An Unusual Kinda Party

I stumbled across this curious title - Corpse Party - when looking at forum threads on good VN (visual novel) hybrid games on the PS Vita people are playing out there at the moment. This popped up but I couldn't find it on PSN/Asia (or in local stores). It turns out the localised version of this game is only released in the US/ Europe so it's with a stroke of luck that I should have a PSN/ Europe account too. So I switched my Vita over and downloaded Corpse Party - Blood Drive (the latest and last in what is known as the "Heavenly Host Elementary" series in the franchise) meaning I am now not able to play all my games downloaded from the Asian account (Persona 4 Dancing All Night turns out to be not that addictive, Uncharted Fight for Fortune is great but I need a break from it, and am now waiting for the third instalment of Dangan Ronpa). 

Anyway, back to Corpse Party BD, which despite its name, is actually quite an engaging game. And I have not regretted switching my Vita over to the UK account for it. It's primarily a VN, i.e. lots and lots of dialogue, with quite a bit of "dungeon crawling". When I say dungeon crawling, it's not like in RPGs where you have to kill monsters and stuff. Rather, you are confined in this alternative dimension - this haunted Heavenly Host Elementary School, the playground of serial killings - and you have to look for various items while running away from evil spirits (this part of the game I find a bit dull). Unlike in Dangan Ronpa, which kinda guides you around while keeping things interesting, in BD you can running the place (and it's not small) endlessly and aimlessly, in the dark, without knowing exactly where you are supposed to go next. I know this is probably the point but it's just not what I would consider good gameplay. So thank goodness for YouTube walkthroughs, which I think you need for various chapters.

But the story sure is interesting and engaging. This family (bloodline) of psychics having the ability to seek out a powerful magic item (Book of Shadows) that was created by ancient witches. Falls in the wrong hands and it's, well, the end of the world. I know, bit cliche and predictable but the story is laced with some fun characters and humour, and has enough twists and turns that keeps players interested. Oh, and I actually love the cute Chibi-style presentation in a horror tale! I'm now in Chapter 9 nearing the end but will play those extra chapters first (back stories) before progressing in the main story. Will see if there are other Europe/US-exclusive titles worth downloading too...

Meanwhile I have managed to get my hands on the Blackberry Priv. Not as flashy as, say, the Samsung Edge but with my brief hands-on experience using it, what a powerful workhorse! Will sure be upgrading to it (the Classic is driving me crazy!!!)

Blackberry Priv

(I quite like that music...)

Oh yes, I have been drooling over this for more than a week now. But when oh when oh when will it be released here in Hong Kong? As a long-time BB user, I was terribly let down by its "Classic", the user interface (and everything else) is SO counter-intuitive that, seriously, I almost threw it out of the window a couple of months ago. The only reason why I stopped was cos I feared it might hit someone on the head on the street. 

I missed the "Bold" terribly. It has to be one of their best model, ever. There was a time when placing a call (oh yes, as simple as that) meant thumbing the numbers in and press the call button. Now I have to actually get to the dialing screen first (how utterly stupid is this) before I can thumb in the number ... of course, by which time I just want to thumb the bloody phone to death. While I am at it, I used to be able to set the phone to sleep (10pm) and wake up with an alarm (6.10am) automatically. Can't do that now. I have to turn the stupid phone to "Bedside Mode" the night before first so the alarm will go off automatically the following morning. Not only do I find saying "Bedside Mode" every time before I go to bed extremely stupid (Blackberry, I hope you are listening since I Hate You So Much Right Now), when plugged into a power source, it just doesn't work. "Bedside Mode", I command, and the phone will SEARCH the term on the Internet. Oh, you f***ing idiotic phone!!! I don't want you to search it online, just f***ing go to Bedside f***ing Mode already. Yes, that was when I almost threw the phone out of the window, with the charger in tow. 

Need to calm self down with a quick yoga practice...

Sadly, because of this lingering swelling in my right knee, I have been off the mat lately. But today I will take too simple classes so to ease me back to my regular practice. Will hope to get back to teaching next week ... but I have a feeling I won't be going back to the theatre studio ... it is so hard to teach a bunch who is so diverse in experience and level. We'll see...

Game-wise, have started playing Persona 4 Dancing All Night, which is a little underwhelming. It's a rhythm game but I don't think the gameplay is very rhythmic. Have also re-discovered Uncharted: Fight For Fortune, a fantastic card game that I didn't quite get the first time round but am having some success this time around. There was only one boss that was close to impossible but was still able to beat him. Hurrah! 

