Puyo Puyo

[puyokid]

Yeah. I mean, especially with how Arle and Ringo were done away with before the climax, it's like they were dodging any chance to involve other characters into Sig's dilemma.

Yeah, that REALLY irked me quite a bit as well. Raffine and Klug I SUPPOSE I understand, but they really just wrote out Arle, Ringo, and Carbuncle from the story's climax just like that? Seriously, that just felt so..."unnatural", for lack of a better word.

It's especially lame because the process of Sig having to be brought back to normal before his old self is consumed by his demon nature would have been far stronger if it involved more of his friends then just Amitie (and Lemres standing on the sidelines).

Exactly. I get the weird feeling some might find that "cliche", but I'd rather have YOUR take than what the book gave us. I mean, as I've said before, I ship Amitie x Sig, but we ALL know that Sig's closest friend IS Amitie, so this feels somewhat..."typical" as a resolution to bring Sig back to his senses. I would have liked seeing something like Raffine and Klug maybe admit that despite his kooky traits, they still enjoy his company.

I'm basing my assumption off this interview:

http://puyonexus.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=3203

Looking back it's not as concrete as I remembered it to be, but it does suggest that the budget could be the problem, especially since SEGA Puyo games clearly do't have terribly big ones to begin with.

Oh, THAT interview. Still, you'd think SEGA/Sonic Team have more than enough cash to go all-out for a Puyo game. I mean, it's a high-profile series in Japan.

Speaking of which, didn't that interview explain the reason why SEGA hasn't made a Puyo Puyo anime yet? I could be WAY off and be thinking of a totally different interview, but I don't know...

Yeah SUN was the only one beforehand to have Lagnus, I guess that could have really been the reason why he was so absent for many games beforehand, he did regularly appear starting with the Saturn Madou game, but by that point Compile were already on their last years with the franchise, him being in Minna, getting three alts so far in Quest and him showing up for Chronicle do give me hope that SEGA likes him enough to keep him around more often now though, he is one of my favorite characters, so I'd certainly appreciate it.

Honestly, Lagnus is in my top 15 of favorite Puyo characters. That being said, I also feel that SEGA is certainly treating him right as well (PP7 notwithstanding, obviously). Still, I think Compile also wanted to do more with him as well, but as you pointed out, Compile was already on its last legs with Puyo Puyo as it was. Hopefully, starting with Chronicles, SEGA keeps him around for years to come in future console games.

Not only that, but the GBC version also starts with a match against Doppel. Arle as Pierrot at the circus, that's another thing that's not in the console version at all, but would have been neat to have.

Definitely. Was Pierrot even playable in the console version of Yo~n? TONS of artwork made it seem like Pierrot and Doppel. Arle were possibly going to "share their playability" or something.

Heh, I don't blame you one bit, because I'm stupidly happy about this myself, even more then I was with ''Cool Schezo'' who was pretty much just Schezo back in his white robes from most of the pre-15th games.

You know what else I'd LOVE to see appear in a SEGA-era game from the Compile-era aside from the Yo~n versions of Arle, Rulue, Schezo, Satan, and Draco? Madou ARS Rulue. I mentioned that incarnation of her in an earlier post, but I've always found that version of Rulue as her prettiest. Maybe it's the innocent-looking big green eyes. I mean, just look:

Spoiler: Image dump incoming

 

[warelander]

I would have liked seeing something like Raffine and Klug maybe admit that despite his kooky traits, they still enjoy his company.

Funnily enough the epilogue suggests that and I always found that Raffine and Klug, despite their jerkish attributes actually like Sig and just aren't great at expressing it.

I feel like the Novel also was a missed opportunity to flesh out something more concrete between Sig and Ringo, they have interacted quite a bit in the past, but unlike with Sig & Arle their interactions don't even really point towards a friendship, they are acquaintances at most.

Speaking of which, didn't that interview explain the reason why SEGA hasn't made a Puyo Puyo anime yet? I could be WAY off and be thinking of a totally different interview, but I don't know...

Not this one, if there was one that talked about it then I missed it.

Definitely. Was Pierrot even playable in the console version of Yo~n? TONS of artwork made it seem like Pierrot and Doppel. Arle were possibly going to "share their playability" or something.

Nope she is not, in fact Pierrot is almost a complete non factor in the console version, outside of the animated intro and the big reveal before the final match.

You know what else I'd LOVE to see appear in a SEGA-era game from the Compile-era aside from the Yo~n versions of Arle, Rulue, Schezo, Satan, and Draco? Madou ARS Rulue. I mentioned that incarnation of her in an earlier post, but I've always found that version of Rulue as her prettiest. Maybe it's the innocent-looking big green eyes. I mean, just look:

It is a really great design indeed, kinda funny that she was this wide eyed and innocent looking when only two years younger then her current age.

If there is one Madou design I'd love to come back myself it would absolutely be Schezo's Tower of the Magician design:

I just really love the look of it, especially the double cape.

 

[puyokid]

Funnily enough the epilogue suggests that and I always found that Raffine and Klug, despite their jerkish attributes actually like Sig and just aren't great at expressing it.

