Backlog 2019

[Bluie]

Well, I got some paypal gift money so I decided to use some of it on some Japanese eShop cards. Puyo Puyo eSports is on sale for 500 yen, and I couldn't pass that up. With what I had left over, I scrolled through the Japanese eShop in the cheaper games section, and what do I find for 1500 yen? Marenian Tavern Story. It's more than double that price on the Canadian eShop AND the Japanese version is playable in english! Score! That's one off my eShop wishlist!

Oh, and Kiki, wouldn't you know it, Waku Waku Sweets is around $50 on the Japanese eShop as well. I predict it to have a price drop everywhere this year as it looks like a prime candidate. I'll buy it then lol.

So, my eShop wishlist is as follows now;

Cinders
Waku Waku Sweets
Forgotten Anne
Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered
Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
World End Syndrome
VA-11 HALL-A

The last four aren't on the eShop yet, but they will be, as I know all of them are eShop exclusive except DD.

Edit: I also 'finished' Go Vacation. In the sense I got all the stamps. If I want to go back to it and challenge rivals or get all the badges, I miiiight, but for now, eh.

[Kikki]

I was a bit surprised to find that the digital version of Liar Princess is HALF the price of the physical. Physical often takes a dive in price later on, but it's not likely to go THAT low for quite a long time. I do prefer physical if they're close to equal, but that big of a price difference...I think I'll go for digital after all and just put some money into replacing my 128 GB memory card with a 256 GB. I think I would have eventually filled the 128, but I doubt I'll ever fill the 256.

I wasn't going to buy Liar Princess on launch because $55 is way too much for a three hour game, for me, since I'll probably never replay it (I never seem to want to replay a game like this, though I like to keep the game around so that I have the option to, if I DO want to. Kind of stupid, but I can't shake that habit.) But I do really want it, and I'm totally okay with $25 for the digital version. So I guess I'm getting that game tomorrow after all!

Looks like my game purchases for February are going to be:

Tales of Hearts R
Liar Princess and the Blind Prince
Code: Realize ~ Wintertide Miracles

And I think that's all. *consults computer notepad* Yep, that's it until March. Unless Xseed gives us a surprise launch of Sakuna, anyway. Or if Mineko or Necrobarista comes out sooner than expected, but that's pretty unlikely. Not sure if I'm getting Necrobarista or not; it's just on my list to watch, for now.

[Sir Stardust]

I may or may not have just bought Atelier Sophie/Firis in a moment of weakness during the last hour of a Steam sale. ._.

Bluie, thank you very much for introducing me to such a fun series... But it’s also partially your fault I’ve descended into an Atelier Hell I’m never going to escape from, lol.

Umm, really though, I’ve really loved all of these games so far, so thank you so much for your help! Without that, I never would have started playing them! ^o^

[ryume]

I haven't been researching my preorders very thoroughly, so I'm ULTRA glad I saw your post about Liar Princess, Kikki. While the idea of the hardcover picture book and soundtrack that comes with the collector's edition is enticing, it's not worth $40 USD to me when that game in all reviews is said to be between 3-5 hours. Cancelled my preorder and may not pick up the digital edition until way down the road.

In other news, Code Realize: Wintertide Miracles arrived today, and Aksys included a couple goodies in the form of abridged soundtracks for Muramasa and Bit Trip. Pretty sweet!

[Kikki]

I know some people don't like the idea of using hours-played as a factor in determining what a game is worth (price wise), but it's important to me. For one thing, the only games I ever really get into are LONG ones, and the shorter the game, the less memorable it will be for me and the less attached to the characters I'll be. But beyond that...I don't play short games like these multiple times. I play them once...MAYBE twice if a long enough time has passed that I've forgotten most of the game. And paying $55 for three hours of mildly enjoyable entertainment is just not worth it, to me. And since I've never yet played a very short game that I loved, I just don't think the experience could possibly be so great for me that I'm willing to fork over that much for it.

The story looks like it's going to be very touching and the characters seem lovable, plus the visuals are beautiful, so I want to play. But I don't have $55 worth of desire for it, lol. Anyway! I'm glad I ended up being an alert for you, ryume

I got Glass Masquerade today, as I said I was gonna before, but it's not a backlog game...it's one of those fill-in-an-idle-moment or distract-oneself-from-discomfort type of games, not the type I play to complete. It looked so beautiful, I had to have it. Plus I'm a little obsessed with stained glass to begin with. And I really like Art Deco, to boot.

[Bluie]

I may or may not have just bought Atelier Sophie/Firis in a moment of weakness during the last hour of a Steam sale. ._.

Bluie, thank you very much for introducing me to such a fun series... But it’s also partially your fault I’ve descended into an Atelier Hell I’m never going to escape from, lol.

