Nicklaus
72 reviews liked by Nicklaus
Stage 1 music didn't have to go so hard, though. But seriously, I was really excited to finally get to the Windows games, and perhaps my expectations were a bit too high, because while I do really enjoy this game, a prettier coat of paint isn't gonna gaslight me into preferring this over something like LLS (my beloved). Plus, while I am not letting this issue affect my rating, I'd like to mention the headache this game brought on to me:
So, it was my first run, and I got about halfway through Stage 3, when suddenly, my left arrow key stopped working. Granted, this seems to be a common issue with a lot of Touhou games and I have experienced it a few times in the older games as well, but I could usually fix it relatively quickly. This time, nothing I did worked. I restarted the game, my PC, updated my drivers, cleaned the socket for the key, and still no dice. This is a problem that also persisted outside of the game, though. I was starting to think the switch died or something, but every once in a while, it would decide to work again for a bit, and then die again. After not touching it for a few hours, I came back. and everything was working normally. I got to the final boss aaaaaand... the key stopped working again.
I was able to brute force my way to victory with the harder to use num pad, but I guess my point is: If it turns out that I need to replace my keyboard, it'd be kind of funny to say it was because of Touhou.
So, it was my first run, and I got about halfway through Stage 3, when suddenly, my left arrow key stopped working. Granted, this seems to be a common issue with a lot of Touhou games and I have experienced it a few times in the older games as well, but I could usually fix it relatively quickly. This time, nothing I did worked. I restarted the game, my PC, updated my drivers, cleaned the socket for the key, and still no dice. This is a problem that also persisted outside of the game, though. I was starting to think the switch died or something, but every once in a while, it would decide to work again for a bit, and then die again. After not touching it for a few hours, I came back. and everything was working normally. I got to the final boss aaaaaand... the key stopped working again.
I was able to brute force my way to victory with the harder to use num pad, but I guess my point is: If it turns out that I need to replace my keyboard, it'd be kind of funny to say it was because of Touhou.
I've seen hell... and it's not red... it's blue...
Seriously though, was ZUN going through something when he made this? Why are there so many goddamn blue projectiles that you can barely see against some of these backgrounds? Stage 2, while fairly easy, is bound to accelerate my already deteriorating vision on subsequent playthroughs. The game's overall quite a lot harder than the last one, and as such, despite coming off my recent high of 1cc-ing LLS, I have no desire to even attempt it here. I still had a fun time, as expected. Overall, this is a pleasant way to end the classic era on, even if it's not my favorite of this gen.
Seriously though, was ZUN going through something when he made this? Why are there so many goddamn blue projectiles that you can barely see against some of these backgrounds? Stage 2, while fairly easy, is bound to accelerate my already deteriorating vision on subsequent playthroughs. The game's overall quite a lot harder than the last one, and as such, despite coming off my recent high of 1cc-ing LLS, I have no desire to even attempt it here. I still had a fun time, as expected. Overall, this is a pleasant way to end the classic era on, even if it's not my favorite of this gen.
I finally did it. After enduring a little over 2 hours of trial and error, including a random game crash at some point, I have finally achieved my first 1cc in a Touhou game. I am still shaking as I type this, and while Eastern Wonderland was the first game to really pull me in, this one has for sure solidified me as a fan. Keep in mind, I rarely care about high scores, or perfect runs, or just trying to improve in general when it comes to arcade style games or danmakus. But I just couldn't resist letting myself get beat here. I wanted to succeed and see that good ending. I was not going to back down. I WOULD prove that I am NOT a failure of a person. You hear that ZUN? SUCK IT!
This game taught me that I'm a "failure of a person," but it's also the first Touhou game to actually play like one. Even though I still enjoyed the first game, it still felt somewhat awkward, especially going in with foresight on what the series would become. Despite its relative simplicity, Touhou 2 actually feels like a cohesive product, and one which really showcases the potential of the series formula. I'm still a relative newbie when it comes to bullet-hell/danmaku games, I'm still a complete newbie, and some frustrate me to no end, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one, and its relative simplicity probably proved to be a plus for someone like me who's still trying to get into the genre. If this is considered a mediocre Touhou game, then I'm in for a real treat with this franchise.
Neon White
2022
some people here clearly didn't notice the "fast forward" option during dialogues. as for me, i have no idea what this game's story is about and it'll be staying that way.
This review contains spoilers
Holy based? Speaking of based, can we get a moment of silence for my man Papalymo? His sacrifice solidified him as one of the GOAT's.
It'd be pretty neat if the trend of the x.5 patches being the best ones continue. And sure, I understand why many consider 3.3 to be the best one of the HW patches, but I love how dark the first half of this patch was, and the second half's epic battle between Omega and Shinryu was satisfyingly intense.
The character development for Yda.. er, I mean, Lyse, was also quite nice to hear, with her brief backstory being quite bittersweet. This patch wasn't as smooth of a transition into the next expansion as 2.5 was, but that hardly matters when I was this enthralled. I'm still keeping my expectations somewhat low, seeing as Stormblood is the black sheep of the expansions, but hopefully that works in my favor, because I still can't help but feel excited now that I've gotten this far.
It'd be pretty neat if the trend of the x.5 patches being the best ones continue. And sure, I understand why many consider 3.3 to be the best one of the HW patches, but I love how dark the first half of this patch was, and the second half's epic battle between Omega and Shinryu was satisfyingly intense.
The character development for Yda.. er, I mean, Lyse, was also quite nice to hear, with her brief backstory being quite bittersweet. This patch wasn't as smooth of a transition into the next expansion as 2.5 was, but that hardly matters when I was this enthralled. I'm still keeping my expectations somewhat low, seeing as Stormblood is the black sheep of the expansions, but hopefully that works in my favor, because I still can't help but feel excited now that I've gotten this far.
