51
1. Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland (PS3)
2. Portal 2 (PC) *
3. Atelier Judie: The Alchemist of Gramnad (PS2)
4. Pipo Saru 2001 (PS2)
5. Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon (N64)
6. Atelier Viorate: The Alchemist of Gramnad 2 (PS2)
7. Kirby's Dream Land 3 (SFC)
8. The Legend of Mystical Ninja (SFC)
9. Atelier Marie: The Alchemist of Salburg (PS1)
10. Ganbare Goemon 2 (SFC)
11. Paper Mario: Origami King (Switch)
12. Star Fox 64 (N64) *
13. Super Paper Mario (Wii) *
14. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door (GC) *
15. Demon's Crest (SNES)
16. Cathedral (Switch)
17. Super Mario 3D World (Switch) *
18. Bowser's Fury (Switch)
19. Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos (Switch)
20. moon (Switch)
21. Casltevania 64 (N64)
22. Captain Rainbow (Wii)
23. Doraemon: Nobita To Mittsu No Seireiseki (N64)
24. Blast Corps (N64)
25. Doraemon 2: Nobita To Hikari No Shinden (N64)
26. Custom Robo (N64)
27. Doraemon 3: Nobita No Machi SOS! (N64)
28. 64 Trump Collection: Alice No Wakuwaku Trump World (N64)
29. The Sunken City (PS4)
30. Lair of the Clockwork God (Switch)
31. Star Fox Adventures (GC)
32. Atelier Elie: The Alchemist of Salburg 2 (PS1)
33. Billy Hatcher & The Giant Egg (GC)
34. Mole Mania (GB)
35. Gargoyle's Quest (GB)
36. Rock Man 4 (Famicom) *
37. Wai Wai World (Famicom)
38. Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge (GB)
39. Mega Man (Switch) *
40. Mega Man 2 (Switch) *
41. Mega Man 3 (Switch) *
42. Rock Man 5 (Famicom) *
43. Mega Man 6 (Switch)
44. Mega Man 7 (Switch) *
45. Mega Man 8 (Switch) *
46. Mega Man 9 (Switch) *
47. Mega Man 10 (Switch)
48. Rock Man World 2 (GB) *
49. Rock Man World 3 (GB)
50. Rock Man World 4 (GB)
51. Rock Man World 5 (GB)

52. Wai Wai World 2 (Famicom)
53. Tiny Toon Adventures (Famicom)
54. King Kong 2: Ikari No Megaton Punch (Famicom)
55. Yume Pengin Monogatari (Famicom)
56. Rock Man & Forte (SFC)
57. Rock Man X2 (Switch)
58. Rock Man X3 (Switch)
59. Rock Man X4 (Switch)
60. Rock Man X5 (Switch)
61. Rock Man X6 (Switch)
62. Rock Man X7 (Switch)
63. Rock Man X8 (Switch)
64. Mega Man: Powered Up (PSP)
65. Magical Taruruuto Kun: FANTASTIC WORLD!! (Famicom)
66. Maken Shao (PS2)
67. Getsu Fuuma Den (Famicom)
68. Rock Man D.A.S.H (PSP)
69. Brave Fencer Musashi (PS1)
70. Joe & Mac (SFC) *
71. Atelier Lilie: The Alchemist of Salburg 3 (PS2)
72. Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link (Famicom)
73. The Bouncer (PS2)
74. Rapid Angel (PS1)
75. Atelier Totori: The Alchemist of Arland 2 (PS3)
76. Drakengard 3 (PS3)
77. Alwa's Awakening (Switch)
78. Hermina & Culus (PS2)
79. Atelier Meruru: The Alchemist of Arland 3 (PS3)
80. Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti (Switch)
81. Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana (PS2)
82. Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana 2 (PS2)
83. Mario Kart 64 (N64)
84. Super Mario Kart (SFC)
85. Mario Kart Super Circuit (3DS)
86. Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time (N64) *
87. Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (N64) *
88. Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap (3DS) *
89. Rock Man X: Command Mission (GC)
90. Pikmin (GC) *
91. Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (GC) *
92. Far East of Eden 2: Manjimaru (GC)
93. Pikmin 2 (GC) *

94. Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (GC) *

Still not off either my 3D Zelda or my GameCube kick, I decided to start playing this game right after I finished with Pikmin 2. Wind Waker is a game I played a bunch when I was little, but it's been SO long since I last played it I genuinely can't remember. At any rate, it was definitely when I payed less attention to game design, so it was high time that I gave it a replay to see just how well it held up. It took me around 25 or 30 hours (rough guess, as the game doesn't count playtime) to finish the Japanese version of the game on original hardware.

