What [not shmup] game are you playing now?

[Herr Schatten]

I've just finished Flight of the Amazon Queen. GOG had thrown this in as a freebie, so I thought "why not". Looks and plays like a Lucasarts fangame, which it kind of is, if you look at its development history. That's not really a bad thing, though.

While the writing is clearly not quite on par with the games it took inspiration from, it's actually a charming indy-esque little adventure. Nothing's outstanding about this game, but it's all very solid and competently done, although it's really easy. Most of the puzzles are fairly obvious, and for those that aren't, the NPCs drop enough hints (as in: outright tell you what you need to do). Still, the game is fun while it lasts and it's short enough to not outstay its welcome. Definitely recommended, just don't expect anything amazing.

[XoPachi]

I've been playing Tunic and oh my god this game is amazing.
Was waiting for about 4 years I think for this one? It's nearly everything I could ask for from something clearly infusing Zelda into it's DNA. I appreciate it's more extrinsic considerations and not just paying homage to Zelda 1, but the culture of playing Zelda 1 in the 80's.

[Sumez]

All I've heard about Tunic sounds amazing. I really hope it gets released to more platforms soon - I'd love a physical Switch copy.

[XoPachi]

All I've heard about Tunic sounds amazing. I really hope it gets released to more platforms soon - I'd love a physical Switch copy.

The best way I think I can describe is Legend of Zelda meets Environmental Station Alpha. In that there's waaaaay more to this game than it initially lets on. And it's cryptic. But like a perfect balance of cryptic. It's not asking you translate ASCII or something like Fez. The clues are very well placed and there's a large emphasis extrapolating later on. You feel extremely stimulated when you solve the harder puzzles through observation and putting clever pieces together.

I see people compare it to Dark Souls and...I don't see it. Outside of I guess the statues and losing a small bit of stuff when you die, but I like to imagine Dark Souls isn't so simple that it can be reduced to two very minor elements. Tunic isn't even particularly difficult in terms of fighting. Things just do a lot of damage. Your movement and attack speed isn't even sluggish like Dark Souls.

But it's a very very smart game.

[Herr Schatten]

I've just started playing Aggelos. I'm not very far in yet, but it seems like a really solid Monster World type of game. The presentation is a bit basic, though, and the jump arc feels a little weird, but otherwise I like it so far.

[Sumez]

Aggelos is fantastic. Are you playing the hard mode? You should be playing the hard mode

[Herr Schatten]

Aggelos is fantastic. Are you playing the hard mode? You should be playing the hard mode

Alas, I'm not. Does it offer any significant differences to normal mode apart from, you know, being harder?

[Sumez]

I don't know I haven't tried normal mode. Just hard mode has some crazy hard moments later on, and really requires thinking about your every step. The final boss took me a while to get down, but it was super satisfying.

[guigui]

I also read that Aggelos normal mode is walk in the park and remove some interest to the game.
I played hard mode on the go and did not regret it.

[Herr Schatten]

I don't know. I'm currently at the squid boss and he kicks my butt pretty hard even on normal. Maybe I'm just doing things wrong, as the previous boss was indeed pretty easy. However, while I wouldn't call normal mode very challenging, it's no cakewalk either. From what I've seen of the game so far, I'd put it at about the same level as Monster World II and III, and a little above IV, which seems fitting given that these games obviously were main inspirations for Aggelos.

[Sumez]

I think Aggelos outclasses any of the games it was directly inspired by, simply due to its level design being so much more inspired. Every single room is thought out and feels like it serves a purpose in the overall world or dungeon design, it really is exemplary IMO.

[Herr Schatten]

Oh, I was talking about the difficulty of normal mode compared to the Monster World games. I'll withhold judgement of the overall quality until after I have completed it.

[XoPachi]

I've just started playing Aggelos. I'm not very far in yet, but it seems like a really solid Monster World type of game. The presentation is a bit basic, though, and the jump arc feels a little weird, but otherwise I like it so far.

Aggelos is fucking amazing.

[SuperDeadite]

Been playing the original Dragon Slayer on the newly released Falcom Early Collection for X68000.
I'm proud to say that I just cleared Phase 1. Didn't think I'd ever pull it off. This game is insane.

[mycophobia]

Been playing the original Dragon Slayer on the newly released Falcom Early Collection for X68000.
I'm proud to say that I just cleared Phase 1. Didn't think I'd ever pull it off. This game is insane.

you have godlike patience

[guigui]

Currently hooked to Hades. So hooked that the Elden Ring urge is not that strong (did not buy it yet).

God is this game masterfully crafted ?! Story, characters, voice acting (I'm crushing on Megaera broken low voice), gameplay loop : all of this top quality.

