BLAEO — Backlog Assassins Extraordinaire

June
I really need to stop writing this all last minute… and then taking another half a month to finish it. Furthermore my experiments with formatting have been unwell. All my tests take too long to code for each individual game, and I can’t quite get an aesthetic I quite like, maybe next month, so I apologize for the inconvenience, length and drab writing I am currently presenting. bows head

Ame no Marginal -Rain Marginal-

3 hours playtime

no achievements
Elven Love

2 hours playtime

no achievements
fault - milestone two side:above

13 hours playtime

9 of 9 achievements
Idol Magical Girl Chiru Chiru Michiru Part 1

4 hours playtime

no achievements
Idol Magical Girl Chiru Chiru Michiru Part 2

4 hours playtime

no achievements
Highway Blossoms

51 hours playtime

20 of 20 achievements
KARAKARA

3 hours playtime

7 of 7 achievements
Memory's Dogma CODE:01

9 hours playtime

0 of 9 achievements
NEKOPARA Vol. 0

2 hours playtime

13 of 13 achievements
Sakura Sadist

2 hours playtime

13 of 13 achievements
Beat Saber

3 hours playtime

no achievements
Borderlands 2

33 hours playtime

35 of 69 achievements
Bullet Witch

9 hours playtime

11 of 14 achievements
Castle Crashers

4 hours playtime

4 of 12 achievements
Dragon Knight

3 hours playtime

33 of 42 achievements
Mahjong Pretty Girls Battle

4 hours playtime

no achievements
Mega Man Legacy Collection

5 hours playtime

1 of 24 achievements
RUINER

6 hours playtime

18 of 33 achievements

May Sony
Metal Gear Solid 2: Son’s of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
May Sony End

Ame no Marginal -Rain Marginal- A very melancholic VN, that is structured a little bit like the movie Memento. Two lives from different times, connected by a single room. You go through two routes simultaneously as their tale is told and the mystery unravels. I quite enjoyed this story, the world building felt concrete, and characters develop nicely. There isn’t a lot of action and is entirely focused on the narrative between the two characters with very little interaction from others.

Elven Love …okay, I am going to need some forgiveness, this game is bad. This is the kind of game that should be free as it delivers more of an developers experimental beginner’s feel to VR rather than a full experience. Whatever my reasons may have been, DO NOT GET THIS GAME.

Fault - Milestone Two side:above The Fault series has become my favorite non-romantic VN game series thus far and cannot wait for the next installments. This is the second of the fantasy series that delves into worldly and personal matters among the characters and their environment. Worldbuilding is excellent and the depth of characters is so deep you don’t even realize they are just 2D anymore… :3 Just like the first game, my expectations were completely blown away. It’s direction went yet another way than expected, and far exceeded the greatness I could ever ask for. My only qualm is in the beginning it did a sort of immersion breaking thing that felt a little bit forced, though it is quickly over and never touched on again. Seriously recommend these games.

Idol Magical Girl Chiru Chirum Michiru Part 1 & 2 Are actually two separate games, but no real reason just to get one without the other, as it is fairly essential to understand the story and actually get anywhere. Don’t get me wrong, this VN has a decent enough story, It’s animations and art are fairly well done, and is set up episodically in each part, which is a few frames away from being another typical magical gril/idol anime. There is plenty of humor (some admittedly got a chuckle or two, particularly that the main character is a piece of trash to everybody else). I did have problems viewing the ending and opening animations after viewing them the initial time, otherwise generally recommend. Though don’t put yourself in any rush to get it.

Highway Blossoms Can love bloom on the battlefield? Who’s to say, but it seems it can be found on the open road. A yuri VN, where a singular person road trip soon turns into a treasure hunting adventure that crosses many borders, other people, and the purest love. This VN made me feel… a little too much honestly. For the most part, the feelings between characters were genuine with minor questionable choices. Although some left me angrier than others, wondering what the hell the main characters were thinking in that situation… then again I suppose it is easier to see from the outside looking in rather than being the in the situation yourself. Perhaps those are feelings we all need to feel at some time or another. The start is pretty slow, and overall not very exciting, but still a very genuine romance.

