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[Red]

Spoiler

are you sure you are invincible during that sequence? I kept getting the prompt for Werewhiskey being activated, so I just assumed I was losing health. I thought I just got lucky as I made it to the exit on my last potion.

Same thing happens with the other choice. I ran out of potions myself.

 

[PBalfredo]

So the choice at the end got me thinking.

Spoiler

Imagine having to decide whether to restore or evacuate from the view of the characters in the game. Disregard your meta-game knowledge as the player. You are The Kid and you have to make the decision.

The question that arises is if the events leading up to the calamity will repeat themselves after the Bastion resets time. If that turns out to be true, then it's also possible the events after the calamity will occur exactly the same as before, including using the Bastion to restart time, creating a never-ending time loop.

Now let's look at taking the option to evacuate. If the fear of restoring time is that your actions after the time restore are pre-determined, then choosing to evacuate means one of two things. Either 1) you DO have free-will to make changes in each time-loop, as evident by the fact you chose to evacuate in this time-loop, OR 2) you never used the Bastion to restore time; choosing to evacuate is the one and only decision you made with the Bastion core.

But you have the option to evacuate, maybe you have free will to change your decision in the next time loop, right? Well, if this is the rhetoric used to justify using the Bastion to restore time this time, how do you know it won't be used to justify restoring time, every time?

So if you use the Bastion to restore time once, you risk being caught in a time loop, restoring time every time.

If you choose to evacuate, your fears of a predetermined calamity are false, or you never even tried.

Which do you choose, GAF?

 

[autobzooty]

Just beat the game.

Spoiler

Really enjoyed the choice they gave me at the end there, but I was wondering what happened with Zulf? I chose to save him and then I just woke up in the Bastion and didn't ever see what happened to him. I talked to Rucks and Zia about the choice I was given, but Zulf was no where to be found. I only saw him in some still images in the credits. Strange.

Best game I've played in a really really long time.

 

[xanavi]

So the choice at the end got me thinking.

I can't find any flaws with your reasoning here.

Spoiler

I can only offer the notion that from the way the skyways work to the way the Kid jumps out the window at the saloon a lot of the game involves leaps of faith. The way you put things there is no wrong choice as it's impossible to tell either way. If I were the Kid and knew what you knew I'd just flip a coin.

 

[Phat Michael]

just finished the game. absolutely brilliant and the best game ive played this year. amazing graphics, story, gameplay and music. its completely and utterly addictive and i havent been so antzy to come home and play a game since Demon Souls or Mass Effect 2.

Starting NG+ just so i can 200/200 the game.

My weapons of choice are the flame thrower and either the mortar or the dual pistols.

The one stage i found really hard is getting 1st place with the machete. any clues on that? it just seems really difficult to work out the best strategy for it..

 

[ThingontheFloor]

The one stage i found really hard is getting 1st place with the machete. any clues on that? it just seems really difficult to work out the best strategy for it..

Once it's fairly upgraded, if you immediately run the center of the stage and chop away you should be able to do it easily. They all respawn from around the same area, so if you're quick, you can get them all before they even leave. If 1 or 2 get away, just let them go until they stop spawning. Once they're done, get the stragglers and take out the popcorn machine.... things. Don't worry about those until the main blobs are killed.

 

[Phat Michael]

Once it's fairly upgraded, if you immediately run the center of the stage and chop away you should be able to do it easily. They all respawn from around the same area, so if you're quick, you can get them all before they even leave. If 1 or 2 get away, just let them go until they stop spawning. Once they're done, get the stragglers and take out the popcorn machine.... things. Don't worry about those until the main blobs are killed.

so ur saying to NOT kill the popcorn machines until right at the end? i was killing them first. what about the turrets?

 

[see5harp]

Machete was easy once you realize that your emphasis needs to be on the squirts that spawn inthe middle. Just spam attack there until they stop and then roll around and cleanup everything else.

 

[Goreomedy]

Just finished the first playthrough on this. I wasn't convinced after the trial, but man am I glad I didn't pass it up. One of the best downloadable games I've played. Up there with Limbo and Flower, I'd say.

Spoiler

Would have liked a little more development in the relationships at The Bastion. There was enough of a connection that the ending had some impact, but it could have been so much stronger had they taken the time to bring those characters to life.

 

[kylej]

Pike 4 lyfe.

