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    1. Silksong should’ve came with a guide from developers

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      This post is full of spoilers of Silksong

      I’m a married, working person so the time I can allocate for gaming is not much. I’ve been enjoying silksong very much and tried a spoiler free gameplay, having played hollow knight before and knowing how much team cherry loves secrets.

      I’ve followed the normal gameflow and beat the boss. After that I wanted to keep playing and following leads I had before the ending.

      Investigating missing parts, the boss runback in bilewater destroyed my nerves so I looked up if there was a bench closer to the fight - there had to be one since this was outright ridiculous. Turns out there’s a secret bench that’s so hidden I don’t know if anyone other than the most determined secret hunters could find. The boss was also as hard as it gets, felt kinda unfair.

      Looking up bilewater opened a can of worms for me. I kept seeing spoilers and continued looking up info. After a day I found out there are 3 other endings, a whole another act, and bunch of unlockables.

      I love when a game doesn’t handhold you and forces you to enjoy it. I get it. But I think this is too much, too obscure. It requires meticulous backtracking and there’s never an indication when you’re capable of taking on a new quest. Finding new items, you don’t know who should it be given to. You don’t even know if there are still areas you haven’t been to.

      I guess team cherry wanted the player to have a play log each session and we should’ve kept logs of weird stuff we’ve seen along the way so that we remember to go back. Well, as fun as that might’ve been, I did not keep a log and forgot a lot of early game stuff.

      I believe they should’ve prepared a guide themselves, spoiler free, which could include some info the game does not offer so the player can keep unlocking new stuff and would’ve known generally what to expect. Existence of act 3 honestly shocked me, and I don’t think I’m someone who doesn’t pay attention.

      In their quest to be anti-handholdy gaming, I believe team cherry went too far. Onerous backtracking and note taking shouldn’t be the solution.

      I loved the game and it’s easily GotY for me. I’ll keep playing it even after seeing spoilers but I can feel half the fun being gone now that I’ll just be chasing objectives I’ve seen online. If I hadn’t looked stuff up, I’d have switched to bananza or hades 2.

      10 votes
    2. CGA-2025-10 🕹️⏰ 🗺️ 🐸 INSERT CARTRIDGE 🟢 Chrono Trigger

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Introduction

      Fun Fact: I named my Cat Crono because of this game.

      Welcome to Chrono Trigger.
      We're playing it for this months CGA.
      In my opinion, if you haven't played this game before, you're in for a treat. This game is often considered the gold-standard for JRPGs. Developed by Hironobu Sakaguchi from Final Fantasy, Yuji Horii from Dragon Quest, and Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball.

      This year is actually the 30 year anniversary since it's release.
      Square Enix has launched some new CDs with the Soundtrack, and a Concert in Tokyo if anyone is interested.
      The music is actually what got me into this game. If you want to know, it's this - might be a minor spoiler, but I remember when I first found that music in the game, I was hooked and just stopped to listen. That was the first time since Saria's Song in Ocarina of Time.

      So what is this game: I like to think these games are best experienced going in blind, so I will be as vague as possible. (Any additions are welcome). Chrono Trigger is a RPG from 1995. It's got an amazing story, some really interesting mechanics, beautiful characters and an amaing soundtrack. I'll put even the smallest things into spoiler tags, since maybe some people like to go in completely blind.

      Spoiler for the first 30 minutes

      As the name suggests, there is a time travel mechanic in the game


      Chrono Trigger

      Versions: Original (1995), PlayStation (1999), Nintendo DS (2008), iOS/Android (2011), Steam (2018)

      Platforms: Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), PlayStation, Nintendo DS, iOS, Android, Windows (Steam)

      Genre(s): Japanese Role-Playing Game (JRPG), Turn-based RPG

      Links: Mobygames, Wikipedia

      Stores:

      How Long To Beat:
      On a first playthrough, expect about 20-25 hours.
      Without giving away too much: there is definitely some replayability.


      Game Setup

      The main purpose of this topic is to get people up and running with the game. As such, it's recommended that you:

      • Share which version of the game you're playing
      • Share what hardware you're playing it on
      • Share if there are any tools/mods that you recommend
      • Share anything you think is important for people to know before they start the game
      • Ask questions if you need help

      Another purpose of this topic is to revisit the game and its time period:

      • Do you have any memories or associations with this game itself?
      • What about its system or era?
      • What aspects of retro gaming were common at the time?
      • What other games from the same time period are you familiar with?
      • What are you expecting from this game in particular?

