WHAT GAMES ARE YOU PLAYING THESE DAYS

[Silensho]

I am playing, besides Pokémon Go, Crytstalis. Tried a few times before to finish it, but could not get past the part after the poisonous swamp. This time, I've gone much further and hope to be done with it.

I just hate having to change swords every 10 seconds.

[Gil_Hamilton]

Shit yeah, Crystalis!


And yeah, sword-swapping was the worst part of that game. That and making it to a boss while being a level below the minimum damage cutoff(because you ran from enemies to avoid sword-swapping)

[Gil_Hamilton]

Another Metroid 2 Remake... sure is a Metroid II remake in the GBA style.

I quit after seeing a gimmick boss guarding the space jump, mandatory shinespark stunting, and a fuckin' minigame where you control a crane robot. All in the same area.


I hate the GBA Metroids, but even Izushi knew not to add fuckin' minigames.

[odditude]

i thoroughly enjoyed AM2R, but I also thoroughly enjoyed the GBA Metroids.

Alphas and Gammas are significantly more threatening in the early parts of the game - their weak spots have been reduced, and they're more aggressive. Zetas and Omegas have been changed dramatically, more in line with the Omega in Fusion, and are significant threats.

[Gil_Hamilton]

I actually liked what he did with the gammas, though the alphas don't feel much diffrent to me. Torn on the zeta and omega. I suppose they fit in better with the queen now, but the prior life progression had them becoming more humanoid with each iteration(queen excepted), and I'm pretty sure that was an intentional statement. Izushi and Sakamoto made them more powerful, but also more beastial(and fucked up the lore!).

[odditude]

Alphas are much easier to attack from the front in the original. Also, in AM2R, all Metroids seem to have a brief invulnerability window after being hit which prevents you from juggling them.

my first playthrough was unassisted, 92% of items in just over 6 hours. i knew i wasn't going to make any speed requirements, so i didn't hesitate to backtrack regularly. the first Omega devolved into playing hide-and-seek in the left corner and finished with 12 HP and 2 missiles left. my hop-and-shoot game completely deserted me for that fight.

i died for the first and second time against the Queen - (spoiler) i made the mistake of playing conservatively, and didn't realize the homing globs dropped pickups if you shot them instead of tanking them via Screw Attack.

[Gil_Hamilton]

My first death I missed a jump and found myself at the bottom of twenty feet of earthquake acid.

My second was to the space jump boss. I really was not feeling that fight.




I youtubed the final area and queen. I am very sad that he missed the point of the shattered powerup statue. He just put it in front of a door, with no clue laying around as to what it once held.

That it bore an ice beam in the original game served as a warning that vanilla metroids were incoming. But it was also a capstone on the overarching story the game tells. That statue was smashed solely because the ice beam threatened the juvenile metroids, not because it was in the way. The metroids are thinking, and that is bad news for anybody that isn't a flying vampire jellyfish.

The statue also loses much of it's potency as a warning sign in the modern era. It originally signified above all that something very powerful lurked within, as statues were universally unbreakable in those days. Now, they crumble every time you turn around, and a monster jumps out of them half of that time.

[franpa]

My 1st and only death was from the thing that happens as you escape the previously powered down facility.

[Gil_Hamilton]

My 1st and only death was from the thing that happens as you escape the previously powered down facility.

Ah, the pointless addition of a timed escape sequence.

[franpa]

My 1st and only death was from the thing that happens as you escape the previously powered down facility.

Ah, the pointless addition of a timed escape sequence.

Well, I died to the thing you're forced to interact with during the timed escape sequence. I dunno if I should just not care about spoiling stuff or not.

[Gil_Hamilton]

Spoilers: Everyone dies.

[Bacon]

Quake III Arena
Tetris TGM3
Street Fighter III: Second Impact
Star Ocean 3
Phantasy Star Online
DOOM (ZDaemon)
Disgaea 2

My daily games of choice, in order of most to least favorite.

