Cheerful Ghost: An Awesome Community For Gamers

Final Fantasy IV: Coming Back To An Old Friend

I am one of those people that make "new years resolutions." I never call them new years resolutions because that will doom them to failure, but I do make a list of goals for the next year. During the months of November and December I start making a mental checklist of things that are important and the best of the bunch makes the list. One of the things that made it on to my list of things to do in 2013 was Final Fantasy IV. My list does have the ability to be awesome upon occasion.

I started my new play through of the game last week and currently am about 8 hours into the main storyline. I just opened the Volcano and entered the Underground. I really love this part of... Read All I am one of those people that make "new years resolutions." I never call them new years resolutions because that will doom them to failure, but I do make a list of goals for the next year. During the months of November and December I start making a mental checklist of things that are important and the best of the bunch makes the list. One of the things that made it on to my list of things to do in 2013 was Final Fantasy IV. My list does have the ability to be awesome upon occasion.

I started my new play through of the game last week and currently am about 8 hours into the main storyline. I just opened the Volcano and entered the Underground. I really love this part of the game and remember this is where it opened up for me in terms of the story, difficulty and grandeur. When I made it to the underground for the first time I remember feeling a sense of wonder at what was under the earth and the possibilities seemed endless. All that to say, I am having a great time replaying Final Fantasy IV.

Getting a fresh take on this game is putting it in contrast in a way I hadn't considered before. One way is that the game moves through some really serious story beats very quickly. You go from the leader of the Red Wings to the accidental genocide of a village to each other major story beat in a very quick amount of time. Compared to a modern triple A game Final Fantasy IV blows you through huge set pieces at a blistering pace. The game achieves this with very little dialog and a ton of music and a lot atmosphere.

The emotions the artists are able to convey with the sprites always impressed me and still do. Its interesting to note that Final Fantasy IV did this well but later games in the series that used the same Super Nintendo technology improved this even further. Its a credit the games artists that this still comes through now even though I have been exposed to very real looking 3D.

That all said, if I had one nit to pick with the game thus far is that there is quite a lot of drama. The characters seem to only experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. There isn't a huge amount of subtlety in the emotional range here but that may be a limitation of the technology and the blistering fast pace of the story. It also may be the game designers trimming out the fat and only focusing on the core elements of the story that mattered the most to them. Either way, its noticeable and the game is more drama than I am used to. One of my friends likened it to a Soap Opera and I find the description to be entirely appropriate.

The game is much more difficult than I remember. I have had to spend time grinding before certain areas and needed to be very strategic to survive between save points in dungeons. The game also mixes things up as seen in the Dark Elf Dungeon. The Dark Elf Dungeon introduces a mechanic that doesn't allow you the use of metal items or armor. This requires the player rely on other characters to pick up the slack and Cecil, who spent the majority of the game being very powerful is now way less useful. I never really understood why the game did that before but as I look at it now its a great design mechanic that causes you to change how you approach an otherwise normal dungeon.

If you have been thinking about coming back to this or want to pick it up for the first time I urge you to do so. Because, really, don't we all want to play the Spoony Bard one more time?

Oh and I snapped the screen grab at the right time. I was happy I remembered when that scene was :D

http://i.imgur.com/pub7YSG.png

Cube: In Development For Over a Decade

I remember watching this video when video on the Internet was a new thing. Recently I saw it linked from somewhere and I was impressed with how well it holds up now.

Thing is, I think playing a strange arty obtuse Cube game like this could be fun. Totally love to go head to head with the cone as I have wanted to kill that bastard for years...

My Recent Dynamite Dunes Scenario Finish

Decided to share with everyone my recent completion of Dynamite Dunes. The above shot is from one section of my park after completing the scenario. You can click the link below to download the file and load it in to your Roller Coaster Tycoon saves to check it out.

I built many more Roller Coasters than I usually do in this level and as such had a huge problem with people vomiting all over the place. I hired many more Handymen as a result and was awarded the cleanest park in the country award. I don't believe I have ever been awarded that before now.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1oRZK7IvLFZNnB2UlRIREJKNTg/edit

If you haven't played Roller Coaster Tycoon I recommend... Read All

StarCrafts S2 Episode 9 Undermine the Overmind

Latest StarCrafts animation featuring an aspect of Protoss being pretty dominating. All it takes is a detector... you don't lose.

Mercenary Kings Steam Early Access Drops July 22nd

"The Mercenary Kings have been activated... Early! On July 22nd, get the game on Steam Early Access! Help the mission by giving us your intel before the official release! Enter the fray as the most skilled mercenaries on Earth! Craft your arsenal to avenge your fallen comrades and save the world from the fearsome forces of CLAW.

Available July 22nd on Steam Early Access at 25% off! "

I am very excited to hear that Mercenary Kings will be released July 22nd on Steam Early Access. Everyone that missed the Kickstarter but wanted to check this game will be able to this month! If you are going to pick it up on the Steam Early Access launch, I have created a Cheerful Ghost... Read All

Video Game History: System Shock 2

Great video covering some of the history of System Shock 2. Talks about how Irrational approached the sequel and how it is a spiritual successor to Bioshock.

