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 I have never heard of this game. That's cool. Monument Valley is a mobile game by the distressingly indie developers at ustwo in which we guide a rather quiet Princess Ida through the ruins of her long-dead kingdom. These "ruins" are surprisingly cheerful, if a bit strange, and interacting with them rather than with Ida directly is how we'll be doing the majority of our exploration. It's basically like being trapped in an MC Escher music box. ...Huh. Yup. So how's this gonna go? In a word: low-key. Each update will be about ten minutes, maybe less, (The first two are really short but it gets better, honest) and I'll be running subtitles to intrude as little as I can. The puzzles are pretty straightforward, and there's little room for audience participation, but even with that, Monument Valley has to be seen (and heard) to be believed. Thread stuff? No spoilers, I guess? There's not much to really preempt here, but let's keep all discussion to current and previous levels, just because their design is a really big part of how this game is experienced and we don't want to ruin the surprise. Updates every Tuesday and Thursday. Any other questions? Nope, I'm good. Then without further ado: Let me tell you a story, Once upon a time There was a brave princess From a quiet kingdom Who wanted to set things right. She traveled the long-forgotten Valley With its paths of dust And its pillars of regret. There were many strange adventures, And when she came to the end of her journey She received a wonderful reward Appendix i: On Fleeing from lava Appendix ii: On Twisting, weirdly Appendix iii: On Wretched thievery Appendix iv: On Relaxing with Water Puzzles Appendix v: On Losing something precious Appendix vi: On Surreality Appendix vii: On the sides of boxes Appendix viii: Onwards Awakening from a pleasant dream Fanart Warning: Contains spoilers. Sort of.  Thanks, Grimwit! Trenchfoot fucked around with this message at 14:48 on Sep 8, 2015 |
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Jul 8, 2015 04:21
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It may not be mind-bending yet, but episodes 2 and 3 are up. Check out our first real level and some conversations with the questionably dead!
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Jul 10, 2015 05:51
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In, Episode Four, Princess Ida continues in a stalwart fashion, as we visit a koi pond and meet the Crow People. Also, I retouched the OP after some solid advice from the peanut gallery. Should be a little more straightforward now. Thanks guys!
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Jul 15, 2015 06:30
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Grimwit posted:This kind of reminds of me Kairo. Don't worry, her fate is much more bizarre. Plus, it's kind of a trope in this game that all ghosts are dicks so it's unlikely by that margin too.
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Jul 17, 2015 04:19
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Sorry about the delay, there were some minor technical glitches. Anyway, as we slouch toward Chapter Five Princess Ida moves in mysterious ways, this becomes a stealth game, and we are well and truly bothered by the Crow People. Godspeed.
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Jul 18, 2015 01:15
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Mraagvpeine posted:I started watching this and it has an interesting art style. In episode 2, the subtitles are a little hard to read. Yeah, sorry about that. Four should have bigger font and be easier to read.
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Jul 19, 2015 17:56
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Meis posted:I absolutely adore this game. the art and sound in it are phenominal. I think it won an award even? It won several. Meis posted:Good LP. Awww, thanks. Meis posted:Are you going to do the DLCs too? 
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Jul 22, 2015 04:21
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berryjon posted:Odd. The Princess looks like a color-negative crow with her hat on. Mayhap she should take it off, and the Crows won't recognize her? I get the feeling they would squawk at us even still. I don't think two crows ever run into each other in-game, but if they did the bellyaching would probably last forever. SSNeoman posted:Even when you're not in their way they still turn to squawk at you. Jerks. I know right, they're as bad as the dead guys.
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Jul 22, 2015 04:25
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In Chapter 6, Princess Ida carries on through certain peril, as we make a new friend, say some tender goodbyes, and apparently leave a throne vacant.
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Jul 22, 2015 05:20
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Hey gang, it's Chapter 7, where we carry on despite our losses, encounter the most perturbatory architecture to date, and get some of our own back against the Crow People.
