Metroid66

Got the little artist girl, and got battered by a dragon in the opera house. Haven't had a whiff of the assassin guy, and I'm a bit worried by @OCH's revelation of 14 characters to find, as I have 11, and can't quite recall anyone else, unless I can get the old guy who gave that last blitz move to Sabin to join the fray. I'm going to have one last gander around the map and then it might be guide time, cos I don't want frustration to set in again. I'd rather get my characters and then level up for the final dungeon by going after the dragons. I've beaten 2 and know where 2 others are. Seems like a good way to see out the game.

I've decided to embrace the difficulty on this (or lack thereof). I started to miss the little freeze frame animation you get when you equip the ring of focus as an accessory. And, let's face it, the game is so easy it makes not a jot of difference to whether you survive a battle. It just makes it a bit more interesting to the eye. Not that I would increase the difficulty even it that were possible (it isn't). It's not really that type of game. Sort of reminds me of Okami, where the battles can be long and interesting, but it's not like you're ever gonna die. Of course now that I've actually posted this there'll probably be a mad difficulty curve that will leave me with digital egg on my face. Like that mad house in 7 remake 🏠.

Well, I haven't actually used him yet but, as far as I can see, surely his dress sense alone would strike fear in the heart of the enemy I've never seen such pixel saturation.

Had a couple of major sessions on this over the last few days and I think I've come full circle on the game - getting that warm feeling of glee again from its impressive creativity, rather than that mid game frustration when things started to get a bit obscure and, let's face it, old school. But I'm not afraid to take advice from those who know better and I feel I've started to experience the game as it was intended back in the day (to the extent that such a thing is even remotely possible). So after grabbing Locke and getting all the locked up goodies in Narshe I decided to just go to the top of the map and explore all the yellow dot locations and their NPCs, working top to bottom, and acting on even the vaguest hint. There's no need for spoiler shielding as I'm sure I won't need to go into detail to divulge to those who've contributed to this forum playthru thread the sheer amount of adventuring I've experienced in order to get Cyan's ultimate move, Sabin's soul killing blitz, and find a completely new character called Gogo, via one of the most random mishaps I've ever experienced in a videogame. And no guides, just talking and exploring. I'm still a couple of characters short I think. I'm remembering the girl who did the drawings and that assassin dude. But, luckily, I docked the switch today for the first time in a few weeks, and my telly revealed a definite greyness to some of those erstwhile yellow dots. That's where I'll be going tomorrow.

I only really play long open world RPGs so I'm a bit used to things going on a bit, to the point where I'm a bit miffed if a game doesn't live up to my length (and girth) expectations - like when I was facing down the final boss of FF10 after a paltry 60 hours. I'd only just wet me whistle.

I reckon they just pretend to be clueless about modern gaming preferences so they can carry on making money the old school way In their case, fucking hand over fist.

Well tbf, I now have 8 characters, and I only needed help with Terra and Locke, plus I've given the good news to 2 dragons, and I found Mog myself simply by assuming Locke must be hiding out in Narshe mines (where I also got a nice esper).

Yeah, there's that part in 7 remake where a group of thugs are causing bother by Aerith's house and you think 'poor bastards....' And then they bring that guy out and it's...'Oh fuck...'

I can only see yellow dots. Am I missing something?

Wasn't it you who told me to avoid that like the plague?

What I've actually got in mind when I've finished 6 and 16 is a bit different. Remember, I just wanted to sample the 2d era. It's a bit too obscure for my tastes. For instance I simply would never have walked behind that bookcase to find Terra. And I mean never. And then I had a clue to go to Narshe, and another clue that I needed thief to access the locked doors. Fair enough. But I just had to look up where to find Locke. I had absolutely no chance. I still can't believe anyone found him back in the day on their own steam. If I finish the game it probably will be with phone in hand. So my franchise run will be, up to now, after 6 and 16. Unplayed games in bold. 7, 8, 9, 10, 10-2, 12, 13 (1,2,3), 15, Rebirth, Crisis core, plus Intergrade and the 16 DLC.

Are you nuts! I've still got about 10 final fantasies to get thru. Plus someone just gave me a disc version of Elden Ring, which I'm (foolishly) toying with the idea of actually playing.