 

[Amir0x]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

good game otherwise.

 

[FateBreaker]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

good game otherwise.

how unfortunate. you're going to miss a lot of good music and story pieces. also, be sure to turn him back on when you're nearing the end of the game.

 

[JonCha]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

good game otherwise.

I do think they could have you a better voice actor.

 

[Goreomedy]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

"And then he muted me. My silence echoed throughout the Bastion. Could he survive without my colorful commentary? We were about to find out. All of us. Starting now. Yep, only the danger that awaits to keep him company. My, my, my. He just picked up something interesting. But I'm not saying what. He wants some time 'alone'. And that's just what I'm giving him. The peace he so desir"(Exit Game)

 

[TheChewyWaffles]

^ lol

 

[FateBreaker]

"And then he muted me. My silence echoed throughout the Bastion. Could he survive without my colorful commentary? We were about to find out. All of us. Starting now. Yep, only the danger that awaits to keep him company. My, my, my. He just picked up something interesting. But I'm not saying what. He wants some time 'alone'. And that's just what I'm giving him. The peace he so desir"(Exit Game)

okay that was good XD

 

[Deleted member 30609]

Yeah, dealing with the spawning Squirts as they appear is the key. Once they're dealt with you can basically do it as you please, you'll have time.

 

[Splash Wave]

Is that Hammer Vigil something that should just happen on it's own as you level up? I figure it should, but I can't seem to do that much damage in a single strike.

 

[Clunker]

I pretty much ignored the Fang Repeater for my entire first playthrough, but I ended up upgrading it to full in my NG+ -- and the last upgrade that makes it heat-seeking turns it into a beautiful, nonstop killing machine. This and the Pike equal the Kid as a walking Calamity.

I haven't run into a game like this in ages, where I can't decide on a favorite weapon loadout because all of the weapons are so awesome.

 

[Lima]

Is that Hammer Vigil something that should just happen on it's own as you level up? I figure it should, but I can't seem to do that much damage in a single strike.

If you still have problems with this you can either try doing a focus attack. That is the second or third upgrade I think. Now hold down LT to gain focus and hammer away. You can also try to use the special Sneaky Decoy. You will do critical hit damage if you hit anyone after deploying it.

 

[Splash Wave]

Thanks, I completely forgot the focus attack existed.

 

[Phat Michael]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

good game otherwise.

are you just saying this to be different?

So you are muting this game which has an amazing narrator and some of the best music in a game ever made? the sound is so important in this game and the narrator says some really cool things.
--------------

Im having serious problems with the machette stage - i cant get my time under 2 mins 20 no matter what i do with all upgrades on it. the last few take AGES to get and its fukn impossible.

also the Cael Hammer stage - i cant get under 27s - even with using evades. what is the technique here are you supposed to stay still and hit then move or use the focus attack with LT?

 

[Nert]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

good game otherwise.

Really? The sound design was probably my favorite part of the game. At the very least, keep the music turned on.

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

Tch...
My review isn't listed in the OP.
Knew I wasn't shit...should've listened to my mother.

 

[Dany]

Thanks, I completely forgot the focus attack existed.

Rolling around through crates instead of smashing them is also faster. But yes, most of the proving grounds have you causing the most damage possible.

 

[Red]

I pretty much ignored the Fang Repeater for my entire first playthrough, but I ended up upgrading it to full in my NG+ -- and the last upgrade that makes it heat-seeking turns it into a beautiful, nonstop killing machine. This and the Pike equal the Kid as a walking Calamity.

I haven't run into a game like this in ages, where I can't decide on a favorite weapon loadout because all of the weapons are so awesome.

Yes, fang repeater is pretty much the best weapon fully upgraded. You can breeze through all the dreams with full idols as long as you're packing that thing, no problem. I find having the squirt lure ability makes the dreams very easy, since your summoned squirts are durable and distract opponents.

 

[Creamium]

About to finish NG+. Where does the game put you once you've finished and choose continue? Back at the Bastion before the final area I hope? Because afterwards I want to try some of the challenges with all idols.

 

[Red]

About to finish NG+. Where does the game put you once you've finished and choose continue? Back at the Bastion before the final area I hope? Because afterwards I want to try some of the challenges with all idols.

Yes, you start back at the Bastion.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I just finished it.

