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What is your gaming white whale?
- Thread starter Nymphae
- Start date
J-Roderton
Member
Got stuck on King Dice. Haven't been back since. Feels bad man.
PedroPanache
Member
ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW
This was actually made into a video game. And, you know what, it was pretty good, and, as with all games on the c64, about as easy as making your way across the Atlantic in a paper boat with a packet of quavers and a bag of grapes. I'm trying to say it was fucking difficult. Really, really difficult. The aim of the game was to unfreeze either Brad or Janet, depending on who you picked as your main character, by collecting pieces of the 'De-Medusa Machine' and rebuilding it, piece by piece, in the main hall of the castle. There was a timer. A remorseless, ticking timer that had no mercy. You'd have an easier time, dusting the biscuit crumbs off your soft, stodgy belly and beating Usain Bolt at the 100m than outlasting that dreaded counter in the bottom left hand corner of your screen. It was merciless and it didn't allow for mistakes. Which is great, because the random-ass, scattershot gameplay was an unfathomable singularity of mistake inducing pain.Let's meet the characters, shall we:
FRANKENFURTER
How do you get a sweet transvestite from Transexual Transylvania into your game for kids? You turn him into a nun, of course. He jerks and spasms across the screen like a drugged-up octopus, and if you come into contact with him, he steals your clothes. This is important, because you can't do anything without your clothes; you can't pick up pieces for the De-Medusa, and the stolen clothes are placed in a random room, soaking up precious time that you can't afford to waste. It essentially ends the game before it's even begun. Don't let him touch you....
MAGENTA & COLOMBIA
These two steal your clothes as well. Everyone in this game is just awful and there to make your life a living hell. These two are awful and their movements are about as predictable as a cracked widget spinning Curly from The Three Strooges. Suffice to say, everyone in this game is difficult to navigate, but at least Frankie, Magenta and Colombia don't straight up murder you......
RIFF-RAFF
Riff-Raff will straight up murder you. You have no lives, there are no continues and, so, if you die, the game ends. Riff-Raff has a fork, or at least it looks like a fork, it's probably supposed to be some kind of laser gun, but it's not, it's a fork. If you're unlucky enough to stand in front of his fork he'll zap you and you'll die. His movement is......well, you get the idea about how unpredictable these characters are by now.
ROCKY
He's only seven hours old, truly beautiful to behold, and he does......not very much. If you bump into him, he just reels off random quotes from the film and is just another character there to annoy you. He'll slow you down, should you get stuck in a corner with him and precious seconds will be lost. He's benign and naked and doesn't have the correct hair colour, but then we have a transvestite dressed as a nun, so we'll let that slide.
EDDIE
Hot Patooie! Bless my soul, I really love that Eddie will fuck you up as he randomly rides his bike through the castle without a single thought for health and safety. When the freezer temp. drops to a certain point, Eddie is released and if you're unfortunate enough to be in the wrong place, he'll movie quote you to death just before running over your mangled corpse. Game Over. If you look closely at the picture, the timer is on three and the De-Medusa is missing four pieces. Escape from the castle isn't happening on that playthrough. Did I mention that the timer is brutal?
THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY
I must have played this game hundreds of times. In the C64 days, unless you were blessed with a disk drive, games were on cassettes, and took their sweet time loading. Once you loaded a game, you were in it for the long haul. The random nature of Rocky Horror always made for an unpredictable session; the machines parts were always randomly generated across the mansion, and it would be pure luck if a generous amount dropped on the first floor and near the De-Medusa machine. But, after countless hours of torment, listening to a C64 SID tune of 'Let's Do The Time-Warp' over and over until my ears bled, I was on a run that was for the ages. I danced around Frankie, waltzed my way through Magenta and Colombia, and collected piece after piece of the De-Medusa. I had finally completed the machine. The game didn't end, as I thought it might, but I realised I had to escape the castle with Janet. There wasn't much time left.
About three screens separated me from my victory. I made my way to the final screen, the timer was on one. If I could just get to the castle door, something magical would happen, or a message of congratulations at the very least. But it wasn't to be. I must have about a metre or two away from the door and the timer hit zero. Game Over! It was the closest I'd ever been to beating the game and I wouldn't ever get that close again. I always wondered about the magic that would happen once you reached those castle doors with your partner in tow. The imagination is a powerful ally, and short of beating the game and actually seeing it, the thought of what would happen was always as enticing as beating the game outright. Alas, I sold my C64, moved onto a brand spanking new Amiga. I didn't think about Rocky Horror Show for a long time. And, then, sometime in the 90s something wonderful occurred.
