Secret of Evermore - Retro Playthrough - November 2015

[singlebanana]

This game had so much potential...and then they made it 1-player.

I don't think it only being a one player game is a big deal. Honestly, how many people would have actually sat down to play a 2 player RPG?  "Hey, I'm going to keep playing SoE..... Oh wait, I have to wait until Bobby gets home from class. *sigh*"  However, I do agree that they could have done some better things with that and the opportunity was there for it.

EDIT: Apparently, some people did like playing an RPG with others. 

This game had so much potential...and then they made it 1-player.

Secret of Mana was awesome with the 3 player play.  I would play with my mom and my brother.

Just FYI, in case you don't know, this game has nothing to do with Secret of Mana. They share a somewhat similar title and menu system, but there is no story tie in.  As a result, many people didn't give SoE a fair shake when it came out; it was originally just going to be titled "Evermore."  Having never played SoE, I'll have a pretty unbiased opinion about the game, so that should make for some decent podcasting.

[JerryGreenwood]

Hey, I'm going to keep playing SoE..... Oh wait, I have to wait until Bobby gets home from class.

Well, where were you? Skipping school?!

I'm just saying it would've been nice to have the option. It couldn't have been that difficult to make it 2P. A lot of Seiken Densetsu 3 translation carts have the 3P option, so if a guy sitting in his house can do it (with no added cost to the game), I'd like to think Square could've done it.

The story might not be like SoM, but the game play is near identical. The way you move around, attack, run and switch characters is basically the same. 

[Disposed Hero]

Just FYI, in case you don't know, this game has nothing to do with Secret of Mana. They share a somewhat similar title and menu system, but there is no story tie in.  As a result, many people didn't give SoE a fair shake when it came out; it was originally just going to be titled "Evermore."  Having never played SoE, I'll have a pretty unbiased opinion about the game, so that should make for some decent podcasting.

The story might not be like SoM, but the game play is near identical. The way you move around, attack, run and switch characters is basically the same. 

Jerry's right.  Although there is no story tie-in, the mechanics of Evermore are practically identical to Mana.

I think many people consider Evermore to be a spiritual successor to Mana, and in many ways it is.  I'm not very far into Evermore yet, but so far I would say that it is inferior to Mana in literally every way.  That's not to say it's a bad game; I am enjoying it, and perhaps my nostalgia for Mana is coloring my opinion of it.  It's also possible that my opinion may change as I progress through the game.

[JerryGreenwood]

I would say that it is inferior to Mana in literally every way.  That's not to say it's a bad game; I am enjoying it, and perhaps my nostalgia for Mana is coloring my opinion of it.

I agree, but I think Secret of Mana is on a level of near perfection. I don't think it's nostalgia because I played both games when they came out and as a kid I remember being disappointed. Again, not to say that Evermore is bad, because it's not. It's very good and wish I was playing it with you guys (I never beat it). It just irks me when sequels (I know it's not a real sequel, but faiap, it is) discard awesome things from the original.

[singlebanana]

I would say that it is inferior to Mana in literally every way.  That's not to say it's a bad game; I am enjoying it, and perhaps my nostalgia for Mana is coloring my opinion of it.

I agree, but I think Secret of Mana is on a level of near perfection. I don't think it's nostalgia because I played both games when they came out and as a kid I remember being disappointed. Again, not to say that Evermore is bad, because it's not. It's very good and wish I was playing it with you guys (I never beat it). It just irks me when sequels (I know it's not a real sequel, but faiap, it is) discard awesome things from the original.

Maybe it's not nostalgia, but playing one game before the other is like watching a movie sequel, you're always, whether consciously or unconsciously, going to look for ways in which the 2nd doesn't match up to the first. (Lucky for A New Hope, there was The Empire Strikes Back...WHEW!).  It's inevitable. I'm not saying that SoM isn't better than SoE, since I haven't played the former and wouldn't know, but it will be nice for me to be able to judge SoE without having played it before. Now I'll just have a bias when I do play SoM. Ha ha!

On a current playthrough related note, I hit the first check point last night.

[img width=700 height=522]http://i1029.photobucket.com/albums/y359/necrom99/Playthroughs/B1FDB352-34D7-4E32-8E89-3B8991A3B076_zpsn4o9yxji.jpg[/img]

Here are some of my current take aways on what I have already played:

1. Combat - One of the more frustrating aspects of combat from the start is the hit detection. At first, I was taking lots of damage because I was getting in too close and having a problem with the timing.  As I've played the game more, I've gotten more accustomed to enemy patterns and I'm making my way through the game much better.  Getting the spear and figuring out how to throw it (no manual...) was a big change in combat. Still, I really hate the hit bar and wish I could swing for full damage without waiting for it to charge.  To me, the hit bar doesn't really work well with the flow of this game.  There are games where the action bar works really well, one that comes to mind is Parasite Eve.

2. Graphics - Man, this game is f*$king beautiful!  I can't say enough about how good the game looks. The environments are rich and colorful, the sprites are nice and easily recognizable, and the bosses (the few I have battled so far) look extremely cool and are very detailed.

3. Boss battles - I think the boss battles have been well thought out so far in terms of strategies. However, bosses have an overabundant amount of HP and I know that the battle with the swamp snake took me well over 20 minutes to complete (and this was with using lots of magic and melee attacks).  This made the game frustrating at first, as I had a really tough time with the big bug battle (I think Steven did too).  Using a combination of attacks is best I find and doing a little grinding to make sure you have the best equipment, earn a few levels, and can fill up on alchemy materials works well. Money (talons in the first stage of the game) are pretty plentiful when taking out enemies and the "grinding" doesn't take long or feel cumbersome.

