Yumi's Odd Odyssey, now about swallowing dry meds and sushi

[GSK]

I still haven't played the new game or even watched a lot of footage but I've heard some pretty bad things about the framerate (30FPS with drops)--can anyone confirm/deny?

Anyway, I should have something neat to share in the near future...

[KennyMan666]

They're seriously bringing back the shitty name for the US version? Ugh.

[drauch]

Did they decrease the boobage for the U.S. DL only release? NOT BUYING.

[hecheff]

Did they decrease the boobage for the U.S. DL only release? NOT BUYING.

Such as this shot from the title?

[drauch]

Those look like DS edition boobies, not the new 3DS one, right?

[hecheff]

Had no idea, but double-checked just now.
Yeah, those are DS boobies.

So I take it that this borderline 'touching'-game style must be some trend.

[drauch]

I know my boobies very well.

[ZellSF]

I still haven't played the new game or even watched a lot of footage but I've heard some pretty bad things about the framerate (30FPS with drops)--can anyone confirm/deny?

Anyway, I should have something neat to share in the near future...

This is probably where you heard it from:

What I tried to do with Shun is that I wanted to make the game a little more for a wider audience. Even if you’re not that good of a game player, you’re able to play it. To do that, I made the game a little slower than how it originally was. I wanted to slow down the motion of the characters. So the framerate was originally 60, but we brought it down to 30. The game did get slower, but we intended to do that in the first place.

[GSK]

3DIT: y'know what, I'll just have to drag the damn thing out of storage and check for myself. Haven't played Shun in years (3+ years since I touched the DS port, and longer since OG)... goddammit, now I have to do things.

[BulletMagnet]

Coming next month.

[GSK]

The PAL-region release will be out in Q1 2014, too, with the original title.

[M.Knight]

Good news!
The lack of a physical release is disappointing, but at least the series will gain a bit more recognition, I hope.

[KennyMan666]

The PAL-region release will be out in Q1 2014, too, with the original title.

Ohh, really? Source on that? That would be amazing. Pretty much seals the deal on that I should get a EU 3DSXL. Once I have the moneys for it.

[GSK]

The PAL-region release will be out in Q1 2014, too, with the original title.

Ohh, really? Source on that? That would be amazing. Pretty much seals the deal on that I should get a EU 3DSXL. Once I have the moneys for it.

It showed up on a few ratings boards over the last couple of days (German USK, Aussie OFLC). I can't link to 'em right now but you should be able to find them on Google fairly easily. Agatsuma is self-publishing, from the looks of things.

[evil_ash_xero]

I've been fiddling around with the PS game. About how long is this game? I see people speed running this thing is minutes.

Also, is the SNES version longer? I can't seem to run it well on my emulator. I'm gonna have to play it on the Wii. Hopefully it will run better on that.

Is the SNES version short too? I have no idea how long these games are supposed to be, or exactly how you do "well", other than getting to the door.

[MX7]

I've been fiddling around with the PS game. About how long is this game? I see people speed running this thing is minutes.

Also, is the SNES version longer? I can't seem to run it well on my emulator. I'm gonna have to play it on the Wii. Hopefully it will run better on that.

Is the SNES version short too? I have no idea how long these games are supposed to be, or exactly how you do "well", other than getting to the door.

Think of it like a STG. It might be less than three minutes long on the shortest route, but the meat of progression is how you get there. You can play it like a standard platformer, you can practice until you effectively break the game. It's as long as you want it to be, and you need to decide for yourself what playing well means.

In short, just enjoy it. Mess around, find routes that you enjoy, muck around with the line.

[M.Knight]

Think of it like a STG

This is spot-on. And I think it is why it is one of my favorite platformers. Replaying (non-SNES-boss) levels is not a chore, there is no side-tracking collectibles to get (aside from the rare 1up that is actually useful), no power-up gimmick or level-up system of any kind and you really feel the effects of the progression curve as you manage to enter previously unreachable stages thanks to your skills alone.

I played the DS compilation more than 120 hours and yet I still haven't cleared all of the stages in the PS1 version. I think the SNES version is easier and you may "finish" it a bit faster than the PS1 Umihara Kawase because the line physics are more lenient and the stages in themselves are less tricky in their layouts but compensate by having more ennemies spawn. The harder stages in Umihara Kawase Shun are really crazy.
Also, finishing all of the SNES stages doesn't mean I was done with the game, because doing a few short runs from time to time is still very enjoyable, like shoot'em ups. You can also play "for score" if you like speedrunning and the game has a replay feature.

However, the SNES version doesn't have a stage-specific practice mode and most bosses break the flow of the game in my opinion (I believe the game would be better without any of them).

