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T H E S U N T H E S U N T H E S U N T H E S U N T H E S U N T H E S U N

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Posts

  • SteevSteev What can I do for you? Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    emnmnme wrote: »
    https://store.steampowered.com/app/838310/Bloodstained_Curse_of_the_Moon/

    The three Bloodstained games are on sale on Steam for Halloween.

    Also, The Mummy Demastered is also on sale on Steam for the first time ever.

    Anzekay on
  • KupiKupi Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Warlock82 wrote: »
    From Bloodstained kickstarter:
    Hello, Army of the Night!

    We mentioned in our last announcement that we are tackling some technical issues that have slowed down our production timetable. We regret the long delay between updates and continue to ask for your patience as we make progress.

    Due to these issues, we do not have a release timeframe for you yet, but we would like to share some information on what we have in the works.

    Our next update will introduce a new playable character to the game. This is a change from our previously released roadmap.

    We can confirm that this new character is NOT from the world of Bloodstained. We have been working closely with a well-known partner to bring their character (and a friend) into the game.

    As with previous characters, you will be able to explore the entire map, though certain abilities will need to be acquired before some areas and bosses can be accessed. Along the way you will be able to increase the rank and class of the character’s special ability to grow in power.

    We are excited to bring this update to you and will have a full announcement when it is closer to launch.

    As previously mentioned, after the playable character is live, we expect the next update to include Chaos Mode with co-op and Vs Mode with multiplayer.

    Once again, that you for your understanding and thank you for being fans of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night!

    The Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night Team

    I hope the character isn't lame. Someone pointed out they have Miriam joining some game from the worms developer so it would be fairly disappointing if it's just some character from their game.

    A commenter at Reddit pointed out that one of the promotional videos for Bloodstained ended in a passage played on a flute that never wound up in the actual game. But it sounds almost exactly like the theme from Ubisoft's Child of Light. The character "and their friend" could be Aurora and Igniculus.

    Anzekay on
    My favorite musical instrument is the air-raid siren.

    I'm "kupiyupaekio" on Discord.
  • 38thDoe38thDoe lets never be stupid again wait lets always be stupid foreverRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    Shovel Knight and Shield Knight!

    (I just want more Shovel Knight. Where is Dig? Or Silksong?)

    Anzekay on
    38thDoE on steam
    🦀🦑🦀🦑🦀🦑🦀🦑🦀🦑🦀🦑🦀
    
  • EnlongEnlong Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Shovel Knight: Silksong? I'd play that.


    Re: Shantae cleverness.

    I still think that Half-Genie Hero has one of the best dumb jokes I've seen a video game make.
    Every time you get an item, the game goes "You got [item]!". There's one quest in which Shantae catches a cold. The game then triumphantly declares "You got sick!"

    Anzekay on
  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Shantae kicks ass.

    I found three Shantae games on Steam and PSN. The same three are on both. Which seems to be Shantae 3, 4, and 5.

    Are Shantae 1 and 2 available anywhere on a modern platform? I also checked gog.com and didn't find them there either.

    Anzekay on
  • Warlock82Warlock82 Never pet a burning dog Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Lucascraft wrote: »
    Shantae kicks ass.

    I found three Shantae games on Steam and PSN. The same three are on both. Which seems to be Shantae 3, 4, and 5.

    Are Shantae 1 and 2 available anywhere on a modern platform? I also checked gog.com and didn't find them there either.

    They are on most platforms. I know they just released Shantae 1 for Switch for example. 2 *should* be on PSN (not sure about 1?). Although 1 is GBC and a little jank compared to everything that came after (but still fun). IMO Pirate's Curse (3) is the best one. It feels *very* Metroidvania, moreso than usual.

