The time to time-travel in Chrono Trigger is now

I’ve played the first hour or so of Chrono Trigger at least five times total over these many years of mine. But that’s all I ever played. The first hour–waking up in bed, going to the festival, losing Marle to some time vortex, following after her, the trial, eventually ending up in the future, which is all about being post-apocalyptic and  tragic–is pretty dang near tattooed in my brain, and I have shoddy ROMs to blame. Yup, I used an SNES emulator way back when to catch up on some games I missed, and it seemed like every time I got to Arris Dome (or one of those domes) the ROM would crash. And so, I never got back from the future, and I’m guessing my in-game friends of Crono, Lucca, and Marle all died terribly of massive hunger and depression. Robo’s probably still there unless his robotic comrades turned him into scrap metal.

Hmm…no good way to transition from that.

Well, last week, during a heightened stage of insanity from wedding stress and worries about [detail redacted], I picked up Chrono Trigger for the Nintendo DS. It’s a cartridge I’ve been wanting to add to my collection for some time now, and I found it reasonably priced at $20.00. Even though it was a used copy, it still came with the poster that new copies were shipped with…so that’s nice. Granted, I won’t really be hanging it up, but bonus stuff is bonus stuff.

And the even better news is I’ve broken out of my Chrono Trigger slump. I’ve played about three hours worth of the game now and even made it to the end of time. Dun, dun, dunnn. From there, I time-traveled to the land of dinosaurs, which, if I may make the joke, is more accurately known as the land before time. I really do hope I can throw a Lightning Slash against Ducky “Bigmouth” Saurolophus because, as it turns out, one can only listen to her “Yep! Yep! Yep!” so many times. Lots of places to visit there, but no clear quest direction, and I’m not sure how to get back yet.

So I got some grinding to do though as these dinos are actually really tough against my LV 13/14s, and I have to wonder if I wasn’t supposed to go here first; I did head back to the original timeline beforehand only to discover the town and such overrun by goblins and beasts. Not sure what to do about that yet, but regardless, I’m just glad to be experiencing more Chrono Trigger than I ever did before.

Also, the normal day-to-day enemy battles are really tense, much more than any of the boss fights so far. I really like that and miss that feeling of uncertainty and timing and importancy on paying attention to health points and where the enemies are on the playing field. No offense, Dragon Quest IX, because I do love you, but I can just button mash my way to safety each and every time. Chrono Trigger is certainly a refreshing RPG experience, which is funny considering it’s 15 years old.

The arduous task of deciding what Nintendo DS games to pack for the honeymoon

Five days to go until the wedding, and I’m still not even packed yet for the honeymoon. Hmm, might want to get going on that. Will have to make a note. Or, um, just look at this blog post again later. And I’m not even talking about packing clothes…just trying to narrow down what Nintendo DS games I can fit–and should fit–in my travel bag.

First, let me stop you and your finger-waggin’ assuming. Yes, this is Tara and I’s honeymoon, and yes, we’ll be doing lots of honeymoon-like things. Wink, wink. As well as going all over the place in Disney World and the Wizardy World of Harry Potter, dining fine and laughing and loving it up. I promise you, we will. But remember, there’s the airport waiting and flight itself to contend with, and if there’s one thing I’m really not a huge fan of…it’s flying. Anxiety and giant hunks of metal and wires magically floating in the air do not mix well. So I will need some distraction like woah, and thus enters my Nintendo DS. My travel bag can hold around 12 game catridges (I’m actually a little fuzzy on that; it might even be more), as well as another cartridge in the DS game slot.

Here’s the ones that fall under must definitely bring:

• Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars
• Chrono Trigger DS
• Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies
• Mario Kart DS
• Picross 3D
• Scribblenauts

DQIX will be perfect for killing time, as there are a bunch of sidequests and grinding to do. I also picked up Chrono Trigger DS last week and am enjoying that a lot too (more on that game later). Scribblenauts, while not perfect, is fun just to fool around with, and I think the others listed are self-explanatory.

And then here’s some filler:

• Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
• MySims Agents
• Pokemon HeartGold

 

I think Tara is just bringing one game with her, and that’s Animal Crossing: Wild World. I have good memories of that game helping to soothe my sanity during a much longer flight from New Jersey to Arizona when I went to see my sister, meaning she’ll be just fine.