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Jul 24, 2015 04:42
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berryjon posted:Or will these questions be answered in upcoming videos? Hold that thought for, like, two updates.
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Jul 29, 2015 03:31
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And now for Chapter 8, where Princess Ida, now returned to us, continues her quest in a grand fashion as we explore The Box, apologize to the Crow People, and encounter strategically placed fish.
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Jul 29, 2015 03:38
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SSNeoman posted:Wow that was really cool. I can see why you like that level. The way it folds in and out is really nice I'm glad you liked it, because this is really the level that inspired my LP.
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Jul 31, 2015 05:27
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Things fall apart in Chapter 9, where Princess Ida faces fate grimly, we meet an old friend, see what I'm assuming is a Queen, and learn that flowers are the most sacred of all geometry
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Jul 31, 2015 05:58
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berryjon posted:Also, does anything happen when you approach the mirror? Just mirror things.
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Aug 5, 2015 03:14
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Things fall together in Chapter 10, when we light three lights to end the world, the architecture stops even pretending to make sense, and I have surprisingly little to say.
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Aug 5, 2015 03:48
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Grimwit posted:
Yeah, I thought so too. Doesn't really explain itself, but with a game like this I wasn't expecting it to. berryjon posted:That was the ending, right? Mraagvpeine posted:This is a short but sweet game. Yup. Just about ties it all up, really. You all are invited to stay for some coffee and DLC, but that's rather more addendum. Hope you liked it! SSNeoman posted:Oh. So the crow people could no longer fly because Ida stole (?) the sacred geometry? Huh. But it seems to have cursed her as well...? Liking your take, but I'm still a little confused by the subtitle for Chapter 10. There are a lot of ways to read this, and the ending itself.
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Aug 7, 2015 01:28
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And now for something complete different with Appendix i, in which Princess Ida takes matters into her own hands as we dodge molten rock, rapidly run out of stairs, and wonder what happened to the wings, or for that matter, the ending.
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Aug 7, 2015 03:50
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SSNeoman posted:The lack of the music box strings when you move objects is really disconcerting. I thiiiiiiiink that was just for the one level? Grimwit posted:Glad to see even though this is an addendum, they didn't skimp on the creativity. It's almost like they're casting off what limitations their were from the main storyline, and just going full abstract. berryjon posted:Leave no Totem Behind! Semper Fly!
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Aug 12, 2015 02:35
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Princess Ida really takes the biscuit in Chapter 12 as we go swimming where we shouldn't, stand where we can't, and find out that flowers are the safest way to travel.
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Aug 12, 2015 03:43
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Mraagvpeine posted:And it wasn't that hard to figure out those puzzles. No need to be snide.  But seriously, my occasional flailing aside, these puzzles are pretty straightforward, which is kind of why I have a hard time explaining this game to my hypothetical friends. Sure the label says "Puzzle game," but it's really less about challenge and more about, "Wouldn't it be cool if there were one-eyed blocks everywhere and we all flew around in flowers?" I want to say it's more of an experience than a game, but I also don't want to get punched.Grimwit posted:What in holy Hell is going on?! Oh I don't know, something Mind-Beeeeeeendiiiiing? Hmmmm? Hmmmmmmmmmm? But seriously, the DLC is a bit less worried about introducing mechanics/corpse exposition as it is with just raw experience.
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Aug 14, 2015 00:46
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The unthinkable happens in Appendix iii, as Ida gets a horrible surprise, we encounter a machine run for and by Crow People, and a truly inordinate amount of revenge is sworn.
Trenchfoot fucked around with this message at 02:19 on Aug 14, 2015 |
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Aug 14, 2015 02:15
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Hope you guys are enjoying the thread!
Trenchfoot fucked around with this message at 02:19 on Aug 14, 2015 |
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Aug 14, 2015 02:15
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SystemLogoff posted:I just watch the videos pretty passively when I'm tired though.  My videos are a bedtime story for the internet. SSNeoman posted:I liked the Princess' animation when she was trying to take her hat off. This was a really cool level in general yeah. Definitely one of my favorites so far. Ben Kasack posted:That one was kind of cute. They do something you're not quite expecting and give you a reason to chase down this one, solitary Crow. NO ONE wears the magic, shape expelling cone hat except the Princess. NO ONE.
