I’ve been playing this a bit for the last few days. It’s very good, but I can’t help thinking the GBA Tactics game is better. I keep getting frustrated with the default camera angle, and the way I have to adjust the field rotation every couple of moves. But it’s a more-than-decent SRPG, and the story is already full of twists and betrayals and all sorts. I’m slightly concerned that, after 9 hours play, I’m still only on level 8 …
I was away for the weekend, and this is the only game I thought to take with me. And it’s very good. Sadly, it isn’t quite as good as its predecessor, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, mainly for menu and display reasons, but a decent SRPG is a decent SRPG, and very soon I’d plowed over 6 hours into it. Difficulty is all over the place at the moment. The first couple of battles were reasonably easy, and all of the …
Next week on ugvm is Retro Week, and so I was hoping to play this a bit then. Only… I can’t. For two reasons. Firstly, in order to not break the rules of the week, I would have to play either the original Rondo of Blood (rather than the 2.5D remake that makes up the main title in this collection), or Symphony of the Night. Both of which have to be unlocked in the main game. Secondly, the main game …
After many, many more attempts, I finally managed to save Meden. I’d tried every combination of Patapon armies to do it, but in the end my standard Tate/Yari/Yumi setup was enough. Then it was off to fight a harder version of the crab boss I killed earlier, who dropped the ability to create Megapons. I haven’t made any yet, though. I did, however, come up against some (sort of) in the next mission – where I had to kill off …
With the power of my new stew, and deciding to run away then fight rather than just storm forwards, I completed the mission I was stuck on (where you have to beat Gong to a caged Patapon, then defeat Gong himself). After that, I opened up a new hunting ground, where I found a black star (although it didn’t appear to do anything), and then repeated the level so it gave me a new cap – reviving a blacksmith Patapon! …
I was pretty much stuck in this last time I played, since I was unable to progress or beef up my Patapons However, I managed to retrieve the gardener Patapon’s hat on a hunting mission today, meaning I could acquire vegetables, which in turn allowed me to make stew! Perhaps I will now fair better!
Progress! Finally! I seem to have spent the last four or more hours (in the game over a period of days, not in one sitting today!) essentially doing nothing. I’ve hunted, hunted some more, made some new Patapons, hunted, killed some bosses again, and hunted. But today I finished off two more levels and another boss. Phew! And then I went and hunted some more. And killed some previous bosses. Then hunted a bit. Erm.
It’s be a week or so since I last played this, and I’d actually forgotten the Pon-Pata-Pon-Pata retreat song. Not that I intend using it, as I’m not a coward. Spend ages redoing hunting levels in order to get more Kerching, so I could create some new “special” Rarepon Patapons. I have this amazing Mogyoon-Yaripon now which has mad damage skillz, something like 50 damage compared to the normal 20 my other Yaripons are capable of. I still need more …
Yay! That’s PSP Game #2 completed! And very good it was too. Even if the last level was pretty tricky (in comparison to the previous levels, anyway). I only had three levels left to complete today, and with them done the overly-cute and ten minute long end sequence played. All the LocoRocos of assorted colours sang together! Aces.
Finished the last few levels on World 4, and then moved on to completing most of World 5 too. There’s not long left now! I’d have played for longer this evening, but the battery in my PSP lasts 4 hours – or less – so I have to keep charging it. Conclusive proof the PSP is a modern-day Game Gear 🙂
Today I worked through most of World 4, not finding it especially difficult. Of course, getting a perfect score on each and every level is a life’s work, but I don’t think I’ll be doing that. It’s too frustrating, as sometimes a mis-jump takes you past a point you can’t return to without trying the level again.
Bought this at the weekend (although not for me), and gave it a quick go this evening. It’s… very odd. You play noughts and crosses, with each square being a monkey-infested minigame. Kind of like single-player Mario Party. With monkeys. It was pretty good, although I did only complete the first “level” of the academy.
With Katamari done and dusted, I returned to this. Didn’t play for all that long though, but I have now finished off all of World 3. I understand there are five worlds, and with a play time of just over three hours currently, it looks like it’s going to be a pretty short game. But that’s OK – I think it would drag if it was much longer, as although it’s fun and everything, there’s not all that much variety …
So… that’s pretty much it. I’ve completed the few remaining levels (all of which were Volcano Island “strange request” levels), and on every level I’ve managed a reasonable-or-better score, with many levels having a score of 100. I don’t really fancy playing it again for better scores, as each level was almost the same as the last, so I feel I’ve been playing the same level over and over and over already. Besides, the 360 is easier to control, so …
Completed in that I’ve done all the main levels and the end of game sequence and bonus game, at least. I think there are a few more animals to sort out on Volcano Island, although I’ve done most of them too. It’s a shame that the levels are all the same and it’s too easy (I haven’t failed a single level), but it’s still rollyball fun like the others in the series – it just happens to be the weakest …