      Finally, this topic is the beginning discussion for people starting to play it:

      • Post updates sharing your thoughts as you play.
      • Ask for help if you get stuck.
      • Offer help to others.

      It is recommended that you reply to your own posts if you are making consecutive updates so that they are in the same thread.


      Important

      • Any links to the game should be legal distributions of the game only. Please do NOT link to any unauthorized copies.

      • Put any spoilers in a dropdown block. Copy/paste the block below if needed.

      <details>
      <summary>Spoilers</summary>
      
      Spoiler text goes here.
      </details>
      

      FAQ

      What is CGA?

      Colossal Game Adventure (CGA) is Tildes' retro video game club.

      Each month we will play a different retro game/games, discuss our thoughts, and bask in the glorious digital experiences of yesteryear!

      Colossal Game Adventure is a reference to Colossal Cave Adventure. It's one of the most influential games of all time, one of the first text-based interactive games, and one of the first games to be shared online.

      What do we want to do with this group? Play influential games; interact with each other through text; and share the love for retro games online!

      It also abbreviates to CGA (because we love chunky pixel art), and its name communicates the Colossal amount of fun and excitement that we have with retro video Games in our shared Adventure of playing them together.

      Do I have to sign up?

      No. Participation is open to all.

      There is a Notification List that will get pinged each time a new topic goes up. If you would like to join that list, please PM u/kfwyre.

      Are there restrictions on what/how to play?

      Each month will have a focus game or games that will guide our discussions. Beyond that, there are no restrictions. The philosophy of CGA is to play in a way that works for you!

      This means:

      • Choose whichever version of the game you want.
      • You can use cheats, save states, mods, etc.
      • You can watch a streamer or longplay instead of playing it.

      If you have already played a game and want a different experience:

      • Try a randomizer or challenge run.
      • Play a different version of it.
      • Play a related game (sequel, spiritual successor, something inspired by it, etc.)

      There is no wrong way to participate in CGA, and every different way someone participates will make for more interesting discussions.

      What is the schedule?

      Each month the Insert Cartidge topic will be posted on the 1st, while the Remove Cartridge topic will be posted on the 20th.

      Nomination and voting topics will happen in March and September (every 6 months).

      Schedules are also posted then.

      All CGA topics are available using the colossal game adventure tag.

      What do Insert and Remove Cartridge mean?

      Inserting and removing cartridges are our retro metaphor for starting and stopping a given game or games.

      The Insert Cartridge topic happens at the beginning of the month and is primarily about getting the game up and running.

      The Remove Cartridge topic happens toward the end of the month and is primarily about people reflecting on the game now that they've played it.

      There are no hard restrictions on what has to go in either topic, and each can be used to discuss the game, post updates, ask questions, etc.

      38 votes
    3. Humble Choice - October 2025

      October 2025's Humble Choice is now available with the following eight Steam games. Steam Page OpenCritic Steam Recent/All Operating Systems Steam Deck ProtonDB Atomic Heart 74 72 / 78 Win ✅...

      October 2025's Humble Choice is now available with the following eight Steam games.

      Steam Page OpenCritic Steam Recent/All Operating Systems Steam Deck ProtonDB
      Atomic Heart 74 72 / 78 Win ✅ Verified 🎖️ Platinum
      V Rising 83 85 / 89 Win ✅ Verified 🟨 Gold
      System Shock 77 80 / 91 Win 🟨 Playable 🎖️ Platinum
      STORY OF SEASONS: Pioneers of Olive Town 71 63 / 83 Win ❌ Unsupported 🟨 Gold
      Cryptmaster 76 93 / 95 Win 🟨 Playable 🎖️ Platinum
      Shogun Showdown 87 97 / 97 Win ✅ Verified ✅ Native
      Hotel Renovator 70 82 / 77 Win 🟨 Playable 🟫 Bronze
      Caravan SandWitch 72 67 / 89 Win ✅ Verified 🟨 Gold

      Does anyone have experience with any of the games and, if so, would you recommend them? Is there anything in here that you're particularly excited to play?