This review contains spoilers
There's a lot to digest here. It's just unfortunate that the 2nd third of this patch kills the pacing with the meandering around some ARR areas which felt more like busywork, despite knowing it was plot relevant. It doesn't help that we had to fight Titan again. Sure, it was the (Hard) version, but that was already optional content beforehand that I had already completed, so queuing up for it again was kinda whack.
But I digress, the actual meat of this patch is indeed interesting, and with Alisaie finally joining the fray here, it's cause for celebration enough. The return of Yda and Papalymo is also nice, but I'm so paranoid at this point in the story, especially with Urianger working as a double agent, that I'm starting to wonder if either of them are hiding something terrible. Of course, everything seemed to have worked out with Urianger and I'm glad he didn't actually betray us, but man, with this game, you never know.
The Warriors of Darkness had a sort of redemption arc in this one that made me feel some sympathy for them, but as it was with previous patches, there just seems to be a lot of set up for Shadowbringers and it kills me that there's still a whole expansion to go before then. Damn you, Yoshi P!
Oh, and Nero's back? Oh boy...
But I digress, the actual meat of this patch is indeed interesting, and with Alisaie finally joining the fray here, it's cause for celebration enough. The return of Yda and Papalymo is also nice, but I'm so paranoid at this point in the story, especially with Urianger working as a double agent, that I'm starting to wonder if either of them are hiding something terrible. Of course, everything seemed to have worked out with Urianger and I'm glad he didn't actually betray us, but man, with this game, you never know.
The Warriors of Darkness had a sort of redemption arc in this one that made me feel some sympathy for them, but as it was with previous patches, there just seems to be a lot of set up for Shadowbringers and it kills me that there's still a whole expansion to go before then. Damn you, Yoshi P!
Oh, and Nero's back? Oh boy...
This review contains spoilers
Patch 3.3 presents a new standard in quality for future patches. This is the true ending to Heavensward, bringing a resolution to the Dragonsong War, and ushering in a new era for Ishgard proper. I'll admit, I was somewhat adamant at first, with the first couple of MSQs meandering a bit, but once I got to the dungeon, it did not let up.
The trial against Nidhogg was the best in the game up to this point, and my first attemot was a pretty hilarious party wipe. Epic fight. And when Ysayle and Haurchefant showed up to help from the beyond? Oh man, I almost bawled. Just beautiful.
Oh... and was that Alisaie I saw near the end? It's about time!
The trial against Nidhogg was the best in the game up to this point, and my first attemot was a pretty hilarious party wipe. Epic fight. And when Ysayle and Haurchefant showed up to help from the beyond? Oh man, I almost bawled. Just beautiful.
Oh... and was that Alisaie I saw near the end? It's about time!
This review contains spoilers
While this patch does feel more narratively focused than the last, with its final moments tying back into the cliffhanger that was set up at the end of HW proper, there was not as much shock value here as the last patch. Hell, Minfilia's death(?) was so anticlimactic that I just rolled my eyes. And the "melee" tournament was honestly not as interesting as I expected.
Still, there's plenty that this patch does to keep the story rolling along, with Nidhogg's rude interruption of the peace conference being quite memorable. The Antitower was also a really solid dungeon, with its final boss taking the form of a giant demonic baby doll come to life; certainly, an image I will not soon forget.
The best scene? Emmanellain getting completely socked in the face by Thancred.
Still, there's plenty that this patch does to keep the story rolling along, with Nidhogg's rude interruption of the peace conference being quite memorable. The Antitower was also a really solid dungeon, with its final boss taking the form of a giant demonic baby doll come to life; certainly, an image I will not soon forget.
The best scene? Emmanellain getting completely socked in the face by Thancred.
This review contains spoilers
I'm starting to think there's some sort of conspiracy to gaslight new players into thinking that post-game patches are all mostly underwhelming. Seeing as how 2.1 was a fairly uneventful and slow patch, I expected the same trend moving forward, in that, at the very least, the x.1 patches would be more filler than anything of major substance. But how glad I was to be wrong. I'm just as surprised to see a general consensus among the reviews here that this is apparently mid. Couldn't be me!
Here we see the ramifications of the archbishop's death and of the people finding out the truth about the Dragonsong War, culminating in an uprising within the Holy See that made for some truly tense, nail-biting moments. After base Heavensward taught me suffering, I figured anyone is fair game to welcome death at this point, but I'm glad it did not come to that... this time.
Thancred's return is a welcome one, but a bit anticlimactic, I will say. If anything, the introduction of the Warriors of Darkness kind of overshadowed the reunion, and it's wild that that they're already trying to get me excited for Shadowbringers when I haven't even gotten to Stormblood yet.
Other important things to note:
- Alphinaud is a horndog. Poor lad just can't catch a break.
- Krile is a good potato.
Here we see the ramifications of the archbishop's death and of the people finding out the truth about the Dragonsong War, culminating in an uprising within the Holy See that made for some truly tense, nail-biting moments. After base Heavensward taught me suffering, I figured anyone is fair game to welcome death at this point, but I'm glad it did not come to that... this time.
Thancred's return is a welcome one, but a bit anticlimactic, I will say. If anything, the introduction of the Warriors of Darkness kind of overshadowed the reunion, and it's wild that that they're already trying to get me excited for Shadowbringers when I haven't even gotten to Stormblood yet.
Other important things to note:
- Alphinaud is a horndog. Poor lad just can't catch a break.
- Krile is a good potato.
