New Release: Famitsu Issue 163 (January 31 1992)

[kitsunebi]

Retromags Presents!

Famitsu Issue 163

January 31 1992

Database Entry!

Download Directly!

Thanks to kitsunebi77!

[kitsunebi]

I thought it was interesting that there was a readers' top 10 for the year and A Link To the Past didn't make it in (despite winning best action RPG of the year.)

The top 5?

1. Final Fantasy IV

2. Final Fight

3. Sonic the Hedgehog

4. Sim City

5. Final Fantasy Legend II

Let's just agree to disagree on Zelda's exclusion...

[Areala]

What? No Derby Stallion? I demand a recount! I demand to see the owners! I demand to not be hit with a taser for making ridiculous demands!!

*huggles*
Areala

[kitsunebi]

Also weird: 6 of the top 10 selling game in the USA are GameBoy titles.

Granted, they are all EXCELLENT games, like Ceasar's Palace and WORLD BOWLING.

Maybe they just make this stuff up...

[marktrade]

This is really great. I'm just devouring this issue up.

Also weird: 6 of the top 10 selling game in the USA are GameBoy titles.

Granted, they are all EXCELLENT games, like Ceasar's Palace and WORLD BOWLING.

Maybe they just make this stuff up...

It's just for one week, right? Those two games were new on the list and they probably dropped off the next week. And the Game Boy was huge back then. Maybe not so strange. The number one and number two spots sound right.

[kitsunebi]

This is really great. I'm just devouring this issue up.

It's just for one week, right? Those two games were new on the list and they probably dropped off the next week. And the Game Boy was huge back then. Maybe not so strange. The number one and number two spots sound right.

Actually, Caesar's Palace I can believe. But I prefer to pretend that I live in a world where a bowling video game will NEVER make it into the top 10 of anything (well, certainly not one played with a standard controller, anyway.)

[Areala]

This is really great. I'm just devouring this issue up.

I know Kitsunebi does, but can you read Japanese as well Mark?

*huggles*

Areala

[kitsunebi]

I know Kitsunebi does, but can you read Japanese as well Mark?

*huggles*

Areala

Hey now... Before I get some inflated reputation and people start asking me to translate pages of text, I have to make it clear that I'm far from fluent. I've lived here for 8 years, but most of my work is conducted in English, and I've been pretty lax with my studies, unfortunately. I'm at functional level at best, which means I can hold my own in discussion of every day topics, probably using a fair amount of caveman grammar and a gesture or two to be understood. Reading is sometimes easier and sometimes harder than verbal communication (ironically, deducing the meaning of things that aren't part of my vocabulary is easier when I see it written.) But reading something like a newspaper or a Famitsu from cover to cover is still beyond me.

[marktrade]

I know Kitsunebi does, but can you read Japanese as well Mark?

*huggles*

Areala

Very badly.

[miketheratguy]

I thought it was interesting that there was a readers' top 10 for the year and A Link To the Past didn't make it in (despite winning best action RPG of the year.)

The top 5?

1. Final Fantasy IV

2. Final Fight

3. Sonic the Hedgehog

4. Sim City

5. Final Fantasy Legend II

Let's just agree to disagree on Zelda's exclusion...

It can take the place of Final Fight (which, let's face it, is really the weak link of this particular chain). But FF Legend II? SimCity? Sonic? And Final Fantasy IV as the number one game? I think Famitsu has gained a new fan.

[Areala]

Hey now... Before I get some inflated reputation and people start asking me to translate pages of text, I have to make it clear that I'm far from fluent. I've lived here for 8 years, but most of my work is conducted in English, and I've been pretty lax with my studies, unfortunately. I'm at functional level at best, which means I can hold my own in discussion of every day topics, probably using a fair amount of caveman grammar and a gesture or two to be understood. Reading is sometimes easier and sometimes harder than verbal communication (ironically, deducing the meaning of things that aren't part of my vocabulary is easier when I see it written.) But reading something like a newspaper or a Famitsu from cover to cover is still beyond me.

Sorry, I wasn't meaning to imply complete proficiency or fluency. I just meant a basic knowledge or ability. My bad.

*huggles*

Areala

[kitsunebi]

Sorry, I wasn't meaning to imply complete proficiency or fluency. I just meant a basic knowledge or ability. My bad.

