What have you been playing and hows it going? Anything got you stuck? What high score are you going for? is this the first, second, (n+1) play-through?
I’ve been slowly getting through Shadow Run for Genesis when i have free time. thanks to some feedback from this community i restarted the game but I’m on a lot better footing. still on my first play-through. Sadly my free time has come to a halt as my child is going through a sleep regression. Looking forward to getting back into it soon.
Hope everything is well!
First time playing Chrono Trigger, on Steam Deck (Steam version not emulated, I know! I know!). I’m enjoying it although I’m suffering from early RPG slowness and trying to push through. Hoping the Steam version holds out, seems like every update of Proton is nerve wracking. Love the music and art style. I do feel like I lose doors or POIs easily and I need to get better/quicker with the battle UI.
Somewhere I have the SNES cart for chrono trigger with the price label of $10, if its not faded.
I bought it in the mid-90s. You have to remember that before Final Fantasy 7, RPGs in America were NOT popular. People always cite the poor marketing of Earthbound as the reason it failed. I always say it’s because it released in 1995, at a higher price than most SNES games, at a time when RPG popularity was at an all time low. If it had released in 1997, and at a standard price, it may have done gangbusters.
Even Super Mario RPG wasn’t a hit at first, but then picked up sales as the months went on.
The guy selling Chrono Trigger at a games/music/video resale shop said “I’m surprised you’re buying this game. You sure you don’t want to play it a bit first? Save you the hassle of returning it later”. He meant well, but I actually did mean to buy it.
I also bought earthbound, with book, for $10 from the same place. It always smelled like weed in there. Mostly because the employees would smoke weed, pick out cds they wanted to hear over the stores speaker system, and then play video games stoned out of their minds.
Then they got bought out, and now it’s a corporate run store. Same resale model, but SUUUUPER corporate. You cannot fimd deals, and they give you gamestop prices for your trade-ins.
They didn’t even used to have reciepts. They would just stamp the price sticker with a stamp that they adjusted the date on. And they weren’t super strict on dates either. If your sticker said you bought it 19 days ago instead of 14 days ago, they’d usually be like “aw man, it’s cool.” As long as it wasn’t some bullshit like 3 months. Basically as long as you weren’t trying to game the system.
One time I went to a grocery store that sells closeouts. One of todays items was a huge stack of game boy games. $5 each, but it was the same game. So I buy one, and I take it there. I explain the situation. I say “hey, will I get the same price in resale each copy?” He says yes. So I traded in my copy for $15. Then took that money, bought 2 more copys (tax), traded those in for $30, took that money, bought 5 more copies, traded those in, and then went and bought 2 more copies traded those in, and bought a brand new game boy advance from them. I took $6 and essentially turned it into a brand new GBA which had only been released a few months prior.
I miss that store. It technically still exists, but I miss the spirit of what that store used to be.
DAMN, hella amazing memories you are sharing! Also wanted to give Earthbound a go as well.
Oh wow, that is quite literally the best game of all time. I dunno about the Steam version, how it changes things, but on the SNES the gfx suck, yet the story is so fantastic.
There should be a way to change the battle mode to “Wait!”, which will make them more trivially easy. Take a moment to go through one of the areas 2-3 times and you should be leveled up sufficiently to handle everything. But definitely pay attention to saves bc those boss patterns will need discovery if you aren’t using guides.
The early part is slow yeah, but once you see Lavos in the future iirc it perks quite a bit up. You will miss a LOT without a guide, but no need to even worry bc there’s like 13+ different endings and you can make use of a previous one to jumpstart the next game in the New Game+ feature.
Some doors cannot be opened earlier on. Either keep a record of them or consult a guide and much, MUCH later on they’ll hold cool stuff.
spoiler hint (treasure, not plot):
If you open certain chests in the past, there won’t be anything there in the future. Instead, you could open in the future, then open again in the past…
even more of a spoiler (still treasure)
Or start to open in the past, but don’t, then open in the future for an upgrade! And then still open in the past!? Timey wimey goodness hijinks.:-P
Thank you! This is super helpful to know, I’ve got “Wait!” on, it’s the knowing “who can do what when” that I’m not in the “flow” of yet, but I’m sure it’ll click soon.
