#WeeklyGameMusic: Men’s Hair Club (LISA: The Painful RPG)


#WeeklyGameMusic: New week, new music.

So, quick note: I’m going to be holding off on posting #WeeklyGameMusic, as I’m now hard at work on finishing Not a Clone. So today is a special treat: Men’s Hair Club by Widdly 2 Diddly is a bizarre chiptune composition that sounds awfully like dubstep. Sounds weird? Oh, man, you’ve seen nothing, yet! The game the composition is for, LISA: The Painful RPG, is an incredibly surreal, Earthbound-inspired adventure that has frequent mood changes, absurd scenarios, and a very, very disturbing set of unavoidable situations.

LISA: The Painful RPG stars Brad, a gruff, middle-aged man adept in martial arts, and with a broken past. One day, Brad wakes up from his pain-killing drug trip (aptly named “joy”) to suddenly find a crying baby girl. Claiming it’s his “second chance,” Brad brings the girl back home with his friends and raises her in secret. Did I also mention that Brad lives in a post-apocalyptic world where all women has died? Right when his adoptive daughter, Buddy, grows to her tweens, a breakout occurs, with Buddy kidnapped and one of his friend slaughtered. Angered, Brad immediately ventures out to find who kidnapped Buddy, while a confused tipster Terry follows along.

There’s a good reason why “Painful RPG” is in the title of LISA: The Painful RPG. The game starts off as a side-scrolling adventure, where Brad can jump up or down cliffs. Unlike most platformers, Brad can not initially jump across gaps; the ability is later unlocked with an item. Walking into other grown men or monstrous abominations will often initiate a turn-based RPG battle, where Brad can use his martial arts via WASD while Terry…does something. Unpleasant decision-making is this game’s main jam, though, as Brad is frequently forced into making some terrifying choices. Would you sacrifice an arm to keep a vital party member alive? Would you go through a Russian Roulette just to get a powerful ally? The world Brad lives in is vast, darkly funny, and absolutely brutal.

LISA: The Painful RPGis available on Steam for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

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Weekly Game Music: Title Screen (Animal Crossing)


New week, new music.  Here’s yet another piano composition from the famed Nintendo music composer, Kazumi Totaka.  The calm, jazzy Title Screen music is quite appropriate for this laid back game, Animal Crossing.

The story behind Animal Crossing is very simple, if lacking.  You (yes, you) decide to leave home and travel to a town full of animals.  As you set yourself for a new, independent life, you encounter the main plot of the game: the local shopkeeper, Tom Nook.  Or, more precisely, the debt you owe for buying one of his houses.  Thus begins your quest for trying to pay-off this sneaky businessman, as he slowly inflates the haunting debt.

Fortunately for you, though, Tom Nook is in no hurry.  As a communication RPG, that’s rather critical.  The majority of the time is spent on talking with your randomly-generated neighbors and taking care of their errands.  The main draw of the game are its collectibles.  It allows you to customize your house with various furniture and accessories.  Since the game grades you on your content, it’s implied that you make it look as pretty as possible!

Animal Crossing was released on the Gamecube in 2001.  Its sequels were released on the Nintendo DS and Wii.  A sequel for the Nintendo 3DS is currently in the works.
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Weekly Game Music: Above the Treetops


Goodness, I keep forgetting about this.  Better late than never: I’ve got yet another MMORPG music for all of you.  Here’s Above the Treetops from ultra-popular MapleStory.  Unfortunately, the name of the composer(s) seems elusive at the moment, but enjoy the mellow tune as it is.

You can play the game for free at Maplestory’s website.

The plot of MapleStory is a simple one: the Black Mage, once sealed by 5 legendary heroes, has unfortunately re-awakened!  As the knight of the Maple World, you must fight!  Cue all the cute monsters that tries to rock your level 1 boat.

The gameplay is a little more interesting.  Much like Legend of Zelda II ,MapleStory is a 2D side-scrolling RPG, with some light platforming.  As with the MMORPG tradition, the collectible weapons and character costumes significantly spices up the action.  Any player should be able to find their most ideal play style, whether it’d be short-range, brute-force brawler style or long-range, tactical style.

MapleStory was released on the PC in 2005.  Offspring versions exists on the Nintendo DS and, oddly enough, Facebook.
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Weekly Game Music: Vinelle Island (Fantasy Earth Zero)


New week, new music. A few weeks ago, I’ve mentioned a Flash-based MMORPG with excellent music. This time, I’ll talk about a now-defunct MMORPG that, unfortunately, nobody can play anymore. Here’s Vinelle Island by Hitoshi Sakimoto. It’s from Fantasy Earth Zero.

Fantasy Earth Zero is a fantasy-based versus game that involves taking over other kingdom (teams). It’s a strange mix of real-time strategy and action-RPG. Like real-time strategy games, the players must collect resources called crystals at designated locations. Collecting enough crystals allows players to create infrastructures or summon units to take control of.

Like Action RPGs, there’s a controlled level system with a hard limit. Like console RPGs, Fantasy Earth Zero requires that you control your character directly. In addition, attacks must be aimed and executed manually. As such, the game requires immediate attention and reaction to heated battles.

Fantasy Earth Zero was released by Square Enix in 2006. While it has been released in the US in 2010, the game has been defunct and unplayable for over an year.

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Strange Free Games: Super Press Space to Win Adventure RPG 2009


About to watch the video? Stop. Play the game. Now. It’s short, don’t worry. I guarantee you’ll like it. Super Press Space to Win Adventure RPG 2009 is the best Flash-based RPG ever created. Play it on NewGrounds

I’ll let the game explain itself. It’s surprisingly well-thought-out.
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