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[twillight]

This gave an overall view on this whole game. I dunno the pacing of its unfnished predexessor-versions, but this one seems to be adjusted to beat Steven exclusively.
As always, I was beating every trainer in the game for exp and cash, with a single pokemon, this time Latios, and it was not a very pleasant experience.
Latios starts with a psychic attack only, and not a good one in that, so you're stuck until lvl 20 to grind up on lvl 2-3 wild pokemons. Kinda good news, that Speed + Special Attack IV-s come at ca. 20% together (SATK is only 4%, in comparison). I still did some HP-training too, just to keep my sanity, and I did not regret it tbh.
Passing that obstacle went back to EV-training, this time on Abras, that's 10% Special Attack training. To not go mad, in the end I again included some HP-training. Again, wasn't the worst idea, maybe.
Now at this point I finaly could do some stuff for a while, until reaching the flute-meister, of course you want those flutes, that'll be like 2,000 steps in the "tall" grass (there is a taller(?) grass, lol, which is actualy tall), so to keep my sanity, I was shotting down pokemons there too.
Anyway, I kept being like 2 times the level compared to anything that cmae across, this includes trainers. It was like the Elite Four that jumped 10 level, but they didn't even come close to my level.
Then Steven jumped 20 more levels, pretty much was the same level as me, and he has 2 very very buff pokemon: the Metagross, and the even worse Cradily. I don't know how they are that massive/spongy, but they are. I had to exchange ALL my moveset to adjust to these, and eat all the Rare Canied I found to beat the buggers. If it was not enough, I was thinking to reload right after the Elite Four, and keep Recover, which is a massive healing with plenty of charges, but fortunately it was not needed. One thing was pretty sure: I wasn't into another grind.
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If Gen1 is A-tear (it has so many bugs it can't be A-tear, than this one is C-tear, B-tear going to Platinum. That's a B+ game. Black#White is maybe D+, too easy, but otherwise not many problems, but being bland is not a favourable trait.

[twillight]

The optimal (meaning the least amount of pokemon) to have ALL the useful out-of-battle movesets (so this includes HMs, Dig, Teleport, what have you):
- Red: Slowbro + Farfetched (you don't need teleporting much in this one, the maps are adequately small, and Dig brings you close enough to the local hospital)
- Gen 2: ???
- Emerald: Seedot + Marill + anything that can fly + Abra/Ralts (Abra is a hard-to-cath option, but you have to level up Ralts if you go that route). I'm not entirely sure yet wether you need that teleport in this one yet. Extremly rare move in Emerald, it is.
- Platinum: Bidoof + Bibarel + Starly + Abra (teleport is helluva good in this one)
- X: You have a couple of options, the base can be collected pretty soon. Catch a Ralts for Flash and Teleport, and depending on what you want, you likely want it to be male, and evolve it all the way up, so it can learn Cut and Strength in addition, though this is not obligatory.
Also before the first gym you can catch a bidoof, what you'll upp to bibarel, and that can learn all kinds of stuff. It'll definitely be the one learning Surf and Waterfall, but you still need something that flies, and can learn at least 2 more move above that (and is available soon, and not post-game).
This thins down the list to 2 candidate: hawlucha, and aerodactyl. Pick any, and adjust your bibarel (and Ralts) accordingly. In the end you'll carry around 3 HM-slaves.

[twillight]

This feature is introduced/exists in X/Y, and is a super cool idea, but it has some mayor flaws the otherwise quite tlakey game does not tell you, and you need to know:
- when you first turn on the feature HAVE A COMPLETLY USELSSS POKEMON AT YOUR FIRST SLOT. This is because the game'll force you to gain 4 Defense EV twice. Completly ridiculous.
- after that fiasco, you will be able to roll your pokemons within the app on its starter screen, where the punching bag is.
- you can hit the punching bag on the starting screen, but this achieves absolutely nothing. You need to activate a special punching bag.
-there are 2 kinds of special punching bags: one that gives you EV for a certain stat, and those that makes the trianings easier.
-the amount of special punching bags you can have in store, is LIMITED. The game only tells you this when your backpack is already full, and thus you loose the won bag.
- after the first 2 mandatory defense-training you can choose the stat you want to upgrade.

