I played Animal Well. It was good. I feel like to be really impressed with it, as seems to be a not uncommon reaction out there in the zeitgeist, you would have to have not played Cave Story, a game with a similar kind of weight and heft to it, but which felt a little more meaningful, for whatever reason.
But yeah it was… good, you know? It’s good like Minit was good, where, like, you know, you just have to think, well, that was good! It didn’t really satiate any deep longings but it didn’t disappoint either. I’ll probably forget about it in 1-2 months.
Although I will say that it’s absolutely good example of my grand unifying theory for what makes a *Metroid-*like a *Metroid-*like.
I also played Tangle Tower. That was also… good. Kind of felt like Act I of a larger experience that doesn’t have an Act II-IV, or something like that. Felt a bit too much like you did more clicking than thinking often, too. Nothin’ really wrong with it, though.
I’ll probably forget about it in 1-2 months.
I played Animal Well through that PS Plus + Premium Plus Package or whatever, that let’s you play a bunch of games for free. I’ve been meaning to get that subscription again because I want to revive and finish a playthrough of DRAGON QUEST® XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age™ - Definitive Edition that, for one, has all of the Draconian Quest options on at once. Those are:
- No Shopping - Items, equipment, and crafting materials cannot be purchased from shops (although you can still get the mini medal prizes and you can still get casino prizes)
- No Armour - Armor, accessories, and shields cannot be equipped.
- Reduced Experience from Easy Fights - Enemies that are way weaker than the party give little to no experience (though they still drop items).
- All Enemies Are Super Strong - All enemies are way stronger than normal.
- Shypox - The Hero will sometimes do things out of the player’s control, such as recalling an embarrassing memory that makes them lose their turn in battle or not being able to talk to NPCs.
- Super Shypox - All the other party members will sometimes become afflicted by Shypox because why not
- Townsfolk Talk Tripe - NPCs will sometimes tell complete lies and non-sequiturs, this is completely stupid and totally annoying because it basically just means you have to mash X to get them to do their dialogue right after (churches are also included in this of course) so all it really does is waste your time, but I’m stubborn and leaving it on
- Party Wiped Out if Protagonist Perishes - If the Hero falls in the battle, the party instantly loses the battle and the player is sent back to the title screen. Just like old school Dragon Quest
…and that has made the game a lot more challenging. I’m pleased to say that I am hurtling towards the end of Act II as we speak but the bosses are getting fucking hard as hell. Not too bad, like, maybe it will take me 3 or 4 tries and I have to make sure my whole party is as leveled up as possible. I’m not looking forward to Mordegon as that fight was hard enough with just Super Strong Enemies and Reduced Experience from Easy Fights, which is how I beat the game the first time.
Also, I am mostly doing this as I never got around to doing the Postgame, which I am looking forward to. The first moment I can I’m going to turn off all the Draconian Quest options (I believe Super Strong Enemies stops having an effect at this level anyway) like Goku taking off his training weights, power level up to 99, and get ready to fuck some shit up.
I will never forget my Husbando Sylvando The Great, he will take me in his graceful-yet-steely strong arms and protect me forever