Wind Waker starts out in a world flooded with oceans with only a few islands poking above. You, our hero Link, live on one of these islands with your little sister and grandmother. You peacefully live until one day a giant bird carrying girl comes to the island. Long story short, you end up saving her, a pirate captain, and your sister gets kidnapped instead. You join up with the pirates to save her, eventually finding yourself on a larger and much more treacherous journey to save all of this ocean called Hyrule.

Wind Waker's writing is well remembered for a reason. Characters and their expressions are super well animated in a great art style, allowing Link to have more character than ever despite still basically being non-verbal. The characters and islands you visit and help out all follow a larger theme of succession and looking towards the future. It's a very hopeful and remarkably topical game in how it so often shows an older generation, despondent in how they've allowed the world to decay, giving the world to the younger generation with the wish they might still be able to make something despite the failings of the past.

That said, Wind Waker's story and design really do show the pock marks of its troubled design. It's known that Wind Waker had to have two whole dungeons scrapped in order to fit the release schedule of a holiday release, and it's my opinion that this is likely the cause of the game's wild pacing problems. You have a really tightly choreographed first half, an SUPER strong ending sequence, but a really meandering and poorly signposted second half that does a lot to sour that. It isn't experience ruining, but it definitely left me with a lot of ideas of what could've been had they gone for a March release date instead of a holiday one.

The gameplay design of Wind Waker is similarly hit or miss. The dungeon design is really as solid as ever, with the games dungeons and mini-dungeons providing that 3d action and puzzle solving the series is so good at just as good as it ever has. The swordplay has been spiced up a bit from the tried and true Z-targeting of the N64 era. Now in addition to that, you also have special counterattacks you can do by pressing the A button when you hear a sound cue. The way your sword strikes make musical emphasis when you land blows add a ton of cool atmosphere and flavor to the game that really make even normal combat stand out in a way I really appreciated.

The "miss" part of that hit or miss is generally in the form of the overworld and the bits in between dungeons. Infamously, a lot of your time in Wind Waker is spent sailing on that ocean whose wind you're waking with your magic baton (this game's ocarina playing, which is incidentally the Japanese title of the game "The Baton of Wind"). The sailing itself isn't *that* bad, but it IS that bad when combined with what you're actually finding on these islands you're going to. What you're finding is, generally, things you can't interact with because you don't have the dungeon item for it yet. It means that your time is best left totally ignoring exploring until the big Triforce shard hunt at the end. I don't mind the Triforce chart hunt, but even that has its own bad reflections on the design of the game.

Coming off of Majora's Mask, a game brimming with interesting and character-important side quests, Wind Waker has virtually none, and really not much meaningful side content at all other than treasure charts. Treasure charts are things you'll need to get lots of rupees (which you'll need A LOT of at end game to get your Triforce treasure charts deciphered), and it's just following to X-marks-the-spot somewhere in the ocean. It's not awful, sure, but it's painfully dull. A lot of this really just comes down to the whole ocean as a concept feeling very poorly executed. I don't really think this would've been solved has the game gotten its originally intended development cycle, but adding the ability to speed up the sailing in the Wii U port is definitely a huge upgrade to the overall flow of the game.

Presentation-wise, it's a heckin' Zelda game, so of course it's great. Music is absolutely fantastic, the graphics and character designs are (as already mentioned) very good as well. The cartoony design everything has makes it so memorable compared to just about any Zelda game before and after, as nothing quite looks like Wind Waker (other than the 2D Zeldas its art style inspired, of course). Nintendo always swings for the fences with the presentation of their main line Zelda games, and Wind Waker is no exception.