- the game will always tell you the rules of the chosen training, no matter how many times you already done it.
- yes, it was a genious idea to make the aim-circle green on a green background.
- you need to use the roller-skating buttons to move aorund in these minigames.
- you'll need to use another button above the rollerskating buttons for the Protect-function.
- yes, you need to use the mouse during these minigames too.
- yes, the initial settings of the keyboard in Citra makes absolutely zero sense.
- you only get EV-boost and punching bags if you beat one of the trainings.
- there are 3 levels of trainings, and to unlock the higher ... difficulty trainings, you have to beat ALL the various trainings first. This means have a useless pokemon ON A HIGH LEVEL to unlock these #&@,
- It seems you need the level of the pokemon you use influences the difficulty here, and the HP and Defense trainings are absolutely ridiculous.
- fortunately, unlocking the higher trainings is not just for the used pockemon, but for the player, so all pokemon you own, or will own, will be able to use all the trainings.
- Currently not sure when you can unlock the Super Secret Training levels. Either you just have to max yourself out, or again, beat all lvl 3 trainings.

[twillight]

This'll be the final post from me in the topic. Just quick summary of each generation.

Gen 1: pokemon Blue is the better version just for providing access to Meowth, which can generate you more money that's in the game in otherwise fixed amount.
Yes, Gen 1 is a "buggy mess", but it's neither game-breaking, nor immersion-breaking. The pacing is good, the puzzles are challanging but not impossible all htings considered (though you really have to work for the last bird on Victory Road), and is compact enough to not outstay its welcome. The backtrack helps the immersion.

Gen 2: you either have to settle with gutt-wrenching ugly, or for an incomplete version here. I say, avoid this generation.

Gen 3: I have o idea how the original releases work, but in Emerald you are constantly twice the level of the enemy, making the only challanging fight the post-game Steven. That's not good. Also, the game is a railroad, no diversion from the One True Path. Boring as heck, especialy grinding for the flutes.

Gen 4: the time you are allowed to backtrack is, when all the items you constantly saw no longer worth your time and effort. The pacing is also hirrble, switching between oneshotting everything to bumping into difficulty-spike and thus grinding-sessions. the Distortion World is also BS: potentialy softlocking the player in a VERY challanging puzzle, good luck solving it without a guide.

Gen 5: this one is simply boring. Any pokemon remotly interresting is way bexond the starting area, and this was actualy the first game I actualy won (later I went back and finished the Elite Four for the other games too), this time using only a single pokemon (Herdier). The plot is nonsense, N is absolute nonsense, there's no flavour in the game - it's boring. That's kinda worse than being bad. The only good thing is the updated visuals.
EDIT: also do not forget HALF OF THE GAME is locked behind post-game. That amount of story and content is NOT post-game, but proper game, and that's inexcuseable.


Gen 6: I should go into explanation why I think the story is great, the pacing is great, and the game is generaly the best pokemon can offer. It's not flawless though, the game(s) definitely would have benefited from a 3rd release. And is "way too easy", meaning the enemies are not too challanging considering, so either use a weak (low base stat) pokemon, or do not use the Battle Chateau AT ALL. Also: you definitely not need Mega Evolution. Possibly.

