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So, here’s how it started. Ghouls n Ghosts is the best game ever. I mean, it’s probably not the best game full stop, but it’s far and away the best game like it. Like what? Runny, jumpy, shooty. There’s no game that’s kinda like Ghouls that’s half as good as Ghouls.
Given that, it’s a deep source of shame for me that I’ve never cleared it. Like much that brings shame, I’ve resolved this mostly through repression. When I’m playing Ghouls I ache knowing nothing I could do with a pad that would be as worthy as beating it, and when I’m not playing it I’m sealing all thought of it behind bulwarks of ego.
And then Ghegs happens to mention that he’s playing it. And while he might not sign up for the previous two paragraphs, he also holds it in high regard and also has not gotten the deed done. So our pact was that we should both knuckle down and work on that there clear, while sharing notes, woes and fellow-feeling here on gamingjournals.
Clear means both loops, of course. I’m strangely unsure just how close I’ve gotten. I’ve looped it in years gone by, but only a handful of times, and I’m not sure how deep I went into the second loop on any of those runs. I do know that, back when I was at my best, many (most) of my plays ended at the st5 boss. So we’ll call that my ceiling. Progress begins when I’m beyond that, when I’m clearing the first loop.
Then what do we call what I’m doing now, which is ending games shy of the st4 boss? Rust does not seem a sufficient term. I think perhaps, based on this and plentiful other evidence, that I am significantly worse at action gaming of all sorts, thanks to age. This is unsurprising yet somewhat distressing to experience. Still, we’ll save the chronicles of the aging gamer for my book deal. We can regard the decline in Ghouls skill in isolation for now.
I’m playing whatever version is nearest at hand. So far that has meant a bit of MAME (World version of the ROM) and a bit of Capcom Classics Collection Remixed on the PSP. I am getting much better results on MAME. I am not at all sure that they are identical in difficulty, but that’s a slippery thing to determine. The PSP game, despite being apparently emulating the arcade, does not offer the same options as the arcade dip switches. They are both running on default diff, which both label as Normal, but the scales aren’t the same so that might mean anything. Life stock and extra life milestones are identical. There’s nothing obviously different, but I think the spawn rate might be just a bit higher on the PSP. Like I’m killing twice as many reapers by the time I cross the river. But then I could be imagining all that.
So that’s how it started. I would say the challenge is underway, but there’s not much of competition in it. We’re not racing to the clear, just pursuing it side-by-side. So the pursuit is underway? The thing is on! Description of follies to follow.
Haven’t written one of these in a while, nor has many others on this site. We’ve all neglected it, but let’s put that aside and talk about games again.
For a couple of months I had an inkling to play the Mega Man Legends series again. These thoughts consisted mostly of the fact that I enjoyed it when I was 16 and it was cool and enjoyable. Riding this thought was also the fact I superficially decided against playing through Mega Man Legends 2. I set it aside because the control scheme was not exactly the same, or so I thought at the time. I don’t know where my copies of the games went off to, so I chose to emulate them in ePSXe.
Revisiting Mega Man Legends was a generally enjoyable experience. I often find myself critiquing a game’s difficulty as if it weighs on the experience heavily, but I’m not sure it’s always exactly warranted. That being said, Mega Man Legends is an easy game. This didn’t matter much to me as I spent much of the game in feelings of nostalgia. The shard of my 16 year old self coming through my memories of Rock and Roll’s prepubescent voices, Tiesel’s cocky shouting and Bonne’s lovesick quivering. Also in zooming around in the jet skates. Gotta love those jet skates.
Another reason for wanting to play MML again was because I did indeed want to give the sequel a real chance. Another part was probably the hubbub surrounding Mega Man Legends 3 cancellation. I wanted to see if finishing Mega Man Legends 2 would make me one of the many distraught MML fans who really wanted that sequel.
Having finishing the game, I think a third game would be very cool, especially in this age of gaming where a company like Capcom is expected to put out a triple A product for such a franchise. At the same time I’m not disappointed or upset. But if a new game came out, I would expect a much, much larger world than the previous 2 games. That reality excites me. As both games end you wish there was more to do and explore.
Mega Man Legends 2 was a good sequel. Many aspects of the original were improved upon. Notably I liked the new areas, bosses and enemies, as well as the new ruin areas. Since you travel to different islands in this game, instead of being stuck on one (Kattelox) there are varied scenes. Snow, desert, tropical. Getting this variety was refreshing and I loved the music for the different areas, as well as the battle tracks that play when Reaverbots shoot out of the ground in the over world.
One thing I missed about the first game was the ruins being interconnected with each other. That gave the world an interesting sense of cohesiveness. But in 2 it’s not there at all, in continuity to the setting.
Overall it was a carefully made game with the heart of Capcom that made it worth playing. And another one of those games that makes me laugh.
Moving on then to another Capcom title, Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition.
I managed to place 4th at my last local tournament. It consisted of about 40 entrants. Normally I don’t get past a 4th opponent. But this time, I finally performed in a satisfactory way. For many months I was having trouble adjusting to delay PS3 and HDTV’s introduce to the game. This is noticeable to me because I play the game on a 360, which has 1 less frame of input delay and because I play on a CRT which is about another frame of delay. I was having trouble hitting my 1 frame links and for my character Rose this is important because her most important link is 1 frame. Messing it up can lead to a big punish… anyway. I finally adjusted to it and that may be why I did better this time around.
I was put into the Loser’s bracket by a Blanka player which is hard for Rose… and I wasn’t very experienced in the match. After that I had to fight a Ken player who eliminated me in a previous tournament. I managed to beat him and after that I seemed to ride a momentum, knocking out about 5 other players. E.Honda, Cammy, (Balrog, Ryu,) Sagat players also fell to my Rose. I got to our strong Dudley player and lost fairly convincingly. But the best part is I have officially earned money playing a fighting game. Which is…. something. I profited $5 for placing 4th. Overall I’m satisfied but I’ve been putting some time into learning Evil Ryu and Makoto lately. Playing Rose all the time isn’t the most fun for me. I hope to do better next tournament but I need to practice more for sure.
Dan Haigh
Ghegs
[DRZ] OTL-TIW
sikraiken
Alice
victoly
plasm0
Aquas
Raydere
szycag
BDA
bloocloud
Kollision