Verdict: Recommended. This game has too many negative and grating aspects for me to give it a highly recommended verdict in good conscience, but it has WAY too much good stuff for me to give it anything lower than this. It's a mixed bag, but the good manages to outweigh the bad to the point that it still manages to be great. Its quirks will likely turn off some people, but there's a great adventure and story waiting to be found here if you can manage to get over the ocean to get there X3
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Note
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by Note Tue Sep 07, 2021 8:44 pm

1. Golden Axe II (GEN)
2. Time Crisis [Special Mode] (PS1)
3. Streets of Rage (GEN)
4. Time Crisis: Project Titan (PS1)
5. Rayman Origins (360)
6. Borderlands (360)
7. Streets of Rage 4 (Switch)*
8. King of Dragons (SNES)
9. Wild Guns (SNES)
10. Star Fox (SNES)
11. Guardian Heroes (SAT) [2x]*
12. World of Illusion (GEN)
13. Raiden Fighters Jet (360)
14. Raiden Fighters 2: Operation Hell Dive (360)*
15. Streets of Rage 3 (GEN)
16. Street Fighter III: Third Strike (Xbox)*
17. Mushihimesama Futari (360)
18. Guwange (360)
19. Star Fox 64 (N64)*
20. Soul Calibur (DC)*
21. Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition (GEN)
22. Xeno Crisis (GEN)
23. Galactic Attack (SAT)
24. Die Hard Arcade (SAT)

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25. Luigi's Mansion (GC)

A bit of a funny story behind how I ended up with this game. My mother originally purchased it as a Christmas gift in 2001 and misplaced it for about 15 years. She came across it buried in the back of the closet while cleaning and gave it to me for Christmas in 2016. For years she would mention she had a game for me that she misplaced, but I had no idea what game it was. Well, this was a great one to uncover! I played a bit of it when I first got it but finally took the time out to finish the game for last month's TR theme.

The basic premise of this unique title in the Nintendo catalogue is that Mario is lost in a haunted mansion and as Luigi, you must defeat all the ghosts in the mansion, look for clues, and rescue your brother. The gameplay mechanics are very different than the other Mario Bros. games. Luigi's Mansion is more a mix of the Mario Bros. characters we've come to know with Ghostbusters, as Luigi has two tools at his disposal to defeat the ghosts -- a trusty flashlight and vacuum cleaner. Another tool you have access to is the Gameboy Horror, which lets you zoom in to search around. You'll need this device to examine certain objects and discover hidden areas throughout the mansion.

The main gameplay mechanic here, is that once you stun a ghost with the flashlight, you must use the vacuum to trap the ghost, and to do so, you have to rotate the joystick in the opposite direction the ghost is moving in. The ghosts fight and move in a frantic manner, and sometimes other objects to make you slip up are being tossed your way. Later in the game different elemental items are introduced as well as puzzles to complete certain rooms.

The graphics are quite stunning, and as a launch game, I think it was a good showcase for the Gamecube's abilities. The lighting effects and details throughout the mansion are impressive IMO. The soundtrack is haunting and fits with the theme of the game. Another fun touch in this game is that you'll hear Luigi humming the background music while exploring the mansion. Can't say I've ever heard that in a video game before, and my sister and I were both cracking up when we first tried the game out.

Overall, I highly recommend Luigi's Mansion! It's a very unique experience in the Nintendo library. The game is fairly short, but it is nice to be able to finish a game in a few sittings so I have no issues with it's brevity. I didn't get the best ending possible, so that might be enough motivation for me to replay it again down the line. I'm very interested in the latest iteration for the Switch too, especially since it has a co-op feature. Try this one out, if you haven't already!
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by Markies Tue Sep 07, 2021 10:01 pm

Markies' Games Beat List Of 2021!
*Denotes Replay For Completion*

1. Midtown Madness 3 (XBOX)
2. X-Men 2: Clone Wars (GEN)
3. Sonic Adventure 2 (SDC)
4. Mega Man 7 (SNES)
5. Xenosaga Episode III: Also Sprach Zarathustra (PS2)
6. Bust A Move 4 (PS1)
7. Phantasy Star IV (GEN)
8. Gunbird 2 (SDC)
***9. The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker (GCN)***
10. Fable: The Lost Chapters (XBOX)
11. Growlanser: Heritage Of War (PS2)
12. Double Dragon (NES)
13. Star Ocean (SNES)
14. Pokemon Snap (N64)
15. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes (GCN)
16. Castle Of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (GEN)
17. Stella Deus: The Gate Of Eternity (PS2)
18. Super R-Type (SNES)
19. Threads Of Fate (PS1)
20. The Bouncer (PS2)
21. Phantasy Star Online Version 2 (SDC)

22. Final Fantasy III (NES)

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I beat Final Fantasy III on the Nintendo Entertainment System this evening!