[odditude]

Risk of Rain is an absolute blast.

[Yuber]

Symphony of the Night, JP fan translated version. I never played this much back when it was released but now I understand why so many people love it; it's ADDICTIVE. I finally got 200.6% completion on luck mode but I'm still hooked and simply cannot get enough of this game. Maybe I'll do a low level/shit equipment playthrough next on luck mode. Makes your stats suck but makes rare drops much more common.

Also it's aged incredibly well much like other well-made 2d games, and mixing in 3d elements just makes it that much more stylish and sexy.

[Gil_Hamilton]

Symphony of the Night, JP fan translated version. I never played this much back when it was released but now I understand why so many people love it; it's ADDICTIVE. I finally got 200.6% completion on luck mode but I'm still hooked and simply cannot get enough of this game. Maybe I'll do a low level/shit equipment playthrough next on luck mode. Makes your stats suck but makes rare drops much more common.

Also it's aged incredibly well much like other well-made 2d games, and mixing in 3d elements just makes it that much more stylish and sexy.

Okay, I have to ask. Is this fan translation actually a translation? Or are they just rewording the existing english version to give it less character, like when Konami "retranslated" the game for the PSP?

Because if the former, well... "I'm interested in this." (Mostly for the beastiary and inventory, truthfully. I have no complaints with the original english script.)
The latter is just lame, though.


(Easy check: Does the speech between Alucard and Richter at the beginning involve overwrought anime nonsense about justice and friendship? If so, it's actually a translation. If not, they're just stripping the personality out of the original localization and pretending that makes it better. )

[kode54]

Don't forget that the Saturn version only came in Japanese, and that included the extra areas, and extra boss battles, (Maria, and the normal and mirrored garden areas, I don't recall if mirrored also had a boss.).

[Yuber]

Symphony of the Night, JP fan translated version. I never played this much back when it was released but now I understand why so many people love it; it's ADDICTIVE. I finally got 200.6% completion on luck mode but I'm still hooked and simply cannot get enough of this game. Maybe I'll do a low level/shit equipment playthrough next on luck mode. Makes your stats suck but makes rare drops much more common.

Also it's aged incredibly well much like other well-made 2d games, and mixing in 3d elements just makes it that much more stylish and sexy.

Okay, I have to ask. Is this fan translation actually a translation? Or are they just rewording the existing english version to give it less character, like when Konami "retranslated" the game for the PSP?

Because if the former, well... "I'm interested in this." (Mostly for the beastiary and inventory, truthfully. I have no complaints with the original english script.)
The latter is just lame, though.


(Easy check: Does the speech between Alucard and Richter at the beginning involve overwrought anime nonsense about justice and friendship? If so, it's actually a translation. If not, they're just stripping the personality out of the original localization and pretending that makes it better. )

It's actually a full trans of the JP version which means it has the half fairy & nose demon familiars and such. I can't comment on the accuracy of said translation since I don't know Japanese but minus a couple typos, and I literally mean a couple that I've noticed, it seems to be pretty well done.

edit: and it actually seems to be somewhat less melodramatic than the original '97 English script though I can't speak for the PSP retrans. Also when I say the VAs are better, I mean a LOT better. For example, in the fake ending Richter fight, Richter's VA does an amazing job of sounding genuinely crazy/possessed and very winded/depleted as he dies. I never really played this game for the story but the dialogue seems way less corny as a whole.

Don't forget that the Saturn version only came in Japanese, and that included the extra areas, and extra boss battles, (Maria, and the normal and mirrored garden areas, I don't recall if mirrored also had a boss.).

It sounds like an interesting port but the aspect ratio/resolution is all wonky and given how many half transparencies, polygonal death animations etc. are in the original it just looks kinda sloppy from a graphical standpoint. I do wanna try it out though just for the extra content. Those mesh patterns look terrible though, especially the mist and a number of the death animations.

