The Backlog Check-in Vol. 235: 7/2/22: Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series Edition

[canedaddy]

The thread title just clicked in my head. They did a Klonoa remaster?! Very cool.

[Phaseknox]

I don't blame anybody for skipping Elden Ring. However, I'm a relatively unskilled old person with very little Souls experience, and I have made my way very deep into the game, and have enjoyed it very much. It's possible I won't finish it, but that won't tarnish the 100+ hours of fun I've had. Well, not too much anyway.

I still might check it out when I can get it for $20 or less, but I’m fairly certain that it’s not something that I will have the patience to stick with until the end. By the way, you seem to be pretty good at games because you stick with and finish most of what you play. I’m kind of the opposite, if something isn’t really grabbing me or I lose patience with it then I drop it fairly quickly. Part of the reason why is because I have hundreds of games to play, so I don’t want to spend time playing anything that isn’t really doing it for me or is frustrating me when I have so much else to play.

I’ve pretty much been gaming nonstop since I was a kid, and I’ve played so much over the years that gaming has reached a point for me where I get the feeling that I’ve been there and done that with a lot of what I play now. So it’s harder for something to really hold my interest now, because a lot of the time I don’t find what I play now to be quite as good as what I’ve played in the past so I would rather just play something that I’ve already played and enjoyed more than something new that I haven’t played and I’m not enjoying as much.

Souls difficulty has always been exaggerated to the point of becoming a meme. I'm not suggesting they're "easy" games necessarily, but they've always been more about patience, observation, persistence and learning systems and enemies over requiring you to be some kind of mechanical savant. I think the reputation stems from the average gamer being acclimated to different experiences found in the bulk of gaming that don't require such a methodical and consistent push against challenges. (Press X to win ) But, for me, the challenge is nicely balanced and it asks you to put in the work and meet opposition with some spirit, and it makes the rewards for pressing on feel really good.

You’re right, when it comes to Soulslike games it’s more about learning, observing, patience, perseverance and trial-and-error than it is about raw skill. But for me that’s a lot more effort and work than I’m willing to put into something that I do for escapism, entertainment and fun. If I dread playing or returning to a game knowing that it’s going to kick my ass over and over again until I “git gud”, then I don’t want to play it. I somewhat have ADD so I like to constantly be entertained in games and make progress in them, not feel like I’m beating my head against a wall. Once that happens I’m no longer having fun, and want to quit.

Younger me (like you) found satisfaction in overcoming tough challenges in games, that was part of the appeal of them and I get it. Younger me also had a lot less games to play, and hadn’t played nearly as many games as older me has. Times have changed, now I’m interested in games more for their overall experience including stories, characters and spectacle and less for overcoming their challenges. Of course I like fun gameplay and overcoming challenges that require some effort, but nothing that’s going to stop me in my tracks for long periods of time and make me have to give it my all to proceed because that’s not fun IMO.

[Phaseknox]

The thread title just clicked in my head. They did a Klonoa remaster?! Very cool.

Yes, remasters of Klonoa: Door to Phantomile and Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil.

[isthatallyougot]

You’re right, when it comes to Soulslike games it’s more about learning, observing, patience, perseverance and trial-and-error than it is about raw skill. But for me that’s a lot more effort and work than I’m willing to put into something that I do for escapism, entertainment and fun. If I dread playing or returning to a game knowing that it’s going to kick my ass over and over again until I “git gud”, then I don’t want to play it. I somewhat have ADD so I like to constantly be entertained in games and make progress in them, not feel like I’m beating my head against a wall. Once that happens I’m no longer having fun, and want to quit.

Younger me (like you) found satisfaction in overcoming tough challenges in games, that was part of the appeal of them and I get it. Younger me also had a lot less games to play, and hadn’t played nearly as many games as older me has. Times have changed, now I’m interested in games more for their overall experience including stories, characters and spectacle and less for overcoming their challenges. Of course I like fun gameplay and overcoming challenges that require some effort, but nothing that’s going to stop me in my tracks for long periods of time and make me have to give it my all to proceed because that’s not fun IMO.

Yeah phase, I think games should be fun and enjoyable, whatever those terms mean to you personally. If you're not having a good time with something, what's the point?

[Phaseknox]

It’s nice to see some games that I’m actually interested in coming out fairly soon:





And there’s also Saints Row in August, and God of War: Ragnarok in November.

[canedaddy]

Those bottom two are very appealing to me. Like lost PS2 gems.

[Phaseknox]

Those bottom two are very appealing to me. Like lost PS2 gems.

Yes, classic style third person game design with current graphics. That’s kind of what Darksiders III is, and why it’s one of my favorite games that I’ve played this year.

As for the games that I’m looking forward to that are coming out in the next few months, I think that Saints Row might be the one that I buy on day one since it’s coming out next month and I could really go for a fun urban open world action adventure game right about now. The others I’ll get on Black Friday since I’m sure that they’ll be on sale.

[isthatallyougot]

Phase and cane, if you're longing for the PS2 days, I'll recommend The Good Life. It's definitely taking me back to that era in a good way. It's not for everyone, but if you like the idea of an open world village where you're solving a mystery (about why everyone is so happy), doing quests for quirky characters, planting and harvesting various things, cooking from recipes you learn, getting involved in a cat person/dog person drama, and a whole bunch of other things, it's worth a look.

Oh, and I just saw that Psychonauts 2 is getting a physical release, so your patience has paid off cane.

[Phaseknox]

Phase and cane, if you're longing for the PS2 days, I'll recommend The Good Life. It's definitely taking me back to that era in a good way. It's not for everyone, but if you like the idea of an open world village where you're solving a mystery (about why everyone is so happy), doing quests for quirky characters, planting and harvesting various things, cooking from recipes you learn, getting involved in a cat person/dog person drama, and a whole bunch of other things, it's worth a look.

I skimmed a few video reviews of this, and I want it NOW!!!! But not for $40. It totally looks like something that I will enjoy, I’m definitely going to buy it when it’s on sale. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

Oh, and I just saw that Psychonauts 2 is getting a physical release, so your patience has paid off cane.

No it hasn’t, he just bought it digitally when it was on sale. However, my patience has paid off because I didn’t buy it digitally despite $30 being a good deal for it. So I will buy it physically, but when it’s $30 or less.

[canedaddy]

Phase and cane, if you're longing for the PS2 days, I'll recommend The Good Life. It's definitely taking me back to that era in a good way. It's not for everyone, but if you like the idea of an open world village where you're solving a mystery (about why everyone is so happy), doing quests for quirky characters, planting and harvesting various things, cooking from recipes you learn, getting involved in a cat person/dog person drama, and a whole bunch of other things, it's worth a look.

Wow, that looks great!

Oh, and I just saw that Psychonauts 2 is getting a physical release, so your patience has paid off cane.