Despite Final Fantasy being my favorite series of all time, Final Fantasy III has always been the black sheep of the franchise in my eyes. Unfortunately, with it coming out so late in the West and on a handheld console, I only played it once. I borrowed a copy and a DS from some friends when we played through Final Fantasy I - XII all in a row. But, that was over 10 years ago and during a race, so I didn't think I gave it the proper respect. However, once I discovered Game Reproductions, that all changed and I was finally able to play the original Final Fantasy III. After so many years, it was finally time to see and revisit a game from a beloved series that I had completely overlooked.

Final Fantasy III starts off with 4 nameless characters who stumbled upon a crystal and are tasked with saving the world. Along the way, the story is enriched a bit further, but that is basically it. The main hook or what separates Final Fantasy III apart is that it is the first game to introduce the job system. This would be used for greater effect throughout the series, but it starts off in III. With something built on the NES, it is amazing how long the archetypes of the jobs have lasted. Looking over all the jobs, they look and play like their modern iterations which is impressive for something that came out 30 years ago. Unfortunately, the job system isn't as customizable as in later iterations. They are mostly classes that your characters can become and not just mixing and matching skills that you like. It mostly works well, though there are many times throughout the game where they force you to become a certain job or small or even a toad. That is frustrating and really drag the game down. Besides the jobs, the game feels like a suped up version of the original Final Fantasy. The developers obviously learned what they could do on the hardware and I think took it to its maximum level.

Overall, I really enjoyed my time with Final Fantasy III. I mean, it is impossible for me not to like a Final Fantasy game. But, the forced job and status dungeons really drag the game down. Also, the final few dungeons take forever which all add up to being the hardest Final Fantasy game in the franchise. If you enjoyed the DS version, curious to see how the job system start, or want to play one of the best 8-Bit RPGs, Final Fantasy III is worth definitely playing!
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by MrPopo Tue Sep 07, 2021 11:58 pm

The DS remake has some balance problems on top of the existing balance problems the original had. Because the number of enemies is capped it means they tended to compensate by giving enemies more actions, but this includes the bosses, which gets REALLY nasty. As frustrating as the original is I think it has a better curve overall as there are some obvious "use this job here" stuff that the game is calibrated for, rather than the remake's "maybe everything can be viable?" that just leads to nerfs.
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by dsheinem Wed Sep 08, 2021 11:29 am

So I haven't posted in here all year, but would like to keep my long-running tally going and figured I better jump in before I forget what I've actually played this year (spoiler alert: not much!)

Here's what I've tackled so far in 2021, with a few thoughts on each:

1. Sonic Forces - PS4 *new*
2. Marvel's Spider Man: Miles Morales - PS5 *new*
3. Wreckfest - PS5 *new*
4. Ketsui Deathtiny - PS4 *new*
5. Ghost of Tsushima - PS4 *new*
6. Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes - Switch

Total: 6


Sonic Forces - Fairly forgettable with a typical mix of some levels work/some levels don't. Not the worst Sonic outing, though not as good as Generations/Colors/Sonic 4/Mania...

Miles Morales - I liked this even more than the main Spider Man game that it is dervied from, and the additional mechanics and improved graphics are quite nice. This is pretty much a perfect Spider Man game.

Wreckfest - I am a sucker for Demolition Derby style games and this is one of the best I have played - the "feel" is just right and the game offers a lot of modes/options that make a run through the campaign a worthwhile exercise.

Ketsui Deathtiny - I have started picking up the M2 Shot Triggers STG titles, and this one is probably my favorite so far. The attention to detail and expanded modes in this make it a very welcome rerelease, and I enjoy 1cc'ing the easier modes while also working on improving my skills at the arcade mode through some of its training options. I'd also recommend the similar Battle Garegga release (especially the nice Limited Run edition with the soundtrack!)

Ghost of Tsushima - The hype for this one is well placed, and the game delivers plenty of Kurosawa-adjacent samurai shenanigans all wrapped up in a beautiful open world and enjoyable combat mechanics. I think the game suffers a bit from some stagnancy that accompanies the genre...but this one does pretty much everything right.

Travis Strikes Again - A bit repetitive and wonky, but also clever and surprising - it feels very much like a Suda game in all the right ways. I finished this up in the hopes of playing NMH3 soon. Hopefully that one makes it to the list before the year is out!