If I'm being honest? That's EXACTLY how I picture their relationship with Sig, hands-down. Even I imagine EVERYONE'S relationship to Sig who ISN'T as close to him as Amitie, Rider, Tarutaru, and Ms. Accord (and arguably Arle, Carbuncle, Lemres) to be, at best, acquaintances. I imagine the rest of the Fever-era cast, the Madou-era cast (If 15th Anniversary and to a lesser extent, 20th Anniversary are anything to go by) and even the cast of PP7 do NOT hold any real animosity towards Sig, since he's never done anything to go out of his way to antagonize someone.

I feel like the Novel also was a missed opportunity to flesh out something more concrete between Sig and Ringo, they have interacted quite a bit in the past, but unlike with Sig & Arle their interactions don't even really point towards a friendship, they are acquaintances at most.

Yeah, you have a point. As I just said in my last post, I imagine the entire cast of PP7 to be, at best, acquaintances to Sig since he's never been seen interacting with them for too long. Not even Ringo, who is the de facto main character of that cast, no less.

Not this one, if there was one that talked about it then I missed it.

Hmm...maybe if I find I'll show it to you, but the question was related to the series' 25th Anniversary and what the future holds. I should note that from what I could read, Hosoyamada simply referred to the performance of the stage play from the year before.

Nope she is not, in fact Pierrot is almost a complete non factor in the console version, outside of the animated intro and the big reveal before the final match.

Awww....really? Darn, I would have liked to see her playable in the console version. Well, at least she's playable in the GBC version, as well as Quest.

It is a really great design indeed. Kinda funny that she had that wide eyed and innocent look when she was only two years younger then her current age.

I know right? I mean, don't get me wrong, I find the innocent, wide-eyed look to be nothing short of adorable, and all in all I've always found Madou ARS Rulue overall gorgeous, but I was...a little SURPRISED to find out that Rulue was only 16 years old when Madou R was happening. Honestly, she looks SO much older in Madou 3, so appearance-wise, she also took me for a real loop there too.

Honestly, looking back on it now I feel like PP7 missed out on ANOTHER opportunity to capitalize on Compile's work aside from not having the likes of Lagnus, Witch, and Harpy as playable characters. Specifically, using Rulue's 10(?)-year old form from Madou R as her chibi form for 7's Transformation. I'll bet it would probably be a VERY obscure reference, even for Japan, but I still feel like it would have worked. Heck, when you REALLY get down to it, RULUE of all people was THE first Madou/Puyo character to utilize Transformation magic, even predating LAGNUS by 3 or so years.

Come on, how could SEGA say "no" to THIS face??

If there is one Madou design I'd love to come back myself it would absolutely be Schezo's Tower of the Magician design:

I just really love the look of it, especially the double cape.

Oh, ma. That DOES look pretty awesome. Personally, I've always been a bit more partial to Schezo's Yo~n design. I don't know what it is, but something about SCHEZO wearing ALL black just makes him look SO bad-ass to me, even WITH his little "speech impediment" problems.

BTW, unrelated thing here, but about two days ago I decide to try my hand at makng Puyo memes. Could tell me what you think of these?

 

[warelander]

If I'm being honest? That's EXACTLY how I picture their relationship with Sig, hands-down. Even I imagine EVERYONE'S relationship to Sig who ISN'T as close to him as Amitie, Rider, Tarutaru, and Ms. Accord (and arguably Arle, Carbuncle, Lemres) to be, at best, acquaintances. I imagine the rest of the Fever-era cast, the Madou-era cast (If 15th Anniversary and to a lesser extent, 20th Anniversary are anything to go by) and even the cast of PP7 do NOT hold any real animosity towards Sig, since he's never done anything to go out of his way to antagonize someone.

The way I always saw it that Amitie was very obviously his BFF, with Rider, Ocean Prince and Arle all being part of his closest circle of friends. Raffine and Klug can also be considered friends, if more complicated ones, same with Lemres, who is very blatantly aware of Sig's demon nature, while Strange Klug is the only character that's a real enemy.

The thing about relationships in the Puyoverse is that characters only rarely spill out what they think of the other, in some cases you can piece it together easily, like how Schezo and Lagnus are clearly foils to each other or how the interactions between Arle & Sig spell out that they are friends, compared to others like with Sig & Ringo, where there is a decent amount of interaction, yet it's so passive and neutral that it really tells you nothing at all. The series is kind of weird like that.

Honestly, looking back on it now I feel like PP7 missed out on ANOTHER opportunity to capitalize on Compile's work aside from not having the likes of Lagnus, Witch, and Harpy as playable characters. Specifically, using Rulue's 10(?)-year old form from Madou R as her chibi form for 7's Transformation. I'll bet it would probably be a VERY obscure reference, even for Japan, but I still feel like it would have worked. Heck, when you REALLY get down to it, RULUE of all people was THE first Madou/Puyo character to utilize Transformation magic, even predating LAGNUS by 3 or so years.

What always surprised me is that they didn't bother to make Arle's Chibi mode form a Madou reference, I mean there are enough young Arle designs to go around, for something like that.

Oh, ma. That DOES look pretty awesome. Personally, I've always been a bit more partial to Schezo's Yo~n design. I don't know what it is, but something about SCHEZO wearing ALL black just makes him look SO bad-ass to me, even WITH his little "speech impediment" problems.

I like that one too actually and was quite happy that Schezo's design in 7 took some subtle notes from it, the pitch black look actually brought his swordsman look closer to it's original ARS version then anything before it.

