Sea of Stars (Zero Punctuation)

[@theescapist]

This week's Zero Punctuation episode on Starfield is now available in Early Access on Patreon and KZbin Memberships. We're also offering a 10% discount on our annual memberships on Patreon for a limited time at both the $2 (Early Access) and $5 (Sponsor-free) tiers! www.patreon.com/the_escapist

[@Ragetiger1]

oh boy, Loading Simulator 2024! This is going to be a fun one.

[@44Quantum]

Can't wait. Yahtzee will it no mercy.

[@naoway336]

The term Neo-fascism is dumb. Neo-nazi makes sense, it’s a nazi not part of the nazi party. Or a person similarly acting like a nazi in an era where the Nazi party doesn’t exist. What does neo fascism mean? It’s just fascism.

[@rocko7711]

❤

[@violet_broregarde]

it's a pretty bold choice to make fun of the ninja pirate for being an early-2000's newgrounds gag when you're basically the angry video game nerd in a fedora

[@adamtapparo2168]

This episode had so many dumb visual gags and puns and I love it so much. “Some extra planning on the fly” made me choke on my drink.

[@Arcananine77]

The visuals for the "powers of the Sun and Moon" were really funny as well.

[@BrunoMaricFromZagreb]

"Had me thrown..." Also,what's the joke at 3:16 with Newground's ears burning? What is that supposed to represent?

[@Deathstorm501]

​@@BrunoMaricFromZagrebnewgrounds is now old enough to feel embarrassed by the cringe worthy shit it got up to in the aughts

[@igorthelight]

"made me choke on my drink." - be careful not to choke on your aspirations, Director! ;-)

[@sailoritaly]

“Why am I in this coffin, it’s very dark!” Had me rolling!

[@Narifamen]

The best part about Sea Of Stars is that while Valere and Zale are clearly the chosen ones - being enormously talented at magic - Garl is the hero. The normal dude who fights with a freaking pot lid as a weapon.

[@jeanguylouisbourg]

Yeah, i had that discussion with one of my friends and we both agreed that Garl and Seraï are basically the main characters

[@devinspencer1678]

Typical second lead syndrome (probably not the right usage, but whatevs). The MCs need to be universally relatable, which ends up with them having little to no personality or motivation of their own. The supporting cast have no such baggage, so they get to be as unique and personal as they want to be.

[@smonkk8556]

while it does have an issue or two (our leads are kind of uninteresting at times, for example) it is quite fun to spin the JRPG formula and have the everyman hero be the one who joins in later on, with you seeing the perspective of the slightly more plot relevant characters who would typically be thrown in much later into the story to convey that stakes are real now. i think it's a nice way to both have the conventional genre tropes we're all used to and would maybe actually miss if they were gone, without having it be so paint by numbers that the game eliminates its worth by being 100 things you've already seen before

[@Garrus1995]

I’m kind of reminded of the story of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. When you think about it, the story of that game isn’t really about your character; it’s about Martin Septim. You have to go off and find the guy who has no idea that he’s the lost son of a recently murdered emperor in order to put a stop to an apocalyptic evil. The PC helps facilitate a lot of the events, but it’s never really about them; you’re just there to help a guy stop Armageddon and when it’s over you kind of just waltz off to do other stuff.

[@jmiller6066]

Garl is easily the best character in the game, and added a lot of color to an otherwise pretty generic JRPG party. Second best is B'st - his dialogue isn't anything too special but there's so much conveyed through his animations and design.

[@HonkeyKongLive]

I love that little aside about a DnD character with so much charisma it pisses everyone else off considering that's exactly what Yahtzee is doing in their game lol

[@zen_of_chloe]

So that’s why my DM was annoyed with me

[@paulrus-keaton439]

Steven Universe plays DnD.

[@icarue993]

I love that the irony is not lost to like half the comments so far

[@Uxkull_V]

To be fair, everyone in the group except KC (Sigmar) does the same. I was totally picturing their DM, Jack, attacking them with the Dice bag whenever he mentioned that bit. 😂

[@RaxusXeronos]

@@paulrus-keaton439 I dunno. Someone recently pointed out that Steven...doesn't really have a good track record of convincing people. He usually tries and then circumstances happen that either work in his favor or the problem character gets removed from the equation.

[@zBurlz]

The ninja pirate's name is Klee'shae. They know it's a ridiculous trope.

[@matthewmuir8884]

Okay; that's actually a clever joke.

[@anexplosion5436]

Holy shit I just got that. It's pronounced Cliché.

[@avataraarow]

Jesus I can’t believe I didn’t catch that at first

[@Emilio1985]

For real. The first big reveal about her is immediately responded to by the party members with "Yea, we already knew." It's almost as if the devs knew what they were doing by leaning into the style of video game storytelling in the 90s but doing so in the year of our dark lord 2023.

[@bugjams]

​@@anexplosion5436 yes little jimmy... congrats! would you like a cupcake?

