Hey pretty good stuff actually! They actually made the timings fit for an LCD so I found it much more playable than the first game. The songs aren't as memorable as the studio's PS1 games but I quite like the Big song tbh.

It's too bad this game was a flop and this type of game fell out of style, but when it cost $90 adjusted for inflation I really can't blame people for the lukewarm response. Parappa 1 was considered innovative, but Parappa 2 competed with quite a lot of juggernauts like DDR so the hour long runtime didn't really impress audiences. Which is a shame, since I think it still holds its own rather well next to the titans.

Also the game has Lammy in it, so automatically a 10/10 game in spirit. I was surprised just how much she was featured since I remembered her only having a 5 second cameo in the anime!

Anyway who all eating the Parappa 2 pizza with me? https://i.imgur.com/lukW4xd.png

Cave Story is one of the all time indie classics. It has some of the most charming designs in a video game, with the paper white look of every character from the Mimigas to Quote and Curly being very iconic. The Amiga-like feel with the 50 FPS gameplay really gives it a vibe that's unlike other 21st century video games. Not to mention the music is some of the most elaborate I've heard from a composer wanting to emulate chiptunes https://youtu.be/IdAzVhCof_4

Yet every time I try to play Cave Story I simply have fun in the first few areas, reach the sand area, and just lose all my momentum. I forced myself to get the best ending today and I'm kind of at a loss. Keeping track of the weapon levels is annoying, finishing the sand zone is the longest hour of my life with the collectathon elements, there's a total lack of QOL due to the player being unable to do things like equip multiple items (ie jet + mask) at the same time, the weapon levels forcibly reset near the end, the true ending is some of the most cryptic and unintuitive nonsense in a video game....

I have endless respect for Cave Story. I love the graphics and music, I enjoy some parts like the early game and some bosses, and the Spur weapon and jet can make movement actually pretty fun near the end of the game. But having to keep in the back of my mind how easy it is to screw myself out of a proper ending, as well as constantly swapping weapons and even having to make sure not to level up the Nemesis... it all adds up to making me not actually enjoy playing the game overall.

It's a well made game, and I think there's a lot to like. I'm not a huge metroidvania player and I'm someone who primarily likes quick and kinetic sidescrollers I can speedrun endlessly, so I reckon bigger metroidvania fans have every reason to get more out of the game than I did. It's also not terribly long, being roughly 5 hours with a guide, so it's honestly worth a playthrough once for anyone who wants to see an influential indie work in action. It's super impressive work, but I just find myself enjoying the creator's other games much more.

I'm glad I went through it, and I'm glad I got to meet Balrog and Curly my beloved, but I'd definitely call it one of the better games I'm happy never to touch again personally.

Shoutout to the godlike Aeon Genesis translation btw, much prefer it to the official translation. Balrog's HUZZAH is the superior catchphrase, I'm sorry https://www.deviantart.com/extreme-sonic/art/Cave-Story-HUZZAH-374739229