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 Wait, this isn’t No More Heroes 3? No, it never was, that game will come eventually, and frankly I am so glad that this one exists right now. What is Travis Strikes Again? A spin off entry in Grasshopper Manufacture’s No More Heroes series for the Nintendo Switch, and more importantly it is Suda 51’s full return to the director’s chair on a game since No More Heroes 1. The story behind this game’s existence came from Suda’s desire to return to his roots back when he started Grasshopper in 1999, when he had a small, close knit team he could work with and easily share his vision with. You see, after the surprise success of No More Heroes 1, the company’s size ended up growing due to the increased notoriety of Suda’s style, but he never ended up back in full directorial control of the multiple projects that Grasshopper got started on. No More Heroes 2 was only co written by him, Shadows of the Damned had a lengthy history of executive meddling from EA, and so on and so forth. In short, Suda's name being in the credits or even marketting no longer became a guarantee that you were going to get a game that fully embodied his sense of style, not just in aesthetic but actual game design. Now 20 years since the formation of Grasshopper Manufacture, Suda is back in the director’s chair, and by god this game could not have been a more perfect return for him. Forget No More Heroes 3, this title succeeds on it being so different while playing with the characters and world of a franchise that a good amount of people already have familiarity with. A by the numbers 3rd NMH, even fully written and directed by Suda, would not have the same impact as this game does here. In fact, as you’ll see by the end of this journey, you can probably see how a No More Heroes 3 will likely be EVEN BETTER than it could’ve been if it had just stuck to expectations of fans and what they think they want. But is it LIKE No More Heroes? I still don’t know what the hell it is. Okay, admittedly this game didn’t make it entirely clear from trailers exactly what it’s supposed to be, but now that it’s been out, and I’ve played through it I can tell you. Travis Strikes Again is a top down hack and slash game where Travis Touchdown, retired assassin from Santa Destroy, gets sucked into the world of video games alongside Badman, the father of #2 UAA ranked assassin Badgirl. Within the demonic unreleased game console known as the Death Drive Mk. II, both characters must fight through six different video games and in doing so the console will grant any wish to the ones who complete this task. Sounds simple. Simple like No More Heroes was at the beginning. Of course, it’s anything but that. So even as you go through these games and they introduce different concepts, these are not total 100% genre shifts. The core gameplay of hacking and slashing remains the same. It’s not directly analogous to classic No More Heroes gameplay, but it introduces new mechanics to the series that actually makes it slightly more in depth than what the first two games had. The game can even be played in local co-op with the controls being simple enough that each character can be controlled with one joy con if need be. However, the Death Drive games aren’t all there is to it. The player can still hang out in Travis’ abode in between levels (a trailer in the middle of the woods this time, instead of the No More Heroes motel), buy T-shirts off the internet emblazoned with familiar indie titles, and more importantly, access a completely different game within Travis Strikes Again called...Travis Strikes Back. An old school styled visual novel that serves as a means to show how Travis acquires each Death Drive game, and further expand the world in which Travis lives in since, quite frankly, it’s been ages since we’ve heard anything about what’s gone on in Travis’ real life after the events of NMH 2. It’s a treat not just for fans of No More Heroes, but also fans of Suda’s past work. There’s a surprising amount of stuff packed into this game, and much like in other Suda directed games, there’s a lot of subtext and metaphor to unpack that reveals more than what the game initially seems to give. It’s a wild ride. It’s a new beginning for Travis Touchdown. And more importantly, it’s a new beginning for Suda 51 himself. The Format of this LP? The game will be played through on Bitter difficulty on New Game Plus, the reason for this is because while there are a lot of collectibles in each level that you could go and look for, the one major problem that has to be stated about this game is that a lot of the Death Drive games overstay their welcome. By a lot. I’d much prefer to trim down on these videos where it is possible while still showing enough that you can get the gist of what the overall game is like. All without having to scour for every single collectible or get everyone leveled up to max. But on the plus side, I'll be adding supplementary material with each update that revolves around one of the Death Drive games, which includes in game magazine articles, faxes from a mysterious contact, and a ramen blog that will probably make you about as hungry as I was when putting all this poo poo together. Also, while I’ve not necessarily felt the need to do this much for any of the other LPs I've done, I will ask that you DO NOT spoil anything about the game until the LP actually reaches those points. This game has loads of surprises that deserve to be seen when they happen.                          Youtube Playlist                                            
ArclightBorealis fucked around with this message at 04:22 on Aug 1, 2019 |
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May 1, 2019 01:01
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There are some big words in that OP. Alright, following this.
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May 1, 2019 01:41
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I haven't been able to get the time to even get this game, so glad you're covering it so I know what I'd be going into. I say, fully cognizant that I am watching this thing to the bitter end.
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May 1, 2019 02:16
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Part 3: Absolute Zero Part 4: Black Dog We take a look at the other side of Travis Strikes Again, by switching genres from hack and slash to ADV in...Travis Strikes Back. Somehow this first scenario proves to be even more ridiculous than the first game on the Death Drive. Green monochrome with scanlines, cross overs with the 25th Ward, and a talking cat with attitude. Suda 51, ladies and gentlemen. Also included is Badman's own visual novel mode, though because it was released as DLC a month after launch, the length of the scenarios is considerably shorter, so this update will be covering the start of both Travis and Badman's separate stories. Life is Destroy will begin next week.
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May 3, 2019 04:44
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Holy poo poo, I thought I knew Suda's work pretty well but I haven't understood a word of this game since the intro. I know one of his big things has always been self-referential stuff, but now he has such a big body of work that he can make an entirely self-referential game. Maybe this'll get his masturbatory urges out of his system so the real NMH3 can be it's own thing. Seeing this game through the eyes of people who actually understand what's going on is fun though, good work on the LP so far.
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May 3, 2019 15:49
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As someone who has never played NMH1 or 2, should I wait and play those before watching this? or is this rather standalone?
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May 3, 2019 16:54
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Oheao posted:As someone who has never played NMH1 or 2, should I wait and play those before watching this? or is this rather standalone? I mean, I'd personally still recommend people play No More Heroes if they have the means to (and if not, hopefully a Switch collection or something comes soon), but it's still worth seeing what this game has to offer right now. After all, it's setting a road map for the future of the series and I am very excited about what this game lays out by the end.
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May 3, 2019 17:19
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Death Drive game system? Why does that sound familiar?
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May 3, 2019 17:35
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Fiendly posted:Holy poo poo, I thought I knew Suda's work pretty well but I haven't understood a word of this game since the intro. I know one of his big things has always been self-referential stuff, but now he has such a big body of work that he can make an entirely self-referential game. Maybe this'll get his masturbatory urges out of his system so the real NMH3 can be it's own thing. In fairness, I'm almost completely blind on this one, I just have an understanding of Suda's work, his influences and a lot of the stuff he namedrops and references. Yeah, it's basically a love letter to his own work (which is wanky as hell, let's not deny that), but absurdum ad infinitum has forever been His poo poo, he's just now sitting on a body of work where he can do it properly. Gideon020 posted:Death Drive game system? Why does that sound familiar? The Death Drive 128 is the console mentioned in Let It Die, probably from there?
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May 3, 2019 18:23
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Part 5: Life is Destroy We return to the Death Drive to go after a deranged serial killer through a bunch of suburbs and abandoned houses. This is the moment where you fully realize that this game might have some noticeable issues in pacing and length. But we'll get through this. Archives K's Faxes Ramen Blog
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May 5, 2019 16:09
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Part 6: Magic Tiger of the Mound Part 7: Beanball Both updates of Travis and Badman Strikes Back involve quite a bit of baseball in varying ways. From a mob torture situation at a batting center, to likely the only time you'll get a reference to Grasshopper's only Kinect Game, Diabolical Pitch. No actual, normal game of baseball takes place during these videos, for better or worse.
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May 8, 2019 02:02
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Part 8: Coffee and Doughnuts The third game on the Death Drive Mk. II begins. Come for the coffee and doughnuts, stay for the PS1 low budget CG intro, purposefully stilted dialogue, chill music, murder mansion, donut platforming, Twin Peaks references, pizza talk, and a serious question posed about whether or not Pure White Lover Bizarre Jelly 5 is still Travis' favorite anime after all these years. These games aren't getting shorter, but we at least manage to find a lot of fun bullshit to talk about. Archives K's Faxes Ramen
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May 12, 2019 21:41
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What happened to the enemy colors in the most recent video? Why are they pink and green?
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May 14, 2019 17:43
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ZeButler posted:What happened to the enemy colors in the most recent video? Why are they pink and green?
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May 14, 2019 19:01
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Y'know, after listening to your rants on pizza I can tell that you've never experienced Detroit-style. Granted, it's classified as "pan pizza" sometimes, because unlike Chicago-style it's actually pizza instead of a casserole. 
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May 14, 2019 20:40
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Part 9: National Census Part 10: Headhunter This update is brought to you by Pepe Silvia. What more is there to say? There is no Pepe Silvia, but there is Mondo Zappa.
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May 15, 2019 02:51
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Would you believe some people call pizza, tomato pie?
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May 16, 2019 04:37
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I wouldn't like it, but I'd believe it.
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May 17, 2019 17:37
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Part 11: Golden Dragon GP Welcome to the part where the game decides to start giving us Death Drive games that are properly paced and don't feel exhausting to go through. Enjoy them vector graphics. Archives K's Faxes Ramen Blog
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May 19, 2019 03:09
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Part 12: Modern Observation Part 13: She's So Bad The Silver Case references return harder than ever, as Travis has to make a trip to Japan and meet with the antagonist of the 25th Ward...sort of...I guess. I still don't get Kurumizawa's deal. Also Badman talks about how he first felt when his daughter took a bit too much after himself.
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May 23, 2019 14:38
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Part 14: Killer Marathon This next Death Drive game is...well...it's different. That's the best I can say. Just watch the drat video. K's Faxes Ramen
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May 30, 2019 17:00
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Part 15: Hell's Chainsaw Part 16: Core Sense Today's scenario of Travis Strikes Back pulls back from the heavy does of references to actually establish some new characters and developments that could possibly lead their way into a No More Heroes 3 proper. In addition, find out what specifically went through Badman's mind the first time he got the news that his daughter was killed by some otaku dickhead.
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Jun 2, 2019 17:41
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Part 17: Serious Moonlight No one is prepared for what is in store for the best Death Drive game. No one. Archives K's Faxes Ramen Blog
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Jun 5, 2019 17:05
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Man, I like No More Heroes 1 and 2, but this game just lacks so much of what makes them any good. The last game Suda made that felt punk was the first NMH. I want NMH3 but I also worry about how poorly this bodes.  ArclightBorealis posted:I've actually gone back and forth on whether it does work as a standalone title primarily because of how Suda himself described this game as a good starting point for new people. I think in the context of NMH specific events it is very standalone because it doesn't go that deep into the previous games beyond the fact Travis used to be a legendary assassin, and his partner in this game is the father of one of the assassins he killed in his career. In the context of everything else Suda, well, it gets loving nutty and is pretty much bound to go over everyone's head unless they've kept up with nearly every single release in Grasshopper's history. But even then, it's largely just for cameos and call back purposes. There's some stuff I'm really interested about (spoiler for nmh I guess?)like why the hell is Jeane (the cat) so much like Jeane (Travis' half-sister) all of a sudden? or how it relates to killer7 or whatever, but after the incredibly lukewarm streak of DMD, Lolipop Chainsaw, KiD and Black Knight Sword, I wonder if Suda's kinda lost his way. I know he's had varying degrees of involvement, and I've thought a few of Grasshopper's games in the interm since NMH2 have been at least okay (Ranko Tsukigime's Longest Day was interesting, but the gameplay was paint-by-numbers, Liberation Maiden/SIN were basically okay, and I could write an essay on my love-hate of Let it Die), but they've lacked some of the... Punchiness? of Suda's best games. Part of it is in the gameplay. The games grasshopper's made in the last 10 or so years have just felt so... Functional. They don't have some of the charming, punk-ish jank that made things like No More Heroes so fascinating (like the absolutely needless sandbox) but they also don't have gameplay that's polished or in depth enough to actually be fun. The writing has also lacked the sort of spectacular showy bits and bizarre metaphors used older grasshopper works. Cuntellectual fucked around with this message at 00:19 on Jun 7, 2019 |
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Jun 7, 2019 00:08
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Part 18: Quark-Gluon Plasma Part 19: Change Travis' adventures with Kamui Uehara come to a close as he fights through a gauntlet of assassins via text boxes and obtains the final death ball (of the base game). Also we finally get the full context behind key events in Badman's life courtesy of the man who turned his daughter into a very bad girl.
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Jun 10, 2019 05:02
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Part 20: CIA Welcome to the final level of Travis Strikes Again, a section that is arguably the worst to play or watch, yet has the most story significance underlying it all. Unless you've been skipping the Faxes I've posted with the various updates, in which case get ready for a crash course on the tragedy that is Dr. Juvenile's life. Game ends with a loving bang, but it won't be the end of the Let's Play for a few more videos. Stay tuned. Also, this and the next few updates were recorded a couple weeks before the announcement of No More Heroes III at this year's E3, so our commentary about the future of NMH is still in that "when will it be revealed" phase. Regardless, loving EXCITED! Ramen Blog
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Jun 15, 2019 17:10
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Part 21: TRAVISMAN Before getting straight into the DLC for the game, I figured it'd be worth taking a closer look at Badman in action against some of the earlier bosses, mostly to see the ways in which the game's dialogue changes (yet not as much as you'd expect despite him being the player two character). Also a fusion dance happens. It's glorious.
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Jun 25, 2019 05:35
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Part 22: On the Eve of War The final visual novel segment of the game, serving as a prelude to the DLC Death Drive game as well as continuing to lay groundwork for what could be to come in the next No More Heroes game. Old characters return and new ones unceremoniously butt their way in just to pick a fight with Travis.
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Jul 2, 2019 21:09
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It's quite surprising to me that Travis has an actual family. In NMH1, he seemed like a nerdy dick who didn't realize that taking a life had consequences. I didn't expect that he'd show any form of taking responsibility. I'm not sure if it seems out-of-character for him or if it adds to his character but I'm gonna go with the later.
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Jul 4, 2019 01:54
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Part 23: Killer Marathon(!) It's time for the DLC Death Drive game, where not only is Killer Marathon and actual game, but also Bad Girl will totally, absolutely, 100% be changed back from her dog form to her human form. No lies here. Archives Ramen Blog
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Jul 11, 2019 00:04
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Part 24: FINALE A big rear end video to end the LP, showing off the two DLC characters and how they fare against all the game's bosses. In addition, after the footage is done there's an additional half hour of us speculating about No More Heroes 3 after it was revealed at E3 months ago. Thanks for watching through this weird loving game. Perhaps we'll see each other again when Travis returns in 2020. Or later. Whenever that 3rd game releases.
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Aug 1, 2019 04:23
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This was a very good LP of a very weird game. Thank you!
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Aug 3, 2019 05:00
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