[@bobemor]

You know Yatzhee really is enjoying D&D because he can't go a review without using a D&D trope as an extended metaphor.

[@Kuraerisu]

It appeals to his writer brain.

[@zibbitybibbitybop]

D&D is the absolute best source of analogies, in my experience of having played it for over a decade now.

[@jkitty542]

Yatzee referencing dog sick so much in this review makes me hope that Toffee is alright.

[@TonyTheTGR]

This

[@jkitty542]

@@TonyTheTGR Not sure if you saw the post ZP stream, but Toffee's back from the kennell and has a new scarf!

[@TonyTheTGR]

That's good! I'm so glad to hear it.

[@AngelusNielson]

By the way, Garth literally does say "I made sandwiches." he's the cook.

[@nintendude794]

Party on, Garthle. Party on, Waynle!

[@AngelusNielson]

@@nintendude794 Gare-eth not "Garth"

[@Jabbernut-games]

Yeah that was a really weird subversion (if you can even call it that), that he literally pops out of the bushes with sandwiches after the dramatic flashback sequence.

[@StealthMarmot_]

And immediately he would become my favorite. Those three words could make me hug Cthulu.

[@nintendude794]

@@AngelusNielson Garl, not “Garth”. Unless he’s called Garth in one of the non-English versions of the game or something.

[@casualbird7671]

"Why am I in this coffin it's very dark" caught me so off guard and caused quite the laugh

[@PaperCatGames]

It's funny how Yahtzee was expecting Garl to be a masked villain type person when all the promotional material beyond the key art shows him as a party member. I knew the whole time playing the opening hours that he would join and I was waiting for it to happen. Makes me think that I would have enjoyed the opening to the game more if I didn't watch the launch trailer.

[@HonkeyKongLive]

Yahtzee tries really hard to avoid too much promotional material outside of stuff he watches for work (like E3 stuff) and playable demos if they're available. I think it's the best way to do it.

[@RustoKomuska]

Watching trailers for anything is a waste if you're interested because it kills excitement and if you're not interested because who cares

[@prcervi]

old hat jrpg fan, kinda expected more plot to happen between start and garl joining

[@levesteM]

In The Messenger they kinda did that as well. Mild spoilers: When you speak to the shopkeeper after going to the future and everything becomes 16 bit, your character will say how unexpected it is. To which the shopkeeper says "Someone hasn't seen the trailer"

[@ribbon_dye]

To be fair, you needa go out of your way to check out the promotional material first. I honestly had a similar run as Yahtzee did. I was expecting the whole friend goes evil schlock only to be greatly surprised to find Garl didn't go that route. Hes easily the best character in the game thus far too, and I've only just now met the pirates. Game has a very 90s RPG vibe to how everyone acts and I'm loving it.

[@ASquared544]

I wonder if Yahtzee finished the game. He would’ve been livid to learn that Pirate Ninja is also a cyborg

[@brainflash1]

She'd actually say: Has the maid returned with my Social Security check yet?

[@philroo1]

It was restitution for what the state had stolen.

[@Alverant]

@@philroo1"The state" doesn't steal anything. If she doesn't want to pay taxes, she should go back to her homeland. The only reason she left was because she wasn't part of the elite. That's the problem with the libertarian mindset, they think they're entitled to live like royalty for reasons and everyone else to be in awe of them otherwise it's some kind of oppression.

[@greenredblue]

​@@philroo1If Ayn Rand believed such a shoddy, nakedly self-serving rationalization, she wouldn't have spent so long in poverty, refusing to enroll in Medicare.

[@Fedacking]

Ayn Rand ideology: be as selfish as possible Critics: she's a hypocrite when she's selfish! Huh?

[@Sam-vf5uc]

Telling someone who supports less state intervention to forego the benefits their taxes are paying for is like telling someone who supports more state intervention to go ahead and pay the extra taxes now before the policies are actually enacted.

[@LSDnSideBurns]

I can confirm indeed that wearing armour is easy tiny baby mode, and the only way to truly be man is to fight Malenia bare ass naked with 2 katanas

[@MissPoplarLeaf]

Don't forget the pot on your head! Very important.

[@EmeralBookwise]

Weapons increase damage, increasing damage is also baby mode. Git gud scrub and fight her naked with your bare fists :-p

[@daemonwhite3740]

@@MissPoplarLeaf Wait a minute.... THAT'S ARMOUR! BABY MODE DETECTED

[@VeritabIlIti]

​@@daemonwhite3740considering that there's a race of anthropomorphic pots in Elden Ring, you could just as soon claim that it's the desecrated corpse of a child

[@ingerasulffs]

To be honest, armor doesn't help much with Malenia I feel.

[@VeritabIlIti]

If Ayn Rand were to happen to reanimate in that fashion, Id just as soon remind her of her objectivist obligation to pull herself out by her bootstraps.

