Great review!  I finished a 1/3rd chunk of my dissertation last week, and to celebrate, I went out to buy a 3DS game.  It was between EOIV, Luigi's, or Fire Emblem.  Unfortunately, Gamestop only had Fire Emblem on hand, so I went with that (which is awesome so far, by the by.  Yet another long-standing, somewhat difficult-to-approach series that has gone through an awesome refinement).  I haven't regretted it, but best believe EO IV is going to be the game I buy when I get past the 2/3rd mark (almost there!).  This review cemented it.

I also worry that, much like older Atlus games, EOIV will become relatively scarce as the 3DS life cycle continues, so it's worth getting now, even if I wasn't going to play it until down the road.  

After getting a 3DS about a month ago, I have to say, I am blown away by how awesome this little handheld is.  I've always been a fan of Nintendo's console evolutions (Wii, DS, etc.) but 3D seemed like a serious gimmick to me.  The software they've been putting out has been just amazing.  So many great games, and I haven't even gotten in to apps yet.  Impressive stuff.

Annnnyway, thanks for the review; I've been scarce on PixlBit lately because of aforementioned schoolwork, but I hope to be back soon.  This review was just the writing piece I needed to get me back in the groove.

Namco Museums Vol 1 - 5 you say?  I will have to make a note to check that out ASAP.  I like your list; I'm surprised about the inclusion of Animal Crossing on there.  I just picked up Mario Kart 7 on 3DS, and I got to the final retro track (SNES Rainbow Road) and that music immediately inspired me to break out the SNES cartridge.  I love love love SNES Mario Kart and especially the music for Rainbow Road!

I think having too many choices sometimes leads to paralysis, as well.  Many times, I'll be struggling to write some music, but when I set out to do something very limiting (e.g. write a song using only a harmonica), I find creative ways to get outside that limitation.

I'm saving a write-up on Mystic Quest for a week when I'm behind or have too much to do to write a main post (like I did with Earthbound).  It will get its due ;)  I think it's an underrated game (which is not to say it's a great game, by any stretch).

Me neither!  Once I got going, there was a lot to talk about it.  Surprised me. 

This was already the only game on my Day-One-Purchase list, but this video sealed the deal.  More of the same?  Please take my money.

Love the addition of torches, as well; the choice between having light and having a shield/double-handing will definitely ratchet up the tension, much like Doom 3...

Thanks, man!  Glad to have you back in the game, in a manner of speaking.  I needed Dragon Quest IX as my gateway drug to the more simple RPGs.  When I first played through older DQ games, I was pretty unimpressed.  "This is it?"  Once I really got into DQIX, I realized how much fun I was having, and it hit me that I was probably missing a lot of fun from long ago!  That being said, if I had played Earthbound before my conversion, I could easily see myself being completely disappointed.  Sometimes, things happen for a reason :)

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I hope you have the chance some day!  I had pretty much given up on it until I made my millions (yeaaaah...) so I was blown away to get a cart as a wedding present.  I'd almost encourage someone to use an emulator, except I bet that music just wouldn't be the same.  Also, I'm not a big fan of emulators... 

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That's a great point; it definitely has that "we're off to save the world!" vibe going on.  Overall, I'm glad it stayed as simple and obscure as it did.  In some ways, I think its notoriety does it a disservice.  That I went in without any expectations whatsoever really helped me love the game.

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I think if I had played Earthbound when I was younger, I would have really disliked it and had a lot of trouble with it.  For one, it took me until Dragon Quest IX to get used to the idea that you couldn't see your party in a battle, so weened on Final Fantasy was I.  So that would have been a deal-breaker right off the bat.  I also don't think I would have appreciated the quirkiness and humor in the writing without a bit more life experience under my belt.  I'm glad I waited (not always by choice!), because it allowed me to simultaneously appreciate the game, while transporting me back to feeling like that little kid glued to the SNES.  In general though, I'm surprised the game gets as much love as it does; it strikes me as a polarizing experience.  Of course, that could just be that the folks who love it are very vocal about it!

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I love Secret of Evermore!  I have a future blog planned comparing Secret of Mana, Secret of Evermore, and Seiken Densetsu 3.  I wouldn't say SoE is equivalent of the Mana series, but for what it set out to do, I really dig it!  The writing comes through a lot better, too, since it's not a translation.

For me, the modern setting was what kept my young self away from it.  I was a lot more close-minded back then (seeing as how I was a young child :)) and at that time, an RPG was a game with swords, magic, dragons, etc.  I remember even being a little perturbed when Secret of Evermore moved to the last world (Omnitopia?) because of its futuristic setting.  Glad I grew out of it and started experiencing some awesome games!  I think Parasite Eve is probably what broke me of the habit...

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I hadn't really thought about a connection between EB and SMRPG until I started writing this blog, but they both took the RPG formula and shook it up in their own way.  I was a massive fan of SMRPG when it came out (still searching for my missing copy!!!!) and still play it through every few years just for fun.  The graphics strike that great balance between computer graphics and a cartoon.  That being said, I think it's great they took the series into the Paper Mario direction, rather than try and elaborate on what they did in SMRPG.

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Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, way better than Blood Omen.

Second for Valkyria Chronicles.  Both times I've played it, my PS3 has died.  The first time on the 9th mission, the second time somewhere like the 20th mission.  I had invested so much time by that point, I put it away and haven't looked at it since.  But it's an excellent game.