Perhaps posting this will help me get in gear and come up with a more respectable total by the end of the year....
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Markies
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by Markies Wed Sep 08, 2021 5:49 pm

MrPopo wrote:The DS remake has some balance problems on top of the existing balance problems the original had. Because the number of enemies is capped it means they tended to compensate by giving enemies more actions, but this includes the bosses, which gets REALLY nasty. As frustrating as the original is I think it has a better curve overall as there are some obvious "use this job here" stuff that the game is calibrated for, rather than the remake's "maybe everything can be viable?" that just leads to nerfs.


Besides NES annoyances (I really missed having Tents/Cabins as that would have made the final areas easier and Magic not auto targeting enemies), the game did feel easier than the DS version. In the game, there are just classes that are better than others and those upgrades really help, especially in the end. It's been a long time since I played the DS version, but I have very little desire to go back to it now that I have beaten the NES version.
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by MrPopo Wed Sep 08, 2021 5:50 pm

The final set of dungeons is definitely a marathon in the original.
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Re: Games Beaten 2021

by ElkinFencer10 Wed Sep 08, 2021 8:10 pm

Games Beaten in 2021 - 88
* denotes a replay

January (12 Games Beaten)
1. God of War - PlayStation 3 - January 1
2. God of War II - PlayStation 3 - January 2
3. God of War: Chains of Olympus - PlayStation 3 - January 3
4. God of War: Ghost of Sparta - PlayStation 3 - January 4
5. God of War III - PlayStation 4 - January 6
6. God of War: Ascension - PlayStation 3 - January 9
7. God of War [2018] - PlayStation 4 - January 16
8. Epic Dumpster Bear 2: He Who Bears Wins - PlayStation 4 - January 16
9. God of War: Betrayal - Mobile - January 17
10. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit - Switch - January 18
11. Muv-Luv photonflowers* - Steam - January 22
12. Muv-Luv photonmelodies♮ - Steam - January 27


February (5 Games Beaten)
13. Gun Gun Pixies - Switch - February 1
14. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel - PS4 - February 8*
15. Pantsu Hunter: Back to the 90s - Vita - February 13
16. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II - PS4 - February 17*
17. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky - Steam - February 23


March (3 Games Beaten)
18. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC - Steam - March 4
19. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky 3rd - Steam - March 7
20. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III - PS4 - March 21


April (7 Games Beaten)
21. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV - PS4 - April 5
22. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 00 - Steam - April 7
23. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 01 - Steam - April 10
24. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 02 - Steam - April 11
25. Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After 03 - Steam - April 13
26. Neptunia Virtual Stars - PS4 - April 18
27. Before Your Eyes - Steam - April 18


May (9 Games Beaten)
28. New Pokemon Snap - Switch - May 2
29. Resident Evil 8: Village - PS5 - May 8
30. Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Switch - May 15
31. Torment: Tides of Numenera - Xbox One - May 18
32. Pepsiman - PS1 - May 20
33. Super Blackjack Battle II Turbo: The Card Fighters - Switch - May 20
34. Reel Fishing: Road Trip Adventure - Switch - May 23
35. Planetscape: Torment - Steam - May 26
36. Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne - Switch - May 31


June (17 Games Beaten)
37. Hentai vs Evil - Switch - June 1
38. Troll and I - Switch - June 2
39. Zombie Army 4: Dead War - PlayStation 4 - June 5
40. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - Switch - June 6
41. Military Madness - TurboGrafx-16 - June 7
42. Puyo Puyo 2 - Game Gear - June 17
43. Yakuza 0 - Playstation 4 - June 19
44. Neptunia Shooter - Playstation 5 - June 20
45. Little Samson - NES - June 22
46. Tiger-Heli - NES - June 23
47. Blaster Master - NES - June 23
48. Gun-Nac - NES - June 24
49. Rollerblade Racer - NES - June 25
50. Marble Madness - NES - June 25
51. Metroid - NES - June 25
52. Mario Golf: Super Rush - Switch - June 26
53. Metroid: Zero Mission - GBA - June 28
54. Metroid II: Return of Samus - Game Boy - June 29


