It’s been a while since I last posted something on this blog. It must have been lonely over here. But truth to be told, there was so much happening around me the past months and I lost the motivation to blog— or write. Nothing great happened so it was a lot of coping and fixing on my end.

This blog, missmeowlodei was created to be a happy space— hence I didn’t see the need to update on this blog. But now that I’m in a clearer mind, I’ve planned for some changes and update!

Let’s get on with the post, shall we?

Review: Power7042 Wireless JoyPad Controller for Switch (T13 Nintendo Switch Handgrip)

My first OEM handgrip! I never saw the purpose of getting a joycon handgrip for my Nintendo Switch— I mean, is there a need to purchase something extra when I already have a pro controller and the switch’s default joycons?

Joyskypower sent me these amazing OEM joycon handgrip and it literally changed my gaming experience. Now I can see why so many people got an extra set of joycon handgrip. Now, these handgrip only come in the default Switch colors, even if I prefer to choose colors more suitable to my aesthetics. But there is nothing cute stickers can’t fix!

When we talk about anime or Japanese animated movies, the first few that pop up in mind are Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and so on. But aside from them, there are a plethora of anime movies that are not from Studio Ghibli which are just as amazing.

Top 5 favorite anime movies that are not from Studio Ghibli:

*not in order

1. Flavors of Youth

A sucker like me would really pick up this game despite it’s disappointing reviews right? Yep, I did. Besides, it was on sale for a really good price— retailing at RM99.00. It’s a very good bargain especially retail games are going for twice/thrice the price.

This game is filled to the brim with an absurd amount of past characters— you’ll not only be meeting characters from the Atelier series, but also Mana Khemia. You’ll definitely encounter characters from the older Atelier games like Marie, Rorona, and so on.

Now, before I continue, I must express my mild disappointment in this game. It’s a first-impression review— meaning I have not completed the game but these are the thoughts that pop up in my head as I play through the first 4 hours.

About the game

Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of a New World is different from all the Atelier series. This game is special in a way that it is actually a town management and town building sim, infused with RPG. Take it as a spin-off or fanservice game for the 20th Atelier anniversary.

You play as Nelke Von Lestamm, an aristocrat who tries to make the world a better place with her power and position as a noble. She travels with her bodyguard Misty, who aids in fighting any monsters. Unlike the previous games where you play as an alchemist, Nelke isn’t an alchemist therefore the game is mostly about town building. However, there are still alchemy involved where Nelke will commission alchemists to craft items needed with the story and town growth.

Storyline

Where to sell 2nd hand Nintendo games in Malaysia?

Today’s update is a rather weighty topic compared to my usual whimsical musings.

Do you really need that physical game card sitting on top of your game stash?

It hit me last night that I am spending unnecessarily on Switch games that costs me avg. RM200 per game and this brings me to a total of ~RM1500 in my current physical Switch game stash. As for my Nintendo 3DS, with an avg. of RM150 per game, it would bring me to ~RM1000 for my entire stash.

If I were to resell these games at a 2nd hand price (according to the market value), it would be ~RM150 per Switch game and ~RM70 per 3DS game. Now, to tally it off: I have RM1000+ sitting idly in my room, covered in dust and marveled at sometimes, just to make content for Instagram.

Repeating it to myself, I began to ponder— these are the things that I don’t use anymore. I do not replay my games, sometimes I even find it hard to complete a single game. Shouldn’t I sell it off to gain back some money? Perhaps carrying some cash is better than carrying a stack of my retail games?

How do I fund new games?

I’m not an impulsive buyer, I usually give myself a “cooling period” to think through but every human is wired to want things. If I can get it now, why wait? With that desire within us, we tend to horde/overspend on things that provide us instant gratification— and then, we feel guilty for spending but the cycle repeats itself every time we see something that catches our eyes.

Physical games, or digital games are expensive in my country. They could easily cost us 10x-15x of a Mcdonalds burger set. But then, when we slave ourselves to earn money, why do we have to refrain ourselves from these little pleasures?

Now, I don’t re-play any of my games when I’m done with it. Sure they appear on my Instagram; here and there, I have not one replayed a single game I’ve owned (aside from Pokemon). How am I able to recycle part of my cash to fund a new game then? If every month I am forking out ~RM200 to spend on games and they will just end up on the shelf after completion, why can’t I re-sell them and top-up the remaining to afford new games?