[@OneOfTheLoveless]

I applaude ayn rand's instinct for immediatly identifying a coffin without seeing anything.

[@stevethepocket]

It's an exactly-person-sized box that's padded like a couch cushion on the bottom and sides and has an arched lid; I can't imagine it could have been anything else.

[@EmoSupremo-h9f]

Thus the powers of Objectivism reign superior.

[@DanGamingFan2406]

You could tell Yahtzee was speaking from experience in that DND bit. (Aside from that one infamous nat 1.) I feel like I should I be worried about Jacks' sanity. Also, that closing remark from Ayn Rand was hilarious.

[@watershipup7101]

Yeah, that roll was wild.

[@genjis5155]

I was rolling on the floor.

[@thusnameddigital9397]

It's only a matter of time before the dice bag comes out.

[@strain42]

I actually WAS traumatized by the letter "i" when I was a kid! See, it was during a spelling test and the teacher called out "I" and I specifically asked "Do you mean the letter or eye like eyeball?" she said "the letter" so I wrote "i" and she marked it wrong because I'd written a lower case i. So now I permanently live with the knowledge that once upon a time, I was so stupid that I misspelled a one letter word. The end.

[@pairofrooks]

😂😂😂

[@mesektet5776]

I wonder if Odin made a similar deal? Odin: “Alright, Well, I’ll trade having two eyes for having a third digit wisdom score.” Garl: “Yo, Well, same deal but Charisma instead of Wis.”

[@Konpekikaminari]

That was one of the most positive Zero Punctuation videos I've seen

[@MrMetalforever5]

Sounds like it must’ve been your first.

[@red__guy]

No review will be as positive as his Painkiller review.

[@theunnamedaccount4009]

@@red__guy I thought you were making a joke about how Yahtzee would only say positive things about drugs that make the demons go away, but after a quick search, no, that is most definitely the best review he has ever given a game

[@HollowGolem]

​@@theunnamedaccount4009It's hard to beat shurikens and lightning.

[@paulfimbres9443]

His opening segment: “The company that employees me has a *branded launch partnership* with this game. Don’t expect me to actually criticize it.” And then he doesn’t even attempt to criticize it. Hmm. I wonder why not.

[@StrikeWarlock]

Yahtzee goes through the Soulsborne realization where the difficulty option is baked into the gameplay, not the options.

[@Hero_Puddle]

Still pretty good to have a clear intended scope of difficulty which is separate from any alternate options purely for people who want to skip or mitigate the challenge.

[@kiriseraph9674]

I feel like the game would lose it's mystique with an easy mode.

[@StrikeWarlock]

@@kiriseraph9674 For the Soulsborne genre, yes, that's been Miyazaki's intent as to why he preserves the game's base difficulty. It ties the game narratively and mechanically.

[@Hero_Puddle]

@@kiriseraph9674 There are plenty of people who appreciate the game without its challenge. Even then, if somebody has just as much trouble completing the game on a lower difficulty as the core audience does on it's standard difficulty doesn't that preserve the game's mystique? same level of challenge relative to the person's skill and all?

[@Kalnaur]

@@Hero_Puddle Yeah, that's always been my point: everyone is NOT starting from even close to the same point, and what might be hard for one person can easily be impossible to the next person, and if we're really interested in preserving the feel of the challenge of a Soulsborne game (hard but not impossible), it would stand to reason that settings (actual settings, not items or grinding or whatever else) would be the most reasonable way to adapt the difficulty to be "hard" for any player.

[@hailmuffins6934]

Is Yahtzee playing DnD outside his contractual obligations with Adventure is Nigh? Because that Paladin analogy felt weirdly specific.

[@firered23ful]

He probably listens to some podcasts

[@crackedemerald4930]

​@@firered23ful"Yahtzee listens to some podcasts" is like looking at a gay couple smooching horrors and thinking "i think they're close" lmao "game to play with a podcast" is one of his game categories. Honestly, never thought about what kind of podcasts he listens to even.

[@thomastakesatollforthedark2231]

​@@crackedemerald4930true but knowing him id have expected the podcasts to be human anatomy and "how to make Beelzebub do your laundry with a spatula" based more than dnd

[@ikebirchum6591]

​@@crackedemerald4930"they must be very good friends"

[@ZodiacShadow71]

​@@ikebirchum6591Probably roommates.

[@deanospimoniful]

That dad joke at the end was perfect.

[@EpicRelentless]

Sleeper hit of the review.

[@andrewphilos]

Has Yahtz done a full Extra Punctuation video on accessibility tools? Based off of that last discussion, it sounds like he has a lot to say about it that didn't really fit in the full review. (For my part, I think designing accessibility tools in such a way that they feel good to use without cheapening the experience is a new frontier of game design that's still in its early exploration. I can't wait to see where it goes from here!)

[@beefpelican]

I’m finally playing Deathloop and I like its difficulty slider. It’s one bar and it controls how many redos you get before your character is dead for good. I find that a lot more satisfying than making the enemies bullet sponges, or dumbing down the AI on easy mode.

