What [not shmup] game are you playing now?

[BareKnuckleRoo]

Just cleared Lost Chapter: Angel Slayer in Bayonetta with a Pure Platinum as Jeanne. Done it with all three characters now, Jeanne was by far the easiest to do this with. The toughest bosses of the chapter (vs 3x Jeannes) were absolutely melted by her boosted Wicked Weave damage with me spamming Shuraba's wide PKP slice weave. https://www.twitch.tv/videos/638914914

[Marc]

Enter the Gungeon: The ‘Farewell to Arms’ update finally turns this into the game it always threatened to be, it’s far better balanced and offers a bunch of mechanical tweaks, including the ability to neuter the annoying way that aiming with the right stick would also cause wild camera swing. I’ll be sinking some proper time into this now.

Not A Hero: Got the 100% this one on PS4 years ago, but at three quid odd bundled with OliOli2 on Xbox it seemed rude not to. More people should play this, it’s a riot. 2.5d shooter; the 2.5 coming from the fact that the slide button put you into cover, where you’re invulnerable to gunfire. If that makes it sound stop/start, it’s quite the opposite – especially when going for the maximum rating on each level. There’s also an ammo-saving execution move (ammo is unlimited, but reloading leaves you frozen and defenceless – with most characters), so each level ends up clocking around the two-minute mark with barely a pause in the action. I find its offbeat sense of humour kind of endearing as well.

FFVII: Nobody else? Well I think it’s brilliant, especially the combat.

Ori & the Blind Forest: Like SOTN, one of those platformers where every movement feels amazing. Not too taxing so far, but the various areas are wonderfully designed, and it just feels so damn good to play. When a platformer nails wall-jumping, you know it's a good one.

Demon’s Tilt: This is AMAZING. No more to add. Bought a bunch of Star Wars tables for Pinball FX3 and thought they were gimmicky shit, this should feel like gimmicky shit but I can't pull myself away from it.

Ninja-Kid 2: Sorry BiL, can’t get into this one at all. Feels very stiff, the wall jumping is a pain in the arse, and it just doesn’t flow particularly well for me. Feels like a Taito platformer with all the fun bits removed.

Also, where's my Sunset Riders!?

Streets of Rogue: A top-down roguelike that offers a ridiculously open-ended way of approaching each mission. Honestly, a 3D version of this would be the best Deus Ex game ever.

[guigui]

Enter the Gungeon: The ‘Farewell to Arms’ update finally turns this into the game it always threatened to be, it’s far better balanced and offers a bunch of mechanical tweaks, including the ability to neuter the annoying way that aiming with the right stick would also cause wild camera swing. I’ll be sinking some proper time into this now.

Is this update available on the Switch version ?

[BIL]

Ninja-Kid 2: Sorry BiL, can’t get into this one at all. Feels very stiff, the wall jumping is a pain in the arse, and it just doesn’t flow particularly well for me. Feels like a Taito platformer with all the fun bits removed.

MARC I AM DISAPPOINT (■｀W´■)

Nah, UPL were some weird fuckers. See also Mutant Night. The original Ninja-kun is a bit more conventional-feeling, but still not really recommendable if you dislike its sequel.

Also, where's my Sunset Riders!?

I know right. Fuckin Chinese Bat AIDS ruining all the summer fun. Waiting on ACA Guevara myself, AKA the TRUE and HONEST Ikari III. The game going by that name may or may not be worthwhile, but it sure as shit isn't Ikari.

[trap15]

Ninja-Kid 2: Sorry BiL, can’t get into this one at all. Feels very stiff, the wall jumping is a pain in the arse, and it just doesn’t flow particularly well for me. Feels like a Taito platformer with all the fun bits removed.

I feel like it's a game that needs a bit of investment before the magic shines through. Once you're comfortable with the game it's really powerfully unique and fun. Not without its flaws, but at least personally the strengths overcome them.

[BulletMagnet]

I fucking love FF12!

even if the story falls apart at the end.

Finally finished the bugger last night...and yeah, it does get kinda goofy at the very end, but this game is very much about the journey as opposed to the destination (I don't know if anyone's ever tried to properly quantify it, but from what I experienced of it I'd guess that at least half the content here is completely optional).