Either way, still lots to get done this week. Please pray for me.

REVIEW: Samorost 2

Developer/Publisher: Amanita Design
Platform: Mac OS X [reviewed], Windows, Linux
Genre(s): Point-and-click puzzler
Mode(s): Single player
Rating: ESRB: No idea, but it was fairly harmless and I’d guess something like E for Everyone
Time clocked: Around one hour

Sadly, I had to pack up the Xbox 360 and TV yesterday as my father came up to help me move from one apartment to the next. He was, however, running late, and I had about two hours to kill in a room full of boxes and nothing fun to play with (please keep your dirty thoughts to yourself). Sure, sure, I had my Nintendo DS, but that was kind of tucked away in my travel bag, and I just didn’t feel like getting off my Mac at that point. Then, ashamed, I remembered that I got five six games for my laptop back when I purchased the Humble Indie Bundle. Five main ones, and the sixth one, Samorost 2, was a bonus for those that helped contribue to the cause.

And so I scanned the list, trying to decide what to play for a bit. I dismissed World of Goo because I’m stuck on one level and can’t do anything else, as well as Aquaria, which is a game I like, but I really need to be in a mood to play. Finally, I picked Samorost 2, knowing nothing about it, only finding the name intriguing.

Samorost 2 is, obviously, a sequel, a follow-up to a game I’ve never played, but from what I can gather–that’s okay. You can go into Samorost 2 knowing nothing about it and still have a great time. The game opens up with a couple of aliens landing on a small planet, eating some fruit, and then stealing a strange little man’s dog because it was barking a little too much. The little man, referenced on another website as a space gnome, doesn’t change out of his PJs and follows their spaceship in pursuit of his best friend. And that’s the plot: rescue the dog and return home. It’s simple, but it works, and the world and creatures and mechanisms that revolve around the plot help buffer it along.

And man, what a beautiful world it is. The quality of the visuals is striking; the space gnome, his dog, and alien lifeforms are presented in a cartoonish form, but animated very well, giving off a Monty Python’s Flying Circus feel to it. The backgrounds (and foregrounds) on each level are extremely detailed and colorful, with a variety of alien flora and fauna (pun-intended) to enjoy, all done in a collage kind of way.

Gameplay is point-and-click, and the cursor turns into a hand when hovering over an item or part of the level that can be interacted with. Breaking tradition, there’s no inventory system, meaning if the space gnome picks up an item, it can–and must–be used there and then to solve the puzzle and move forward. This is a good thing in my opinion; I’ve been currently carrying around a lot of the same items in Broken Sword: The Shadows of the Templars, and each time I try to use them I fall flat on my face. Stupid elephant carving. Anyways, yeah. You point, you click, something happens. Sometimes you have to point, click, and click again while something is happening, but it’s pretty easy to figure out if you pay attention to the level and what does what. There were only two times where I got stuck. The first was because I just couldn’t find the exact pixel to click on, which was frustrating, and the second time came at Samorost 2‘s end when you have to do a bunch of things in a very specific order or start all over again. I did those final puzzles three times before I got it right.

Samorost 2 features a very odd, atmospheric soundtrack. Some levels have just tiny bits of music to it, some have none at all. It works well, but ultimately it’s forgettable. Also absent…dialogue. Progression and plot is told visually, and again, it boils down to “rescue dog and return home.” Some alien gruntage and a few doggy barks pepper the landscape, but it really doesn’t need a narrator or the space gnome’s opinionated musings. Though I still don’t understand why the alien monster is watching soccer on his TV.

Alas, Samorost 2‘s biggest fault is that it is a very short game. Even shorter than Limbo…dun dun dunnn. Consisting of seven levels, all of which are re-accessable via an age-old password system, the game’s running time is estimated between one and two hours, depending how stuck you get or how slow you pace yourself. I gobbled the game up very fast though. It’s extremely charming, stylish, and deceptively tricky. There’s an invisible rope attached to your heart, tugging you forward, and when you reach the next room, you just can’t help but click around, and before you know it, you’re in the next room. And so on, and so on. If you got some time to kill, I definitely recommend it. You can play a good portion of the game for free over at its website. Hop to it, young space gnome wannabes!

Thanks for listening, chiiiiildren!