Of course this is yet another rogue-lite title (whatever that means), but each run can be very different and lead to new opening in the game. Currently have about 80 runs at the counter (30-45 minutes per run), and still feel the urge to play the next one because it can lead to new development.

Combats are intense, not easy, good sense of progression when you try to master most arms at your disposal.

Only flaw I could mention is the lack of exploration. Each room needs to be cleared to open the next one and that's all. In this regards, I think Dead Cells had the exploration part way superior, but chara design and mood way inferior.

Definitely a recommend if you did not try it yet.

[Sengoku Strider]

Been playing the original Dragon Slayer on the newly released Falcom Early Collection for X68000.
I'm proud to say that I just cleared Phase 1. Didn't think I'd ever pull it off. This game is insane.

I have the Falcom Classics remake on Saturn. Is it harder than that? Because I didn't find it all that tough; I was kind of surprised at what a small game it was all things considered. It's bizarre to think of how many epic rpg series sprang out of that weird little maze game.

[Sumez]

I kinda burned out on Hades at the point where nearly every run lead to a clear.

Although there's a lot of skill based gameplay in the game, ensuring the clear really mostly comes down to knowing how to best synergise the skills you get from the gods alongside the weapon of your choice. And at one point you just have such a good feeling for what works there's little to explore in subsequent playthroughs. And trying to make "challenge runs" for yourself isn't really satisfying IMO, the game is still a bit too messy for that to work with certain builds.
Unlike a lot of arcade games where each playthrough becomes a skill based challenge, Hades very quickly just became a question of compulsion to me, and of course that's also very high on the list of things the game does do well, due to all the work put into tying every single run together into one long continuous story. It's a good game, but it's really stretched thin, too.

[Gamer707b]

I've been on a Treasure kick last few months so decided to finally finish Dynamite Heady. Playing it on the Switch. Man is this game hard!! To the point of it taking away from some of my fun. I'm using saves. Saving after every level and it's still mind numbingly frustrating. How the heck did kids beat this back in the day with no saving and in one sitting is what I wanna know?

Maybe it's just me, but I didn't even have as much a hard time with Alien Soldier as I am with this one.

[SuperDeadite]

Been playing the original Dragon Slayer on the newly released Falcom Early Collection for X68000.
I'm proud to say that I just cleared Phase 1. Didn't think I'd ever pull it off. This game is insane.

I have the Falcom Classics remake on Saturn. Is it harder than that? Because I didn't find it all that tough; I was kind of surprised at what a small game it was all things considered. It's bizarre to think of how many epic rpg series sprang out of that weird little maze game.

I have not played Saturn Remake myself, but I have heard they made it a lot more tolerable. X68000 is a direct port of the og pc88 version. The hardest part is just getting started as you can't even save your game until you get 50,000 experience, and this takes close to 90 minutes. From there it gets a lot less stressful. When you load your game there is a massive 10% exp penalty though.

I also have the Super Cassette Vision version, and you can save whenever you want. No requirements or penalties.

Don't know if I have it in me to attempt Phase 2 as it's an insane maze of warps.

[guigui]

I kinda burned out on Hades at the point where nearly every run lead to a clear.

Although there's a lot of skill based gameplay in the game, ensuring the clear really mostly comes down to knowing how to best synergise the skills you get from the gods alongside the weapon of your choice. And at one point you just have such a good feeling for what works there's little to explore in subsequent playthroughs. And trying to make "challenge runs" for yourself isn't really satisfying IMO, the game is still a bit too messy for that to work with certain builds.
Unlike a lot of arcade games where each playthrough becomes a skill based challenge, Hades very quickly just became a question of compulsion to me, and of course that's also very high on the list of things the game does do well, due to all the work put into tying every single run together into one long continuous story. It's a good game, but it's really stretched thin, too.

Sure I definitely feels that this can happen. The whole heat system makes you want to come back for more harder runs, but I guess that once you unfold the complete story and unlock most things, you can burn out pretty quick.

Until then, and this will be around 50 hours for most people, time with this game is very good.

[Sengoku Strider]

Been playing the original Dragon Slayer on the newly released Falcom Early Collection for X68000.
I'm proud to say that I just cleared Phase 1. Didn't think I'd ever pull it off. This game is insane.

I have the Falcom Classics remake on Saturn. Is it harder than that? Because I didn't find it all that tough; I was kind of surprised at what a small game it was all things considered. It's bizarre to think of how many epic rpg series sprang out of that weird little maze game.

I have not played Saturn Remake myself, but I have heard they made it a lot more tolerable. X68000 is a direct port of the og pc88 version. The hardest part is just getting started as you can't even save your game until you get 50,000 experience, and this takes close to 90 minutes. From there it gets a lot less stressful. When you load your game there is a massive 10% exp penalty though.