July (31 Games Beaten)
55. Super Metroid - SNES - July 1
56. Where's Waldo? - NES - July 1
57. Metroid Fusion - GBA - July 2
58. Neptunia ReVerse - PlayStation 5 - July 3
59. Tetris Effect: Connected - Series X - July 3
60. Battletoads - Xbox One - July 4
61. Chicken Police: Paint it Red! - Switch - July 5
62. The Falconeer - Series X - July 7
63. Astral Chain - Switch - July 10
64. Dynowarz: Destruction of Spondylus - NES - July 12
65. Skull and Crossbones - NES - July 12
66. Sky Kid - NES - July 12
67. Top Gun - NES - July 12
68. Top Gun: The Second Mission - NES - July 13
69. Mega Man 7 - SNES - July 13
70. Mega Man X - SNES - July 14
71. Mega Man X2 - SNES - July 15
72. Second Extinction - Series X - July 15
73. Mega Man X3 - SNES - July 16
74. Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge - Game Boy - July 19
75. Mega Man II - Game Boy - July 19
76. Mega Man III - Game Boy - July 19
77. Mega Man IV - Game Boy - July 20
78. Mega Man V - Game Boy - July 20
79. Mega Man Xtreme - GBC - July 21
80. Mega Man Xtreme 2 - GBC - July 21
81. Portal Runner - GBC - July 22
82. Bubsy in Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind - SNES - July 22
83. Mega Man and Bass - SNES - July 23
84. Cotton Reboot! - Switch - July 27
85. Yakuza Kiwami 2 - PlayStation 4 - July 29


August (2 Games Beaten)
86. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 1 - Series X - August 7
87. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 2 - Series X - August 7


September (1 Game Beaten)
88. Maneater: Truth Quest - PS5 - September 5


88. Maneater: Truth Quest - PS5 - September 5

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Maneater is one of my favorite games of all time. I love it so much that I own it on Xbox One, PS4, PS5, and Switch (I'll get it on Steam eventually just to have it there, too). When I heard that it was getting DLC, then, I was ecstatic. Unfortunately, Truth Quest isn't currently available on Switch, and the devs have made no mention of a Switch release in the future, but if you have a PlayStation, PC, or Xbox, this is a must-play for all shark fanatics like me.

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Truth Quest takes place just a few months after the base game, and so you have to have cleared the base game to play the DLC. It raises the level cap from 30 to 40, adds three or four new organs, and adds a new jaw/body/head/tail evolution set. It also grants you access to a new area, a top secret government base. The narrator has been fired from his TV show hosting job since the end of the base game and has started a new life as an internet conspiracy theorist streamer who sells bogus nutritional supplements to fund his site. Imagine Alex Jones but with the voice of Jerry Smith from Rick and Morty.

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As far as gameplay goes, it's pretty much just more of the same but with some really cool bosses like an electric great white shark and a poison orca. You also get a conspiracy nut hidden in each area of the base game (plus three in the secret base) to find and eat, five new hunter bosses, some extra side quests, and a set of time trial races to complete. It's more or less everything I wanted from a Maneater DLC, and while it's not super long - it probably took me something like seven or eight hours to complete everything - it's a lot of fun and pretty reasonably priced at $15.

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Unfortunately, the game isn't perfect. I didn't encounter many issues, but there are some major bugs where achievements are concerned. I did EVERYTHING in the DLC, but four of the trophies are bugged and didn't unlock for me, and unless they're able (and willing) to fix it with a patch, I'll have to play the entire game plus DLC over again to get those trophies. That's a major pain in the ass. It started with the fifth DLC hunter boss - as soon as she spawned, the trophy for beating her unlocked even though I'd not even attacked her, and the game crashed. I reloaded, tried to fight her again (since it was a mission objective), and it crashed about three minutes into the fight. I repeated this two or three times before it actually let me beat her. After that, it refused to unlock the trophies for beating the final boss, completing all objectives in the DLC area, completing all time trials, and completing all DLC objectives. As you can see, those trophies, while totally doable, would be a major pain to replay for.

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The glitched trophies aside, I had an absolute blast with Truth Quest. I definitely can't give a perfect score due to the glaring problems with the achievement QA, but I still thoroughly enjoyed all of my time playing until I hit those bugs. Hopefully they'll be able to fix that without forcing me to replay everything, but if you're reading this and haven't finished Truth Quest yet, be aware that those trophies can bug out, and if the posts I've seen online are any indication, they frequently glitch for people. If you don't care at all about achievements, though, then you really don't have much to worry about as that one hunter fight was the only instance of crashing that I encountered. If you enjoyed the base game, you'll love this. The humor alone makes this DLC worth buying and playing.
Exhuminator wrote:Ecchi lords must unite for great justice.

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