My third playthrough of Fallout 3 is progressing nicely if a bit slowly. Just hit Level 11 last night thanks to the Here and Now perk, which is basically a hunk of free XP to boost your character up a whole level. Keeping myself neutral-aligned in terms of karma hasn’t been too hard yet as I’ve stuck with the main storyline missions. I’ve only had to balance myself out twice now, once by stealing some items after a small boost of good karma.

The second time I murdered Three Dog with a sledgehammer as he sat snacking on some YumYum Deviled Eggs.

Why? Well, I totally forgot that doing his quest to restore radio power in the D.C. region gains you good karma. Grrr. I wasn’t doing it to be a goody-goody though; I was doing it to find out information about my runaway father, and it was the only way to dig deeper into Three Dog. He forced this good karma into my soul, and that’s just not cool. So when I returned, I was a bit annoyed. And so I sat through his blathering, found out my dad went to Rivet City next, and then it was a-swinging time. I am really enjoying these melee weapons a lot more now that my sneak skill is strong enough to get me close to my victims and give ’em a critical whack from behind. Yup, that sounds totally dirty and badass, and that’s the way Jacob likes it.

On my previous playthroughs, I left Three Dog as is. Yes, interestingly, even during my evil run, I let him do his thing. I guess I did plenty enough evil stuff then that the good karma boost barely made a dent on Samantha. It’ll be odd as I continue exploring the Capital Wasteland without hearing his social commentary on everything happening here and there, as well as my personal decisions on key quests. Now there’s no reason to buy a radio for my Megaton pad…

15 Games in 15 Minutes meme

So, there’s this 15 games in 15 minutes meme going around the Interwebz, and it’s been many moons since I participated in one of these things. The rules are simple and as follows: List 15 videogames you’ve played that will always stick with you. List the first 15 you can recall in no more than 15 minutes. Don’t take ages pondering this one over that one over that one. Just react.

And here’s my 15 in no special order:

1. Suikoden II
2. Super Metroid
3. Shadow of the Colossus
4. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
5. Super Mario Bros. 3
6. Fallout 3
7. Chrono Cross
8. Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy
9. Dark Cloud 2
10. Command & Conquer: Red Alert
11. Twisted Metal
12. Super Mario World
13. Animal Crossing: Wild World
14. Metal Gear Solid
15. Final Fantasy IX

Some of these might surprise y’all. Why Chrono Cross and not Chrono Trigger? Why Final Fantasy IX and not Final Fantasy VII? What the bleepy-bleep is Dark Cloud 2 doing here? Naturally, I have my reasons, and I think it’d be good to explore this more, but for now, let’s just leave it all as a meme.

What are your quick, unforgettable 15? Feel free to post ’em in the comments below.

Nintendo 3DS coming to the United States in March 2011

…and I’m totally not gonna buy it on launch day!

Sure, it is coming loaded with bells and whistles out the whazoo, but I’m not entirely sold yet on why, seeing as my Nintendo DS Lite from 2007 is running magically and just as awesome as any other DS iteration, I need this. I’m definitely going to sit back and watch the playing field very carefully; the fact that the 3D aspect of it can be turned off entirely boggles my mind because then you’d just be using an enhanced DSi, and I need to know how much it is worth that experience. Early reviews will be telling, but 3D gaming is something one must experience for themselves, and seeing that I have terrible eyesight, this is looking less and less like something fun, and more of a struggle to get into.

As always, Japan gets to gobble it up first, and the Nintendo 3DS will be released there on February 26 for 25000 yen (about $300). And then Europe and the United States will get it some time in March 2011, but when and for how much is not yet known. Though I feel like those Nintendo reps wouldn’t mind charging us gamers $300 or more for a handheld videogame console we already purchased numerous times before. The only possibility I’d consider in getting this would be due to an awesome trade-in deal, but even then, it’d be hard to part with my Lite…we’ve shared so many good times together, and it’s not like it’s out-of-date or faulty. It just now has to compete with shinier toys.

Anyways, here’s a better picture of the final Nintendo 3DS design:

What do y’all think of it? Mmm analog stick nub thingy…

GAMES I REGRET PARTING WITH: Donkey Kong Country

Ah, Donkey Kong Country…Only for Nintendo. And they meant it.

