Bugging out

Don't you hate it when a simple bug or glitch halts your progress in a game?  Have you ever had one bad enough to make you stop playing the game for a bit?

Well, that's the point I hit in my Nocturne journey, when I last played it a few months ago (..geez, time flies).  I'm closing in on the end of the game, and if you'll recall my last post, I was at the impasse of trying to decide which side to ally with, but having them all be terrible.

As of now, I'm pretty close to the last dungeon, but while traveling through the Yurakucho station, which has you go through a number of dark areas and different maps, I somehow got stuck in some kind of endless loop I was unable to escape from.  It was enough to make me put down the game for the day with the intent of coming back to it later that day, but well, as noted above, it's been a bit.

..I suppose in the next few weeks I'll finally bring that journey to a close.  Ever experienced a similar bug in Nocturne, or in any other game that's made you quit for a bit?  Feel free to share in the comments.

This Post Is Not Dolphin Safe.

I have an important announcement that many of you may not be aware of.

While you think that they might be cute little pieces of marine life, dolphins are assholes.

What does this have to do with gaming?  Well, in the limited (but hopefully soon to be increasing..) time I've had to play games, I've been focusing a lot of my attention on Devil Summoner:  Soul Hackers.  A later post (..not too late, I promise) will follow up more on the game, but it earned a special place in my heart when it also acknowledged just how awful these creatures are:

This kid is the Cassandra of his time.

 This is only a snippet of the boy's conversation.  In it, he muses on how if we say that dolphins are smart, then certainly they must be capable of lying.  He also suspects that the dolphin collective is setting some grand scheme in motion, such as assassinating the prime minister.  It sounds laughable, right?  It would be, if only a few minutes later you didn't end up fighting this:

Only MegaTen could come up with something like this.

Don't be fooled by the halo and angelic wings:  Remember, in MegaTen games, all angelic beings are assholes too.   Mind you, his plot was much more vile than attempting to assassinate the prime minister (though it wouldn't be far off for a MegaTen game), but instead luring people into the internet and stealing their souls.  Based on his dialogue, he seems to have already had some success in doing it, and would have likely continued to do so if my party of loyal miscreants hadn't managed to put an end to his nefarious deeds.

Charlie definitely won MVP that battle.

But really, when I think about it, Snappy the dolphin (yes, that's his name) isn't the first incident of dolphins being jerks in RPGs, as illustrated in Breath of Fire III:

Dragon beats Dolphin, bastard.

It was only recently that the horror of dolphins was brought to my attention (I have a certain presentation to thank for that), but I'm glad to know that in their own subtle way, video games are attempting to look out for me, warn me, and teach me many of life's important lessons.

So perhaps I shouldn't be neglecting them (and you all) as much now, thus I return to Soul Hackers.

Until we meet again, keep playing, everyone.

..But not Ecco the Dolphin.

Faulty Reasons

I've hit an impasse with Nocturne.

No, I'm not bored of playing the game, but it has been on hiatus as work's gotten busy.  I've had a fun time playing it.  Heck, I've grinded to the point where my characters were ridiculously overpowered for a good portion of the game:  For those of you who have a frame of reference, let's just say being level 60 before having access to the 3rd Kalpa of the Amala Labyrinth makes things much, much easier.

But now I'm at the point of the game where I'm faced with a choice:  Nocturne, like many other MegaTen games, has multiple endings based on the choices that you make and which individual(s) you align yourself with.  Each of these characters has something called a "Reason" (or "Kotowari" in the Japanese version), which is the underlying philosophy used as a basis for creating a new world from the Vortex World (basically, the ruins of the former world before its rebirth) the game takes place in.  Allying with any of these characters will shape the new world with the vision of the selected character.

And that's where the problem lies:  I wouldn't trust any of these people to watch after my pet rock, much less with the responsibility of shaping the foundation of the new world.