BTW, unrelated thing here, but about two days ago I decide to try my hand at makng Puyo memes. Could tell me what you think of these?

The first one is pretty good, can't say much about the second one, since I never was into Dragonball Z.

 

[puyokid]

The way I always saw it that Amitie was very obviously his BFF, with Rider, Ocean Prince and Arle all being part of his closest circle of friends. Raffine and Klug can also be considered friends, if more complicated ones, same with Lemres, who is very blatantly aware of Sig's demon nature, while Strange Klug is the only character that's a real enemy.

Yeah, that seems about hands-on in terms of Sig's closest relationships.

The thing about relationships in the Puyoverse is that characters only rarely spill out what they think of the other, in some cases you can piece it together easily, like how Schezo and Lagnus are clearly foils to each other or how the interactions between Arle & Sig spell out that they are friends, compared to others like with Sig & Ringo, where there is a decent amount of interaction, yet it's so passive and neutral that it really tells you nothing at all. The series is kind of weird like that.

I know, right? the Puyoverse's character relationships basically aren't what one would call fleshed out, and this series certainly has the potential for it. Seems kind of....wasted for the most part. Though, from what I've seen of Chronicles, I personally think that game is at least TRYING to rectify that issue.

What always surprised me is that they didn't bother to make Arle's Chibi mode form a Madou reference, I mean there are enough young Arle designs to go around, for something like that.

Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about young Arle. Personally, I would have gone with this:

But I feel like SEGA used a variation of this:

I like that one too actually and was quite happy that Schezo's design in 7 took some subtle notes from it, the pitch black look actually brought his swordsman look closer to it's original ARS version then anything before it.

So Schezo's design in PP7 WAS inspired by his Yo~n look? I suspected it, but I was never sure...Still, I can safely say I loved that Yo~n began the trend of Schezo losing the hilarious poofy afro-like hair and started giving him more spiky anime-styled hair. I don't know, it just suits him better.

The first one is pretty good, can't say much about the second one, since I never was into Dragonball Z.

Oh, I see. Thanks for your opinion. I was planning to ask if you could post them on your Tumblr, but you don't have to if you don't want to.

 

[warelander]

Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about young Arle. Personally, I would have gone with this:

I would have liked the ARS design the most:

That game had such great designs and gorgeous sprite art that anything returning would be more then welcome.

So Schezo's design in PP7 WAS inspired by his Yo~n look?

It's never been officially said, but that's the impression that I got from the start.

Oh, I see. Thanks for your opinion. I was planning to ask if you could post them on your Tumblr, but you don't have to if you don't want to.

I could do that no problem, though I wanted to ask you if you have a blog yourself, because I'd say that would be the better option for you, because on my blog your stuff is going to go under, with all the other stuff I post and reblog.

 

[puyokid]

I would have liked the ARS design the most:

That game had such great designs and gorgeous sprite art that anything returning would be more then welcome.

Oh, right. I almost forgot. Honestly, there's SO many iterations of Young Arle (ESPECIALLY from the Compile-era) that I'm losing count at this point. Also, I totally agree with you that Madou ARS's artwork and sprite art is nothing short of GORGEOUS.

Like I've said before, one of the reasons of I LOVE this game is because it contains my hands-down favorite incarnation of Rulue. At the risk of gushing here, 16-year old Rulue just looks so BEAUTIFUL in the art above, even more so than her 18-year old self we're all more accustomed to in my opinion. Seriously, if that incarnation EVER returned in the future, I'd be more than hyped for it.

Still, does anyone know exactly what look Rulue was trying to go for here? Including future Compile-era games, I could never tell if she's going for a Medival Princess/Egyptian/Cleopatra-theme here.

It's never been officially said, but that's the impression that I got from the start.

Yeah, I get what you're saying. Basically, I think Schezo re-used his Yo~n look for PP7, but it had more of a blue tint to it, rather than all black.

I could do that no problem, though I wanted to ask you if you have a blog yourself, because I'd say that would be the better option for you, because on my blog your stuff is going to go under, with all the other stuff I post and reblog.

Actually, I don't have a blog...The thing is, I'm a little afraid I won't be able to attend to it as often as I'd like. Speaking of which, I'm a little surprised no one's answered that translation request. I wonder why...

 

[warelander]

Oh, right. I almost forgot. Honestly, there's SO many iterations of Young Arle (ESPECIALLY from the Compile-era) that I'm losing count at this point. Also, I totally agree with you that Madou ARS's artwork and sprite art is nothing short of GORGEOUS.

Like I've said before, one of the reasons of I LOVE this game is because it contains my hands-down favorite incarnation of Rulue. At the risk of gushing here, 16-year old Rulue just looks so BEAUTIFUL in the art above, even more so than her 18-year old self we're all more accustomed to in my opinion. Seriously, if that incarnation EVER returned in the future, I'd be more than hyped for it.

Still, does anyone know exactly what look Rulue was trying to go for here? Including future Compile-era games, I could never tell if she's going for a Medival Princess/Egyptian/Cleopatra-theme here.

I'd say medival princess would be your best bet, given that she even lives in a castle in ARS.

My favorite aspect of ARS has always been the prequel aspect, with Schezo's story being the most interesting one in my opinion, with the ancient capital of rana, Runelord and Schezo optaining the Dark Sword as well as his dark magic, even including his signature spell Areiado.

