Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward

And yet another image that reminds me of Resident Evil: Revelation

I wasn't gonna get this game since I waited on the game Ever Oasis that at the point just had released on the 3DS and awaited my Amazon copy... but it for some reason ended up at my parents house instead of having to pick it up at the pick-up zone. Damn customer service, and I spent 2 weeks talking about how bad the Swedish postal service had become (helped by the news bringing up several other problems at the time). Anyway, I got this game instead as a quick point- and click puzzle game. And it was interesting, best described as a Saw game, but with characters I actually care about, except Dio.

Not that Dio

Story is that you, Sigma, gets kidnapped on Christmas Day 2028 and wake up in some underground facility together with 8 other people, Phi, Luna, K, Clover, Alice, Quark, Tenmouijo (?) and Dio. An AI rabbit explains that you have to participate  in the Nonary games thanks to Zero, the person behind the kidnappings. To pursued you to cooperate you all have a bracelet on your left hand showing a colour, a number, time and if you are pair or solo. It also contains two needles, one with a anaesthetic that triggers first and 9 minutes later injects you with a muscle relaxant that stops your heart and lungs and kills you. It will activate if you break the rules or the number on the bracelet goes to zero or below. The colour and pair/solo tells which group you are forced to play with and the time counts down to when the next door opens. In pair of threes you need to enter a room, solve a puzzle to get out and find a card key to enter the AB-rooms where you play Ally or Betray. It works like the prisoners dilemma and you play against the others in the group you entered the puzzle room with. So depending on which group you choose to enter the rooms with and if you vote ally or betray the story changes.

Do you trust any of them?

So the overall question is why are we here? Where are we? When are we? And then they add who is the old lady that was found dead in one of the AB-rooms. Who is K as he have amnesia and is draped in armour that won't get off? Who is Zero? And who starts to kill people in certain story parts? There's gonna be spoilers here. So Alice and Clover was kidnapped around Christmas 2028, put into sleep and transported to the moon on one of the moon bases there together with Phi. It's the year 2074 to be exact. Ten... and Quark arrived later in search of the old woman and K is a clone of you, Sigma who have aged 40 years and is the Zero behind it all... except it's your future consciousness that have switched place with your younger one in order to go back to 2029 in order to stop a virus infection called Radical-6 that causes suicide and blew all of the worlds annihilator reactors that have decimated the human population. Ten is the older version of the protagonist from the game prior, 999 where Clover also was part in. Clover now works with Alice as a terrorist counter agency in search of the Myrmidons where Dio is a clone of the sects leader's brother. Dio is also the one behind the murder of the old woman, which you can save by jumping back in time (with your conscious) and stop it from happening. The whole project have been to train Sigma and Phi to get stronger and being sent back in time to stop this. Phi is a volunteer from the people behind Zero. Also the current Sigma have lost both his arms and one eye failing stoping it before, but hope they will succeed this other time. Luna is a golem robot Zero built.

So a complete mindscrew. The biggest twist for me was that we were 40 years into the future and on the moon (I thought one moment we were on Mars since it's mentioned in story) followed by that Sigma is in his 60's. Mostly contributed by "a false narrator". He believed he was 20 something so I believed him. Which proves that the Knox ten commandment of a murder mystery doesn't apply here. Was rather obvious when we start bring in telekinetic people and sending consciouses back and forth through time. Overall I liked the story and game. The puzzles just about right difficulty for me and the story kept me constantly guessing what the deal was. Problems I have with it is that parts of the game is broken. It isn't recommended to save in the puzzle rooms since there is a chance that the save could lock-up and since there is only one save, you have to play the game all over again. Especially in the PEC room. I got there after 8 hour and did the save and had to play the game all over again. The PEC room is very prone to shutting down the game and/or console for some reason. It took me 4 tries to get past that room. Apparently that have made a HD remake for PS4 or something like that, but the 3DS double screen really helped with the puzzle's, especially with the note taking. Wish they could port over the original game to the 3DS.