Umm, really though, I’ve really loved all of these games so far, so thank you so much for your help! Without that, I never would have started playing them! ^o^

Mwahaha, welcome to my world! >:D

I'm glad you're enjoying them! I'm now waiting for Nelke and Lulua because I can't get enough!

-

Welp, i've put a few hours into Marenian Tavern Story. It's decent, has a good flow to it (kinda like an atelier-lite - gathering, crafting, battling, rinse repeat). I don't think i'll end up dropping it unless it'd difficulty randomly spikes. So far, i've gotten my 4th party member (who was 10 levels above me when he joined OOF) and i'm just taking my time learning recipes.

I think i'll put some more time into Fishing Star tomorrow. I'm pretty much balancing these two games until my late Feb releases (Remilore and My Girlfriend is a Mermaid), and I don't think I'll have any issue finishing them before then.

[Ehppy]

@Kikki
I'm gonna spoiler this reply just so this post doesn't get too long or anything, since it;'s been a few days. Sorry!! I always mean to respond and get distracted.

Spoiler:

You could play it now and erase that shame forever, no? But if you don't have a Vita, you must be missing out on quite a few of the better otoges... (Though they slowly seem to be all getting onto PC now, too.)

Yeah, Raven is...actually not a bad character. Blah-blah, why I don't like him, even though he's interesting and it's just a game...The thing is, his behaviour...all the general, continual flirtiness with young girls (not toddler young or anything, but still in the 15-19 age range when Raven himself is 35)..it's fine in a game, but it reminds me of some real life people, and that ends up making my skin absolutely crawl. Cuz those people make it sound jokey, but they're not really joking at all. If they could get away with something, they would. In a heartbeat. Only social pressure keeps them from doing something inappropriate. Raven reminded me of some people like that so even though he's got probably the most interesting backstory of all the characters in Vesperia, I just can't warm up to him. (I know he's only a game character and he's supposed to be taken as a joke, but when it calls real-life situations to mind, it's harder to do that.)

I think real life experiences are often what give people their strongest feelings about games, lol. I mean, it's great if you can just dismiss everything IRL and appreciate the game as the creators probably intended, but any time I take a strong dislike to a character, it's because of some RL thing. I don't like Miranda (Trio) because she's a gossip and RL experiences showed me how harmful gossiping is, that it's really not funny or cute at all. (Hated Frank's event in Trio because of that.) People can lose their jobs, end up having to move, etc...all because of gossip. And Gunther, a fat man scolding his slim wife (or even an actual fat wife, but his wife IS very slim) for starting to gain weight. Things like that. They were probably NOT written to offend me, lol...but I was very bothered and then had a poorer view of that character.
It's hard to keep real life from crossing over into your gaming at all, it seems. It is for me, anyway. Characters that put my back up right away without me even realizing it...there's always some real-life root. Raven's a kind of different case from Malik, Rowen and Gall. Them I dislike mostly because the game keeps having all the characters rave about how cooooool they are. Like, let me make up my OWN mind, game. If they're really that cool, I'll be able to form that opinion all by me onesie.

And this last spoiler is is just that I finally made a list on my laptop of all the games I know of that I'm anticipating, so I'm sticking it here, too. I think I finally got it completed and haven't forgotten any games, but...I certainly am not going to put any money on that.

Most Wanted Games

• My Time At Portia
  Re: Legend
  Animal Crossing 2019
  Mineko's Night Market
  Nelke and the Legendary Alchemists
  Dragon Quest Builders 2
  SoS for Switch

Wanted Games

• Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin
  Liar Princess and the Blind Prince
  Caligula: Overdose
  Digimon Survive
  Necrobarista
  NeoCab
  Ooblets
  Littlewood

Games Under Consideration (for various reasons...though these will not be backlog games)

• Tori Toki 2+
  Hollow Knight
  Mario + Rabbids
  Mario Party
  Fitness Boxing
  Go Vacation

Spoiler:

I have thought about picking up Vesperia for Switch, but I'm a bit full-to-bursting on JRPGs right now to justify it. Maybe later in the year? And I've definitely missed out on a lot of good looking visual novels and stuff by never getting a PS Vita. I was kinda scared off of getting one for a number of reasons, but the biggest one is my own fault, that being I got a PSP back in the day, and... never played it, lmao. I bought one game for it, hated that game, and never played it again, despite there being a number of other games for the system that I was interested in. Whoops. I just cross my fingers and hope for a port when it comes to vita games.