[@Mene0]

I don't think so, but I think JM8 did one on Celeste and its acessibility options. Don't remember if it was for the Escapist or his own channel though, might wanna check that one out

[@billyeveryteen7328]

What is there to even say about them? They're there for the people who want or need them and can be completely ignored by the people that don't.

[@prcervi]

i think there's a debate video with him and jack that actually covered that? it been awhile since then

[@NotaWalrus1]

A lot of people like to pretend it doesn't matter how they're designed and whether they make the game less engaging on the grounds of "oh you can just ignore it". There's one person in this very comment thread doing that, even. They can be done very well and be a huge asset to a game, but in Sea of Stars's case I think they're quite badly-designed.

[@kairider1770]

I’ve got a drinking game for this year’s ZP compilation: take a shot every time Yahtzee promotes something else from The Escapist

[@sabiro2315]

Probably Nick the editor asking him to do it, and honestly I can't really fault him that much.

[@ryankudebeh2570]

The only truly good thing the Escapism has added in years is Cold Take, and they don't need to promote that because it sells itself. Actually good stuff usually does, when there's a large viewer base to start with.

[@jacketyt6992]

This aged like milk

[@pebcak]

The whole pirate thing makes more sense when you get further into the game and learn that character’s origin. I remember thinking some bits of the story felt very contrived, but a lot of it gets explained.

[@GabrielMaciel-tr9kl]

There are several layers to that companion. It goes deep. She's awesome.

[@jadenwagener3259]

That moment when you find out who she really is...

[@almightyk11]

I think the fundamental difference between a half damage relic, and armor reducing damage is the inherent nature of scaling. Usually by the time you get to the point in the game where you are reducing incoming damage by half, you have struggled to get to that point and earned it. And in some games, heavier more durable armour comes with other trade offs, such as lowered accuracy or dodge chance. On the other hand, having it given to you by a relic at the start is effectively an unearned boost with no trade off.

[@dumbbumsc5329]

I’m glad they’re optional and I wasn’t forced to play with them on

[@shelbyherring92]

I'd say since they're optional - it's fine. And it is nice that the relics are essentially your difficulty settings that you can change at any time. Is gonna make speedrun categories a nightmare though.

[@MrOmegatronic]

That, and difficulty reduction options tend to be outside the game's intended scaling by a _significant_ margin, whereas the game actually accounts for armour in its balancing.

[@CushionSapp]

So in the end, Yahtzee thought Sea of Stars was...fine

[@thedudewhoeatspianos]

GoTY

[@hailmuffins6934]

"Oh, a fine from Yahtzee ishigh praise anywhere else!"

[@Numberfoxify]

Buzz buzz!

[@Jabbernut-games]

Yeah he didn't seem too interested. I was expecting him to mention the great animations or the soundtrack, but instead he just talks about the plot setup and the bland characters.

[@chiselbit2]

He also made sure to mention the baby mode relics as a negative but didn't mention the opposite exists in the form of hard mode relics so the experience is adjustable to preference. Not his best work.@@Jabbernut-games

[@superspider64]

Now that's actually an interesting philosophical quandry you made at the end there

[@williamgreci8219]

Agreed.

[@ctpp64]

especially since in this game in particular, you flat out have to buy some of the "accessibility options". there's one that makes your ship go faster. so it's like, am i upgrading my ship or turning on an easy mode?

[@randomgamingramblings]

I burst out laughing with that Ayn Rand bit. That was unexpected, thank you!

[@Cronosonic]

If you want another indie JRPG to review, albeit one that's been around for a few years, I absolutely recommend Crosscode, a rather fun action RPG set in a fictional MMO. It literally has a protagonist who is suffering from being a literal mute and through a specific workaround can only communicate through body language and a limited number of words, and she has a surprising amount of personality, though it helps that she has a cast of interesting characters to bounce off of too.

[@Kunailover101]

Playing high Charisma Characters is always fun. Many characters and player characters end up helping you due to it.

[@tuseroni6085]

my dms always make me role play the high charisma character or give some idea of what he is saying, look i took high charisma for my fantasy character because i don't have any irl, i have no fecking clue what people say to people to convince them of things, i'm a programmer, i convince COMPUTERS.

[@JESK-rh1tw]

Yahtzee’s D&D character is a roguish bard (or bardish rogue) who always tries to deceive his way out of combat 😂

[@hanniballahr94]

2:29 18 Charisma DnD player? Now why does that sound familiar on the Escapist?

[@lf4227]

The pissing on Atlas Shrugged really ties this whole episode together beautifully.

[@terracottafred5126]

The mention of the DnD character with high charisma brought on fond memories of when I caused my DM to have a mental breakdown by rolling a Nat 20 on persuasion and convinced an army of 124 self-multiplying gerbils to join our party.