      12 votes
    4. Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of October 5

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week! Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle...

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

      Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

      Rules:

      • No grey market sales
      • No affiliate links

      If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.


      All previous Save Point topics

      If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

      7 votes
    5. Horror games to play during October

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      With October approaching, it's time to play some horror games! Horror is my favorite genre. It's chock full of emotion and creative game design. It's a genre that has to continuously reinvent itself to avoid getting stale, which leads to dozens of incredible games.

      The games I'd like to play for the first time are:

      • Silent Hill 2 - I was holding out for a proper remaster for over a decade. It's finally here, but it's $70! I'll probably have to bite the bullet.
      • Resident Evil Village - I've been meaning to play this for years and already own it! On sale for $10.
      • Resident Evil 4 (Remaster) - I played the original but not the new remaster. On sale for $20.
      • Dead Space - Just bought this on sale a few weeks ago. It looks really good! On sale for $12.
      • Alien Isolation - Alien is one of my favorite movies of all time, so I should really play this.

      Now for some recommendations:

      • Resident Evil (REmake) - This is where you start if you're new to horror. Absolutely iconic, and not too scary thanks to its cheesy B-movie script, which can be humorous. On sale for $5.
      • Resident Evil 7 Biohazard - This game was a true return to form in the horror department. Absolutely loved it. On sale for $8. Genuine steal.
      • Inscryption - Not very spooky. Has a fun card game and a lot of intriguing ideas.

      Are there any games you're looking forward to playing?

      Do you have any recommendations?

      32 votes
    6. What game is your personal "Silksong"?

      A "Silksong" = a game that you waited a long time for and that met your very high expectations. What was the game? How long did you wait for it? What were you expecting? How did it deliver? (And...

      A "Silksong" = a game that you waited a long time for and that met your very high expectations.

      • What was the game?
      • How long did you wait for it?
      • What were you expecting?
      • How did it deliver?

      (And yes, Silksong can be your "Silksong")

      32 votes
    7. What are your favorite casual puzzle games?

      Hi! I'm looking for some fun and interesting casual puzzle games. Some of my favorites, in no particular order, are: Sudoku Nonogram - like the recent Every 5x5 Nonogram or Picross. Tetris -...

      Hi! I'm looking for some fun and interesting casual puzzle games. Some of my favorites, in no particular order, are:

      41 votes
    8. Who’s playing Blood on the Clocktower?

      Wondering if we have tilde fellows playing it. I’ve become addicted since last year and it’s fully taken over my regular board game nights… I’ve been storytelling and doing custom scripts and...

      Wondering if we have tilde fellows playing it. I’ve become addicted since last year and it’s fully taken over my regular board game nights… I’ve been storytelling and doing custom scripts and characters.

      18 votes
    9. Making DND maps

      As someone who DM's a lot of short, casual sessions with rotating members, I burn through a lot of maps. I'd love to hear some of your recommendations for how you guys either find or create maps...

      As someone who DM's a lot of short, casual sessions with rotating members, I burn through a lot of maps. I'd love to hear some of your recommendations for how you guys either find or create maps that suit your situations.

      For me: r/battlemaps has some really high quality stuff and gets me 90% of the time. I usually type in a key word or two (e.g. bridge; throne room) and usually I'll find something that gets close to the mark.

      I know that some have been using generative AI to delve into this space as well, so if anyone has any experience there, I'd love to hear it!

      23 votes
    10. Colossal Game Adventure Schedule: September 2025 - March 2026

      Schedule There was a three-way tie for 5th, so instead of scheduling the next 6 months, I scheduled 7. Bonus month! Month Game Host September 2025 The Last Express u/CannibalisticApple October...

      Schedule

      There was a three-way tie for 5th, so instead of scheduling the next 6 months, I scheduled 7. Bonus month!

