Board 8 > July B8 Game of the Month Club ft. A Hat in Time, Firewatch, Inside

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KCF0107
07/09/18 3:02:26 AM
#51:


KCF has beaten A Hat in Time

Having spent $25 on Kickstarter for this game, I was a little disappointed at first even though I liked how it felt to move around and how goofy/charming it was. As the game went along though, I saw why it got universal praise and am looking forward to future content and when I get around to the PC version, the community levels/mods. I like how they really changed up the formula as the game went along, never sticking to the same script so to speak as you moved from chapter to chapter. It didn't always work, as the chapter rankings in spoiler tags below indicate, but I always have a lot of respect when games/series are earnest about not being stagnant and repetitive in their designs.

Alpine Skyline > Subcon Forest > Mafia Town > Battle of the Birds

- Skyline is pure platforming bliss with oodles of different obstacles. The layout is breathtaking but a bit confusing. The only real issue that I had was the large discrepancy in lengths of the four areas. Compared to the Windmill, I was barely in Lava Cake.

- Just about everything clicked for me in Subcon Forest. There's an overwhelming amount of stuff to do and find. Being only one of two sandbox worlds, I got a kick out of exploring this one the most. The visit to the manor was far more tense than I expected. The conclusion to this chapter was also my favorite with Hat Kid modifying the contract and Snatcher just exasperated.

- Mafia town was so bright and colorful and full of little secrets. I liked that this went vertical but easy to get from top to bottom. I realize that opening chapters/stages/levels are generally the least impressive content-wise to build a difficulty curve and also because the player, in this game's case, was not going to have many abilities to start off, but they could have done better.

- I wanted to like Battle of the Birds a lot more. As MSG mentioned, that second act is hilarious with the crows doing their best G-Men (from Psychonauts) impression and the intentionally dumb conclusion. However, half of the acts were the underwhelming stealth platformer segments with the bad combo of dark rooms and wire acts (precision platforming is ill-suited for this game) and obnoxious design in general. The other half was what, the doing little acts of nothing for exposure and then that awful parade? This chapter was also home to by far my least favorite time rifts.


Pros
+ Visuals
+ Characters (Snatcher > Hat Kid > Crows > Mustache Girl)
+ Charm
+ Variety

Cons
- Bosses (I honestly think this game shouldn't have had any)
- Several ill-suited design choices
- No in-game map
- No level/act item collection counter
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KCF0107
07/09/18 3:03:08 AM
#52:


I also forgot to mention with Firewatch before, but I named the turtle Bucket Jr. and the fire The Big Fire
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LordoftheMorons
07/09/18 3:42:33 AM
#53:


Bought A Hat in Time

Not sure whether or not I'll get around to it by the end of the month

Let's nominate Dragon Quest III again since I need to replay it
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TheArkOfTurus
07/09/18 5:03:02 PM
#54:


ArkOfTurus has beaten Firewatch

I enjoyed it. Don't have a whole lot to say about it, but I'm glad I played it.
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MrSmartGuy
07/09/18 5:20:35 PM
#55:


I enjoyed the bosses a lot, actually. The final boss was kind of a stinker, unfortunately, but I liked all of the others to varying degrees. I do agree with your assessment of Battle with the Birds, with two exceptions. The long, winding platforming finale was OK, ending with my favorite boss fight, and I did kinda like the parade, especially with the music. Grooves' other act was by far the worst in the game. That part I can give you.
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KCF0107
07/10/18 5:15:36 PM
#56:


If the boss battles weren't so drawn out, I would probably be okay with them, but ultimately, combat is never a point of emphasis in this game to where the inclusion of boss battles makes sense.
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TheArkOfTurus
07/10/18 7:07:20 PM
#57:


I can't seem to stop playing Hyrule Warriors or Slay the Spire, and Octopath is going to divert my attention even more, so I'm not 100% sure I'll end up finishing a Hat in Time (Played enough to get two batteries. It does seem quite charming, though). Hopefully it ends up hooking me an hour in like Firewatch did, but I'm not sure that's as likely with a platformer.
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KCF0107
07/10/18 9:28:56 PM
#58:


Monthly Progress
Hat - MSG, Fake, KCF
Firewatch - gameking, KCF, Ark
Inside - gameking

Nominations
darkx - Rime
LotM - DQ III
MMX - Yoku's Island Express
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KCF0107
07/11/18 9:02:56 PM
#59:


Bump
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KCF0107
07/11/18 11:27:37 PM
#60:


I will go ahead and do my three tentative noms now

Mirror's Edge Catalyst
Ori and the Blind Forest
Ryse: Son of Rome

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KCF0107
07/12/18 10:12:15 PM
#61:


Bump
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KCF0107
07/13/18 5:54:05 PM
#62:


Bump
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WickIebee
07/13/18 8:33:26 PM
#63:


Made it to final level in Hat in Time, I'll do it either later or tomorrow. So glad I don't have to do Queen Vanessa's Manor right now.
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WickIebee
07/13/18 10:42:34 PM
#64:


And now... Wickle has beaten A Hat in Time

Been a while since I beat a Game of the Month. Though I don't really have nominations to push on anyone else atm, I'll think about it.