    (it should also be noticed that Shantae 2: Risky's Revenge was a DSi-Ware game and thus much shorter than pretty much any of the others. It's really good though still)

    Edit: I found this:
    https://wayforward.com/wayforward-announces-all-five-shantae-games-for-playstation-5/

    Anzekay on
    Switch: 2143-7130-1359 | 3DS: 4983-4927-6699 | Steam: warlock82 | PSN: Warlock2282
  • EnlongEnlong Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Warlock82 wrote: »
    Lucascraft wrote: »
    Shantae kicks ass.

    I found three Shantae games on Steam and PSN. The same three are on both. Which seems to be Shantae 3, 4, and 5.

    Are Shantae 1 and 2 available anywhere on a modern platform? I also checked gog.com and didn't find them there either.

    They are on most platforms. I know they just released Shantae 1 for Switch for example. 2 *should* be on PSN (not sure about 1?). Although 1 is GBC and a little jank compared to everything that came after (but still fun). IMO Pirate's Curse (3) is the best one. It feels *very* Metroidvania, moreso than usual.

    (it should also be noticed that Shantae 2: Risky's Revenge was a DSi-Ware game and thus much shorter than pretty much any of the others. It's really good though still)

    Edit: I found this:
    https://wayforward.com/wayforward-announces-all-five-shantae-games-for-playstation-5/

    The funny thing about Pirate's Curse is that, yeah, it's probably the best one, even with 2 games after it (though, Seven Sirens feels very Metroidvania-y, in terms of world structure, I think). But part of what makes it the best one also make it a major departure in terms of gameplay from the others.

    In Pirate Curse's story,
    Shantae doesn't have magic, having sacrificed her powers for a moral choice at the end of Risky's Revenge. So, instead of having magic transformation dances, she has to collect pieces of pirate equipment. Risky Boots's old gun, sword, hat... boots...

    And each one adds a new move to Shantae's actions, without requiring her to stop and dance to transform. You get a ranged attack, a parachute glide, the equivalent of Metroid's Speed Booster... they're all fun, snappy moves that don't slow the game down to use.

    And they're great fun... but due to the story reason for their inclusion, could only really be done in one game; they aren't her standard skills. Which I found to be a shame, because I liked them considerably more than Shantae's standard skills, which you get back at the end of Pirate Curse. And while I did like Half-Genie Hero, and it did improve the flow of her transformation dances, they still felt slow compared to the pirate equipment.

    ...which is why I was pleasently surprised when I saw what they then did in Seven Sirens.
    You collect "fusion coins" based on various fauna, and they allow Shantae to instantly transform into certain animals, which act as special moves, much like the pirate equipment from Pirate's Curse. You still have some magic dances you need to stop still to perform, but they're all special super moves, or context-sensitive actions that open a path forward. All the extra moves for platforming and combat come from these instant-change coins. I like that a lot; it makes Shantae feel much more like she does in Pirate Curse.

    Anzekay on
  • Warlock82Warlock82 Never pet a burning dog Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Yeah that's the unfortunate aspect to Pirate's Curse, but still even despite that stuff being limited to that game, I also felt the humor and everything was super on-point too with that one (the scene with Bolo after telling him about the whole desert section might be my favorite in the series). Which kind of elevates it above the others IMO :3 (also flat out not a huge fan of the "Mega Man like" level structure of Half-Genie Hero, it just doesn't feel right...)

    At some point I really need to get back and finish Seven Sirens though, I only got maybe halfway through...

    Anzekay on
    Switch: 2143-7130-1359 | 3DS: 4983-4927-6699 | Steam: warlock82 | PSN: Warlock2282
  • RidleySariaRidleySaria AnaheimRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    Warlock82 wrote: »
    Yeah that's the unfortunate aspect to Pirate's Curse, but still even despite that stuff being limited to that game, I also felt the humor and everything was super on-point too with that one (the scene with Bolo after telling him about the whole desert section might be my favorite in the series). Which kind of elevates it above the others IMO :3 (also flat out not a huge fan of the "Mega Man like" level structure of Half-Genie Hero, it just doesn't feel right...)

