Mobile Friday - Puzzle Quest 3 - What A Mess! The First 45 Minutes

Mobile Friday is back and the first game i tried outside of Apple Arcade was Puzzle Quest 3. i was a huge fan of the original two games, but i can't say i enjoyed this sequel.

From the beginning you can see how long it took to actually start the game. the point of this series is to see what happens when you launch it for the first time. and for me, it crashed. ultimately i ended up closing it and launching it again. but then it went vertical as well as taking a long time to get to the main screen. 

Another reason for this series is to see if there's a long tutorial or additional downloads needed. The tutorial is seriously lacking. throughout the whole experience i ended up asking again and again what things are, why are things where they are. So much is left unexplained and what is explained is done by text boxes, some of which seem to have been in the wrong place. As for the additional download, well there seem to be two options. let the game download what it needs when it needs it, or download nearly 2 GB all at once. As i'm on Wifi, i downloaded all it needed. but neither seem like a great solution for someone starting the game for the first time on a mobile network.

There were other menu options but, like many parts of the game, there were poorly explained or used different terminology to the menu items themselves. This game seems to want "hardcore" gamers who are familiar with games and know how options work. it's not welcoming to casual players. It's worth saying that this game made my phone hot. i've played many mobile games and often my phone gets warm. nearly in all videos i take time to mention how hot my phone is. but i can say that this game made my phone the hottest out of any of them. and know where does it say that by changing the options it'll make my phone hot.

Graphically, it looks great. it has a pleasant colorful style, too. The story is a mess, the biggest example is you start as one character and do some story before having to go to the character select and seemingly continue the story using this new character with no mention of the change. It also felt like the character you picked was getting the same text as any other character would get. this is strange in my case as i picked the lizard man, and yet people used words i'd associate with humans. there are a couple of moments of picking your own response, but this early on in the game it felt like it it didn't matter what you picked as the game was going to keep on going.

So ultimately, this is a game you should start at home first. get everything downloaded. so the next time you play it, you'll be all set and won't have to worry about using up data caps.

Backlog Conquering - Outland - Part 1 - The First 45 Minutes

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is the first video with a new PS3 game. for the video i played through the first 45 minutes, or so, of Outland. It's a game from Ubisoft and Housemarque. 

I've had this game for a long time. i speculated early in the video that i probably got it as a PlayStation Plus game. i didn't really think about it until i used it in my PS3 XMB Game Preview Series, https://youtu.be/WIh3ZkDSCLY. Going in, i didn't really know anything about it other than it's a Housemarque game.

This was an interesting first 45 minutes. the first thing i noticed was how gorgeous it looked. My capture device said it was 720p, but it looked so crisp, vibrant, and detailed that it could easily have been 1080p. technologically speaking, it's also run really smooth and i haven't noticed any issues with it, unlike Papo & Yo which i just finished as that game had all sorts of issues like screen tearing and framerate dips.

But it's story hasn't grabbed me. so much else of this game has, but the story we've had so far is very brief. there's not really been a great answer to "Why?" and the world we're playing in sure looks great, but again there's no reason why it looks the way it does. there'll be a part two and i look forward to seeing where it goes.

Backlog Conquering - Papo & Yo - Part 5 - The Final Part

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 5, and the final part, of playing Papo & Yo on PlayStation 3.

in part 4, https://youtu.be/2AmtDoudYak, i got stuck on a puzzle and said i would look up the answer. turns out i was doing it right but i was having terrible luck. so the video starts with me continuing with that puzzle. the only thing i did differently was where i put the frogs and starting with the house closest to where i had to go, then doing the middle one, and skipping the third one by walking across a wall.

From then on, i didn't have any issues completing the remaining puzzles and the game itself. the game had some technical issues in places with screen tearing, stuttering, and what felt like the frame rate decreasing.

But overall, i enjoyed my time playing the game. it's not the best, nor is it the most technically proficient, but it does something very important. it doesn't let difficulty get in the way. all but one of the puzzles were easy to solve and all but that same one came with a very useful help "box". if the monster got you, it never killed you. and if you fell, it wasn't to your death. the game would  very quickly restart you close to where you fell. the game's goal was never difficulty, the puzzles were never meant to stump you, you weren't punished by death. the goal was simply telling the story. and that it did very well. 

in the video, i gave the game a 7.5 assuming that a 5 would be average. i'd recommend giving this a go if you have it.

Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday - Nintendo Switch Edition - Vishnu Cup - Achievement Run

Welcome to Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday! Sit back and either watch me play through, with no commentary, the cup or leave it running in the background as BGM!

I play and earn all the achievements from The Vishnu Cup! (2023/3/27 9:00～2023/4/3 8:59 JST) in Puzzle & Dragons: Nintendo Switch Edition whilst using a GamePad and a docked Nintendo Switch.

This week was much easier than the previous few. i did get a few wins and many top 3's, but there weren't too many others playing when i did. the gimmick  of making an "L" as well as the "+" that my set always runs was quite easy to make. using the power-ups actually made things more difficult as they changed far too many pieces into one color, this made it near impossible to make the power shapes to the point where i often didn't due to the time it would take.

This week i played against:

Winstein - Lvl 71

マイクらみつけた！ - Lvl 51

モブトラ[オルタ] - Lvl 63

Cloud Monday - Zack Zero - Over an Hour of Gameplay!

Today's Cloud Monday is part 1 of playing the PS3 game Zack Zero on the PlayStation Plus Streaming Service.

This wasn't the game i had planned to play. i had planned to play LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean. it was a game i couldn't get to work when the service was PlayStation Now. but this video, https://youtu.be/2jHnCIfBhDw, shows that i couldn't get it to work. Zack Zero was chosen because it was a game i could quickly get to to test to see if it worked or not.

And it did work! and i played it for over an hour, too! it was totally unexpected so i really went in knowing nothing about the game or what it was. a lot of the game pleasantly surprised me. it was a little rough in places and somewhat repetitive with, annoyingly, respawning enemies. but i kept on playing as i was, for the most part, enjoying playing it. 

Whilst the game had it's own issues, streaming it was mostly fine. i would guess that there was maybe a 5 minute window where there were some streaming issues. they were noticeable, but they never got in the way of playing the game itself. there were some stream tearing and some macro blocking, but i'd argue that the game's own issues were far more of a distraction than the comparatively brief period of streaming issues.

Switch Funday - Super Mario Kart - My First Time

Welcome to Switch Funday!

This week i decided to try out the Super Nintendo App that's part of the Nintendo Switch Online. i had a Mega Drive growing up so i didn't get to play the SNES beyond Super Mario World that my cousins had. on the Game Boy Advance App, i have been playing Maro Kart Super Circuit for fun in my spare time so i was curious what the original game would be like.

i am familiar with the original game, in that i've seen videos of it and heard people talking about it. but i haven't sat down and played it myself before. so in a way i broadly knew what to expect. in some ways i was surprised, i played the game using Pixel Perfect mode and i was impressed as to how well the graphics hold up. certain characters look strange, Yoshi being the prime example, but the bold simple designs of the tracks and backgrounds were great.

it did take time to get used to how it played. modem Mario Kart games use a drift mechanic that also gives you boost as you charge it up. however in this game, and the GBA version, the drift isn't quite the same. the main use seems to be jumping, with a little drift and no boost. another difference is how the weapons work. you can't hold weapons behind you nor can you fire the green shell behind as it's just placed on the track. it also seems that each character has their own unique weapon(s) rather than how it is now where there are no unique weapons as each character can use all of them.

Online Saturday - Tetris 99 - Getting The Tetris Maximus Cup Kirby’s Dream Buffet Theme

Welcome to Online Saturday!

Today i'm playing Tetris 99 on Nintendo Switch. This weekend it's a special event where you can earn a Fire Emblem: Engage theme buy earning 100 points.

it's a short video this week as it didn't take too long to get 100 points needed for the theme. most games i played, i was in the top 50. i didn't make it to top 10 tho. i found the competition this weekend really tough. i also had a few moments where the controller seemed to not do what i wanted it to do.

It's a nice theme. Let me know how the cup went for you. did you get a win?

Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade - Redout: Space Assault - The First 40 Minutes

This sixteenth video in the new Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series is on Redout: Space Assault. I Played this as part of my Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series, but the game has been out for a few years on Apple Arcade and is now out across other platforms.

When i chose to play this game, it didn't cross my mind that this game would be from the team who made the Redout racing games. I only found that out later. i also didn't go in knowing that the game was going to be as on rails as it was.

