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Hey, I like Lost In Blue!

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Ark-AMN

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I got the game myself and decided to see how much fun I'd have with it and see how accurate the reviews were to my own opinion. Well, admittedly, the reviews did get it right that its very tough when you get started out. Your characters are pretty much quite weak when you first play (hungry and nearly dehydrated), and of course, finding what little there is to eat can be hard since you don't want to run out of energy.

However, after a few "days" in the game, things start to pick up, you slowly discover new areas to explore and find new "shortcuts" to access those areas instead of going through the long routes to get there before. Other things also get more convenient as well. I don't know how they start, but of course, finding certain items can help you spruse up your cave dwelling, such as some stockpiles of firewood (which if you keep filled, you'll never have to start a fire again, and I didn't think it was THAT hard to start fires unlike IGN). And even a water tank which you can store water so that your girl won't get thirsty while you're away.

Building items can be somewhat difficult and as the reviews said, you lose your materials if you fail. Therefore, the trick is to quicksave (or sleep/save) before you build anything so then if you fail, you can just restart and try again.

I dunno, but I'm really digging the game and I'm looking foward to building more things like fishing rods and bows/arrows so I can do some cooler hunting. So basically, you just have to enjoy a little management of things to like the game IMO.

As far as the "teamwork" goes, I do agree that there could have been more complex things to be accomplished (though maybe I haven't seen everything yet) but you certainly don't have to take her everywhere. In fact, I leave her in my cave to do what girls do best. Cook, clean, and make baskets. :lol :D
 
The idea of island exploration is what interested me the most. Does it manage to create a compelling world to explore? How is the atmosphere? I could deal with certain "slow" aspects of the game IF it were compelling enough to hold my interest.

Do you think it delivers on that front?
 
It sounds cool and has been a game I've been interested in for a long time now.
I don't own a DS but it's a game that I would get if I were to pick one up someday.
 
Hmm, there are different types of areas on the island
I've encounetered the beach, the jungle and the plains so far, though thats about half or more of the island
and each of them offers something different. Though, I've felt more compelled to try and get to places that you can see early in the game but you can't reach, and then making shortcuts to get back to those places more easily.

The game definately focuses more on survival than exploration though, from what I can determine. I guess I enjoy trying to keep my people alive and get them new and better stuff to make their lives easier.

Another thing I do like is that the game can be played in very short intervals. Day's don't last long at all and you save everytime you sleep (or you can always quicksave).
 
Yeah, I played like 4 in-game days of it so far and like it a good deal. The constant struggle to survive at the start makes every little item you find count and the bond with the girl is pretty well handled so far. The game's strong point doesnt seem to be exploration, and no storyline really exists yet, but it's definitely compelling after my first glance.
 
I picked it up today as well. So far it's been pretty fun, if a little bit difficult. I went in not expecting an RPG or a game with a plot, but as a survival simulation, and I'm not disappointed at all. The item making portion is even a bit more complex than I originally thought, with each item having different durability and strength. The second screen is put into good use as well, the Real time map is handy. So far, so good! Now to find a stick so I can make a spear...
 
Yeah, I didn't get the "clunky controls" complaint of IGN, especially regarding the fishing. Sure it isn't 100% accurate, but I've definately hit far more than missed.

But like I said, the begining can definately catch people off gaurd because you really have to move fast to find the cave and slowly build up your stats by cooking (which at first sucks because the girl can't cook well in the begining and your cooking materials suck (small shells and stuff), its also good to search the ground (press A, don't use stylus) for spices and stuff that can make the food better. There's plenty of salt close to the ocean on the beach.
 
The game is quite cool. I knew I was going to get it regardless of the review scores, it's just a shame others don't follow the same train. Good game.
 
Ark-AMN said:
Yeah, I didn't get the "clunky controls" complaint of IGN, especially regarding the fishing. Sure it isn't 100% accurate, but I've definately hit far more than missed.

But like I said, the begining can definately catch people off gaurd because you really have to move fast to find the cave and slowly build up your stats by cooking (which at first sucks because the girl can't cook well in the begining and your cooking materials suck (small shells and stuff), its also good to search the ground (press A, don't use stylus) for spices and stuff that can make the food better. There's plenty of salt close to the ocean on the beach.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, I got some rock salt, how do I use it on the meals?
 