Make sure to checkout our System Shock 2 contest and if you want to take a swing at this classic game, make sure to enter!

http://cheerfulghost.com/Travis/posts/1429

Cube World: A Voxel Open World RPG Coming Soon

"A main feature of Cube World is the random world generation. In contrast to many games, worlds are not designed by a level designer, but generated procedurally by the game using math and random numbers. The result is an endless world (nearly endless, i.e. players can't reach the borders), so players can explore new landscapes all the time.

Every Cube World day, new missions are available. Missions send players to dungeons or huge boss monsters. Completing a mission gives valuable rewards like weapons, armor and platinum coins. Platinum coins can be used to upgrade weapons and armor.

If a player likes a land he can basically stay forever in that land and just do daily... Read All

BR Supporter wrote on 07/05/2013 at 08:52pm

I've been playing this and let me say it is spectacular. I even joined up with my brother and we beat our first dungeon. I will say that the game is a bit difficult starting out because monsters are very strong when you are a low level, but once you get to about level 4, the game really starts to pick up and become very fun. I am currently level 5 and having a lot of fun traveling around the MASSIVE world. It took me and my brother almost 2 hours to travel from one town to the next. That might sound a little harsh but for some reason, traveling in the game is the best part.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/05/2013 at 09:56pm

Is this available for purchase yet? I hadn't seen the buy link on the site yet.

Travis Admin wrote on 07/05/2013 at 10:54pm

It's up now.

Travis Admin wrote on 07/05/2013 at 10:57pm

Well, I take that back. It's *kinda* up. You can buy it, but in order to do so you have to log in. If you don't already have an account, you must create one. User registration is currently disabled. Damn.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/06/2013 at 12:07am

I have a login. Where do I go to buy it?

Travis Admin wrote on 07/06/2013 at 03:48am

Apparently here: https://picroma.com/buycubeworld

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/06/2013 at 03:52am

Shop still disabled. Ill keep checking back :D

Travis Admin wrote on 07/06/2013 at 04:14am

Huh. The main page says it has been re-enabled. Oh well. I guess it's a good problem to have that your servers can't keep up with the demand. This one has been on my radar for a while, can't wait to get my grubby little paws all over it.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/06/2013 at 04:52am

Yeah, you me and everyone else :D

Travis Admin wrote on 07/06/2013 at 05:08am

Wow. Now the whole site's down.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/06/2013 at 05:24am

Yeah, I bet. Well sooner or later they will be able to handle the traffic and when they do....

BR Supporter wrote on 07/06/2013 at 05:24am

I was luckly enough to buy it right before they disabled the shop.

Travis Admin wrote on 07/06/2013 at 02:04pm

They've updated their site now, saying that the reason for the downtime is DDoS attacks. What the hell, Internet? This is why we can't have nice things. Now please stop attacking their servers so I can buy the game.

BR Supporter wrote on 07/06/2013 at 09:31pm

Just a little tip. If you have multiple computers (like mwah), your characters are tied to your computer, not your account.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/06/2013 at 10:04pm

Good to know, thanks!

Travis Admin wrote on 07/07/2013 at 04:18am

Jon, if you're hankering for a voxel-ish RPG, you should also check out 3D Dot Game Heroes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_Dot_Game_Heroes

Zelda inspired, quite heavily, and you can design your own hero from pixel to pixel.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/08/2013 at 01:55am

Thanks. Heard about this one and I may pick it up at some point.

BR Supporter wrote on 07/08/2013 at 06:10am

Just made it to level 17 on my Rogue! This game is so much fun. Whenever you guys get it, make sure to tell me. I really want to play it with a large group of people.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/08/2013 at 02:44pm

I plan too. Depending on how hard it is, I might host a server.

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The Firehose: Terraria 1.2, Earthbound Zero & DF

A few members of the Terraria team posted a screen shot of them playing a game in the upcoming 1.2 patch. How many things can you spot from this shot that are new?

http://www.terrariaonline.com/threads/treehouse-shenanigans.102252/

Earthbound Zero is the new fan print of Earthbound 0 for NES. Using a fan translation English ROM this is a pretty rare chance to play this classic on the actual NES.

http://rosecoloredgaming.wordpress.com/2013/06/27/earthbound-0-has-arrived/

A fantastic interview with the amazing brotherly due making Dwarf Fortress, Zach and Tarn Adams. Dwarf Fortress is a unique a game as the people making it and it shows in this fantastic interview.

... Read All

Moddable Mutations

http://media.pcgamer.com/files/2013/07/Left-4-Dead-2-thumb.jpg

The Left 4 Dead 2 Beta has been merged with the standard game giving Linux support and the tools to script your own mutation modes. Mutations are my favorite part of the game as it lets you mix up the gameplay in various ways (ie. M60's with unlimited ammo or swords only). This has already lead to some cool stuff, like a game mode where all the zombies are about as big as smurfs. Lots of cool community content on the way.

More info:
http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/07/03/left-4-dead-2-update-brings-linux-support-adds-extended-mutations-to-workshop/

Balance and Ruin: Music Inspired by FFVI

"Balance and Ruin features seventy-four tracks from seventy-four artists, arranging from the soundtrack of Final Fantasy VI for the SNES. It was made by fans, for fans, and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Square Enix; all original compositions are copyright their respective owners. This album was produced to help promote video game music, Nobuo Uematsu's amazing compositions, and the talented artists that contributed to this project."

After downloading it and listening to a few tracks already I recommend you pick this up if you were a fan of Final Fantasy VI or just love remix albums in general. The album is a free download available as a straight MP3 download or... Read All