u/Independent_Plum2166

Tried to be as vague as possible. So I’m about to, I think, permanently kill Typhon, but before that, I wondered if I should focus more on side quests or if I can do those in a theoretical post-game. I’d look this up but doubtless they’d spoil something.

The only one I’ve beaten is Dora’s and I’m nearing the end of others (though I won’t lie, I’m stuck on Odysseus’, I know I’m mean to visit Poly, Scylla and Circe (several times in her case), but nothings happening, he’s still locked). And in cases like Arachne and Athena, I’m gonna assume I need to talk to the latter a LOT more, since she still hasn’t talked about the curse.

So yeah, should I hold off on defeating Typhon to do some clean up or will I have time later?

Bloody Typhon has been conquered.

Honestly, it should have only been 2 times, but freaking Dionysus messed me up with his “Boon”, so run 2 was dead and buried.

Anyway, Typhon has been slain…for now. So thats 3 on Chronos and 1 on big beastie.

Guess I best catch up with Typhon.

I’ve finally reached Typhon and whilst I did die, I don’t think I did that bad for a first attempt. I also finally found Ares, which, as far as I know, finally completes my Olympian collection (Dionysus just living his best life).

So, here are a couple of questions now that I’ve gotten to this part (I’ve already beat Chronos for the first time, which I why I turned to Olympus).

How important in the surface? Because damn does it jump in difficulty. The city and Polyphemus are alright, but Eris? Prometheus? The Summit? Damn, I’m I just that bad?

If you have any tips on the surface bosses I’m all ears. I have unlocked all the weapons so go wild.

I’m missing 3 Keep Sakes and I’m not entirely sure who I’m mean to get them from. I assume one of them is Hypnos, but the other 2 I have zero clue.

Speaking of Hypnos, I made the option and went into his dream for the first time, but Mel hasn’t commented on how to move forward with that quest yet.

And the Fates, are they a side quest hidden in the various areas or part of the main story? If it’s the latter, I can stop worrying I’m gonna pass by a “Fate” door or something.

I need a LOT of nectar don’t I? Like damn, I still haven’t completed anyone’s bonding.

Finally, the Vows and Trials I unlocked, is it completely optional or is it narratively important?

I got so damn close, got to Chronos’ second phase and I was doing pretty decent damage and almost saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

Then he hits me with that weird gravity attack where he’s pulling me in and I immediately thought “aha! You won’t get me, I’ll stay out here where it’s safe!”

999 damage and instant death.

The only upside is seeing the Hades dream and learning that >!Chronos has the Fates locked up somewhere and now I have to find *them* as well!<.

So yeah, that’s my update, I know it would be easy to do, but please don’t spoil things for me, I’m having such a good time.

Ever since I learned we would be going up to Olympus, I’ve been wondering “Who the heck is a threat on par with Chronos?”. I assumed a Titan, like Atlas or maybe Rhea, then when I finally reached the boss room, I thought about the Feather on the door and then saw the eagle flying around and it clicked.

“Of course it’s fucking Prometheus.” Dude is the staple of “Titan vengeance” stories, the once ally to the Gods turning his back after being tortured for eternity. Even more appropriate since we seem to have a big theme on time and fate (still haven’t beaten Chronos, so mind spoilers) and Prometheus being Foresight adds to this perfectly.

But now that I’m thinking about it, I also assume he’s not the final boss of the surface areas, considering 4 areas and bosses are a staple of the Hades games. If there is another area and bosses, please don’t spoil it.

Really having a good time, but have to take a break after that last run and oh boy.

So, I’ve been stuck on Scylla for ages, always dying at the last moment (banger song though, so I don’t entirely mind), so I decided to take a break and try and head to the surface (still not entirely sure why, part of me thinks I should just focus on the underworld), but I needed that Chaos plant for the incantation. I managed to find the seeds, but needed them to grow, so I decided to do one of the Fate challenges.

Took off all my Arcana and planned to beat Hecate for the reward and then die. Thing is, I didn’t die, I kept going and I kid you not actually defeated the bloody sirens. Not only that, I made it all the way through the field of mourning and only died to the goodest of boys, because I obviously had low health and didn’t know his attack patterns.

So yeah, I don’t know if it’s skill or luck, but I made it much farther than I thought. Also, poor Cerby, corrupted with (I think Mel said) miasma.

But yeah, question, how should I balance surface/underworld visits now I can properly explore both? Does it really matter?