Actually, I don't have a blog...The thing is, I'm a little afraid I won't be able to attend to it as often as I'd like. Speaking of which, I'm a little surprised no one's answered that translation request. I wonder why...

Ah I see, I always figured that you were active on Tumblr and that's how you came across my blog, since that's were you knew me from there, but anyways I posted your memes ^^.

And requests like that are always a bit of a crapshoot, I once asked for something myself and never got a response, it's just something have to get very lucky with.

 

[puyokid]

I'd say medieval princess would be your best bet, given that she even lives in a castle in ARS.

Huh, I suppose you're right. Still, I don't know. I just can't help but feel that there was more to that design. I mean, I know Rulue lives in a castle, (Well, technically MANOR) but still all the ornate jewelry still seems a bit...symbolic of another culture to me. I want to say either Egyptian, Asian, or some kind of European.

My favorite aspect of ARS has always been the prequel aspect, with Schezo's story being the most interesting one in my opinion, with the ancient capital of Rana, Runelord and Schezo obtaining the Dark Sword as well as his dark magic, even including his signature spell Areiado.

Honestly, I loved seeing that too. I mean, I never figured Arle wasn't BORN with her powers, Rulue's intense love for Satan is NOT totally unfounded, and Schezo obtained his powers in a very...interesting and dark as **** way.

Ah I see, I always figured that you were active on Tumblr and that's how you came across my blog, since that's were you knew me from there, but anyways I posted your memes ^^.

Nope. I just happened to come across it from the Puyo Puyo's tags page on Tumblr. Still, thank you for posting the memes.

And requests like that are always a bit of a crapshoot, I once asked for something myself and never got a response, it's just something have to get very lucky with.

Oh, I see. Well, thank you for explaining it to me.

BTW, you know what I'd REALLY want as a birthday gift? A Nintendo Switch, and Puyo Puyo Tetris. Sorry if that's coming out of nowhere, but I just felt like mentioning it.

 

[warelander]

but still all the ornate jewelry still seems a bit...symbolic of another culture to me. I want to say either Egyptian, Asian, or some kind of European.

I get Egyptian out of it, more then anything else, no idea if that was intented though.

BTW, you know what I'd REALLY want as a birthday gift? A Nintendo Switch, and Puyo Puyo Tetris. Sorry if that's coming out of nowhere, but I just felt like mentioning it.

Heh, can't say I blame yah, I won't be getting a Switch for a while and while playability of PPT isn't a problem for me, since I already own the PS3 version, being able to play the localized version as soon as possible would still be nice.

Still getting the game day one though, just for the sake of supporting the series.

 

[puyokid]

I get Egyptian out of it, more than anything else, no idea if that was intended though.

Yeah, that's usually why I keep going with the notion that Madou ARS Rulue's outfit seems very "Cleopatra-inspired" if nothing else.

Heh, can't say I blame ya, I won't be getting a Switch for a while and while playability of PPT isn't a problem for me, since I already own the PS3 version, being able to play the localized version as soon as possible would still be nice.

Seriously, I REALLY want to play that "Big Bang" mode all the cool kids keep talking about!

Still getting the game day one though, just for the sake of supporting the series.

...And SEGA AND the Puyo Puyo fandom thank you for that.


BTW, forgive me for bringing it up again, but I was watching the latest video in a series of playthroughs of Puyo Puyo Chronicles' story mode, and once again, I just love how the game's party system is a mix of Puyo Puyo~n's party system and Puyo Puyo 7's feature of getting various cutscenes combinations with different characters.

I mean, not only are Arle and Carbuncle the "de facto" main characters of a Puyo Puyo game for the first time since Minna/GBA in 2001, but related to the party system, just about EVERY character playable in 20th Anniversary in addition to Lagnus, Seriri, and Harpy actually travel WITH Arle and Carbuncle on their adventure. This including the casts of Fever AND 7, resulting in about 25+ characters taking part. I know we've talked about this before, but it gives me such a warm feeling to see such a thing in a Puyo Puyo game of all things.

 

[warelander]

BTW, forgive me for bringing it up again, but I was watching the latest video in a series of playthroughs of Puyo Puyo Chronicles' story mode, and once again, I just love how the game's party system is a mix of Puyo Puyo~n's party system and Puyo Puyo 7's feature of getting various cutscenes combinations with different characters.

I mean, not only are Arle and Carbuncle the "de facto" main characters of a Puyo Puyo game for the first time since Minna/GBA in 2001, but related to the party system, just about EVERY character playable in 20th Anniversary in addition to Lagnus, Seriri, and Harpy actually travel WITH Arle and Carbuncle on their adventure. This including the casts of Fever AND 7, resulting in about 25+ characters taking part. I know we've talked about this before, but it gives me such a warm feeling to see such a thing in a Puyo Puyo game of all things.

I know what you mean, I was initially worried that the other characters would hold no particular relevance in RPG mode, due to trailers and screenshots only ever showing the A girls, but luckily that wasn't the case and to see everyone be this involved is very nice, even if there are still a few scenes where everyone but the A quarted are forcibly silenced for no reason.

To go back to PPT for a bit, I'm quite anxious to see how well it will do, especially since SEGA is noticably actually putting effort into getting the word of it out there, especially with the official englisch Puyo Twitter, which is acually doing very well, with it's over 3000 followers, the amount of interaction with the community is likely playing a big part in that.