I’ve avoided guides outside of getting stuck (didn’t see the Arris Dome ladder and had to look it up) and I’d like to keep it that way outside of unlocking some cool weapons/items later.
Any recommendations on when I should focus on grinding and what special mid/late game items I should look up guides for? I’m about to go to Site 32 and can’t decide if I should be grinding much or just pushing through with the story. Good call on the chests, but I doubt I’ll be able to stay on top of remembering that!
The Steam version may have been rebalanced, but with the SNES one early on you pretty much just have to hit things. Your two girls use Strike - so Hit ring rather than Power - and the men use swords and such. Ayla uses Power though:-). It isn’t so wrong to just hit something as soon as possible, like whenever the timer comes up then quickly hit… whatever you can. As you get better weapons, and especially when you get magic, you’ll want to hold off and think a bit more, especially at the configurations like if Lucca drops a bomb over here, then Chrono should not hit here too but rather over there, etc.
One thing that might have thrown you off is that Sewer area. You aren’t meant to go there just yet! It can be done, but man is it tough! One way is to go forward, get Robo, and use him for extra power. Plus that next area has weapons for everyone. Another is to wait until you have magic. Or you can grind before and just tough it out, but anyway there’s nothing really at the end of it, it’s just EXP and treasure and fun and adventure - but best saved for later.:-)
One trick: when you gain the ability to travel through time at will, you can bring in a healer, heal everyone, then ditch them again. I usually use Robo for that bc he’s so damn slow (agility) that I don’t like using him in battles. This saves MP. Early on that very first forest area has a secret spot where the bushes wiggle and when you click a monster pops out and runs away - no battle necessary - and it gives you a tent. You can get basically unlimited of those by leaving and coming back:-).
You need very limited grinding in this game. It’s possible to use none, but then there would indeed be certain battles that would be much tougher. Maybe do every area twice or something. If you decide early on who you want to use, you can focus on them to get the highest levels. But you don’t know all the combo attacks yet - like Chrono + Lucca + Princess can do several spectacular magic attacks together, they are quite a versatile team. Frog is great too especially if you get his secret items but that would be better as another playthrough with a guide. Ayla is great and doesn’t even need items, just lots levels. At some point you’ll lose access to all your items you’ll want her to be not totally neglected. So basically: rotate them all in occasionally, until you know what you are doing. Did you know they get ~75% of EXP even when left behind? But they don’t get AP. There is a particular enemy that locks down your skills that gives you 100 AP for beating it, and there are only a few in the game, all in pretty much one area (looks like a rock that woke up) - that’s what you want to be strategic about.
But you discovered the caveat to the above: early on is when Chrono needs his slash skill the most, to hit those things that are immune to a physical bonk attack. The way I always did it was to take him through the forest area at the start of the game, or flight the carnival robot, but those were optional and if you didn’t, a few levels could really help. Or try to avoid those battles except they spring up on you so that’s not something you’ll know about in the first playthrough. One thought: that sewer area can get hairy fast, but if you go in, flight a few battles, go back out and save, repeat and go a bit deeper, etc. it would give you a ton of EXP, plus neat items like Rage belt that auto-counterattacks. That’s my favorite pick for Chrono bc he’ll get so strong that he’ll kill things outright just by letting them hit him!:-P
Yeah just before where you are, that was the boring part - though you are close to leaving the future and that’s exactly when it picks up! Like, literal magic isn’t far away now!:-) I’d put a berserker onto the Princess, for now until she gets magic, which will also help with deciding what to do bc she’ll auto-attack then, with greatly increased ability, and go through the last dome with first her to the right and then Lucca to the left (bc of fire). Then almost never use the robot again, except for healing outside of battle, and a few other times it makes sense as well, and he can be fun then:-).
The final boss can be as difficult or easy as you want. In-game tips on a few secret areas are given but extremely cryptic. Worth figuring out though bc e.g. getting hit with confusion can wreck any strategy, while being outright immune to that makes it so much easier:-). You can also decide which characters to bring, or not bring, and that affects the ending sequence that you’ll see.:-)
Oh wow you have so much awesomeness ahead of you - enjoy it!:-)
The steam version is a port of the DS version, which added (clearly an afterthought and not worth it) content.