*huggles*

Areala

No worries. I just didn't want to stand silently by, nodding sagely, lest someone get the wrong idea. Unfortunately, total immersion only takes you so far, and then it's back to working hard studying again. And I'm too busy for that. But mostly too lazy.

[Areala]

But FF Legend II? SimCity? Sonic? And Final Fantasy IV as the number one game? I think Famitsu has gained a new fan.

Final Fantasy Legend II is, after Final Fantasy VI, my favorite RPG. The story is awesome (the New Gods/Old Gods dichotomy is an awesome backdrop for all the problems plaguing the various worlds linked up by the celestial pillars), the characters are memorable, and the music generated by that "wimpy" Game Boy sound chip puts some full-fledged 16-bit soundtracks to shame.

So many memorable moments. Venus throwing people out of her city when they're no longer 'beautiful'. Echigoya and his "banana smuggling" operations. Meeting Odin for the first time, and then repaying him for the favour of resurrecting you later on. Apollo flat-out handing you MAGI like he just doesn't give a crap. Watching the stats on your Robot jump through the roof when you give him a rocket launcher.

FF Legend and FF Legend 3 are good games in their own right, but Legend 2 is just a class act from start to finish. Love that game.

*huggles*

Areala

[kitsunebi]

FF Legend and FF Legend 3 are good games in their own right, but Legend 2 is just a class act from start to finish. Love that game.

After hearing your glowing praise I wondered why I didn't remember anything particularly special about the second game. So I consulted my handy Excel spreadsheet of games I've finished to discover that I never even played it - just the first one (despite owning boxed copies of all three). So THAT'S why I didn't remember it... once again, list:1, memory:0.

[miketheratguy]

Final Fantasy Legend II is, after Final Fantasy VI, my favorite RPG. The story is awesome (the New Gods/Old Gods dichotomy is an awesome backdrop for all the problems plaguing the various worlds linked up by the celestial pillars), the characters are memorable, and the music generated by that "wimpy" Game Boy sound chip puts some full-fledged 16-bit soundtracks to shame.

So many memorable moments. Venus throwing people out of her city when they're no longer 'beautiful'. Echigoya and his "banana smuggling" operations. Meeting Odin for the first time, and then repaying him for the favour of resurrecting you later on. Apollo flat-out handing you MAGI like he just doesn't give a crap. Watching the stats on your Robot jump through the roof when you give him a rocket launcher.

FF Legend and FF Legend 3 are good games in their own right, but Legend 2 is just a class act from start to finish. Love that game.

*huggles*

Areala

Out of all the Gameboy games that I ever owned, FFLII easily got the most of my playing time. It was so in-depth for a Gameboy game. The monster mutation system was addicting enough that it could have warranted a whole game on its own. The storyline was unique and the sense of exploration and adventure was great. And as you said, the music was fantastic. It's kind of hard to believe that so much solid content could be packed into a little Gameboy cartridge.

I used to haul that thing with me everywhere. I'd play it at home, on the living room couch, while Mystery Science Theater played in the background. I'd play it on long car rides whenever my dad brought us on antique hunts in Illinois, and then I'd play it at the diner restaurant where we stopped to eat. In fact it's the only game I can remember playing at multiple restaurants, since I got to Odin at a local Country Kitchen that's no longer there.

And oh my GOD (no pun intended), Odin. I'll never forget fighting him. My encounter with Odin is the most memorable experience that I take from that game. I'll never forget the fact that I saved my game right before I faced him, and was either too low level or had too few weapons (possibly both) to take him down. I couldn't win more experience or items, nor could I go anywhere else. I was stuck, saved in his palace, with no way out but forward. And despite dozens of tries, I could not beat him. Him and those damn OdinCrows.

This was the case for weeks. Possibly even months. I'd keep coming back to the game, keep loading that damn save, keep going through Odin's speech, and keep dying. I'd basically broken the game. I was 30 hours in and I couldn't go any farther. I'd screwed myself. And then, one determined evening, I set out with an unusual level of gusto. I KNEW I'd beat him that night. And somehow, with a combination of speed, skill, and luck, I did. I was startled when he went down, and the surprise in my mind quickly shot to specific lyrics of Bohemian Rhapsody: "SO YOU THINK YOU CAN STOP ME AND SPIT IN MY EYE!!!!!!!!" Seriously. That's a legit memory.

