Dragon Quest II (Dragon Quest I+II 2d-HD) (Switch)

Time for a new (old) adventure!

Well, it was just continue with the second game. Still have PTSD for the end-game with the kamikaze monkeys. The story is pretty much the same with some exceptions. For example, you get a fourth party member, the princess of Cannock. She first helps you looking for the prince of Cannock that elevated the early games and then when he gets poisoned she joins again, and more permanently after that, making the rest of the game a bit easier with another character carrying things and using magic. They also added an underwater section with mermaids and hidden depths. Hadn't I played it I wouldn't have noticed that all that was an add-on for the remake since it fits right in the world... granted, Dragon Quest-games tends to be rather easy to do this with since eventhough each game has an overarching story, it has a lot of small moments.

Is there more? Yes, they tie all three games together here, referencing each other and explaining better the relationship between, Hargon, the Dragonlord and Rubiss. There's also a hint of another adventure after beating Hargon. But to get that you gotta defeat the boss Octavian or whatever it's name was which roam the ocean in the ghost ship and let me tell you, that's a bitch to fight. Negating magic and attacks, healing a high rate every turn and dealing a lot of damage. I tried several times and then gave up... I could of course have used the lower setting to finish it off, should have thought about that before. Don't know if it's the big bad from the third game, but I'm quite content. And I got other games to play so I better get a move on.

So overall, it's a fun game, get a lot of backtracking and such to get every treasure chest after each key upgrade so I would have preferred a guide to diminish the amount of hours. But it's fun just roaming around, but after seeing the same towns and dungeons for the third game they can get a little stale, especially when there's a lot of empty treasure chests that I opened in the earlier games. As I saw someone writing, probably contender for the best upgrade on any game. Even the kamikaze monkeys aren't that problematic anymore. And 7 is on it's way as well, and then 12... wonder if we will see 4,5,6,8 and 9 as well. Although to much time seems to go RPG.

A DnD Tale: Tomb of Annihilation - The Wheel of Choices (13)

 

Level 5!

So our heroes have now reached the fifth level of the temple. They hear the sound of moving metals and cogs all while grey slime oozes out over the walls and floors. They find a passageway that leads to a dead end that they search for a secret door to get into a new corridor. They head down and sees words written in blood on the ceiling, "Awaken Napaka". They recall that it is the name of the dead Omuan queen they found on the floor above. They find a statue with three arms asking for jewels that they in their greed won't give. They find a keyhole in one of the reliefs that they use the key they found with the queen. It leads to a crawlway that leads to another room with a gigantic Stone Juggernaut. They search around and find a shelf with a ruby they grab. Freya even climbs atop it and tries to awaken it with their two staffs. As she hit it it crumbles to dust leaving only stone and rubble.  

Back to the corridor they try to put the ruby in the hands of the statue, but nothing happens. I kinda wished they actually put three jewels in the hands to see them crushed and the reward is destroyed ruby. The go to the other end of the corridor and finds a room with some compost and greenery. Another room with grey ooze and then they find yet another room with some controls with a blue and red button, a golden star-lever and red and blue dials. The first thing they do is pull the golden lever that begins spewing more ooze into the floor that Hope have to disarm. Then they push and pull the blue controls. They hear rumbling and heads out and see that they are closed off from the rotating rooms. 

So they pretty quickly figures out how the rooms work so they start fiddle with the red controls. They turn the dial and suddenly is talked through a telepathic link with an unknown creature. It pretty much warns them from interrupting the arrival of the god of destruction. They push the red button and are locked in for an hour. They head back to the staircase and get to a pier with two boats and a wrench to get a cage into the water. Hope controls the winch while Freya gets in the cage and snaps up three crabs while the voice talks with her. They get out and rows around the lake and gets back to the door than now speaks and asks a riddle that they answer with feeding it with a crab. Now they begin thinking about the rotating room puzzles. They end up with Destinova staying with the controls and speaking with them through the voice that speaks with them. The others head for the middle room and it rotates, releasing poisonous gas in the room and then three shambling mounds awaken and attacks them. It gets intense since the mounds gobbles up our heroes from time to time and Hope is as low as 7 HP after some attacks, but when they begin to fall off it gets easier. Hope a smudge irritated that they had resistance to fire for being walking grass. 