KARAKARA What’s a quality that makes a great VN (for me)? World building. This game takes altogether one second to set up its fragile world building, followed with a very boring and predictable romance. There are animal girls because reasons, almost to no humans because reasons, and a newly formed American and Japanese formed town that was created as they tried to reform humanity/life. It’s even more confusing than it sounds, as almost no explanation is given and instead given more animal girl fan-service. I’ll likely dip into the sequel, but I really don’t suggest much and don’t recommend.

Memory’s Dogma CODE:01 Firstly, don’t mind the lack of achievements… they aren’t activated yet… so once they are available I will get them quick. Until then, everything that could be done has been. It ever so reminds me of Ghost in the Shell with its futuristic technology and ethical issues/concerns. It takes a bit to develop, but it quickly turns into a futuristic sci-fi/action and ends up being a decent enough story, but nothing exciting or overall amazing.

Nekopara Vol. 0 I don’t know if this is the one I should have started with, but wanted to do the entire series in order. I know it’s a game about maid cat girls, but I never expected it to be so sickly sweet… like way too sweet. Cute cat girls being shoved down your throat sweet. The only other problem I felt is a lack of context (which again might be the reason you don’t start with Vol. 0) as all the characters, which there are many, are present with each having their individual personality traits to define them. Overall nothing happens, as the catgirls have the day to themselves while the master (you) is away, and what shenanigans they get into.

Sakura Sadist Again I delve into the Sakura games, after experiencing so many I can only question my sanity when I return to the series… I suppose someone has too… Overall it carries the torch and qualities of the previous installments. Average to low writing, decent but generic art, fan service galore, etc. The only couple things I can give credit to this game is a little bit twist it has and the ashamed face the character uses quite often. No real need to recommend or not as you’d already know if you want to play it or not for… reasons. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Beat Saber I have been highly anticipating this rhythmic VR game, and although not on sale, I am totally happy with this purchase. Still quite in the early access stage, the 8 enjoyable songs and various modes it supplies are top notch and have already secured a few hours and then some of my time. The better news? They are keeping their fans updated that they are working on getting more licensed music and even created their own label! If you own a VR I would say this is a must have.

Borderlands 2 After putting countless hours on the 360 I return to this game on Steam and soon remember why I put so many hours into it prior. The character classes it offers, are a unique experience with plenty of humorous dialogue, and plenty of room to co-op with friends. I did take the time (and spend the money) to try out the mini DLC that don’t add too much other than a missions worth of activity. Some are certainly better than others, particularly Torgues WattleGobbler and Son of Crawmerax have very interesting dialogues that could inspire the third installments premise and character development (I can only hope.)

Long ago, we got a gun toting witch killing biblical entities that endanger humanity. No, this is not Bayonetta. This is before that great game. This is Bullet Witch, a game that came before, that was not nearly as refined and held many many flaws (Most of your own ultimate spells can kill you, and the slowest smallest floating debris can kill you instantly, etc.). Seriously, who decided this 2007 game needed to be ported to Steam in 2018. As my favorite review of this game said, the company that decided to pick up this job has some serious moxy. The bugs and glitches are vast, the story is mediocre, the game is short (I beat all 5 difficulties in less than 10 hours, with some speedrunning), and the gameplay is uninspiring, but I play it due to the nostalgia and a sick sense of enjoyment of this terrible game (even though it is home to one of my least favorite levels in gaming history). witch

Castle Crashers Another game I played prior and returned to on Steam. A game much better played with friends, but this side scrolling beat ‘em up stands pretty decent as a single play as well. It’s got low hanging jokes, and simplified combat, but enjoyable non-the-less.

Dragon Knight I was genuinely surprised on how decent this game was. Despite its revealing clothing the combat provides an entertaining trip, with a variety of weapons, attack styles and items to use as you set on your path. That being said, the story is weak and ending is questionable and unsatisfying. At the very least it starts you at the beginning with your current gear to start another run. Average all around, but still decently recommended at a cheap price.

Mahjong Pretty Girls Battle Only after 20 games of Mahjong was I finally able to win ONE game. Seriously, despite the simple concept, the AI seems to be stacked against you. You will need to learn Mahjong on your own as there is no real tutorial in game. The ideal game of Mahjong is fun, though I can’t help but feel the AI has advantages you don’t. In order to complete this game, you will need to keep winning games until you finally unlock all sets of characters.