I was, in fact, never a subscriber to Nintendo Power (sorry, Greg Noe!), but somehow still got access to a VHS tape called Donkey Kong Country: Exposed, which was a behind-the-scenes tour of Nintendo of America’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington, with bonus early game footage and tips from testers on how to access hidden bonus stages. Think I “borrowed” the tape from a friend’s house. Ahem. “Borrowed.” And it, much like the game itself, ended up parting with me some time during my switch from SNES to PlayStation 1. I have a strong feeling though that the VHS tape sold at a neighborhood yardsale for 50 cents. Oh yeah, made a profit.

Moving on, this plus about four other SNES titles more or less were my collection for the longest time. Money was tight, and if I didn’t get a game for Christmas, well…I was just a wee lad then that would water the grass or wash a neighbor’s car for pocket money. Was not rolling it, as they say. I relied a lot on renting games for a few days or borrowing them from a friend. Notice I said borrow and not “borrow”; no way I would’ve gotten away with something like that, not when a kid’s SNES or Sega Genesis was his or her only friend. Oh, and those other games consisted of Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Mario World, and–don’t laugh, kids–Jurassic Park. I’ll talk about Jurassic Park for the SNES one day, but I am just not ready yet; the scars have not healed.

It’s clear that Donkey Kong Country came to be from other platformers of that day and age, most namely Super Mario Bros. The plot is essentially the same. Instead of saving the princess, you need to save DK’s stolen banana loot. The game has you collecting bananas in levels for extra lives; you can die by falling down holes in the level or getting touched by enemies; and you use a world map to select where you want to go. Sure, sure, the game did some original things too, but it pays a lot of homage to its elders.

But Donkey Kong Country is a very memorable game, and I think fondly about it a lot. The music, the jumping, the level progression, the mine carts, and the shooting from barrel to barrel to moving barrel. There was a lot going on within, and it was very successful in pushing the SNES to its limits and then mocking rival 32-bit and CD-ROM based consoles with purported superior processing power. I think many will first remember the pre-rendered 3D graphics, which really helped bring the 2D side-scrolling platformer to life; the early jungle levels are full of green and treetops and towering hills while the snow levels are replete with blizzards and glistening ledges. This engine was also used on Rare’s other title Killer Instinct, still in my collection now.

By and far though, my favorite stages in Donkey Kong Country were any where you rode an animal. These included Rambi the Rhino, Expresso the Ostrich, Enguarde the Swordfish, Winky the Frog, and Squawks the Parrot, and all were tied to a specifically themed level. Yup, even as frustrating as the underwater levels were, once you got on that swordfish it was ::ahem:: clear swimming from there. Later games would introduce even more animals, and those also were worth looking forward to.

The only negatives I ever put on Donkey Kong Country‘s shoulders were its coin-based save system and boss battles. The boss battles all followed a very repetitive strategy and once you figured that out, it was hit ’em, hit ’em, an hit ’em dead. I ate everything else up with wide eyes and an open heart.

Tara and I combined our SNES collections back when we first started dating in 2008, and she had Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest, a pleasant surprise, as well as a decent filler for the time being. That said, I’m definitely interested in seeing how Donkey Kong Country Returns for the Wii plays out despite having a paper-flat title.

—

GAMES I REGRET PARTING WITH is a regular feature here at Grinding Down where I reminisce about videogames I either sold or traded in when I was young and dumb. To read up on other games I parted with, follow the tag.

Being a Devil and True Mortal in Fallout 3 isn’t tricky at all

Well, I did it. I saw the chance, and I took it, and I think I’m somewhat okay with it despite the fact that the way I unlocked True Mortal was most definitely 100% evil. First, let’s ooh and ahh over these two Fallout 3 Achievements I pinged back to back last night:

Devil (20G): Reached Level 30 with Bad Karma

True Mortal (20G): Reached Level 30 with Neutral Karma

Mmm pretty. And here’s how I got them. I leveled my bad karma girl Samantha up to about 3/4s of Level 29 by tossing some Nuka Grenades at Super Mutant Overlords and watching them–from a safe distance–burn. Then she fast-traveled back to Tenpenny Tower wherein Sam rested until about 1:00 am. Using some Stealth Boys (I left my ninja invisibility suit in my room), Samantha crept towards those sleeping in their beds and proceeded to murder each and every one of ’em, snagging a meaty bonus thanks to the Mr. Sandman perk. Then, right before slitting Mr. Burke’s throat as he dreamed about big explosions and punching puppies, I saved my game. Then I had her slice, and bam, Level 30 achieved with bad karma. Reloaded my game to do it again, but this time, for my perk, I picked the one that re-sets your karma to neutral. And that was that. Rather easy, and I’m thankful to not have to grind from Level 20 to Level 30 on my third play of Fallout 3, as that is simpy the longest, hardest part to do.

