Serenes Forest's Teehee Thread

[Acacia Sgt]

Can't wait for the inevitable Gridman-Masaki talk convo that will show up somewhere in the game. Even if it's in a Save-Quit skit. XD

[Interdimensional Observer]

Ugh... too much cake. I can't believe it, buttercream has betrayed me. Where has the ability to consume unlimited amounts of excess icing lacking any accompanying portion of cake gone?

 

4 hours ago, Acacia Sgt said:

"Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree
If mankind perished utterly;

And Spring herself, when she woke at dawn,
Would scarcely know that we were gone."

Concise, graceful, and sharp. A fine reminder that the world is not anthropic. Much as is Camus's remark, should I remember it correctly, that "Nature speaks not to us directly", although it lacks the elegance, and speaks more to the matter of what humans can truly know.

 

3 hours ago, Ghost_06_ said:

Are you me?

I was going to joke on the topic of Persona that one of us the Shadow the other refuses to embrace. But then, between Dayni and Acacia, we have a total of four us. Although Maki did split herself five ways between: her real self in the Sea of Souls, the ideal self we think is the real her throughout the game, the children Mai and Aki, and Pandora. (Good Philemon, Pandora phase 1 is visually unforgettable in a bad way.) It's not quite Shadows though, since the concept begins with Persona 2.

3 hours ago, Ghost_06_ said:

Man, I wish I had the ability to properly put my thoughts into words. There's so much I wanted to say, but I can only write short phrases.

It's practically my sole redeeming feature for any possible career. Even here, in a boondocks of the Web, a nothing message board, I continue to carefully word my prose. There is no professor to grade it, there is no book I'm planning to publish, yet I refuse to let my eloquence (so as far as others have said, alas the academic record is lost on a deceased Mac) perish nor dull.

I am no orator who speaks, nor actor who acts, no athlete who plays, no financier who invests, no programmer who codes. It is through language by the pen written or the keyboard typed, and always prose, for natural poetry is a step beyond my limits, that I express myself. So I wish to be understood, so I pour every effort into how best I shall be understood.

...And this took me, oh, ten minutes to write out to completion?😅 I needed to find precisely the right words, and balance floweriness with restrain, it is all too simple to wax on verbiage without end.

 

3 hours ago, Dayni said:

A sense of having to regulate oneself all the time for social situations can be enough of an albatross on one's neck to make the whole experience a drag, much less doing so in a way that makes yourself agreeable for others. Open as I may be about having it with others, sometimes I can be a bit lax about keeping to social convention (eye contact being one of the first things to fall) and personally it's a matter of trying to do so enough to keep to the standard but not be constantly keeping an eye out for it. (DAMMIT THE PUN)

And there is some irony, that in all likelihood, humans taken as fairly good (if deeply flawed in some regards), is that others would be willing to forgive some social awkwardness. We're different, that's fine, others have faults too, let us not forget, and as long as we do make a conscious effort, we'll be good. Although, I understand being paranoid to prevent a gradual decline in being conscious of one's social behavior.

3 hours ago, Dayni said:

Being honest, I didn't really go out on my own either (not like I can at present). I do think it was a weakness of mine even when I was in college (a combination of concerns about safety despite not being the most likely target of unsavoury types and a worsening state as a person in the later years)

And I'm still someone who has a slight problem with buying stuff, and the occasional moment of awkwardness when ordering things from a menu.

(The prior issue here was the final nail in the coffin that told me the unimportant playable character of Phog in Xenoblade Chronicles X is unmistakably autistic. Not a dramatically exaggerated quirky weirdo of a anime character, nor merely generically timid. Phog was definitely, beyond any reasonable doubt, a male of 24 years, ordinary and autistic. And for that reason, this rather bleh to most people character, resonated with me in a very specific way. He's a rare find in a video game. Now if only I shared his competency with wielding dual guns.)

 

2 hours ago, Armagon said:

Kotaku gets torn open a new one, what else is new?

