What game(s) are you playing now?

[msainy]

My ranking of the Zelda series

1. Ripened Tingle's Balloon Trip of Love

Ok buddy.

[Pretentious Hipster]

Yep, getting called a troll once again by people who haven't even heard of it until this post and won't engage in good faith. I'm just gonna paste a quick essay I've made explaining why it's great. If you still think I'm trolling. It's on you:

I was in the camp of hating Tingle, like most people, and only played this game out of morbid curiousity. But, I wanted to give some brief thoughts as to what made this entry so special, and how it even surpasses some elements that make the Zelda games so special.

To show how serious this could be, it was created by Vanpool. Some members that are in it, and were involved in this game, worked for a company called Love-de-Lic before. Their most popular game was Moon: Remix RPG Adventure, which was remastered for the switch recently. This game was apparently a massive inspiration for Toby Fox when he was creating Undertale.

It is a point and click game, and me being a massive fanboy of that genre I may be biased, but even then I gotta say that this is one of the best of the genre I've played so far.

Firstly, there is the in-game world. The reason why I love point and click games is that if they're well done, the world building is top notch. You'll be motivated to just mess around and interact with everything such as talking to every character, no matter how minor they are. Most characters won't even be relevant to the plot, but they just add so much to the world. This game focuses more on hubs, where stuff is split up into chapters, so it's condensed in a way that makes it easier for beginners, but they still accomplish that world building so well, and the chapters are split in a logical way. There is a twist later on as to why they are split up like this.

Secondly, there's the overall personality and charm of this. I believe this is an aspect that most Zelda games tend to shine on, even the games that I don't really like that much, and with this game it's its major strength, to the point that I'd say it does an even better job than the Zelda games. So many characters are so ridiculous in a great way, and they provide references to other media (Wizard of Oz, Punch Out, Metroid, Super Mario Bros 2, and other Zelda games) in a way that is not too annoying. The main example is that you have 3 characters with you, and each of them do something special, like one is tiny and go in holes, or one has a lot of strength and can lift things, adding more complexity to the puzzles. They are your companions, and are basically the 3 characters in Wizard of Oz. They are EASILY the best companions of any Zelda game, and I really mean it. There is absolutely no competition. The charm they all have is top notch, the group dynamics work very well because of the contrast with them, and the character development makes these characters super effective through the storyline perspective.

The big thing about the personality is Tingle himself. I absolutely hated him before playing this game. It was very funny at the beginning because he kept getting hurt in the slapstick kind of way, and trust me they do it super well. There are also moments where he falls in love with most women, and they usually kick him and call him stuff like a molester or pervert. Again, that's hilarious. One chapter made it super funny where the crew enter a village, and every woman that sees Tingle runs away or hides. But then, they did the impossible and made him grow on you. At first I thought I was just getting used to him, but I started seeing his personality shine thanks to the overall insanity and charm of the game. They suited each other so well. By the end, I'll go all out and say it, I won't say what happens, but thanks to the character development of the companions, and of Tingle himself, I even cried. The only other Zelda game to accomplish that is Majora's Mask. I then had that epiphany. I started liking Tingle as a character. I never thought I would say that.

Lastly, there is the overall gameplay. Their older game Moon is considered a subversive RPG, and that subversion definitely carries over here. The puzzles are simple for the most part, but thanks to the many ways you can interact with them, it's so effective that you even want to interact with them the wrong way just to see what happens.

Some examples is the constant genre jumping. They change genres so quickly and often, and even at the moments where it felt like a novelty it still shined in a cool way, and you are pretty much guaranteed to at least smile and be like "did they really do that?". I won't even say all of them as I want to leave it as a surprise, but they include dungeon crawling, time travel, almost being like a first person shooter, a sort of Stardew Valley style cozy game, and a dating sim. This is of course on top of its main focus of the point and click gameplay. They find so many ways to leave stuff as a surprise that you wanna keep playing just to see what the hell they'll do next. Believe me, I left out some of the weirder genre jumping that happens later in the game.

The subversion of the gameplay is hilarious. For example, as its a DS game, all the gameplay involves the touchpad. It can be a bit annoying for the dungeon crawling aspect. If you want, you can use the direction pad, but as its technically inside of a video game, you need to buy a joystick that actually costs rupees. It's a dick move in the best way possible. They also subvert many of the usual tropes you usually see in media, but again, it should be a surprise.

There is also the overall insanity in the in-game world and the overall humour, and it is absolutely insane. To save the game you gotta interact with a rotating pig, with the background changing depending on the chapter, and when you press on it the subtitle says "Good day. I am pig." Another part is that he repairs a train early on that's called "The Super Bachelor Express: The Tingliner". There are pretty much always moments like this, and if you love ridiculous humour then this is perfect for you.

I think the fact that I hated tingle, and I loved this to the type that I got a tattoo of tingle and the rest of the crew because I loved them so much shows how effective this is, but thanks to the gameplay and practically every other aspect, I am confident in saying that this is easily one of the better Zelda games. The only flaw is that one part was a bit TOO creepy.