      Month Game Host
      September 2025 The Last Express u/CannibalisticApple
      October 2025 Chrono Trigger u/ali
      November 2025 Arcade Special: Playstation WHAT?
      Incredible Crisis
      Irritating Stick
      PaRappa the Rapper 2
      Pepsiman
      Vib-Ribbon
      u/Lapbunny
      December 2025 The Secret of Monkey Island u/balooga
      January 2026 The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker u/datavoid
      February 2026 Racing Lagoon u/Kawa
      March 2026 Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru
      (The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls)
      u/J-Chiptunator

      @CannibalisticApple will be hosting her nomination, The Last Express, for our first month. If you're interested in hosting a month, see the Hosting section below.

      Also, I selfishly scheduled PlayStation WHAT? during the Backlog Burner so I can use those games in my Bingo Card. :D

      For the rest, I tried to create variety in the schedule so that we weren't playing the same systems or genres back-to-back.


      Discussion Topics

      Each month will have two discussion topics:

      • "Insert Cartridge" - 1st of the month
      • "Remove Cartridge" - 20th of the month

      Insert Cartridge topics are primarily for getting the game set up and running. Remove Cartridge topics are primarily for reflecting on the game once you've played it. However, the game itself and anything else related to it can be discussed in either one.


      Hosting

      Each month, the discussion topics will be posted by a different "host" who will act as the emcee for that month.

      Hosting is not required, but it is encouraged that people host months for games that they are either already very familiar with or that they are strongly interested in playing.

      People who nominated a game will be given preference for hosting, otherwise it will be given to whomever claims it first.

      Required Hosting Responsibilities
      • Editing the templates for the month's "Insert Cartridge" and "Remove Cartridge" topics.
      • Posting the month's "Insert Cartridge" and "Remove cartridge topics.
      Optional Hosting Responsibilities
      • Talking up the game.
      • Giving tips/tricks/guides/cheats.
      • Sharing your own thoughts/memories/reflections.
      • Asking questions.
      • Anything else you feel like doing (e.g. setting up a multiplayer tournament, making game-related memes, sharing fun trivia, etc.)

      If you would like to host a month, let me know which one and I will add you to the schedule.

      Before your month begins, I will send you a "Hosting Package" featuring templates that you can edit to your liking.

      If no one claims a month, I will host it as a fallback.


      Voting Results

      The top 6 games from the voting round were chosen to be played.

      Of the remaining games:

      • The top 50% will advance to the next round. They will start the next round with a base score of 70% of their vote totals.
      • The bottom 50% will be removed from the list.

      Removed games will be able to be re-nominated in future rounds if someone chooses to do so.

      Tally List
      Game Votes Status Rollover Votes
      Chrono Trigger 55 Won
      The Secret of Monkey Island 47 Won
      The Last Express 40 Won
      PlayStation WHAT? 38 Won
      Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls) 34 Won
      Racing Lagoon 34 Won
      The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker 34 Won
      Back in a Flash 32 Advances 22
      Sid Meier’s Pirates 30 Advances 21
      Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow 29 Advances 20
      Another World 27 Advances 19
      Metroid Prime 27 Advances 19
      Descent 25 Advances 18
      Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals 24 Advances 17
      StarTropics 22 Advances 15
      Behind the Wheel 21 Advances 15
      Crystalis 21 Advances 15
      The Colonel’s Bequest 21 Advances 15
      Threads of Fate 21 Advances 15
      Beneath a Steel Sky 21 Advances 15
      Metroid 20 Advances 14
      Scroll Lock-on 20 Advances 14
      Tetris 19 Advances 13
      Freddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist 18 Advances 13
      Tony Hawk’s Pro-Skater 2 18 Advances 13
      JSRF: Jet Set Radio Future 17 Advances 12
      Lode Runner 17 Advances 12
      The Grue That Binds 17 Advances 12
      The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past 17 Advances 12
      Barkley, Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden - Chapter 1 of the Hoopz Barkley SaGa 16 Eliminated
      ActRaiser 15 Eliminated
      Resident Evil 15 Eliminated
      Sid Meier’s Covert Action 15 Eliminated
      Mr. Defaxxonobbleoid 14 Eliminated
      Sam & Max: Hit the Road 12 Eliminated
      Fighters Megamix 11 Eliminated
      Seaman 11 Eliminated
      Burnout 3: Takedown 10 Eliminated
      Duke Nukem 3D 10 Eliminated
      rOGuelikes 10 Eliminated
      Carmageddon 9 Eliminated
      Uplink 9 Eliminated
      Populous 8 Eliminated
      Hop Skip Jump 7 Eliminated
      Fixated on Fixed Screen Shooters 6 Eliminated
      The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening 6 Eliminated
      Lord Monarch 5 Eliminated
      The Way 5 Eliminated
      Recursive Repertoires 4 Eliminated
      Super Castlevania IV 2 Eliminated
      Star Wars: TIE Fighter 1 Eliminated
      38 votes
    11. CGA-2025-09 🕹️🚂 REMOVE CARTRIDGE ⏏️ The Last Express

