I'm Back!

Hello everyone! Wow it's been such a long time. I didn't mean to leave for that long but you know how life likes to get in the way. I'll share some updates in this post and that I'll be getting back to the games!

I finished another semester, only 2 left to go, assuming I can get the funds to do so. I didn't uphold my 4.0 GPA, but I had some difficult classes, so I'll take my 3.5 and be happy with it.

I went on vacation with my daughter to Myrtle Beach, and we had a nice time. I could pet the sting rays at the aquarium all day!

I've been trying to take more time to learn Korean, so I'll keep myself busy over the summer.

The Origin's Game Fair is coming up soon and I'm looking forward to going to that!

That's all for now. I'll be back... What is today? Sunday? Let's do Tuesdays and Thursdays for now while we ease back into it. Thank you, as always, for stopping by. See you all on Tuesday for some games!

Bellannmae

Limbo for the PS4

“A shadow leaned over me, whispering, in the darkness,

Thoughts without sound;

Sorrowful thoughts that filled me with helpless wonder

And held me bound.”

-Alfred Noyes

Source: Playstation

Bound with helpless wonder is exactly how I felt playing Limbo on the PS4. Limbo is a puzzle platformer published by Playdead, that originated on the Xbox 360. Limbo is now available across all major gaming platforms. The world of Limbo is crafted in creeping shadows and piercing darkness, and I enjoyed every moment of it. I went into Limbo knowing nothing about the game. In fact, I was looking for another game entirely. It happened across me as I perused the PSN and since it was on sale at the time, I ended up purchasing it out of curiosity. Oh, but I am so glad that I did.

Before we discuss game mechanics and the technical aspects, let’s talk story. While playing Limbo, I had no idea what I was doing, and more importantly I didn’t know why. We play as an unnamed boy, traversing the shadows, and trying to survive in a world that is full of danger.

There was been some debate about the actual meaning behind Limbo’s story. There may be some story spoilers here, so I will try to hide them. If I can code it right, you should be able to click on the spoiler to show it. The most popular theory, and the theory that I ascribe to is that our young protagonist boy is, sadly, dead. I’m not religious but this is about to get a little religious, so I’ll try my best to explain this. Christian Ideologies ascribe to a place called “Limbo.” Limbo is derived from the Latin word limbus, which means edge, and Limbo is considered an outlying area of Hell. You end up in Limbo if you were too good to end up in Hell, but not good enough to get to Heaven. That doesn’t explain why our young boy would be here, does it? Well, Limbo is also the place for unbaptized babies.

Perhaps our young boy was never baptized, and thus he ends up in Limbo. You cannot escape Limbo unless Jesus intervenes directly.

At the end of the game, the boy is seen breaking through what seems to be a wall of glass, after which he finds a young girl—his sister. This theory suggests that the glass breaking was the boy making his way out of Limbo and being reunited with his sister. However… his sister is likely dead too. After the credits are complete and you return to the title screen, you may notice something odd… In the areas where the boy and his sister were both located, there are not 2 separate swarms of flies, and you can hear them buzzing. The rope ladder to the tree house now also looks dilapidated and worn.

The game and its meaning are open wide to interpretation, and the creator is confirming nothing. Although he has said that some people were close. But I wonder who?

Limbo does an exceptional job of creating a suspenseful, and spooky, atmosphere. The shadows, the music (or lack of), and the subtle sound effects in the background, like flies buzzing, create and immersive experience. I found myself on the edge of my seat through much of the game.

Source: XBox Game Store

Next, let’s talk about game mechanics. The game operates as a side scrolling puzzle platformer. As such, I was happy with the controls. The controls are simple—move, jump, and grab. Many times, you must manage those in quick succession, lest you should be caught by a giant spider, caught in the rising water, or struck by falling objects. The darkness of the game also hides many traps, such as bear traps, so it’s important to move with caution.

Limbo requires some skill in timing, and patience. I died a LOT. And every time you die, you have to watch your poor character be crushed, suffocate, get cut up by saw blades, or watch his broken limbs flail as he crashes to the ground. When you die, you start over from checkpoints, which are frequent, so it’s not quite as frustrating. However, if you can manage to make it through the game without dying, then you can get a special trophy/accomplishment. I have not managed to do it, but good luck to you.

Source: Rely on Horror

The art style only adds to the charm, and eerie atmosphere, of this game. Even though the game is in grey-scale, the details of the environments are something to behold. The darkness against the lighter background creates a dynamic effect. Even small details were given consideration, such as the sway of the grass, the spray of dirt as a giant spider tries to impale you, and the hairs on said spider’s body. Although this game may come off as simple, it’s clear that the creators poured their souls into this game. I have such admiration for their team of artists.

I think I have gushed enough. If it isn’t apparent, I really love this game. Limbo was a surprise to me, and a very pleasant one. I highly recommend that you play it yourself to get the true feel of it, as I cannot do it enough justice. Limbo can currently be found on Steam for 9.99, click here and you'll be taken there. It can also be found on nearly any other major console, so have at it!