After the battle they enter the room at the top, finding a dead body from the company of the yellow banner that carried 6 jewels and a magic sword (which they don't know what it does, since it basically only allow them to speak draconian). We end the session here, No healing yet so we will see if we are as broken as last time. 

Dragon Quest I 2D-HD (Dragon Quest I+II 2d-HD) (Switch)

 

The beginning... and end?

And here the sequel... original... whatever it is, Dragon Quest I, but now in 2D-HD. I was a bit worried about playing this game again since it would be going back in progress compared to Dragon Quest III when you go solo against the dragonlord. But it worked rather well. Could be due to me using the qualities of life they added to the game, like allowing you to see hidden areas and chests on the maps so that it would cut down on running around. Yeah, searching every part of the world for some hidden area and then not be able to see it, but have to find it again afterward with improved abilities was a hassle. Much easier this way,

Took me around 24 hours and the story is basically the same. The evil dragonlord have kidnapped the princess of Tentagel so a scion of Erdrick appears and rescue her, defeat the dragonlord and brings peace to the land before leaving an settle a new kingdom for himself and his princess. I say basically since they've added a lot of cut-scenes. We get to see the princess fight of the dragonlord with the help of Rubiss and that the dragonlord kidnapped her to get the sphere of light that was given to Erdrick and then the king of Tentagel. You have actual characters like the three soldiers that hunt for the princess that you rescue, Robbin 'ood, Zalen the descendent of Galen the Bard and an adventuring party that you compete with in the beginning. So it actually feels like a post-Dragon Quest III-game. They've even added the mini-medals.

So it feels like a modern game. I will say that if I replay the series it won't be the old games I got since the game feels so much easier to play. And since they feel like a coherent story it is better to play III-I-II it seems and they even mention things after III like Erdricks longing to return home, but not being able to. Characters he meet on his journey that affected this game and so on. It feels like it should. Some people will probably complain that it feels bloated compared to the original with all side-quest and going back and forth on the map compared to the circle around on the original I believe, but since that was single enemy encounters this feels a bit more dynamic with several enemies at once. And you got Golden Golems, Metal Slimes and Liquid Metal Slimes that fastens the grinding process a lot. Especially when you get the metal boomerang for 38 Mini-Medal right before entering the Dragonlords keep where Liquid Metal Slimes can appear, meaning I got something like 3 levels right before fighting the dragonlord facing him at level 47. He was no pushover either, I had to rematch him 4 times before beating him. At least gather all of Erdricks equipment changed the look of the hero while equipped.

What I gather, beating the final boss and saving pretty much only opens up two more hidden areas so that you can find the final two Mini-Medals. No other post-game, but the hero spoke at least. Got all monsters, missed 10 things to get, but the 100 000 gold in my bank account will probably clear that if I was so inclined. So that leaves the second game.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2) (Switch)

 

All in time for the Galaxy-movie!

I continued with the sequel that I haven't finished on the Wii. It originally came out in 2010 which means it probably was the last game I got as a student at university, meaning I was rather depressed so didn't feel like playing anything... and then four years unemployment followed. Recalling this I actually got the version with a DVD on how to play the game. Sadly the package it all came in had been destroyed by water or corroded electronics. Great I put it on since now I can actually see that the graphics are much better on the Switch version. On the other hand the game crashed on me on the very second level so it might not be as stable.

So the story is basically a retelling on the first Galaxy-game with Bowser attacking Toad Town and getting Princess Peach, but instead of being picked up by the Cosmic Comet, you instead meet a Luma called Lubba that travels around space. It takes the shape of Mario's face for some reason. Some people on the internet speculate that had the game been released today it would just have been DLC for the original game and I can see that. Some stages are lifted directly from the first game, but Thwomps Fortress from Super Mario 64 showed up and that was nice. 