 

[warelander]

So, I've been doing a bit of digging for Gaiden Wars infos, given my curiosity and fascination for everything in the game and all, it's a mixture of me recalling things I heard in the past and trying to make sense out of translator program translations, so bare with me here.

Here are the things I think to understand :

1) Around 6000 years before the events of Gaiden Wars the world already became far more evolved, leading to the creation of Protector mechs, during that time people discovered a special power within the Puyo, the knowledge of this power caused people to fight over it, leading to a war that nearly wiped out all of humanity, until the planetary gods stepped in to expell Puyo from the world and erase everyone's memory of them.

Much later the Professor that adopted Daichi found a stone tablet chronicling the history of the Puyo, allowing him to recreate the creatures and bringing them back into the world. Protector mechs are still a thing and used for many things, however at the time of Gaiden Wars battles with them have been mostly reduced to a sport, with Daichi being a rising star in the scene, outside of that he and the Professor take special care of roaming Puyo, to make sure they can't be misused again.

2) Marin and Sho are reincernations of previous life forms that lived before even the great war, Marin was a Pink Puyo in her past life, not sure whether or not Sho's previous life is ever touched upon though. They were brought back to life by the goddess Eldora (who becomes very important towards the end) to prevent the main villain of the game Angel Mois, from succeeding in his goals. On their mission they meet and befriend Daichi, staying at his side for the entire rest of the adventure.

3) Eldora is suppesedly alluded to in Satan's diary in the Saturn Madou Monogatari, I have yet to check on that, but it's not entirely out of the blue, since that game took heavy cues from the Shin Madou Monogatari novels, where gods and goddesses were common elements and given Satan's backstory in the novels as the fallen angel it would make sense for him to know Eldora.

4) During the time of the war scientists took part in cruel experiments were humans were infused with Puyo Energy, causing them to become powerful bio-weapons that can transform into horrible beasts, becoming essentially like wild uber powerful animals.

There were many failed prototypes and two successful ones, those two being Angel Mois and Daichi. Mois fought in the war and developed a grutch against humanity, while Daichi was kept in stasis in a test tube, spending the 6000 years there, not aging a bit and having no memory of his life beforehand, being raised by the Professor as his son in the following 10 years until the events of Gaiden Wars begin. His infusions are still intact, which is why he can sense Puyo, however he has successfully repressed everything else, even when he finds out the truth and goes to a bit of an emotional crisis he still holds on to who he truly is, thanks to his willpower as well as the help of Marin and Sho.

The circumstances behind Daichi becoming part of the experiment are never diclosed, though this is were the headcanon of him being a member of the Nadja bloodline works extremely well, since he couldn't have been any older then 4 around that time and with all the previous prototypes apart from Angel Mois being failures it would make a cruel amount of sense if Daichi got abducted to be used in the experiment, due to him being a descendant of the legendary sorceress Arle, who had to do with Puyo all the time.


There is a lot more in the game's lore that I need to look into, however this is all stuff that I heard long ago and my recent research seems to have proven right, I'm very confident in this being accurate. Any new info that I NEVER heard of before would be much more of a guessing game though.

 

[puyokid]

I know what you mean, I was initially worried that the other characters would hold no particular relevance in RPG mode, due to trailers and screenshots only ever showing the A girls, but luckily that wasn't the case and to see everyone be this involved is very nice, even if there are still a few scenes where everyone but the 'A' quartet are forcibly silenced for no reason.

Honestly, when I first saw the announcement for Puyo Puyo Chronicles, while I WAS (and still am) admittedly hyped over the confirmation that Arle and Carbuncle were going to be the leads of Chronicles, I also figured this game was going to treat the supporting cast (i.e. Draco, Witch, Suket, Rider, Klug, Yu, Rei, Risukuma, Maguro, etc.) as they did just any Puyo game, so to see them get SO involved with Arle's adventure really brings a smile to my face. If I were to ever get this game, I'd enjoy it for all it was worth as there's a real likely chance this won't happen again for a long time.

Somewhat related, but Chronicles is a game that...I don't know, I would have liked to see Tarutaru, Kikimora, Panotty, Archan, Succubus, Incubus, Minotauros, Momomo, and Honey Bee be playable for this. I'm sure it's just me, but I don't know.

To go back to PPT for a bit, I'm quite anxious to see how well it will do, especially since SEGA is noticeably actually putting effort into getting the word of it out there, especially with the official English Puyo Twitter, which is actually doing very well, with it's over 3000 followers, the amount of interaction with the community is likely playing a big part in that.

Aside from the occasional "anime weebs" complaint, I think PPT is going to do EXTREMELY well over here in the West. Like you said, within 2-3 months, the offical Twitter has gotten 3,000 FOLLOWERS. That HAS to say something.

Also, like you suggested sometime ago, Puyo Puyo and even Madou Monogatari might even undergo some sort of 'Newbie translation boom', resulting in people taking the time to translate things from Madou Monogatari and Puyo Puyo that were left untranslated for all these years since its inception in 1989.

I mean, I've heard of 4-YEAR OLDS give PPT GOOD REVIEWS. I don't know about you, but I REALLY feel like Puyo Puyo's future in the West is looking quite bright. Heck, if Arle can make her way into something like Super Smash Bros., I think Puyo Puyo's (and POSSBILY Madou Monogatari's) future in the West would be even MORE than secure.