Mighty Gunvolt Burst

Mega Man 11

Another game by Inti Creates that did Master Blaster Zero and this time it is combining the Gunvolt-series with Mighty No. 9. Gunvolt and Beck both ends up in a virtual reality simulation of Beck's fight against the other Mighty Numbers and are unable to leave. You play as one or the other in basically Mega Man and Bass fashion. I Started with Beck, got irritated by the level design and started another save with Gunvolt, finished it after much frustration, especially with the obligatory boss rush at the end where I came to realise I didn't get the special weapon from the fire-boss and I didn't realise how you changed weapon since it wasn't very Mega Man-esque. What you had to do was customise a special weapon with the desired attribute, but I didn't get that until I was forced to learn since you could just cheese the bosses with the health restore before the boss rush. I tried to learn their pattern, but no, it wasn't recommended since most of them are f***ing cheats. And the final boss-in-three-stages made me want to throw out the controller. 

All of them cheats... including the protagonists

So after finishing the game I went back to Beck, and guess what, the game was really enjoyable. Knowing the weakness of the bosses helped, but understanding the mechanics of the fruits, different customisable weapons and so on really took away some of the irritations I had with the game. And playing as Beck reminded me so much of Mega Man I really enjoyed it. Not so much that I would try to play Mighty No. 9 since I know the problems with that game, but would really like some more games with Beck like this. Oh and just so I can find it in the future and helping out anyone else having problems:

Heat (Oil Platform) -> Cryosphere; Extra Boss 2

Freeze (Water Works Bureau) -> Battalion; Final Boss form 2

Impact (Military Base) -> Seismic; Final Boss form 1

Smash (Mine) -> Brandish

Slicer (Highway) -> Dynatron

Shock (Power Plant) -> Countershade

Analyzer (Capital Building) -> Aviator; Extra Boss 3

Press (Radio Tower) -> Pyrogen; Beck/GV (Extra Boss 1 and clone)

Enjoy.

Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas

Legend of Zelda: Oceanhorn?!?

Got this for the Switch and originally an IOS/Android game for the smart devices which you can tell by the limited use of the buttons on the controller. Using the L/R-buttons for some fast switching between weapons and spell would have been rather welcome... or even assign the actions for each button. They don't even use the d-pad which could have been used for most of the spells. Well, on to the story. You play this unnamed kid who is left on the Hermit's island while you father try to stop the monster Oceanhorn... and somehow left his diary with you that tells the story of the islands and such. You notice that it is basically a Zelda-clone, especially Wind Waker. Similar gameplay as well, use items like bombs and bow and arrow to figure out puzzles together with certain spells and so on. The difference it is an isometric point of view and every thing is square shaped. 

I HAVE THE POWER!

So as you talk to people you unlock new islands on your quest to find the three emblems in order to stop Oceanhorn... what the emblems did I can't recall since they were never used to anything other than get your character to search for them. Maybe they unlock the best sword, but I gather it isn't necessary to win the game, it just make it easier. Well, the tale is that a long time ago the kingdom of Arcadia was destroyed by the dark energy and turned the living fortresses Archimedes built to protect the kingdom against them and Oceanhorn is one of them. One of the other was slain by the Owlrus Thomas the Brave as he wielded the legendary sword forged by the Gillfolk and the third I don't recall they even mention.The dark energy is herald by the Dark Apostate that cursed the different people to gain immortality to himself and it's your job to stop him. One of those are last of the Arcadians that was trapped on what became Sky Island when the Dark Apostate lifted it of the ocean. Turns out your mother came from there as she jumped of the island together with the Sun Emblem and met your father. And in a coincidence your father is a descendent of the knights of Arcadia and the pilot that steered Oceanhorn before it turned on the Arcadians and it therefore search for you and him and killed your mother many years ago. You actually don't learn this until pretty much the end of the game. Anyway you confront Oceanhorn together with your father at the ruins of the Arcadian capital White Hall. Of course Oceanhorn is possessed by the Dark Apostate so you lure him out of Oceanhorn and then takes control of Oceanhorn with your fathers flute and Oceanhorn defeats the Dark Apostate and all is peaceful again as you are united with your father.

