B-games - starting to play again

Visual Novel Community Off Topic
#1

Hi everybody,

It has been a long time. Probably WAAAAAAYYYY too long. A quick look at the board and I still recognize Nobody (the member, not the noun), Olf_le_foil, Nandemonai, etc. Also, it seems there are new members, which is always a good thing. Let me (re-)introduce myself: I used to be an active member; in fact I was among the first dozen or so users registered in the original board - 7 or so years ago. I got the original couple of games released by PeaPri but about three years ago, I stopped playing. I do not remember why exactly, though after writting this, it has started to come back: a long release drought (not particularly interested then in G-Collections games).

Anyway, I am back… Sort-of, which is the reason why I am writting this. Out of whim, I decided to catch-up by purchasing a couple of games (X-Change 3, Ying Yang, Pretty Soldier Wars AD 2048, Crescendo and Bible Black). I received them yesterday and chose to start with X-Change 3 (mainly due to my familiarity with the previous X-Change games). Setting VMWare, check (oh yeah, during those years, I switched to Mac); ensure all Windows patches are installed, check; install X-Change 3, done. So, start playing!

So far, so good, eh? Well, I think here is where my problem starts. After an hour or so (reading all the dialogues), I managed to get two endings (a normal/default ending and a bad ending). In the past, that would have encouraged me to keep on playing and find at least one good ending before pausing. Not this time. For some odd reason, it didn’t kick in, as if I wasn’t really enjoying it. Did I choose the wrong game? OK, let’s try the next game: Ying-Yang. An hour or so later, that feeling didn’t really change. I gave it the benefit of doubt thinking it was a bad day so I booted Windows today hoping for the best. Unfortunately, it still felt it was a chore.

Do the two games I chose to start with not represent the current state of B-games (in fact, in your opinion, what is the current state)? Have my hiatus changed me to the point B-games no longer interest me anymore (for reference purposes, the last game I played was ~3 years ago and I am in my early 30s)? I must admit, though, I have had a share of other interests. For example, I have been involved in TCG, mainly Magic: The Gathering, and Chaotic has started to catch my attention (probably due to the comics tie in?). Likewise, I have spent a bit of time in photography. Samples of the pictures I have taken here:

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Finally, if you think it is something in my head, any suggestion to help me bring that interest/passion back?

Any feedback/comment/opinion is appreciated.

#2

Greetings and welcome back! While it is hard to give suggestions to you without knowing what your tastes are exactly, I think a majority of the board will join me in suggesting you try Yume Miru Kusuri - A Drug That Makes You Dream. While it isn’t out yet, a majority of the board seems to be awaiting Family Project ~Kazoku Keikaku~.

#3

“Olf_le_foil”… :frowning:
Osu, fxho, it’s been such a long time~ For the record, Nobody (and myself, in fact) are only back since a few weeks/months ago! Otherwise, there are still Unicorn, Spectator Beholder, who else?
As for your question, I guess I’d suggest you YMK, Kana ~imouto~ or Crescendo. Or, better, wait for the releases of Princess Waltz and Family Project. To be honest, I don’t buy English-translated games any longer, so my knowledge of the bishoujo games English market is fragmented at best, but… well at least I know the games that are released.

#4

Oh, don’t worry, it’s typical :wink: :

http://www.neechin.net/article/63/the-s … n-erogamer

Yeah, you definitely picked the wrong games, you NEED different Peapri fare for sure:

http://www.erogereview.com/2008/04/30/princess-waltz/
http://www.erogereview.com/2008/05/13/h … ruwashino/

However, it’s good to see that your “old” flame is not dead yet, welcome back aboard :smiley: !

#5

C’mon, OLF, you know that was on purpose! Remember how many times I have misspelled your nick? :smiley:

Played Kana and Crescendo is in the queue.

Thanks for your suggestions; unfortunately, it was an impulse purchase and had to go with what is currently available. Will keep them in mind.

You are correct. I guess that’s why I went with things I know and genres I wanted to try, rather than asking first. But regardless they haven’t given me the entertainment I was expecting. At least the (other) link Baldo provided a good explanation. Again, will try to finish them and see how it goes.