I saw that, but I didn't click on it, since I haven't played Dread yet. I was willing to give the benefit of a doubt, this is entertainment/art, not politics, the stakes are not the same. But, I do appreciate Metroid keeping the dialogue limited, there are enough overly wordy games out there already.

2 hours ago, Armagon said:

Gonna need X2 to add in sombreros. Gonna represent Latin America on a different planet.

That'll be a clipping nightmare whenever a character has to bend forward or back. But clipping hats are an inevitable and extraordinarily petty issue.

Since the Nopon have the hat monopoly, I'm envisioning them wearing sombreros. And maybe "wearing" human-sized ones so big, that you can't actually see the Nopon underneath.

2 hours ago, Armagon said:

The Switch's popularity is a double-edged sword because it has a worse version of the Wii's massive shovelware problem. It's comparable to Steam in this regard. Cheap VNs, asset flips, etc.

Compared to the 3DS and the Wii U, the Switch eShop is feeling like a downgrade. I read a few comments once where people took a stance against "curation" because it means reading their play/purchase data, but really, would it be difficult to at least divide games according to some concept of genre? And to find a way to push the shovelware down lower, while not taking the inexpensive, quality indies with it.

Although for me, as I'm constantly browsing the Internet for new games and looking up information about anything that might catch my interest, I'm personally not in need of eShop improvements (other than some music for it). I use the eShop to check for sales, and to buy what I know I already want. It's for the untold flocks of gamers who don't put in that kind of attention, and the smaller developers who aren't so readily recognizable but could use each sale more than the corporate colossi, who would stand to benefit from a better eShop.

 

2 hours ago, Ghost_06_ said:

 

Wasn't this the case with Star Wars and the name "Darth Vader"? Something about "Vader" meaning "father" in a language like Dutch or German? Lucas didn't actually think of that, it was a pure accident.

1 hour ago, Ghost_06_ said:

Metroidvania fans, what is the best game for a beginner in the genre? Either Metroid or Castlevania works.

Since Armagon tackled the Metroid half of the Metroidvania equation, I'll go over the Igavania half. (Named after Koji Igarashi, the man who worked on all but one of them. Everything prior to Symphony of the Night is a "Classicvania", old-fashioned linear 2D action platforming, no RPG elements, no exploring. The exception being the Lords of Shadow trilogy MercurySteam put out.)

• Symphony of the Night: The original Igavania, widely praised, but not still available on Nintendo systems. The PS1 2D art has aged fairly well, the music is good, and the castle leans more towards exploration than other games. However, in gameplay, it has not aged the best, owing to being the first attempt at an Metroidvania/Igavania.
• Castlevania Advance Collection:
  • Unless you go the Grant Danasty route (yar har ho!), the most convenient way of play Circle of the Moon, Harmony of Dissonance, and Aria of Sorrow, is to buy them all in this very recent bundle. You get the mediocre Classicvania Dracula X as well. All of these games get some modern enhancements, such as Circle of the Moon informing you of when you're fighting enemies that have a chance of a dropping a DSS card, which are important.
  • Circle of the Moon wasn't made by Iga. It's a little odd, but not a bad title.
  • Harmony of Dissonance is usually considered the worst Igavania, though I've seen dissenting opinions. Terrible music, garishly bright colors that overcompensate for the GBA's lack of a backlight after CoM was criticized for being too dull and dark, trying too hard in some ways to be SotN 2.0, and the gameplay holds okay, but isn't particularly good.
  • Aria of Sorrow is one of the best Igavanias, quite good. 
• Dawn of Sorrow
  • The direct sequel to Aria of Sorrow, not that the plot matters a whole lot in Igavanias, they're gameplay first.
  • Overall, not bad, but usually considered inferior to Aria.
  • Being a DS title, like the next two games, it's harder to get access to legally.
• Portrait of Ruin
  • The Igavania formula was getting stagnant by this point. But, a little area recycling later on aside, and perhaps the infusion of "anime" graphics that went goodbye after this game, it's solid. More of the same, but enjoyable.
• Order of Ecclesia
  • The exploration is quite limited here, the many areas are much smaller, and a few are straight lines.
  • Yet, the combat is great, the game can be fairly challenging if you're into that. The Glyph system is like the Soul system of the Sorrow games, but narrowed, with almost every Glyph being useful in some way.
• Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
  • This is what happened when Igarashi left Konami and turned to Kickstarter to make a new game.
  • The explorable castle is the biggest ever, the greatest in this regard since SotN.
  • Rubenio here loves the game more than Ecclesia. Another SFer named Alastor said this was disappointingly worse than Ecclesia (and I agree with him Glyphs > Shards). But on the whole, the game has gotten good reviews. I liked it as "more of the same" myself.
  • The Switch version of this game has some minor, but perhaps noticeable to some, technical issues.