Happy Gaming, Friends!

Bell

See my Current List of Games to Play: Here!

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Email me at: bellannmae@gmail.com

Deponia: Part One for the PC

“People say I’m extravagant because I want to be surrounded by beauty. But tell me, who wants to be surrounded by garbage?” -Imelda Marcos

If there is one person who is sick of garbage, it’s Rufus. Rufus lives on a planet called Deponia and Deponia is covered in garbage, junk, and useless trash. He’s been trying for years to escape Deponia and reach a place above them known as Elysium, where he imagines life would be immensely better for him. However, Rufus is… not the sharpest chunk of scrap metal in the junk heap. He’s failed many times before, but THIS time it must work!

Source: Steam(link below)

Welcome to Deponia, the point and click adventure-puzzle game developed by Daedalic Entertainment. We start by helping Rufus put together his latest scheme to get off Deponia and start living life as he deserves! He has no job, he still lives with his ex-girlfriend, and he has no friends. It’s no wonder Rufus wants so badly to leave. It’s worth mentioning though that Rufus is arrogant, self-centered, sexist, and rather obnoxious…. So most of his problems are a direct result of himself.

Once we get Rufus's er, rocket(?) together, we take off and end up on an Organon Cruiser where we see Goal, the beautiful Elysian. She looks like she is in trouble! In an effort to help, we end up sending her pummeling down to Deponia, and Rufus ends up not far behind her. Once we locate her, we find out her brain implant is damaged and she isn't waking up. Now Rufus must find a way to help her, because maybe if he helps Goal, she can take him back to Elysium! But it won't be easy....

I remember reading a lot of reviews that called this game out as sexist garbage, and I don’t necessarily agree. Rufus as a character is sexist, sure. Toni, his ex-girlfriend, is depicted (from Rufus’s point of view) to be a harsh, nagging, mean woman in a stereotypical fashion. However, you can also clearly see that Rufus himself is the cause of his own plight. In my eyes, Toni is a saint for not killing Rufus in his sleep. A parade should be held in her honor. Apparently, a lot of people saw issue later in the sequel games, so we’ll see if my opinion changes. For right now I’m going to say that being sexist fits in Rufus’s character. The game can have some dark humor, but it’s more of a “Oh man, did he really do that?” and not outright rage as I see expressed in some places.

One of the things that I really enjoy about Deponia is the hand drawn environments. The entire game looks hand drawn and the style is appealing--almost a comic book style. The colors are fitting and rich, making this game enchanting to look at. The character movement cycles can seem a little choppy sometimes, like some frames are missing. 

Just beautiful! Source: Indie Gaming Magazine (link below)

The soundtrack is fitting, but nothing special. At the beginning of each chapter you are treated to a little song which helps sum up events in a humorous way. Speaking of humor, I found this game extremely funny in a boyish, immature way. The kind of humor not everyone finds funny. For example, there is a scene towards the end of the first game where Rufus gives someone a wedgie, and then you hang him from the nearby flag pole and reel him up so he is hanging from his underwear near the top. THAT kind of humor.

Now for the real bread and butter of the game… let’s talk puzzles. I love puzzle games. Puzzle platformers and point and click puzzlers are some of my favorites. I was glad to hear that Deponia would offer challenge, but I didn’t expect the puzzles to be as difficult as they were. I tried to not use a guide. If I had stuck with that I wouldn’t have made it very far. About 1.5 hours into my gameplay I found myself stuck and had to resort to using a guide because I didn’t think to give a parrot laughing gas. Yeah, really. The hints you can receive from some items by right clicking on them are vague, and there is no in game way to get help to solve anything. So, have fun clicking on everything, and trying to combine everything item by item in your inventory because some of the combinations are really stretching in. It seems strange that Rufus can come off as such an idiot, and be able to put together some of these complex schemes as he does. 

Even through the frustrating puzzles, I enjoyed the game. The story isn’t revolutionary. Rufus is motivated by the lust he feels for Goal because she is from Elysium and represents his ideal life. The characters are interesting, but aren't given all that much depth. All of the characters kind of feel superficial to me, except Rufus. Maybe that's the way it was meant to be, though. Poki could have intended us to only experience Deponia the same way Rufus does. I really liked Goal, the small amount of time she was conscious during this game. I mean, hey... The first time she woke up, she uppercut punched Rufus and that was enough to make me love her. 

POW! Right in the kisser! Source: GamezPlay (link below)

Overall, I enjoyed the first part of Deponia. I look forward to playing part 2, but I’m going to play some others in between. If the puzzles continue with such difficulty, it may take me some time to blunder through them. Deponia: The Complete Journey can be found on Steam, for $39.99. If you’re a fan of complex puzzlers, this might be the game for you. You can find the link below! Let me know what you think of this game, if you’ve played it!

Happy Gaming, Friends!