[@cybertramon0012]

I’d say the argument about when armor becomes easy mode is when it gets too powerful too early (like how this video shows it as a 50% damage reduction). RPGs can definitely have armor that strong, but it’s usually something you acquire near the end as the final town equipment, a prize from a difficult dungeon, or a crafted item made from extremely rare objects. Basically, it’s ok if you had to put the effort in to get the item, because then it’s a reward for your hard work and for putting up with less effective armor up to that point.

[@zeosummers3984]

RPGs armor is to make getting hit more manageable , while reduction is left to elemental attacks or post secret boss fight. If its 50% natural from end game armor it's more the damage formula. Sea of stars has bosses hitting for 20 or 40 which is so low, normal enemies feel more dangerous. The values would still add up to just getting armor.

[@dqflynn]

I love the game, but have to concur with the bit about Relics. It feels like it's unclear which ones are "you can buy this upgrade with a tradeoff" and which ones are easy mode. It's easy enough when the headmaster hands you an amulet literally called the "Amulet of Storytelling" that doubles your HP and full-heals you after every encounter, but when you can buy the "Golden Tooth" for 225G that lowers shop prices, it's a little more fuzzy.

[@HUNbullseye]

Yeah, what kind of monsters would try to talk/lie their way out of every combat encounter that -Ja-... the DM really meticulously designed to be fun and challenging?

[@Excelsior1937]

I felt a little bit bad when Yahtz said it was disappointingly easy because I felt pretty challenged by the game in the early parts, but then he mentioned refilling health and mana completely at fires and using items in combat and I realized he played on Normal mode, while I played with Tactician’s Mettle on from the very beginning. If anyone is considering playing this and has experience with rpgs I highly recommend playing with Tactician’s Mettle on because it adds some extra challenge and helps make the gameplay incredibly fun.

[@ctpp64]

idk why he didn't turn on that relic, it's basically the intended experience for the game. and yeah i also had trouble with the early parts of the game. tho it gets easier once serai joins since she's broken iirc

[@spencerbowler7287]

4:57 This is exactly how I felt in Skyrim when I realized that the Orc’s racial power “deal double damage and take half for 60 seconds” was literally synonymous with going into the setting’s menu and turning the game’s difficulty down temporarily, lmao

[@axelprino]

I actually wasn't aware of this game but this review definitely put it in my radar, I also really liked The Messenger so this being by the same studio makes me think I'll like the writing.

[@jadenwagener3259]

If you liked The Messenger, it gets better. Sea of Stars is set in the same universe and takes place prior to the events of The Messenger, with quite a number of references to it.

[@Epicmonk117]

3:14 Believe it or not, ninja pirates actually did exist. Each of the shinobi clans of the Warring States Period had their own specializations and techniques - for example, the Iga clan was really big on fire - and one of the clans had a nautical focus (though I forget their name).

[@OtakuUnitedStudio]

Pirating and privateering are just different perspectives on the same basic job.

[@Epicmonk117]

@@OtakuUnitedStudio They literally are the same. The only difference is that privateers are sanctioned by a government.

[@RedSpade37]

That's really interesting! I was led to believe real-life ninjas were simply "spy peasants" and occasionally "gardener who will garden your face when no one else will see it"

[@Epicmonk117]

@@RedSpade37 In most cases they were, but they still got into combat every now and then

[@matthewmuir8884]

@@RedSpade37 "Spy peasants" isn't entirely accurate. In fact, a not-insignificant number of shinobi came from the samurai class; we know this because of recorded cases of shinobi who were also samurai.

[@kobuseksteen411]

I love idea that every Dark Souls super fan has a copy of Atlas Shrugged close at hand for throwing at accessibility options and easy modes.

[@Demolishor27]

Loved the imp pissing on Atlas shrugged.

[@michellequinn1940]

I really like that the combat encourages to use all your tools on a satisfying loop. You want to use your powerful skills which cost MP, and normal attacks restore MP, all the while building up your combo meter, rule using skills builds up to ultimate attacks. A nice blend of Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy and SMRPG, but still approachable.

[@JohnD131]

A nice apolitical ending, whatever you think of her work she wouldn't enjoy being in a coffin. That's a fair, neutral perspective

[@airandfingers]

Adding my game recommendation to Yahtzee's pile: Patrick's Parabox. It's like that 90's puzzle game Box World, but with all sorts of mind-bending twists and mechanics that keep things fresh. To use one of Yahtzee's British-isms, beating levels makes me feel like a clever clogs, in a way that's quite satisfying.

[@Biggl]

It's insane getting to watch a youtube channel that is the equivalent of a never-ending caught-lightning-in-a-bottle situation. It just keeps getting better and better because it's just more of the same 10/10 quality humor and writing with full consistency for years now.

[@FaithandValor]

That D&D reference started like a recurring scenario we all encounter but your resentment sounded very specific.