Where to resell your used game in Malaysia:

• Facebook groups (Nintendo Malaysia has an active community on Facebook)
• Gamehouz
• Kyo’s Game Mart
• Usedgame.com.my
• Shopee
• Carousell
• Impulse Gaming (they use to buy used games, but not sure if they’re still doing it now)
• Ask around if your friends would like to buy

Honkai Impact 3rd: Review + First Impression

If there was anything that attracted me to play Honkai Impact 3rd, it was nothing but the excessive advertisements and Mihoyo. A sister game to Genshin Impact, Honkai Impact 3rd was first released in 2017. While back then I do not have a PC to play this game (besides, I do not like gaming on my phone), I’ve currently installed HK3 on my new PC and started a very questionable journey into the game. I have no idea what I’m doing.

Most times I am being pointed in the direction where I’m supposed to go. I’ve honestly spent— 6 hours into this game and yet I felt like I am still in a tutorial stage that seems to never end? Where’s the story and the open world exploration? Am I doing something wrong?

About the game

Developed by Mihoyo, this game was first released on mobile then soon ported to PC. It’s basically a hack-and-slash basic RPG game where you control 3 characters, starting with Kiana acquiring other characters to help you fight against the invasion of the enemy, known as Honkai. On the pc, instead of using your mouse to make action (like Genshin), you’ll be using only your keyboard to navigate the character. The keys “J” to attack and “K” to dodge. Even moving the in-game camera would require you to use the keyboard instead of your mouse— and that feels extremely weird.

Storyline

The story focuses on Kiana Kaslana, a member of the elite force called the Valkyrie. Together with Raiden Mei and Bronya Zaychik, Kiana must use all of her abilities and skills to save the world from the Honkai. That’s a very simple story line and as far as I am within the game, nothing noteworthy happened yet. But I do know for a fact, the story is much more than what I’ve described according to reviews from the internet

Art style

One of the reasons I got into the game was because of the gorgeously cute anime girls. The design for each of them is very attractive, much alike to Genshin. While the characters are not as many as Genshin’s you’ll still find yourself poring over each character design because they are just absolutely very attractive, from their color matches to outfit.

Combat system

As a basic real-time hack-and-slash game, the combat system is fairly easy, switching characters to tackle the right monsters. Kiana focuses on using her limbs and pistols while Mei utilizes a katana and Bronya for ranged attacks. You’ll find yourself switching characters fairly often and quick to land the best damage. There will be Stigmata characters to complement your main Valkyries— to grant passive stat boost. Also I have to say how much I love the fluid motions of the combat.

Just a quick update on my 27th birthday.

Imagine your life like a dungeon crawling game, what level would you be on if it takes you a year to conquer one level. I’m now on level 27 and as we all know, the deeper we go into the dungeon, the tougher the monsters are. This year, I would be spending my days in dungeon level 27— defeating monsters, befriending other players, surviving and making the entire floor comfortable to live in.

I had a quiet celebration for my 27th— only with my loved ones. And that is all I needed, I do not need to have a grand or big party but just to be surrounded by loved ones with good food.

Anime review: The Time I Was Reincarnated As A Slime

I’ve put off this anime for the longest time despite it’s great reviews and high ratings. It’s just something about slimes that didn’t interest me— a part of me still watches anime if only there is some hot 2D guy where I am attracted to.

So really, there was nothing in The Time I Was Reincarnated As A Slime that interests and pulls me towards the anime itself. However, on a boring afternoon I just thought to myself “hey, why not let’s give this anime try. Just for 2 episodes.”

Truthfully, the first episode did nothing to interest me but by the 2nd episode, I was literally glued to my laptop and soon, I noticed myself on the 12th episode.

What I liked about the anime:

The story. It is simply interesting how one single slime can bring together different races to live together in a country of its own. The aspect of creating a country and trading knowledge while caring for its citizens are extremely interesting to watch. Not to mention, I like that this anime is just extremely light-hearted and provides a sense of fun and warmth when I am feeling stressed.

The funny bits are not overdone, providing the right amount of humor when needed. And the world building of this story is different from many other fantasy anime. Giving names to monsters is like literally granting them power to evolve into a stronger species! That’s something new.

What I didn’t like about the anime:

While there are so many things to like about this anime, I find that the main plot of this story is a little lacking. While building a community and country is a fun part of the storyline, it doesn’t serve a real purpose for anyone to watch this anime. In other words, the plot seemed to be bland. Sure there is this big evil guy who has to be defeated and he’s releasing evil into the world through many of his schemes, there doesn’t seem to be a solid part of the plot where things are seriously discussed. So it feels like an anime to just watch while you’re having dinner and it didn’t really matter if you were to skip a few episodes.

Even in combat, the main character is so overpowered that the battle ends in an instant. There is no build up. But eventually it is one of the things I enjoyed because of how funny it is that the main character is just so strong.