So, I've been doing a bit of digging for Gaiden Wars infos, given my curiosity and fascination for everything in the game and all, it's a mixture of me recalling things I heard in the past and trying to make sense out of translator program translations, so bare with me here.

Here are the things I think to understand :

1) Around 6000 years before the events of Gaiden Wars the world already became far more evolved, leading to the creation of Protector mechs, during that time people discovered a special power within the Puyo, the knowledge of this power caused people to fight over it, leading to a war that nearly wiped out all of humanity, until the planetary gods stepped in to expel Puyo from the world and erase everyone's memory of them.

Much later the Professor that adopted Daichi found a stone tablet chronicling the history of the Puyo, allowing him to recreate the creatures and bringing them back into the world. Protector mechs are still a thing and used for many things, however at the time of Gaiden Wars battles with them have been mostly reduced to a sport, with Daichi being a rising star in the scene, outside of that he and the Professor take special care of roaming Puyo, to make sure they can't be misused again.

2) Marin and Sho are reincarnations of previous life forms that lived before even the great war, Marin was a Pink Puyo in her past life, not sure whether or not Sho's previous life is ever touched upon though. They were brought back to life by the goddess Eldora (who becomes very important towards the end) to prevent the main villain of the game Angel Mois, from succeeding in his goals. On their mission they meet and befriend Daichi, staying at his side for the entire rest of the adventure.

3) Eldora is supposedly alluded to in Satan's diary in the Saturn Madou Monogatari, I have yet to check on that, but it's not entirely out of the blue, since that game took heavy cues from the Shin Madou Monogatari novels, where gods and goddesses were common elements and given Satan's backstory in the novels as the fallen angel it would make sense for him to know Eldora.

4) During the time of the war scientists took part in cruel experiments were humans were infused with Puyo Energy, causing them to become powerful bio-weapons that can transform into horrible beasts, becoming essentially like wild uber powerful animals.

There were many failed prototypes and two successful ones, those two being Angel Mois and Daichi. Mois fought in the war and developed a grudge against humanity, while Daichi was kept in stasis in a test tube, spending the 6000 years there, not aging a bit and having no memory of his life beforehand, being raised by the Professor as his son in the following 10 years until the events of Gaiden Wars begin. His infusions are still intact, which is why he can sense Puyo, however he has successfully repressed everything else, even when he finds out the truth and goes to a bit of an emotional crisis he still holds on to who he truly is, thanks to his willpower as well as the help of Marin and Sho.

The circumstances behind Daichi becoming part of the experiment are never disclosed, though this is were the headcanon of him being a member of the Nadja bloodline works extremely well, since he couldn't have been any older then 4 around that time and with all the previous prototypes apart from Angel Mois being failures it would make a cruel amount of sense if Daichi got abducted to be used in the experiment, due to him being a descendant of the legendary sorceress Arle, who had to do with Puyo all the time.

There is a lot more in the game's lore that I need to look into, however this is all stuff that I heard long ago and my recent research seems to have proven right, I'm very confident in this being accurate. Any new info that I NEVER heard of before would be much more of a guessing game though.

My goodness, it's like a buffet of lore! I can't believe that my headcanon of Daichi being a descendant of Arle's bloodline might actually be a reality! Still, I feel REALLY bad for Daichi over everything that had happened to him. Seriously, I can safely say that Gaiden Wars deserves SOOOOO much more credit than what even the Puyo fandom itself gives it. SEGA NEEDS to bring this setting back for future Puyo games, that much I know for sure.

BTW, I wonder who Arle settled down with in order to continue her bloodline...Also, if this setting ever DOES return for a Puyo game, I can imagine SEGA making the player have to go through some sort of side story "collect-a-thon" to unlock various things that would hint at Daichi being blood-related to Arle, though in-game, Arle and Daichi would feel like they had a connection, but they wouldn't straight up be aware of Daichi being Arle's descendant.

 

[warelander]

Somewhat relted, but Chronicles is a game that...I don't know, I would have liked to see Tarutaru, Kikimora, Panotty, Archan, Succubus, Incubus, Minotauros, Momomo, and Honey Bee be playable for this. I'm sure it's just me, but I don't know.

Oh, you are not alone there, in fact I have my own set of characters that I hope for in every new game, namely Strange Klug, Oshare Bones, Jan, Demon Servant, Minotauros and Doppelganger Arle (and Lagnus, prior to him getting into Chronicle).

One thing I would have liked to see the game do BTW, is to have characters like Skeleton-T or Archan who used to be mooks in Madou days, show up as mooks in Chronicle, I thought that was a missed opportunity, especially if they weren't going to be playable anyways.

Aside from the occasional "anime weebs" complaint, I think PPT is going to do EXTREMELY well over here in the West. Like you said, within 2-3 months, the offical Twitter has gotten 3,000 FOLLOWERS. That HAS to say something.

Also, like you suggested sometime ago, Puyo Puyo and even Madou Monogatari might even undergo some sort of 'Newbie translation boom', resulting in people taking the time to translate things from Madou Monogatari and Puyo Puyo that were left untranslated for all these years since its inception in 1989.

I mean, I've heard of 4-YEAR OLDS give PPT GOOD REVIEWS. I don't know about you, but I REALLY feel like Puyo Puyo's future in the West is looking quite bright.