Huge and fun to explore, if sometimes too grandiose and/or obtuse for its own good, I'm glad I finally got around to playing this, but am also glad that I did so via the remastered version and its QOL enhancements. And yeesh, have I really been chipping away at this thing since late March/early April? I'm gonna be seeing arced red lines coming out of people when they talk to me.

[Steamflogger Boss]

The toughest part of playing the old ones for me is those long unskippable attack animations and such.

Doesn't the plot fall apart in most ff games? Been awhile since I played one but I remember them being batshit crazy. Gonna tryyyy to play through IX starting tonight.

[Lethe]

BKR's latest Bayo post led me to find out that there is now a moveset switcher mod for God Hand in the vein of the DMC3 style switcher. Just what I needed to revisit the game for the umpteenth time.

Despite being literally just a Cheat Engine table the game handles it well - it simply patches your move assignments upon hitting a hotkey and they update ASAP; swapping during a square combo causes the chain to keep going from the point you're at but with the new moves. Also there's an option to force the circle button action allowing you to mix it up with finishers that aren't usually possible (technically you can set it to anything, no matter how stupid, but whether it'll work on a given dude or not is another matter). Massive limitations of the game gone and all someone needed to do was find the right offsets.

The downside to this is that I'm now obligated to emulate and PCSX2's handling of GH still isn't the best thing around. In fact it may have gotten worse in some ways.

[Sumez]

The toughest part of playing the old ones for me is those long unskippable attack animations and such.

Huh, really? I don't think that was really an issue until FF7, which also introduced short but constant load times into the mix. The older ones are mostly really brisk.

[Steamflogger Boss]

The toughest part of playing the old ones for me is those long unskippable attack animations and such.

Huh, really? I don't think that was really an issue until FF7, which also introduced short but constant load times into the mix. The older ones are mostly really brisk.

Those are really old, VII is from 1997. But yeah I was thinking of VII-X.

[Sumez]

In this case I agree completely. The modern generations of FF games definitely suffer from way too slow unskippable attack animations.

[Steamflogger Boss]

In this case I agree completely. The modern generations of FF games definitely suffer from way too slow unskippable attack animations.

But they are old! Even PS2 is "retro" now. FeelsOldMan

Definitely didn't mean to imply it for previous entries though of course. IMO IV-VI are the best ones anyway.

[To Far Away Times]

The toughest part of playing the old ones for me is those long unskippable attack animations and such.

Doesn't the plot fall apart in most ff games? Been awhile since I played one but I remember them being batshit crazy. Gonna tryyyy to play through IX starting tonight.

FFIX's plot is fine. It's been 15 years or so since I played it but I don't remember it being too crazy.

The battle system is so slow though, even back then.

It is a lovely game though. Squaresoft was definitely growing and improving on certain aspects with each game that generation and FFIX is no exception. The only thing about FFIX is that the music is not as memorable as FFVII and FFVIII (an extremely high bar, to be fair) but it has better visuals and characters. If you like the games pre-FFVII you'll love FFIX as it's a love letter to the classic games.

[Steamflogger Boss]

I've enjoyed what I played so far. I don't mind slow too much, being a JRPG playah.

[Blinge]

You a bad enough jrpg playa to deal with this?

Spoiler

[Steamflogger Boss]

Desire to know more intensifies.

[Blinge]

Aahah. Metal Max Returns.
The SFC remake of Metal Max on FC.
Fan translation.

[WelshMegalodon]

In this case I agree completely. The modern generations of FF games definitely suffer from way too slow unskippable attack animations.

I do think FFV's purple fade of death could stand to be just a tad shorter, but it's still nothing compared to the silly amounts of time-wasting in the PlayStation installments.

If you like the games pre-FFVII you'll love FFIX as it's a love letter to the classic games.

Eh. The references and homages are fun and Vivi is likable, but even in Disc 1 I felt like I spent way too much time watching cutscenes and slogging through overly long plot detours. Though that may have just been me.

[Sumez]

When FF9 came out, I adored it. Although I didn't hate the games, I wasn't a fan of the style departure taken in the previous two, and FF9 felt like not only a return to form, but also a love letter to the entire series that came before it.
And I should probably add that at the time FF9 came out, I was an incredibly massive FF fan. This was before the series went totally astray, and there was still very little to dislike about it. Playing the game I was totally blinded by how well they ditched everything I did dislike about FF8 especially, and it went right up as one of my favourites simply by virtue of constantly reminding me of everything I loved about every other FF game.

