Author Topic: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!  (Read 11824 times)

VIVIT

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Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« on: September 13, 2016, 12:36:28 AM »










This is ill-advised to say the least. I have just enough experience with this game to beat this game with a whole lot of grinding (although I suppose it isn't technically grinding -- more on this later), and I have ZIP ZILCH NADA GOOSE-EGG experience with Let's Plays, screenshot or otherwise.

Ah, what the hell; let's do this.

Mystery Dungeon 2: Shiren the Wanderer is a console roguelike developed by Chunsoft for the Super Famicom in 1995. It was never exported to the US until a 2008 DS remake, which I won't be playing because of personal nitpicks, mostly about the loot generation tables.

The game is a classical roguelike, which means that it's got all of the standard roguelike conventions beyond simple permadeath and procedural generation: turn-based and grid-based exploration and combat, item identification, and hard-as-balls difficulty. Being a console game, it's got a few concessions to make the game easier for the kids, but funnily enough, those very things that make the game easier just make the game more painful to play. If that doesn't make sense to you, you'll see what I mean soon enough. Perfect for a filthy masochistic bitch like me, and perfect for filthy sadistic LP readers like you. Mark my words, there's a world of delightful agony in store for us.

The plot is simple enough that you've already seen most of it. What's really endearing about this game fluffwise is its cast and setting. We'll be introduced to both soon enough, so I won't waste any bandwidth on either here. Our hero is an enigmatic ronin samurai, about whose past little is ever revealed. That's really all you need to know to give him a name:



What shall it be, Maidens? 6 characters max.
« Last Edit: September 13, 2016, 12:51:06 AM by VIVIT »

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #1 on: September 13, 2016, 03:14:11 AM »
Let's go with...

Well, samurai, right? Might as well go with Youki.

VIVIT

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  • ow my hand
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #2 on: September 13, 2016, 02:31:33 PM »
Well, samurai, right?
Even that much is barely explained. He's the "aimless wanderer" archetype in the context of fantasy feudal Japan, and the most congruous profession to that is the ronin -- a samurai who was left without a liege after their liege's death or fall from nobility, but chose to suffer the dishonor rather than commit seppuku. They became drifters, the comparatively honorable ones serving as mercenaries (usually bodyguards or trade caravan escorts) and the rest getting involved in banditry or organized crime. Our hero does neither; he simply seeks... something. Glory? Adventure? Fulfillment? Fortune? Again, we know very little about him.

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #3 on: September 13, 2016, 04:41:28 PM »
Well, given that most of Youki is fanon amyway, let's go with that name.

Unless someone else has an alternative or objection.

EDIT: Fixed "Gabon" to "fanon". Damn you, Autocorrect!
« Last Edit: September 15, 2016, 12:45:01 AM by AzyWng »

Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #4 on: September 14, 2016, 12:55:06 AM »
I'm envisioning Shiren as being characterized by misfortune.  Someone who is fated to stumble into traps or meet his untimely death.

A good name for that would be 'Wile E' (as in Wile E. Coyote).  'Coyote' by itself would also fit into 6 characters.

Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #5 on: September 16, 2016, 03:00:41 PM »
What a coincidence, I recently picked up a copy of the DS version when I was looking for a roguelike to play on my DS when I'm travelling. It was the only one I could find that the internet seemed to agree was any good. I haven't given it a try yet though.

VIVIT

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  • ow my hand
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #6 on: September 17, 2016, 08:42:26 PM »
I've been emulating Shiren SFC on my smartphone for bus rides. I've almost unlocked the Super Impossible Bonus dungeon on that version. I like burning time with roguelikes: they're time consuming, but highly technical and skill-intensive rather than mindlessly grindy. Shiren (as you guys will see) can be either depending on how you play it.

Anybody else have votes on names? I'd like to get this party started soon.

nav'

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Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #7 on: September 17, 2016, 09:50:16 PM »
Anybody else have votes on names? I'd like to get this party started soon.
Wait, how's that work exactly? Do we submit names and you pick the one you like the most, or does the name submitted most often get picked?