[Gil_Hamilton]

It's actually a full trans of the JP version which means it has the half fairy & nose demon familiars and such. I can't comment on the accuracy of said translation since I don't know Japanese but minus a couple typos, and I literally mean a couple that I've noticed, it seems to be pretty well done.

Do I really have to play it myself to find out what script they used as a base? Geez, makin' me play video games...


Readme says they completely redid the inventory and beastiary. It is unclear if the script is based on the japanese or english version, but it is clear it is presented in period-appropriate english, which is a perk.

edit: and it actually seems to be somewhat less melodramatic than the original '97 English script though I can't speak for the PSP retrans.

That is a strike against it. Melodrama is perfect for Symphony.

Also when I say the VAs are better, I mean a LOT better. For example, in the fake ending Richter fight, Richter's VA does an amazing job of sounding genuinely crazy/possessed and very winded/depleted as he dies. I never really played this game for the story but the dialogue seems way less corny as a whole.

Richter's voice acting was really the weak link. His actor wasn't a great actor, and it sounds like he was not recorded in a proper sound booth. The rest of the voice acting in the US version is fine.

I actually adore the US Dracula. He's not Wakamoto, but his ability to overact and grandstand without collapsing into a complete farce is perfect for the B-horror feel.

And US Alucard is just so Alucardy.

[Yuber]

I didn't grow up playing SOTN as a kid so I don't have any emotional connection to the English voice acting, so I simply see this translation as a better alternative as far as the VAs are concerned. I can see what they were trying to do with Dracula in the US version with the actor trying to sound gruff like Wakamoto but he kinda comes off like some cat at a comic con cosplaying as dracula and trying to sound like Wakamoto in English. The JP version isn't Oscar worthy but at least it's done by highly experienced professional VAs. Richter is one of the best as well though his dialoge is understandably limited, and Alucard sounds absolutely perfect. I can't name his VA off the top of my head but I recognize the guy's voice as well as many others'.

Point is, the JP VAs are highly experienced and are good at what they do and the fan trans doesn't seem to negatively affect the experience in any way. Art is always subjective though. Crissagrim is back to Val Manwe, Grandfaloon is back to Legion though Grandfaloon is actually a better name imo etc etc.

e: and Wakamoto does ham it up a bit so I think you'll dig his performance.

edit2: Also if you wanna get through the game quickly just to test this hack out you could always put it on luck mode, jump over that last big wolf before you encounter Death and let him knock you forward so far that you actually bypass Death and retain the Alucard equipment. Breaking the game is fun.

[Gil_Hamilton]

I didn't grow up playing SOTN as a kid so I don't have any emotional connection to the English voice acting

I didn't either.
I was a grown adult when I got a PlayStation. Literally, it was purchased on my eighteenth birthday.

so I simply see this translation as a better alternative as far as the VAs are concerned. I can see what they were trying to do with Dracula in the US version with the actor trying to sound gruff like Wakamoto but he kinda comes off like some cat at a comic con cosplaying as dracula and trying to sound like Wakamoto in English.

I don't hear the "trying to sound like Wakamoto." I just hear "trying to overact like the cheese this is, and NAILING IT."

The JP version isn't Oscar worthy but at least it's done by highly experienced professional VAs. Richter is one of the best as well though his dialoge is understandably limited, and Alucard sounds absolutely perfect. I can't name his VA off the top of my head but I recognize the guy's voice as well as many others'.

Point is, the JP VAs are highly experienced and are good at what they do and the fan trans doesn't seem to negatively affect the experience in any way.

I'm just saying the US script isn't near as bad as people make it out to be, and most of the cast turned in a decent performance. Richter's acting is unfairly used to smear the entire work.

The US Dracula and Alucard were fabulous, the US Maria and Shaft were decent enough(Shaft may be just down to the size of the role, but Maria is genuinely good), and the US Richter was a steaming pile of WTF.
No offense to the actor. I know the production was a slapdash affair and if they were so rushed couldn't get him into a proper recording booth I can't imagine how little time he had to familiarize himself with the script. It was assuredly not his best work.


