This is a static copy of In the Rose Garden, which existed as the center of the western Utena fandom for years. Enjoy. :)
So I've heard. I should probably revisit this game.
BunB, do you know any games similar to Submachine or 999 (neat puzzles with eerie, mysterious atmosphere / plot)? I loved Machinarium too, only there's no creep factor to it. On the other hand, Machinarium is less overtalked than 999, and in that regard similar to Submachine, which is great.
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BunB wrote:
999 is pretty great. There may be 6 endings in total but there is a single true ending which kinda ties all the other endings together.
I've made it to three endings so far, no luck finding the right one yet. Even so, I am very glad that I played farther because just before the knife ending (I think it was the knife?) there were some crazy awesome new puzzles (like, remotely pushing boxes to get to the coffin - that was a difficult one but so much fun!)
I thrive on puzzles!
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malna wrote:
So I've heard. I should probably revisit this game.
BunB, do you know any games similar to Submachine or 999 (neat puzzles with eerie, mysterious atmosphere / plot)? I loved Machinarium too, only there's no creep factor to it. On the other hand, Machinarium is less overtalked than 999, and in that regard similar to Submachine, which is great.
I'd say 999's sequels (Virtue's Last Reward and Zero Time Dilemma) fit that definition just as well as 999. Apart from that the only ones that come to mind right now that are close to that definition are Hotel Dusk and Last Window (same series).
malna wrote:
I've made it to three endings so far, no luck finding the right one yet. Even so, I am very glad that I played farther because just before the knife ending (I think it was the knife?) there were some crazy awesome new puzzles (like, remotely pushing boxes to get to the coffin - that was a difficult one but so much fun!)
I thrive on puzzles!
Glad you're liking it! I'm guessing you got the knife, ax and submarine endings? The remaining ones require some specific decisions and sequences of doors so I'd highly recommend using a spoiler-free guide like this one instead random trial and error : http://uk.ign.com/wikis/999-9-hours-9-p … al_Endings
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BunB wrote:
I'd say 999's sequels (Virtue's Last Reward and Zero Time Dilemma) fit that definition just as well as 999. Apart from that the only ones that come to mind right now that are close to that definition are Hotel Dusk and Last Window (same series).
Thanks. I was planning on moving on to VLR and ZTD after finishing 999. I hear the whole series is to be released for other platforms, so perhaps I will wait for a PC version.
Glad you're liking it! I'm guessing you got the knife, ax and submarine endings?
Correct!
I'd highly recommend using a spoiler-free guide like this one instead random trial and error : http://uk.ign.com/wikis/999-9-hours-9-p … al_Endings
Oh, thank you kindly! That's very helpful.
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I've just gotten through the coffin ending. [I feel strangely... bleak? The game is wonderful but I found that particular ending crueler than the previous three. Maybe it was losing Snake right after getting him back that did it. I've always liked him so after him seemingly being killed off over and over again, now there was that brief resurrection only for him to end up in flames. Eh. And there's Ace. What a mess. And what about Santa? Where'd he disappear to, leaving dieing June alone? I have a bad feeling about this.
By the way, I hated June; I consider her the most uninteresting character and it's an awful shame that she is something like a love interest to Junpei. June blushes. June swoons. You never know when June will topple over again. Rinse repeat.
I like Lotus more and more with each play-through. She's my second favorite after Snake, probably. ]
edit: I am listening to Birdy. Normally I am incapable of that, at least not of my own volition. What is this game doing to me?
Last edited by malna (09-01-2016 01:06:15 PM)
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malna wrote:
I've just gotten through the coffin ending. [I feel strangely... bleak? The game is wonderful but I found that particular ending crueler than the previous three. Maybe it was losing Snake right after getting him back that did it. I've always liked him so after him seemingly being killed off over and over again, now there was that brief resurrection only for him to end up in flames. Eh. And there's Ace. What a mess. And what about Santa? Where'd he disappear to, leaving dieing June alone? I have a bad feeling about this.
By the way, I hated June; I consider her the most uninteresting character and it's an awful shame that she is something like a love interest to Junpei. June blushes. June swoons. You never know when June will topple over again. Rinse repeat.
I like Lotus more and more with each play-through. She's my second favorite after Snake, probably. ]
edit: I am listening to Birdy. Normally I am incapable of that, at least not of my own volition. What is this game doing to me?
You definitely want to finish the game.
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malna wrote:
gpink wrote:
Life is Strange
A friend recommended it to me so I might give it a try, though I am by no means a die hard gamer and there have already been so many titles in line for me to check out. Idk.
I've been playing Submachine 10 and really, Submachine series are just my very favorite thing. They are, among games, what Utena is among anime to me.
Has anyone played 999, a point'n'click game? It offers cool puzzles too, and an eerie storyline and atmosphere, although it lacks Submachine's gorgeous aesthetics. It's still a lot of fun to play, though I only ever got to one ending, and there were... 6 possible? I think.
You can give the Professor Layton series a try; it's more quirky than eerie, but they are definitely drenched in style, mystery and SO. MANY. PUZZLES. They just are rarely environmental puzzles.
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OnlyInThisLight wrote:
You definitely want to finish the game.
I definitely do. Thank you, I'm going to play with less of a heavy heart now.
And thanks for the rec!
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I heard it was basically terrible tho?
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Giovanna wrote:
I heard it was basically terrible tho?
'snot bad. I find it easier to control than the PC version, IMO.
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Guess who's got two thumbs and finally got DDR set up 'cause that's their fitness plan?
Awwwwww yis
It might not be the highest quality exercise in the world, but hey, it requires physical exertion and that's a lot better than I've been doing lately.
In other news, a new expansion just came out for Sims 4. It's very ethnic? And buggy. The singing skill in particular has the potential to set a certain sound track playing on a lot FOREVER, possibly even between closing and re-opening the game.
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Kita-Ysabell wrote:
Guess who's got two thumbs and finally got DDR set up 'cause that's their fitness plan?
Yay! I used to do that, too. Hope you turn out more persistent than I did. ;p
OnlyInThisLight wrote:
You definitely want to finish the game.
Thank you, again!
I have just finished it. It was brilliant. I absolutely loved the convoluted plot and the puzzles alike. My brains are reeling.
I'm still kind of shaky on how all this worked in terms of timelines. Should have watched more Doctor Who.
[Like, was there really a timeline where June was dead and this was all more of Santa's doing to alter the past and have her saved by Junpei (with her presence on the ship a mere result of projection in morphogenic field) or was she alive all along, having tapped into the future that she herself had come up with on the spot when she'd been nine - which, btw, sounds far more complicated a way to rescue herself than solving one sudoku... ;d
Anyway. This was fabulous. And what's the deal with Japanese culture and siblings? Seems like a huge main theme wherever I look.
In some ways, the story could bear semblance to that of Anthy Himemiya - after all, she and her brother, once victimized, do set this whole thing up and are in fact prime movers of the plot (which, again a lot like with Anthy, makes a very nice twist from the damsel-in-distress first impression we get).
However, no one seems to particularly mind having gone through this nightmare once they learn it was all on account of saving a girl, and neither kidnapping and exposing innocent people to this ordeal nor the fact that three people were killed (however guilty) seems to sully her innocence. Meh.
Akane does turn out interesting but I felt like her role in orchestrating all this was downplayed in order to let Utena-ish Junpei feel like the real hero of the story and not, in fact, his damsel's puppet.
]
I loved the 4-leaf-clover motif and the powerful message behind it especially given the context. I loved the mystical suggestions all over the place. I plain loved this whole game, full stop.
The best I've played yet.
(Yeah, Submachine series have just been downgraded to the second place.)
Currently playing: Limbo. It's all right but seems pretty dull in comparison.
Last edited by malna (11-25-2016 09:00:53 AM)
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Malna do you like PS3 games? I like RPG games; and I have some to recommend. 😀
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I don't know any? I seldom play any games at all. But sure, I'll be glad to learn what you have to recommend.
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malna wrote:
Kita-Ysabell wrote:
Guess who's got two thumbs and finally got DDR set up 'cause that's their fitness plan?
Yay! I used to do that, too. Hope you turn out more persistent than I did. ;p
OnlyInThisLight wrote:
You definitely want to finish the game.
Thank you, again!
I have just finished it. It was brilliant. I absolutely loved the convoluted plot and the puzzles alike. My brains are reeling.
I'm still kind of shaky on how all this worked in terms of timelines. Should have watched more Doctor Who.
[Like, was there really a timeline where June was dead and this was all more of Santa's doing to alter the past and have her saved by Junpei (with her presence on the ship a mere result of projection in morphogenic field) or was she alive all along, having tapped into the future that she herself had come up with on the spot when she'd been nine - which, btw, sounds far more complicated a way to rescue herself than solving one sudoku... ;d
Anyway. This was fabulous. And what's the deal with Japanese culture and siblings? Seems like a huge main theme wherever I look.
In some ways, the story could bear semblance to that of Anthy Himemiya - after all, she and her brother, once victimized, do set this whole thing up and are in fact prime movers of the plot (which, again a lot like with Anthy, makes a very nice twist from the damsel-in-distress first impression we get).
However, no one seems to particularly mind having gone through this nightmare once they learn it was all on account of saving a girl, and neither kidnapping and exposing innocent people to this ordeal nor the fact that three people were killed (however guilty) seems to sully her innocence. Meh.
Akane does turn out interesting but I felt like her role in orchestrating all this was downplayed in order to let Utena-ish Junpei feel like the real hero of the story and not, in fact, his damsel's puppet.
]
I loved the 4-leaf-clover motif and the powerful message behind it especially given the context. I loved the mystical suggestions all over the place. I plain loved this whole game, full stop.
The best I've played yet.
(Yeah, Submachine series have just been downgraded to the second place.)
Currently playing: Limbo. It's all right but seems pretty dull in comparison.
Glad you liked it!
[Yeah it's pretty hard to wrap your head round but from the way I understood it the event's of 999 were Akane using the morphogenetic field to find a timeline in which her past self could directly communicate with Junpei allowing her to escape the incinerator and close the "time loop", Hence why she ceases to exist in the bad endings. What I loved most about this game was the twist that the bottom screen was from young Akane's point of view and the top screen from Junpei's. ]
I HIGHLY suggest you play the sequel Virtue's Last Reward. It has less horror but just as much if not more mind-blowing twists.
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Oh, I'm planning on it, just not yet!
Thank you for pointing out some things to me about these timelines - I took such long breaks between the 5 passes that I forgot completely how June was never there by endings.
I really like this kind of plots where you can discuss afterwards how it all falls together, and nothing is too straightforward.
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Malna do you have a smartphone, PS3,or PS2? I have recommendations for those systems. I just bought the players manual for Skyrim. I am really about to have a lot fun with my PS3!
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Everyone liked The Witcher 3, right?
But it didn't come out for Mac, and I still haven't shelled out for a system that can play modern AAA games.
And Witcher 2 is kinda the same, right? But less streamlined and shakier, but hey, I can just put combat on easy and flail my way through it. Not like I haven't played a bajillion hours of DA Origins and Awakened. (omg everyone in Awakened is so OP Nathaniel is doing like A MILLION DAMAGE he has the highest DPS what) And it's on sale!
… and it crashes like every half hour, on the dot.
I am not getting through this, am I?
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Kita I would definitely say you should try Skyrim. I got the players guide and look forward to making it like a second life. You can even get married, buy and decorate a house, and adopt a child in the game. It is a cheap game with excellent gameplay and graphics. I will let you know how I am getting along in a couple of days. I been working everyday so I haven't started playing Skyrim. I may get started tonight if I get to come to work a little later tomorrow.
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Two difficulties with that recommendation:
a) Skyrim never came out for Mac, insofar as I can tell, and
b) while I do like exploration in a vidyagame, and Skyrim does have pretty things to find, I like smaller, more tightly-woven plots with more thoroughly drawn-out characters. And yes, I do consider Dragon Age (up through II anyways, I have nothing to say about Inquisition seeing how, like Skyrim and Witcher 3, it never came out for Mac) a "smaller" story, seeing how there's fewer people in it, with more dialogue written for and about each.
Honestly I think the real next step would be to invest in a console to play all three; Witcher 3, Skyrim, and Dragon Age: Inquisition, seeing how apparently that specific genre is turning out to be kind of my jam.
Still, I always love hearing other people's thoughts on things I'm interested in. Have fun with Skyrim!
Last edited by Kita-Ysabell (11-29-2016 10:03:43 PM)
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I will have to look at games for the mac. I have an apple 5S and an iPhone 7 and I adore them both. I haven't got around to getting a mac yet. However, I will look around for some mac games you might like that I have played. I am sure to find something you will fit you just fine.
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I just checked out a site for mac games; and I think Diablo 3 would be a good fit for you. I beat the game in just three gaming sessions, it has a main quest that can finished quickly and has a very good storyline. The side quests are there should you want to make your character more customized and powerful. There is also an expansion pack that is available for sale to give more gameplay and you get to enhance your character from the previous game.
Now concerning gaming consoles, I recommend the PS3 or PS4 for role playing games, particularly if you are into anime. I think more anime fans gravitate towards the PlayStation because of its strong track record for RPG's. Also, they have minecraft available for PlayStation. I have a PS3 and I surf the net, play Bluray and DVD movies, watch Netflix, Hulu, and Crunchyroll, and of course play games. The PS3 is extremely versatile. I have added a wireless keyboard and mouse to my system and the work fine. The price for the PS3 is around $150 new from Walmart. It is worth the money. You will have access to a huge amount of high quality games at a small price. You will not be disappointed.
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Nah, I'll stick with my janky broken Witcher 2 setup for now. And keep playing old Dragon Age when I don't want things that crash every, like, 15-30 mins.
And speaking of which… uh, kudos to CDProjectRED for a super realistic depiction of racism. Like, I got used to Bioware racism after playing waaaaay too many hours of Dragon Age Origins and II, and… you know, they really didn't nail it. It's hard to put a finger on, maybe they were afraid we wouldn't like the cool people unless they were REALLY CLEAR about how much they would or wouldn't discriminate against mages and/or elves (more the former than the latter, for… added "not really how it works" points) and it tends to be kind of a binary thing, with the developers putting a finger on the scale in favor of the characters being decent.
It doesn't feel like they were influenced by a a culture of discrimination, they're not justifying their shitty actions in realistic ways, you couldn't play Mad Libs with it and end up with a Donald Trump speech.
And then (after several crashes and game-overs, because I really suck at this game) I get Geralt to the first real open area, and… the dude who's basically in charge (I think) starts giving me a run-down of what's what and the next thing I know, he's blaming the Scoia-Tael (think Daelish with an extra helping of terrorism) for people being shitty to non-humans in the town, and telling Geralt he's not really a non-human because he's too much of a cool dude. It's disconcerting, is what it is. And Geralt gets slurs yelled at him in the street. Or said under people's breath.
BIOWARE, WHERE IS YOUR RACIST CATCALLING?!
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Okay, so NO ONE is talking about Final Fantasy XV?
Also, I want to punch Ardyn in the face so hard for being such a smug, evil p***k.
(hey, this isn't IFD, so I should maybe watch my language. kinda.)
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