Given all the praise you've been showering this game with lately, and my modest interest in roguelikes, I'll be following this thread carefully.
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

VIVIT

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  • ow my hand
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #8 on: September 17, 2016, 09:59:01 PM »
Wait, how's that work exactly? Do we submit names and you pick the one you like the most, or does the name submitted most often get picked
Something like that? I'll go by whichever gets the most votes unless something that's just too good to pass up is mentioned. What do you think he should be named?

nav'

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  • definitely not a Ditto
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #9 on: September 17, 2016, 10:05:48 PM »
Something like that? I'll go by whichever gets the most votes unless something that's just too good to pass up is mentioned. What do you think he should be named?
Understood, I was just wondering because it doesn't seem likely that multiple people would suggest the same name.

In any case, my pick is "Denton". Too bad JC Denton doesn't fit.
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #10 on: September 17, 2016, 11:20:13 PM »
Understood, I was just wondering because it doesn't seem likely that multiple people would suggest the same name.

In any case, my pick is "Denton". Too bad JC Denton doesn't fit.

Welcome to Table Mountain, Denton! May as well start using your codename now.

VIVIT

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Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #11 on: September 19, 2016, 04:54:34 PM »
Anybody else have votes on names? I'd like to get this ball rolling as soon as possible.

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #12 on: September 19, 2016, 11:30:37 PM »
I think I'll change my own vote to "Denton". The Deus Ex reference did it for me, and the possibilities for shenanigans are much greater than with Youki, I believe.

VIVIT

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Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #13 on: September 20, 2016, 01:22:52 AM »
I know very little about Deus Ex, though, so I wouldn't be able to do anything interesting with that name. But sure, I'll run with it.

Last call on name votes for anybody else?

nav'

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  • definitely not a Ditto
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #14 on: September 20, 2016, 06:38:02 AM »
I know very little about Deus Ex, though, so I wouldn't be able to do anything interesting with that name. But sure, I'll run with it.
Oh, too bad, it is one of the best games ever made. You could always try to include something from this classic moment somewhere in the LP.

Welcome to Table Mountain, Denton! May as well start using your codename now.
Paul... I... I... I thought you were a GEP gun.
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

nav'

  • nothing to see here
  • definitely not a Ditto
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #15 on: October 06, 2016, 09:42:36 PM »
Hope this isn't abandoned before it even started?
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

VIVIT

  • Robot maid
  • ow my hand
AHAHAHAH
HAHA
AHAHA
HAHA
HA

O YE OF LITTLE FAITH

BGM - "Story"




His name was Denton.
Heeding a friend's dying wish, he started out on a long journey.
It's been half a year since we met. Though we're constantly bickering...




Denton! Over there!






Come on! Let's go!

BGM - "Koppa's theme"



I'm Koppa. I'm one of a rare breed of "Talking Weasels." It was me that suggested we come to impasse valley. That's 'cause I heard the rumors of the Golden City. But getting this far has been really tough! Well, I was just sleeping in the luggage...


« Last Edit: May 10, 2017, 10:50:31 PM by VIVIT »

Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #17 on: May 07, 2017, 12:20:43 PM »
You know, looking at the opening shots I have questions about what kind of erosion patterns could create this so called "Table Mountain"...

Maybe the answer lies within the Golden City!

nav'

  • nothing to see here
  • definitely not a Ditto
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #18 on: May 07, 2017, 12:36:38 PM »
Jesus Christ, Denton! You're alive!
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #19 on: May 07, 2017, 10:09:05 PM »
AHAHAHAH
HAHA
AHAHA
HAHA
HA

O YE OF LITTLE FAITH

Let's compare the date's between nav''s last post before your update and your actual update itself.

? on: October 06, 2016, 09:42:36 pm ?

While your own post was:
? on: May 05, 2017, 09:11:30 pm ?

