Episode 14: Secret of Mana: Help, I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Get Up!

Episode 14: Secret of Mana: Help, I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Get Up!

Platform: Super NES

Japanese Release Date: August 6, 1993

U.S. Release Date: October 3, 1993

PAL Release Date: November 24, 1994

Difficulty: Easy

Current Amazon Price: $2,000 new (start saving), $51.65 used

Also available on the Wii and Wii U Virtual Console (I bought mine on the Wii for about $7 or $8)  

Podcast: Download, iTunes, PodOmatic

Lightning's Review

…Apparently, this game is set in the future. 

The Good

• A perfect starter retro game…or for any retro gamer, for that matter. A variety of weapons, items, and spells always manage to keep this action RPG interesting. You also have the choice as to whether or not you want to control a fighter type, a healer, or an offensive magic user, making this game accessible for all player types.
• The multiplayer facet of this game is fun – up to three players can control a character, making an otherwise ho-hum dungeon suddenly a lot more interesting.

The Bad

• Poor, unpredictable AI should you play solo or with two people. Will your AI attack? Will it stand there and do nothing? Will it get stuck running against the other side of a bed when you’re trying to leave an inn? You’ll never know.
• A hurried translation that left a lot out and left a lot to be imagined. Even Ted Woolsey (the translator) admits he cut a lot out due to time constraints. The story is bare-bones and at times can be hard to follow as a result.
• A weapon and magic leveling system that can make you want to tear your hair out should you want to max out every weapon and every spell. Ever wanted to cast Remedy on someone who doesn’t need it…100 times? Then bring out your inner masochist!

The Ugly

• Some of the monsters in this game. Like the giant blue heads that gave birth to other monsters. Or the vicious bunny monsters. OR THE BAT THAT REFUSES TO WEAR PANTS.

Magical flying dragons in Mode 7 – it doesn’t get any more delicious than this.

The Lowdown: A solid retro title, despite the cons outlined above. If you are just getting into retro gaming, or want to suggest an old school JRPG to a friend, then perhaps give this one a shot. This game isn’t for everyone (especially if you have little patience for grinding and poor AI), but the art style is endearing, the action RPG element of the game is fun, and the multiplayer option was an excellent addition to the game. I definitely have retro goggles on when it comes to this game – but darnit, I like them. 

Music Credits:
RPG Roundup Theme Song: "Video Game Theme," J. Arthur Keenes Band. Creative Commons Attribution License.
Secret of Mana OST

Episode 13: Wild Arms—For a Few Gella More

Episode 13: Wild Arms—For a Few Gella More

Platform: Playstation

Release Date: 

  Japan: December 20, 1996

  North America: April 30, 1997

  Europe: October 1998

Difficulty: Easy

Pricing: PSN $4.99, Amazon $80 (for a new disc, geez)

Podcast: Download, iTunes, PodOmatic

Terra’s Review

Unlike Alice’s White Rabbit, this bunny will never be late.

The Good

• With a party of only three characters, each character gets a significant chunk of the storyline dedicated to them, their backstories, and their development. I wouldn’t mind if more modern games tried this approach instead of going with 6-8 party members.

• The storyline has its twists and turns, but also is also fairly logical and easy to follow—especially for a JRPG. I especially enjoyed the fact that even the villains had their own competing motivations that sometimes led to them helping the party and working against each other.

• The soundtrack has a professional whistler. A PROFESSIONAL WHISTLER. 

The Bad

• Fairly basic turn-based battle system without much variety.

• Repetitive monsters, especially by the time you’re in the final dungeon.

• The setting doesn’t quite gel. It’s not quite a typical medieval-ish fantasyland, but it’s not particularly Western either, despite the desert, use of guns, and soundtrack with lots of whistling. And then there’s the space teleportation devices.

• Rudy as a silent protagonist doesn’t quite work. Cecelia seems to drive the story more, and since you can decide who you’re playing as, there’s no silent-protagonist-as-player-substitute. The storyline would have worked better if Rudy had talked just as much (or even half as much) as Cecelia and Jack. 

The Ugly

• So many polygons in the battle screens. So many.

• Captain Bartholomew, who doesn’t like girls over the age of 18 and has a ship named “Sweet Candy.”

 

Saving the best for last.

The lowdown:  For me, interest in the storyline and the characters outweighed the so-so battle system and the early 3D graphics. The puzzles added interest to what had the potential to become dull dungeon crawling—especially given that the monsters became less and less varied as the game went on. If you’re a fan of retro games or the Wild Arms series, give this one a try. If you’ve been eyeing the Wild Arms games but haven’t played any of them yet, you may want to start with this one. From what Lightning’s told me, the games are somewhat interconnected and this first installment might suffer in comparison to the later ones, which built on this first one and made improvements. Also, the game has a screensaver. A screensaver and a professional whistler. What more could you want?

Special Bonus: EverQuest novels. I was not hallucinating them when I was a kid.

This man appears to have no pants.

Music Credits:

RPG Roundup Theme Song: "Video Game Theme," J. Arthur Keenes Band. Creative Commons Attribution License.

Wild Arms OST.

Episode 12: Final Fantasy XIV Part One—From the Eyes of Noobs

Episode 12: Final Fantasy XIV Part One—From the Eyes of Noobs

Platform: PC/PlayStation 3

Release Date: August 27, 2013

Difficulty: Moderate

Current Amazon Price (PS3): $28.48

Current Amazon Price (PC Download): $14.99

Podcast: Download, iTunes, PodOmatic

Lightning's Review

Lightning’s character is pretty in pink! (If you squint closely, you’ll see that Alyssa is a level 24 conjurer, which means that we’ve, uh, been doing quite a bit of work on this game since recording the episode).

Part II coming up when we finish the main storyline, and hopefully we can also provide a PS4 review then. Until that time:

Things We as Noobs Have Learned About Playing an MMO:

• Everybody Poops. But don’t tell that to your party when you’re in a dungeon! (This was some tank, not us.)
• You can level up for weeks without actually getting anywhere in the storyline. Hey, it happened to us!
• “Black Market Crafting Rings” are not only kind of fun, but they also save tons of money.
• MMO elitism regarding pixelated characters in a fictional world. We thought this was supposed to be…fun? And not a job?
• All Tanks and all Healers are either incompetent or are actually trolls. According to Free Company chat and internet message boards, anyway.
• Lots of people like to run around in their underpants. 

 Terra's character has no pants. But everyone knows that leather speedoes make awesome armor!

 

Lightning’s impression: Having stayed away from MMO’s until now, I am nevertheless impressed with Final Fantasy XIV. The graphics are spectacular, the music is immersive, and the gameplay addicting, whether you’re putting a gil turtle to sleep in a guildhest or chopping down logs in the forest. If you’re interested in MMO’s but haven’t played one, this would be a good one to start with, especially if you’re already familiar with the Final Fantasy series. The game is also good for lone wolves – you have to mandatorily party up in dungeons, but you can find help (be it good or bad) using a Duty Finder. It might have helped that we partied up, but we got into Satasha dungeon and found two other players almost immediately! 

Despite naysayers regarding the PS3, I’d say go with whatever platform you’re comfortable with. I’m more of a console gamer, so I was right at home using a controller. I also have a clip on keypad and a full blown keyboard to plug into my USB port if I’m feeling chatty, but for the most part I’m happy with sprawling on the couch and playing on the big screen. The PC graphics are very pretty, though, and I would recommend the PC if you need better targeting precision or are doing something complicated like running a Free Company.

Music Credits:

RPG Roundup Theme Song: "Video Game Theme," J. Arthur Keenes Band. Creative Commons Attribution License.

FF14 original and A Realm Reborn soundtracks

Merry Christmas from RPG Roundup!

Episode 11: Soul Nomad and the World Eaters – Hotpod Hoedown

Episode 11:  Soul Nomad and the World Eaters – Hotpod Hoedown

Platform: Playstation 2

Release Date: 

  Japan: Feb 15, 2007

  USA:  Sept 25, 2007

  Europe: Jun 20, 2008

Difficulty: Moderate

Pricing:  $57.41 on Amazon

Podcast: Download, iTunes, PodOmatic

Terra's Review

His power or...something else?

The Good

• Soul Nomad has a unique game play experience. It emphasizes pre-battle planning and gives players the ability to view the battlefield and the forces the characters will face before the actual battle, something that is pretty rare in RPGs. How you prepare for a battle is as important as the strength of your characters. In fact, sometimes how you prepare is even more important than pure strength and high stats.
• Though melodramatic and sometimes confusing, the storyline events kept me engaged and wanting to know what happened next.  
• Odie will kill everything and is pathetically entertaining.

 

The Bad

• Although Soul Nomad is marketed as a game where the player’s choices will shape events and you can be good or evil, there aren’t actually many options or choices to make. This is especially true on the first play through, when you don’t have access to the Demon path and a darker storyline.
• There’s a high learning curve in terms of figuring out the gameplay mechanics and changing rooms and re-arranging squads can get tedious.
• Revya dies=Game Over, which means having to avoid using one of the best characters during the most challenging battles.

The Ugly

• Odie’s cheap Halloween dinosaur mask.
• Endorph.
• Tricia’s adoptive father loves her a little too much.

It’s too dangerous because that hairpin is so damned ugly.

The Lowdown:  Soul Nomad is definitely a game for the hardcore Nippon Ichi and tactical gaming fans. The gameplay had its faults, but it was a nice change of pace from action RPGs or tactical games with a setup more like Disgaea’s. 

Music Credits:

RPG Roundup Theme Song: "Video Game Theme," J. Arthur Keenes Band. Creative Commons Attribution License.

Soul Nomad OST