/ Sequence – A new kind of RPG/Rhythm
Posted on January 11, 2012 in Ramblings by dotMaiku
Recently I bought a game called Sequence. At first I wasn’t sure how good it would be, since it was a PC rhythm game and it had 3 panels to hit arrows in. From my experience, PC rhythm games are just bad, made by some DDR fanatic that doesn’t fully understand the game mechanics or can’t write code. And the whole “3 panels” thing made it seem like the developers liked rhythm games a little too much. I read some reviews on the game, and they said it was good, funny, and had quite a bit of play-time. I figured I would give it a try, and it turned out to be quite a good game.
Example of a battle
When you first play the game, it might seem a bit overwhelming. “Oh no, how am I supposed to play 3 panels of arrows at the same time?” Well, here’s the thing, you don’t. You play on one, then swap to the others when you need to. Once you get the hang of it, you find openings and switch to other panels during that time. For example, the panel you always need to pay attention to is the “Defense” panel. If you miss too many arrows on that one, you will lose. So you switch to it when something is coming up, and switch back when you’re done. It’s like playing a DS, but with 3 screens.
There’s an RPG system integrated with the game. As you play, you gain experience and level up. You can equip items and make new items. It’s your typical RPG. How this is integrated into a rhythm game is where it gets interesting. Your character has HP, Attack, Defense, Mana, and other stats. In-game, if you miss arrows on the Defense panel, your HP goes down. Your attack determines how much damage is done to the opponent’s HP when you perform a spell. There are various spells that do different things. To cast one, you have to switch to the Spell panel and hit all of the arrows in the combo. Some spells have breaks in them, which allow you time to switch to another panel. This adds some strategy to the game. The timing of the arrows is always the same for the song, but the arrows are randomized each time.
A Guardian battle
Here’s on of the frustrating parts of the game. Creating items or learning a spell costs you experience (XP). And yes, you will lose levels too. On top of that, you have a chanceof being successful. You can raise your chances of success, but doing so will cost more experience – which really sucks if you fail. And there is no 100% chance of success. There is always a small possibility of failure. So after you “synth” something (as it is called), you probably have to go grind a bit before being ready for the boss.
Each boss, or “Guardian”, has a special ability that will mess with your gameplay in some way. Some aren’t too bad, others will piss you off. Each guardian has their own personality, which brings a lot of humor to the game. One is a stunning resemblance to Joseph Ducreux, and will troll you. Another one talks like an old MUD game. There are even parts of the story that throw in internet references, like “pics or gtfo.” If you frequent “certain” sites on the internet, you’ll be busting a gut over some of the dialogues.
I do believe your mother has had nightly experiences with other men.
The music in the game is very catchy. The songs are in some sub-genre of electronic, but provide a decent variety. Some songs are faster than others, and the arrows will speed up for those songs. There is a story in the game, which I won’t talk about here because of spoilers. However, story points only occur at the start and end of each level/floor. It makes you feel on your own for a bit while you grind songs.
Overall, Sequence is a good game. If you’re a hardcore rhythm game player, you probably won’t enjoy it as much, due to the slightly awkward controls and mechanics. But if you enjoy music games, and want a good laugh, then you should try this game. I know I have enjoyed it and plan to play through it again on a harder difficulty.