The Time I Was Reincarnated As A Slime is a light-hearted fantasy anime filled with fun and humor. If you’re looking for shounen anime, this may not be the right choice. There is not much action in like most fantasy animes— goblin slayer, how to pick up girls in the dungeon, rage of bahamut, etc.


However if you’re just looking for a feel good shounen anime, then The Time I Was Reincarnated As A Slime is the perfect fit. Get cozied up in bed with your favorite meal or drink and just binge watch this. You will be feeling better in no time.

Review + Thoughts: Little Nightmares 2 First Impression

I am so bad with anything that has to do with horror/suspense— haunted houses, horror games, supernatural movies. My belief in supernatural beings is that they are real. This is why I shy away from anything that reminds me of their existence. I don’t do well with horror/gore genres, it could be the monsters or oddly-deformed beings that repulses me.

However, it came as a surprise to me when I found myself very attracted to the game, Little Nightmares. The only time I heard of it was when my younger brother was playing it on PC, to which I avoided entering his room whenever he’s playing.

Little Nightmares 2 perked my interest when I saw a short clip of gameplay. It was a simple night routine before bed where I happened to see the video. Instead of being afraid, the feeling it gave me was, strangely, curiosity and temptation.

I was tempted to get the game and thus, launching me into a spiral of research about the game until I got the demo on the Nintendo E-shop here.

About the game

The story follows Mono, who must work together with Six to survive Pale City and discover its dark secrets. The game is in a 2.5D world where you must explore the world, occasionally encountering puzzles.

Storytelling

Little Nightmares 2 uses character actions to tell the story of the game. Especially in puzzle games, Little Nightmares 2 features puzzles that aren’t extremely complex which allows you to enjoy the story holistically. The story leaves you feeling a little dark due to how attached you’ll get with the character throughout the game.

Characters

In Little Nightmares 2, you’ll reencounter the character from the first game, Six. You play as Mono, a new main character and work together with Six to escape this nightmarish-place. The designs for the characters look very much human but also gruesomely distorted to stimulate a feeling of fear when they approach you.

Music

There is no dialogue in-game but the action, art, and music tells a whole lot of the setting and plot of the game. I love how they induce emotions just by using the silence and background sound. Sometimes you’ll hear faint music playing but it was just enough to fill you in on the ambience. The game does very well with how they play with elements of sound to fill your emotions.

Difficulty

As a suspense, puzzle game, I would have expected more challenges in terms of figuring out puzzles in this game however most information is fairly easy to gather if you look around before advancing with caution. Basically you’ll be hit with a game over if you die from traps, enemies or falling from high places however you restart at the nearest check point.

Thoughts

Although Little Nightmares 2 is a suspense-adventure game, I would like to say it slightly belongs in the horror genre. While there are no supernatural beings/monsters, we can say that the entire game is gloomy and scary during the first play-through. The suspense only builds up on the first time— if you encounter the same puzzle over and over again, the suspense wears out.

Ratings:
4.5/5

I recently received a Kindle as a gift from my partner and since then, have been reading mangas on it. It was such a lovely 1st year anniversary gift. I’ve been saving for a Kindle as I read plenty of books in a year and my room has turned to pretty much a hoarding space for old books.

Dust and silverfishes graced my bookshelf with their presence, made my skin crawl— and that was when I decided that an e-book reader is what I needed. Less mess, more spacious living. It was a tough transition from physical books to e-books.

I still miss the smell of new books and the touch of paper in my fingertips, but I am not complaining because I’ve started picking up reading manga again when I got my Kindle.

My Genshin Impact main party + Tips on how to use them

I started picking up on Genshin Impact these days after receiving a mechanical keyboard from my partner— and I am in love with this game! Spending hours threading on grass, fighting monsters and gliding across mountains is something that captured me entirely.

Read my first impression and review of Genshin Impact here.

However I always have shit luck at gacha games— and Genshin Impact’s 5* characters are gained through lottery/gacha methods which is still based heavily on your luck and probability. So I can only do my best with 4* characters.

There’s a huge urge to splurge a few dollars on the game but of course, I know I would be hooked as soon as I start so my better self is telling me to hold back and just be patient with farming the in-game currency, Primogems to prepare myself for a pity pull.

What’s a pity pull in Genshin Impact?

Basically if you have shit luck like me in pulling 5* or desirable characters/items, Genshin has a pity system that guarantees you a 5* item/character at every 90th pull. Basically you’ll have to play the gacha 89x before you get a 5* on your 90th time. If you’ve gotten lucky at getting a 5* on your 30th time pulling, then the pity system resets to 0.

With me waiting for my pity pulls, let’s take a look at my current main party! I absolutely love this team for carrying me throughout the entire game until this point.