[@TheHandThatTalksBack]

I recently learned who Rand was, and the kind of kindling trying in futility to be a book "Atlas Shrugged" was. Kinda feels like I obtained the joke context at the last minute. Neat!

[@a_level_70_elite_raccoon]

I am currently playing Baldurs Gate as a high charisma Cleric, and let me tell you, there are an awful lot of combat encounters that can be entirely bypassed just by asking how people are doing.

[@DrownedInExile]

2:37 "Using the dice-bag as an improvised flail" LMAO! 🤣

[@braddrac]

As someone who owns the best dog, her being a yorkie, I resent neofascism being represented as one of them.

[@ashuggtube]

Not all yorkies

[@Vvonter]

The Completionist said that the challenge comes from the post game and optional encounters. Kinda like the Mario way of handling accessibility by putting the really challenging stuff after the credits rolled.

[@kevadu]

Nothing wrong with having challenging optional content but that's no excuse for having zero challenge in the main game...

[@JohnSmith-n6o]

There's also a (somewhat hidden) relic or two you can buy and enable to make things harder.

[@paulfimbres9443]

The difficulty is extremely artificial. You unlock a mode where you insta-die to any attack that you don’t time perfectly in blocking. Is it hard? Well, yeah. Is it any more strategic or interesting? No.

[@LordLucario12]

That Docarri ruins superboss gave me more trouble than anything else in the game

[@Willie6785]

The side content is honestly just as easy as the main content. I 100%d the game and, while the combat was somewhat engaging, I would have dropped the game if I wasn't already fairly invested in its story and world (the worldbuilding is particularly nice, but found the story itself to be kinda meh)

[@Kio_Kurashi]

For me, the only difference between armor and that accessory is the fact that the accessory is global. People don't generally share the same armor piece. XD It's also always on, so if there was ever a point you'd lose your armor, they'd either leave that on and you'd still get less damage or turn it off and require you to remember to turn it back on (unless they were wise enough to track it). Which honestly the latter just sounds like far too much work. I've only started my Sea of Stars journey though, and I'm still excited to go through it :3 Just got the first two accessories and decided to turn on the one that gives visual feedback for when you time the hits properly. Figure I'd use that to practice at the very least, and then later if I have an auto one I can use that for grinding if I ever need to since it'd be less frustrating.

[@jackdavis4657]

If Ayn Rand were to say anything it would be, 'Where are the trains? I need them for....objective purposes.'

[@kgldude]

I think we can all agree that it would be nice if Ayn Rand came back to life today.

[@water2770]

I think for rpgs where everything is so number based there is an intended difficulty where you have a certain amount of stats and skills. If you grinded thats easy and if you rushed through with minimal stuff thats hard. Of course the trinkets that auto do the quick time stuff feel more like a "can you physically not do this thing? Well you can just not do that" and a "you take significantly less damage" feels more giving a baby mode instead of earning baby mode through grinding.

[@paulfimbres9443]

This game doesn’t have grinding. Unless you’re completely insane, it’s nearly impossible to grind levels. It takes *hours* to grind a single level beyond your “intended” level in each zone, and you get 1-2 stat points for leveling. It would take you longer to grind 2 levels past “intended” than to beat the game.

[@water2770]

@paulfimbres9443 its less about this specific game and more about rpgs in general from Yahtzee's philisophical point about the dmg reduction thing being technically armor

[@Ubersupersloth]

4:25 Hasn’t Yahtzee talked about being against Easy Mode in Dark Souls themself at one point?

[@Feeble_cursed_one]

what if he like changed his mind over time or something

[@HUNbullseye]

I guess there's a whole spectrum from simply not wanting easy mode to frothing at the mouth and yelling in 90 minutes videos whenever something reminds you it was asked for.

[@nocturem]

Think he has outgrown concerns about artistic integrity that override the broader point of being enjoyable recreation. He has also had views on whether games are supposed to be fun which broadly yes they are, not in the least because any time you have to 'work' at it in a way that ceases to be fun you may as well have applied that effort to some more productive end like doing actual chores, same amount of misery but at least your dishes are clean.

[@Ubersupersloth]

@@Feeble_cursed_one I mean, yeah. Human beings do that though it’s not as common as it probably should be.

[@ArchusKanzaki]

Playing Armored Core makes me realize that its not that I dislike difficult game, I just dislike it when I’m constantly punished for sucking at it on first few try. Checkpoint and Assembly when dead goes a long way to make sure I enjoy trying to beat the boss. Meanwhile, Dark Souls system of “you are punished if you die” makes me don’t want to play the game much anymore I’m set back everytime I die.

[@Pecisk]

Funniest ep lately, lots of quotable jokes 😂

[@M_Alexander]

In any case I really enjoyed the game; finished it last night after about a week of obsessing. It thoroughly scratched the nostalgia itch and the soundtrack is excellent. Garl is my precious boy and if anything happens to him I'll fight whatever god it takes

[@ctpp64]

collecting all 60 of those shells was worth it for garl

[@fuyuk1r1ft8]

The ayn rand coffin is still on screen. And being watered throughout the outtro, beautiful

[@gregoryvn3]

I have So Much empathy for that DM. I have been there! Or at least watched the train wreck happen from safely off to the side.