Hopefully I can convince some people to try it out in good faith. If you have any other opinions about it, or disagree with me thinking it's a great game, I'd love to read it and discuss. Just please don't brush this off because "ew Tingle"

I can even go into the socio-political aspect of the game if needed.

[Pretentious Hipster]

I didn't wanna play it at first, so I watched this. Within 6-7 minutes I stopped the video cause I didn't wanna spoil it, and immediately knew I had to play the game. Maybe it'll happen to people here too

[msainy]

Haha well, I'll have to try it now. I'm still not sure if this is an elaborate joke or are you sincere sorry. I've never hated Tingle and was aware that these balloons games exist, but I dismissed them as quick cash grabs side games without knowing anything about them.

I got back into Slay the Spire recently, I a have love/hate relationship with it and have been playing a lot lately even though I have nothing new to do (beat A20 on all characters). Maybe when I get sick of it again I'll try the Tingle game and report back.

[flavo5000]

My ranking of the Zelda series

1. Ripened Tingle's Balloon Trip of Love
2. Link's Awakening
3. A Link to the Past
4. Tears of the Kingdom
5. Minish Cap
6. Ocarina of Time
7. Breath of the Wild
8. Majora's Mask
9. Tingle Rosey Rupeeland
10. Oracle of Ages

11. The Legend of Zelda
12. Zelda 2 Adventure of Link
13. Twilight Princess
14. Four Swords Adventures
15. BS Zelda
16. Spirit Tracks
17. Wind Waker
18. A Link Between Worlds
19. Phantom Hourglass
20. Ancient Stone Tablets
21. Hyrule Warriors
22. Oracle of Seasons
23. Skyward Sword
24. Cadence of Hyrule
25. Link's Crossbow Training
26. Twilight Princess Picross
27. Four Swords
28. Tingle's Balloon Fight
29. Zelda Wand of Gamelon
30. Zelda's Adventure
31. Age of Calamity
32. Link The Faces of Evil
33. Tri-Force Heroes

Seems like a solid list overall. I would personally put Wind Waker MUCH higher on the list. It's one of my favorites. Also some might think you're trolling putting those two Tingle games so high but they really are well made. I should go back and finish them actually. Also putting Age of Calamity and Tri Force Heroes below the CD-i Zelda games is pretty...bold...

Also you've got Link to the Past at #3 but Ancient Stone Tablets which is basically kind of a remake/remix of it way lower. I haven't actually played that one. Is it really that much worse?

[mjf314]

I finished Sonic the Hedgehog. I hate this game. I really don't understand the appeal. I only finished it because it's a short game.

The running speed is too fast. The left/right acceleration is too slow, so every level feels like an ice level. The level design is repetitive. There are lots of blind jumps and kaizo traps where it's impossible to react fast enough. I don't like the way the coins work.

I also played Ms. Pac-man. I don't know how many levels I need to beat to say that I "finished" it, but I got to the first cutscene before getting a game over. I only did 1 attempt, but I think that's enough for me. I don't feel like playing it more.

[Pretentious Hipster]

Seems like a solid list overall. I would personally put Wind Waker MUCH higher on the list. It's one of my favorites. Also some might think you're trolling putting those two Tingle games so high but they really are well made. I should go back and finish them actually. Also putting Age of Calamity and Tri Force Heroes below the CD-i Zelda games is pretty...bold...

Also you've got Link to the Past at #3 but Ancient Stone Tablets which is basically kind of a remake/remix of it way lower. I haven't actually played that one. Is it really that much worse?

Wind Waker had a pretty bad segment to me (the 2 escorting dungeons, and the triforce hunting portion). I know they had to resort to that because of lack of time, but still.

Triforce Heroes I played singleplayer, which believe me is absolute hell. It also gives free to play mobile game energy. Age of Calamity took itself way too seriously with some of the worst cutscenes I've ever seen in a video game. The combat tries to be more complex, but it became so simple and boring in the process. Just do basic attacks that do little damage until the rune logo pops up, use the rune powerup to open their weak gauge, and then attack that until it empties. That's the entire game. The lack of enemy variety REALLY shows in this. It wasn't a problem with botw because it's not combat oriented, but here you will have to fight dozens of moblins in a row. The grinding is also some of the worst I've ever seen in a game.

Ancient Stone Tablets is more of a romhack. It's very interesting with its time limit use if you know how the console addon works, and I love how they play around with certain concepts. For example, there's rain that comes in eventually with the evil zoras being able to roam free, and you can't use bombs. There's also the minigames which are some of the best in the series. My problem with it was that the dungeon designs were way too basic, which is understandable because of the time limit. They have TONS of bonus rooms, but the map shows said rooms, so it makes it super pointless. Because of this I was spending a good quarter to a third of each episode just playing minigames, or standing still and doing something else outside of the game.

Plus I played BS Zelda before, which is the same. I vastly preferred that, so it did affect the ranking of this.