BorkBork said:
Hmmm, I got some rock salt, how do I use it on the meals?
Click to expand...
I'm still not too sure about the cooking, I'm assuming that Skye uses the spices in everytime she cooks in different types of dishes. Though again, I'm not certain how she makes her food and what ingrediants she uses.
 
Cooking seems to be pretty much random as far as what she makes. Though I did finally figure out that if I just give her everything I want to eat she'll combine it into however many meals that is. Saves a heck of a lot of time now that I don't have to hand her shell-fish one at a time.

So far I'm having a lot of fun with it. Died about 4 times in the first half hour or so learning to juggle the two characters and make sure they'd eaten/slept. Up to about day 20 or so now and this is my second night of playing it for several hours non-stop. Has that same Harvest Moon "addicting" gameplay of saying "Just one more day" for about 2 hours.
 
Just made my first spear. WTF, spear-fishing is fun as hell! Yeah I miss a bunch, but it's not frustrating in the least as you can just click back right away and try again. It wouldn't be very rewarding if you get the fish every time anyways. Plus the game is getting a bit easier now that you don't have to worry about your stomach all the time. On to day 11!
 
I'm really really enjoying the game --- I'd say I'm 19 days in the game, and it gets mega awesome ----- the sense of exploring, and the stress of staying alive is an addiction I haven't experienced in a game for some time --- each time you want to put it down, you can't because there's something else you need to do.
Exploration is very rewarding because you actually find usefull things to help your survival, and the challenge of making it is a true hike ---- it can take a day (in-game) to prepair for that hike, and a day to rest from it... really awesome to have to take these things into cosideration for a 'survival game' finally.

it also helps to know, that while yoru stamina, water, hunger go down (and your character complains) --- you don't start to lose health 'till at least 2 of those are at 0, and even still it takes a while for health to go all the way.

The game really starts to pick up once you get your spear, and grab the girl for a good day of exploring past the waterfall.... It really seems like the reviewers put it down long before this ---- mostly because
you get many things that make the trip easy.. hell you even get a tin-barrel to store water in, and a place to pile wood --- once you get fish and meat, you don't have to worry much about hunger, and the BlackMushrooms lock your stamina at full for a good amt of time -- I'm working on building a bed right now and a raft

Awesome game, not for everyone --- but it's one of those few times i strongly dissagree with reviews and wonder how much they actually played at all
 
Heh, if you think spear-fishing is fun, wait till you can build a fishing rod, and then a bow and arrow :D

I just played a three-hour stint through the game and I'm still enjoying it, trying to figure out how to hunt properly. I think I need to make me some better traps. :)
 
Lots of great impressions in this thread that really make me want to go out and buy the game. I've been itching to play something just like this for quite some time now. I guess I will pick it up sooner than I expected.
 
I couldn't start a fire for the life of me this morning, and I was ready to hurl the game, but it turns out that my R trigger's just broken. :lol

Luckily, it's still under warranty! :D
 
I donno if the reviewers were aware, because they didn't say --- but just to make things a bit easy, for those picking it up:

Once you have some stored necessities
pile for firewood,water barrel, fish
, you can talk to the girl and say "I'm going out, for a few days" ------ She'll take care of herself, while your out.
Before you're able to do this, it helps to take her with you just in-case
give her a black mushroom
....

I'm learning how to use the damn basket traps right now : ] ----- still workin' on that raft too.... mega addictive game, they'd better polish this up and put a damn pretty-version on the RevO
 
I was playing this for hours last night. Far better than I would have expected. I love the exploration and creation aspects of this game.
 
Sounds like they added a lot more stuff to it than what was in the Survival Kids series. I'm going to pick this up at lunch.
 
I don't get it. This thread makes the game sound pretty cool, but it seems like the reviews have been mostly average.
 
human5892 said:
I don't get it. This thread makes the game sound pretty cool, but it seems like the reviews have been mostly average.
Click to expand...
Well, its clear the game isn't for everyone, but I do have to wonder if the "professional" reviewers didn't just give up on the game too quickly (especially IGN and its "man, I can't start fire or spear-fish!"). There is a ton of depth to this game and it pays to keep with it in my opinion.