But that didn't detract from the game. in a way, it being on rails let me focus on the enemies and story. the same applies to the game taking over shooting controls. when my ship had a target locked, it would shoot. when there wasn't a ship there it wouldn't. this meant i had to control my ships movement along the path and the missile power-up. later, when i had switched to a controller, i would gain the ability to barrel roll dodge manually.

controlling the game with my fingers wasn't that bad. it was pretty responsive and accurate. the controls were also located to the side of where the main action took place so it didn't get in the way. when i switched to the bluetooth controller, initially there wasn't any change to the screen. but not long after i started trying out the buttons, on screen prompts appeared saying what some buttons did. this continued into the game and with new tutorials, too. i felt that the game did control better with a controller, i think you'll notice that i died less with a controller in comparison to not using one.

The game did have some issues. the biggest one is that the game crashed to my phone's home screen after completing the first mission. thankfully, the game had saved so when i restarted the game it was ready for me to start the second stage. i also noticed some slow down and minor stutters. they didn't get in the way of what was happening but they were noticeable. The Dynamic Island also got in the way now and then. the biggest issue was that on the right side there were often labelled character portraits. the Dynamic Island got in the way of most of the picture and the character names. 

Redout: Space Assault is a good game to show off Apple Arcade. Even tho it's an older title, it still looks great. the music is good, too. what's cool about this game is that whilst on a TV, iPad, or older iPhone it'll look better than on a newer iPhone 14 Pro due to the Dynamic Island getting in the way, it's still a great match for the phone because of how short the levels are. most i did were under 5 minutes long. Also, because the game helps with the controls, holding the phone is also easy and stable. The only downside to playing on the phone, and something i forgot to mention at the end of the review, is that my phone got hot. most games in this series get my phone to varying levels of warm. but for this game i would say my phone got hot to touch. not too hot, but still hot.

Backlog Conquering - Papo & Yo - Part 4 - Getting Stuck on a Puzzle

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 4 of playing Papo & Yo on PlayStation 3.

Part 3 was a long video where i managed to complete puzzle after puzzle. i had a good time doing so and it felt great to work out some of the more tricky ones. But today, i couldn't complete this puzzle.

This video is nearly 40 minutes of me trying to complete a single puzzle. i feel like i had the right idea, but i couldn't get it to work. please offer some tips in the comments. i'll check out a guide or two before Part 5.

Backlog Conquering - Papo & Yo - Part 3 - An Hour of Puzzle Solving Gameplay

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 3 of playing Papo & Yo on PlayStation 3.

Part 3 turned out to be much longer than expected. This game doesn't have many breaks as it mostly flows from puzzle to puzzle, story to story. the previous two parts ended after the game switched to a real world event. but i didn't get to the next one in this video.

i found this part to be a little more difficult than the other two videos. i needed more time to solve the puzzles, especially the house stacking puzzle. But i was pleased how i solved the soccer pitch puzzle. this game handles puzzles really well, everything is there.

Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday - Nintendo Switch Edition - Pixel Nevan Cup - Achievement Run

Welcome to Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday! Sit back and either watch me play through, with no commentary, the cup or leave it running in the background as BGM!

I play and earn all the achievements from The Pixel Nevan Cup! (2023/3/20 9:00～2023/3/27 8:59 JST) in Puzzle & Dragons: Nintendo Switch Edition whilst using a GamePad and a docked Nintendo Switch.

As there were no objections in the previous video, i once again have edited this one a little to make it shorter. but as you can see it's still a long one.

This week's cup didn't go well. i did get a win, but it was surprising how difficult it was. i thought i understood what the gimmick was this week but it didn't seem to be that powerful. Many of the other human opponents i was up against also got low scores or scores close to mine so it seems like it was a fairly common problem. maybe if i played more i would've worked it out, but the point of this series is to go out and get all the achievements. 

But the time it took shows i got some real low positions. let me know how it went for you, maybe you can see what my strategy was and offer some tips as to what i needed to do differently.

Switch Funday - Super Fantasy Zone - My First Time

Welcome to Switch Funday!

This week i decided to try out the Mega Drive App that's part of the Nintendo Switch Online. i had a Mega Drive growing up so i have played many of the games on the app. one game i hadn't played was Super Fantasy Zone. but i had played the Master System original on, i think it was, the Wii.