Ahh and I'm sorry to hear that regarding Raven. :< I hope it didn't make things too uncomfortable. I totally understand why that would make it hard to like him. My personal experiences have definitely shaped the way I view characters too. There are a fair few SoS/HM characters I don't like based on how I interpret them, even though many people have no issues with them. (I'm right there with you on Gunther, and I disliked the Frank event as well, mostly because I got secondhand embarrassment watching all that misinformation spread.
Long story short it's kinda unavoidable. You can't really help seeing a character through your own personal lens.

As for the old men of Tales, funny enough but I haven't met any of those characters, (I own Xillia, Xillia 2, Graces, Zestiria, and Berseria, but the first three I was only recently able to purchase, and I didn't like Zestiria from what I've played, so they've all kind of piled up and I'm a bit overwhelmed. P:) but that said, I've encountered the trope before and I can say I'm not a fan either. Chances are if all the characters are trying to tell me how "X, Y, Z," a character is, I will find them the opposite, but that's maybe a personal problem. (That unfortunately happened with Wayne in 3oT. He's a nice guy but everyone telling me how charming he is made me a bit soured on him. )

Also your most wanted games list is pretty similar to my own at this point. So many good games on the horizon!

Oh, and I've finished Yokai Watch 2!
And my brain is telling me to put it down, as I don't want to burn out on YW before picking up the third one that just came out, but I'm really into this post-game content right now, which is kind of a rarity for me. I actually just... want to collect them all.
Kingdom Hearts is still wrecking my thumbs, and Cattails is the most relaxing game ever.
So backlog is doin' alright.

[Kikki]

Ha ha, thanks Ehppy.

Spoiler:

I always wonder if people will think I'm just taking things too seriously, but these instant reactions you have to things, or the ones that creep up on you more gradually but without you even thinking about it...you can't really help it. Raven makes me cringe before I even realize I'm going to. Even though I do actually think he's the second most interesting character in Vesperia next to Yuri, as he got the best backstory. Honestly, the characters of Vesperia, while mostly likeable, are not well developed. They just are whoever they are when you meet them, and then there's nothing more to them.

In other news...I have really bad cramps right now, so am extra happy that I love Glass Masquerade so much, as it's the perfect kind of game to play to take your mind off something, since it's very simple, and yet you have to concentrate on it. Kind of like my other favourite distract-me-from-pain game...mahjong. I played Glass Masquerade last night and the colours are gorgeous, the designs are lovely, and the textures look great to me too. The music is severely lackluster, almost more like ambient chirping or chiming than music, but I guess it's meant to be soothing more than anything else, and it's my only complaint. I like the way it plays...I thought a puzzle game might be too simple but the way they've shaped the pieces actually makes you have to really look for where they all go.

Still, 3:30 AM and I think I'm awake for the day, now. (-__-) I hope we don't get that snow storm after all, cuz I'm really not up to snow removal today...

EDIT: Holy..."Canada" was difficult. And even after I finished the puzzle, I couldn't really see an image in it. I only know what the picture is because of the name. Why of all places would Canada be one of the most difficult-to-put-together puzzles?

EDIT 2: I think I might be around a third done Hearts R. I like it, and I think the characters are cute and the dialogue a little funnier than usual, but it's strangely simple in story. It feels like the story is very one-note, so far...much less convoluted than usual. I kind of like convoluted, is the thing...

EDIT 3: Kor Hearts just called a guy a boneless-chicken avocado shrinkage...was it disaster? A boneless chicken avocado shrinkage disaster. I don't get it...

[Bluie]

I've dropped Tavern Story for the time being as it's not quite keeping my attention. I'm also going to watch a playthrough of Forgotten Anne instead of buying it, because it's practically an anime anyways + it saves me some scratch.

I went back to Go Vacation, mainly just for it's chill factor, and i'm still playing Fishing Star (probably 70% done?). Now that my thumb is like 95% better, I can go back to Taiko too if I want.

I have a super big craving for Visual Novels rn, but only Cinders appeals to me (And my Girlfriend is a Mermaid, which is out at the end of the month). Maaaaybe Death Mark, but i'd wait for a sale on it. I wonder when we're gonna get Clannad? It's been confirmed that the Japanese release will have english support, so we're most likely getting it too (Just like Planetarium). I would love to play the VN of my favourite anime from my teen years.

I'm honestly just restly waiting for Caligula right now. I'm not really feeling engrossed in anything because I just want to play it. Hopefully Remilore will keep my attention while I wait for it in March, but as of now, I guess saying i'm 'bored' is wrong? I feel like i'm having a silent tantrum lol.

[Kikki]

I definitely seem to be a third of the way through Hearts R. I got Kunzite fairly recently (I always love his type) and I think the plot just gained another layer (finally). I really do love the characters in this one. I find that characters have been better fleshed out in the most recent Tales games so their depth is not what I'd like, but I don't hate ANY of the party members and really like their designs and generally like the tropes they're built on, too. And Gall actually IS cool...just not for the reasons the game keeps telling me he is.