4. Magic vs. Melee - It took a while to figure out the alchemy and I'm not the biggest fan of this menu system when it comes to magic. I wish there was some way to map buttons to cast instead of having to stop the game and go into the menu each time.  Still, I think the game is pretty well balanced in terms of melee and magic and I like that not only you level up, but that your individual weapons and magic level up as well.

5. Backtracking - There is a little backtracking in the game, but none that I have come across yet is excessive. I don't mind this at all and actually think it's fun to figure out things like, "Oh, I remember seeing that cave covered with the rock. That is probably where I need to go next."

6. Puzzles/Mazes - I have to admit, one of the more frustrating aspects of the game are the labyrinth sections of the game.  Some areas are literally puzzles and with save points pretty far and in between some times, traversing back and forth through respawning enemies can get a bit hairy.  I got lost in the mud pepper swamp last night, and I almost pulled my hair out trying to figure out the water pipes below the volcano (took me probably 30-45 mins). If you want to keep your sanity, you might want to consult a walkthrough in this latter section...just sayin'.

Overall, I am enjoying this game.  I think that it's beautiful and really like the story very much; it's really unique and probably the main factor that is pushing me to want to finish this game (though there are other factors that aid in this as well).  Curious to hear other thoughts on these game features.

[shaggy]

This game had so much potential...and then they made it 1-player.

Secret of Mana was awesome with the 3 player play.  I would play with my mom and my brother.

Just FYI, in case you don't know, this game has nothing to do with Secret of Mana. They share a somewhat similar title and menu system, but there is no story tie in.  As a result, many people didn't give SoE a fair shake when it came out; it was originally just going to be titled "Evermore."  Having never played SoE, I'll have a pretty unbiased opinion about the game, so that should make for some decent podcasting.

Damn, I never knew that.  I thought it was a direct sequel.

[singlebanana]

The 2nd checkpoint is up!

[Disposed Hero]

I haven't quite hit the first checkpoint yet, but I just

Spoiler (hover to show)

killed the giant snake boss and got the mud pepper.

I hate to keep bringing up SoM, but if you've played both games, you can't help but compare the two.  Something that bothers me about SoE is how drab everything looks.  The graphics are great on a technical level, but everything is so dark and gloomy, and the color palette is almost entirely made up of grays and browns.  SoM on the other hand is such a bright, colorful, and vibrant game.

And then there's the soundtrack... or lack thereof.  Most of the areas in the game have ambient sound effects in the background rather than any actual melody playing, and most of the actual music I've heard so far in the game hasn't been all that great.  SoM on the other hand....

I'm going to have to apologize in advance Rich.  Our podcast segment on this game is probably just going to be mostly me comparing SoE to SoM.

[singlebanana]

Played through the 2nd checkpoint last night.

[Disposed Hero]

I just passed the first checkpoint and made it to the next area.  I walked outside the town and nearly got killed by the first enemy I saw.  Fortunately I found the dude selling armor in town, so now I'm better equipped and can hopefully take more than a couple of hits from these new enemies.

[singlebanana]

I just passed the first checkpoint and made it to the next area.  I walked outside the town and nearly got killed by the first enemy I saw.  Fortunately I found the dude selling armor in town, so now I'm better equipped and can hopefully take more than a couple of hits from these new enemies.

Yep, armor upgrading is a pretty essential part of this game.  Though you can choose to skip enemies, it's not a very wise decision, since upgrading your character, your weapons, and your alchemy are all very beneficial as well. If you take the time to defeat enemies as you go, it pays off and makes the game much easier as you go through it.  I like to target multiple with the alchemy as I grind.  My only gripe with the weapons is that you have to re-level them each time you get a new one...

[Disposed Hero]

I crossed the desert and reached the large town with the marketplace.  It seems like there's some sort of trading mini-game going on here.  Did you do that Rich?  Anybody know if the final reward is worthwhile?

[singlebanana]

I crossed the desert and reached the large town with the marketplace.  It seems like there's some sort of trading mini-game going on here.  Did you do that Rich?  Anybody know if the final reward is worthwhile?

Yes, I did this. The marketplace is timed (12 minutes I think). It's a good place to upgrade your armor, especially if you know what you are doing. I don't think that there is any type of special event, just if you are quick enough, you can upgrade your armor well before you head out to the pyramids.  I think I grabbed all of the armor in time, just didn't bother with the other stat upgrade items.  After the 12 minutes or so, the market closes and no one will sell you anything. You then have to move to the next event in town.  After you return from the pyramids and finish in town, the market will open up again and allow you to get the items you might have missed.

Along with armor, be sure to grab about 3-4 Amulets of Annihilation. You can use these to pay the "Ferry Rowboatsman" to take you across the desert so that you don't have to run back through it (annoying).

The scarab is a tough market item to find, you have to go right out of the market to the right and go through a building on the next screen and back into the market to get to a few traders.

Let me know if you have any other questions. I put up the rest of the checkpoints today and am almost to the 3rd after another push last night.   I understand how it's hard to not compare this game to SoM and we will certainly talk about it, but it certainly shouldn't be something we drone on and on about.  I find myself really enjoying this game, and if SoM is anything like it (as you all say it is), I'm positive I'd enjoy that as well.  I hate that the price tag is so high and would prevent us from doing a playthrough (unless there is enough interest of course).

[Disposed Hero]

Wow, didn't realize it was timed.  I'll probably just look up a guide to make sure I do it right.

I'll try to go easy on the SoM comparisons.  I think I've made all the comparisons that I felt were necessary for now.  For our podcast segment, I'll look over your outline and pick and choose my moments.  You could easily compare every aspect of these two games, and I'm probably going to have to bite my tongue regarding most of them, but I understand that's not the point of this playthrough or podcast.

[singlebanana]

There's another marketplace scene later in the game, but thankfully, it's not complicated. When I first saw it, I facepalmed.