So going in i knew it was going to be a side scrolling shooter, i thought that it might be similar to Gleylancer that i played as part of my Backlog Conquering series. because i had that expectation, when i saw i could change the amount of lives i had i did. i also made sure i remembered how to rewind the game when i died as i was sure i was going to die a lot.

And i wasn't wrong. the first couple of levels do go by quickly but i did die a lot. this kept happening up until i decided to stop playing. you can hear in my voice how frustrated i was getting. so i stopped before i got too angry.

the game does look great, everything is clear and distinct. the soundtrack is amazing, too. but there were some choices made that negatively affected it's gameplay. the level before i stopped playing, my biggest complaint was that enemies kept on respawning. the boss enemies were also becoming bullet sponges in a way that felt like they had leveled up faster than my own character.

So i'm glad i tried it but i doubt i'll go back and play it again. i did save it just in case i do.

Online Saturday - Gundam Evolution - 3 Games, 3 Losses!

In the previous Gundam Evolution video, https://youtu.be/wNde7QzflVw, i changed my region and i got to play games more regularly than before. So today's video is simply me playing games.

But the title does hint that whilst i got 3 games in under an hour, i didn't manage to win any of them. a couple of times they were heavy losses, but in the second game my team did manage to win a match and it felt a little closer.

Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade - LEGO Builder's Journey - A Beautifully Frustrating Time

This fifteenth video in the new Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series is on LEGO Builder's Journey I Played this as part of my Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series, but the game is out across many other platforms. 

I had known of this game for a while and went in knowing how it plays. but there were many other aspects of the game i didn't know about. for example, i had no idea it would take 15 minutes to get to the title screen. the game's tutorial levels are very good and show off a lot of the concepts and play styles in a way that leads the player to discover them organically rather than being told how to do it. But the game also knows when to offer some advice to the player.

The story being told in each level wasn't a big surprise as it had been revealed by many websites and YouTube channels i watch. but it was still nice to see it unfold. the problem i had, and what lead to the frustration in the video title, was controlling the game. whether it was my fingers or with a controller, it never felt precise enough or natural enough.

i would like to be clear that i'm not saying the controls were horrible and that the game is unplayable. i'm not saying that. but i am saying that little issues made it a frustrating experience, especially in comparison to everything else about the game. it is a beautiful game full of style and uniqueness. many of the UI stuff is great, too. but at the end of the video i didn't like that i couldn't work out how to get to the "home screen." it felt like there wasn't one.

Unfortunately, i won't be playing the game again as i have already deleted it from my phone. i found the controls to be too frustrating. there's a chance i might try this on a console, but i doubt it. i feel like i got a lot from this time with the game. the negatives from my experience outweigh the positives, to the point where even the story isn't enough to get me back playing it.

Backlog Conquering - Papo & Yo - Part 2 - The Next 45 Minutes

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 2 of playing Papo & Yo on PlayStation 3.

It was much of the same in this video. this one again features many simple little puzzles and like the first part, https://youtu.be/lHHf-56b7Xs, there was one puzzle that caused me more trouble than the others.

This is also the first time we get to interact with the monster. with it being a monster, i didn't think that should get close to it. But it was the thing to do. for most of the video, we're able to have some basic interactions with it. but near the end it's mood changes drastically and we're given a simple puzzle on how to deal with it.

There will be a part 3 to this. so far the game is effectively telling a story and i'm interested to see how it does tell it. i would say the game is easy. Not too easy as some puzzles require a little thinking, but for the most part the games difficulty doesn't get in the way of it trying to tell a story.

Backlog Conquering - Papo & Yo - Part 1 - The First 45 Minutes

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 1 of playing Papo & Yo on PlayStation 3.

It's time to start a new game and this time i've chosen a game i knew a little about. when QTE Gamers focused solely on news, i had reported on this game. i knew going in that it was from a small team and that it told a personal story, a story of how the monster was their father.

But i didn't know how they would go about telling this story. so far, it's been interesting how similar it feels to Rain, a game i played earlier in this series at https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyEBkNKW1vypLU9YXtiL19MfwB3TR-Or-, but because of the setting and music and characters it's also quite different.