And, one more thought, should I be keeping a tally on how many Nectar I’ve given each person? It might sound silly, but better safe than sorry.

…Oh, that’s why it’s called that!

Jokes aside, I just met Hermes and he tells me to go up top to Olympus? I mean Mel asked the right question “do I just stop my mission to kill Chronos?” and after dying again, I tried talking to Hecate about it, but she’s not there this go around.

Do I focus on trying to get to Chronos or is there a benefit to going up? At least at this point, obviously I’ll go up eventually, but Chronos is still a thing, so.

For context, the furthest I’ve gotten is dying to the Sirens.

I’m not talking about the NPC quests or the tickington ones, more so the various “important” quests.

I’ve dealt with the Act 2 repeats, Mia, Don Rodrigo, Jasper, Ryu, Irwin and the dragon in Snifleheim.

I’ve done the Michelle and Kai one (aka why time travel doesn’t work, she should be dead in my version of the game) and got the pearl back for the queen. I’ve also got Jade and her father to have a proper heart-to-heart.

Most importantly, I’ve rebuilt Cobblestone and have done the first trial of the labyrinth and wished to marry best girl (decide who that is amongst yourselves) and even done the date on Mount Tor.

Anymore clean up before I tackle the rest of the Drustan Trials and…urgh…the NPC quests?

I’m nearing the end of DQ11 and whilst I have a few problems, it’s been a great time and I wouldn’t mind checking out the rest of the series and whilst I know it’s easy to, well, sail the seven seas as it were, I’d rather be as legal as possible.

Now, to my understanding, 10 is basically a no go as a Japanese exclusive MMO.

1, 2 and 3 have the new HD remakes, so they’re easy.

4, 5, 6 and 9 all have DS releases, but DS games are very expensive nowadays, whilst they were also released on mobile, not which would be worth it.

7 has the remake on PS5

8 has a remake on the 3DS, although I do have it on PS2, but my PS2 has been dead for a while.

Again, trying not to a pirate here.

Before anyone mentions it, yes, I know that the post-game is basically Act 3, I’m just saying my thoughts so far. Also, whilst I know it’s tempting, please don’t spoil Act 3.

So, as both a Dragon Ball fan and a Final Fantasy fan, I’ve always wanted to dip my toe into the DQ series, but never had the inkling to do it (I’ve had 8 on my shelf for years, but my PS2 is basically dead). But after seeing DQ11 on sale and learning it has a very weighty prologue (seriously, 6-7 hours of game?), I took the plunge. I even wrote about my thoughts on the prologue and my feelings haven’t changed, this game is charming as hell.

It isn’t the deepest, it isn’t the darkest, but it’s arguably the most “Fantasy” a game can be. Hell, the structure of the story felt a lot like a D&D game, with various misadventures as you complete the main quest. A desert sultanate, an arena fight with spiders, a mermaid romance, magic ruins, frozen kingdoms, etc.

Yeah, the villain isn’t gonna be topping any lists, but he doesn’t need to be, he’s the Evil Queen in Snow White, the Evil Stepmother in Cinderella, heck he’s Sauron in Lord of the Rings, the guy just needed to be a bad guy and a bad guy he was (still think his design was a little funky, but what can you do).

Whilst I wouldn’t call it my favourite battle system, I’ve at least come to understand the mechanics of how DQ11 plays, whether this is indicative of the rest of the series, I’m not sure.

I overall like the music lots of great themes, but I feel a lot of them are overused and some of them are a bit underwhelming. The main boss theme is fine, but I couldn’t tell you how the final boss sounded and I just fought him, One-Winged Angel or Dancing Mad it was not.

Now the interesting part, the characters.

The Hero - I like him for what he is, a player insert, he has a few moments of his own identity, mainly whenever he’s in Cobblestone/The Last Bastion, but yeah he’s a decent silent protagonist.

Erik - I like him too, though I do think he took a bit of a backseat in Act 1, after everyone else was recruited. His interlude was fine, but it was mainly just foreshadowing the Seer and Mia appearances. Also, whilst it does explain his amnesia, kind of felt like he got his memories back a bit too quickly. Still, I thought his story with Mia of forgiveness, and the corruption of greed was pretty good (got a lot of FF3 flashbacks with a palace of Gold), but poor Snifleheim, first a magical blizzard and then gold fever. Anyway, hoping we learn more about the Seer.

Veronica - I can probably guess people are mixed with her, but I liked her for what she was. Yes she was outspoken and annoying/got annoyed quickly, but I felt her heart was in the right place and the game proved me right with her sacrificing herself to save everyone (please for the love of god don’t revive her, that part of the story was so well done).