Without reading anyone else's impressions, does anyone else think that the narrator might be

Spoiler

the Kid who is older now after having used the Bastion to revert the Calamity?

I might be totally off the mark, but I sort of got that impression from the commentary near the end of the game.

Anyway, I really enjoyed the game, except for that I found most of the enemies to be not very entertaining to battle.

 

[The Antitype]

Wait, so every time I pick up a new weapon or special ability, I'm stuck using it? Is that right?

 

[Roddslayer]

Wait, so every time I pick up a new weapon or special ability, I'm stuck using it? Is that right?

Just for a little while in that level and then almost always there is a armory shack where you can change your weapons and special abilities. The beauty of these levels is that they highlight the weapon with unique scenarios that show off their advantages.

 

[meltingparappa]

So I have a red Bastion bandana that I picked up at PAX east.
If a member of "lazy sunday afternoon" gaf wants it, please reply to this message to call it then PM me your address (continental US) and I'll send it to you.

Double bonus if you could paypal me a buck for shipping upon getting it.

Game is great, bandanas are great, but I don't have an adorable golden retriever to virally market the game for me.

 

[AEREC]

Wait, so every time I pick up a new weapon or special ability, I'm stuck using it? Is that right?

yes...one of the very few annoyances in this otherwise wonderful game.

 

[CrunchyFrog]

Stunning visuals. Really well-drawn. Is this on PC yet?

 

[Creamium]

Man, trying to beat one of the Who Knows Where's with all Idols turned on... no joke. Enemies regen health pretty fast, which makes the big hammer guys pretty tough.

Idols are a godsend though, because it's the only way to make NG+ feel different, since the difficulty doesn't change at all.

They should've added 1 or 2 achievements connected to the Idols, the set's way too easy now. They had to stick to 12 here, so maybe the Steam release will have some more challenging ones.

 

[LiK]

god i am muting this game. the announcer was quaint at first but now is just a barrel of non-stop cliches and grizzled irritation

good game otherwise.

if you don't understand the story in the end, don't blame the game.

 

[Lima]

They should've added 1 or 2 achievements connected to the Idols, the set's way too easy now. They had to stick to 12 here, so maybe the Steam release will have some more challenging ones.

They didn't have to. Microsoft is now allowing a max of 20 achievements for 200 for arcade games.

 

[Ilive1up]

this game is really, really impressing me.

the art, the combat, the upgrades, the challenge rooms. so much. so good.

 

[chemicals]

After reading most of this thread, I'm gonna buy this game now!







(as soon as it drops to 800 points or less - I'm a CAG)

 

[thinklong]

Beat the game over the weekend and immediately started a NG+...

Love everything about it really. Thought the story was super convoluted but the delivery and ambiance really made the world feel alive.

In a way, it reminded me a lot of the first Bioshock... For example, the way upgrades are handled in an non-traditional way like equipping plasmids at vending machines in Bioshock or spirits in the distillery in Bastion. Also, having the presence of a narrator who is always with you and guiding you throughout the world.

Really awesome experience, now going through for the achievements which I rarely, rarely do.

 

[Creamium]

They didn't have to. Microsoft is now allowing a max of 20 achievements for 200 for arcade games.

Ow really? Shame then.

I think I found the ideal weapon for Idol challenges : the mortar. Found it too slow at first, but with upgraded aiming speed + damage protection for you, this thing is insanely powerful, and even useful up close. Best weapon in the game for me. Beat the first Who Knows Where with all Idols, only using 1 potion.

 

[Sir Garbageman]

I just finished it.

Without reading anyone else's impressions, does anyone else think that the narrator might be

Spoiler

the Kid who is older now after having used the Bastion to revert the Calamity?

I might be totally off the mark, but I sort of got that impression from the commentary near the end of the game.

At some point near the end I thought they were going to go down that route as well.

 

[Goreomedy]

200/200. NG+ is an experience all its own. Blew through those stages in quick order.

Oh, and a correction of a criticism before. I felt they hadn't fleshed out the supporting characters earlier. Well, that's because I hadn't gone through the other two Who Knows Where stages. Oops.

Anyone get access to the Outhouse or Mailbox? Anything cool you can do with the animals?