It's a little rough in places but i wouldn't say it was ever too distracting. the game uses the environment to help guide you. it's clear that the goal from this game wasn't to let you work it out for yourself, it's designed to gently guide you through the story being told. the puzzles are mostly obvious and even when i got stuck common sense sorted it out. the game isn't designed to let you explore a wide area, the playing spaces are fairly small with some element of hight and platforming about them. there are some nooks and crannies you can explore, but there doesn't seem to be anything to find. again, the goal is to guide you rather than you making your own way. 

i wouldn't say this means the game holds your hand all the way, but it does signpost things very well as many of the "puzzle" elements are highlighted. if you do get stuck, the game has a cool box mechanic. sprinkled around each area are boxes that you can put over your head. they offer hints, tips, and guides. so if you do want some more handholding, it's your choice. i've mostly been checking them out because i find it cool how you can look in and see drawings and then put it over your head and see it clearer. the pictures are fun, too.

I'm enjoying myself so far, it's been a pleasant experience and i'm still interested in seeing where it goes. so there will be a part 2.

Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday - Nintendo Switch Edition - Keiji Maeda Cup - Achievement Run

Welcome to Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday! Sit back and either watch me play through, with no commentary, the cup or leave it running in the background as BGM!

I play and earn all the achievements from The Keiji Maeda Cup! (2023/3/13 9:00～2023/20 8:59 JST) in Puzzle & Dragons: Nintendo Switch Edition whilst using a GamePad and a docked Nintendo Switch.

First, YES this is the first one of these videos where i've edited it. i hadn't planned on it but there were soo many disconnection issues this week, the original file is much longer due to all the waiting. At one point i had to close the program as the game got stuck looking for matches. If there are no complaints, i'll keep on editing the video in the future. it was nice to find a way to trim out some of the fluff, waiting, and errors.

This week's cup went really well. i got a couple of wins but more importantly it was fun. the gimmicks were easy to achieve and it wasn't too hard to get to the boss. the other players also seemed to do well so it felt competitive and exciting.

Cloud Monday - Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 - A Rougher Second 50 Minutes

Today's Cloud Monday is part 2 of playing Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 on the PlayStation Plus Streaming Service.

In the first video last week, https://youtu.be/Sjp-f2uR8r8, there were no issues with streaming the game. any graphical issues i saw were from the game itself. but in this series we now play each game twice to get a better idea of what streaming it is like and today's experience was different. 

For the first 30 minutes or so it actually goes really well. once again the issues i have with playing the game are issues with the game itself. But near the end as i explore around the hub world we come across issues. they appear mostly as stream tearing, where a frame fails to fill the screen but as it's being streamed instead of a small line appearing we get bigger squares. at one point the stream resolution dropped and the possible disconnection warning appeared.

These are big and very noticeable events that detract from the game. if this had happened in a fight, i wonder if it would've had a big impact because i'm new at the game. if i was experienced then maybe it wouldn't be that much of an issue. once again, controlling the game felt great and i didn't notice any lag between pressing a button and an action taking place on the screen.

So overall, it's a great streaming experience. i'd say one of if not the best experience with PlayStation Plus Premium i've had so far. But it's not perfect. One extra thing worth mentioning is that this was the first time since the service switched from PlayStation Now to PlayStation Plus Premium that i didn't have to go into the account settings on PS4 and restore licences! 

Switch Funday - Sin and Punishment - My First Time

Welcome to Switch Funday!

I'm back trying out a N64 game on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack service. Today, it's Sin and Punishment. It's a game i have heard off but never played.

i went in only knowing that it would be on rails. i didn't even know the state of the translation. only that it didn't get a western release on N64. so i was surprised that the in-game text was all in Japanese but the voice acting and menus were in English. 

I had a good time. this video is longer than i expected and ultimately i had to stop playing as i kept wanting to play a little more. it controls better than GoldenEye 007 did with the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, but it still wasn't perfect. there were many moments where i would go for the wrong button and in a game this fast it did cost me a few times. thankfully there was a training mode and i did that first. i didn't expect the training mode to have a boss tho!

it felt a little rough in places, like it being unclear how to avoid certain attacks almost as if we were expected not to. but it also felt like one of the biggest battlefields i had ever fought in on the N64. the epic battle against the battleships was a pleasant surprise. i had no idea the N64 could be capable of such a spectacle. But of course this is the Switch, there's every chance that on the N64 the performance wasn't quite there. but what would be the same is the looks. soo many things look different from each other. it was clear who was who and what enemy was what, whilst also looking very impressive.

It's a hard game that does feel it's age in places. but it really is worth trying. it won't be for everyone, but it's something worth experiencing.