Mega Man Legacy Collection… Pt1 Okay, so I only really finished the first of the Mega Man games, and I will likely post about each one as I make them through each installment. The first game is unapologetically difficult with no good way of giving direction. You can play the final level without the required weapon to finish it, and not realize it til it’s too late. Which it is located in a level you have to revisit in order to get. I do have an appreciation for it though, as I started on Mega Man III as my first game… ever. Can I recommend this first game? Not really. It is just about pixel perfect difficult with no real gratification, but certainly something to visit for greater appreciation for the series on it’s development.

Ruiner Ever since Devolver revealed it a year ago at E3, I had been psyched (with a little help from Skeletons & Sidewalks) to play this game, and finally I got around to it. A little bit different than I expected, but a fun action-packed cyberpunk kill fest that I thoroughly enjoyed. The story is a bit on the weak side, but not a real issue as the gameplay is its main component. I recommend this twins stick shooter/melee, now go get ‘em puppy <3 her

June Epilogue
Ooph, that was all atrocious. Well thanks for taking the time to skim over it, and reading this.I am working hard to provide an efficient and pleasant experience to my future posts. Considering the lateness of this, I don’t have much left to say. Goodluck next month Assassins! ^_^

Stockiing

Great work last month! You’ve tackled a lot of games that are still in my backlog.

I have a question about Idol Magical Girl Chiru Chiru Michiru - have you played The Fruits of Grisaia? I understand that this game is a spin-off, but I haven’t played the original yet so I’ve been putting this VN off for ages in the off-chance that there are some spoilers or references that I’d miss.

Also, have you tried using BLAEO Generators? I’m in the same boat as you with formatting posts - I even gave up making monthly reports last year because of how difficult it was for me to make posts that I actually like the look of. However I feel like the site really helps to make the whole process easier (and nicer than I could ever do myself).

Bangledeschler

Thank you! :D

I have not played The Fruits of Grisaia, nor did I know that this game was a spin-off! So, unfortunately I can’t say whether this would spoil or reference anything. As far as I can tell this seemed pretty self contained, but what can I say shrug.

BLAO Generators, eh? I will certainly check out this most useful sounding tool, thank you kindly for showing it to me! ^_^

stef

The Blaeo Generator is a fantastic tool for organizing and making posts shorter/look better. I use it if you want to go look at my recent posts to see what it looks like.

Also nice job tackling all of those games! Also did you play Highway Blossoms before or after the voice acting was added? I was wondering if the voice acting was any good, because I enjoyed the story without it.

Bangledeschler

I played it with the voice acting. The acting was alright, it dipped in a few areas, but I think it leans more on the positive end of VN voice acting. They at least conveyed the feelings mostly well. Hope that helps in some way.

JaffaCaffa

I’ve seen so many people beating Castle Crashers lately, and I’m always amazed when they beat it under 10 hours…and you have it at 4!

I dunno what we were doing…I think my brother and I restarted a save at one point like an hour into it and I played solo for a bit. But I’m at 20 hours and thought we were level 8 or 10 or something out of 50? I can’t remember the exact numbers but we were far from completing it, why I’ve put off going back to it for so long. Since while it was fun, gets repetitive..didn’t want another 40 hours of it. But I guess it’s not very long afterall. :P

Did Highway Blossoms take that long to complete or was a lot of it AFK? Still really wanna play that one, the whole premise and location is intriguing. :)

Love that screenshot of Ruiner!

Bangledeschler

It helps when you have beaten Castle Crashers before.

Highway Blossoms has a decent length, but not for the time that I have recorded. Actually, there is an achievement to play in a mode that sets your game in real time. So… every time your character sleeps, there is an 8 hour timer. Every time they drive somewhere (which surprise, there is a lot of) you have to wait the designated time. So I ended up idling it a little longer than needed to get that achievement. Suffice to say, it still takes a really long time.

Me too! Unfortunately I didn’t take or make it :( Too busy enjoying the game to think about it this time.

JaffaCaffa

The weird part is we never really got stuck either, was going through pretty smoothly first try. Unless you just don’t have to get max level to beat the game. I dunno.

Ah okay that makes sense, hadn’t heard of that feature. Sounds interesting! I could see how there’d be a fine line between it adding to the experience vs. too many frequent breaks interrupting the gameplay, but in theory is pretty cool. I love when games like Animal Crossing sync up with real time. At least you don’t need to be in game that entire time.

Haha well that’s a good problem to have if any, glad you enjoyed it. :)