Gaming Podcasts 2015: It Survived Max Ides

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Captain Invictus: Apr 5, 2005; Try reading some manga!; Clever Betty

END ME SCOOB posted:

I went with the demo and I have had various stripes of people try to convince me "no it gets better" with vagueries, video, specific things spelled out for me, etc., and absolutely nothing has made me more interested in paying for that game. So I didn't.

I'll say this, the demo, which is the tutorial area, is by far the weakest part of the game. Once you've left the tutorial stuff, it starts throwing new mechanics at you at a fairly constant rate. I dunno what people were linking/spoiling for you to convince you, but there's a lot of stuff that doesn't have as much weight unless it's got the context from playing through the game and getting attached to the characters. Such as the final boss of the genocide path, especially after a pacifist run, it's kind of a huge bummer what you've put that character through.

FractalSandwich posted:

Speaking of which, this week's Video Games Hot Dog really took a load off my mind. When everyone else started publically fellating Undertale, I played a bit of it and didn't like it all. I felt like I was going crazy, and it made me feel a lot better about my understanding of games to hear some designers I respect talk about not liking it either.

Your opinion is validated, and thus your life has meaning!

Tae posted:

I took a listen to their podcast, and one guy's whole conversation was that the battles are useless because they just give text makes me want to avoid it, cause that's some robot/data of Star Trek levels of analysis.

Avoid Undertale, or avoid the podcast? Because if they're talking about the boss fights, if you're doing a pacifist run, they're endurance fights. You have to outlast the boss's desire to kill you until you can convince them to stop fighting, run away, or show mercy to you. Sometimes you have to do more than just endure, as well, and also figure out ways so you can Spare them. I feel like a lot of people who come down so hard on Undertale are overhyped by it. It's an exceptionally well-crafted, creative game, with fantastic characters, one of the best overall soundtracks I've heard in years, a great story, some pretty creative liberties with the visual aesthetic, and great humor throughout(though mostly after you meet Papyrus). But some people are treating it as the be-all end-all, and while it's my GOTY, it's not without fault. Such as the previously mentioned tutorial area, while I think it does some neat things with expectations and gives Toriel some interesting character development(which is gone into further detail later in the game), it's really slow and the tutorial aspects of it are kind of poorly placed. For example, you can encounter a random encounter enemy before you talk to the froggit who teaches you about Sparing enemies, so you can kill something before learning about the alternatives. That said, the tutorial is the only thing I really take issue with in the game. Some of the boss fights are real hard, but not insurmountable.

Honestly it's a problem a lot of single-dev games have; they don't have a group of people to suggest alternatives. Making the tutorial area the demo was a really bad choice in my opinion, it's turned a fair number of people off. You only meet a single major character, Toriel, and as wonderful as Goatmom is, she's still more of a background character than Sans, or Papyrus, or Undyne, etc.

edit: Axiom Verge has a similar single-dev issue; the dev hates sales, and said it would be at least half a year if not longer before he would even consider putting any discount on the game. I think that that's hurt it in the long run, there's a fair number of folks who have been curious about the game but since there's no demo, and since it's been stuck at 20 bucks without budging, sales of it haven't been great.

Captain Invictus fucked around with this message at 12:05 on Oct 16, 2015

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:00

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# ? May 24, 2024 15:47

Captain Invictus: Apr 5, 2005; Try reading some manga!; Clever Betty

al-azad posted:

Whenever there's a weird indie darling there's always an angry backlash that veers beyond "this game just isn't for me" and into "everyone is literally crazy but me."

I'd argue that extreme emotion is the hallmark of good art but some of the critics of the game feel like they have to be exceptionally direct and you don't really see that with any other game and I haven't even played the demo.

Some of the reactions here are unfortunate, sometimes understandable but perhaps a bit stubbornly held to, but it doesn't really compare to other areas of the site.

Screaming Idiot posted:

Agreed. Undertale fans belong in the same ghetto as the Bronies and the Steven Universe creeps.

"BUT GUYS THE SKELETON LIKES SPAGHETTI LOLOLOL ISN'T THAT SO loving HILARIOUS AND POIGNANT"

Screaming Idiot posted:

Yes, I'm the bitter malcontent because I don't jerk off to children's cartoons and boring games painfully squeezed from the suppurating and distended anus of Tumblr's finest hacks. I will shed a gin-scented tear as I look up to a picture of a Homestuck troll having sex with a pony while Sonic masturbates behind the bushes, and realize I love the Crystal Gems.

(USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)

Yeah.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:11

PaletteSwappedNinja: Jun 3, 2008; One Nation, Under God.

Captain Invictus posted:

edit: Axiom Verge has a similar single-dev issue; the dev hates sales, and said it would be at least half a year if not longer before he would even consider putting any discount on the game. I think that that's hurt it in the long run, there's a fair number of folks who have been curious about the game but since there's no demo, and since it's been stuck at 20 bucks without budging, sales of it haven't been great.

I'd say it's the pricepoint rather than the lack of discounts that's the issue - $15 is the de facto price for that type of indie game and I know from experience that a lot of people completely switch off the moment they learn it'll cost more. It's infuriating and I'm glad devs are pushing against that but it'd be nice if games like Axiom Verge and N++ weren't being doomed to martyrdom in the process.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:12

sub supau: Aug 28, 2007

Captain Invictus posted:

Some of the reactions here are unfortunate, sometimes understandable but perhaps a bit stubbornly held to, but it doesn't really compare to other areas of the site.

I've found that, as a general rule, the moment anyone mentions Tumblr as some kind of boogeyman is the moment I can confidently ignore anything they have to say because they're a halfwit with an incredibly jerky knee.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:15

claw game handjob: Mar 27, 2007; pinch pinch scrape pinch
ow ow fuck it's caught
i'm bleeding
JESUS TURN IT OFF
WHY ARE YOU STILL SMILING

TetsuoTW posted:

I've found that, as a general rule, the moment anyone mentions Tumblr as some kind of boogeyman is the moment I can confidently ignore anything they have to say because they're a halfwit with an incredibly jerky knee.

It's the aptly-named Screaming Idiot, so yes, you were well warned already.

I won't get all frothy over it, but like I said: absolutely nothing I've played of the game or been shown makes me want more. The problem is that probably 90% of y'all just go "it's good, play it everyone" and it becomes this utterly maddening constant drone which I cannot wait to hear end.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:20

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

END ME SCOOB posted:

It's the aptly-named Screaming Idiot, so yes, you were well warned already.

I won't get all frothy over it, but like I said: absolutely nothing I've played of the game or been shown makes me want more. The problem is that probably 90% of y'all just go "it's good, play it everyone" and it becomes this utterly maddening constant drone which I cannot wait to hear end.

I can side with you here END ME SCOOB becuase your feelings about Undertale are the exact same feelings I have with Metal Gear 5 The Phantom Pain. Everyone is running around saying "this gameplay is so revolutionary", "this is the greatest game ever never mind the game of the year", "the defining end of the Metal Gear franchise" and I'm just left standing over in the corner saying "it's alright but it's a terrible Metal Gear game and I was bored 10 hours through".

And you sort of stand there going "am I just broken here? is everyone else right and I'm just wrong?" and you look around for similar viewpoints to validate your own beliefs and in the end you are left scratching your head thinking "why is this game not clicking with me?".

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:28

FractalSandwich: Apr 25, 2010

Captain Invictus posted:

Your opinion is validated, and thus your life has meaning!

That's a fairly uncharitable way of looking at it. I felt like a crazy person for not liking a thing that I'd heard nothing but unreserved praise for. Then I heard some people who had made other successful games say they also didn't like it, and now I don't feel like a crazy person anymore.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:30

al-azad: May 28, 2009

Solemn Sloth posted:

I was listening to...idle thumbs? This week, and they all hated Mario 64 and thus I don't think I can trust any of their opinions ever again

That was only Jake(?) which is fine I guess, he clarified later that he thinks it plays solidly but he can't get over the visuals. Now what's baffling is that he thinks Mario Sunshine is better which is pretty much 99% Mario 64 with an extra layer of stuff tacked on top. Most people will agree that Mario 64 is a tightly designed platformer with a great degree of freedom that even later 3D platformers lacked. So what's the best way to further this design? By shoving more control options on top of an already complex game and then building two layers of challenge on top of that. Imagine if Super Mario World had Yoshi as the default method of movement, where every level was built with him in mind but you could still hop off or lose him and had to recharge every 30 seconds by eating berries to maintain his jump or tongue attack. That's Mario Sunshine.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:35

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

Yeah but FLUDD was cool as gently caress.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:36

Captain Invictus: Apr 5, 2005; Try reading some manga!; Clever Betty

END ME SCOOB posted:

It's the aptly-named Screaming Idiot, so yes, you were well warned already.

