I stopped following Jeff for awhile since I'm not big on solo stuff. But I checked back a few months ago and he seems to be having a great time doing it. His NES series is one of my favorite things on the internet these days.
Awhile ago, he mentioned being bad at reaching out to people (can relate). And he's super busy with young kids. I'd love for GB to team up with him some day for E3 season, because there's honestly no one as good as him on that interview couch. Plus it seemed like one of Jeff's favorite things to do.
I understand needing some distance, though. Whatever stuff happened behind the scenes, those guys all had such good chemistry on camera that it'd be really nice to see a reunion.
I also really miss Jason, but luckily he's been doing his show with his old friends, Interactive Distractions.
Hi, I did a theme for Robomitch awhile back. I wanted to create something for the others at some point, so here's something for Jeff.
His bizarre entrance sort of scared me. Nothing happens for awhile, it's a static shot, and then shit gets weird. Naturally, this got me thinking of David Lynch. And the biker outfit got me thinking of the biker bar in Twin Peaks (which is on my brain due to Nextlander).
So I went and ruined one of my favorite scenes in anything.
(warning, flashing lights and terror! And potential vague Twin Peaks season 2 spoilers)
I have like 5 hours remaining, and I've lost track of how many "this part rules" moments there were. Really, really enjoying the story and writing (which I thought was a strength of The Messenger, as well).
Occasionally a dungeon runs 10 minutes too long, and I still think Sabotage needs to improve its fast travel philosophy. But it's a top 3 game for me this year.
@bigsocrates: The tone isn't exactly the same since it's not Castlevania, but SotN had a bunch of silliness all over the place. From items to visual gags to dumb enemies. Bloodstained goes further in that direction, sure, but it should have its own identity as a new series. The corgi robot was a welcome addition in Curse of the Moon 2.
In any case, I was thinking more about the design of the game as a whole. Progression, combat, pacing, level layouts, etc. It doesn't matter, really, that's just how I felt. I'm not here to provide a detailed analysis.
Oh, I'm loving everything about it. I keep thinking Game of the Year but 2023 is too ridiculous to name just one. To me, they nailed everything they're going for.
My comparison is Bloodstained. There are a ton of Metroidvanias, but something about Ritual of the Night just nailed the feel of Symphony of the Night. Sea of Stars captures that nebulous authentic feel of 16-bit RPGs, with smart updates and modern design.
The story and writing took a bit to grab me, but about 15 hours in I'm hoping it doesn't end anytime soon. The combat's really fun, and it does one of my favorite things in the genre with the ability to constantly swap party members without penalty. It opened up the gameplay so much and made every party member feel important.
I also did some guitar jams with one of my favorite themes. Doccari Village and Lake Doccaria (both are the same until the 1:20 mark). Because the music's so damn good. The Messenger had a great OST, and so does this one. And Mitsuda doesn't disappoint because he contributed some truly stellar work.
Kickstarted it years ago since I loved everything about The Messenger (with the only blemish being some confusing navigation later on).
It's a bummer. I remember hearing about them in the late 90's, but Red Faction is when they really caught me. Red Faction: Guerilla and Saints Row 3 are games I'll be replaying for the rest of my life, honestly.
The past decade has been rocky, but I'm still sad to see then go. They're a few hours south of me, but that's an area with no other local prospects for the devs unless they start their own thing.
Content's been fun and good. I don't watch it all anymore but they've been doing whatever the hell they want, it seems.
The old guard has left and they're all doing well with Nextlander and Jeff G's stuff. Matt Rorie finally played some Alpha Protocol and then moved on.
Jason and Jess layoffs sucked and still feel like a big mistake.
Overall, I've been enjoying the site, even if it's completely different than it was a few years ago. But constant change is basically what Giant Bomb has been over its history.
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