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After a week or so of playing Ocean Sprint (R) I managed to get sub-1:42. First I just shaved off tenths of seconds, went from 1:42,099 to 1:42,050 and 1:42,016, until I finally hit 1:41,783. Then I tightened it up a bit and got 1:41,633, which is my current best.
Almost immediately after my last post I went and tried a Dualshock 2. I had previously tested only the first Dualshock model, and the analog sticks feel and handle quite different there. Dualshock 2 fares much better, it still has a slightly larger deadzone than the Hori Anashin pad I used at the beginning, but it’s so much smoother and I feel have much better control with it. So I went and bought a brand-new Dualshock 2 and that’s my weapon of choice now.
I also revised my line going through the tunnel. My previous line was fast, but only if nothing went wrong while entering the tunnel. Nine times out ten something went wrong, either I missed the very narrow gap between wall and civillian car I need to squeeze through, or the said car happened to spawn as a semi-truck that time, making the gap nonexistant. So it became rather frustating. My current line is safer in that it gives me a better view of the tunnel going in, so I quickly see if there’s a car I need to avoid.
I’ve now spent almost ten hours on this one track that lasts under two minutes. Oddly, I still haven’t gotten bored with it, but I am annoyed at not knowing how to significantly improve my time. I could still tighten up some turns, but I think that would only get me to a low 1:41. At 1:41,633 I’m still over three seconds away from the WR 1:38,216. I’m gonna be really pissed off if I discover the owner of that time did it while playing the game at 50hz. For some reason the game’s leaderboards are mostly filled by Europeans.
I should probably test that, actually. Play the game in 50hz and see if my times are consistent with my 60hz times. Just to put my mind to rest. If it turns out I get better times that way I can drop the game. If not, maybe I’ll play another track for a while. Still got two other point-to-point (plus reversed versions) tracks to attack.
Lately it had been on my mind that I was interested in starting up some kind of RPG. In my friends radio talk show, she talked about her Top 3 NES games and Dragon Warrior 4 was one of them. When I heard this I thought, “well, I haven’t really played any the DQ games all the way through, nor do I ever hear praise for the NES DQ games, why don’t I try it?” and so I have and I am.
Like I mentioned I only played some of DQ VIII on the PS2 and honestly I wasn’t big on it… the game took a while to get going and then I game over’d in a really lame dungeon and called it quits. Perhaps the game deserves a little more credit from me.
Another reason I was interested in trying a NES DQ game was just to see for myself all the similarities to it and the Mother series which blatantly clones many of the DQ game’s aspects. The text that runs during battles, your party wiping out and not having to start from when you last saved, each character having their own limited inventory space (I actually love this aspect of EarthBound.)
Even in Dragon Warrior 4, the game is divided into chapters and each thus far start you with a completely different character whom you aim to meet up with the rest of the characters. I’ve always loved this aspect of the mother games, mostly for 2 and 3, and it’s a pleasure to experience it again from the place it came from. I love it because you get to have more fun with the initial leveling up process and I like how each character can differ stat and skill wise early on.
I’ve really been enjoying the game. A very charming experience for an NES RPG. I haven’t had to grind all that much, just what was needed. I just started Chapter 3 which stars a character who aims to be the best arms merchant in the world. You need a little patience to play this game but not much, the battles and text go by quickly.
Dan Haigh
Ghegs
[DRZ] OTL-TIW
sikraiken
Alice
victoly
plasm0
Aquas
Raydere
szycag
BDA
bloocloud
Kollision