HOW TO KILL A WHITE WHALE WITH ENDLESS SAVE STATE SCUMMAGE
By the latter half of the 90s, emulation had become a thing. It was incredible. I remember playing Ghouls 'n' Ghosts on my PC, it was arcade perfect and looked glorious, and felt like some kind of voodoo. Emboldened by heady nostalgia and confidence at what these emulators could do, my thoughts returned to Rocky Horror Show. I could finally put that ghost to rest. So, I booted up VICE, plugged in a cheap Sega knock-off joypad and save scummed my way through the entire castle. It would take a few attempts, such was the random placement of De-Medusa pieces, the first couple of runs ended in defeat. There just wasn't enough time. But eventually, I had a good run and, through the magic of emulation, I'd once again completed the De-Medusa machine. It was still pretty tight, but I had enough time to make my way through the last few screens, and, finally, through the castle doors, with Janet. We'd escaped. And then.........THE GAME JUST FUCKING ENDED. NOTHING HAPPENED. IT CUT STRAIGHT BACK TO THE START SCREEN WITH ZERO ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF MY TITANIC WHITE WHALE SLAYING. FUCK ALL. ZERO. NOTHING.
All those years of wondering, and my reward was a feeling of emptiness and despair. From Hell's heart I stabbed at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee. I hadn't hunted a white whale, I had skewered a squid. A damp, wet squid. Some things just be left to the imagination. My memory of the game isn't one of wonder or what might have been had I a few more seconds on the clock to make it out. Now, all I think about is how they cheated me out of an ending and that everything is miserable and nothing is good. Never go back, kids. Never go back.
This was actually made into a video game. And, you know what, it was pretty good, and, as with all games on the c64, about as easy as making your way across the Atlantic in a paper boat with a packet of quavers and a bag of grapes. I'm trying to say it was fucking difficult. Really, really difficult. The aim of the game was to unfreeze either Brad or Janet, depending on who you picked as your main character, by collecting pieces of the 'De-Medusa Machine' and rebuilding it, piece by piece, in the main hall of the castle. There was a timer. A remorseless, ticking timer that had no mercy. You'd have an easier time, dusting the biscuit crumbs off your soft, stodgy belly and beating Usain Bolt at the 100m than outlasting that dreaded counter in the bottom left hand corner of your screen. It was merciless and it didn't allow for mistakes. Which is great, because the random-ass, scattershot gameplay was an unfathomable singularity of mistake inducing pain.Let's meet the characters, shall we:
FRANKENFURTER
How do you get a sweet transvestite from Transexual Transylvania into your game for kids? You turn him into a nun, of course. He jerks and spasms across the screen like a drugged-up octopus, and if you come into contact with him, he steals your clothes. This is important, because you can't do anything without your clothes; you can't pick up pieces for the De-Medusa, and the stolen clothes are placed in a random room, soaking up precious time that you can't afford to waste. It essentially ends the game before it's even begun. Don't let him touch you....
MAGENTA & COLOMBIA
These two steal your clothes as well. Everyone in this game is just awful and there to make your life a living hell. These two are awful and their movements are about as predictable as a cracked widget spinning Curly from The Three Strooges. Suffice to say, everyone in this game is difficult to navigate, but at least Frankie, Magenta and Colombia don't straight up murder you......
RIFF-RAFF
Riff-Raff will straight up murder you. You have no lives, there are no continues and, so, if you die, the game ends. Riff-Raff has a fork, or at least it looks like a fork, it's probably supposed to be some kind of laser gun, but it's not, it's a fork. If you're unlucky enough to stand in front of his fork he'll zap you and you'll die. His movement is......well, you get the idea about how unpredictable these characters are by now.
ROCKY
He's only seven hours old, truly beautiful to behold, and he does......not very much. If you bump into him, he just reels off random quotes from the film and is just another character there to annoy you. He'll slow you down, should you get stuck in a corner with him and precious seconds will be lost. He's benign and naked and doesn't have the correct hair colour, but then we have a transvestite dressed as a nun, so we'll let that slide.
EDDIE
Hot Patooie! Bless my soul, I really love that Eddie will fuck you up as he randomly rides his bike through the castle without a single thought for health and safety. When the freezer temp. drops to a certain point, Eddie is released and if you're unfortunate enough to be in the wrong place, he'll movie quote you to death just before running over your mangled corpse. Game Over. If you look closely at the picture, the timer is on three and the De-Medusa is missing four pieces. Escape from the castle isn't happening on that playthrough. Did I mention that the timer is brutal?
THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY
I must have played this game hundreds of times. In the C64 days, unless you were blessed with a disk drive, games were on cassettes, and took their sweet time loading. Once you loaded a game, you were in it for the long haul. The random nature of Rocky Horror always made for an unpredictable session; the machines parts were always randomly generated across the mansion, and it would be pure luck if a generous amount dropped on the first floor and near the De-Medusa machine. But, after countless hours of torment, listening to a C64 SID tune of 'Let's Do The Time-Warp' over and over until my ears bled, I was on a run that was for the ages. I danced around Frankie, waltzed my way through Magenta and Colombia, and collected piece after piece of the De-Medusa. I had finally completed the machine. The game didn't end, as I thought it might, but I realised I had to escape the castle with Janet. There wasn't much time left.
About three screens separated me from my victory. I made my way to the final screen, the timer was on one. If I could just get to the castle door, something magical would happen, or a message of congratulations at the very least. But it wasn't to be. I must have about a metre or two away from the door and the timer hit zero. Game Over! It was the closest I'd ever been to beating the game and I wouldn't ever get that close again. I always wondered about the magic that would happen once you reached those castle doors with your partner in tow. The imagination is a powerful ally, and short of beating the game and actually seeing it, the thought of what would happen was always as enticing as beating the game outright. Alas, I sold my C64, moved onto a brand spanking new Amiga. I didn't think about Rocky Horror Show for a long time. And, then, sometime in the 90s something wonderful occurred.
HOW TO KILL A WHITE WHALE WITH ENDLESS SAVE STATE SCUMMAGE
By the latter half of the 90s, emulation had become a thing. It was incredible. I remember playing Ghouls 'n' Ghosts on my PC, it was arcade perfect and looked glorious, and felt like some kind of voodoo. Emboldened by heady nostalgia and confidence at what these emulators could do, my thoughts returned to Rocky Horror Show. I could finally put that ghost to rest. So, I booted up VICE, plugged in a cheap Sega knock-off joypad and save scummed my way through the entire castle. It would take a few attempts, such was the random placement of De-Medusa pieces, the first couple of runs ended in defeat. There just wasn't enough time. But eventually, I had a good run and, through the magic of emulation, I'd once again completed the De-Medusa machine. It was still pretty tight, but I had enough time to make my way through the last few screens, and, finally, through the castle doors, with Janet. We'd escaped. And then.........THE GAME JUST FUCKING ENDED. NOTHING HAPPENED. IT CUT STRAIGHT BACK TO THE START SCREEN WITH ZERO ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF MY TITANIC WHITE WHALE SLAYING. FUCK ALL. ZERO. NOTHING.
All those years of wondering, and my reward was a feeling of emptiness and despair. From Hell's heart I stabbed at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee. I hadn't hunted a white whale, I had skewered a squid. A damp, wet squid. Some things just be left to the imagination. My memory of the game isn't one of wonder or what might have been had I a few more seconds on the clock to make it out. Now, all I think about is how they cheated me out of an ending and that everything is miserable and nothing is good. Never go back, kids. Never go back.
iconmaster
Banned
When I was around high school age, the local mall arcade brought in a Sega R-360. It caught my eye, but it seemed expensive compared to other cabinets. I never tried it.
My white whale is to ride the R-360.
My white whale is to ride the R-360.
deriks
4-Time GIF/Meme God
I can finish with 4 lives, but not with the three that the normal game has it
Mr Branding
Member
I tried Alien Isolation on release and got at what I think is the half part of the game. Then, for whatever reason, I stopped and played something else . I sold my ps4 after a short while and never finished the game. I re-bought a ps4 this year and went back to a lot of games that I've missed but even if I still have Alien Isolation in my collection, I'm not sure I'm going to go at it again.
I'm not big on horror games, and this one delivers in that aspect so my poor heart can't take the heat.
I'm not big on horror games, and this one delivers in that aspect so my poor heart can't take the heat.
Mr Hyde
Gold Member
FUBAR difficulty in Spec Ops: The Line. It was the last trophy I had had to get to obtain the platinum but it was so insanely difficult that I couldn´t even get past the third level. It was hell on earth.
My other gaming whale is is the G-ranking on Hard in El Shaddai. I have only one word for that. Impossible. But still, that game is seriously one of the best I´ve ever played.
My other gaming whale is is the G-ranking on Hard in El Shaddai. I have only one word for that. Impossible. But still, that game is seriously one of the best I´ve ever played.
TacosNSalsa
Member
You needed the slasher or screw attack or what ever it was called. That made that fight almost pointless..you'd kill him in like 5 seconds . I'd say that getting to him with that ability was the true last boss..lol
My white whale ..umm..right now I'd guess it's Extreme Behemoth from Monster Hunter World ..That guy has whopped my ass so many times I lost count .
KingHenrik30
Member
I never finished Code Veronica even though I'm a huge fan of RE.
Meesh
Member
Seriously, this. Battletoads....The one NES game I never beat...
Battletoads
And probably some little Mega Man thing at some point.