Gen 7: Look. there's a large difference by the look of it between the difficulty of the original and the Ultra versions. I don1t know the original release, neither will touch them. But darn, the Ultras are HARD. Some tips if you want to try any of it:
- do EV-training as soon as you got the pokemon you want! Do NOT rely on exp.share, it'll ruin your day, because it not just transfers exp, but also EV, and that can BREAK you pokemon. Imagine giving pyhsical attack EVs to special attackers.
- do NOT feed your pokemon with beans! At least for a long while. You'll want them for the pokePilago, where you can plant the berries you need! (I never used them, but better safe than sorry)
- you have to catch 75-90 pokemon to be able to fully build the PokePilago! So start catching them early! (I don't like the spring-section fully built on the Pilago, and you don't actualy need it for anything, so I don't need the 90 pokemon)
- the RotomDex is annoying as heck, but there are some useful gains from it: Roto Bargain cuts prices in shops (not just pokemarts, but also clothes, the TM-shop etc., though not restaurants or BB-shops) from extraorbitant to simply too expensive. RotoCatch helps you capture that elusive pokemon. If you are a breeder, you might like RotoHatch, though it's way to rare in my case. RotoStealth is a free repell, if you are fed up. Roto HP and PP are equialent of their shop-items, only free, in case you use items. The rest is inarguably useless.
In the Ultra versions you also gain (allegedly) the power to use Z-power twice in battle, and that's something to be considered for now.
- you WANT high, or at least moderate affection-rating on your pokemon, because while they are like 5% chance modifiers, that CAN help you out. Well, this is mostly only if you do a solo playthrough I assume. Or if you keep UltraNekrozma in mind. That thing is infamous for a reason.
- the game has so high-level challanges, it is hard, and poses tactical problems along just grinding levels. Which you'll need to do anyway.
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Otherwise, naratively, and by pacing these games are trash. It's not fun playing them. The cutscenes are a chore, the endgame is padding, the miniquests are unsatisfying most of the times, and have pretty demanding requirements at times for barely any reward. Some are funny though.

Gen 8: "Optional" and barely existing trainers, bring, glitch-filled, unsatisfying.

Gen 9: There is 2 good thing in this: the story in paper, so worth comprised walkthrough on youtube, where it's only 20-60 minute or such. And this terrestrialization-gimmick could last.
Everything else is trash though. There are no scripted events, absolutely no trainers (imagine playing Baldur's Gate with no scripted events, just random kobolds spawning), it's crashing left-and-right, bugs and glitches everywhere. Defnitely do not play, do not buy.

[twillight]

Finaly a worthy Diablo 2 clone.
Well, the aesthetics are more like World of Warcraft, or whatever, so more modern, I don't mind that, it's a mostly random generated maps, mountain of monsters and loot. Just what I was after. Suck it, Warhammer!

There are only 4 classes, but that's fine. The skill-system is a bit unusual, but you get used to it. Weird, that you can only have 2 active skills, which do NOT get to the numbered skillslots, which are mixed with consumable-slots. Those places can be filled with spells learnt from scrolls. Well, there are good passive skills anyway.

You also get a pet. While they offer nothing special, I'd uggest avoiding the jumping crab thing as it's movement is sub-par, the panda seems more passive than the others, and the dragon-chicken blends in with the enemy. The alpakka is great though. But your pick.
On the note: the pets seem invulnerable, so who knows what those statbuffs and resistances do to them from their equipment - those bonuses definitely not buff you. Maybe they come to play when they are transformed by eating fish.
You should do fishing, not because transforming the animals is so great, but because you might find equipment. Oh, to successfully fish, wait until the glow entirely fades away, leaving only the brown circle.

So, how are the classes?
The Engineer is Diablo's big hammer barbarian. Technicaly it could use other stuff (like cannons), but that option is clearly effective. The big advantage here is the healing bot. It is immortal like the pets, and sticks around until you sap map by teleporting. Just walking on the field will not banish it just because you entered an area with name.

The Berserker is another melee character. It gains healing by stealing health when hitting the enemy, so a bit more problematic. Also, whatever class you use, wear some +lot HP equipment, that'll help.
The mage is Diablo 2's mage. Distant spellcaster and whatnot. I think I saw a skill that might be able to heal or whatever, but definitely not its strong point. Note: its wands ARE ranged weapons themselves, though you probably will use skills with this one. Obstacles in the way, and elevation difference WILL be a problem though.
The Outcast, or whatever uses either two pistols (low range), or shotguns (they are devastating, at least during the early game). Something feels fishy though, as the third tab os skills are about glaives and such throwing weapons, which indicates this got a last minute redesign which was half-finished to avoid copyright claims - seems this was an amazon-clone.

Skill resets exists, but you can only re-do the last 3 points you spent (or would that completely remove that skill?), which gets more costly by progress.

I also have like no idea how to farm exp and gold in the game, as it seems the monsters do not respawn. Maybe they do if you perish?
I'd welcome a manual.

