Pikmin (Pikmin 1+2) (Switch)

 

Feeling Hungry?

Due to releasing Pikmin 4 they also released Pikmin 1 and 2 for the Switch and it also came in a physical collection... a month or two after the digital release, but I gotten a lot more patient. So I waited and played the first game again after what must have been 10 years. I bought the original gamecube version near release, and it was one of the first game I actually went and bought myself. Still have the copy. Got the game mostly from the hype around another Miyamoto IP and a demo they had on a Super Play DVD. It looked amazing for the day and I wasn't that averse to strategy games, I played Warcraft.

Story is that Captain Olimar is on his way home when an asteroid hits his ship the S.S. Dolphin and he crash on this familiar looking planet. He has 30 days to find at least 25 of the 30 parts to be able to travel back to his home planet and meet his family again. To help him he finds the local creatures called pikmin that sprouts from onions that can fly. In the original it was the standard red, blue and yellow pikmins.

Now, I finished it once before and I think I did that in something like 25 days, this time I did it in 20 days. Dandori skills through the roof. It was fun and even if the time constraints due to the 30 day limit it was decent enough. That I finished the whole final area in one day, including fighting the final boss is kinda impressive since I think I spent a couple of days last time. Overall I felt smaller last time playing than now.

A problem I encountered though was that the improvements made in later games greatly enhances the gameplay so going back is a bit archaic. I miss switching between different pikmin's just by clicking a button. Having several captains that you can order around makes the game easier since you can multitask, here you just have Olimar that have to keep track of everyone. I didn't get the sequel for some reason until it was released for the Wii, I wonder how that will feel.

A DnD Tale - Waterdeep: Dragon's Heist - Cult of Personality

 

Please allow me to introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
I've been around for a long, long years
Stole million man's soul an faith

So the day was finally here. It was the big midsummer festival and the Cassalenters have pulled no stops, hiring our heroes to cater food and drink to the masses. What our heroes didn't know was that the Cassalanters intended to kill 100 people and sacrifice 1 000 000 gold in order to release their children from a contract that would have turned them into monsters. So they show up at the party and make the excuse that they are checking the sound in the rooms for a performance. So they go around and check it all. They don't read the books or such so they don't get the clues, they don't attempt to get through the office of Vittorio so they can't get any keys and even though they find boxes filled with red robes and golden masks they don't know what they will do with them. They find a hidden dress belonging to a noble lady, but don't look for her. They are recognised by a guest whom they don't recall (which they now think is the Black Viper, but is actually a doppelganger from the Yawning Portal). They at least finds the poison Midnight tears and know what they do, they don't connect that the poison is in the lady's chambers and the party has an ending at midnight.

They find the hidden attic, but can't get in since they don't have the keys. So they go back down and through the cellar and finds the hidden vault that leads down to the Temple of Asmodeus. They hear chanting and goes down a staircase and finds the crypt of the Cassalanter. They find the tomb of the former Lord and as they speak with him he gives them a magical armour and mace, which only Parker can carry and use. They also notice the bearded devils standing guard so they go up again and find the balcony overlooking the chamber with 30 praying cultists and a statue of Asmodues carrying the golden skull they are looking for. They get Parker to use Control Water so that the river that runs behind them rises and drowns or sweeps away all the people for 10 minutes so that they can get the skull and then destroy the statue and fire beneath it. They at least left the golden skull replica they fixed in the last session.

And then they goes back to the party not to raise suspicion, says farewell to the hosts, toasts with them and then returns home without a care in the world. They hide the skull in the tower and then goes to sleep. As midnight strikes they awake to horrible pain as the poison course through their veins. In the morning they hear that over 100 people are missing and they suddenly realise that they forgot about the poison and what it was supposed to do. In the evening Vincent Trench arrives and gives them a hint about the whereabouts of the Jade skull. It belongs to Jarleaxle, the drow mercenary leader and the place where they know about drows is in the docks where they stopped the drow assassin. And with that the session ended. 

In my mind I had this great tale where they started investigating the Cassalanter mansion and would find this different clues, like the journal hinting them about the search for the treasure and why, breaking into the study and finding the Black Viper maybe giving them hints about the Asmodeus activities and the real truth behind their recent fortunes... and some clues about Jarlaxle hinting them toward the right place without me using Vincent as a crutch. I was gonna tuck their heartstrings about the transformed children and the desperate pleads from the parents, but alas. At least I had to use all my things to create maps in order to cover the temple and the mansion floors.

TaleSpin

Time for another TaleSpin!