    At some point I really need to get back and finish Seven Sirens though, I only got maybe halfway through...

    Nothing's cuter than Shantae trying to act like a pirate. "Moist the main snail!" is one of my favorite lines.

    Anzekay on
    -- Switch friend code: 2978-3296-1491 -- PSN: RidleySaria -- Genshin Impact UID: 607033509 --
  • ph blakeph blake Registered User regular
    edited April 14
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cle4sQutp4

    Really dig Nearl Alter's theme

    Anzekay on
    7h8wnycre6vs.png
  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    I bought Mummy Demastered on PSN over the weekend. Got to the first boss, beat it, and a little bit past that. This is a neat game. I'm liking it a lot. Thanks for the recommendation in the thread.

    Anzekay on
  • SteevSteev What can I do for you? Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Lucascraft wrote: »
    I bought Mummy Demastered on PSN over the weekend. Got to the first boss, beat it, and a little bit past that. This is a neat game. I'm liking it a lot. Thanks for the recommendation in the thread.

    It's a pretty short game and there's not much in the way of replayability, but it looks nice and I figured a sale is the best time to buy it. Especially since, as a licensed property, you never know when it'll be delisted.

    Anzekay on
  • cj iwakuracj iwakura The Rhythm Regent Bears The Name FreedomRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    MNC Dover wrote: »
    086lbleu19qs.jpg

    A friend of mine posted this on his FB page. That's some badass cosplay right there.

    Even went out of their way to learn ice magic, that's true dedication.

    Anzekay on
    z48g7weaopj2.png
  • Shenl742Shenl742 Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    So been going through the Advance collection and my thoughts...

    Circle of the Moon - A total chore to play, horribly unbalanced, busted on multiple levels, incredibly drab looking. And a significant amount of your character progression is locked behind RNG (even with equipment!!). I know this was their first outing on the GBA but still this has not aged well at all.

    Harmony of Dissonance - A shameless rip-off of Symphony in the best way. Simple but very functional combat, infinite dashing, INTERIOR DECORATING. And just some absolutely bonkers and amazing environments and use of colors. It's an eye-searing psychodelic nightmare in a way we'll never see again but is also absolutely my shit. I'm just kicking myself for having skipped this game when it came out and just never playing it.

    Onward back to revisit Aria of Sorrow now!

    Anzekay on
    FC: 1907-8030-1478
  • cooljammer00cooljammer00 Hey Small Christmas-Man!Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    If this is the generic Vania thread, I started playing Shantae:2: Risky's Revenge this weekend. It's okay? Not as tight as I'd like, and it being a GBA game ported to PC, the UI is kinda big and blocky and hard to read.

    I kinda wanna beat it just to say I did and then delete it, because I'm not sure how much I'm enjoying all the backtracking and running around.

    Though I did enjoy the exchange where someone does Shantae a favor, and she goes "Thanks! (Kiss)" and the guy is like "Why did you just say (Kiss) at me?"

    Anzekay on
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  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    I tried all 3 right up front for about 15-20 minutes each, and decided I liked Aria the best of the 3, so I stuck with that one. I'm planning on going back to the others afterwards.

    Anzekay on
  • cj iwakuracj iwakura The Rhythm Regent Bears The Name FreedomRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    I played them once on a GBA collection, then parted with them. They're fun, but nothing compelled me to want to play them again, unlike SotN or even PoR.

    Anzekay on
    z48g7weaopj2.png
  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    I haven't played every single one in the series, but out of the ones I have played, I'd probably put Aria in my top 3. I haven't finished it yet. I put it on hold to play Dread, but I was absolutely loving it.