Serena - The game got me, in Act 1 I felt she was took much in the back seat, not doing too much, always overshadowed by Veronica. I was actually gonna place her last in my rankings. Then the game said “you fell right into our trap!”, acknowledging everything I felt and making that her arc, development haircut trope included. I love how much she came out of her shell, trying to be more extroverted and part of the conversations. Definitely jumped up the ranking.

Sylvando - I love his theme, anytime I hear it I hum to myself. The guy is just this flamboyant performer who wants to bring happiness to the world. Collecting a boy band to save the world from frowning. It was pretty obvious who he was, but I was shocked that Rodrigo had long since accepted his son’s calling in life, but was more annoyed he “broke his oath” by not making everyone smile yet, that was a damn good reconciliation. Also, still love the fact that every other party member is there for some promise or duty to protect the Hero, meanwhile Sylvando is there for the lols, just wanting to make people smile.

Rab - I always love when the older generation gets to be a part of the journey. This Scottish grandad hits that right spot, the man who endures and regrets the loss of his child, the one who wants justice and revenge whilst also reconnecting with family. Whilst I’m not completely okay with his perverted nature, it’s at least more subdued than, say, Roshi from Dragon Ball. Plus, it adds to his training arc with Master Pang, where he has to overcome the fantasy world of dream Dundrasil (and his Bunny Girl obsession) to be deemed worthy of training. No major arc, but he’s kind of subbing in for the Hero for the “avenging family” department.

Jade - I both love and hate Jade, on the one had love her personality, love her backstory, love her kickbutt fighting style, but I really feel either a lack of an arc or very mixed on what it is. I don’t think it helps that her Act 2 recruitment has her be a jinxed servant to Booga and then she’s back on the team.
I did like her interlude, which definitely softened the blow, with her actually doing stuff, trying to save the people of Octagonia and only being defeated because Booga cheated, but then I also heard the interludes were a latter addition in the “S” release. Can’t imagine how vanilla players reacted to her being relegated to damsel in distress. If someone has a good explanation for her overarching story, I’d really appreciate it, because again, I really like Jade, but I’m seeing mixed story.

Hendrik - I was spoiled on the “Hendrik becomes a party member” twist part way into the game, I didn’t go looking for it, it just happened. So I played through the rest of Act 1 waiting for him to realise the truth and join us, but it didn’t happen and had to wait till Act 2. Once he joined, however, I really liked him, very stock Paladin archetype, but a well done one, his guilt at not seeing the truth and aiding the villains, whilst an obviously angle to take was still good to see. He’s just a good guy in a corrupt world, fighting as our only party for a good chunk of time. He’s also surprisingly funny, not recognising Sylvando until it’s too late or the fact he also “appreciates” the Oglers Digest. Still not a big fan of the pervert trope, but that at least got a chuckle out of me. And whilst it’s still very archetypical, his story with Jasper was solid.

So year, really damn good and I hope the rest of the game lives up to the first two Acts, if it hits the landing I can definitely see it in my Top 10.

I’ve seen the Revival, loved it and left it at that for a while, but now I’ve had a desire to try my hand at classic Who. Now, I knew that a lot of the first and second Doctor’s episodes were missing and I knew many of them have been animated. I get that, what I was not expecting was the very beginning of the show, The Unearthly Child, being MIA.

It’s my understanding that Stef Coburn, son of writer Anthony Coburn, is kind of an bigoted ass, holding the rights to The Unearthly Child.

So, the world is destroyed and we see *most* of our heroes trying their best to fight the good fight without Lumi. All really good short stories about inspiring people, fighting monsters, simply escaping prison and even a training arc with some random chick we’ve never seen or heard of before (okay, that part was weird).

And after that last one, I was gearing up for a Serena/Veronica/both, side story…and then we cut to Marina saying everyone is fighting the good fight and tells us it’s time to rejoin them ourselves.

WHAT THE HELL!? Freaking Hendrik (>!who I’ve been spoiled on becoming a party member!<) has a small, if unplayable story about creating this Bastion place (haven’t gotten there yet).

So, is this just an oversight or does this get explained why 2 whole characters don’t get their own “where are they now?”, stories? Because if they don’t, I’m honestly disappointed. Just a yes or no will suffice, I’d look it up, but I’m scared I’d find more spoilers.

Just got a frame of reference, I’ve only *just* got back on land.