• Traveller (Anemo)
• Beidou (Electro)
• Barbara (Hydro)
• Bennet (Pyro)

How I use my party + elemental combos

I prefer fast attackers, and that would mean short sword-wielders like Traveller and Bennet for weak enemies. And also because they attack fast, they can dodge at a faster rate. Barbara is a healer but also provides elemental effects like inflicting the Wet status before elemental combinations. Beidou on the other hand, wields a claymore and is slower but her attacks pack a more powerful punch.

My favorite elemental combination would be Pyro + Electro, meaning to cause Overload where Bennet steps in with his elemental skill then followed up by switching to Beidou to unleash her electro skills. But how I do it is to switch to Traveller (Anemo) before Beidou, by using Swirl to spread Bennet’s pyro AOE which inflicts a burn status on all enemies before Beidou swoops in to electrocute them.

Another combination is to inflict the Wet status by using Barbara as she heals the characters before swapping with Beidou to cause Electro-charged which causes DOT (damage over time). The combination of Barbara + Bennet also causes Vaporize, which if triggered by Hydro will cause 2x damage. Meaning Bennet will have to inflict the burn status first before Barbara attacks.

Genshin Impact artifacts for my team

Artifacts can be confusing but as you gain higher Adventure Rank, you’ll be rewarded with better quality artifacts. I generally equip Barbara with artifacts that increase her HP, as her healing is scaled with her max HP or a healing-bonus item. 

Movies to watch over & over again (during lockdown)

Malaysia has once again declared the state of emergency however unfortunately for my poor soul, I am still tasked to be working in the office. A part of me felt a great despise but then on the brighter side, I am happy to still have my job, go to work and be around my coworkers.

Weekends have turned boring— with so many places closed and dining, limited to only take-aways. I could rejoice, for I am able to spend more time home and this gives me more reasons to re-watch my favorite movies over and over again.

My personal selection to feel good and enjoy what fictional narratives can offer, here are 10 movies to watch over and over again.

1. Pretty Woman

An early romantic comedy, Pretty Woman is dear to my heart after watching it once in class. I believe it was for an assignment and I just fell in love with the movie. Julia Roberts was stunning, and Richard Gere handsome. You’ll enjoy watching fashion transformations, high posh life and sappy romance in this movie.

2. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

I trust this movie needs no introductions. Re-experience the magic of Hogwarts in the first movie of the Harry Potter series. Oh, my favorite part is when the boys bought the whole lot of snacks and candies off the trolley on the Hogwarts Express. It makes me want to chew on gummy worms while watching.

3. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe

Whisk yourself into the world of Narnia with the Pevensie. Beautiful landscapes, talking beasts and singing trees greet you upon your entrance. The best part of the story has always been the war between Aslan and the Witch. Also, it makes me think a lot about Edmund’s Turkish Delights.

4. Howl’s Moving Castle

A favorite by Studio Ghibli. Although not as prominent as Spirited Away, I have always preferred Howl’s Moving Castle for its story. Not to mention that Howl is almost every girl’s first love. A romantic magical masterpiece of a cursed girl, Sophie and a wizard named Howl.

5. White Chicks

If you’re a fan of chick flicks, this is one movie that you are sure to watch over and over again. The acting and jokes will really get you laughing, not to mention with a little bit of action towards the end of the movie. It still makes me giggle thinking of the dinner date scene with Terry Crews.

6. Anastasia (the animation)

If Disney songs are your thing, Anastasia is a movie I can re-watch many times for it’s songs and story. Based in Russia and Paris, this story is about finding family, romance with a little bit of magic. It nurtures the little princess in me every time I see her dance.

7. Lord of The Rings: The Return of The King

I love all 3 movies (not so much for The Two Towers, where I actually just snoozed halfway through), the last and final movie from the trilogy is an epic battle-adventure from the start to end. Gimli and Legolas’ friendship got me giggling throughout the movie.

8. Mary and the Witch’s Flower

A fantasy animation by Studio Ponoc about a girl who found a magical flower and is granted magic for one night. She discovers the world of witches where she is forced to save her friend and stop a grand scheme of experiments.

9. Crazy Rich Asians

Dream of living the upper-society life in Singapore? A full Asian cast, typical romantic Korean drama-esque story of a middle class girl struggling to establish her place in the society of her mega rich boyfriend is something we definitely dig, right? Of course watching this movie made me miss Singapore so much.

10. The Princess Diaries

Time to channel my inner secret princess! Although I did enjoy watching Chris Pine in the second movie, I enjoyed the first movie so much more. I love watching Mia transform as she struggles with keeping her identity and learning to be a princess. Her little date with Julie Andrews really got me missing my grandmother too.