I can't really rank levels due to only completing Mafia Town and beating Battle of the Birds (didn't finish the Moon time warp). I'm at 28 hourglasses, giving me 70% completion, I'll eventually finish that, but for now... Queen Vanessa made sure I don't want to complete it currently.
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KCF0107
07/14/18 12:03:28 AM
#65:


What problem(s) did you specifically have with that particular act?
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WickIebee
07/14/18 3:24:05 AM
#66:


Oh right, less a problem with the Act, I'm just... A wimp when it comes to horror, saw Vanessa appear once, got caught and instantly killed without doing anything, left that Act instantly only returning to get Act 3 and a bit side stuff done.
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WickIebee
07/14/18 9:10:12 PM
#67:


Might as well.

Nominations:
Super Mario Galaxy maybe will push some people to read my topic when I eventually work on it, I'm being slow anyway.
Jet Set Radio for backlog stuff.
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KCF0107
07/14/18 11:15:11 PM
#68:


For some reason, I thought one of the Galaxy games won before, but I guess not.
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WickIebee
07/14/18 11:17:49 PM
#69:


I actually thought that too, and looked at the sheet and realized nope.
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BlueCrystalTear
07/14/18 11:53:45 PM
#70:


Re: A Hat in Time
Queen Vanessa scares the crap out of me. Every single time. I too am not a big horror guy. But that's really the only truly "scary" thing in Subcon Forest, seeing as Snatcher is more comically "scary" than anything.
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KCF0107
07/15/18 6:57:49 PM
#71:


Bump
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KCF0107
07/16/18 7:39:32 PM
#72:


Drawing will be either Wednesday the 25th or Thursday the 26th
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Arti
07/17/18 10:35:25 AM
#73:


Started playing A Hat in Time last night, collected the first three time pieces and got some miscellaneous items and trophies by doing some tasks.

Nominate Portal 2
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azuarc
07/17/18 10:49:59 AM
#74:


Beat A Hat in Time
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KCF0107
07/17/18 3:59:23 PM
#75:


Monthly Progress
Hat - MSG, Fake, KCF, Wickle, azuarc
Firewatch - gameking, KCF, Ark
Inside - gameking

Nominations
Arti - Portal 2
darkx - Rime
KCF - Mirror's Edge Catalyst, Ryse, Ori
LotM - DQ III
MMX - Yoku's Island Express
Wickle - SMG, Jet Set Radio
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KCF0107
07/18/18 3:20:32 PM
#76:


Bump
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TheArkOfTurus
07/18/18 10:50:34 PM
#77:


Yeah, barely put any time into Hat in Time, and the last time I did it crashed. Really doubt I'll get to it this month.

Nominate Pyre and Minit
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TheKnightOfNee
07/19/18 12:16:33 AM
#78:


Nominate Oniken
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KCF0107
07/19/18 6:03:40 PM
#79:


Bump
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KCF0107
07/20/18 6:34:28 PM
#80:


Bump
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KCF0107
07/21/18 5:06:55 PM
#81:


Bump
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MrSmartGuy
07/21/18 5:30:30 PM
#82:


I'll nominate Owlboy and Pikmin 2.
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KCF0107
07/22/18 9:43:23 PM
#83:


Bump
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MZero11
07/22/18 9:57:29 PM
#84:


Nominate Super Mario RPG
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KCF0107
07/23/18 7:33:35 PM
#85:


Monthly Progress
Hat - MSG, Fake, KCF, Wickle, azuarc
Firewatch - gameking, KCF, Ark
Inside - gameking

Nominations
Ark - Pyre, Minit
Arti - Portal 2
darkx - Rime
KCF - Mirror's Edge Catalyst, Ryse, Ori
LotM - DQ III
MMX - Yoku's Island Express
MSG - Owlboy, Pikmin 2
MZero - Super Mario RPG
Nee - Oniken
Wickle - SMG, Jet Set Radio
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Cody11533
07/23/18 11:51:15 PM
#86:


Cody has beaten Firewatch

Played through it in one sitting, that was a good time.

