Comments 450

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (20th July)

Diogmites

@RubyCarbuncle Apologies!!
I just typed that you had zombie fever and that last year i played Dead Island and Dying Light as part of a quest i undertook to find the best zombie game i hadn’t already played. Dying Light was a standout title.
And i mentioned that i was interested in reading your thoughts on Dead Island 2 if you get to it.
I think that was everything in the message.

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (20th July)

Diogmites

@FishyS Sorry to hear about you falling ill. Covid can be nasty, i’ve had it before. I hope you mend well, my friend!

@JohnnyMind Have a safe and fun time at the Con!

@KateGray The Planet Crafter looks fun. I saw your post on BlueSky with Fluker’s gut load for crickets. I once had a roomie who kept a Veiled Chameleon as a pet. He used Fluker’s products to load his cricket’s guts with nutrition before offering them as fare to his reptilian pal. He also used Fluker’s calcium dust, to season them. A rather horrific ordeal from the cricket’s perspective, i imagine. Apologies, but i have had the itch to share this info after seeing the post. I look forward to your upcoming reviews!

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (20th July)

Diogmites

Of course i’m still playing Moonstone Island, but this weekend is EVO 2024 and fighting games are to be played and watched. KoF XV top 8 is in a couple of hours and i’m excited for that. I will be jumping into Capcom Fighting Collection to play some Darkstalkers games and hopefully can pin down a friend for some Last Blade 2 and KoF 98, XIII,XV and Soul Calibur 6.
I remember back when SF2 was all the rage, a fellow who claimed to be from California unleashed himself upon our small community and he tore through us like a croc through wildebeests. He was short, thin, pale with long black hair and a longer black coat. His countenance reminded the lot of us of a certain thirsty count, and as he gave not his name, we referred to him as Vlad.
Vlad was a talented and knowledgeable player, and any member of our cadre of bumpkins who dared challenge him at Street Fighter 2, was left weeping and drained, bereft of any semblance of pride or dignity.
Most cowered from further challenging him, but my thirst for his knowledge equaled his thirst for victory over scrubs.
Vlad wouldn’t share it. He wouldn’t divulge any of his secrets and all that i learned from him, i learned by watching and playing.
When i finally took a game off him, he cast off his raiment of cool, calm humanity and flew into a howling rage of curses and spittle. Vlad stormed from the arcade with preternatural speed, and i was never to see him again. But that was cool, as i had tasted of him and thus become a monster in my own right. Few were they who dared challenge me after Vlad’s visit, and fewer still were those who put up a fight.
Thanks for the anecdote, Vlad!
I picked up Steve Jackson’s Sorcery! and it is an excellent video game adaptation of the Sorcery! Books. I reread Kate’s lovely review before purchasing to get myself primed.
Anyways, i’ve typed more than enough…
have a swell week of gaming and take care all!
P.S. SvC Chaos is coming to Switch!
P.P.S. Grabbed Epyx Rogue off the eshop and am trying it out.

Re: Mini Review: Toree's Panic Pack (Switch) - A Third Pop Of 99¢ Platforming Pleasure

Diogmites

I’ve been unfamiliar with Toree up until reading this enjoyable review, and while this one might be a bit too difficult for me (those last couple of screenshots make me want to seek out an alcove and cower), i am going to immediately go and purchase the first couple games and see what in tarnation would prompt such lavish appraisal.
I need my grandmammy’s Toree!

Thanks for the review, moonbeam!
(Bought and played through Toree 3d. It’s very short, but a lot of fun).

Re: Mini Review: Conscript (Switch) - A WWI-Themed Love Letter To Resident Evil, Minus The Scares

Diogmites

I’m okay with not being scared. Video games and films tend to not scare me. I get scared by stuff irl: you know… stepping on a 4 sided-die, venereal diseases.. stuff like that.
I don’t really care for the early resident evil games, but still, Oliie’s review has me intrigued.
I like the theme, top-down perspective, theme, and pixel art.
The load times though… pretty freakin scary. I’d barter mountains of cigarettes to be rid of those.
I’ll be waiting for a sale but will be trying this out at some point.
A good read and thanks, Ollie!