I don't think "little faith" accurately describes my own situation...

Your Everyday NEET

  • Part time Researcher & Let's Player, full time NEET, also an eel
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #20 on: May 08, 2017, 01:35:46 PM »
Look at the bright side: At least this LP is revived. I hope it won't be abandoned after 1 significant (yet short) update.

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #21 on: May 08, 2017, 07:07:52 PM »
Also, do any Kappa appear in this game? Just wondering.

VIVIT

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  • ow my hand

VIVIT

  • Robot maid
  • ow my hand
Inn the Beginning
« Reply #23 on: May 10, 2017, 06:45:10 PM »


BGM - "Valley Inn"

This is the Valley Inn, the beginning area of the game. After every death, of which you will undoubtedly see many over the course of this Let's Play, we get sent back here. Although it doesn't serve much purpose mechanically, It's a nice, comfy little area to start our quest each time we die horrible, and really helps add to the flavor of the game -- there's no real urgency to our hero's quest, no looming threat to the world that must be taken care of as soon as possible; Denton has all the time he needs to tackle Table Mountain. This allows the game to maintain plot continuity between runs -- if you get halfway through the dungeon before dying, any progress you make on any sidequests along the way is remembered by your save file, and is considered canon to the story. This stands in contrast to classic computer roguelikes, where "permanent death" means that every time you start a new run, you're creating an entirely different character -- even if most players will just reuse the same character template over and over. In this game, on the other hand, no matter how may times we splat, it'll still be the same Denton waking up in the same Valley Inn for a different day of horrible torture on the same road to the Land of the Sun.


Koppa: "It's a memento of his friend's. True that you don't see many Wanderers wearing them nowadays though."
Man: "Whoa, you're a talking weasel! That's pretty uncommon too!"


Yes, very astute observation of you, Mr. Unnamed NPC. Any other smart remarks?




Hmm -- an inn in a town called "Valley Inn". Fascinating.


The man to the right is the warehouse guard, who explains to us how to properly take advantage of the warehouse -- but we'll be leaving him alone, because I'd rather explain it myself.

Warehouses are the first of the game's "mercy mechanics" as a console roguelike. Anything you stash in here will be saved between runs, leaving all its special properties intact, allowing you to hoard the best loot from your runs before equipping it all at once and heading for the Land of the Sun for real! This mechanic is probably the most important one out of all the mercy mechanics in the game, and the one that most distinctly sets it apart from more traditional mainframe roguelikes. There are some caveats to this mechanic, but we'll cross those bridges when we come to them.

In roguelike jargon, rules that keep track of some kind of progress between runs rather than during are called metaprogression. The most traditional of roguelikes have no metaprogression at all, so this can naturally be a very heated topic among roguelike purists! By the standards of indie neo-roguelikes, the metaprogression mechanics in Shiren the Wanderer are actually pretty weak, in that they don't have a significant impact on the overall gameplay experience, but by the standards of traditional roguelikes, the metaprogression elements in Shiren are quite strong.


The kanji for "warehouse" or "storehouse" is painted on a banner to the side of the door in elegant calligraphy. Denton stops to admire it. The localization in the DS release of the game changes all kanji signs to small pictures, like a sword or a mug of beer, hinting at the nature of the business inside, but this fan translation leaves all the kanji in for flavor -- and, presumably, the convenience of not having to edit any sprites.


No inn town in an RPG would be complete without a bar, of course. To our left is another kanji banner, this time with the kanji for sake on it -- this is the one that would be replaced with a slightly setting-inappropriate mug of beer if we were playing the DS version.


"You've got promise. So I'll tell ya something. Equip your arrows, then use the L button... and fire! Fire!! FIRE!!!!!"

Oookaaay. If I ever find any arrows, I'll keep that in mind, sir.

Denton takes note of the pub and reminds himself to come back to it later if he needs a little something to forget the horrors on the road ahead.



Heading east, his attention is drawn to a sign hanging out in the middle of the path. Denton stops for a moment to read it.