The DS version is an upgrade of the PlayStation version.
The PlayStation version is a port of the SNES version, with Anime cutscenes instead of the game sprites.
Any plans for how many endings you wanna see? I only did one ending back in the early 2000s when I played it, but I don’t remember which it was.
Don’t know yet, probably gonna see how this run goes. I’m hoping it sinks its teeth into me and I want to play multiple runs!
seems like every update of Proton is nerve wracking.
If a version update to Proton breaks your game, you can always specify the previous version.
Dope! I didn’t even think of that! Thank you
Currently working my way through Legend of Legaia. I’m shamelessly using some cheats to alleviate the grinding, because the American version of the game is ~4x more grindy than the Japanese version, and combat is much harder. (Yes, they slashed all of the exp and drop rates for the English release, along with making enemies significantly stronger.)
In the American version of the game, you need to stop and grind quite a bit just to be able to afford the gear for each new area. But in the Japanese version, you can pretty much steamroll enemies that are at your level, even without proper gearing. And since you have more gold, you never need to stop and grind. Hell, you actually end up with an abundance of gold in the Japanese version, meaning you don’t need to worry about things like being able to afford healing items. Which, again, just makes the game that much easier.
And quite frankly, I’m way too busy to be able to stop and grind. So I use cheats to level the playing field. I’m about halfway through the second area so far. No big hangups since I’ve played through it probably a dozen times.
I also just beat Megaman Legends again, and have moved onto Legends 2; I haven’t ever actually beaten 2, so it’ll be an adventure. I had forgotten how much more smooth the controls in 2 are, so it has been a pleasant surprise so far. IIRC, Legends 1 was made before DualShock controllers were common, so they couldn’t rely on the controllers having twin sticks. So the movement is very stilted, with turning on your shoulder buttons. Legends 2 actually allows for a true shooter layout with twin stick controls, so I don’t feel like the controls are constantly fighting me.
Legend of Legaia is awesome. The grinding is something I had no problem with at age 15 but now it’s almost unbearable. In the US version you benefit from hours of grinding.
Pity about the sequel being so bad.
Supposedly the PAL version uses the Japanese drop rates and enemy stats. So you could conceivably use that to play the game in English. But I haven’t played it to confirm.
i’ve been playing the Shiren the Wanderer DS remake, and even with a code to keep EXP between runs it is still kicking my ass. slowly but surely getting closer to the end though…
i’ve also picked up SEGA Rally again thanks to the recent documentary. it’s tough to play it in manual with the 3D pad because the button layout is optimized for the wheel controller which splits both rows of buttons between each hand, but i finally found a way to make it work and it’s a whole new game now. drifting around corners with the gear shift never gets old
I was playing though Final Fantasy XII, GTA3 and Vice City before my PS2 broke. I’m currently trying to beat Sonic 2 and Strider on my Mega Drive.
Not an actual retro game, but styled like one. I’ve been playing Psuedoregalia, which is an awesome game. Very fun. I had to print out maps, because the levels are so big.
I just did my yearly playthrough of Final Fantasy V, Four Job Fiesta mode. I finished on the 5th and ended up with a Ninja, Black Mage, Time Mage, and Chemist.
This was my third time playing FFV, and only my second time playing Four Job Fiesta. Now I’m back to playing Final Fantasy VIII. I don’t even know how many times I’ve played that one.
Been mostly playing Capcom vs SNK 2 on my Anbernic Arc handheld lately. IMO, it’s the only handheld with a d-pad that you can enjoy fighting games on, so I’ve been using it for that. Current goal is to get through arcade mode as Terry and Evil Ryu with no deaths.
i picked up an arc a few months ago and its been my main console. in fact it is what i’ve been playing shadow run on. i also have an rg350 something that is technically more beefier but the arc really does have a rockin d-pad. plus i play mostly sega games and so the layout is super nice for that in part.
Slowly playing through Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga for GBA. I wait too long between sessions and forget where I was supposed to be going.
Same for FFIX. Currently on disc 4.