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (13th July)

Diogmites

The fourth has come and gone.
I had a doctor’s appointment so i got to stay home while the rest of the family went up North to the cabin to celebrate. Apparently, my brother and uncle got hammered and engaged in a bout of wrestling to the mixed reactions of their onlooking brethren. I’m irritated there’s no footage.
I despise family gatherings, holidays, and long drives, so was happy to not attend. The fishing up there is decent. I no longer consider myself an angler, but i do love the fishing game in Moonstone Island.
It’s one of the best fishing mini games i’ve played in a game not exclusively designed to simulate fishing. The difficulty increases depending on the rarity of the fish, but this can be mitigated with bait and lures. It requires a bit of skill, and demands enough of your attention that it doesn’t become easily boring, yet is short enough as not to become irritating. I like the seed shopkeeper, Rowan, who is a timid, sensitive soul, and one of the two non-binary characters in the game.
The characters are all great fun, and have distinct personalities, which are revealed as you get to know them. You can marry one..
My virtual heart belongs to Ofelia… i don’t know if it’s the flowers in her hair, or that she bears similarities to my own irl partner, in both appearance and interests, but she’s got what i need. No, not that you lecherous savages; her undying love!
I downloaded Battle Crush after reading an endorsement from our good friend, Fishy. Gonna try it out tonight.
And on PC i am playing a lot of Killing Floor 2, and still slogging through Shadow of Mordor. I was going to type more about these but this comment has become grossly gargantuan, so i’ll just end it here and say:
Have a good week all, and take care!
P.S. ordered a physical copy of T’chia and EVO 2024 starts next Friday! Time for some fighting games!
Edit: Fixed title of Battle Crush
P.P.S. Excited for Kate’s reviews!

Re: Nintendo Switch Sports Basketball Update Worked On By Eighting

Diogmites

@MeloMan Yeah! That’s a great description! I wasn’t quite sure what to expect either, though the back of the box gave me some idea. At first, the shmuppy parts were my favorite, but once i got the hang of the dungeons, i loved those just as well, if not more. Which is kind of how my feelings about Kid Icarus: Uprising progressed as i played too. A strange parallel to draw perhaps, as KI:U is a 3d game, but shares the shmup/dungeon structure.

Re: Nintendo Switch Sports Basketball Update Worked On By Eighting

Diogmites

@MeloMan The Guardian Legend is great. I got it for a gift for xmas in 89 , and knew nothing of it, as i had asked for Mega Man 2 or Castlevania, i think, and both were sold out.
GL sat in its box for a while, as i was galled at not having got what i wanted, but when i finally cracked into it, i fell in love.

Re: Nintendo Switch Sports Basketball Update Worked On By Eighting

Diogmites

Eighting’s been a prolific, reliable and excellent outsourced dev for a while now, but i will always know them as Raizing, creators of my favorite shmup of all time: Dimahoo.
Mahou Densetsu, Battle Garegga, Armed Police Batrider(i just like typing that) and 1944: The Loop Master are also worth mentioning. None of these are on Switch save 1944:TLM which is part of the Capcom Classics Collection.
Which sucks for me.

Re: Bullet-Hell Shmup 'Mushihimesama' To Be Delisted From The Switch eShop

Diogmites

It blows this is happening to such a great game, but it’s not a hard one to find on any other gaming platform, and if LiveWire can’t renew the license, maybe someone other publisher will pick it up in the future, considering it’s one of Cave’s most popular shmups.
Mushihimesama along with Guwange and E.S.P.rade and E.S.P.galuda 2 are my favorite Cave shmups.

