Ep. 136 - PS2CULAR

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@exodus#1917

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Is everyone ready to get mad about PS2 games!?

games in listicle fashion?!! well I never...

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@Blrb#16956 NICE

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https://twitter.com/TwanLaVeesh/status/1551562902439690240

edit: i like how the twitter embed cropped out the price, the point of the post

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I finished Steambot Chronicles last night.

WOW

That game is pure magic. PS2 Irem really went for everything they did. On the surface it is a mech battler but it has:

  • Invisible quest branching
    Funny dialogue choices
  • A stock market for businesses in the game that you can manipulate
  • An almost no fail branching story (losing to a lot of the bosses doesnā€™t result in a game over, the story changes)
  • A music playing system where you can play the harmonica, piano and trumpet (maybe more?), each with a bespoke mini game
  • A nickname system that reacts to what you do in the game
  • A commodities trading system
  • Set piece last boss battles
  • AND MORE

None of it is of a high production value but who cares? The mech controls take some getting used to (they are Katamari controls) and some of the combat encounters are frustrating because of this but who cares? The frame rate is dreadful but who cares?

The game is pure magic, full of player choice, little touches, personality and charm. This is for sure one of the best games on the PS2 and Iā€™m glad it is on the Insert Credit list.

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realizing there isnā€™t really a PS2 thread on here? Maybe I missed it?
As someone who missed the PS2 when it was current I have been going back and playing through things I find interesting, and using the IC podcast list as a guide. Raw Danger and Boku 2 (with the patch) have been incredible, and recently Iā€™ve been playing Bumpy Trot, and a bit of Michigan. These games (except Boku which is as polished as a game can be) feel like they are busting at the seams with ideas and questions that they donā€™t have the answers for, and itā€™s intoxicating. GitS and GodHand are still on the shortlist of things to pick up.

I use OPL for playing all of these and it works incredibly, except during prerendered cutscenes which have been few and far between in most of these games. Playing on a 27" CRT with component cables makes these games look better than most PS3 games, which is a strange reversing sensation to experience. Anyways the PS2 is cool and there should be a thread

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the PS2 IS cool and feels to me like the last game system I remember owning where I felt games were so fresh. it has such a killer library. every time the console is brought up iā€™m introduced to a new game it seems. long live the ps2!

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Steambot Chronicles is one of the coolest games Iā€™ve ever played.
Thereā€™s also accordion!
Itā€™s hard.

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Iā€™ll second Bumpy Trot being interesting for how you are not punished for losing a battle, and for the story to just continue moving. Itā€™s quite refreshing since the battles (so far) happen sporadically and I havenā€™t been able to practice much anyways. The crime captain is just like ā€œI respect your moxy kidā€. Itā€™s not ā€œgoodā€ design per say, but it is interesting

1 Like