Danganronpa 1: Trigger Happy Havoc *spoiler alert*

Yes, I'm working myself backwards with this game series. Strangely enough, I really didn't enjoy the first instalment when I downloaded it off PSN awhile ago. The (school) environment is a bit blend (despite use of psychedelic colours); the characters do not immediately leap out (especially when compared with those in the sequel); and the first mystery was also a dead giveaway. So, I thought it a bit dull. However, having already played Goodbye Despair, the gameplay itself is a lot easier (NO Logic Dive! NO "improved" Hangman's Gambit!) and the logic seems to make a bit more sense. Though I still choose the easiest level simply to gameplay less fiddly (white noises...) Also the class trials don't last as long as those in the sequel (which can take at least two hours...)

The Original DGR cast

Also, the characters, though not immediately appealing, tend to stick more. They grow on you over time. While the cast of Goodbye Despair is a lot more fun and wacky from the word go -- and frankly have a much more interesting backstory (they are Ultimate Despairs on a reform programme went wrong) -- they are not as memorable (?) They tend to get lost in all the many, many twists and turns of the narrative itself. Of course, they also choose to kill the game's fav Chiaki, which is such a big no-no!!  

In the first game, the characters tend to be more sedated, on the surface anyway, but there is so much simmering underneath. The dark side of the Ultimate Pop Sensation, the Bromance between Mondo and Taka, the secret of the Ultimate Programmer, the mysterious Kyoko (a more stroppy Chiaki) and, of course, the unlikely couple Toko/ Genocide Jill and Byakuya. I think they are more fleshed out though the "Ultimates" in DGR2 are more relevant to the plot/story ... like, I have no idea why we have Hina, the Ultimate Swimming Pro while I can see the importance of having the Ultimate Mechanic Kazuichi. But at least Hina is cute.

I've just started Case 4 and I know what's ahead (like, I am totally spoiled with the plot) but other than "who", I find the "how" and "why" equally interesting. Persona Dancing All Night will have to wait a little longer still... 

Discovered below video... which is cool but why have Celeste instead of Sayaka the Ultimate Pop Sensation, which would make more sense thematically??

Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair

More (photos) on this game... just completed Chapter 3 (god, these "class trials" are SO LONG and those mini games such a chore...) and the storytelling is pretty gripping. Heard chapters 4, 5 and 6 are excellent so looking forward to advancing the game. But agree Chapter 3 is pretty weak and needs to take a break from that lengthy trial...

Happy Days

Cute

Kazuichi Soda has all the fun lines...

New Games and Some...

Finally! Persona Dancing All Night is here!!!  Bought the limited edition that came with lots of goodies (including two CDs!!) so am quite pleased. However, after all that wait I won't be playing it any time soon because I am in the middle of Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair.  

Moment of hilarity ...
Oops ***spoiler***

Now, here is a weird game. I first played a Danganronpa title many, many months ago (in Chinese) and decided I hated it. I love murder mysteries (and solving them) but this game is a little sick (I rechristened it the Sicko Game). It is about 16 students trapped on an island and the only way out is for them to kill one another. Ahem. So Japanese. Conceptually it's totally violent ... well, so is some of its presentation, really. The gameplay I found really hard to grasp as I didn't quite understand the Chinese instructions so I played it for a few hours and gave up. 

However, I did find the characters memorable. So when I saw the English release, I decided to give it another go. Only to read that in order to fully enjoy/ make sense of the sequel I'd need to play Danganronpa 1: Trigger Happy Havoc first. So I got the English release for that and played the first chapter. The pace was just too slow so I decided to just watch the walkthrough on YouTube and jump to the sequel. *LOL* 

So, am now in Chapter 3 of DGR2 and totally into it. I think, overall, characters from the sequel are better as they are more wacky and funny than those from the first game (which in general is much darker in tune and very claustrophobic). End of Chapter 2 was so heart-breaking it brought a tear to my eye ... something I totally did NOT expect!

Persona DAN will just have to wait.  