Online Saturday - Splatoon 3 - March's Salmon Run

Welcome to Online Saturday

This Saturday i'm back with Splatoon 3. The goal for this video is simple, get this month's Salmon Run Gear. 

Last week was a Big Run event, you can watch it at https://youtu.be/ZnWSin5k7N8, and it included this month's Salmon Run gear as well as it's own item. so in a way i have already got the Astro Wear. but i did it whilst playing on a different level, rather than a Salmon Run level. i also found the Big Run event to be really difficult and not as fun as Salmon Run, so i decided to get the Astro Wear again. and like all my Salmon Run videos, get it twice and keep the best one.

You can see from the length of this video, it didn't go as well as i'd hope. there were many wins, but the losses were just as big too!

Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade - Cooking Mama: Cuisine! - The First 45 Minutes

This fourteenth video in the new Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series is on Cooking Mama: Cuisine! I Played this as part of my Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series, i think this game is exclusive to the service.

I have never played a game from the Cooking Mama series before so i thought this would be the best opportunity to do so. i kinda knew what to expect going in as i've reported on games in this series before, like Cooking Mama 3. but Cooking Mama: Cuisine! still managed to surprise me.

Unlike the recent Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade games Simon's Cat: Story Time, https://youtu.be/SJtlwaqB-KI, and SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit, https://youtu.be/WXm7dhyASyg, where it's the player who determines how long they play the game for as both are full of content, Cooking Mama: Cuisine! has a daily limit. it's an interesting way to get players coming back for more, as each day has a different number of food items you can cook with. There is also an event happening right now, too.

this video is around 45 minutes but that wasn't because of the daily limit. i think i only did around a third of the daily content available. I don't know how that'll change when you start to repeat recipes. as it's my first time playing the game, everything was new and undiscovered. the only reason to redo recipes you had already done seems to be to get a "perfect" 3 star score. there are some cosmetic things you can buy so that's also another reason to do recipes again.

The artwork for the game is familiar. i recognise the main character, and her in-game model looks really good. but other than that, grapically this game looks inconsistent. there are times when flowers look really good, but they're just decorations and the food you've cooked looks ... well ... not like the description, putting it kindly. there are one or two food items that look good, i think the cucumber was an unlikely highlight.

Another inconsistent thing about the game was the controller support. i would suggest it's better to play the game using touch controls than a controller. there are some weird button choices, for example you press "B" to go to the back button but have to then press "A" to go back. a bigger problem i had was the analogue stick sensitivity. it felt like it went from 0 to 100 too fast. i could move the stick and nothing would happen, then i'd try to move it a little more and it had gone all the way. this meant that there were a couple of cooking mini games that were difficult, and one i nearly failed at.

For fans of the series, it's a good way to play the game a little each day and have it be a little different. but it's not a game that shows off the power of Apple Arcade or things like multiplayer. it is being supported and there seem to be themed events so it could be a good game to keep on a  phone and play now and then. but i think it'd be a bit of a  rough time to play the game on anything else, especially if there's no touch screen.

Backlog Conquering - Pyre - Part 15 - The Final Part

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 15, of playing Pyre on PlayStation 4.

With all the games i play in Backlog Conquering, i don't set out to finish them. the goal is simply to play them. there were moments whilst playing through this game where i thought about putting it down and moving on. but ultimately, there was a certain something that kept me going. 

For this video, we continue on from Part 14, https://youtu.be/kWi1d_O_Ruk, about to start our sixth Liberation Rites. It went really well, it was maybe my best win since the first time we did it. through that i was able to send Tae back to the Commonwealth. But it was clear that there would only be one more Liberation Rite left.

I liked how the game, through the characters, tried to reduce the pressure on me. But the twist as to who we'd be up against was a little obvious. that final rite was perhaps the best i performed. i tried as hard as i could with who was left in my team. But the twists weren't over! when the rite was finished, the game changed the Liberation Rite rules and did it in a believable way that felt natural to the game we played. this meant, tho, that i wasn't able to send back to the Commonwealth who i had originally selected.

And the story tells the end. throughout the game there's some amazing art and beautiful visuals, and yet it told the end via text. the story of the end that i got was good, but it lacked the fanfare that some cool art would bring to it. we do get to read what happened with every character in the game. but again, the game kinda fumbles as the most disappointing story we're told is that of our character.  the credit sequence is cool and has a nice song.