It appears to be a scoreboard of some kind -- perhaps for a local gambling tournament.
Wait... who was that Shiren person anyway?


The last object of interest in the town is this one last building. There don't seem to be any people standing around by it, and it has no sign with a name on it -- only another banner, with the kanji "番" -- ban, meaning "turn", "round", or "number of a series". I wonder what goes on in here?

Next update -- exploring the buildings!
« Last Edit: May 10, 2017, 07:05:58 PM by VIVIT »

nav'

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  • definitely not a Ditto
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #24 on: May 10, 2017, 07:47:31 PM »
Yay, content! Excellent, verbose content! And even a weasel ready to rip someone's aorta. Keep this up, Vivvy.

This is what I was made for, isn't it? This why I exist? Alright. Let's do this.
--JC Denton, Helios ending

Does the Warehouse mean you'll be retreating every time you find a particularly good piece of equipment, or what?
« Last Edit: May 10, 2017, 07:49:25 PM by nav' »
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #25 on: May 10, 2017, 10:20:52 PM »
What do the kanji on he scoreboard read?

Also, how are the drinks here?

VIVIT

  • Robot maid
  • ow my hand
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #26 on: May 10, 2017, 11:28:54 PM »
Does the Warehouse mean you'll be retreating every time you find a particularly good piece of equipment, or what?
There are a total of three warehouses in the game, with two others in two more towns further down the road. We can also get items into warehouses by hiring NPCs, and by magical means. Good thing, too, because I don't believe this version of the game allows backtracking.

What do the kanji on he scoreboard read?

Also, how are the drinks here?
The kanji on the scoreboard read "風来人番付" or "wanderer rankings." As for the drinks? Well, booze is booze.


VIVIT

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Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #27 on: May 12, 2017, 05:50:54 PM »
Seeing nothing else of interest in the town, Denton decides to check out the bar.



Listening in, we hear two men talking at our right:

Adventurer: "Have you gotten past Tenma Pass?"
Traveller: "Nah. It takes me everything I've got just to make it to the stream. Shit, if only I had a buddy to take with me, it'd be a lot easier..."


Oh, foul-mouthed fansubs. Whatever would we do without you?

Turning to us, a scruffy-haired wanderer speaks:

"Strangers that pass out in the wilderness always end up getting sent back here to the Valley Inn. And nobody yet has made it to the Land of the Sun."
He explains to us a bit of how roguelikes work.

From the far corner of the room, a fellow rain-hat-wearer catches our gaze and blurts out to us in the boisterous mumble of a drunken man:

"*Hic*... I believe the stories! I believe the Golden Condor legend passed down from generation to generation here in Impasse Valley!"



Ignoring him, we continue to look about the r-



My my, who have we here?


"...Ah, sorry! But take a look around, there are nothing but grubby guys here, you know? And a lot of dirty old men too. So I'm glad to see a young guy like you for a change. Pleased to meet you!

"Talk to my dad, he'll give you some food."


Taking the girl's advice, we stop by the counter, speaking to the elegantly mustachioed gentleman we can only assume is the father of as fine a girl as present company.


Shall we tell him, Maidens, or shall we remain silent, fitly for an mysterious drifter like Denton?

nav'

  • nothing to see here
  • definitely not a Ditto
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #28 on: May 12, 2017, 07:16:04 PM »
No idea what the consequences of this decision are, but I'd exercise caution. A secret operative should not be too nonchalant about revealing their identity.
Рабинович глядит на плакат ?Ленин умер, но дело его живет!?
? уж лучше бы о он жил!

AzyWng

  • "I was a dumb American in a place where dumb Americans were less popular than the clap."
  • "So this was it. My easy retirement."
Re: Free as the Mountain Wind: Let's Play Shiren the Wanderer!
« Reply #29 on: May 13, 2017, 01:50:13 PM »
Let's keep quiet for now.

Making noise is not a very Denton thing to do.