 

[The_Darkest_Red]

I finally managed to finish this game last night. The combat got better towards the end, in my opinion, thanks to some interesting new weapons and enemies. I loved the art, music, and general style of this game but saying all of that is basically rhetorical at this point. The one area I would love to see improved in a sequel is the variety in gameplay. Instead of such a pure focus on combat (which I did enjoy, don't get me wrong) I would like to see some puzzles or platforming sections to mix things up a bit.

End game spoila:

Spoiler

Also, I chose to carry Zolf and restore the world. Carrying him out was definitely my favorite moment in the game.

So the choice at the end got me thinking.

Spoiler

Imagine having to decide whether to restore or evacuate from the view of the characters in the game. Disregard your meta-game knowledge as the player. You are The Kid and you have to make the decision.

The question that arises is if the events leading up to the calamity will repeat themselves after the Bastion resets time. If that turns out to be true, then it's also possible the events after the calamity will occur exactly the same as before, including using the Bastion to restart time, creating a never-ending time loop.

Now let's look at taking the option to evacuate. If the fear of restoring time is that your actions after the time restore are pre-determined, then choosing to evacuate means one of two things. Either 1) you DO have free-will to make changes in each time-loop, as evident by the fact you chose to evacuate in this time-loop, OR 2) you never used the Bastion to restore time; choosing to evacuate is the one and only decision you made with the Bastion core.

But you have the option to evacuate, maybe you have free will to change your decision in the next time loop, right? Well, if this is the rhetoric used to justify using the Bastion to restore time this time, how do you know it won't be used to justify restoring time, every time?

So if you use the Bastion to restore time once, you risk being caught in a time loop, restoring time every time.

If you choose to evacuate, your fears of a predetermined calamity are false, or you never even tried.

Which do you choose, GAF?

This is the best post in this entire thread.

Spoiler

If I were the kid I would be extremely confused because I wouldn't know if I was already living in the time-loop. The problem is, as you basically said, there is no reason to think that you would know the next time you reached that point either, so you may already be in it. Still though, I think I would choose to restore the world to the way it was and hope that the future iteration of myself would process the choice differently enough in the event that the Calamity repeated itself.

 

[Red]

At some point near the end I thought they were going to go down that route as well.

I thought the same at the first meeting with the stranger. After all,

Spoiler

it was just you and him there. I thought maybe the Bastion had held onto an "old" kid from a previous Calamity, since this time around he was the only survivor.

 

[The_Darkest_Red]

I thought the same at the first meeting with the stranger. After all,

Spoiler

it was just you and him there. I thought maybe the Bastion had held onto an "old" kid from a previous Calamity, since this time around he was the only survivor.

Spoiler

I definitely thought that as well, although for me it "clicked" when the stranger was saying something like, "how do you think I know so much about the Bastion?" I thought he was saying that he knows all about it because he is the one who built it as the kid in another time-loop or something. I'm glad they didn't go down that route because it just makes things ridiculously complicated when you start screwing with the 4th dimension too much.

 

[delleps]

So I was thinking

Spoiler

I think it would be interesting if you only got the choice to do ng+ if you chose the restart time option. The new game would be the next loop in the timeline, and the skills and levels and stuff could be explained away as some sort of leftover of the previous timeline.

That of course would be dumb because if you

Spoiler

chose to fly away, what would they do, not let you play again?

 

[Phonomezer]

Finished Bastion recently. I don't think I've ever played a game quite like it before; it's absolutely brilliant.

It is a bit on the short side, but high on replayability.

 

[sixghost]

So I was thinking

Spoiler

I think it would be interesting if you only got the choice to do ng+ if you chose the restart time option. The new game would be the next loop in the timeline, and the skills and levels and stuff could be explained away as some sort of leftover of the previous timeline.

That of course would be dumb because if you

Spoiler

chose to fly away, what would they do, not let you play again?

Spoiler

I was absolutely terrified this was going to be the case. I really felt like the evacuation was the proper choice for the ending, but I also really wanted to make a run at the dream sequences with 10 idols. I ended up checking online to see if you could NG+ after choosing the evacuation.

 

[LiK]

Spoiler

I was absolutely terrified this was going to be the case. I really felt like the evacuation was the proper choice for the ending, but I also really wanted to make a run at the dream sequences with 10 idols. I ended up checking online to see if you could NG+ after choosing the evacuation.

HAHA, that would be terrible if we were locked out from choosing that other *redacted*. but yea, i'm not surprised people would have a slight fear of that.