I will say that I have seen a lot of very enthusiastic comments from people who played the PPT demo and general reception towards it has been positive either way, so I'm not pessimistic, I just can't help but be a bit anxious when considering that Puyo's entire future in the west likely depends on this game single doing well.

Heck, if Arle can make her way into something like Super Smash Bros., I think Puyo Puyo's (and POSSBILY Madou Monogatari's) future in the West would be even MORE than secure.

Dude, Arle in Smash would be one of the few things that could really excite me for the series again, Smash For didn't have much of interest for me, apart from Mega Man. Either that or finally give her an appearence in a SEGA Allstars game already, it's about time Puyo get's more content there.

My goodness, it's like a buffet of lore! I can't believe that my headcanon of Daichi being a descendant of Arle's bloodline might actually be a reality! Still, I feel REALLY bad for Daichi over everything that had happened to him. Seriously, I can safely say that Gaiden Wars deserves SOOOOO much more credit than what even the Puyo fandom itself gives it. SEGA NEEDS to bring this setting back for future Puyo games, that much I know for sure.

I can certainly say that my research only helped to intruige me even more, in many ways Gaiden Wars could essentially be considered a Puyo variation of a mecha anime, with mech fighting, lots of technology and characters with their personal backstories.

It's very different from anything else in the franchise, but with such a different type of setting and gameplay type, I love the fact that they went nuts with it, instead of just doing ''Puyo in the future'' without too many distinctive elements beyond that.

BTW, I wonder who Arle settled down with in order to continue her bloodline...

Hehe, I have been thinking about that myself. I'd say our personal preferences on the matter are rather obvious by now. ^^

Also, if this setting ever DOES return for a Puyo game, I can imagine SEGA making the player have to go through some sort of side story "collect-a-thon" to unlock various things that would hint at Daichi being blood-related to Arle, though in-game, Arle and Daichi would feel like they had a connection, but they wouldn't straight up be aware of Daichi being Arle's descendant.

That does sound good, I'd also like a library section ala' Fever 2, that elaborates a bit on the inbetween time, between the main series and Gaiden Wars, like just how DID they discover the secret power of the Puyo and how quickly did humanity rebound from the results of the war?

 

[puyokid]

Oh, you are not alone there, in fact I have my own set of characters that I hope for in every new game, namely Strange Klug, Oshare Bones, Jan, Demon Servant, Minotauros and Doppelganger Arle (and Lagnus, prior to him getting into Chronicle).

One thing I would have liked to see the game do BTW, is to have characters like Skeleton-T or Archan who used to be mooks in Madou days, show up as mooks in Chronicle, I thought that was a missed opportunity, especially if they weren't going to be playable anyways.

Honestly, I even wish the characters you listed would also return as well, in addition to Zoh, Daimaoh, Chico, her pet Dragon, Choppun, Kodomo Dragon, Scylla, Nasu Grave, Merrow, Mandrake, MORE of Skeleton-T and many, MANY more.

Also, I totally agree with you on how characters like Skeleton-T, Panotty, Archan, Nasu Grave, etc. could have at least been used as enemies for Chronicles. Heck, the enemies of Chronicles even joined Arle and Carbuncle's team in Chronicles, you just simply shouldn't expect them to show up for cutscenes was all....which, when I think about it, would actually be a HUGE disservice to the Madou-era characters that we mentioned should be enemies, considering their more prominent roles in former Puyo games...

I will say that I have seen a lot of very enthusiastic comments from people who played the PPT demo and general reception towards it has been positive either way, so I'm not pessimistic, I just can't help but be a bit anxious when considering that Puyo's entire future in the west likely depends on this game single doing well.

Yeah, same here...

Dude, Arle in Smash would be one of the few things that could really excite me for the series again, Smash 4 didn't have much of interest for me, apart from Mega Man. Either that or finally give her an appearance in a SEGA All-Stars game already, it's about time Puyo gets more content there.

For me, Arle is in my top 10 of most wanted for Smash. From what I've read, she's supposedly one of THE most requested characters for Smash in Japan, so hopefully Nintendo takes THAT into account. The thing is, Bayonetta (who I'm still on the fence about) was added to Smash, and her second game, which was initially a flop mind you, SOLD LIKE HOT CAKES following her Smash appearance. Now just IMAGINE Puyo Puyo's publicity after Arle is added to Smash. Honestly, if Puyo Puyo isn't going to be prominent in SEGA All-Stars games, then just add her to Smash already. Heaven knows it would do WONDERS for her and the series.

I can certainly say that my research only helped to intrigue me even more, in many ways Gaiden Wars could essentially be considered a Puyo variation of a mecha anime, with mech fighting, lots of technology and characters with their personal backstories.

It's very different from anything else in the franchise, but with such a different type of setting and gameplay type, I love the fact that they went nuts with it, instead of just doing ''Puyo in the future'' without too many distinctive elements beyond that.

Honestly, I have to give Gaiden Wars credit for doing such a thing. I mean, like you said, Compile could have just as easily gone with "Puyo Puyo in the FUTURE!!", but they didn't, and I respect that they didn't. Heck, with all the lore Gaiden Wars has to offer, it's VERY possible that Daichi is of Arle's bloodline, thus connecting the Madou-era's past with the future.