#6

Heh, I’m just about to get back into B-games too. Cousin borrowed the LCD monitor so the CPU had been without a visualizer. I’ve been way out of the loop, but that’s mostly just due to a sense of being overwhelmed by a deluge of Anime/Manga/B-games product on the market now. For the time being I’m going to concentrate on finishing up Doushin ~ Same Heart that’s been sitting in my top dresser drawer. Funny that you had gotten into MTG, 'cos I got out of that, I swear, no more of those cardboard crack anymore, I think the whole thing’s just a big scam, plus there is something awfully irritating about the cutthroat ‘get ahead at any cost’ mentality that dedicated MTG players tend to harbor. TCG on portable machines are as far as I plan on investing my interests, such as SNK Vs. Capcom Cardfighter’s Clash.

Nice photos mate. What’s your setup? Pops left me one that takes traditional film, was thinking of taking it out for a spin.

#7

You know what? That actually makes sense! And come to think about it, I have not purchased that many anime related stuff in a while (the last DVD I purchased was 5 cm per Second, before that… I can’t remember very well!).

(I will apologize in advance to everybody for going off-topic here).

Agreed. I have been trying to quit since late Saviors of Kamigawa (started playing in late Onslaught) but haven’t mainly because they have somehow managed to keep things “interesting” enough. Yes, I survived Skullclamp and Affinity by playing “other decks” (my main deck back then was March of the Machines + Obliterate + Mycosynth Lattice + indestructible). Now, where you play also helps. I try to avoid places where Spikes (aka, your "cuthroat ‘get ahead at any cost’ players) hang. Instead I go to shops with Johnnies and Timmies. Said that, I consider myself to be a 60% Johnny, 30% Timmy, 9% Vorthos and 1% Spike (the Spike portion mainly to get the foil/promo cards!). And, since I mention Vorthos, I also like MTG because I like to collect the cards and the art. Rob Alexander, John Avon and Rebecca Guay FTW!!!

Said all that, if you have any interesting cards you want to get rid of and the asking price is right, let me know! (Don’t worry, I won’t be asking you to sell your Tarmagoyfs or Bitterblossom for cheap).

I have a Nikon D40 (a digital SLR) and two lenses - a 18-55mm and a 55-200mm VR. I must say I started photography late last year and haven’t invested that much in gear (for example, it would have been more practical to get the 18-200mm rather than two separate lenses, though it would have also been more expensive), not to mention the digital camera itself is among the cheapest out there.

#8

Nice setup. Nikon makes quality cameras, and they are really focusing their product lineup nowadays. In my personal opinion, there are no truly bad cameras (with the exception of those cheapies on the low end of the product spectrums like Polaroid or Kodak $130 units), only bad photographers. Have a good head and you can take good photographs with the best. Definitely need the good lens to counter the distortion that is inherent in optical curvatures though.

#9

Osu, bokmeow~
Is 2008 the Year of The Return of The Fans of Erogames Who Left? :stuck_out_tongue:

#10

I didn’t “leave” per se, yet, I had no choice but to stop Bishoujo gaming 'cos my primary computer platform is MacOSX, not Windows, so when the piece of shite Compaq laptop died, Bishoujo gaming had to take a hiatus. Right now I’m basically Bishoujo gaming on a loan Dell tower.

#11

On-topic, I forgot: you should check Ever17 as well.

#12
  • Update -

Took a break from X-Change 3 and Ying Yang and installed Bible Black. Despite the darker theme, I must say I have enjoyed it a little bit more than the other two. My faith has been partially restored. Next one in the queue, Crescendo.

Off-topic: Bokmeow, is the processor of your Mac a PowerPC or x86? I have an x86 based iMac (2.4GHz, 20") and, rather than using Bootcamp to dual-boot, I launch a Windows XP virtual machine using VMWare Fusion. So far, I haven’t encountered any problem.

#13

I’m a big behind the curve on the upgrade cycle for my personal home computer, 'cos I just can’t justify a new machine with the unstable income I have at the moment part-timing. My work computers are all Intel based machines, and my cousin has a PowerBook, which she says is fantastic for her studies in Architecture, I was very surprised, I thought corporate slaves all did the Wintel thing, but she says, graphic veracity is like everything in the business of architecture and interior design, and the Apple computers offer that. It’s 'cos the Apple machines now have the Intel inside that the professors can safely recommend them. I think at this point I’m just playing the waiting game, 'cos the more I wait the better the specs are gonna get.

#14