I won't get all frothy over it, but like I said: absolutely nothing I've played of the game or been shown makes me want more. The problem is that probably 90% of y'all just go "it's good, play it everyone" and it becomes this utterly maddening constant drone which I cannot wait to hear end.

No, I get you. I have the same feeling about Destiny. I just never want to ever hear someone talk about it or bring it up in conversation ever again.

It's just that Undertale is getting such ridiculously good reception from the majority of people, combined with word of mouth being its only real way to advertise, that the minority who don't like it are going to feel annoyed by it all. It's like, look at the Steam reviews, the drat thing currently has over six thousand positive reviews, and only 92 negative. It's pretty rare to see such a disparity in review scores. But if it doesn't click with you, it can be frustrating to see everyone extolling the virtues of the game.

At the very least, check out the soundtrack. It's the one thing I've not seen a single person complain about. Even if you don't like Toby Fox's writing, his composing skills are top notch, giving Danny B a run for his money for my favorite indie composer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2jVbSI9H4o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcamjcoRmrQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WDFUcjWARU

Every single boss fight track is outstanding. Most of the atmospheric music is super chill and amazing too.

I made a playlist of the tracks I really liked from the soundtrack, compiled from a playlist of extended versions if you're curious about more. Some real good stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLn1qwaDupAXipvLe09571_Ac6H3OEjB2a

FractalSandwich posted:

That's a fairly uncharitable way of looking at it. I felt like a crazy person for not liking a thing that I'd heard nothing but unreserved praise for. Then I heard some people who had made other successful games say they also didn't like it, and now I don't feel like a crazy person anymore.

I mean when you're using terms like "fellating" to describe people enjoying the game a lot, it's hard to not see it as being hostile about it.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:48

FractalSandwich: Apr 25, 2010

Captain Invictus posted:

I mean when you're using terms like "fellating" to describe people enjoying the game a lot, it's hard to not see it as being hostile about it.

Fair. That was too harsh, I apologise.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:54

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

Have you played Destiny Invictus? I went in with super low expectations and I'm having a blast with it.

Undertale I just know I'm going to have unreasonable expectations of revolution when I get round to playing it and that's never fair.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:58

Jippa: Feb 13, 2009

I understand what people mean about over exposure. I get the same with certain US tv series that take ages to come out in the UK and despite being amazing I'm fed up with hearing about them and have a weird negative reaction to them. Then eventually I watch and enjoy them years later, it's a weird process.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 12:59

Captain Invictus: Apr 5, 2005; Try reading some manga!; Clever Betty

FractalSandwich posted:

Fair. That was too harsh, I apologise.

Not a biggie, I was mostly joking anyways.

Honestly, the thing that's the biggest bummer to me is that not everyone is enjoying it, but that's life.

I feel like the game does a ton of really unique things, such as playing with the fourth wall in interesting ways. Your ability to save the game is more than just a standard part of an RPG, and some characters begin to notice when you reload the game to change the outcomes of things. The game keeps separate data aside from your save data, so when you start new runs, reload saves, force quit and reload a save, etc, it still knows what you did, and characters will mention as such in dialogue. One particular instance, the end of the demo where you fight Toriel, if you kill her and feel bad and reload the game to not kill her instead, Flowey will remark on how cowardly you are to not stick to your guns, running back to change the past because you can't handle it. Later on, a character gains the ability to save the game themselves, and exploits it mid-battle against you, loading savestates to mess up your movement so you get hit, etc. It's why a lot of people say the early game is the weakest, because the more interesting mechanics show up later.

All of the major characters show growth throughout the story alongside you, and optional side stories let you get to know some of them personally. Really, the only major character I wish there was more development for is Asgore himself. As a final boss, he kinda doesn't allow for much character development before you meet him beyond hearsay from other monsters, which sucks, but I think a decent job was done giving gravity to his situation regardless. If you don't like the characters in this game, then yes, this is not the game for you.

But yes, the overexposure I think is in large part because there's no other way to get the word out about the game. It's made by two people, there's no advertising budget, so reliance on fans and reviews/discussion is how most indie games survive at all.

edit:

Ramagamma posted:

Have you played Destiny Invictus? I went in with super low expectations and I'm having a blast with it.