Let's see my dubious choices, shall we?  Though be warned:  Spoilers abound:

SMT PTSD

My last post on Shin Megami Tensei:  Nocturne detailed me regaining my bearings and figuring out just where I was supposed to head next in the game.  You'll be happy (or indifferent) to know that since then, I've figured out where to go.  I've made some headway in the story.  I cleared the first Kalpa in the lengthy Labyrinth of Amala.  I've come to see just why people rant, rave, and generally sing the praises about Nocturne.  However, if I want to sum up my latest stretch of  play with the game, I can sum it up in 2 words:

Fuck, Hamaon.

Shin Megami Tensei: Where the Hell Am I?

The results of our last poll clearly made Xenogears was the choice for David.  For me, it was a tie between Tactics Ogre and Shin Megami Tensei III:  Nocturne.  I'm opting to go with the latter, but I have to say, I have a nasty habit with this game:  I'll pick it up, play it for a bit, acknowledge that it's awesome, then set it down and not touch it for months.

This crap really has to stop.  There are a host of reasons behind it, but the main issue with Nocturne is that when I pick the game up again, I really have no idea where the hell I am, or what happened the last time I played it. 

A lot like this, actually.

In a lot of ways, it does feel like The Hangover, with a few subtle differences.  Instead of waking up in a swank Vegas hotel, you're waking up here.

Eh, give Vegas a few years and it'll look just like this.

Instead of Mike Tyson's tiger, you have Byakko, who's really a lot similar.  And instead of Mike Tyson being angry at you and wanting to knock you out, you have this guy:

Fortunately, I don't think you have to worry about him biting your ear off.

Also, considering the fusion mishaps that happen in the SMT games, you can end up with a different version of an old friend, much like in The Hangover

If the game let me rename demons, I'd name him "Black Doug"

Now, I'm not terribly far into the game just yet, but I'm far enough that restarting would probably be more annoying than helpful in seeing me through to completion of the game.  So as I regain my bearings and try to figure out where to go from here, I ask you all to join me in this journey.  Rather than trying to cover the entirety of my foray into Nocturne in one post, you can expect a "Let's Play" inspired style of posting for the next few weeks it takes me to complete this game.  I've been under increased pressure (or perhaps inspiration) to finish as there's been a sort of revival of the game on the Blue Gartr forums.

..Well, hopefully weeks, and not months.  ..Or years.  Hopefully you readers will keep me accountable.

Theoretical Sounds

In my previous post on Raidou 2, I only gave a passing mention to the music of the game, noting that the first game had a far superior battle theme.  What I also neglected to mention was that one of the boss themes did a good job of captivating the sometimes eerie mood the game had:

However, this isn't a post that merely reminisces about how much the soundtrack of Soulless Army  is as opposed to King Abbadon:  It's not.  Both have admirable soundtrack composed by the same person (Shoji Meguro), and most of the Soulless Army tracks find their way into the second game (Remember what I said about the Arakana Corridor in the previous post being a trip down memory lane?  You'll find the above theme playing their as the regular battle theme). 

Furthermore, while maintaining many of the key themes from the first game, Raidou 2 adds a few new ones that perfectly suit the mood of the game.  For example, there's the foreboding theme of parts of the Tento Caverns, where many of the mysteries surrounding the Tsukigata clan's ties to the supposed deity these woods are named after:

Also, even though I found Geirin's constant use of "theory" "conjecture" and "process" ungodly annoying, well, there's no denying the guy has a pretty catchy theme:

Speaking of annoyance, remember those Fiend battles I mentioned?  The ones that made me put down the game in frustration?  I also mentioned that I came back quickly.  Yes, a better part of it is sheer stubbornness.  The other part is that if I'm going to get my ass kicked in a game and come back for more punishment, it'd better be to a damn good theme:

Of course, the game also does laid back themes pretty well.  One thing that I'm glad remain unchanged between the games?  The theme of the Narumi detective agency, aptly named on the soundtrack "The Lazy Detective Agency":

Whether you're playing the first or the second game, you're in for a musical treat if you play either.  Even if you don't particularly care for Shoji Meguro's compositions, it's pretty hard to argue against the fact that he always manages to find a score that suits the mood of his games.  On that note, I leave you to reflect with this theme, played during some of the more somber turning points of the game:

Considering how bizarre the MegaTen universe is, finding music that suits the mood certainly makes Meguro a musical genius, wouldn't you agree?