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Flames flicker as the once mighty Orient Express lies on its side in pieces, bodies in cartoonishly thuggish costumes scattered all around. After a long three days full of murder, deception, concerts and romance, its final journey has come to a fiery end.

      From the inferno, a single figure emerges in a scorched trench coat, dark hair ruffled by the breeze. He brushes off the coat with one hand and smoothly extends the other, and a solid gold bird swoops down from the sky to perch on it. Red flames flicker along its wings and back, but his sleeve remains perfectly untouched.

      He walks away from the burning wreckage, arm still outstretched with gleaming golden bird atop it. Sunglasses descend from the sky and land squarely on his nose. A second smaller pair studded with jewels descends and lands on the bird's beak, managing to somehow look cool instead of ridiculous.

      “Time to kick some Nazi ass,” the man declares, and the bird caws.

      The train explodes behind them and the air reverberates with a “Yeeeaaaahhhh!

      Note: the above scene may not be 100% accurate or canon.


      So concludes the first leg of the Colossal Game Adventure!

      We hope you enjoyed your time aboard The Last Express. For anyone who missed the initial boarding period... Well uh, luckily this game involves rewinding time, so you can just rewind here to the Insert Cartridge topic when the train was intact. Feel free to post there if you're just starting the game, or you can post here after finishing even if you're only finding these topics months later.

      That said, presumably most of you boarded earlier and had a chance to play the game. As such, this post will not require spoilers to be hidden in dropdown blocks. So if you don't want to be spoiled, please adjust your clock and rewind to the previous post.

      Use this post to share final thoughts and impressions, post fun little secrets or easter eggs you found, ask questions if you had to abort your playthrough for whatever reason, link video clips, discuss if you completed any of the meta challenges, etc. Or you can share and express admiration for the very nice official Colossal Game Adventure splash screen made by @Boojum which I meant to link last time on "Press Start", but accidentally pasted the wrong link. I have since fixed it, but that was two nights ago so you probably haven't seen it. And dang it this splash screen is too awesome to go unappreciated!!

      Otherwise, we can consider this leg of the journey to be complete. That said, the adventure is only just beginning! Wouldn't be a Colossal Game Adventure with only one game, now would it? You can find the current schedule here. Our next destination will be Chrono Trigger with @ali stepping up as the next host. As for me, my time as conductor has come to an end and I will be joining you all as passengers.

      If you intend to continue this journey, you can just grab your luggage from the—uh... *glances at the flaming wreckage* ...Well hey, it'll be a little easier to travel without all that extra weight, right?

      Onwards to Chrono Trigger!

      THE END

      > CONTINUE?

      20 votes
    12. Tildes, I need your advice. Looking for Nintendo Switch 1 and NS2 games.

      Hello everyone, Gamers’ I need your advice. Due to a serious family illness, my nieces and nephews age 4 to 15 will be spending a lot of time at my home for the foreseeable future. I also have a...

      Hello everyone,

      Gamers’ I need your advice. Due to a serious family illness, my nieces and nephews age 4 to 15 will be spending a lot of time at my home for the foreseeable future.

      I also have a college age kid, who is home occasionally and will play a few sports games and fighting games. He is head of the Fighting Game club at his universities club.

      I am looking to entertain the kids as we move towards winter and also keep my house in one piece.

      I purchased a NS2 w/ Mario Kart World, Minecraft, Shinobi, SFVI, NBA 2k26, Star Wars Outlaws and BoTW.

      I am going to purchase a few more Switch 2 titles and a few Switch 1 games. (Hopefully on a B2G1) sale. I do not need to purchase all at once. Likely, I’ll buy 1 or 2 a month. Or hope for a b2g1 sale.