Speaking of that, I need some help. I used a good karma beard dude named Pauly for my first playthrough in Fallout 3, and a bad karma redheaded woman named Samantha for my second playthrough. Not sure what direction I want to go in for my third. I do know, however, that I want to get Dogmeat as early as I can, as well as focus on either melee weapons or unarmed to get a different outlook on the gameplay. Here’s a male/female version of what I’d like to use stat-wise:

MALE/FEMALE CHARACTER

Name: Jimbob Jollywag or Babs or Tyrion
Race: ??? (African American, Asian, Caucasian, Hispanic)
Karma: Neutral
S.P.E.C.I.A.L. skills: Strength 7, Perception 5, Endurance 6, Charisma 5, Intelligence 6, Agility 5, Luck 6
Tag skills: Melee Weapons, Repair, Explosives

With this, I’d be focused on whacking people to death with batons and baseball bats, repairing my whacking sticks, and tossing grenades when things get too tough. I’m sure I’ll sneak a few pistol shots in, too, but I don’t want to go down the same small weapons path as before. Not sure what early perks I’d take though. Suggestions?

And I’m definitely open to suggestions for names and/or what a character should look like. Consider this the beginning of a Let’s Play that you’ll never see the rest of!

For help with this mockup as well as a good idea as to how this character would progress, I used the Fallout 3 Character Creator website.

That’s Fallout 3 karma for ya

As evil aligned Samantha creeps closer to Level 30 in Fallout 3, I’m contemplating cheating. Only, when you sit back and look at it, it’s really not cheating at all. In fact, Bethesda seems to be encouraging me to do this. This being saving my game just before leveling up, reloading, and then changing my karma from evil to neutral before I hit Level 30 to unlock an Achievement for both karma cutoffs. It’s that or I play the entire game for a third time, something that is not looking like fun for me as I’m currently, well, very busy. And going insane. Y’know how it is.

Anyways, there’s a couple of perks that automatically switch one’s karma level around so that I don’t have to go find a Wasteland bum I’ve not yet killed and give him a hundred bottles of purified water. Even though the game itself is providing me with ways to switch my karma status right before I level up, it still feels wrong. Part of me is screaming, “Cheater! Achievement whore!” And yet another is nudging me gently, as if to say, “You know, you’re getting married soon. And Fallout: New Vegas is almost here. Time really is of the essence. Do it, and then you’d only have to play through the game as a neutral karma dude until you hit Level 20. Do it. For all of us.”

Cheat, don’t cheat. It’s cheating. it’s not cheating. Ughhhh….

So yeah, I’m battling with myself. I really would love to have everything completed in Fallout 3 before I dive head-first into Fallout: New Vegas, as the completionist in me sees that it is possible, and so it must be done. I will say that I’m extremely thankful not to see karma-tied Achievements in the next game, but the ones for dealing X amount of damage with specific weapon types will be my new bane. If you don’t remember, I’m not a big fan of BIG GUNS. Yup. So, we’ll see how this goes. There’s also the possibility that I might just forget to even save at a convenient time and screw myself out of this opportunity.

Sly Cooper 4…

…where, oh where, art thou?

Please hurry up and come into existence. It’s been way too long since I’ve played a really fun, stealthy platformer. I know there’s a new HD/3D package getting worked up for the PlayStation 3, but that doesn’t cut it for me. I want a new adventure; I want to get the gang back together; I want to tip-toe across city roofs in a gorgeous, expansive open world à la Grand Theft Auto IV or The Saboteur. I know it can be done. Especially with the cel-shading. I’m just waiting, waiting, waiting, and I’d like to think I’m not the only one here. Let’s go, guys at Sucker Punch Productions. Don’t make me get The Murray to come over and rough y’all up…