Like the mural look, the big bad even looks like the Horned King from Taran and the Black Cauldron

As simple and trope heavy the story is, I gotta say I like it. I like that I don't have to fight all three living fortresses but one is already defeated by this legendary hero and I just gotta find the sword he left behind. The Arcadian/Atlantis story mythos works perfectly fine. Only problem is that the story never told me that the flute I collected before confronting Oceanhorn was the control mechanism of the living fortresses so I spent 5 minutes on the fight making no progress and wondering what I did wrong or if I got closer to some cutscene victory. The final form of Oceanhorn have you electrocute the monster in order to lure out the Dark Apostate and beat him. Before he returns to Oceanhorn you gotta play the flute. I looked it up cause I was a bit tired and was so close to the end. It could be that I didn't find the necessary pice of information on my travels, but it is rather crucial to finish the game. Other problems is that I had to restart the game twice when I got caught on two separate occasions in areas I couldn't get out of. Lucky it was just to go to the title screen and start the game again since it saves as soon you enter a new screen so no major progress lost. Another problem was the use of hidden areas. A Zelda-staple, but no one seems to remember that Zelda clearly marks the areas the can be opened by bombs in the dungeons for a reason. And even more irritating is that nothing sticks out in these areas. It got better when I bought the radar, but I had to backtrack several times to look for some unopened chests.

Overall a nice little game, gotta mention that the music was by Final Fantasy-legend Nobou Uematsu which could explain why I had an instant liking toward it. Small problems as I mentioned, but a good 15 hour journey if you want something adventure like.

Exile's End

Finally, an old guy as the protagonist

Got this game when it come out for the Wii U and apparently it was released on PS4 and Steam as well. The reason I got it was its metroidvania style gameplay. You play as Jameson, a grizzled mercenary... I think. Together with another group of soldiers have been sent put by this mining company to find the son of the CEO that has gone missing on this mining planet. But as you approach the planet interference causes the ship to crash and everyone running for the "lifeboats". Of course Jameson is the only one that survives so he find himself on this alien planet with a malfunctioning suit and in the beginning without weapons. Even jumping can kill you since you take fall damage until you upgrade your suit. So don't jump too platforms below you, just walk off the cliff and land on the closest platform.

Nice doggy!

So most things kill you, too long in the water you drown, there's areas contaminated by radiation that kills you and the wildlife ain't nice. You find a gun and can finally fight back and you even locate your target. But since the electromagnetic storm is still raging you can't escape so you need to go to the ancient temple the planets inhabitants looked away since apparently there is something there that controls it. Then it turns to Metroid Prime. No really, this ancient civilisation locked away this evil under the temple and you have to stop it together with the last ancient one that is still alive? The story got a bit unclear, but it mostly is due to me taking a year or so long break (I really have a bad habit of doing that) before coming back.

Maybe not so nice doggy!

The break is probably due to not being able to progress further after finding the mine. And that is one of the more irritating parts of the game. The map isn't as useful as it should be... or more like Metroids map is. First of, the map doesn't indicate that an opening/door leads to another area which can be frustrating since you can't tell if you already been there and couldn't progress or if it connects to another area of the planet. Also, I couldn't find a good description on the weapons and items I picked up making me run in circles I just out of desperation used a wrench on a red wheel and that lowered the water to let me progress to the next area. The worst example being after fighting a hard boss in the Cathedral and I'm rewarded with a new gun. I remember that there was a laser beam door blocking my access to another part of that area so I went there and fired the gun... nothing happens. I run around for a bit, but gets so frustrated I searched the web for an answer and lo and behold, I was on the right path, but you needed to charge the gun... apparently twice when I tried it. I didn't know it could do that and it wasn't even mentioned. Another puzzle like that was how you needed to blow up a pot with water to get rid of a locked gate. I had to look it up to realise that your explosives could be used for that purpose. Another thing that irritates me is apparently you can't get 100 % on the map. For example there is spiked floors that are way too far dawn to map out the whole are and if you die the map resets to before you entered the room and certain areas are blocked off by the ground, walls or ceilings. That feels rather weird to not be able to fill it all out. Does any other metroidvania game do that?