      I am LOOKING FOR RECOMMENDATIONS from everyone.

      I already preordered Dragon Quest 1&2HD2D and Mario Galaxy 2.

      Games I am considering.

      Luigi mansion 3
      Sonic racing Cross World
      Persona 3 reload
      Super Mario Bros U Deluxe (you can play as Peach?)
      Mortal Kombat Collection
      Madden or EA FC
      Metroid Prime 4 ( I don’t know what to make of this game. Is it Metroid BoTW?)
      Bomberman R
      Paper Mario Thousand year door
      Links awakening or echoes of wisdom?

      I am looking to have some variety so there is something for everyone.

      These kids already have a Switch 1 w/ mario kart 8D, smash, Mario 3d World, Minecraft and a bunch of Kirby games.

      Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

      Thank you in advance!

      Side note: My kids had a Wii U when they were young and i am somewhat familiar with those games.

      18 votes
    13. Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of September 28

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week! Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle...

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

      Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

      Rules:

      • No grey market sales
      • No affiliate links

      If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.


      All previous Save Point topics

      If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

      6 votes
    14. Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of September 21

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week! Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle...

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

      Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

      Rules:

      • No grey market sales
      • No affiliate links

      If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.


      All previous Save Point topics

      If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

      9 votes
    15. CGA-2025-09 🕹️🚂 INSERT CARTRIDGE 🟢 The Last Express

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Introduction

      July, 1914. Paris.

      Tensions are high all around the European continent. A long-growing discontent has reached a sharp peak not even a full month earlier with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. In the midst of these ever-uneasy days, a young American doctor by the name of Robert Cath gets a sudden invitation from his best friend, urging him to join him on the now-legendary Orient Express.

      As he boards the train, he cannot predict the chaos that will follow. Luxurious as the train may be, this will not be an idyllic trip, but the scene of a murder. Blood will be shed, conspiracies will unfold, secrets will be revealed and romance will have a chance to blossom. With the official beginning of the Great War only a matter of days away, he may be the last passenger to step aboard what will be...

      The Last Express


      Welcome everyone to the first month of the Colossal Game Adventure! I am sure most people reading this will know the details already given the activity on the setup threads. Just to reiterate though, the Colossal Gaming Adventure is a monthly event where we will be playing through older games together. While @kfwyre organized the voting and nomination phases, each month will have a different host. We have seven months' worth of games already scheduled through March 2026, and I have the honor of being the conductor for the inaugural round!

      As you saw above, our first leg of this grand journey will have us board The Last Express, a 1997 adventure game about a mystery on the Orient Express. I myself have not played it yet and will be experiencing it for the first time with most people here, because this game seems to be the poster child for hidden gems. A game that received critical acclaim and praise from critics and players alike, and clearly a work with serious passion and effort, but according to Wikipedia it sold only 100,000 copies on its initial release.

      Luckily for us, one of those 100,000 copies belongs to kfwyre, who brought it to my attention with this passionate recommendation back in May. That link has some mild spoilers for the very beginning of the game, so you may not want to read it, but here's the key takeaway that made this game so interesting: this game plays out in real time. As you explore the train, characters will go about their set routines and events will unfold off screen regardless of you being present to witness them. These events can set up unknown domino effects that will impact you, and your own choices can also have unforeseen consequences that won't come into play until much later.

      To that end, don't be discouraged by failure. Many adventure games of this era rely on trial and error but in this game failure is particularly integrated into the gameplay. Someone might somehow get the luckiest run ever and manage to complete the game on their very first playthrough without ever encountering a fail state, but ultimately, this game will call for a bit of patience. And maybe guides if you have the original version or the hints don't help. Which I personally think is pretty neat. Doesn't get much more classic/retro than looking up walkthroughs on GameFAQs!

      So all aboard The Last Express, and enjoy the ride.


      Game Information

      Versions: Original Release and DotEmu/Gold Edition. The DotEmu version is a re-release which has additional features such as hints and tutorials, which may make it easier.