In the end, it's strange that whilst the game is able to tell such an interesting story with such unique characters, that it should continuously stumble when it came to the story of the main character does hurt it. the main character, the character you control, becomes the weakest part of the game and as the rest of the story is so strong, it really does stick out. that's kinda the review of the game. it's a game with some high points, but it's low points stick out so much in contrast. But i am glad i played it.

Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday - Nintendo Switch Edition - Okuninushi Cup - Achievement Run

Welcome to Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday! Sit back and either watch me play through, with no commentary, the cup or leave it running in the background as BGM!

I play and earn all the achievements from The Okuninushi Cup! (2023/3/6 9:00～2023/3/13 8:59 JST) in Puzzle & Dragons: Nintendo Switch Edition whilst using a GamePad and a docked Nintendo Switch.

This was a difficult week. what was strange was that it wasn't just difficult for me, but it was difficult for many of the other human opponents too! I had one game against the computer and i won it. but when i played against others, i came top 3 a few times but i also came a lot lower. But so did the other players, too. 

It's frustrating to have a bad week, where no matter how hard i tried i never seemed to grasp what i was meant to do. but it's heartening to see that i wasn't the only one. near the end you'll see that i work out what i need to do, i need to make a cross of one color. well, i probably needed to do more, but it seemed to help at the very least. 

It would be great to have some comments as to what i did wrong because i don't really seem to know.

Cloud Monday - Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 - The First 50 Minutes

Today's Cloud Monday is back to me trying out different genres of games on the PlayStation Plus Premium Service. for these next two videos, i wanted to try out a fighting game. the only problem is that i'm not good at the typical Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Dead or Alive style of fighters. So i went with a game in the vein of Naruto Shippuden Ninja Storm Games, a style that i'm familiar with and tend to do better with.

Unfortunately, i didn't get to do much of the game. not because of the online streaming service, it ran mostly fine. but the game's own design stops you from doing anything other than creating your own character for like the first 20 minutes. then you're thrusted into a world, tasked with finding the old Kai, and given the run around. the people give you hints and tell you where to go, but they suggest i should use my map to find specific places and none of the buildings are labelled on my map. the only way i knew where to go was because of a different mark showing quest locations. this could be an annoying thing later if i have multiple quests on the go.

The game does introduce the rules for the hub world in an amazing way by using cinematics to show what you can't do. but when they try to go into the tutorial stuff, they're not as elegant and you're forced to do specific things before the tutorial will continue. instead  of many small tutorials, it felt more like one very long tutorial with a fight at the end that i seemed to have won through little effort on my part.

So whilst the game is a little rougher than i would like, streaming it was fine. it wasn't perfect as i still had to go into PS4 account management and restore my licenses, which i always do before recording, and when i went searching for the game the PlayStation Plus "App" on PS4 crashed once. but streaming the game itself was great. i didn't notice any issues from streaming it, nor did i notice any sort of lag with the controls. the game has some rough spots with pop-in, but that's an issue with the game rather than the streaming service. 

Online Saturday - Splatoon 3 - Big Run March Event

Welcome to Online Saturday!

I'm back with Splatoon 3 to try out the second Big Run event. i played by my usual Salmon Run rules, get enough points to earn the item twice so i can chose to keep the better of the two. But i didn't expect it to take soo long! 

This was such a rough event that i even dropped a level because of how bad it went. out of all the games played, i think i only managed to complete it three times. so this video is mostly just my team and i failing over and over again. i can't remember the previous Big Run event being soo difficult. i mention it in the video, but sometimes the randomness of these and Salmon Run events kinda doesn't work well and it leads to an unpleasant gaming experience as we lose.

But when we did win, it felt amazing. i think only once was it somewhat comfortable. the rest of the time it was very tight and for me personally it was a tense time. it was a bit of a shame that my team wasn't able to defeat the new King Salmonid that was added to the game. before it was a very tall and very rotund shaped creature but now it's like a Gyrados flying snake looking creature. this made trying to hit it difficult, well that and the fact the game throws everything at you. we came very close to defeating it but just not enough.

Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade - SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit - The First Hour

This thirteenth video in the new Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series is on SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit. I Played this as part of my Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series, i think this game is exclusive to the service.