Other than that it was a really interesting game and story. The music is catchy at times and the 2d pixel art is mostly better. It also has some cutscenes, although maybe not as fluently. But I guess I didn't get the real ending since I was able to get to the warrior tomb and either me or the alien had to sacrifice themselves in order to active the ritual to re-seal the darkness lurking. Which is rather anti-climatic I must say. And from the things I gather you need to find some hidden messages that will turn the story around I presume. Some other time when there is a walkthrough to follow I might go for it, but right now there ain't one and I have other games in my back-catalouge to finish.

ARMS

It's the Eye of the Tiger it's the thrill of the fight!

So I got ARMS for the Nintendo Switch and is yet another new IP from Nintendo. And just like Splatoon I wasn't gonna get it since boxing isn't my thing. I don't even find Punch-Out that interesting. But then the lp:ers began playing it and some people I follow on youtube began talking about it. Still, the real reason I decided to give this game a chance was... the music. The main theme was amazing. A brass band section that escalated the longer the song played. It was Tokyo Mirage Sessions all over again. So I preordered it on monday before release and got it at release day and played it for two hours with my sisters husband as their family was visiting. 

Who couldn't enjoy this music?

We played it with both joy-cons and motion controls. It took a while but after some 5-10 games we started to get a hang on how to play. And I gotta admit I'm rather non-trained so my arms was tired after those hours and I worked up some sweat during that time. Think I found a good way to fool me into be a little more active during the summer vacation time. We tested the versus mode, 2v2, v-ball, hoops, target practise and even played grand-prix although alternating between us since we were too tired to go full time. Then my sister came by and wanted to try, but like every sibling rivalry I trashed her in the match so we shall she if she will play this game again. Two days later (since I had a hard time lifting my arms the day after) I played on my own and tried the tutorials and some more grand prix. One match I even tried with the joy-cons hooked to the controller grip just to try it out (and prepare for the next weekend when my sisters all come back and I have to try non-motion controls if we are going for 4-player mode).

So... when is the Punch-Out DLC coming? It's gotta come right? Little Mac gotta be the face for the Nintendo boxing games? Right?

The grand prix is just 10 matches (with two of them being some of the mini games at nr 3 and 6 to spice up the game I assume). The only noteworthy is the final challenge by fighting Max Brass... who came as a bit of surprise since it isn't built up in the story that well and isn't part of the character rooster (until he is released as DLC I take it). If you can call it story. Mostly someone joining the ARMS Grand Prix for some personal reason. But mostly just to win the grand prix. I played the Grand Prix 5 times at the moment and the only ones that had something going for them was the Mummy that apparently was looking for his dead family and Mechanica who was a fan of Ribbon Girl. So as a single player experience it's rather bare-bone, but it's fun to play it, and as a multiplayer party game it's really shine. Other than that the only thing one with a slight OCD behaviour can do is play every character in Grand Prix through all 7 difficulties and collect enough points to use in the mini-game to gather more ARMS and complete every characters set. I haven't done that as of yet and I might never do. One thing that was a bit strange is that there doesn't seem to be a credits roll after finishing the Grand Prix (I have since writing learned that the credits only show at level 4 or higher, we shall see if I ever get there) Mario Kart made you watch the credits on most of the later grand prix (difficulty having no impact). All in all, a fun game, just gonna see how my arms will feel after some weeks with this game.