I agree that IX has that old-school magic to it.  I can only ding it for the slow battle system (that is really annoying on subsequent playthroughs, even at max speed) and for a pretty ho hum villain.  Kuja just didn't do it for me.

I really enjoy the pre-rendered backgrounds of VII as well.  They really took the time to play with perspective when creating them, and it gave the game its own unique vibe.  Those backgrounds are also why we will never see an HD remake.  On my most recent playthrough, I actually started counting how many backgrounds would have to be drawn in order to make it happen, and by the time I lost count, it was clear Square wasn't BSing when they said it would be too cost-prohibitive to make happen.

Thinking back, I wish I had been adventurous enough to realize I could do something cool like try and make up my own Game Genie codes.  My young self looked at the Game Genie more as sorcery than anything else!

I'll have to poke around and see if I can find a similar comparison about Easy Type and the version we got; that would be an interesting read.  GeoCities though, whew!  Haven't thought about GeoCities in quite a spell!  I remember reading an Illusion of Gaia website there way back in the day, and the site had so many details incorrect, I thought "how could they print this?"  Ah, the naivete of the early internet user...

I think in some ways, the Game Genie did almost ruin gaming for me, but only because I abused it.  I had to make that conceptual leap from "the ends justify the means" to "the journey is its own reward."  Helps that most video game endings are terrible ;).

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Anonymous person who keeps commenting on my blogs:

Not sure what's going on, but I sent a message to Nick to see if he can get it worked out.  I had five Anonymous comments over the weekend and one today that haven't posted, so we'll see. Either that, or it's spam.

Or, you could make an account and join this awesome PixlBit community!  I recommend that option.

Well that's awesome, man!  Amazing opportunity.  I wish I could go back in time and be you for some of those lessons ;)

I also think "easy" depends on how well you know the game.  I reached a point in VIII my first playthrough (nigh on 13 years ago) when I just could not progress any further in the game.  In hindsight, I didn't understand the junction system at all.  Once I figured it out, all it takes is 50 or 60 card games to essentially break the game all the way through, and it becomes a joke.  For me, the funniest part about IV is how wide the gulf is between Easy Type (SNES) and the regular version (GBA).

I'd agree with V; that or FFI.  I like V because you can turn your people into unstoppable monsters, but then the game throws Shinryu and Omega at you, just to make you work for it.  FFI has a high degree of randomness that the other games just can't match.  You'll be fighting a battle and *boom*, your white mage is dead.  No more healing, resurrecting, or escaping for you.  

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Man, nice haul; FFV, Ninja Gaiden Sigma, a DS DQ game I can't quite make out, Super Princess Peach, and Tetris DS.  I just finished up FFV Advance a few days ago; always enjoyed that one.  Anywho, congrats on the great pick ups!

Well... I had drawing lessons from Leonardo Da Vinci, Shakespeare taught me how to hold a pen, and Jimi Hendrix showed me my first blues chords on guitar ;)

Just yanking your chain, man; that's an awesome line-up of people you've had lessons from.  Buddy Rich, especially; wow!  One of the first things I taught myself to play on drums was 2X4 by Metallica.  I was just messing around and figured it out.  I mainly like to bang around though, I'm not very good.  Still, nothing beats the stress relief!

Oh man, it's a cakewalk.  I was terrified of Zeromus as a kid, but on this go-round, he couldn't step.  Now, the GBA version of Zeromus is very difficult, as far as RPG battles go, as are all the optional weapon battles in the final dungeon.  I haven't played the PSP version, but next time I'm hankering to play it, I think that's the one I'll play.

I loved Final Fantasy VI as a kid, but as an adult, never really got on the fanboy bandwagon.  That being said, on this Quest, VI easily stands as my pick for best Final Fantasy game of all time.  Still have a ways to go, but it'll be hard to unseat it.  Expect a glowing write-up ;)  I might post a holdover review of Mystic Quest next week, just for grins.

Hope the move goes great, and we see you back here soon enough!  Take care.

I bought this game on a whim, played it about two hours, said "meh" and moved on.  Later, I got DQIX, loved the hell out of it, and once I beat it, remembered VIII was floating around somewhere, so I gave it another spin.  Boy, was my old self stupid! ( I say this every year )  DQVIII is a fantastic game!  Took me a minute to get what they were going for, but once it clicks, there's nothing quite like it.  This and Xenoblade Chronicles hit that sweet spot with exploration when you just want to wander and see what lies around the next bend.  I stopped right at the end boss, too, and I'm waiting until I forget enough of the game that I regain some of that exploration feeling before firing it up again.  That, and finishing the Quest of Final Fantasy games...

Absolutely familiar with Buddy Rich, man!  My father-in-law is actually a jazz critic, so he's got all sorts of awesome rare recordings of Buddy Rich (among others; Max Roach in particular).  You can't mess with the original!

Sometimes I wish I could erase my memory of playing it so I could play it all over again, new.  The DS version had a little of that feeling to it, since the dialogue was different and spoken, and the music was remastered.  But it wasn't quite the same...

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When it comes down to it, probably my favorite Final Fantasy as well.  I probably rented it 100 times as a kid (couldn't buy it anywhere by the time I knew I wanted it).  The moon is always weird to me... The game is very fantasy, and then suddenly you take a spaceship to the moon.  A taste of what was to come... I guess the first Final Fantasy had that blend of technology and fantasy, too... what with robots and floating castles.

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