This is actually a horrible place to stand. I've never been a "new game+" guy, even going as far back as the second quest in Zelda. It just always seemed extraneous to me. There are other fish in the sea, or whatever, even though that metaphor pertains to love and not video games(same difference.)
In any event, this all changed with Rogue Legacy, this genius little pseudo-roguelike available on Steam and just birthed on Sony systems. As of this writing I'm on "new game+ 5" and nobody has seen me in several weeks. I have what is known in certain circles as an "apocalypse beard" and nothing but coffee and pizza swirling through my ravaged body. What makes this game different? Why do I keep playing it, and beating it, over and over again like a little kid watching The Little Mermaid on VHS in 1991?
Well, it's a damned fun game, for one. The controls are tight and responsive and, what is essential for replays, it really moves fast. Everything from the menus, to jumping into the game proper is quicker than lightning. A scraggly PS1 RPG, this is not. Maybe I'm a product of my time, or maybe I just have patience issues, but if I can turn on a system and be well into the actual game within a second or two, I am much more likely to play it. Designers, take note. You don't want to lose one random guy's business, after all.
Also, and this is an interesting design choice, you are thrusted into "new game+" as soon as you beat the game. There is nothing to give you pause in the way of choosing where to put the new game save or anything like that. After an extremely short credits sequence, you are right back in there. Same character. Same stats. Same upgrades ready to be purchased. So, since the game starts over every time you play it anyways, the ng+ here seems more just an extension of what you've already been doing. The enemies are tougher, but gold is still gold and those items are not gonna buy themselves.
So that's where I'm at. This is not my first time at the rodeo. Actually, according to the start menu, it's my +5 time at the rodeo. I really have to see this thing through. Sorry friends. Sorry family. This is my life now. I just hope something cool happens at "new game+ 99."
In any event, this all changed with Rogue Legacy, this genius little pseudo-roguelike available on Steam and just birthed on Sony systems. As of this writing I'm on "new game+ 5" and nobody has seen me in several weeks. I have what is known in certain circles as an "apocalypse beard" and nothing but coffee and pizza swirling through my ravaged body. What makes this game different? Why do I keep playing it, and beating it, over and over again like a little kid watching The Little Mermaid on VHS in 1991?
Well, it's a damned fun game, for one. The controls are tight and responsive and, what is essential for replays, it really moves fast. Everything from the menus, to jumping into the game proper is quicker than lightning. A scraggly PS1 RPG, this is not. Maybe I'm a product of my time, or maybe I just have patience issues, but if I can turn on a system and be well into the actual game within a second or two, I am much more likely to play it. Designers, take note. You don't want to lose one random guy's business, after all.
Also, and this is an interesting design choice, you are thrusted into "new game+" as soon as you beat the game. There is nothing to give you pause in the way of choosing where to put the new game save or anything like that. After an extremely short credits sequence, you are right back in there. Same character. Same stats. Same upgrades ready to be purchased. So, since the game starts over every time you play it anyways, the ng+ here seems more just an extension of what you've already been doing. The enemies are tougher, but gold is still gold and those items are not gonna buy themselves.
So that's where I'm at. This is not my first time at the rodeo. Actually, according to the start menu, it's my +5 time at the rodeo. I really have to see this thing through. Sorry friends. Sorry family. This is my life now. I just hope something cool happens at "new game+ 99."
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