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Aug 18, 2015 04:37
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Things simmer down in Appendix iv, as we raise and lower a perfect cube of water, reluctantly rediscover our inner necromancer, and do the electronic equivalent of bonsai trimming.
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Aug 19, 2015 03:28
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SSNeoman posted:That was nice shoutout to Escher's Waterfall. I always liked that one myself berryjon posted:It's nice to see them pulling out classic non-euclidean architecture now and again. There really was a sort of "back to basics" vibe about the whole thing. And say what you like about Escher, those waterfalls were the stuff. Carbon dioxide posted:The ghost explained the title 'Forgotten Shores'. This was a part of the Princess' earlier adventures, before she got her crown back. The princess had just forgotten about them, and this her telling her subjects about them. Makes a lot of sense. Wow, that actually works pretty well. It also makes a few later things easier to stomach Carbon dioxide posted:I was wondering though, if after solving the final waterfall puzzle you could step into the stream. Looked like it should be possible... Went back and tried; sorry, no dice.
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Aug 21, 2015 04:31
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Things take a wrong turn in Appendix v as we exploit old friendships, find something lost, and reflect on mortality
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Aug 21, 2015 06:22
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Princess Ida buckles down in Appendix vi, as Crows are interrogated fiercely, things are stood on that should not be, and a nervous breakdown is narrowly averted.
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Aug 26, 2015 04:55
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berryjon posted:If you could turn your screen around, some of those changes in orientation become easier to understand. That.... would really have helped. Yeah. Carbon dioxide posted:Ow, my head. GeneralYeti posted:Well that was a hell of a thing to watch first thing in the morning. Ow. WELCOME TO MY ADORABLE NIGHTMARE Mraagvpeine posted:I think the level is based on this illusion. There are definitely paralells; a couple Crows were sitting on protruding blocks like that. SSNeoman posted:This game has officially stopped loving around wow Or it's only getting started. loving around.
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Aug 28, 2015 03:17
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Princess Ida messes with our heads in Appendix vii as she explores the Purple Room, tries to hit a Crow with the ocean, and bends time and space to plant a sapling.
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Aug 28, 2015 03:24
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Also, I had to switch computers, so sorry in advance about the weird drop in video quality. I'm hopefully going to record the last two updates this weekend, and I'll try to reupload six and seven after that.
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Aug 28, 2015 03:26
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Princess Ida pulls off a minor miracle in Appendix viii as we get kinda chilly, light four lights to end the DLC, and pick up the pieces from there.
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Sep 2, 2015 03:04
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SSNeoman posted:
It'll look better when I reupload, grumble grumble. NullBlack posted:A pit into which prisoners were thrown, to be "forgotten" (oublier (“to forget”)). Thanks, hooded guy. I was wondering about that too. berryjon posted:Wait. You said *two* more videos? But I thought there was only 8 levels.... Technically since the video's up already I'll spill. Just beforeI started this thread, June 25th to be precise, ustwo made the Ida's Dream DLC available to all players. It's a good fifteen minutes, scandalous length for this thread I know, and that will really, truly, seriously be the end of our time together. Will you guys miss me? I'll miss you.
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Sep 2, 2015 03:10
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Princess Ida waves a bittersweet goodbye, as we traverse the infinite, lament the loss of spinning music, and grind madness into flour in a very odd windmill.
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Sep 4, 2015 05:19
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| # ¿ Apr 25, 2024 15:06 |
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And that's all she wrote, folks. I'm going to reupload a few of the earlier videos with bigger subtitles and HD, and then I'll close the thread for good. Thanks again to everyone who liked, watched or commented: when I started this I was rather worried it would just be me posting out into the void. G'night!
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Sep 4, 2015 05:22
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