Mystic Ark returns after an extended break. The rest of the game starts now, so sit down and have some Tea.
We last left off with Remeer challenging Candy Mountain. CANDY MOUNTAIN, CHARLIEEEE!
This place is full of riddles and puzzles. This one is "At what time are the hour and minute hands of a clock closest to each other?"
Remeer finds the stray kids. This entire world has basically been him chasing kids around while they do increasingly stupid things.
Oh, this is important. Better be sure to rummage around in the candy pile before you go, because...
...this one kid won't give you the heart you need unless you pony up a suitable candy bribe.
Lug the heart all the way back to the shrine, and it empowers a figurine. This one isn't of a person, weirdly enough.
Lug the figurine back to the Children's World and it turns into... a fountain? Well then.
All is not well just yet, though. Celia is being stalked by some unknown entity, and it's up to Remeer to stop this malevolent being.
But first! More fetching!
The kids all say the same thing, making this latest quest even more annoying.
HATE
Next up, the lemmings kids are running off to a place called... Soda Hole? The hell?
Our hero follows the kids in like a puppy, doing nothing to stop them as they run on ahead. They'll probably get eaten by a hydra or something.
After a short dungeon, our hero comes face-to-snout with... a hydra? Uh oh.
That son of a bitch. He...he ate the kids.
In response, Remeer BLITZES this fight, and it's over quickly.
After the fight you get the weird option to slice the hydra up. Why? Are we going to hide in there like it's a taunton?
....huh, the kids all spilled out. I guess they didn't get chewed or digested. Awesome?
Meanwhile, back at the ranch.... it seems that the town of kids has been invaded. It's like all the action was about to start when I quit before!
What follows is a basement dungeon with some weird silverware puzzles.
There are a TON of mimic chests down here. But they're not your usual vicious attack mimics.
You're given the option to actually talk to them rather than fight. What is this, Fallout 3?
Turns out that Celia let them live in the basement so they'd have a home after the hydra evicted them from their old one. What a heart-warming tale.
There's a mana-restoring fountain near the end of the dungeon, making this the first ideal spot for some level-grinding in a while. I take advantage of it.
I had to search long and hard for that switch. I was starting to think it didn't exist. After an hour or so, my neck really started to hurt.
What's this? An evil ritual is transpiring. Who is behind this witchcraft?
Is that... is that you, Toad?
Celia urges our heroes to flee rather than face the demon of the basement, Chimera.
A mini-boss fight follows, as Remeer battles one minotaur and then two minotaurs. They're fairly mini, at least, and don't put up much of a fight.
Chimera, on the other hand, is a badass. Pretty cool-looking, too. If I may talk like an art critic, the boss designs in this game are disturbing in their grotesque savagery.
Him, you say? ...so, the game finally has an inkling of an overarching villain. Interesting. So while Remeer has been going around putting things right by un-figurining people and places, he has an evil counterpart working in the opposite direction.
Third Ark. This one lets me have a third party member. FINALLY.
Also noteworthy: Power Ark gives a boost to attack for the character you empower with it, while Wisdom gives a boost to magic attack. So it matters which ark you use to bring up which character.
Hell yeah, three characters. This is awesome. Finally, the game has surpassed 7th Saga in party size.
The entrance to the next world? A grandfather clock. This is the fourth world out of seven, I believe. There may be an eighth. I'll find out.
This is the Machine World, so named because it has machinery everywhere. ...and no color. Huh.
It's not just a graphic choice, the characters in-game are aware of it too. Odd that Remeer is still in living color.
After a bit more grinding, Tokio and Kamiwoo - my least-used characters before now - both learn their final spell, Death Flare. It's debatably the best offensive spell in the game, and they're the only two characters who get it. Casts instant-death on all enemies with a very high success rate. It's useless against bosses, but it obliterates screen-fulls of enemies. And with two characters casting it, if one of them fails, the other is sure to hit.
Twilight Inn, huh? Is it run by Bella Swan?
Complete with one never-changing facial expression!
Edison? An apt name indeed. Leaving off here for now, but we'll see what awaits in the Machine World next. In the meantime, leave a comment below.
On one final note: We roll with Navajos with double barrels! Amazin' phase your days your hazy ways my blazing arrow!
So much happened! I'm glad you got some action on your first night back in the game.
ReplyDeleteThat spicy black tea sounds wonderful.
I'm so relieved you're free of those kids. Tying them to Kefka was a hilarious turn though. Play! Play! Play!
Hydras WOULD swallow people whole like that snake did. Don't think they'd actually survive inside but it's funny to think of, especially the image of them emerging covered in goo.
The Power Ark and Wisdom Ark bonuses are an interesting touch.
I'm really excited about this black and white world.
This mimic chest basement is crazy. Really glad you chose the path of peace with them. That's m'boy!
This witchcraft rite is wicked indeed. Looking forward to seeing more about the Maker.
Chimera talking about how close he came to surpassing the big bad gives me Balzack and Necrosaro flashbacks from Dragon Quest 4. Good stuff.
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