    I'd probably rate my top 3 as such:

    1) Order of Ecclesia
    2) SotN
    3) Aria of Sorrow

    Anzekay on
  • cj iwakuracj iwakura The Rhythm Regent Bears The Name FreedomRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    Order is definitely closest to SotN in tone, but Aria trying to be like SotN with that goofy anime style really put me off, unlike PoR which takes the anime aesthetic and just runs with it. If you're gonna look cartoonish, have a plot to match.

    Anzekay on
    z48g7weaopj2.png
  • Shenl742Shenl742 Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Apparently lots of people consider Dissonance the worst out of the 3, and the one of the worst metroidvanias in the franchise...and I'm just sitting here thinking, why? Because I honestly think Circle is well in the running there, even considering how early it their first crack at it on the GBA. Just some incredibly poor design decisions there.

    Anzekay on
    FC: 1907-8030-1478
  • EnlongEnlong Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    cj iwakura wrote: »
    Order is definitely closest to SotN in tone, but Aria trying to be like SotN with that goofy anime style really put me off, unlike PoR which takes the anime aesthetic and just runs with it. If you're gonna look cartoonish, have a plot to match.

    Wasn't it Dawn of Sorrow that switched to a more anime style?

    Anzekay on
  • cj iwakuracj iwakura The Rhythm Regent Bears The Name FreedomRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    Enlong wrote: »
    cj iwakura wrote: »
    Order is definitely closest to SotN in tone, but Aria trying to be like SotN with that goofy anime style really put me off, unlike PoR which takes the anime aesthetic and just runs with it. If you're gonna look cartoonish, have a plot to match.

    Wasn't it Dawn of Sorrow that switched to a more anime style?

    They all kind of blur together for me. Either way, PoR was the first "anime" one I really clicked with.

    Anzekay on
    z48g7weaopj2.png
  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Yeah, Aria isn't really anime-y. It looks nearly identical to SotN except for maybe a bit of lower res background and such, due to hardware limitations of the GBA.

    Anzekay on
  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Harmony of Dissonance also looks very much like SotN. And Aria. I'd clump those 3 together as having a similar art style. The difference with Harmony being the absolutely bonkers color palate. But the graphics themselves, palate not withstanding, looks a lot like SotN.

    Anzekay on
  • WordherderWordherder Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Oooh, thanks for the heads-up that Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is on sale, I've been meaning to give that series a try.

    Anzekay on
    Why the crap did I ever make my original name "cloudeagle?"
  • LucascraftLucascraft Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    I snagged a few Metroidvanias this Halloween season. Many of them went on sale. Mummy Demastered, Shantae and the Pirate's Curse, and Blasphemous. I got those on PSN.

    And on Steam, Record of Lodoss war is on sale right now too. And holy crap that game is beautiful. It might be the best looking pixel art Metroidvania I've ever seen.

    Anzekay on
  • WhelkWhelk Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    If this is the generic 'vania thread, can someone tell me when we're getting Tomba 3?

    Anzekay on
  • Jealous DevaJealous Deva Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Shenl742 wrote: »
    Apparently lots of people consider Dissonance the worst out of the 3, and the one of the worst metroidvanias in the franchise...and I'm just sitting here thinking, why? Because I honestly think Circle is well in the running there, even considering how early it their first crack at it on the GBA. Just some incredibly poor design decisions there.

    I always thought of Harmony as … fine? It doesn’t have so much of the collection gameplay as some others, which may be good or bad, there are a couple of annoying things in castle design (I know at least one point you can get stuck and have to backtrack A LOT to get unstuck). You play as a mechanically generic belmont guy who has some screen killing magic spells that are absolutely op against bosses.

    I didn’t hate it but it didn’t blow my mind. I liked it more than circle.

    Anzekay on
  • KalnaurKalnaur I See Rain . . . Centralia, WARegistered User regular
    edited April 19
    I'm finding Circle serviceable, and I'll finish it because I like the kind of gameplay this kind of game offers, even when it's a bit stiff. I tried the Dread demo (my 5 year old was jumping up and down and squealing; I'm still trying to get him to understand that it was just a demo), and I really like what they're doing in that game up to where I got.