      Platforms: Windows, MacOS, MS-DOS, iOS, Android

      Genre(s): Adventure, Mystery, Point-and-Click

      Links: Mobygames, Wikipedia

      Stores:

      • GOG, Original: The original 1997 release, in all its 1990’s glory for purists. (Also may come with some extras like a soundtrack and "making of" from a 2011 Collector’s Edition published by DotEmu, but which is now wiped from the internet...?)
      • Steam, Gold Edition: The remake/remaster released by DotEmu with added hints and tutorials, as well as interface tweaks. (Note: while it lists macOS, the game is 32-bit, which is unsupported by any macOS versions beyond 10.14 Mojave.) This version is on sale for only 11 more hours at the time of this topic being posted!! An extreme time crunch for sure, so if you see this message, now's the time to buy it!!
      • iOS (Apple App Store) and Android (Google Play Store). These ports are also by DotEmu and predate the Gold Edition.

      Game Setup

      The main purpose of this topic is to get people up and running with the game. As such, it's recommended that you:

      • Share which version of the game you're playing
      • Share what hardware you're playing it on
      • Share if there are any tools/mods that you recommend
      • Share anything you think is important for people to know before they start the game
      • Ask questions if you need help

      Another purpose of this topic is to revisit the game and its time period:

      • Do you have any memories or associations with this game itself?
      • What about its system or era?
      • What aspects of retro gaming were common at the time?
      • What other games from the same time period are you familiar with?
      • What are you expecting from this game in particular?

      Finally, this topic is the beginning discussion for people starting to play it:

      • Post updates sharing your thoughts as you play.
      • Ask for help if you get stuck.
      • Offer help to others.

      It is recommended that you reply to your own posts if you are making consecutive updates so that they are in the same thread.

      IMPORTANT: Any links to the game should be legal distributions of the game only. Please do NOT link to any unauthorized copies.

      IMPORTANT: Put any spoilers in a dropdown block. Copy/paste the block below if needed.

      <details>
      <summary>Spoilers</summary>
      
      Spoiler text goes here.
      </details>
      

      FAQ

      What is CGA?

      Colossal Game Adventure (CGA) is Tildes' retro video game club.

      Each month we will play a different retro game/games, discuss our thoughts, and bask in the glorious digital experiences of yesteryear!

      Colossal Game Adventure is a reference to Colossal Cave Adventure. It's one of the most influential games of all time, one of the first text-based interactive games, and one of the first games to be shared online.

      What do we want to do with this group? Play influential games; interact with each other through text; and share the love for retro games online!

      It also abbreviates to CGA (because we love chunky pixel art), and its name communicates the Colossal amount of fun and excitement that we have with retro video Games in our shared Adventure of playing them together.

      Do I have to sign up?

      No. Participation is open to all.

      There is a Notification List that will get pinged each time a new topic goes up. If you would like to join that list, please PM u/kfwyre.

      Are there restrictions on what/how to play?

      Each month will have a focus game or games that will guide our discussions. Beyond that, there are no restrictions. The philosophy of CGA is to play in a way that works for you!

      This means:

      • Choose whichever version of the game you want.
      • You can use cheats, save states, mods, etc.
      • You can watch a streamer or longplay instead of playing it.

      If you have already played a game and want a different experience:

      • Try a randomizer or challenge run.
      • Play a different version of it.
      • Play a related game (sequel, spiritual successor, something inspired by it, etc.)

      There is no wrong way to participate in CGA, and every different way someone participates will make for more interesting discussions.

      What is the schedule?

      Each month the Insert Cartidge topic will be posted on the 1st, while the Remove Cartridge topic will be posted on the 20th.

      Nomination and voting topics will happen in March and September (every 6 months).

      Schedules are also posted then.

      All CGA topics are available using the colossal game adventure tag.

      What do Insert and Remove Cartridge mean?

      Inserting and removing cartridges are our retro metaphor for starting and stopping a given game or games.

      The Insert Cartridge topic happens at the beginning of the month and is primarily about getting the game up and running.

      The Remove Cartridge topic happens toward the end of the month and is primarily about people reflecting on the game now that they've played it.

      There are no hard restrictions on what has to go in either topic, and each can be used to discuss the game, post updates, ask questions, etc.


      With all the pleasantries out of the way...

      > PRESS START

      (Credit to @Boojum for the splash screen. It's too awesome not to include!)

      46 votes