[hecheff]

Think of it like a STG. It might be less than three minutes long on the shortest route, but the meat of progression is how you get there. You can play it like a standard platformer, you can practice until you effectively break the game. It's as long as you want it to be, and you need to decide for yourself what playing well means.

In short, just enjoy it. Mess around, find routes that you enjoy, muck around with the line.

Words of wisdom right there.
Now where did I put my copy...

[sevensevenseven]

most bosses break the flow of the game in my opinion (I believe the game would be better without any of them).

Agreed. The ring-of-fish bosses were the only ones that didn't become tedious upon repeated playthroughs, because they play out like actual boss fights. That's the main reason I prefer Shun; the boss fights in that game tended to follow that mentality, as opposed to "dodge the same predictable bubble patterns you've dodged before for 5 minutes until the path to the door opens up". A great example of how improved the system is in Shun would be the giant tadpole boss fights. With the necessary skills you won't have to wait till a specific time to get to the door, unlike in the SNES game. The first encounter allows you to go around the back and wall-climb to the exit, and the second pair can be circumvented with a well-timed slingshot while they're jumping. Now that's more like it.

[evil_ash_xero]

The commercials in the 1st edition of Shun were really....unexpected.

I downloaded the 2nd edition to get rid of that, but am saddened that you just have a static image as a reward. The commercials were at least animated.

I haven't played the SFC version much yet, but I did find it to be less stiff feeling than the PSX version, and I actually found it to be harder, due to all the enemies walking about.

Interesting physics.

[M.Knight]

@sevensevenseven : Indeed, the bosses with multiple small fish you have to defeat instead of a huge invincible creature that must be timed-out are better. One of those fish fights can even be skipped, which was not intended but nonetheless very enjoyable. I tend to avoid routes that include boss fields, which is frustrating because the game already doesn't have too many exit fields, so I am stuck with a specific set of routes.

Those fights in Shun are excellent and the bosses you mentionned are a good example of the improvements in the boss design. The first tadople encounter has actually three ways to exit the field as you can go under the left part of the platform, pick the 1up and then climb the big wall on the right, or simply climb that wall at your immediate right and reach the exit faster if missing the 1up doesn't bother you. Another positive change in Shun is the fact that in boss battles that involve small fish, touching them won't kill you but instead knock you back. The fish that touched you also dies so you can be a bit more aggressive and even ram into the fish if you don't risk falling in the water due to the knockback.

All those improvements as well as the bigger variety in routes make Shun the more enjoyable game for me, but the original is still fun as long as I don't have to fight too many bosses. Having to wait for the giant crab to do its overly long back-and-forth movements and bubble shots more than 5/6 times and then stupidly dying at the last jump means an immediate rage-quit.

@evil_ash_hero : Once you become comfortable with the stage layouts and can move faster, the enemies won't be as annoying. I think that when you are stuck at a specific place, they tend to spawn a lot more.

[GSK]

Some Nintendo/eShop-related bullshit has kept Natsume from releasing this earlier in the year, but from the sounds of things it'll finally be released very soon, maybe even as soon as tomorrow. Price is $30, I believe.

The PAL release still hasn't been officially announced, but EU/AU dudes needn't worry.

[BulletMagnet]

Looks like March 20th is the date.

[GSK]

Out now in NA!

[ZellSF]

ouch, I was right about lots of background objects in this game and 30 FPS not ending up looking pretty. It all looks VERY choppy.

Have no issues with controls though, feels very smooth.

Oh and forced tutorial message popups = SO annoying.

[GSK]

Out next week in PAL territories, 24.99EUR.

[KennyMan666]

Out now in PAL land.

Fuck yeah.

[M.Knight]

I bought it as well.
The French description on the eShop page is full of typos and weird syntax, like Google translate results.
The game itself is as cool as the others, the physics are a bit different though so I'll have to adapt and learn the grappling hook's new properties before enjoying the game to its full extent.

[KennyMan666]

The only thing I had to complain about stopped being a complaint when I reached an ending door for the first time and unlocked Survival Mode. I should never have had any doubt.

[M.Knight]

It is strange that the 'Survival Challenge' (AKA old school mode) is not available from the start but you unlock it pretty quickly so it is alright. The life system in this mode is also an interesting risk-reward mechanic as you are only given 3 initial lives but picking up the numerous backpacks in the stages forces you to take longer. So you have to be confident in your skills when you try to speedrun and reach the top of the leaderboards for this mode.

The game is really cool, the only thing I would complain about is the step backwards taken with the bosses. If the first one is any indication, they are no longer speedrunnable as in Umihara Kawase Shun. Furthermore, it seems there is a boss at every end field (the tadople boss is, at least), so you can't plan a route that has none of them.

The online leaderboards are very motivating and are an extremely welcome addition. My name on these is "Jul" and there is a player called "texh" who seems very skilled, is he one of you guys?