[@Ytinasniiable]

Id say the point of the damage reduction one was that it's basically just armor, it allows for a more subtle difficulty reduction by basically assuming you magically bought the next areas armor before starting this one

[@OopsIshidded]

Any video that shits on Ayn Rand is a 10/10

[@ThatFanBoyGuy]

I laughed a bit too hard for "zeppelin at a plate spinning contest" 😂🤣

[@RAGEAlanBun]

With regards to difficulty, one thing I both loved and hated was that there are relics to make the game harder, but they’re hidden in a secret shop (near the start of the game mind you) that you won’t really find unless you blindly stumble upon it. I did and was lucky because I really liked the relic that increased damage. The game wasn’t “hard” by any means with it on but I found it challenging enough to be very satisfying.

[@solomonrex3955]

4:58 Great question. Basically, when the player has incoming-damage reduction, that's "armor", but if the enemy has outgoing-damage reduction, it's "damage reduction". The difference between the two is whether or not the player knows how to dodge or the enemy knows how to aim.

[@ASquared544]

Note: there are also relics that make the game harder. They are locked behind purchase with in game currency however and are also hidden, so if you missed the item that allows you to use the shop and/or lack funds you can go fuck yourself. I still love the game to bits though.

[@Saturn2888]

So you liked it?

[@punklingyt]

My wife plays a kindly Ranger with ultimate dad energy and has talked her way out of more combat than I can keep track of at this point. He was passed the title of the god of Peace (Rao) by the god of Peace when he wanted to retire the godhood

[@ashuggtube]

That's pretty awesome 😄

[@justanothernerd6714]

So that third protagonist is basically just that episode of South Park when Butters gets a shuriken in the eye

[@sludgewave4786]

Yeah I do find the relic system a bit weird. I get the easy mode relics. But there are also hard mode relics as well. And for now, those hard mode relics I got my hands on, don't offer any benefits, only malus. I'm playing with the relic that increase the damage received, but it doesn't offer any benefit. I thought it was going to be something like, you take more damage but you'll inflict more damage on time hits ,or receive more experience or something. Nier replicant did something similar, Hard mode made enemies stronger and gave them more HP but they had a much better item drop rate chances. Also, as a JRPG enjoyer, the fishing mini game is really good.

[@jmiller6066]

There are relics that give you trade-offs too. Eg lock monster defense higher but non-lock defense lower. You can also mix and match - eg you can equip both the "easy" and "hard" damage received for net 10% more damage received.

[@sludgewave4786]

@@jmiller6066 Yeah I got this one too! I tried it a little bit cause I really like the lock mechanic. oooh I didn't know it stacked! Good to know! I'm pretty happy with my +40% ennemy damage for now, I just finish the water temple yesterday. And my only struggle with the game so far is money. I wanted to buy the discount relic, but it's pretty expensive. I tried selling cooked food cause I fish a lot, but I still need to invest a entire budget into buying grains.

[@seleneshofner9176]

My 18 charisma paladin has never felt so called out, and she's got expertise in Persuasion and will be convincing you why she's a great addition to a D&D table!

[@Gboy86ify]

I feel attacked by that Paladin analogy.

[@AWanderingSwordsman]

I'd be pretty impressed if someone upon waking up in pitch black and unable to move was able to instantly puzzle out that it was a coffin.

[@shozlochshadr1536]

hey yahtzee! the "baby mode workaround for crapouts" are features for people with disabilities; imagine you had reduced reflexes, timed QTE's would prevent you from playing! features like this will no doubt continue to be optional and altogether useful.

[@keaton718]

So did he like it? He didn't say he didn't dislike it...

[@heysamesam]

3:15 just a comment on the early 2000's humour: Her name is literally "Klee'shaë" lol

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

1:40 Hey, maybe that's what happened to Valerie too!

[@Aurongroove]

I love how perfect the ending is with Ayn Rand.

[@GreatistheWorld]

I like when a game pushes Yahtzee to write a little more fun and carefree, allows him to be more descriptive than usual. Makes for a very elegant review

[@paulrus-keaton439]

I'm sure there are some groups of gamers that get a glee out of playing the game with no armor or health upgrades, like that "three heart" Zelda challenge.

[@CenturyBlade]

My friend group calls this "'I Wanna Be The Guy' Syndrome", or IWBTGS, based on the game of the same name, an old barebones Megaman-esque platformer designed entirely around the player's character instantly exploding into bits any time their pinky toe pixel touches even the non-pointy portions of a spike or enemy. Almost everyone in the group has fallen victim to it at one point or another, it's practically a rite of passage by now.