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Beware, when you hit "sell all" on the pet's inventory (wether in the town at the shop, or sending the creature to sell your stuff, teleporting to twon is a rare occasion, and entirely unavailabhle when in a boss-arena), it sells EVERYTHING. Not just the tab you had open, but ALL tabs, meaning your fishes too to start with.

When you at the brink of going to Act 2 (meaning a new hub city), you'll be ca. lvl 23. So you can plan ahead. I'm trying to do a hardcore run on casual diff with a dual pistol outlander. It's not easy.

Btw, collecting sets while fun and possible, Ghastly and such low level stuff will become soon obsolate even if you manage to collect them, so keep that in mind.

Also, seems while the game was planned you only visit each area once, eventualy monsters in dungeons do respawn, probably for some memory-issue. They don't seem to scale in level though, but still. If you are out of ideas, especialy if you are doing hardcore, that's an option.
I was checking for more robot parts. I should also check if the guardians throw at you quest rewards. I'm not entirely sure about that one.

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So, got to Act 3. What I think now?
Well, I have almost no idea about the story, but I wanned whacking monsters, and I do that. With hardcore tagged in, after playing what turned out like half of Act 1 with all 4 characters, Casual is the right difficulty to try that.
1HKO is a threat like in the genre, but the game is not obnoxcious like the Diablo-frnachise with it, so you learn what to do: hoard items with +HP on them, then add elemental resists and "armor" (seems the same as elemental resists, only for physical damage). Also rise your dmg to the roof as you can, but surviving is first for me.

Seems the pet COULD die, but it levelscales and whatnot, so that's not that big of a threat, and I bet it'd just respawn after the same time as goig to the town. There seems to be 2 permanent changes somewhat attractive: the spider and whatever, I guess ok to go for it on higher difficulty or something.

There are a ton of features to empty your stash, try those, eventualy in the town itself you'll get enchanters, socketers, mercs who destroy your item to get out the socketed stuff, or destroy the socketed stuff and preserve the item, or even make higher quality items, and the shops even sell set pieces occasionaly... I should figure out their refres rate maybe.
In act 3 they even sold a spell, and those are funky if you find the right ones, like healing. Healing is cool. Or summonning. Make your pet summon you an army of minions to help you out!
You'll need healing, ton of it, but for Casual the game is generous with potions, fortunately, because from the 2nd half of Act 2 you'll chuck them, the bosses starting to become ridiculously spongy, and hoard-spawner stuff become a thing, so crowd damage would be pretty welcomed... Btw, I don't find big badda cannons, so I'd skip that build no matter what. Twohanded melee seems ok though. No idea on mages stuff.
the game makes things more interresting from 2nd hald of act2 with traps and mechanics built into the floor, and the phase gates are always interresting gimmick to behold (only the first 3 is "defeat things fast").

Skill requirement goes through the roof, meaning you won't be able to pick a new skill level just because you gained a level, resulting in accumlating skill points, darn, whatever. The gear you find though will eventualy lead you to spend your statpoints, so there1s that, unlocking nice high level equipment to use is great (and necessary).

So, yeah, if you don't want innovation and hours upon hours cinematics, just hack&slashing monsters, this is seemingly perfect.


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Note: do not entirely believe the level-requirement of dungeons. Like the nether-realm portals are always easy. There is a dungeon on the other hand filled with robots, and giant mechanical traps built into the floor, which is super hard. bosses which keep summonning infinite hordes are the thoughest, while giant strong but mostly solo bosses are way easier. For one of the dragons though, I think it was Vortex, the hard part is the "first statge", where hordes rush to you, and the dragon is not even targetable, but keeps on bombarding you with fire damage, which hits insane.
Coming to elemental damage, I'm playing on casual, and 3-4K HP is necessary, as well as 50-100 in all elemental resistances. You want poison resist 100 to manage the damage over time (you'll use potions to mitigate it), and 100 electric resists as when that type becomes an issue, it immediately hits hard. You can get away with only 50 cold resists though, and fire too until the late Act 3, where suddeny you'll crave for fire resists, I've put up 200 and still had to look for what I am doing. ON CASUAL DIFFICULTY.
Act 4 is just a single dungeon, very much like Diablo 1: one boss at the halfway point, and the final boss at the very end (this time some Cthulhu-monster). You'll reach this ca. lvl 50-51, not counting the Three Sisters quest, which I'd leave last, because you'll have to fight 3 boss monsters (not champion, but boss!) the same time, and that does not sound funny. I'd risk you might want to grind for levels, or advanace some in Act 4 before trying your luck there, especialy on higher difficulties.