    Anzekay on
    I make art things! deviantART: Kalnaur ::: Origin: Kalnaur ::: UPlay: Kalnaur
  • Shenl742Shenl742 Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Shenl742 wrote: »
    Apparently lots of people consider Dissonance the worst out of the 3, and the one of the worst metroidvanias in the franchise...and I'm just sitting here thinking, why? Because I honestly think Circle is well in the running there, even considering how early it their first crack at it on the GBA. Just some incredibly poor design decisions there.

    I always thought of Harmony as … fine? It doesn’t have so much of the collection gameplay as some others, which may be good or bad, there are a couple of annoying things in castle design (I know at least one point you can get stuck and have to backtrack A LOT to get unstuck). You play as a mechanically generic belmont guy who has some screen killing magic spells that are absolutely op against bosses.

    I didn’t hate it but it didn’t blow my mind. I liked it more than circle.

    Yeah I agree it's very, very fine. It's visuals probably being the most notable thing about it. I was just real surprised by how much I enjoyed it, and it was kind of palette cleanser after Circle.
    I agree that navigating the castle is really unintuitive. Though honestly I like how the double-castle design is a lot more involved than that in Symphony.

    Anzekay on
    FC: 1907-8030-1478
  • homogenizedhomogenized Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    I think as a kid I was really put off by Harmony of Dissonance's sound, stemming from their decision to use mostly the GBC sound chip for the audio to free up processing power for the graphics.

    Anzekay on
  • EnlongEnlong Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Look, it's not called Harmony of Harmony.

    Anzekay on
  • rahkeesh2000rahkeesh2000 Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Circle has some grade A bullshit decisions but Harmony just felt completely uninspired, one-note and rushed. There's barely any challenges even before you get the broken magic, nor did any of the areas or most enemies stand out or feel distinct. If you've got the stomach for overcoming something a bit more frustrating, then at least Circle stands out.
    Lucascraft wrote: »
    Harmony of Dissonance also looks very much like SotN. And Aria. I'd clump those 3 together as having a similar art style. The difference with Harmony being the absolutely bonkers color palate. But the graphics themselves, palate not withstanding, looks a lot like SotN.

    They overcompensated a bit for the original GBA's screen, but not too much. You really need to play under some color correction for the intended effect. (In a way that you probably shouldn't for Circle...)

    vba-real-colors.png

    Anzekay on
  • CantidoCantido Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Why the hell does a Belmont have the Alucard Aura... And how much processing power that could have gone to music went to it instead?

    Anzekay on
    3DS Friendcode 5413-1311-3767
  • EnlongEnlong Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Wouldn't be surprised if it was to ensure that the character was easily visible on a muddy GBA screen.

    Anzekay on
  • L Ron HowardL Ron Howard The duck MinnesotaRegistered User regular
    edited April 19
  • cooljammer00cooljammer00 Hey Small Christmas-Man!Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Finally beat Risky's Revenge. It was okay? It gets better halfway through but then near the end they start throwing ideas at you that feel very rushed.

    Here's underwater traversal and fetch quests. Here's an autoscrolling shooting level. Here's an entirely dark room.

    Anzekay on
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  • rahkeesh2000rahkeesh2000 Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    You mostly play Risky's because it's in the same series as Pirate's Curse. Gameplay wise it's not super remarkable, aside from being the best DSiware by miles.

    Anzekay on
  • cooljammer00cooljammer00 Hey Small Christmas-Man!Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    Also who thought it was a good idea to have the animal forms be a press and hold thing.

    Anzekay on
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  • EnlongEnlong Registered User regular
    edited April 19
    That’s the way of things for most of the series. The first game was on game boy color, so I can imagine it was conceived to deal with limited buttons, and then it became a signature thing.

    Pirate Curse and Seven Sirens do some to move away from that, though.

    Anzekay on
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