I also have the Super Cassette Vision version, and you can save whenever you want. No requirements or penalties.

Don't know if I have it in me to attempt Phase 2 as it's an insane maze of warps.

If you have a Saturn maybe give that version a go, it can be had for under ¥3000. It looks much better/smoother and is less painful, unless you really like hearing 'The Entertainer' played out through your footsteps (they removed that).

[Sumez]

Sure I definitely feels that this can happen. The whole heat system makes you want to come back for more harder runs, but I guess that once you unfold the complete story and unlock most things, you can burn out pretty quick.

Until then, and this will be around 50 hours for most people, time with this game is very good.

This is true. I don't know how many hours I have in Hades, but I'm pretty sure it's above 50.
It's hard to complain about that.

[SuperDeadite]

I have the Falcom Classics remake on Saturn. Is it harder than that? Because I didn't find it all that tough; I was kind of surprised at what a small game it was all things considered. It's bizarre to think of how many epic rpg series sprang out of that weird little maze game.

I have not played Saturn Remake myself, but I have heard they made it a lot more tolerable. X68000 is a direct port of the og pc88 version. The hardest part is just getting started as you can't even save your game until you get 50,000 experience, and this takes close to 90 minutes. From there it gets a lot less stressful. When you load your game there is a massive 10% exp penalty though.

I also have the Super Cassette Vision version, and you can save whenever you want. No requirements or penalties.

Don't know if I have it in me to attempt Phase 2 as it's an insane maze of warps.

If you have a Saturn maybe give that version a go, it can be had for under ¥3000. It looks much better/smoother and is less painful, unless you really like hearing 'The Entertainer' played out through your footsteps (they removed that).

Maybe if I stumble on it locally. But for me only the og version feels right. There is something strangely addicting about it. I've had the SCV version for years and never really go into it, but playing the true original really changed my experience.

[Herr Schatten]

On my quest to catch up with point and click adventures I missed out on back in the 90s, I finished the next one: Simon the Sorcerer.

The game is a mixed bag. On one hand it looks absolutely gorgeous. It must be one of the best looking games of its time. On the other hand it has severe problems. The area you have access to from the get-go is huge and consists of too many rooms, a lot of which are actually empty. It's not always obvious where the exits are, so it's really easy to miss something. This means that the first few hours you'll walk around aimlessly, not knowing what to do. Additionally, the puzzles are super-obtuse. I had to consult a guide several times, and even then some bits didn't make any sense at all. The last third of the game, leading up to the finale, was much better then.

I can't really recommend this one. I'll try the sequel next, as I heard it's much better than the first game.

[Herr Schatten]

In other news, I'm making progress in Aggelos. I finished the fire dungeon. The boss fight was pretty cool.

Right now I'm stuck at the challenge that can be found to the right of the Fira village area, in the room where you have to kill enemies with jump attack and down attack. Haven't beaten it yet. What kind of shit is this? This must be one of the biggest difficulty spikes I've ever encountered. Is there any trick to it or is it just really, really difficult?

EDIT: Got it. But I had to switch back to my unergonomic Hori d-pad joycon, as the Split Pad Pro's buttons and pads have longer ways and I had difficulties making up and down register quickly enough.

[XoPachi]

I've been doing MK8DX time trials a lot lately. I really did not care about this game that much. But 200cc makes things a lot more interesting for me.

[Gamer707b]

Just got the new Kirby today and played the first world so far. This is the perfect game for me now. Something I can relax and explore at my own pace. I've gone through 5 Treasure games almost back to back, played a good bit of shmups and just finished Huntdown not too long ago, so Kirby comes much appreciated.

[Gamer707b]

I've been doing MK8DX time trials a lot lately. I really did not care about this game that much. But 200cc makes things a lot more interesting for me.

I dunno. Bought both the Wii U and Switch game, but just couldn't get much into it. Maybe I'm a Mario Kart noob and someone can correct me, but it feels less skill based and more luck. It seems the better you do, the more the game throws random BS at you. I played the Crash Kart Racing Remake when that came out and that felt way more skill based and had those awesome boss battles.

[guigui]

I've been doing MK8DX time trials a lot lately. I really did not care about this game that much. But 200cc makes things a lot more interesting for me.

I dunno. Bought both the Wii U and Switch game, but just couldn't get much into it. Maybe I'm a Mario Kart noob and someone can correct me, but it feels less skill based and more luck. It seems the better you do, the more the game throws random BS at you. I played the Crash Kart Racing Remake when that came out and that felt way more skill based and had those awesome boss battles.

Of course playing MK against CPU has random elements, this is what makes it fun Vs real players too.
But I'd say time attack modes with only boost is a whole different story.