T w e n t y S i d e d
There are ways to correct mistakes made in the delivery of the plot. Some are better than others.
DM of the Rings Remastered CII: A Minor Omission
Wednesday Action Log 01-15-25
This week has been a whole lot of nothing.
But as of writing this, I was looking at steam and saw Heroes of Hammerwatch II. I don’t know anything about it other than it released today and is a roguelike. I’m very fond of roguelikes, so I’m going to try the demo later.
What’s everyone else doing this week?
Final Fantasy 1 (part 001)
Pre-existing condition: my mouse is going out, apparently.
Let’s get one thing straight from the beginning: Final Fantasy is *not* the first console RPG, or JRPG…but it *was* inspired by the early ones. It *was* the first to use the format of enemies lined up vertically on the left side of the screen and home team lined up vertically on the right, for what it’s worth. This format is broadly associated with the concept of early console RPG’s, despite Final Fantasy being one of the few that used this idea. Dragon Quest, debuting a year earlier, used a first-person fight screen then switched to a second-person hybrid screen with Dragon Quest 7. This view would also dominate HD and 3D remakes so thoroughly and effectively that people associate that particular view with the series as a whole, now. The Phantasy Star series, another early hit for Sega-based systems; used a second-person view set right behind the protagonists. You would see their back and hair which set an early standard for that series’ focus on the avatars’ designs. Most earlier RPG’s used some variety of first-person point-of-view. So at least in one regard Final Fantasy did do something different.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Final Fantasy 1 (part 001)”
DM of the Rings Remastered CI: There He Goes Again
Wednesday Action Log 01-08-25
This week I’ve not done much.
I’m pretty much burnt out on They are Billions. Mostly due to it not really giving a sense of progression aside from a new enemy every once in a while, and working through the tech tree. I guess you could argue that the larger population requirements and increased enemy quantity could be considered progress, but it just felt tedious.
Other than that, I’ve just been watching YouTube and staring at my steam library.
So what’s everyone else doing this week?
A Last Try at LotRO
I’ve been listening to a lot of Tolkien universe (I know the common term is “legendarium”) over the Christmas holiday. This has prompted me to re-install Lord of the Rings Online in a final attempt to “enjoy” the storyline into the post-Rings gameplay Standing Stone has been putting out for years now. I had to give a bit of thought to how to do this, actually. I think I have made it to a point that would have facilitated “moving on” to a new story, except I always seems to get stuck or confused. One thing is easy to straighten out: skip side quests until you have to level. The “Epic Quests” are the storyline of the game, and I *do* remember hitting a dead-end at one point by not being able to beat one chapter. Doing side-quests is *highly* repetitive, with only a handful of starting quests available. Let me rephrase that: there are *a lot* of side quests, but you preform them in all of the same areas. There are only a few starting areas, then after that they all concentrate into the same quest lines. You really need to just focus on getting one character through the storylines.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “A Last Try at LotRO”
DM of the Rings Remastered C: Railroad Goes Ever on and on
From The Archives:
Good to be the King?
Which would you rather be: A king in the middle ages, or a lower-income laborer in the 21st century?
The Disappointment Engine
No Man's Sky is a game seemingly engineered to create a cycle of anticipation and disappointment.
Mass Effect Retrospective
A novel-sized analysis of the Mass Effect series that explains where it all went wrong. Spoiler: It was long before the ending.
Overthinking Zombies
Let's ruin everyone's fun by listing all the ways in which zombies can't work, couldn't happen, and don't make sense.
Philosophy of Moderation
The comments on most sites are a sewer of hate, because we're moderating with the wrong goals in mind.
Borderlands Series
A look at the main Borderlands games. What works, what doesn't, and where the series can go from here.
D&D Campaign
WAY back in 2005, I wrote about a D&D campaign I was running. The campaign is still there, in the bottom-most strata of the archives.
Trusting the System
How do you know the rules of the game are what the game claims? More importantly, how do the DEVELOPERS know?
Seven Springs
The true story of three strange days in 1989, when the last months of my adolescence ran out and the first few sparks of adulthood appeared.
Silent Hill Origins
Here is a long look at a game that tries to live up to a big legacy and fails hilariously.