My worthwhile thoughts on a few PCE games

[GUTS]

Since runin's opinions on PCE games are self-confessed "completely worthless to any real gamer PLUS I'm gay and scrawny", here are some worthwhile thoughts on some recent (and not so recent) purchases.

HanaTakaDana- AWESOME.  I've always had a soft spot for horizontal cartoony shooters like Cotton and Ordyne (pure nostalgia, I know the game sucks), so I was stoked as hell to get Hana.  It plays like a typical hori, but there are some unique twists thrown in; each level has a hidden puzzle piece that you can find along with the piece you get from beating the boss, the game has a password feature, and your character grows bigger when you get power ups and smaller when you get hit.  You actually have to be small to find a couple puzzle pieces, and being small means you can avoid projectiles much easier although your firepower is reduced, so that works nicely into the game and isn't just some added on gimmick.  The graphics are pretty nice too, there's even a bit of parallax going on in a couple levels.  The only rough spot is some slowdown on level 3 I believe where you encounter a huge boss ship, but its over quickly and doesn't pause the game or anything.  This is easily one of the best turbochips EVER.

The Manhole- I paid $3 for this and STILL felt ripped off.  It's a graphic adventure that simulates the look of a Mac computer complete with windows and lots of empty desktop space since apparently this game didn't play full screen on the mac.  Your view window takes up about 1/2 of the screen, seriously, the rest is all empty gray space.  The actual game is about as lame and dated as you'd imagine a shittily drawn precursor to Myst to be.  Click on stuff, something badly animated happens, then click on something else.  That's it; no puzzles, no talking, nothing interesting at all.

Kisou Louga- Interesting strat RPG, I only played through the first battle but it has possibilities.  The cinemas are absolutely top notch, it's too bad the actual game graphics are just mediocre.  The game plays like a typical strat RPG, BUT with the hook that if you have more than one of your characters facing an enemy, they can all attack at once which is pretty cool and I'd imagine makes for some serious strategy later on.  Excellent cover art on this one too.

[GUTS]

Oh yeah I forgot to add that Hanatakadana needs a joystick.

[Black Tiger]

Oh yeah I forgot to add that Hanatakadana needs a joystick.

Maybe that was why you couldn't appreciate "The Manhole", because you didn't use your joystick. 

[Keranu]

Hah, great thread.

I don't care what you say about The Manhole, I'm still dying to play that game!

[Joe Redifer]

Back when I was a little a$$hole of about 18 years of age, The Manhole was sitting in the used games case of the local game store, Powerfully Gay Games... errr... I mean Power Play Games.  Anyway it just sat there and sat there.  I asked to rent it.  Nope.  I asked to borrow it for free.  OK.  I took it and played it, for free, and then took it back the next day.  Even though it was free, I still wanted a refund!  True story!

[Michael Helgeson]

Hey dude, you've reached Mr. Dragon. I'm not here, but leave a message at the tone. catch ya' later dude.

Hello, this is Mr. Rabbit. I can't come to the phone right now, because I'm preparing some hot tea and some milk for some visitors. Please call back another time, thank you.

[Joe Redifer]

I remember Mr. Rabbit.  That douchebucket.  Who changes the greeting on their answering machine to reflect that they are making tea and milk?  Does he change the greeting when he is using the bathroom?  "Hello, this is Mr. Rabbit.  I can't come to the phone right now because I am busy dropping a huge man-sized load that will require multiple flushes.  Please call back at another time, thank you."  Does he have two answering machines because creating a new greeting might take about as much time as making tea.  "Hello, this is Mr. Rabbit.  I can't come to the phone right now because I am busy creating a new greeting for my answering machine.  Please call back at another time, thank you."  Mr. Rabbit can go to hell.

[Tatsujin]

Hah, great thread.

I don't care what you say about The Manhole, I'm still dying to play that game!

imo it's a funny game for some easy "shut the brain down" game sessions with friends (after a ton of beers). makes more fun with a mouse

[esteban]

Well, the Manhole isn't really a game, per se.

Good old slownerve had to give me an education on this title because I had never heard of it before.

Now, what about Minesweeper for PCE? Has anyone played that? I haven't.

I've wanted to play Hanatakadakahanadaka and Liquid Kid(s) for ages, so I'm glad Hana is a worthy game. Rumor has it that Liquid Kids is fun as well.

[ParanoiaDragon]

Well, the Manhole isn't really a game, per se.

Good old slownerve had to give me an education on this title because I had never heard of it before.

Now, what about Minesweeper for PCE? Has anyone played that? I haven't.

I've wanted to play Hanatakadakahanadaka and Liquid Kid(s) for ages, so I'm glad Hana is a worthy game. Rumor has it that Liquid Kids is fun as well.

The're both great games. 

Kisou Louga, from what I remember, had really well done music.  I wanna pick up the 2nd one.

[Keranu]

I really want to play the PCE version of Minesweeper actually! I love the Windows version so much, seriously. This would make a great review for my site if I had that game.

[esteban]

I really want to play the PCE version of Minesweeper actually! I love the Windows version so much, seriously. This would make a great review for my site if I had that game.

An old friend of mine loved Windows Minesweeper as well, although this was back in the early days. I always found the game frustrating because there is too much "luck" involved. My friend, though, had insanely fast completion times. His strategy was quickly clear out huge sections of the field (lucky guesses), then, slow down a bit and finish. I think he spent a bazillion hours playing it, because he was godlike. I still don't see the appeal of the game, though.

[Necromancer]

I've played a bit o' minesweeper on the Duo.  The quest mode offers a little variation from windows minesweeper, but the basic game play is the same.

[ParanoiaDragon]

K, I have it if you ever want to check it out

[Keranu]

An old friend of mine loved Windows Minesweeper as well, although this was back in the early days. I always found the game frustrating because there is too much "luck" involved. My friend, though, had insanely fast completion times. His strategy was quickly clear out huge sections of the field (lucky guesses), then, slow down a bit and finish. I think he spent a bazillion hours playing it, because he was godlike. I still don't see the appeal of the game, though.

There actually isn't any luck involved. The first click might seem like luck, but I believe the game is programmed so you never hit a bomb on your first click, so right after the first click, it all depends on strategy.