Undertale I just know I'm going to have unreasonable expectations of revolution when I get round to playing it and that's never fair.

I played it at a friend's place before they really added anything and aside from the gunplay it didn't really feel like anything special, certainly not something worth 40+ minutes on the bombcast every loving week

I'm sure it's vastly improved but I'm not really looking forward to hearing about it for another eight years.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:08

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

Good point Jippa. I feel with media that I'm stuck in this awkward catch 22 where I don't want to invest time in a new media piece unless it's getting high critical acclaim but that critical acclaim itself makes me cast a doubtful eye over it.

It's pretty dumb but it's the nature of modern life with our surplus of media to consume and our shortfall of free time in which to consume it.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:10

Hakkesshu: Nov 4, 2009

I don't really love Undertale either, but even so it's pretty hard to be upset about a rather unassuming game that only costs $10 and tries to do something different. I don't know, I can sympathize with the feeling of desperately trying to like something that's popular, but you just don't no matter what, but Undertale is not a particularly egregious example of this, I don't think. People are loving it for a lot of valid reasons and even if you don't feel the same way, you should be able to appreciate some of the bizarrely creative things that game does to mess with the player.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:11

Orthogonalus: Feb 26, 2008; Right angles ONLY

Ramagamma posted:

And you sort of stand there going "am I just broken here? is everyone else right and I'm just wrong?" and you look around for similar viewpoints to validate your own beliefs and in the end you are left scratching your head thinking "why is this game not clicking with me?".

This is me most of this thread.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:19

Captain Invictus: Apr 5, 2005; Try reading some manga!; Clever Betty

Hakkesshu posted:

People are loving it for a lot of valid reasons and even if you don't feel the same way, you should be able to appreciate some of the bizarrely creative things that game does to mess with the player.

I've actually been using the final boss of the Genocide route to convince people to try the game, because it showcases a bunch of unique combat mechanics, has amazing music, has some pretty intense visuals at times, and my favorite part, the boss constantly trolls the player by being impossible to hit, mocking you about the number of deaths you've had to him, forcing you to sit through his monologue every time you die to him and reload, straight up wasting your time by not ending his turn so you can go, being specifically designed to be a hundred times more difficult than any other boss in the game, etc.

Obviously don't click this video if you don't want to be spoiled on it. A lot of folks will actually never see it themselves because most don't even bother with a genocide run.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JS6qnTbKizQ

Orthogonalus posted:

This is me most of this thread.

This is me most of video games.

I don't like tony hawk, sports games, resident evil, silent hill, fighting games, call of duty, etc

Captain Invictus fucked around with this message at 13:22 on Oct 16, 2015

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:20

al-azad: May 28, 2009

While undertale chat is "it's good play it" Destiny chat is "this sucks and I can't stop playing it." I would gladly trade all Destiny chat for literally anything else.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:23

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

Captain Invictus posted:

I don't like tony hawk, sports games, resident evil, silent hill, fighting games, call of duty, etc

Tony Hawk was incredible when it was on the PS2, it's been in decline since, sports games are terrible unless you are playing with a friend, same with fighting games, Call of Duty was revolutionary 7 years ago but isn't now and Silent Hill has always been garbage.

There Invictus. I fixed you!

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:24

HMS Boromir: Jul 16, 2011; by Lowtax

It's certainly not inconceivable to dislike Undertale and it can be really annoying to be stuck in an echo chamber of people loving something you just don't get.

That said, Zack is probably not the person you want validating your opinion on this because he's an expert in making himself miserable by playing a videogame. (sorry zack love the show undertale's really good though)

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:24

DOUBLE CLICK HERE: Feb 5, 2005; WA3

I enjoyed Undertale and I couldn't be more of sick of it's discussion, so now I hate Undertale retroactively. What a piece of poo poo game.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:45

Fangz: Jul 5, 2007; Oh I see! This must be the Bad Opinion Zone!

HMS Boromir posted:

It's certainly not inconceivable to dislike Undertale and it can be really annoying to be stuck in an echo chamber of people loving something you just don't get.

It sucks more in my experience to like something that it seems like everyone around you is determined to hate hate HATE. Anyway yeah in general it is silly and stupid that liking games becomes this sort of political issue that people factionalise over.

Still, I love Undertale a lot and I think it's good and important and I wish more people would play it and have interesting conversations about it, so

Edit: it's also a minor tragedy if the situation is that because I (and others like myself) liked a thing, this means that newcomers cannot like a thing because they have to measure their enjoyment against what is perceived to be the expected level of enjoyment they should have. Bleh :shittydog:

Fangz fucked around with this message at 14:05 on Oct 16, 2015

# ? Oct 16, 2015 13:52

ja2ke: Feb 19, 2004

Solemn Sloth posted:

I was listening to...idle thumbs? This week, and they all hated Mario 64 and thus I don't think I can trust any of their opinions ever again

al-azad posted:

That was only Jake(?) which is fine I guess, he clarified later that he thinks it plays solidly but he can't get over the visuals. Now what's baffling is that he thinks Mario Sunshine is better which is pretty much 99% Mario 64 with an extra layer of stuff tacked on top. Most people will agree that Mario 64 is a tightly designed platformer with a great degree of freedom that even later 3D platformers lacked. So what's the best way to further this design? By shoving more control options on top of an already complex game and then building two layers of challenge on top of that. Imagine if Super Mario World had Yoshi as the default method of movement, where every level was built with him in mind but you could still hop off or lose him and had to recharge every 30 seconds by eating berries to maintain his jump or tongue attack. That's Mario Sunshine.

It was just me for sure. I played it at launch after spending a long time anticipating it -- I spent most of my elementary school years being Mario-obsessed, caught up in Mario 3/World fever, and the N64 came out some time in high school. I loved the way Mario moved and controlled, and thought having a 3D world was cool, but found (and still find) the world itself and the level choices to be a mess. Maybe it was just too much of a departure for me, from the structure present in older Mario games, and that's why I have taken to Galaxy and Sunshine more, but I think it goes beyond that. The game has plenty of interesting ideas in its levels but it all feels fairly slapped together to me with the empty castle feeling like a someone's clever idea for a 90s VR demo's main menu screen. (Also Mario 64 IS not good looking, and not just in that it's low poly. It's shapes and colors are just not pleasing or artistic, which is not true of any other Mario game.) It's not that I hate Mario 64 (I don't hate it), and it's not that I think it wasn't revolutionary (it was) and full of fun stuff (it is), but Mario 64 feels like a game made by people who were still in the middle of figuring out what they were doing, in a way that does not seem true of other mainline Mario games, and in a way that seems at odds with its reputation as a tightly conceived perfect game.

I also think I used really extreme language on the cast for what is more realistically a moderate opinion. Partly because "it's fine" is no fun to say (unless you're Nick Breckon), and partly because having an "it's fine" take on Mario 64 tends to get immediately translated into "they hate it" anyway so I'm feeling kind of worn down on that front. So that wasn't great of me.

ja2ke fucked around with this message at 15:59 on Oct 16, 2015

# ? Oct 16, 2015 15:35

al-azad: May 28, 2009

Nah, it's fine.

But I feel the absolute opposite regarding Mario 64 as an unrefined game. The aesthetics aren't strong but Nintendo nailed 3D platforming on their first try. Mario Sunshine is a good game but it feels like Nintendo didn't know what they wanted out of it. Everything feels kind of "off model" and you still get nonsensical level design with floating oblong platforms that you now need to hover to. And occasionally we'll take away FLUDD because here's a super hard Mario 64 reject level we want you to try. You liked sliding down Peach's castle? Slide down this loving Pachinko machine or navigate a maze of npcs that throw you between platforms yup!

# ? Oct 16, 2015 16:37

ONE YEAR LATER: Apr 13, 2004; Fry old buddy, it's me, Bender!; Oven Wrangler

All Mario platforming is good Mario.

And whoever said Paper Mario isn't awesome, gently caress you.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 16:42

HMS Boromir: Jul 16, 2011; by Lowtax

the only reason paper mario isn't categorically the worst mario rpg is because its sequels are even worse. fight me

ok the second mario & luigi game was bad too

# ? Oct 16, 2015 16:44

ONE YEAR LATER: Apr 13, 2004; Fry old buddy, it's me, Bender!; Oven Wrangler

Counter point, gently caress you.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 16:47

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

ONE YEAR LATER posted:

Counter point, gently caress you.

If you like Paper Mario, I'm not going to argue with you since thats dumb.