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (6th July)

Diogmites

Still playing Moonstone Island and the Summer season has flowers which bloom as popsicles. Which is the greatest thing that’s ever happened. I have been decorating and i finally bought a greenhouse. I focused on collecting talismans to streamline my decks the other day. I keep switching up my party because i keep finding increasingly adorable spirits.
I have been on the PC a bit as i picked up Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order , Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor and Middle Earth: Shadow of War. All for about 5 clams. I started Fallen Order and am quitting after 6 hours of play. I was told it was like Dark Souls. It shares Dark Souls camera and the bonfire mechanic but the complete lack of challenge renders the comparison heretical. I dislike the game. And i wouldn’t want it any other way. I’m so relieved it’s awful. To have a truly stellar star wars game would mean the stars have aligned in some horrifically foreboding pattern.
Shadow of Mordor is better but so far boring. It’s not truly a Tolkien game in my eyes as it too grievously ignores the source material. It’s an open-world game and you just kind of wander around pre-WotR Mordor stabbing orcs. The combat reminds me of Batman Arkham Asylum. Which was a much better game, despite my ambivalence towards the dark knight. I do intend to finish SoM, but i’m not really enjoying it. Hopefully it will improve.
I just needed an action game to play alongside Moonstone Island.
Have a swell week all!

Re: Review: Tchia (Switch) - A Brilliantly Fun (And Surprisingly Adult) Animal-Hopping Adventure

Diogmites

This game would have slipped quietly past me had i not seen this review, so thank you, Kate!

I used to love rafting and exploring willderness, but the latter can often be more enjoyable in a virtual dimension, where one isn’t constantly harassed by arthropods, and the heat from that accursed ball of bright, the sun. Which happens to frequently look blisteringly beautiful in the trailer which i just sampled a brief gander at, despite the reviewer’s recommendation to go in blind. I couldn’t help but take a wee peek!
I will play this.

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (29th June)

Diogmites

@Zuljaras It took me awhile to get used to the game’s older ways. I saw a lot of videos on yt that trashed the game’s controls and combat, but it just takes time to acclimate and is then quite fun. I am currently using the trident and it has this funky twirling move that i love.
I had only intended to play for a little bit yesterday upon starting, but ended up sinking hours into it. It is awesome! I hope to beat it today. Thanks for the reply, and again, for the recommendation!

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (29th June)

Diogmites

I woke up so late!
I am excited to learn that Kate will be penning another review soon. Speaking of Kate…
Still playing Moonstone Island. It’s the best. I am just about to wade into Summer and have beaten the first Spirit temple. Also, i finally crafted a glider which makes island hopping easier. My partner hit Summer a week ago but i have my days set to long and i pack them to capacity. That’s my excuse. There’s nothing i don’t like doing in this genre mashup that has more Ghibli references than you can shake Jiji’s tail at. The game is like a 2d wind waker, but battles are turn-based, card-based and fought between creatures you subdue ala pokemon. And each creature has its own card deck which you can edit with consumable items. There’s also gardening, gathering and crafting as well as building and decorating. And fishing.. which is quite fun! So, Animal Crossing stuff too. There’s villagers, and you can try and get in their pants by giving them stuff. Ala irl. It sounds like a lot, but the learning experience has been a smooth and gradual one, and never overwhelming. The pixel art is great, the mechanics are solid, the music is sweet, and all the words are by Kate, making it the cat’s pajamas. If you have any interest in this game, i couldn’t recommend it more.

I am also finally playing Blade of Darkness. I just picked it up yesterday, and were Hidetaka Miyazaki himself to swear on all that is rad and righteous that he had never played it, i wouldn’t believe him. It is a template for Dark Souls. I got really lost in the 3rd area but now i am on to the fourth. The combat is a bit janky and the controls are aggressively primitive, but by Nito’s withered countenance, i love it.
Big thanks to @Zuljaras for the recommendation (which he made a year and a half ago.. it takes me awhile to get to stuff sometimes).

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (15th June)

Diogmites

An old high school buddy is moving across the country and he quit his job a month prior so we have been playing some of our old favorites on PC. Between that and me trying to finish a project i started a couple of years ago(a graphic novel i have been making for my Sig) i haven’t touched my Switch. But i am very excited for Moonstone Island, which releases on Wednesday. My partner will be buying it too, and while i am in for Kate, she is playing because it combines a couple of her favorite genres, and i haven’t seen her this excited for a game in some time.
Anyways, not much Switch stuff to talk about for this weekend, i’ll keep at SaGa Scarlet Grace when i have time and i still have to find time for those game boy Mega Mans. I should at least go through the good one. I have been itching for Resident Evil lately and might play through 4-6 and the Revelations games for the umpteenth (wth kinda word is that anyways?) time.
My eyes still suck.
Take care of each other and happy week!