And there's a bizarre insistence that this thing about Dracula's son punching him in the face was supposed to be serious business and not overwrought melodrama. That simply isn't a realistic stance. The J script was overwrought anime dialog and they all knew that nobody actually talks like that.

edit2: Also if you wanna get through the game quickly just to test this hack out you could always put it on luck mode, jump over that last big wolf before you encounter Death and let him knock you forward so far that you actually bypass Death and retain the Alucard equipment. Breaking the game is fun.

The game's easy as hell even without cheating. Also, I think you need a clear file to enable luck mode.



But enough talk. Have at you!

[Yuber]

There's plenty of corny shit in this trans as well, just not as much as there is in the original '97 US script. As you said regarding the equipment bug though, yeah the game's super easy already even on Luck Mode without cheating. I did a cheat/test run first just to make sure the hack didn't crash at some odd point during the hack so when I did finally play through luck mode I did indeed have a clear file from my non-serious test run. Also Alucard's voice is better in Japanese imo, by far.

This isn't cheating but if you wanna get super OP before getting the Crissagrim, you could always just farm Chakrams(and dual wield them) from Discus Lords. They hit multiple times and have pretty nice range and when dual wielding them, you can literally get enemies stuck in a constant loop of getting smacked around. Luck mode is in some ways even easier because it makes rare items much easier to get with the 99 base luck stat(and Lapis Lazuli) despite making the rest of your stats terrible. Even Rapiers from the Dullahan Skeleton s are overpowered due to their speed.

I always go for speed over power, and as an aside I've been pretty addicted to Aria of Sorrow lately as well. Haven't played Dawn yet. Still trying to get that last .2%, have all souls already.

[Gil_Hamilton]

I hate item farming. Particularly given I never see rare drops. It was years before I saw a Crissaegrim.

It doesn't take much to become super OP in Symphony, though.

[Yuber]

Yeah it does take the fun out of a game when an item you really want just wont drop(like double Heaven Swords to activate its special attack) but I literally got 2 Crissagrim drops on luck mode within a span of around 10-15 minutes as well as the Fist of Tulkas(or Orichalcum in the trans I'm playing). It's the ultimate fist weapon and you can shoot hadoukens with it. I'm a little obsessive to say the least so if I'm missing something I want, I'm going to get it. Fake Alucard stuff+Luck Mode+Lapis Lazuli+Ring of Arcana= LOTS of rare drops without much trouble.

Soul farming without the Soul Eater Ring in Aria is significantly more annoying imo.

EDIT: Also just started Xenoblade Chronicles(original, not X) and not only is it incredibly addictive but it has some of the most gorgeous music in any game I've played in a very long time. Probably the best title screen music I can think of ever. Some of the more techo-esque stuff isn't my thing but the orchestral pieces are breathtaking.

[Cammygirl192]

@Gil_Hamilton: I wasn't even born when the PSX came out, I'm probably the youngest active user here (turned 15 last month), although due to something that happened last month I wasn't able to be active on many places at all, even this one -.-

Still, here's the thing I've copy-pasted to a few boards in this threads recently:

Lately, I have been playing the Game Boy Color version of Donkey Kong Country, and Super Mario Kart, although not much else. I was mostly playing DKC's GBC version for a review I am going to put up on my website on Tuesday, and playing Super Mario Kart in Time Trial mode. My best record so far on Mario Circuit 1 is 1"04"89 with Bowser, on the PAL version.

Both games were played via emulation, on my PSP system.

[Agozer]

Paper Mario: Color Splash. Really digging it. Another reason out of quite a few for not regretting getting a Wii U.

Also, Witcher 3 and Dead or Alive Xtreme 3. DOAX3 is... erm... very titillating.