Instead I'm going to state that its one of the very few games that I have sold on due to how much of a distaste it caused me.

I'm pretty sure the only other games in that category are Saints Row 3 since I got it cheap on a PC sale after buying it on xbox and A-Train Simulator because it's inhospitably bad.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 16:51

Phone: Jul 30, 2005; 親子丼をほしい。

Some of the choices of SM64 aren't great, but the controls and camera were pretty much spot on. The game came out in 1996 and if you take a quick poll of other 3D platformers that came out AFTER it, it's really loving grim. I know it's a bad example, but Grim Fandango with the tank vs Mario controls comes to mind.

It's kind of similar to getting pissed off at Mario 3 for not having fidelity and exploration of the Super Mario World map with the secret exits and stuff.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 16:58

ONE YEAR LATER: Apr 13, 2004; Fry old buddy, it's me, Bender!; Oven Wrangler

Ramagamma posted:

If you like Paper Mario, I'm not going to argue with you since thats dumb.

Instead I'm going to state that its one of the very few games that I have sold on due to how much of a distaste it caused me.

I'm pretty sure the only other games in that category are Saints Row 3 since I got it cheap on a PC sale after buying it on xbox and A-Train Simulator because it's inhospitably bad.

Ah so clearly the problem here is that you have no taste because Saints Row 3 is also excellent.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:05

Ramagamma: Feb 2, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

ONE YEAR LATER posted:

Ah so clearly the problem here is that you have no taste because Saints Row 3 is also excellent.

Dude, you misread me. It was so good that I bought it twice but then I shipped the console copy since I needed money for :420:

or some poo poo

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:09

The Vosgian Beast: Aug 13, 2011; Business is slow

Oh so Undertale is going through that thing where something becomes popular, and then reactionary goons become uncomfortable that it's popular, and then people jerk off about being rational adults who just want to have discussion of serious literature until it peters out.

Well that's a cue to switch avatars to something that isn't undergoing a contrarian backlash.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:11

sub supau: Aug 28, 2007

And now we've reached the part where any divergence from the general consensus is branded a "reactionary" "contrarian backlash" I guess.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:17

The Vosgian Beast: Aug 13, 2011; Business is slow

TetsuoTW posted:

And now we've reached the part where any divergence from the general consensus is branded a "reactionary" "contrarian backlash" I guess.

Well the other half of it is people who have this bizarre delusion that everyone needs to like what they like and will have a magical epiphany if they consume enough of it

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:29

HMS Boromir: Jul 16, 2011; by Lowtax

Hello please stop doing a crap on this thread. Let's talk about something else.

WOFF is doing Blaster Master next, which has been kind of a blind spot for me as far as retro games go. Gonna check it out before the episode comes out - is it part of the pantheon of classic NES games and I've just narrowly avoided it somehow, or is it more of a forgotten gem? I feel like I hear exclusively good things about it but only very rarely.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:34

sub supau: Aug 28, 2007

This is literally the full extent of my exposure to Blaster Master:

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:48

The Vosgian Beast: Aug 13, 2011; Business is slow

I have gotten the impression that it was a good, influential, and popular NES game that's kind of faded with time due to not getting sequels.

# ? Oct 16, 2015 17:55

Chilled Milk: Jun 22, 2003; No one here is alone,
satellites in every home

I recently came across the PS1 sequel that I didn't know about, Blaster Master: Blasting Again. Which I had to pick up based on that title alone.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaster_Master:_Blasting_Again

# ? Oct 16, 2015 18:02

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# ? May 24, 2024 15:47

NmareBfly: Jul 16, 2004; I posted my food for USPOL Thanksgiving!

TetsuoTW posted:

This is literally the full extent of my exposure to Blaster Master:

I just want to say that I had a wicked bad elementary-school crush on the female lead from this. I think? It's been a while. Was her name Sophia or was that the tank?

The important thing to know about Blaster Master is the intro. I don't think video games have ever told a more compelling story:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vb8b02474FM

And the fanfare before you get into level one is loving rad and the level one music is still some of the best in the business.

In general I'd put Blaster Master on the same tier as Bionic Commando in terms of best NES games. Too much backtracking and just wandering around without knowing where to go and it can get grindy if you decide to keep your gun upgraded all the way but it's good stuff.

NmareBfly fucked around with this message at 18:15 on Oct 16, 2015

# ? Oct 16, 2015 18:12

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