I also completely finished Glass Masquerade. Which doesn't matter as it wasn't a game for finishing anyway, but I have completed all the puzzles (and Canada really was officially the most difficult puzzle in the entire game, at least for me. Took me 33 minutes to complete. WHY? Also, what on earth do cranes have to do with Canada? I had no idea what the picture was of until the title finally popped up after I completed it. I thought that was more of a Japanese motif animal. Canada is, sadly, more about moose and enormous water-dwelling rodents.) I just couldn't stop going back to finish more puzzles...they're so pretty, and it's like piecing back together a big stained glass clock face.

I haven't purchased Liar Princess yet. I will, sooner or later, but I suppose I should continue to work more on Hearts R. I also still have to force myself to complete Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters but all of that strategy game grinding...blarg. And the story isn't even interesting! I feel like abandoning it, but...ugh, that always feels like a failure cuz it means I wasted money.

Wintertide Miracles is going to be kind of late getting to me, but I wasn't particularly excited for it anyway, so I don't mind. Not that I don't want to play, I just don't have any hype going on for it. I'd make progress through Hearts faster if I didn't keep getting tired of playing it after about two hours. It feels very cyclical, like I'm repeating the same steps over and over dozens of times until the game finally reaches the end. I wonder why I feel that way for the older games but not the newer ones? I think there might have been slightly more freedom of progression in newer Tales games, less move-from-point-A-straight-to-point-B-with-no-detours, but that might be a mistaken impression on my part.

EDIT: Can't believe I found Commander Keen on my Switch eshop this morning. I might have to buy that for pure nostalgia. I was 10 years old when that game came out, and my youngest sister was 6 and she played it non-stop. My dad still says 'bummer!' in the tone the game used when Keen died, lol...that's how present that game was in our house...it even pierced my dad's total disinterest in games, in a way.

[Ronin19]

I got Liar Princess and Blind Prince yesterday and beat it right after work. Two of the puzzles weren't that great, the mushroom system needed more room, and the story was pretty short, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's beautiful and has a touching story.

[Lon Lon]

Almost finished with KH3, it's been a fun experience. People sure weren't kidding when they said the story ramped up toward the end because wow that's a lot happening.

Started a little Vesperia because it was on sale and love love love being able to access costumes from the beginning of the game because of the DLC.

[Bluie]

Literally refreshing the eShop like a madman so I can buy Final Fantasy IX again and drop everything else.

[Ronin19]

Literally refreshing the eShop like a madman so I can buy Final Fantasy IX again and drop everything else.

I just bought it and the Captain Toad DLC! They're downloading alongside Deltarune Chapter 1, Yoshi's Crafted World demo, and Daemon x Machina demo. I'm going to prepurchase Chocobo's Mystery Dungeon is it's digital only; I haven't found anything saying one way or the other.

With the Rune Factory announcements today, I have a NEED to go back to RF2 and RFToD. I refuse to touch RF4 until the remastered version comes out, and that'll be hard; I was going to play as Lest romancing Dylas for a special playthrough, but that'll just have to wait until later this year. I'm so hyped!

[Harvest Moon kawaii]

Recently beat:

None

Backlog:

(3DS, Nintendo Switch, and PC) = A lot (over 50 games)

Currently playing:

Chaos;Child (Steam/PC)
Piczle Lines DX (Switch)
Planetarian: The Reverie of a Little Planet (HD remake) (Switch)

Games I have pre-ordered:

Steins;Gate Elite (February 19th, 2019)
Yoshi's Crafted World (March 29, 2019)
Animal Crossing Switch (2019)

Games I want:

Kirby Star Allies (Switch)
Luigi's Mansion (3DS)
Town of Light Deluxe Edition (Switch)
Little Dragons Cafe (Swich)
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (Switch)
Yo-kai Watch 3 (3DS)
Luigi's Mansion 3 (Switch) (2019)
Pokemon 2019 (Switch; will pre-order as soon as possible)
Super Mario Maker 2 (Switch) (June 2019)
Captain Toad Treasure Tracker (Switch) (all new content released by March 14, 2019)
Rune Factory 4 Special (Switch) (2019)
Rune Factory 5 (Switch; release date unknown)

Updated with the games I want from today's Nintendo Direct.

On a side note, my relaxation time will have to be severely cut down starting in February, because I need to study Russian again. I'm taking Intermediate Russian I (one) in late April. I'll post here when I buy new games, or make any significant progress in, or complete, the games I'm playing. My Russian class is online only and lasts from April to July.