Great effort. It's been a good playthru, with a nice examination of what it's like to play a game like this thirty years on - even better for me as I was coupling it with playthrus of the most recent entries in the franchise. Sure, I got a bit uppity about the lack of golden guiding lights and yellow painted ledges😄, but my thirty hours were mostly enjoyable - even though I don't have the nostalgia for this period of gaming that many here do. Fact is I'll probably resume my playthru after this nice break I'm having with FF16 (with it's wonderful quest guiding dog). Luckily the story and gameplay are so simple (find your companions and go get the baddy) It'll be easy to get back into. We'll see. At least I know where Terra is. I mean, what kind of sonofabitch would I be if I left her behind a bookcase? I just wish I'd had the option to leave Aerith behind one in Remake.

Yeah, you still have to hit dodge as a circular timer runs down. I was actually thinking of leaving it on as it looks cool in an action RPG sort of way.

Are you talking about the one that stops the action and gives you a time window to hit dodge? I honestly don't think that could make much difference to people who play games as a much as we do on this forum.

I actually think those 'auto' options are a superb addition. They're a bit like accessibility options for non gamers. I used the dodge one until I realised what it actually was. Be mad for anyone who plays games regularly to use one. I thought 7 remake was rather challenging. I mean I only game overed once, I think, but the combat definitely kept you on your toes at times. I ended up really liking the battle system after being confused by it for a good while. 16 is easy but also satisfying in being ridiculously spectacular.

It's also like an easy soul's game. I'm going thru the phoenix gate dungeon at the moment and a lot of bosses have had that feeling to them, big buggers with massive swords and ultra fast charging moves. 'Course they hit like kittens compared to something like Eldin ring.

Maybe it's just my late introduction to gaming, but that's the kind of hyper realism I'm after.

So she's just living randomly behind a bookcase while all the kids she's meant to be looking after are running wild in a Moblitz basement? Fucking game is nuts. Actually, I've already deleted the game from my Switch in an act of retaliatory defiance. There's only so much time wasting silliness I'm willing to put up with in this hobby. I suppose I'm going to have accept that Final fantasy starts at seven for me. And my franchise playthru will have to reflect the fact.

I think I need a break from it. The idea of tracking down another 6 characters (I've googled the requirements for the final dungeon) and then levelling up everyone to get thru it isn't inspiring me at all. Whether I go back at another date is another question. It was always a long shot for me. My first gaming experiences were on PS2, and the 3 FF games on that system still felt fresh and logical when I played them 3 or 4 years back. I also quite enjoyed 7 and 9, although I gave up on 9 because I just got completely confused on the story. But this game seems a step too far for me, and I genuinely think the rest of the game is set up to just have me battling for hours on end to have a chance with the final boss. It's really not that interesting to me If I haven't reconvened in a month I'll put it down as a gallant failure on my franchise playthru list.

I went back to Moblitz, which took a mind numbing half an hour to re-find because there's no names on the map, and the kids are there, but no sign of Terra. I'm close to throwing in the towel on this. God knows how anyone got through this back in the day, having to search for places over and over with no facility to turn off random encounters. It's just a bore at this point. Since the world got blown up my playthru has been a bit like watching paint dry.

One problem I've got is that I can't quite remember how many companions I had when it all went to shit. I think I'll just go all the dots on the map and see what happens. I'm also going to have another go at Terra, as I'm not convinced I'm meant to leave her behind. I'm not convinced because @Maryokutaiand @OCH both had her in their second half line-up, lol.

Managed to escape my prison thanks to @Maryokutai, and I'm back on the road with a quick stop to get Gau suited and booted to meet his father. Seems to be wearing modern western garb. This game's time frame is all over the place.

Played a bit more of this and while I can see how it might settle down to a fetch quest-a-thon given the couple of side quests I've taken on, it's been action all the way, with by far the best writing and acting I've seen in an FF game. Except it's not really an FF game is it? It's a bit like the Witcher if anything. Not that I'm complaining. Effing love the Witcher. And it sort of has a similar difficulty to the average western RPG, rather than the more complicated but possibly more fulfilling combat I recently experienced in 7 remake. Pure spectacle all the way. Can't put it down.

Ah yes. I have one of those.