F you, Odin. I beat you. And I beat Final Fantasy Legend II. And man, what a satisfying accomplishment it was in the end. It's definitely one of my favorite games in the series, probably fourth behind FFIV, FFVI, and the original NES game.

[kitsunebi]

"SO YOU THINK YOU CAN STOP ME AND SPIT IN MY EYE!!!!!!!!" Seriously. That's a legit memory.

F you, Odin. I beat you. And I beat Final Fantasy Legend II. And man, what a satisfying accomplishment it was in the end. It's definitely one of my favorite games in the series, probably fourth behind FFIV, FFVI, and the original NES game.

"stone me"

Not sure if it's fair to lump the Game Boy games into the Final Fantasy franchise, despite their localized titles. And what, no love for Mystic Quest? Just kidding. Although actually I kind of found it refreshing to play an RPG without random encounters, even if it was simplistic pap made for kids. Grandia did it much better years later. I find that when there are no random encounters, I'm much more motivated to explore every corner of the game, seeking out every last monster I can find, as opposed to most JRPGs where random encounters are just a time-draining nuisance.

[miketheratguy]

"stone me"

Not sure if it's fair to lump the Game Boy games into the Final Fantasy franchise, despite their localized titles. And what, no love for Mystic Quest? Just kidding. Although actually I kind of found it refreshing to play an RPG without random encounters, even if it was simplistic pap made for kids. Grandia did it much better years later. I find that when there are no random encounters, I'm much more motivated to explore every corner of the game, seeking out every last monster I can find, as opposed to most JRPGs where random encounters are just a time-draining nuisance.

Huh, you know, when the word is put forth and I listen really closely it DOES sound like "stone me". Well then, I guess my moment of triumph was false. Thanks for ruining my childhood. No, it's okay. I would rather you corrected me than allowed me to go forward in life with the security of my belief in the things that seemed real. Jerk.

I guess I consider the Americanized SaGa titles to be Final Fantasy games, sure. I know that they're not officially part of the same series but they play pretty much the same and were created by several members of the core Final Fantasy team so in my mind the differences are superficial. Besides, I spent most of my life being presented with the idea that they're Final Fantasy entries so that's how I'm accustomed to looking at them. But oh, I guess you want to take THAT part of my childhood away too. Nah man, you go ahead. Take it. Take all of it. By all means, correct everything that's ever been erroneous in my life and leave me a quivering shell of a broken man. Next you'll be telling me that Captain Crunch is just some manufactured cartoon marketing personality and not my dad.

Fart on Grandia, and fart on your stupid face!!

[kitsunebi]

By all means, correct everything that's ever been erroneous in my life and leave me a quivering shell of a broken man. Next you'll be telling me that Captain Crunch is just some manufactured cartoon marketing personality and not my dad.

Well of course he's real.

But perhaps you remember when the Cap'n - your dad - went missing in 1985...?

Yeah, it was me that turned the Captain in for the million dollar reward. The only problem was, I never did find the real Captain.

That guy who's been living in your house and banging your mom for the past 30 years?

AN IMPOSTOR.

[Areala]

Well of course he's real.

But perhaps you remember when the Cap'n - your dad - went missing in 1985...?

Yeah, it was me that turned the Captain in for the million dollar reward. The only problem was, I never did find the real Captain.

That guy who's been living in your house and banging your mom for the past 30 years?

AN IMPOSTOR.

*huggles*

Areala

[miketheratguy]

Well of course he's real.

But perhaps you remember when the Cap'n - your dad - went missing in 1985...?

Yeah, it was me that turned the Captain in for the million dollar reward. The only problem was, I never did find the real Captain.

That guy who's been living in your house and banging your mom for the past 30 years?

AN IMPOSTOR.

SON OF A BITCH MUST PAY.

[Areala]

SON OF A BITCH MUST PAY.

Caleb, "Blood", 1997.

Try harder.

*huggles*

Areala

[miketheratguy]

Caleb, "Blood", 1997.

Try harder.

*huggles*

Areala

Kurt Russell. "Big Trouble in Little China". 1986.

Your move.

[Areala]

http://youtu.be/j7AsYxY6nz4?t=1m55s

*huggles*
Areala

[miketheratguy]

Mine's radder.

[marktrade]

Well neither of you got my Casablanca joke in the credits thread!