Looking back at it, however, it's kind of obvious how it simultaneously manages to also represent some of the biggest changes the series would take to separate it from the older games (and I'm talking about the actual older games here )
The battles are much more drawn out, and really plagued by load times. Like WelshMegalodon says, so much of is it just watching cutscenes, and then moving forward to the next cutscene, something that would plague FFX just as bad. The game is absurdly linear, almost constantly cutting you off completely from any area outside of where you just were and where ever you are supposed to go. These are elements that the FF series would be notorious for, but in retrospect I don't think it was really plagued by it at all until the latter two PS1 titles.

I still have a fondness for the game, though. To this day it remains the last mainline Final Fantasy game to actually feel like Final Fantasy.

[Blinge]

Here's my hot take.
X > IX

I've always felt like everything outside the main continent in 9 was a bit meh. I don't care to explore a world that has nothing in it.
Black Mage village is a big exception.
I only played 9 a couple of years ago and have already forgotten most of the story. I seem to remember disc 2 and 3 being a bit of a chore and not being interested again until the denouement in disc4.

Zidane's a bit of a baller compared to the previous moody boyz so he has that going for him.
I guess the simpler character building systems were better than the Junction system but I destroyed my own enjoyment of junctions so eh, not sure I can comment.

I never quite understood why people like IX quite so much, it's certainly not the underrated gem or secret best FF I've heard it described as.

[Sumez]

IX has more likable characters, a more fun setting, a real overworld map, and a story that's easier to get engaged in.
But I'm inclined to agree that FFX is probably a better game, and in fact a damn fine game all in all.
I believe FFX is generally considered by far the most popular game in the series with the Japanese audience.

[BIL]

I would fuck ALL the girls in FFVII >¦3
Not Cloud though >¦3

Spoiler

(He can SUCC MY DICK ROFL >¦3)

[Obiwanshinobi]

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is not without warts, but they're likeable, harmless kind of warts. I mean, a now-White Mage named Bellini plays on my team!

Spoiler

[Blinge]

I would fuck ALL the girls in FFVII >¦3
Not Cloud though >¦3

Spoiler

(He can SUCC MY DICK ROFL >¦3)

bet he has a damn good succ

[vol.2]

FF9 felt like not only a return to form, but also a love letter to the entire series that came before it.

really? I always had the impression that 9 was a further development that built on 7 and 8 away from the original entries.

do you mean in terms of the ye olde setting, rather than the steampunk setting of 7?

[Sumez]

Yeah, I'm sort of addressing those points specifically in the part of my post that you didn't quote, so I guess I mostly agree with you. But FF8 was still a pretty huge misstep.
Though in terms of gameplay I was also extremely thankful to see the four character party returning. I don't think the traditional Final Fantasy combat system works very well with only three characters.

[BareKnuckleRoo]

One thing I really enjoyed in Final Fantasy X was the return to not having a "locked" party member slot. I'm not fond of RPGs where you have a large cast of playable characters, but a main character is forced into occupying one of those slots at all times (aside from specific dungeons) as is the case in FF7, FF8, FF9, Legend of Dragoon, etc.

FFX only has forced character use during the swimming segments (by virtue of not wanting to have to do animations for the entire cast for water combat which is understandable). You can freely use whoever you want in fights, even in story fights that start the battle with specific characters in the frontline you can swap them out at-will. The later "Tales of" series is also very good about not having characters forced into specific slots so you can use whatever party you want at all times (with Vesperia being somewhat of an outlier in that it has many fights where "X must be in battle" is a thing, at least in the original version).

[Steamflogger Boss]

Xenogears had quite a bit of locked slot moments. It doesn't bother me too much, at least when there are story reasons for it.

Seems like all the pure traditionalists hate VIII. After VII I couldn't be bothered to try it but I will one day.

[BulletMagnet]

bet he has a damn good succ

Only if he's equipped with the Tornado materia.

On-topic, put me not only in the X > IX, camp, but the VIII > IX group (population: 1 ) as well.

[Blinge]

One thing I really enjoyed in Final Fantasy X was the return to not having a "locked" party member slot.

I swear you always have to have Tidus on board??