Changes to gameplay is that now, as you can see on the cover, you also can get Yoshi with you. He eat stuff and can use the flutter jump as well as using his tongue to platform even higher. In that way it feel a bit like Super Mario World with the first stage being in front of Yoshi's house and he being out. You used the wii remote pointer, but the Switch make you use the gyrocontrols instead. Seen as one of the reason why it wasn't on the All-Star 3D Collection, but since it works rather well here that can't be it. 

So did I 100%? Not as of writing, I ended up with 120 star and activated the green prankster comets that put in another 120 stars to collect which double the stars for each stage. Mostly they are hidden around the levels so you gotta find them. Not that hard since they give away the sound of a shimmering star when you get near so as long as you hear that you can deduce where they are. I got stuck at the third green star at the digging level in the first world where I found it, but couldn't get how to get to it. After some tries I gave up for another time. This is written right before Halloween 2025 which means I have four day weekend to look forward to, but Dragon Quest 1+2 comes this Friday or something like that which means the weekend is scheduled for that. 

Super Mario Galaxy (Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2) (Switch)

 

Lost in Space... again!

Well, I guess I'm part of the problem when I got this duology since I've already got the first game for Switch, and finished it 100% at it as well. I guess they fixed some graphics and added some story book pages, otherwise it's pretty much the same game. Used the pro-controller for this and it worked rather well. I guess this is pretty much the only way to play this game now if you didn't get a copy of Super Mario 3D-All Star (which I did). 

I finished it at 60 stars and continued a bit, but I realized pretty quickly why it was a bit of a bother to 100% it. So I haven't unlocked Super Luigi Galaxy, but I already have the picture to prove I finished that one as well on my Switch so I don't feel the need to finish it. I'm more worried by Super Mario Galaxy 2 which I haven't finished so sometime would be the first.

Things I can say is that I hate the bouncing power up, I can't get it to work all the time and I don't know why. 

A DnD Tale: Tomb of Annihilation - The Death of Many (12)

 

Time to join them.

So it was a while. We couldn't get a game going in september 2025 so it was October instead. And it continued from the room with all the statues. How was they gonna leave the room? There was three runes of teleportation and of course they couldn't go into the same rune, they instead split up. Freya went into the western rune and ended up at the room with the destroyed mirror. Immeral went into the northern rune and ended up at the same place, but caught in a magical explosion due to the malfunctioning rune. Hope and Destinova went into the southern one and was polymorphed into quippers, some kind of fish. The others put them into vessels of water to carry them to the other companions. None can help them since they are warriors. Instead Immeral uses the last two charges of the ring with stored spells that have the dispel spell stored.

Returning to humanoid shape they head to the final rooms of the fourth floor. They enter the corridor and ends up at a door with a riddle above the door. They are supposed to feed the serpent statues blood to allow the ghouls hidden in the wall to open the door. They don't get it so go into the corridor leading to a treasure chest just standing in the opening. They see a room beyond it, but the treasure chest is more important. Of course Hope unlocks it and open it and a boulder starts rolling from above the stairs. They run into the room and the floor below them crashes down. Hope and Freya is able to catch the edge while the others fall into the acid pit trap. Biff Longsteel dies immediately and dissolves into the acid. The others are damaged, but with the help of Freya and Hope that climbs up and get the rope to get the others out of the pit. Freya heals them with a mass cure wounds.

The others check the room and finds a sarcophagus that changes colors every 6th seconds. It has a keyhole so Hope returns to the broken chest and finds an invisible key. Doesn't help them so they look into the mural above the room. Freya touch the mural and ends up in a magical maze which opens the secret rooms with 10 skeleton minotaurs out for blood. Since they all are up on the stairs Hope, Immeral and the woman warrior blocks the stairs so that Destinova can fry them with fireball. Zaal the minotaur enters the maze to help Freya. Freya is able to find a gold key after something like three rounds and returns to the sarcophagus with skeletons all around, but just the next round they all been defeated. They wait for Zaal to find another key until he gets the purple one and returns as well. Immeral gets the gold key and uses it as it turns gold, unlocking and opening it. He's granted the power smell precious metals and gems for three days (they don't know how long, just that he can) and is branded with a demon head on the chest. 