Meanwhile, I've started to teach yoga (charging $) and it's been both fun and challenging. There was this issue of insecurity at the beginning (like, omg, the students are better than me!) but one of my instructors told me that, once I step on that mat as an instructor, it doesn't matter who's better than who doing what ... it's my duty and responsibility to lead and teach my students the best I can!!! And that's what I've been doing and it really is a rewarding experience ~ :-)  

Hyperdimension Neptunia re;birth 1 (Part 2)

Compa (far left) is so kawaii

MiGod, this game is addictive!! After my first playthrough I really didn't expect to go all the way with the level grinding in the second run ... but it was actually less gruelling that it initially looked. The only part that I didn't enjoy as much was farming certain items (flamin wings and the autosave chip ... yikes!) and levelling up the Lily ranks (yikes x 2). Anyway, I think I have now got my definitive team (this is normally my favourite part of any RPG games like Persona 4 and Sen no Kiseki 1&2) and ready for the mega boss dungeons. Below is what I posted on a vid game forum:

CrayonBoy (Topic Creator)32 minutes ago#43 Final leg of levelling (to lvl 999 for all) and limit break plan now activated. Here is my (almost) final pairing (everyone in the front has ignore enemy traits, shortens wait and nulls all ailments): Noire + CC2 (Noire can fill the Exe gauge fast-ish) Vert + Nep-Nep (I swap between the two; Gardevoir, I follow your Nep-Nep setup :-) ) Rom + Broccoli (Rom is my healer + powerhouse) Both Nep-Nep and Rom have the drill chip; Noire has gradual hp recovery lvl 5. Hopefully this is a strong enough team... I love the fact I can adjust the game's difficulty at any time :-) --- YuGiOh/ FF VII: CC/ Dissidia/ TO/ Disgaea3/ P4G/ FF Type0/ One Piece2/ FF X-2/ Natural Doctrine/ SnK I & II/ Nobunaga/ MM/ SAO/ HNR1/ SRWZ3/ DGR1&2

1. Boards
2. Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1
3. Thematic partnering

Have to recharge my PS Vita now before unlocking Nep-Nep's ultimate gears. Getting Rom's stuff was the hardest ... her armour just refused to drop, but had much better luck with Vert's and Noire's. Hope Neptune's also easy cos I really, really hate grinding for gears too. 

Hyperdimension Neptunia re;birth 1

Now, here is a surprise. I didn't expect to get into this game but, well, I did -- and totally addicted to it lately. The first time I came across this "Neptune" character was when I was playing the Monster Monpiece card game (released by the same game company, Compile Heart) and I thought the anime art was pretty cool (well, yes!) Then I saw some reviews of this game (turn-based JRPG) and thought I'd give it a go. This is nothing like the Sen No Kiseki I & II series (which is v dark and serious). Quite the contrary, HNRB1 is totally goofy/hilarious and doesn't take itself too seriously. 

The gameplay, though, is kinda hard to get into. At first it was a little tedious to be honest... there was the usual levelling (started with just one character, then, two, then three), unlocking new skills, finding new weapons and accessories etc. There were also all sorts of monster drops that unlock new dungeons, enemies, items and special bonuses that make the game harder/easier... I, of course, made the game easier! Then I realised there were DLCs so I bought one character (Plutia), which really helped me get through some of the tougher battles.

So you can see the more things you unlock, the higher level the characters are and the more abilities unfold, things to get interesting and... addictive. By the time when I have more than half a dozen characters to play around with, there was no stopping there....

So basically the story revolves around four "game goddesses" - Neptune, Noire, Vert and Blanc - who are at loggerheads in this "console war" (well, each goddess supposed to represent a game console...) and when the other three decide to gang against Neptune, the "Purple Heart Goddess" loses and falls onto Earth as a result, losing all her memory. Here she meets Compa a young nurse and an intelligence agent (?) called IF. They soon become BFFs and their mission, of course, is to re-discover Nep-Nep's memory. Lurking in the background are some evil forces who want to destroy all the four goddesses...

To cut a long story short and fast forward to Chapter 8 (where I am at now), I have unlocked half a dozen supporting characters and one part of this game that I find most fun is to pair them up for battles. Six characters can take part in them, but only three actually do the fighting at any given time. So, logically (and being anally thematic), I have all four protagonists in the team and to leverage on the bonuses, here is my pairing: Neptune + (sister) Nepgear; Blanc + (sister) Rom; Vert + Noire. Just for fun, other pairings include Compa + IF and magic combo Plutia + MAGES. 

I don't think I will finish the game -- even I'm totally over-levelled now for the final boss (a bit like my Final Fantasy X2 game, which I stopped playing in the final chapter) -- cos I don't want to do NG+ (gawd, farming items - which is such a grind - can be v tedious) so will see how far I will go with the Colosseum (which has enemies up to level 999... at the moment my team is only level 70+ so you can imagine there is still a Long way to go).

In the meantime, I really love this battle music (esp the violin part):

And this: