Old Game Plus

We continue on to the first "real" dungeon, Tsuta Ruins, its boss, and some of the surrounding area and quests.

We're back from our break and starting a new game!  We briefly review some thoughts on 2017 games, then jump into Okami with a short segment of the game.  This segment goes through the long introductory cutscene and tutorial sequence, through the end of the Hana Valley tutorial dungeon.

With all other matters taken of, Melissa goes to challenge the Black Omen and Lavos. We discuss the closing fights of the game, the ending, and step back for some thoughts on Chrono Trigger as a whole.   We hope you enjoyed this Chrono Trigger interlude.  Usual episodes will be returning shortly, where we'll begin our discussion of Okami!

We discuss all 6 of the side quests presented by Gaspar at the Fated Hour: The Sun Stone, the ghost of Cyrus, the Rainbow Shell, the origin of machines, Ozzie’s Fort, and saving the forest. The quests provide a lot of opportunity to discuss the game’s story as a whole, including significant story closure for various party members, musing on the meaning of the adventure as a whole, and catharsis for lingering feelings about the Trial.

Major story revelations unfold in a segment that includes the Blackbird escape, the confrontation with Magus at North Cape, and the quest to take the Chrono Trigger to Death Peak to undo what had been done at Ocean Palace.

As expected, the initial arrival at Zeal, even though it’s mostly a few minutes of talking to NPCs and looking around, has a huge amount to unpack. We carry on through being exiled from Zeal, going to Keeper’s Done in 2300 AD to find a way back to the past, and end with the dramatic scene that takes place at Ocean Palace.

Even though this segment has only Magus’s castle and Tyrano Lair, there is a lot to discuss. We revisit the personalities of Frog and Ayla, learn about the overall structure of the game, and witness the arrival of Lavos. Jay can’t resist building up the upcoming segment a bit.

A segment covering a lot of material including the arrival at Medina Village, Heckran Cave, the war in 600 AD, reuniting with Frog, and a visit to 65,000,000 BC. Along the way we discuss the combat mechanics, and what we’ve learned about the personalities of Frog and Ayla.

The prison escape, the Future, and the End of Time. In particular, we stop for a while on Melissa's reactions to powerful moments in Arris Dome, when the reality of what the future holds is revealed, and in the Factory, upon witnessing the persecution of Robo.

While we're on break, going back to a previous series Jay and Melissa did before the three of us started this podcast.  It's a discussion of Melissa's first playthrough of Chrono Trigger, in similar style to everything we've been doing on OG+.   We plan to post one episode of Chrono Trigger each week until the show resumes as usual in January.  These episodes were originally recorded and posted in May through July 2016.

The end of the story takes us through Bowser's Keep and the Factory, with interspersed discussion about our thoughts on the game as a whole. Our next episode is not in two weeks as usual--we are going on break for the holidays and will return in January with the start of the next game!

Bean Valley, the political intrigue of Nimbus Land, and the memorable music and boss fights of Barrel Volcano. In the next episode in two weeks, we are planning to have finished the game!

The Sunken Ship, the truth about Seaside Town, and the expedition through Land's End.  Also, weird physics, Group Hugs, and the importance of blocking in this game. In the next episode in two weeks, we're currently planning to play through the sixth star. Image Gallery for this episode.