Is this useful?

I'd say go Symphony, Aria or Bloodstained as the first, Portrait of Ruin wouldn't be a terrible choice either if you can get an old copy/emulate. Order of Ecclesia being a bit difficult means you probably would want to hold off. Circle and Harmony coming with Aria now will create a bit of a jarring effect if you play Aria, and then try going back to the older two games.

I'm useless except for secondhand information with Classicvania, which is not what you're talking about here. And Lords of Shadow should be played in chronological order. Lament of Innocence and Curse of Darkness are PS2 attempts to sorta bring Igavania to 3D, but they usually aren't praised for being anything above decent, Castlevania remains better in 2D.

 

17 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Can't wait for the inevitable Gridman-Masaki talk convo that will show up somewhere in the game. Even if it's in a Save-Quit skit. XD

Same VA?

Took a few seconds because the metallic distortion (to the 20 second marker), but with Akashic Busta! in my head for a reference, I thought it sounded the same. Although as I listened to more, I began to doubt myself. Yet, I expected from the start you meant shared VA.

Edited October 19, 2021 by Interdimensional Observer

[Shrimpica]

Honestly, SGW probably has the worst implementation oh Thracia capture yet

-GBA stupid 5 inventory slots. Makes this a micromanagement hell. I know it's engine limitations but...

-half the enemy units have a "non-captureable" skill

-half of the other half have something stupid like 18 con

-Enemies are generally way way way way too tanky (although it seems it's getting a bit better in that regard, but 14 def/res 44 hp enemies when you can barely reach 20 ATK is a bruh moment)

Edited October 19, 2021 by Shrimp γ

[Acacia Sgt]

9 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Same VA?

Took a few seconds because the metallic distortion (to the 20 second marker), but with Akashic Busta! in my head for a reference, I thought it sounded the same. Although as I listened to more, I began to doubt myself. Yet, I expected from the start you meant shared VA.

Yep, Hikaru Midorikawa voices both.

Fun fact if you don't know already, he's a big SRW fan. To the point he gladly records voice lines for free, and gets to beta test the games. It's very telling since one of his more iconic roles, Heero Yui, always has A LOT more voiced lines whenever Gundam Wing shows up in SRW. And mostly why SRW X pretty much gave us this:

So I expect Gridman to have quite some unique voice lines. And with Masaki also in the game...

Edited October 19, 2021 by Acacia Sgt

[Interdimensional Observer]

1 minute ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Yep, Hikaru Midorikawa voices both.

Fun fact if you don't know already, he's a big SRW fan. To the point he gladly records voice lines for free,

Aww, how nice.

2 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

and gets to beta test the games.

Devotion gets rewarded with fun, awesome! 

3 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

It's very telling since one of his more iconic roles, Heero Yui, always has A LOT more voiced lines whenever Gundam Wing shows up in SRW. And mostly why SRW X pretty much gave us this:

...And this reads like a form of self-love I knew and didn't know existed.😐 I've heard of one-person plays, but this sounds like a blabbermouth. Though I be a person of little ego, as long as they've some self-awareness, I'm guess the vanity is alright.

[Acacia Sgt]

He's not unique in those regards. SRW likes to poke fun to all the Seiyuu jokes and references they can make.