EDIT: On a side-note, my local EB store was trying to sell me on Lunar instead of this game but I made it clear this was what I wanted. Now from what I've heard here, Lunar is definately not worth the $10 more than this game (LiB retails at 29 while Lunar is 39).
 
Argh, I'm stuck on this one little thing. I caught a goat and decided to domesticate it, but I can't figure out how to do it. Right now, the goats in the trap and I wan't to do something with it but can't figure out what to do, I could have sworn that the game told me to press A in front of the goat to domesticate it but no "domesticate" option is coming up. I'm really starting to feel bad for the goat now because it doesn't stop crying.

So uh, anyone here domesticate a goat yet?
 
nah, I've been running all around him pressing all sorts of buttons and nothing is happening. I've even tried unequiping and equiping things in case something is needed to help domesticate him. All that happens is when you check the trap Keith says "Oh, there's something caught in the trap".

Man, I wish I had paid more attention to what he said when he first saw the goat, but I was too eager to quicksave.
 
human5892 said:
I don't get it. This thread makes the game sound pretty cool, but it seems like the reviews have been mostly average.
Click to expand...

I might have to buy this game on impressions from gaf alone. I've found that reviews usually are wrong now-a-days and gaf members likings seem to be way more in the same liking as me.
 
with the reviews, I got the impression that they didn't get very far and got bogged down in the daily tasks, which become boring when you're having a hard time getting enough food to stay alive.

Right now(day 30 for me), a typical day for Keith (main male char) is like this (from Keith's perspective)

I awoke at 7 am to the sound of crying. I looked over at Skye, who was huddled next to the coals from last night's fire. I asked her what was wrong and she told me that our chicken had died. I told her kindly that it was the chicken's time to go, though I suspect that she forgot to take care of her for a day or two. I wish I had never broken her glasses.

I wiped away Skye's tears and told her I was going out for a while to find breakfast. I was getting pretty hungry at this point, baked fish can only hold a person for so long, afterall. So I grabbed my trusty spear that I had fashioned from a tough wooden stick and a piece of stone and walked out of our cozy cave.

It was raining, just like it had been for the past 2 days and my clothes were like weights on my back as I trudged towards the river. I stopped for a drink and filled up the two bottles I had found on the beach to add to our water storage. I managed to spear a couple of bass and then I walked down to the beach to gather salt for the meal.

Its amazing how fast time goes when you're working hard to survive. The sun had already climbed into the sky, though I couldn't see it for the clouds. Soaked, but accomplished, I head back to the cave so that Skye can cook our breakfast.

I ask her to cook, and give her the pair of bass; then she goes off to the corner to start cooking while I relax by the fire. Breakfast is ready half an hour later, and I've been wondering exactly how long it is we've been stranded here.

Obviously quite a while, as Skye's cooking has improved substantially. I used to be unable to keep it down, and we both ended up eating coconuts more than her crazy concoctions, but she seems to have it mastered now and the results are much more nourishing than before.

This afternoon, I'll go out to the plains and try to kill a deer for dinner, but I am not certain that i'll be successful. I still remember another time I went hunting. I spent hours looking for game, and had to come back to the cave with only an armload of coconuts to show for my troubles. Since then, I've learned that it is wise to spear a few fish before I go hunting, just in case I return empty handed...

(end)

Might be kinda long, but it gives a good idea of the way the game plays, as well as some tips for keeping your characters alive heh.
 
see reading the reviews makes me jaded, but then I read a post from someone who actually played it and it sounds more interesting. it seems like suddenly there are so many DS games I'm in a quandry.
 
Oh my. I was thinking I'd wait a week and pick up Phoenix Wright or Trauma Center, but you guys are making this sound so good. I can probably only afford to buy two DS games before Christmas, and I really thought one of them was going to be Mario Kart.
 
This was one of my most anticipated games for the DS, I was quite shocked by the bad reviews. Reading through them I had the impression that they were punishing the game just for being different... what a shame. reading these posts makes me wanting it even more :)
 
Picked it up today. Loved Survival Kids. Gotta find time to play this around Lunar and Trace Memory!
 