Last week i played Simon's Cat: Story Time, https://youtu.be/SJtlwaqB-KI, as i was curious how a game typically associate with mircotransactions and limited playing opportunities was going to be adapted to a free game on the Apple Arcade service. that was the same reason why i chose to play SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit.

i went in thinking it was just a runner but after the first level i was wrong. i thought it was an endless runner like Sonic Dash, Minion Rush, and Temple Run. but it turned out to be an Auto Runner like Super Mario Run and Rayman Mini, which i looked at in this series 9 videos ago, https://youtu.be/65ZdmAz0GfE. Once i knew what type of game this was, it was easier to understand how it worked as an Apple Arcade game with no microtransactions. much like Simon's Cat: Story Time, the limit is your own time.

It starts with an introduction to the story. it's not animated, but it's voiced. then it puts you straight into the first level. what tutorial there is is done by telling you what to do in game and letting you try it. the first few levels are fairly easy but they don't feel overwhelming even tho the game is introducing the mechanics.

In this video i completed the first couple of locations, and throughout the game slowly showed different things that can happen in a level. whether that's different layouts, different things to navigate, and the idea of different paths you yourself can take or your companion can help you take. we get Patrick first and he's able to bust down brick walls. near the end of the video we get Squidward and he's able to tell us where the Spatulas are and use jellyfish to create platforms. The levels are designed in such a way that it's probably not possible to complete them in one try. it'll take 2 or 3, or more, play throughs of them with different characters and taking different routes to get the 3 Spatulas and all the coins.

Once the second location was finished, the game opened up 3 other play style options. i finished this video by trying them out, but again it's another example of the game getting continued support and being full of content. Like Simon's Cat last week, this would be a fun commuting game to play on the phone as each level is only a few minutes long, but because it's dense with content it could be played for a long time on a Mac or AppleTV.

I'm not a fan of SpongeBob SquarePants, not because i don't like it but rather because it's not something i grew up watching. i missed it when it came out. this means i've not played any of the games, tho i have now downloaded SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated. but i would still recommend this game for Apple Arcade Subscribers. it looks fantastic on my phone's screen and there's no issue with the Dynamic Island. it's a game targeting a wide audience age and ability level and does a great job in doing so. i feel that it's something causal gamers can play but also having depth and replayability for those looking for a challenge. especially when the daily challenges and shorter F.U.N sized levels are available after completing the second location.

Backlog Conquering - Pyre - Part 14 - Winning The Fifth Liberation Rites, Getting to the Sixth

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 14, of playing Pyre on PlayStation 4.

In part 13, https://youtu.be/Znj2rtF1pHU, we started by doing the fourth Liberation Rites and loosing. we did a couple more rites before ending it at the start of the Fifth Liberation Rites.

My main goal was to win the fifth Liberation Rites and to send Ti'zo to the Commonwealth. I thought that by sending a creature that the Commonwealth hadn't seen before, it would benefit the plan. I won the game, i sent him to the Commonwealth, but it would be much later into the video until we heard if i had been successful. Turns out i was, tho not quite in the way i expected. but i'll take it!

Much like the previous video, things are happening faster than before. but i have also noticed that some things seem to be slowing down. for example, the amount of rites needed to be completed before getting to the Liberation Rites is reducing and making the game faster, but the social elements of the game also seem to be reduced. so one part of the game is getting faster, but the social side is slowing down. it is possible that the choices i've made have contributed to how the social aspect of the game is playing out.

I finished the video at the Sixth Liberation Rites. but i don't really know who to send back. it's starting to sound like there will only be this and one more Liberation Rite. i got a trophy for sending three people back to the Commonwealth so a part of me believes i've reached the minimum needed for a "good" ending. but i'd like to give it a go. so i have some time to think about who i want to send back, and perhaps more importantly why i think sending them back is a good move.

Backlog Conquering - Pyre - Part 13 - Getting to the Fifth Liberation Rites

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 13, of playing Pyre on PlayStation 4.

In part 12, https://youtu.be/vL8df1PrWoQ, i got to the fourth Liberation Rites so this video starts with it. and i lost! I was doing OK but then the opposing team got a health bonus near the end and i didn't. 

With that loss, this video turned once more into getting to the next Liberation Rites, the fifth ones. whilst playing against other teams was difficult, i was surprised that i managed to win all the Rites. There weren't too many big story bombshells this week and i avoided reading the book in this video, too. But there were some interesting developments regarding certain characters, for example we now know who's been speaking to us and can understand the tone they use.