Kinda like how back in SRW Alpha, you had Misato from Evangelion sometimes flirting with Gundam's Amuro. Why? Because their Seiyuus voice Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask. In fact, Misato and Usagi having the same Seiyuu is taken to its logical conclusion in SRW MX, thanks to G Gundam's Nobel Gundam being pretty much a Pretty Senshi Sailor Gundam. Thus, Misato starts fangirling. lol

Edited October 19, 2021 by Acacia Sgt

[Lightcosmo]

Sora is out now!

[Interdimensional Observer]

4 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

He's not unique in those regards. SRW likes to poke fun to all the Seiyuu jokes and references they can make.

Kinda like how back in SRW Alpha, you had Misato from Evangelion sometimes flirting with Gundam's Amuro. Why? Because their Seiyuus voice Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask. In fact, Misato and Usagi having the same Seiyuu is taken to its logical conclusion in SRW MX, thanks to G Gundam's Nobel Gundam being pretty much a Pretty Senshi Sailor Gundam. Thus, Misato starts fangirling. lol

Yeah these sound a tad funnier. I'm not against the jokes, it was more you made it sound like the guy was getting too many lines because he insisted on talking. 

I can't get past how strange it sounds to alternate, possibly using the very same tone, between two different people addressing each other.😆 If it weren't acting, we'd call it insanity but that's true of all acting, isn't it?.

[Venger_06]

2 hours ago, Armagon said:

Well in regards to Metroid, there's really no bad starting point as far as the 2D games go (NES and GBTroid don't count, play the remakes). Super hasn't aged the best but like most big SNES games, it's still aged well enough. The GBA titles are the most streamlined. Samus Returns on the 3DS is pretty good although i'd recommend playing it before Dread as Dread improved on it's mechanics too much (actually Dread is best played after playing what came before but if you want to start with it, that's perfectly valid too).

The Prime trilogy is better played after you have some experience with the 2D titles imo. They're still Metroidvanias but 3D Metroidvanias don't hit as good imo and the reason why Prime 3 is the best in the trilogy is because it's very linear, which works better for that style of game. Other M is good, despite the naysayers, but it's also not a Metroidvania so i won't bring it up here.

I can't really speak on Castlevania, so i'll instead mention the Blaster Master Zero trilogy, which is also beginner friendly. Solid trilogy of Metroidvanias, though definitely a bit more linear than it's peers (especially BMZ3).

Thanks. It's a good thing I have access to pretty much all of them on the 3DS.

40 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Is this useful?

I'd say go Symphony, Aria or Bloodstained as the first, Portrait of Ruin wouldn't be a terrible choice either if you can get an old copy/emulate. Order of Ecclesia being a bit difficult means you probably would want to hold off. Circle and Harmony coming with Aria now will create a bit of a jarring effect if you play Aria, and then try going back to the older two games.

1 hour ago, Eltosian Kadath said:

On the Castlevania side, you could always start with the game that added the vania to that portmanteau, Symphony of the Night. Aria of Sorrow is another solid entry for that as well.

Thanks. I'll try Symphony. PSX emulation on 3DS has come a long way now.

If it fails, I'll try Aria.

[Acacia Sgt]

If you're trying out Symphony, I'd recommend the Saturn version. It contains more stuff. The mobile port, which is the one I own, is based on the Saturn version.

Edited October 19, 2021 by Acacia Sgt

[Acacia Sgt]

SRW's voice stuff certainly lends itself for amusing scenarios:

The climatic fight against Char Aznable in Alpha 2, and thus unique quotes exist between him and many of the UC Cast, Heero due to Midorikawa, Zechs since he's a Char expy, and... Jeeg of Kotetsu Jeeg. Why? Because his seiyuu is also Amuro's. Thus, he's so out of place there. XD

Edited October 19, 2021 by Acacia Sgt

[Acacia Sgt]

Now that I look at this, Alpha 2 has to be the only game that actually displays a zero when a unit evades. Kinda redundant.

[Lightchao42]

Hmm, it seems like Sora's codename is "trail". Clearly this means Rean was meant to be the final character, but was replaced by Sora at the last minute.