(Good luck to Gavin on finishing Dark Souls!)

Re: Talking Point: amiibo Were First Revealed 10 Years Ago Today, And We Still Want More

Diogmites

I own some amiibos. My mom knew this Bosnian woman who had cancer and she gave me a Target gift card shortly before she died.
I didn’t really know her, but my mom had taught her to speak english, and i believe she was trying to compensate my mother in some way, by giving me the card, as my mother wouldn’t accept gifts from her.
Anyways, i didn’t really know what to buy, so i bought a few amiibos. Pikachu (much more svelte than the 1999 Chu figure i have), Jigglypuff and Charizard were all they had.
Later, i would pick up the biggified Detective Pikachu amiibo and a couple Monster Hunter Stories amiibo off the internet. I sold the Rathalos(not a fan of Rath)rider but kept the Barioth.
I kinda wanted that Metroid amiibo, but never picked it up. The purchase of Simon has wafted through my thoughts now and then.
I don’t remember any games having great amiibo implementation. Smash was cool. One or more of the Resident Evils (maybe Revelations 2 and/or 6) let’s you scan amiibo daily for points to spend on skills. Kind of cheesy, but more useful then say, added dialogue between the protag and Chu in Detective Pikachu.
Anyways, i’m sure we’ll see an amiibo or two in the future. Maybe Nintendo has a new line with new tech for their new console. I hope they can come up with an even more ridiculous name than amiibo if they do.
(Add: i forgot i have the lil felt poochy amiibo too from the 3ds game and Mega Man)

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (8th June)

Diogmites

@DemonKow This is my first SaGa game and i dig it, but not for the story or even the characters, which are all serviceable, but the game’s combat really shines, and the rest of the game’s elements are expedited to serve that strength. For instance, the towns, once entered, are just menu tabs, reminiscent of old school rpgs. The art and the music hit for me as well.
The combat itself is quite strategic, easy to get into, and is becoming gradually deeper. There’s a lot of playing around with turn order and strength and weaknesses as well as forming an effective party.
I am not very far in, maybe 9 hours or so, and can’t offer more than a cursory evaluation, but i love it so far.
I’m not sure if it would appeal to everyone, but i would recommend anyone try it at a reasonable price.

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (8th June)

Diogmites

I hope Kate feels better! Get well, Kate!

I had eye surgery this week but that didn’t stop me from gaming voraciously afterwards. I played a lot of Star Wars Hunters but i think i’m gonna move on because i’ve got other crops to tend. Why i am using an agricultural analogy? I had eye surgery… i have other eyeballs to squelch?
So the doctor who cut into my eyeball for health(for me) and wealth(for he), offered me a litany of extra bells and whistles, and the manner in which he detailed them was not unlike a car salesman shilling window etching, key protection, chrome rims, etc.
He asked me stuff like, “do you feel your eyes get wet enough when they water?” So he was selling me a heavier flow when i succumb and break down weeping? Would i give a fuzz at that moment?
He also asked if i rubbed my eyes a lot, and then said he could help with that. Would i leave the surgical center without hands!?
Anyways, i gotta wait a month until my vision is settled and then i can get some glasses. Right now, reading and typing sucks.
But i can still dodge incoming fire in the incredible shmup, Devil Blade Reboot. I hope somehow it gets ported, as it’s only on PC now.
I got a full evening with SaGa Scarlet Grace:Ambitions and went through another area and i don’t know, it’s just an incredibly fun rpg with challenging combat, but it’s so easy to slip in and out of and it has a fun, breezy vibe.
I didn’t really gel with Please, Touch the Artwork. I played it for a while, had fun, but never went back to it. Gavin still has plenty of cred from his Just Shapes and Beats recommendation, and i am not big on abstract art anyways, so i wasn’t expecting a slam dunk. I would urge others to give it a go.
Take care of each other!
Edit-i forgot to mention that i might hit those gb Mega Mans.