Man, I dont know what I did, but I just can't figure out what I'm supposed to do with this tied up goat. Perhaps I did something wrong when I listened to Keith speak about it.

I'll ask again, anyone get a goat domesticated yet?
 
To expand on what I and others said earlier- I wasn't expecting this game to be like this. I thought it'd be REALLY boring (well, some parts are, like gathering food), but the best parts of this game are searching around, looking for items to use to make weapons to catch food with, or make furniture, or rope, or whatever else you can make. I went down to the beach early this morning and discovered a previously unexplored area and found a metal drum to store water in. It makes good uses of the DS's features. The second screen being a map is extremely handy in this case (unlike say, Kirby Canvas Curse or Super Mario 64, where it was pretty obvious where things were). The features don't seem to be gimmicky (to me, at least). You dig for food. You blow on sparks to create fire. It makes sense.

It was a nice surprise I wasn't expecting. Can't recommend it to everyone though. It's a little more in line with the Harvest Moon games than anything.
 
Ark-AMN said:
Man, I dont know what I did, but I just can't figure out what I'm supposed to do with this tied up goat.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure, or hopeful, that this is the first game that this phrase could apply to.
 
Hmm, I must have done something wrong, because someone on gamefaqs said that all you had to do was press A next to the goat when it says "check traps" and it would be automatic. I guess either the quicksave messed it up, or perhaps I accidentaly went into hunting mode and didn't realize it which may have done something.

I guess now I'll have to start over, bummer, I wanted a goat. :(
 
Alright, I played it a little bit. I won't give in-depth impressions because that's already been covered, but I do have a few points-

- The reviewers weren't joking. The first several days are extremely frustrating. I ended up playing 5 days and getting stuck in a rut that by the time I woke up the following morning (from my save) I was too hungry and thirsty to get food fast enough to survive, so I had to start over. My 2nd game has been going much more smoothly.

- The interface is clunkier than it needs to be. I have a hard time giving Skye items, storing items, removing items from storage, etc. It isn't horrible... I've seen worse inventory systems. It just could be better.

- I'm having much more fun spear fishing than I feel like I should be. Its very visceral.

-Overall, the game reminds me a lot of Pikmin, believe it or not. Well, Pikmin 2, to be more accurate. I'm always trying to get as much done in a day as possible, and since just walking moderate distances takes a decent amount of energy, you have to plan your trips (example: First, go collect coconuts and seaweed. Then go to another part of the island and collect carrots. On the way back to the cave, catch some fish).

It's got a pikmin 2 vibe for me because I spend some days trying to be uber productive... pushing the bounderies of where I've been and what I've done, and then I spend a day or two after that more lazily... just recovering. Catching a lot of food, etc.
 
Well, I started the day over, but in the end I ended up catching a deer and there was no goat to be found :(. I was mad, so I shot the deer three times with my arrows and it died. But, I took its meat, lard and fur back to Skye and she seemed happy, well mainly about the lard cause now she can fry food.

I better get a goat eventually!
 
You make a large trap using a tree vine and a wooden stick (the kind of stick you use for spears or fishing rods).
 
Hmm, now I'm trying to find lots of logs, heh, its always that way, I passed by so many logs and never picked them up because I didn't need them. But now that I wan't to build all these things like the raft, I need a lot of them.

Heh, well, this game is certainly taking up a lot of my time now thats for sure.
 
Ugh!! stop you feckers, you're all making me want to buy this game.

But before i take the plunge, one question..
Are the days and the clock in the game tied directly to the ds's internal clock like nintendogs (ie I have to play everyday or my ppl will starve)? Or are the days determined by when and if you play, kind of like the harvest moon games where you could end the days when you pleased?
 
Rolio said:
Ugh!! stop you feckers, you're all making me want to buy this game.

But before i take the plunge, one question..
Are the days and the clock in the game tied directly to the ds's internal clock like nintendogs (ie I have to play everyday or my ppl will starve)? Or are the days determined by when and if you play, kind of like the harvest moon games where you could end the days when you pleased?
Click to expand...

The latter... It's accelerated, in-game time.
 
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