In Which ProofCat Is a Fictional History Otaku ("Dark Dawn" Playthrough, Part III)

Short post tonight since I have to get up early in the morning. BOO MORNING.

Anyway, I actually ENJOYED part of Golden Sun: Dark Dawn. Yes, you heard me. Enjoyed.

What is the world coming to?

Anyway, after Chilly Velma joined the party, I headed for Passaj, a mountain town where I would supposedly find a way over the mountain range and meet up with Kraden again. AND WOULDN'T YA KNOW IT, the "way over" was nothing but the top of a freakin' mountain where I'm supposed to make some sort of cloud bridge nonsense happen.

...Yeah. Walkin' on clouds. THAT SOUNDS...PLAUSIBLE.

Granted, I've put up with a great deal of the fantastic in the Golden Sun franchise. Flying with tornadoes, clinging desperately to the outside of exploding elemental plateaus, reading minds and resurrecting dead parents as well as battling the ghost of a notorious pirate.

Yes, these games are full of weird shit. But a CLOUD bridge? I hope there's a catch because I really don't see myself LEVITATING without the Hover Jade from The Lost Age which I'm sure one of the old heroes ate or something before they conveniently went missing.

Though, with how...stupid this plan seemed, Chilly Velma revealed a lot of history about the world BEFORE the original Golden Sun game...and surprisingly, I found it extraordinarily interesting. I love to nerd about all the weird little cultures presented in this series. You can peek into ovens to observe the local cuisines, and the architecture from town to town in the same country varies widely. The garb the citizens wear differs too as well as the different lifestyles. Call me a SUPANERD but I love the little details like this. Even if there isn't quite the level of exploration of this world that I'd like (granted, I know there's limits since it's only on the handheld systems) I really love how each culture is constructed separately. They all have their own religious beliefs, even. It's just little things like this that give Golden Sun games their own atmosphere, so I'm glad Dark Dawn has at least kept THAT in existence.

So yes, much joyous nerding was had by all! (And by all I mean me, and by joyous I mean TEMPORARILY. I'm on to you, game.)

Anyway, I made the odd "Alchemy Forge" -- some old-age relic from the ancient world -- start working again, but I think I'm being sent on another CONVENIENT errand to yet ANOTHER perilous place that the Passaj elder is sending me on. Because hey, nothing says "responsible leader" quite like sending TEENAGERS to fetch dangerous artifacts in enemy territory.

I'm off to locate and retrieve the "Sol Mask" (seriously, why are there so many failsafes located in IDIOTIC places? WHY WOULD YOU HIDE SOMETHING TO POWER YOUR SUPER IMPORTANT TECHNOLOGY IN ENEMY TERRITORY IF YOU DON'T WANT IT TO FALL INTO ENEMY HANDS?) from a labyrinth.

Excellent.

Tomorrow I'll make a super-awesome-and-hilarious post for y'all to make up for the brief nature of today's. Stay tuned!