Another Disney Afternoon series, this time based on the Jungle book. By some seen as the pinnacle of Disney afternoon adventure shows and probably the one with most focus on the characters motivation for the plots and not just random things happening and characters that need to be changed in demand for the plot... or so at least the fans says about it. Overall 65 episodes, mostly adventure focused and some slapstick comedies. We had some episodes taped from Filmnet on VHS, the Bermuda Trepaziod one where Baloo thinks he's dying, the parrot treasure, Daring Dan, Molly Cuddled, the Hollywood episode, the flying petrol stations and Baloo back to school to be able to go to a class reunion. Those all in english and then a couple of episodes recorded from the Disney time on Fridays from Swedish Public channels. Those I recall was when Baloo lost his memory, the Vandersnoot kid, the Frankenstein episode and when Baloo starts a Pizza operation. And some doubles like the treasure, Daring Dan and Petrol station. I recall seeing more episodes on TV, but for some reason we hadn't recorded them.

A fine show, rewatching it I probably rank the amnesia episode as one of the best ones for me. Although rewatching any episode with Shere Khan is a delight, both in the ambiguity of the character and the voice acting of Tony Jay. Sadly due to the batch nature of the 65 episodes there isn't a finale that ends it on a definite end, like Gummi Bears or Ducktales. Music great and all that, still prefer Ducktales music and the animation in the first season of Ducktales also outshines this effort. Might be that I prefer the Ducktales mythos of Barks that makes me more inclined toward that show. Good then that two episodes was worked on by Don Rosa himself, the premier Scrooge writer after Barks... or maybe even before Barks. Unfortunately I don't find those episodes as interesting since he shines more in the comic format. 

On the other hand, a lot of episodes seems to copy Ducktales in several ways. We have one episode where a robot pilot is better than the standard pilot, there is the shrinking episode, there is two episodes copied directly by the same writes, jumping a day to get paid and the main character thinks he is gonna die when a doctor calls about a defunct machine (many of course probably standard tropes of series overall). Or that DuckTales and TaleSpin is pretty much the same idea for a name. Other problems is that I find the basic characters of Baloo is someone I dislike, always lazy and prone to lying. Kit is probably one of the better kid actors, but then we have an episode where he is so intent on flying he runs to Thembria and then just pesters everyone that he wants to fly and don't listen to anyone. I actually have more sympathy with the hounded Spigot in this one... then again, that might be my work as a state official shining through. I kinda find the health inspector in the Pizza episode and the inspector in the gasoline one to be very relatable as well. 

But aside from that it is an entertaining series, stories are rather fun with great voices and music. Would like a physical blu-ray release as with everything else. 

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: Fafnir Knight (3DS)

 

I thought Fafnir was the dragon?

Had to continue the series so I started up the second Untold game. Being not so keen on playing another 86 hours over the course of 8 years I choose the picnic mode and guess what? 45 hours later and I'm done... and I actually recall the whole game! And playing it this close to the ending of the first game I can see that it's pretty much structured the same way. Explore 5 floors, fight a boss, go into this side dungeon (Ginnungagap in this game), explore till stuck, back to labyrinth for another 5 floors, a new boss and so on until you reach floor 20 and the twist is revealed, go to floor 25, defeat boss and back to final stretch in the side dungeon for the true final boss. Cap the level at 65 and you are good to go.

In between floors do some quests and gather materials and money to upgrade your equipment. Another side thing is gathering ingredients for helping your guild restaurant and deciphering the clues for the recipes, a bit like the alchemy clues in Dragon Quest VIII (the PS2 version that is). So that is the basic structure, what is the story? You, the main character and your best friend Flavio have been sent by the Midgar Library (where Simon, Arthur and Raquna came from in the first game) to escort Princess Arianne. She's been tasked with performing a ritual that's needed every 100 year to uphold a seal on the Calamity, another Yggdrasil core. Entering Ginnungagap for the first time you meet Chloe and Bertrand forming the last part of your Guild as you continue the adventure. 

Bertrand is probably the most interesting character. A former fafnir knight that lived over a 100 year when his princess took his place in the ritual to stop the calamity. Cause the twist is that the fafnir knight is doomed to die and that happens to be the main character, chosen by Arianne when you saved her as a kid. Due to having 2 fafnir knights the system breaks down during the final phase so you have to save Bertrand that was taken instead of you and then you have to find another way to stop the Calamity. So you gets hint about the Overlord living in the flying castle. You meet him, turns out to be some sort of computer program, kills him and have now the power to fight the Calamity. Back in Ginnungagap you meet the Calamity and defeats it, but during the celebration it awakes again, putting all your compatriots out of commission except Arianne that intends to spare you from your faith, but you take her place and her love for you (I think at least) awakens the dormant powers that the Overlord gave you after dying so you get a super powered form that destroys the Calamity once and for all.

After that someone is talking with the citizens you meet, explaining that a bright light shone from the labyrinth and a shooting star flew south. The guild left sad as they missed one of their members, pretty much hinting that you died. The final scene is the guild deciding to go south in order to try and find you as they believe you are still alive. The end!

It was a fun little adventure. Don't know if it's due to the easier difficulty or the fact I got the skill system better this time around. Passive skills for the win. Sadly the last Untold story and with it the more story oriented games in the series. I will probably play the Switch versions afterwards, both to compare and play through the third game before continuing with IV and so forth.