Hehe, I have been thinking about that myself. I'd say our personal preferences on the matter are rather obvious by now. ^^

Heh-heh, I guess so...

That does sound good, I'd also like a library section ala' Fever 2, that elaborates a bit on the inbetween time, between the main series and Gaiden Wars, like just how DID they discover the secret power of the Puyo and how quickly did humanity rebound from the results of the war?

See? That's EXACTLY what I'd like to see happen. Speaking of Fever 2's library section, I think you'll be quite interested in the translations that have been coming up for it recently. Especially about Arle's life in her world, Primp's history (NEVER imagined PRIMP was in the middle of a war!), and Sig's arrival as a new student to Primp Magic School, as well as the mystery of his left arm and eye turning red....



BTW, I was reading a post in FlareHabanero's Tumblr, about the game over screen in Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, and it got me thinking...I think the kind of anime Puyo Puyo should have should basically be Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Puyo Puyo-styled. What do you think?

 

[warelander]

The thing is, Bayonetta (who I'm still on the fence about) was added to Smash, and her second game, which was initially a flop mind you, SOLD LIKE HOT CAKES following her Smash appearance.

Huh, interesting, I never heard of the game picking up after Bayonetta showed up in Smash.

Speaking of Fever 2's library section, I think you'll be quite interested in the translations that have been coming up for it recently. Especially about Arle's life in her world, Primp's history (NEVER imagined PRIMP was in the middle of a war!), and Sig's arrival as a new student to Primp Magic School, as well as the mystery of his left arm and eye turning red....

Trust me, I am getting a major kick out of these, I even check the Puyo tag on Tumblr daily now, just to make sure I don't miss anything.

BTW, I was reading a post in FlareHabanero's Tumblr, about the game over screen in Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, and it got me thinking...I think the kind of anime Puyo Puyo should have should basically be Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Puyo Puyo-styled. What do you think?

Interesting choice, given the off the wall and likely drug induced insanity of AOSTH, though looking at Puyo Manga material it's really not that far of a stretch to do stuff like that with the franchise.

 

[puyokid]

Huh, interesting, I never heard of the game picking up after Bayonetta showed up in Smash.

It's a little surprising, but I read a whole bunch of game articles that confirm that sales for Bayo 2 seemed to REALLY seemed to pick up following her inclusion in Smash 4.

Trust me, I am getting a major kick out of these, I even check the Puyo tag on Tumblr daily now, just to make sure I don't miss anything.

Speaking of which, I just read the class entries from Amitie, Raffine, Sig, Rider, Klug, Tarutaru, and even some guest entries from Ms. Accord and Popoi, as well as Lemres.

Interesting choice, given the off the wall and likely drug induced insanity of AOSTH, though looking at Puyo Manga material it's really not that far of a stretch to do stuff like that with the franchise.

ESPECIALLY Compile-era Puyo manga material. Seriously, just read ONE manga from that era of Puyo Puyo, and you could some pretty screwy stuff with that material.

 

[warelander]

Speaking of which, I just read the class entries from Amitie, Raffine, Sig, Rider, Klug, Tarutaru, and even some guest entries from Ms. Accord and Popoi, as well as Lemres.

The first of the Class Journal parts is actually my favorite entry in the library so far, just for how much the characters shine through with the way they write their entires. The cheerful, very excitable Amitie, Klug who is deeply dedicated to his (unknowingly dangerous) project and Sig who just writes a single blunt sentence and nothing more.

ESPECIALLY Compile-era Puyo manga material. Seriously, just read ONE manga from that era of Puyo Puyo, and you could some pretty screwy stuff with that material.

Oh, I have made plenty of ventures into the world of Puyo Manga and while it's nothing new, it still continues to surprise me just how much japanese manga based off child friendly franchises can get away with, not just in terms of weirdness, but raunchieness too.

I mean dayumn, that's the most NSFW my blog is ever going to get and it's something official.

 

[puyokid]

The first of the Class Journal parts is actually my favorite entry in the library so far, just for how much the characters shine through with the way they write their entires. The cheerful, very excitable Amitie, Klug who is deeply dedicated to his (unknowingly dangerous) project and Sig who just writes a single blunt sentence and nothing more.

You know, I think Tarutaru was even MORE blunt than Sig, if that's even possible. Honestly, with the way he wrote his entry, it almost seems like he has NO personality there, even though we know that's not exactly the case. Heck, he's almost seems to be the Minotauros of the Fever-era cast in my opinion. I wonder of this was a HIGHLY subtle sign that Tarutaru would NOT be kept around for future Puyo games, outside of Quest. Which, IMO, is a little sad, as I always felt like he kind of "round out" the Primp (Fever-era) cast in a way, being their heavyset character and all.

Oh, I have made plenty of ventures into the world of Puyo Manga and while it's nothing new, it still continues to surprise me just how much japanese manga based off child friendly franchises can get away with, not just in terms of weirdness, but raunchieness too.

I mean dayumn, that's the most NSFW my blog is ever going to get and it's something official.

......OK. Two things.

1. Rulue, I know you're not ashamed of your body (and to be fair, I guess you certainly have a....damn GOOD (LOOKING) REASON), but there should REEEAAAALY be a limit as to how far you'll go...and YES, this includes Satan...

2. @warelander, I know you don't exactly read Japanese, but in relation to the context of that Puyo 4-koma as a whole....