November Together Retro: Working Designs

[Nemoide]

Progress in Alundra has been slow but steady. I can now wield magic, I have a new weapon, and I'll be soon exploring a new area (a desert).
The game is pretty fun, though I've found some of the puzzles in dungeons to be a bit obtuse (ie I'm finding myself checking GameFAQs).

There's a part of me that understands why there's resentment towards Working Designs, their translations were definitely loose and their meddling with the difficulty could make some games worse... but I still love their output. For the most part, their games weren't really ruined by the difficulty. I think most people cite Vay for being particularly egregious, but I was still able to beat it in high school and was generally oblivious to its reputation for being harder than other 16-bit RPGs. I think the loose translations really add a lot of charm to the game. Having stuff like a random NPC talk using surfer-slang, characters making exaggerated goofy statements, or even replacing bland dialog with real-world references all make for a fun gameplay experience! It makes talking to NPCs a delightful treat instead of a slog.
If someone's playing a WD RPG for the first time, I'd personally recommend the straight-up WD version rather than a patched version.

[SpaceBooger]

I think most people cite Vay for being particularly egregious, but I was still able to beat it in high school and was generally oblivious to its reputation for being harder than other 16-bit RPGs.

I played Vay again the patched version this summer and finally beat it. Now the patched version was easier than I expected, only because I grinded... a lot. I was higher levels than the FAQs said I should be for even the "harder" US version. In the patched version the bosses were easy and it was nice to pay only 4 gold at the inn which made grinding easy, but the lack of HP and MP refill that WD added when you level up sucked.
In the end, WD made the bosses really hard but with the HP and MP refill upon leveling up it made the dungeons easier since you could grind using your MP and then fight the boss right after leveling up. The original version made it cheaper to refill MP and HP at an Inn but the dungeons, especially the long ones at the end, were brutal since you had to save your MP for the boss if you wanted to defeat it. So I think in the case of Vay, the difficulty is a wash.

Slowly working through both Albert Odyssey and Alundra. I have been playing more AO but keep falling asleep during the long loading times for the battles. Seriously, I keep playing this at night and find myself nodding off...

[BoneSnapDeez]

Played through Cadash this afternoon. I'd highly recommend this one. It's an arcade port of a side-scrolling ARPG with 2-player co-op and four classes of characters to choose from. I prefer the ninja, who lacks magic but wields projectile weapons.

The game can be finished in one sitting, though it's decently long. Definitely a rainy Sunday type of game.

The translation is solid, for the most part. It's not a loquacious title so Working Designs didn't have an opportunity to flub things up too much.

The American box art actually matches that of the Japanese, which is extremely rare. Unfortunately, the game's tough to find and rather expensive now.

I'll write more in Games Beaten later.

[Markies]

Congratulations Bone!

That is our 3rd Working Designs Game Beat this week.

We are into the second half of November, so get playing those Working Designs games and let us know if you beat them!

[IMJ]

I started Alundra for PS1 today! I'm playing it on a CRT which is an absolute delight. I've only *just* started the game: I was on a boat, had a dream, and am now in a village.

And right off the bat, I was reminded about how good Working Designs writing is. I know a lot of modern gamers don't appreciate that they were loose with their translations, but I love it. The comedy really adds a lot of charm!

I love Working Designs, love this thread and love this post for the CRT mention. I'm gearing up for a Winter game sale and just culled a large collection but parsed out all of the WD PSone and PS2 stuff. Alundra was great, and I've got a copy sitting in my game rack 8 feet behind me right now. The real big question for me is do I hold onto Elemental Gearbolt or not? I've got an original guncon and a few CRTV's left I could hook up to play it....

[Nemoide]

So I'm currently in the "Ancient Shrine" in Alundra after crossing a desert. Let me tell you: the puzzles are starting to become a pain and I'm still looking at a walkthrough far more than I'd like but feeling a lot less guilty about it.

Essential items are hidden invisibly behind things, one part is randomized (and can cause damage/waste healing items), one part requires a bunch of awkward jumps while carrying a barrel which only shows up after killing some very ignorable enemies. It goes one like that.
Anyway, after slogging through all that I unlocked... the second half of the dungeon T_T
Oh well, progress is being made. I will beat this game, but definitely not by the end of the month. Probably not by the end of the year.

[stickem]

I got to where I hated alundra past the half way point. Dam puzzle game disguised as an adventure game lol. I had to buy a guide for it, before the youtube days.

[Markies]

Last Day of Working Designs!

Let me know if anybody beat any Working Designs games this month.

[SpaceBooger]

I'm still playing Albert Odyssey, this morning I thought I was fighting the final boss. I beat him. Watched a lengthy final scene.. But nope it was just the end of Act 1. So now I'm on the 2nd part... Sigh.

[SpaceBooger]

I finally beat Albert Odyessy today. After having to repair my Saturn (Long story. Short version is that I replaced the whole CD unit) I played again this weekend and beat the game this afternoon.
I know it gets some flack for being too standard for a RPG, but that is what I like. I am not a fan of collecting and raising creatures or mixing/baking/alchemy mechanics in my RPGs. Albert Odyssey felt like a 16bit RPG with some of the most beautiful 32bit sprite work in any RPG. I quite enjoyed it and this was one where Working Design's humor didn't mess the game up as much as in Vay (fart joke for a transport spell) but instead, the humor worked well and made the game more enjoyable.