Bell

Purchase Deponia on Steam here: Deponia: The Complete Journey

See the list of games I plan to play here: Game List

Follow me on Twitter here: BellAnnMae Twitter

Follow me on Tumblr here: BellAnnMae Tumblr

Or email me at: bellannmae@gmail.com

Sources:

Steam

Indie Game Magazine

GamezPlay

State of the Blog Address--December

Hello, friends! Today, I want to address the month of December and what it holds for Gaming in Pajamas. We haven't been operating long, but I do have plans laid out for quite some time to continue blogging here and I appreciate everyone who takes the time to stop by. I'm open to all suggestions as far as games I should play, or changes that you would like to see in the blog. I won't take offense to helpful criticism.

So let's start with this: Game List. Clicking that link will take you to the list of games that I have played(specifically FOR this blog and not outside of it) and also contains categorized lists of the games I am planning to play. If you want to make gaming suggestions, please do so in the comments there.

I am going to try to make posts every Thursday. Why Thursday? Cause Thursday is the day that has nothing else going for it. Monday is Monday, Tuesday is Monday's slightly prettier sister, Wednesday is Hump Day, Friday is the Best Day cause it leads to the weekend twins. Thursday is all alone. So, Thursday is my posting day.

You can expect there State of the Blog Addresses around the first of every month so that we can look at the month ahead and know whats going on. Unless there is an emergency(knock on wood).

Now let's get to the fun stuff! For the month of December I'm going to start off playing Deponia: The Complete Journey. I played a Deponia game once before, a long time ago, and never got to finish it. So that's my plan now, to finish what I started! Deponia: The Complete Journey does contain 3 games of a 4 game Quadrilogy though, and I am not sure if I just want to play through one at a time or power through them all. After Deponia, I plan to pick up either LIMBO or Don't Starve/Don't Starve Together. Anything else I would play would depend on what I decide to do with the Deponia games.

Thanks for joining me once again!

Happy Gaming, Friends!
Bell

Attack of the Friday Monsters! for the 3DS

In the 1970's, Japanese TV was ruled by the "kaiju(monster)" television shows. Godzilla is probably one that is most identifiable worldwide. These shows captured children's' imaginations and hearts. The developers at Millennium Kitchen Co and Level-5 seek to restore that feeling of nostalgia and wonder with Attack of the Friday Monsters!

Source: Nintendo UK(link below)

In Attack of the Friday Monsters!--which shall be henceforth referred to as AFM! to save myself some typing--you begin with an opening song lovely sounding song, like something right out of a Studio Ghibli film. The music overall in this game is charming and well composed. The gentle flute tunes will relax you as you stroll about, admiring the scenery...

The scenery, by the way, is G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S. It's pre-rendered and looks almost like watercolors were used to paint the details in. The colors are vibrant and eye catching, and they fit the child-like aesthetic of the game perfectly. The 3D sprites aren't exactly amazing, but they aren't terrible either. Ps1 quality. Little blocky, a little vague, but it does have it's own charm to it.  

Source: Level-5 IA(link below)

Perhaps we should talk characters and plot. We get to play as Sohta, a transfer student to the town of Fuji no Hana. Every Friday in Fuji no Hana, a monster appears! But why? Where does the monster go? What does it want? Sohta and his new friends--Ramen, Akebi and A Plus--want to know. There are monster tracks, we just need to follow them and we can get to the bottom of this mess!

Aside from the main "find out the mystery of the monster" story line, there are a few other "side quests." I completed all but 4 when I completed the game and epilogue episode. There are also "glims" you pick up around town. They look like small sparkly dots, and if you collect 7 of them, you get a monster card. Once you have 5 cards, you can challenge your friends to battle! Card battles are work like rock, paper, scissors. If, for example, both cards are ROCK, then a secondary stat(power) is used to determine the winner. I rather enjoyed the card game myself. It's simple and easy to understand. 

What wasn't so easy to understand was the plot beyond "find the monster." When we first "see" the monster, there is some debate as to whether the monster is real or not. Then we learn about some aliens? How do they play in? Are the aliens controlling the monsters? WHO. IS. FRANK? It looks like a Captain America reject is fighting Mecha Godzilla right now. Someone, pinch me. I have to be dreaming....

Source: Polygon(link below)

Despite my confusion with the story line at times, I still have fun playing with this game. It was shorter than I expected, it took me less than a day to complete it, which is why I am posting so soon after my last post. It was cute, quirky fun that kept me interested from the moment I picked the game up until I put it down. I wish there had been more closure in the ending, though. After the credits started to roll I still had to idea what the heck just happened. After the credits is a little extra episode where you can finish some quests, get new cards and challenge new people to monster cards.... but I still felt there was a lot left wide open. 

I don't think this is a game I would replay. It has it's charm, but there just isn't enough substance there to warrant me to pick it up again. You can pick up Attack of the Friday Monsters! for 2.99 (ON SALE!) in the Nintendo store today! It's worth 2.99, I think. :)

Happy Gaming, Friends!

Bell

Sources:

Nintendo UK

Level-5 IA

Polygon