2 hours ago, Armagon said:

Those tits could bring world peace.

Well I didn't mean it like that but... you're not wrong.

1 hour ago, Sooks said:

Her character model is wider than everyone else’s if you look at them from the side.

I'm not quite sure how that works, but wide you say?

[Lightcosmo]

Aaaand they reused most of Sora's voice clips from DDD. Imo his worst iteration, haha.

[Lightcosmo]

10 minutes ago, Lightchao42 said:

 

I'm never gonna unsee that, thank you for that mind boggling image. 😑

[Acacia Sgt]

Ah yes, Ben SWOLO. XD

[Sooks]

19 minutes ago, Lightchao42 said:

Hmm, it seems like Sora's codename is "trail". Clearly this means Rean was meant to be the final character, but was replaced by Sora at the last minute.

Lightchao is ready to join the Trails fandom without having played a single Trails game.

[Sooks]

So, should I be buying weapons for Tio and investing in her attack? Her s-craft is super good, but that’s magical. What about the rest of them and her normal attacks? Do they use strength?

[DragonFlames]

Going to bed at 2 am
Waking up at 5 am
Feeling like complete garbage, because my heart and stomach have been giving me hell lately, and on top of that, my mind is trying its damndest to once again make me think I'm a total waste of space nobody should have the displeasure of interacting with

Yep, just a normal day for Draggy

Hooray

[Acacia Sgt]

Hmm, that moment I don't know if I'll have a Chapter 3 or Chapters 3 and 4 when I'm done adapting the first chapter scope of my original version...

Edited October 19, 2021 by Acacia Sgt

[Acacia Sgt]

Ah, PV3 next Monday. No signs it will also cover DLC 2. Maybe for this week itself...?

[Saint Rubenio]

9 hours ago, Armagon said:

I don't think you actually got hounded here (if you felt that way, i apologize)

It certainly wasn't nearly as bad as it would've been elsewhere on the internet, this place's atmosphere is too chill for that. And it was no fault of yours, you were by far the most understanding and civil about it. It's just, precisely because this place is so chill, I expected a bit better than the hostility I got for daring not to enjoy the hidden path bomb hunt.

Quote

but i do agree some fans insist that "getting lost" should be a vital aspect of the Metroid series. Something which i disagree with (see my criticisms of Super Metroid and even morso Metroid Prime).

I would be fine with that if there was a real challenge to finding the hidden paths. Actually, since I played Prof Layton, I came up with an analogy that hopefully better explains my issue with Fusion.

Imagine a simple puzzle with multiple answers. Just a short problem described in a few sentences and four answers, A, B, C and D. Of course, you can bruteforce it and try all the answers until you find the right one, but you can also read the problem through, figure out the logic and come to the answer naturally. Even if you make mistakes and it takes you multiple tries, there's a certain sense of accomplishment in that.

Metroid Fusion was like a puzzle but the problem description is missing. You're just given A, B, C and D and told "there, one of those is the path forward. Have fun." Since there's no problem to solve, the singular solution left is to bruteforce it. Except it's not just A, B, C or D. It's dozens of tiles per screen, each of which could be a hidden path. There was no rhyme or reason to any of it, and to me the game ended up feeling like an elaborate April Fools prank.

So yeah. That's my problem with Metroid. I apologize if it was already clear, but I know I don't express myself properly sometimes.

9 hours ago, Armagon said:

Dread's level design is basically designed around leaving breadcrumbs that are easy to follow while also allowing more advanced players to sequence break. And the map actually tells you shit beyond just being squares and rectangles (i prefer my maps to be as detailed as possible, just being vague squares isn't a good thing).

I know you're not gonna pick up the game, i'm just saying, it probably solves any issues you've had with Fusion.

See, that's exactly what I was saying! That's an actual riddle to figure out instead of mindlessly putting bombs on every pixel!

But yeah, there's no chance. Fusion has soured my perception of Metroid forever. Zero chance I pour 60 bucks on this franchise. 10 bucks, we'll talk.

9 hours ago, Lightchao42 said:

my experience (as I played it a few weeks ago) Fusion has only one area that's easy to get lost in, you even have a computer telling you where to go most of the time.

There's mandatory hidden paths all over the place. And yeah, maybe they aren't all hell to find, but again, when the only solution is to bruteforce your way through them, it just feels like a waste of time. To me personally.

Quote

Did you at least fight Nightmare to understand true pain before you quit?

You mean the awful computer boss with the wonky hitboxes? Yeah, I got there. I got up to Ridley screaming like a chain smoker woman before I had enough. So yeah, pretty late into the game.

9 hours ago, Ghost_06_ said:

Why are you acting like it's a common word in my vocabulary? Have I ever said it before?

Armagon asked a question and I answered because I'm knowledgeable. It is simple as that.

Ignorance is bliss, 06. Leave it at that.

8 hours ago, Armagon said:

Is it me or is Malice more darker-skinned in FEH?

A little bit, yes. She also got animer. Not gonna lie, I think I still like the OG artwork better.

8 hours ago, Armagon said:

(Also i would like to formally apologize to Ruben, as Malice did have a good artstyle in DSFE. Not in-game tho, that shit's still ugly).

Good Armagon. I didn't know you would come around, but it is a pleasant surprise. I mean, we still disagree on the DS portraits, but it's a start.

7 hours ago, Shrimp γ said:

Honestly, SGW probably has the worst implementation oh Thracia capture yet

-GBA stupid 5 inventory slots. Makes this a micromanagement hell. I know it's engine limitations but...

-half the enemy units have a "non-captureable" skill

-half of the other half have something stupid like 18 con

-Enemies are generally way way way way too tanky (although it seems it's getting a bit better in that regard, but 14 def/res 44 hp enemies when you can barely reach 20 ATK is a bruh moment)

Oof.

6 hours ago, Lightchao42 said:

Hmm, it seems like Sora's codename is "trail". Clearly this means Rean was meant to be the final character, but was replaced by Sora at the last minute.

That would've made certain individuals call an air strike on Nintendo HQ. Knowing this, they changed course at the last minute.

Edited October 19, 2021 by Saint Rubenio

[Shrimpica]

6 hours ago, DragonFlames said:

Going to bed at 2 am
Waking up at 5 am
Feeling like complete garbage, because my heart and stomach have been giving me hell lately, and on top of that, my mind is trying its damndest to once again make me think I'm a total waste of space nobody should have the displeasure of interacting with

Yep, just a normal day for Draggy

Hooray

I like interacting with you, and i am pretty sure most of us here do, so you you are not and will never be a waste of space.

I do understand you tho. Yesterday i got a grim reminder of my dark illness days, and my body was acting up the whole night to the point i couldn't sleep until 10 in the morning, and all i could think of

"Please, not again. Not this again. I don't want to return to this no no no."

Get well soon, Draggy, and it's always a pleasure interacting with you and not a displeasure!

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Oof

Well, atleast the whole tanky thing isn't as bad anymore. Enemies in ch 7 and 8 were way more tanky then enemies in chapters after them, and way too tanky in general. Probably because you get some op units in these 2 chapters and the game expects you to use them like Jagens on steroids or something.

Which is not something i find fun tbh

[Saint Rubenio]

15 minutes ago, Shrimp γ said:

Well, atleast the whole tanky thing isn't as bad anymore. Enemies in ch 7 and 8 were way more tanky then enemies in chapters after them, and way too tanky in general. Probably because you get some op units in these 2 chapters and the game expects you to use them like Jagens on steroids or something.

Which is not something i find fun tbh

Yeah, chapter 8 expects you to use Ren rather liberally. Given your outlook on prepromotes in general, I can understand why you wouldn't enjoy that.

[Shrimpica]

7 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Yeah, chapter 8 expects you to use Ren rather liberally. Given your outlook on prepromotes in general, I can understand why you wouldn't enjoy that.

I didn't mind the boss like strong enemies that much, but even regular mobs had waaay too much Def and hp, and were basically unkillable withou effective weapons.

This game needs attack stance :p