He also picks up the robe with the slime pouring out of the pockets and gets possessed by Unkh. They also find a passage from one of the hidden rooms and find a clock that they open and grabs the jewel at the tip of the pendulum. Of course not later than that it strikes which ages Freya and the warrior woman 10 years. After getting the jewel it stops and they realizes that it's the Navel of the Moon that the tabaxi searched for. They head back to the door they couldn't open and after a bit more searching they find the blood and get Zaal and Freya to give enough blood to open the doors. There they see the murals that the blind dwarfs are painting about the things happening in the dungeon, one doing the leader of the Yellow Banner while the others are busy with our own adventures, being attacked by the beholder, being crushed by the chest and so on. They notice the throne and the scepter. They don't touch it, but finds a hidden door toward another sarcophagus with a sun revolving around it. They open it and finds the queen Napaka that oversaw the destruction of Omu. They just steals from her and then finds the scepter which they switch with the one at the throne. Nothing happens so they take both scepters which unleashes the necrotic gas that kills Zaal. The warrior woman stays with her queen and our heroes continues on and find yet another hidden door that leads to a staircase down to level 5. We end here since everyones getting tired and sleeps to heal up. 

Trails in the Sky: 1st Chapter (Switch/Switch 2)

 

Wonder what skies have to do with anything since you walk most of the time.

I've heard about the Trails-series for a long time since I played Ys, being part of the Legend of Heroes-series that appears to be Falcoms biggest series beside Ys. The one thing everyone said was that it was a fantastic to get into, but there was 13 games in the series and where do you start on a game series that started out on the PSP? Well, you wait for a remake on the newest consoles of the first game of course. 

As usual I got it for the Switch since then you at least saved on the space on the console, and then just upgraded to the Switch 2. Apparently they are gonna update it to 1.05 any day forward, but I already cleared the game so some of the things I won't be seeing I guess. Story is that the country of Liberl was attacked by it's neighbor the Empire, but after 100 day was freed due to Colonel Cassius Bright who devised the plan to repel the invasion. He then joined the mercenary group the Bracers and trains his daughter Estelle. 5 years after the battle he finds a boy Joshua he brings home and adopts and 5 years after that the kids are doing their Bracer entrance exams and then starts doing jobs while Cassius leaves. An airliner is attacked by air pirates and the Bright kids gets involved since Cassius was on the liner.

From there they travel all around Liberl uncovering a conspiracy from within the Royal military of Liberl to seize power by brainwashing certain targets, for example the air pirates, a mayor here and several military commanders. You also meet several other Bracers that help you on your journey like Zin the Unmovable, Scharezard the whip-wielding drunkard, Agate the red-headed swordsman, Tita the genius, Olivier the imperial minstrel and Kloe the schoolgirl. You also meets people like the reporter and photographer of Liberl News that gives you hints on the overall story or Professor Alba getting in trouble all the time at the towers scattered across the land. 

It's a bit slow in the beginning since it took something like 10 hours leaving the first town, but when it gets going it gets going. The story always calls back with persons reappearing in a chapter after the one they introduced and you also gets some in between stories between chapters keeping the mystery pulling you along. Spoilers ahead, but nothing is what it seems and the bad guy is actually someone you can understand. His reasons for doing what he does is logical, and then in the credits pretty much it turns out someone was pulling his strings. Which I didn't see coming. The story is also interesting in that it has a female main character. Estelle is the main character and seems to be in the following two games as well and that is rather fun since she is a fun character to follow. Her goofiness and naive nature make sit fun to watch her collide with others or such things. Funny how no one talked about the woke agenda in this game with the other main character Joshua dresses up in a dress and maid outfit. One character even talks about bringing down the patriarchy. Damn posers in the gaming community.

Graphics are fine, but I noticed a flicker one time, but that was it. Music is alright and you have good voice actors like Matthew Mercer and the guy voicing Doggi and Doug. Interestingly enough the voice lines are kinda inconsistent. There are scenes when when side characters have a voiced line, but the main guys aren't voiced. Maybe it has to do with actions that affects the scene so they didn't voice them, but it feels kinda weird. The second game is on the way and I might have to get my hand on the other games in the series.