[@stevethepocket]

The _Souls_ community gravitates toward runs where they don't level up and rely entirely on equipment upgrades. I watched German Spy play through _Demon's Souls_ this way, and he mostly relied on two items that boost damage when HP is low, to keep fights from taking forever.

[@jamesleiper6399]

"Holy shit I'm a skeleton " Ayn Rand

[@Kevbo2040]

I am genuinely surprised this game didn't get a new a-hole torn into it in this Zero Punctuation. The combat *is* a slog. Each character only has four skills for the entire game, that unlock via gameplay. There's no other magic or abilities. It's insanely repetitive. I guess Yahtzee didn't want to make the documentary look bad.

[@PeterDivine]

For anyone who apparently didn't get it, Yahtzee included: the ninja-pirate's name is Captain Klee'Shae. She is _literally_ a walking cliche. Of course it's early 2000s web humor.

[@Tsumii610]

So for the philosophical question regarding armor: Armor is a tool the game gives you when it does something other than reduce damage. An example would be in Kingdom Hearts defense only decreases damage, passive gains keep the game paced as dev intends to keep difficulty yadda yadda. You can remove it to make it harder, its there as a sort of optional meta difficulty decrease/increase. Armor thats an actual tool has bonuses, or functional trades that change game-play without necessarily changing difficulty. Dark Souls trades armor/DR and weight, which causes build changes, you get extra poise options, again yadda yadda, the point is you can argue that armor changes game-play and not difficulty here.

[@DavidJohnson-mo7fq]

Part of me really hopes Ayn Rand did say exactly that shortly before her death.

[@SingeStheos]

the line is by obtaining. if you obtain a 50% damage reduction, its armor. if you have it from the very start, its a cheat code.

[@alexdoyle9768]

it's killing me trying to remember what book the "why am I in this coffin it's very dark" line is from. Yahtzee please help is it discworld

[@bjavin3487]

The games story can best be described as setting up all this lore so we can set up some more lore, building mystery and intrigue, but the full explanation just not being there. Like the running gag, and I'm saying that very loosely, "or my names not Keenathan". It dances on the fine line of "naw it's just a gag." and "Wait. Is this foreshadowing something actually important?". Or how you can learn about the Vampire Rose and what it is kinda, but you don't really understand the details of how it curses the person. and it becomes a big hook again when you learn that someone was using the rose, but again it's so vague on what's going on that it leaves you hanging. Or how it's this giant, literally, hint of "Hey, look at 'THE SLEEPER'", this will be very important and you quest to wake him with the implication that The Sleeper will do something of importance, but... Now that I think about it, there is a lot of "Here I am, now I'm going to exit stage left" and that's it, bye.

[@ctpp64]

"Now that I think about it, there is a lot of "Here I am, now I'm going to exit stage left" and that's it, bye." hilarious how that's literally exactly what happens with resh'an lol. but yeah the plot really doesn't go as crazy with its ideas as it should've. i think being a prequel to the messenger kinda restricted it

[@Pluveus]

Ayn Rand would say everyone must live solely by the sweat of their own back, followed closely by Social Security go brrrrrrrrrr.

[@AlchemistoftheSea]

I absolutely empathize with the high charisma characters bit. We had a player who would try to make friends with EVERYONE, even to the detriment of the party. Then my 18+ charisma college of eloquence bard came along, and after the other character and player were kicked from the campaign, I became the one everyone hid behind whenever talking needed to happen.

[@OG_McLovin]

I'm liking it. Fun little story and adventure with some stupidly pretty pixel art and it can occasionally puts up some real challenge for my jaded JRPG brain. Do recommend Sea of Farts.

[@hacim42]

Dammit that final punchline was really good. I always like being able to see when Yahtzee enjoys a game through the harsh veneer that the zero punctuation format creates.

[@90maducc]

I'm glad I got the reference at 3:15. That was one weird webcomic.

[@Mene0]

4:26 I laughed out loud, good one Yathz Also credits gag, yeah I noticed it immediately

[@KeithFraser82]

Zero Punctuation neo-folkpunk protest anthem of the week: *Three Frying Pan Hits And A Knee In The Bollocks* by the *Solstice Warriors* (from their album *Prove Your Worth To The Gods, Destined Warriors* )

[@Feeble_cursed_one]

"Why is it so dark?" dead

[@benking3647]

Yahtz, since you mentioned equpiment being tied to difficulty (FF and now this), i'm curious if you'd do an Extra ZP about this issue. i think it's worth a mention as i think it may lead to an accessibility issue. a person who may need a game easier due to whatever reason needs to fill up a potentially valuable equipment slot rather than a slider on the settings screen? to me, i don't think that's very fair for some, so i'm curious if you had any further thoughts for an episode. great review here, too.

[@typhusmoth8066]

I do find it funny that you can clearly see how far he got into it for review, based on his reactions to things. Didn't even clear the first part of the game before the first twist XD

[@zeosummers3984]

there was a twist?