[twillight]

The overlay (buttons, control etc.) is clunky, but that was expected.
What was not expected is that every bloody screen has an unmutable, loud, bonoxious, repeated, never-ending NOISE coming from the environment, wether it is ducks, or the blacksmith hammering, or whatever.


I'm glad i only played a demo, and not bought it.

[twillight]

- Cave Story's Secret Santa: this was some GoG-giveaway. It was actualy fun. Go around, do some puzzles, not too long, not too tireing, has some cheesy story.
- Dark Quest 2: DQ1 was pretty good, and 2 offered the right kind of improvements. The problem is, you can re-do quests, and I mean the tutorial, which'll give you multiple extra skillpoints. You should acculate these by progressing through the game, but this bug gives you infinite loop. Otherwise the whole thing is too simplistic to bother.
- The Darkside Detective + A fumble in the dark: technicaly speaking these are 2 separate games, but I'd suggest get them both for the full experience. The difficulty incirises slowly through the double pack accordingly. It's the begginer's adventure game so to say, so if you constantly get bogged down in adventure game puzzles, but still like the genre in idea, or you are just want to show adventure games to a youngling and still have them succeed eventualy, this is a strong recommendation.
- Keep in Mind (remastered): well, this is one of those garbage-bin trash games, and while this one at least has like no trouble with its controls, it's still one of those "who thought this crap will sell" games. Still worth checking its let1s play on u2b.
- Tonight we riot: incredibly basic, potentialy too hard, not enough apeal

[twillight]

Ak ind of acventure-game, without point&click. You are just roaming around with an action-button.
Don't worry about the items, you'll use them automaticaly, there is no separate button for messing with them.


You can speed up your walking with SHIFT.


After you realise like the first puzzle, and that no, the only key you found until that does NOT unlock the sole locked there you found uuntil that, things will turn easy.
With amateur graphc, short runtime, and a very underwhelming ending, I think back in the days it would have been shareware.


PS: the mirror-labyrinth has no clue for it, despite the cakes-with-candles(?) could have been obvious markers. So it is old-school tedium, but a bit better than Zak McCraken, as you get plenty of visual clues for mapping the place.
To not waste more time than you have to: there's only 1 item in there, don't look for more.

[twillight]

Oh, man.
First: despite its age and old-style clunky interface, this WOULD be an acceptable game to complete.
Two things stands in its way:


One: you start without a hub, no access to Elvira and her spellcrafting. Genious. Also no map. Ridiculous. Yu have no idea where to go at the start, and every junction there is an enemy, and no sign where you'll find the hub you desperately need.


Two: this game works on consumables. I always have to ask since Maniac Mansion: WHY? At least make them respawn!
If you have mana, or whatever, you should be able to refill it whenever the player wants it. Either by standing around (boring), or going back to the hub (tp pls), or the bare minimum of respawning consumables.
Sure, you can have limited consumables if this is a survival-game, but then the player must have a very good idea what they are doing. Here you do not.
And this is not Maniac Mansion, which worked on very limited number of rooms.


You could probably beat it eventualy, but I feel things would just fall back to save-scumming, and I don't rly see the replay value.

[twillight]

Some kinda superisingly generic looking 3D platformer, where you direct the camera with your mouse, what is probably not the worst idea I've seen, but definitely not a common thing I've encountered. If you are fine with that, try it, though I have to also warn you, this somehow wants as much memory as a warhammer-game, aka. a lot. You'll be able to downgrade the graphic from "epic" level after half an hour strougle with the lag, but still.

I thought this'll be something like Little Divil, but as told, the demo at least is suprisingly bland.