The game was a lot more tense than I expected, I just signed up to watch for fires, not experience paranoia and conspiracy! I think my favorite bits were the first couple days where we were basically doing our job and exploring most of the area for the first time. The latter half of the game with the mounting tension and mystery was interesting but rather stressful for me. At times I thought it might have went legitimate horror, although it never did.

Mystery-wise, I was satisfied with how it wrapped up. There were three main aspects: the teens, the Goodwins, and Wapiti Station. The teens ended up being a red herring, as did the government study at Wapiti. The crux of the story ended up being Brian's tragic death and Ned messing with you using the other story aspects to fuel your paranoia. In the moment, like Henry and Delilah, I was totally believing in a conspiracy (being followed/listened to was creepy). Obviously in hindsight things make sense, but in the moment I enjoyed getting caught up in it all.

I appreciated the story as well. After all the tension and mystery, the emotional climax of finding Brian's body was a wave of emotions that made me legitimately pause for a few moments. It felt like a rather mature game, forsaking anything supernatural or too out there for a depressingly real conclusion. Henry and Delilah were enjoyable throughout, and they too had a mature, realistic end as well in that they seemingly parted ways at the end to go back to their flawed lives. Despite the flirting, there was no fairy tale romance.

I really enjoyed the gameplay loop of exploring. I think I'm going to go back and do the audio tour mode eventually, I really liked the world of Firewatch. Also I need to find the turtle, I never found it :(

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Cody11533
07/23/18 11:56:06 PM
#87:


I'm going to nominate ABZU and Ratchet and Clank (2016).
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WickIebee
07/24/18 6:04:01 PM
#88:


Today maybe!
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WickIebee
07/24/18 6:04:38 PM
#89:


Oh wait it's not the 25th. Dunno why I thought it was.
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Lolo_Guru
07/24/18 7:23:36 PM
#90:


Nom Splatoon 2
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KCF0107
07/24/18 7:47:31 PM
#91:


In response to Cody's last paragraph:

I found the turtle directly behind Cache 302 just sitting there on a rock. I thought it was possibly a forced event since the game required you to go to that cache, but I guess not
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KCF0107
07/25/18 4:57:22 PM
#92:


Nominations plus changes are closed. I will draw momentarily
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KCF0107
07/25/18 5:18:11 PM
#93:


And your August Games of the Month will be...

Dragon Quest III
Minit
Ori and the Blind Forest (PC/XB1)


Congrats to Moron, Ark, and myself for having their games selected!

I will eventually research what systems these games are all on, but I knew Ori's for certain
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KCF0107
07/25/18 5:19:09 PM
#94:


1. Dragon Quest III
2. Minit
3. Ori and the Blind Forest

4. Portal 2
5. Super Mario Galaxy
6. Super Mario RPG
7. Pyre
8. Ryse: Son of Rome
9. Oniken
10. Rime
11. Jet Set Radio
12. Mirror's Edge Catalyst
13. Pikmin 2
14. ABZU
15. Splatoon 2
16. Ratchet & Clank (2016)
17. Owlboy
18. Yoku's Island Express
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WickIebee
07/25/18 5:20:39 PM
#95:


Bleh, nothing. And I'm not really gaming right now as I had some options on here, but I got none of them, so back to a drawing board of... being bored basically.
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Arti
07/25/18 5:46:58 PM
#96:


oh, just missed my nom. not interested in any of those games, though I will get back to a hat in time and play firewatch by the end of the month
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TheArkOfTurus
07/25/18 6:10:05 PM
#97:


Ori's something I might have nominated myself, and Minit is something I nominated myself, so that's nice!

Not a fan of NES RPGs, but I guess I can give DQ3 a shot.

Edit: Just saw that Minit is getting a Switch port soon. Guess I should have waited. Whoops.
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Cody11533
07/25/18 6:10:09 PM
#98:


Possibly Ori for me, time permitting.

KCF0107 posted...
In response to Cody's last paragraph:

I found the turtle directly behind Cache 302 just sitting there on a rock. I thought it was possibly a forced event since the game required you to go to that cache, but I guess not

I looked it up and apparently there are a number of possible locations you can find the turtle, so I am just an unobservant firewatcher I suppose.
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KCF0107
07/26/18 1:16:37 AM
#99:


Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition is on sale for Xbox One for US accounts:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/ori-and-the-blind-forest-definitive-edition/bw85kqb8q31m?activetab=pivot%3Aoverviewtab

- $12 without XBL Gold
- $10 with it
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KCF0107
07/26/18 1:19:58 AM
#100:


Also, Minit is available currently for PC/XB1/PS4

Without checking region availability concerns, Dragon Quest III is purchasable for the NES, GBC, Android, iOS, PS4, 3DS, and Wii (though I think that it might not be available for that last one if it can only be bought via the eshop).
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