Oh man, I really have to play Superstar Saga again. Started it in 2019 when I got a GBA for the first time, but every time I took a break from the game it was larger than the one before. That’s kinda weird too, since I remember the game quite good.
Anyway, I always forgot the button combinations for the different attack moves. I somehow still made it to the final boss but never beat it, because at that point I just forgot basically everything. Really one of my weirdest playthroughs. Definitely have to check that game out again, thanks for reminding me about it. Good luck with your playthrough!
I’ve been playing Seal of Rimmsala, a romhack of Arcana for SNES. This is the furthest I’ve gotten in a first person dungeon crawler, the auto mapper makes a huge difference. Just finished the second dungeon and about to make my journey into the ice-caves.
Finally playing Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney for the first time and it’s such a treat. I can see why people love this series. I’m almost finished with it I think!
I always liked it. I’m glad it aged well enough for you to enjoy it
In which case are you?
Shining Force is putting me to sleep. But… that’s why I wanted it, so it’s good? (-ish:-D)
Before that I played Shining in the Darkness (I made a post about it to help that community get started, although it is too highly specific so I don’t expect it will survive).
I wonder if I should follow up with Shining Force II, but I tend to not want to finish it. All the extra stuff you want to do to level up your characters just leads to really long battles and then you Egress and do it all again and again - it feels too gimmicky, rather than natural.
But Shining Force is so simple and easy and short and fun so that one I enjoy:-).
i have a copy of shining force on Saturn waiting for me to play it. idk why I’m getting more into RPGs when i have almost no time for them. interesting reason to play a game. though whatever promotes healthy sleep habits haha.
This one can be really short, and even if you level up your characters (which you don’t really need to, especially if you limit yourself to only use the ones that you think you’ll want to keep and set the others aside, only using as carriers of medical herbs and perhaps to take a bit) it still is short. Plus each battle is short, so it’s a good candidate if you don’t have so much time right now, very unlike the vast majority of RPGs.
I’ve been playing MGS2 with my kid after finishing MGS.
We are enjoying a lot and I didn’t remember the graphical difference between ps1 and ps2 were so big
thats awesome! do you take turns at level changes or on deaths? the graphical leap between those two is pretty impressive.
When someone dies or when someone is playing for a long time. This game is so much fun, I’m enjoying a lot, back in the day I didn’t like that we played a different character rather than Snake, but since then(and revengeance) I became more fond to Raiden
its a series that has been on my backlog for sometime. By the time i can get to it I’ll likely be following in your footsteps and playing them with my kid.
Playing classic rpg series in order, currently on dragon quest 6, Persona 1, smt 3 (modern remake just released on pc, but played mt1, mt2, smt1, smt2, and smt if prior to starting this and persona) made it to romancing saga after playing the 3 final fantasy legends, on tales of destiny remake for the ps2 after playing tales of phantasia, ys 2, Wild arms alter code f ps2 remake, FFX hd remaster, kingdom hearts, and lastly thr non rpg doom 2 from the doom 3 bfg collection after beating doom 1. Yes I am bouncing between all of these. The ADHD cannot be pleased
If you’re playing FFX/X-2 on PC, consider installing the Untitled Project X mod. It fixes some stuff and adds more graphics/UI options, but one of the most significant changes is that it allows you to toggle exp to the whole party regardless of participation.
It completely eliminates the “swap every character in to guard for 1 turn” hassle. You basically never need to grind, because every single character stays properly leveled. Basically, the game difficulty was balanced as if you fully utilized every single character in every fight. So the mod allows your exp gains to reflect that expectation, without needing to mindlessly swap each character out every time.
Good luck with FF X and X-2! I’m doing the series as well and just started XII.
Seeing how the world of Warcraft is twenty years old now I believe wow classic counts as retro. I originally bought the game in 2004. Played until around 2010. Just recently subbed for classic wow. I’m a mage, level 34. It’s been about three weeks now. I still love this game.
I have been running through story mode on Dokopon Kingdom on PS2 and it’s chaotic fun. I have the CPUs on the easiest difficulty if I remember correctly and absolutely love bullying them whenever possible. First ever playthrough. I only started playing this because someone I watch online played the remake/remaster(?).