[mjf314]

Wind Waker had a pretty bad segment to me (the 2 escorting dungeons, and the triforce hunting portion). I know they had to resort to that because of lack of time, but still.

I liked one of those dungeons (the one with Medli), but the other one wasn't as good.

I agree, the triforce hunting was one of the worst parts of the game. I also didn't like the sailing (and I did most of the optional stuff, so I had to do a lot of sailing).

[hurluberlu]

GTA6 trailer announced for early Dec

[dirty_score]

I also played Ms. Pac-man. I don't know how many levels I need to beat to say that I "finished" it, but I got to the first cutscene before getting a game over. I only did 1 attempt, but I think that's enough for me. I don't feel like playing it more.

There's at least 3 cutscenes: the meeting, the chase and the baby (pack jr.).

[mjf314]

I finished Batman: Arkham City.

[flavo5000]

I finished Fatal Frame: Shrine Maiden of Dark Water last weekend and started Mario Wonder. Fatal Frame was a decent game with a VERY Japanese story line. The whole game played in a very old school way. You could even play using the Resident Evil style tank controls (I didn't). Mario Wonder is lots of fun so far. Very good level design.

[mjf314]

I finished Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective. The puzzles are ok, but the story is good.

I tried the DS version last year and I dropped it. This time I played the new remaster and I liked it more. I think the game looks better in higher resolution.

[mjf314]

I finished Donkey Kong Country Returns.

Unfortunately there's no Dixie in this game, but otherwise it's similar to Tropical Freeze.

[mjf314]

I finished Earthbound.

I hate the inventory system. It's very tedious trying to decide what items to keep, and there are lots of key items that you never use again, but you can't discard them, so they take up a lot of space in your limited item storage. The story is ok. There are a few good parts, but overall it's not as good as other SNES games like Chrono Trigger or FF6.

The best part of the game is the funny dialogue. Also some of the music is good, and there are some interesting surreal parts of the game.

[flavo5000]

I played through Mario Wonder. Enjoyed it a lot. Also played it 4-player with my family which became more frustrating than anything.

Just started up a roguelike called Going Under. pretty fun so far

[mjf314]

I finished Super Meat Boy. I only played chapters 1-6 light world, but I got A+ on every level that I played.

I think I've had enough, so I don't think I'll bother with the extra levels.

[coffeejazzlofi]

It's been some months I'm addicted to Genshin Impact... my life dedicated to cinema will never be the same after this game

[Pretentious Hipster]

Two Worlds is infamous but honestly fun. If you enjoy ambitious eurojank it's definitely one of the better ones of that niche.

[dirty_score]

Finished Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. A much improved sequel and it was nice to see all the callbacks featured in Metal Gear Solid.

[mjf314]

I played Galaga. I did a few attempts, and on my best run I got up to stage 10. I think I've had enough, so that'll probably be my last attempt.

It's basically an improved version of Space Invaders, with enemies that fly toward the bottom of the screen.

I also started playing the Celeste B-side levels. I finished the first 3 chapters so far.

[mjf314]

I finished Celeste chapters 1-8, A-side and B-side, and I got all 175 strawberries. I think I'll skip the C-side levels and chapter 9. I checked a few videos and they look too frustrating.

[outdoorcats]

I finished Celeste chapters 1-8, A-side and B-side, and I got all 175 strawberries. I think I'll skip the C-side levels and chapter 9. I checked a few videos and they look too frustrating.

Yeah that's a smart decision. I will say all the C side levels are extremely short IIRC, but no less frustrating for them, and Chapter 9 is basically as long as all of the rest of the game combined, but with each and every room at the difficulty level of a C side level. Not a fun time, completely different from the base game which feels like it's encouraging you all the way and helping you get better. Chapter 9 just feels like punishment, though maybe it's a fun time for speedrunners and the like who found the main game "too easy."

[flavo5000]

though maybe it's a fun time for speedrunners and the like who found the main game "too easy."

Those people are ridiculous and are not deserving of having fun.

[Pretentious Hipster]

though maybe it's a fun time for speedrunners and the like who found the main game "too easy."

Those people are ridiculous and are not deserving of having fun.

[blocho]

Is anyone here a Geoguessr fan? I've gotten really into and have been playing the daily challenge every day for the last four months.

[mjf314]

I changed my mind and decided to play the Celeste C-side levels today. I finished chapters 1-8 C-side, but I still think they're too hard and not as fun as A-side and B-side.

I also finished Mega Man X, but I didn't like it very much. I didn't like how the sub tanks aren't used automatically. Why can't they just make it a health upgrade instead of a sub tank? I didn't like how the enemies respawn every time they go slightly off screen. I didn't like the boss fights.

[45MinuteZoom]

Is anyone here a Geoguessr fan? I've gotten really into and have been playing the daily challenge every day for the last four months.

I went on a long kick of playing geoguessr when the duel variant was newer, need to check it out again! The rogue-lite option that came out a while back seemed cool, haven’t done any of the daily challenges. What are they like?