Fun Fact, this was one of the earliest games to try and use procedural loading to remove load times from an open world. I remember reading an article about how it partially loads areas next to the one you're in, and fully does when you start getting near the area transition.
This. And it surprisingly used the entire power of the ps2 on it. Like, if i can recall correctly, people even had issues trying to play this game in emulators at the time. For a ps2 game to have a set amount of map loaded for all purposes was really awesome (hence why at times you get back when falling or get a game over. There's even one guy explaining why a side quest in Altador was missing, although it appears on the map).
"Wife" Whatttttttt, dude. Congrats. It's wild seeing all your videos about silent hill, blinx and rpg maker horror games throughout the years, and now you got frickin married. I'm happy for you, dude. It's crazy seeing how much you've grown.
That took me by suprise too, I remembered back in his update in 2021 that he mentioned his girlfriend which is kind of crazy that so much time has passed since then
That "stealth" area that you got to is where you have to "sneak" around when holding the square button it's a huge slog as you slowly make your way to the switches. That way you're able to get to the bridges. however the game NEVER tells you this, so the fact you were able to get around it definitely highlights the jankyness of the game overall. Still it definitely has such charm and was great to see you talk about it!
See, when I got to that part of the video, I wondered if maybe the enemies showing up out of nowhere was another use for the Meowclops petpet seeing invisible things? Like you bring one with and it lets you see the enemies and you use that to time sightlines and stuff
@@-ZH God, I'd forgotten about that lmao I love how the game has (at least) two explicit stealth-adjacent mechanics introduced earlier with setups teaching you how to use them, and then instead of that you're apparently supposed to use a secret sneak button that was just always there and never useful or explained
@@DKsStrongestSoldier Well, I'm just gonna play Devils Advocate, but how often do you need to use said mechanics throughout the whole game? Did the game actually encourage using an ability that would only really have importance in this one segment at the very end?
the good news is, fortunately it is not anymore a property of the church of scientology they have gone independent again last year and the creators are trying to overhaul the site
I got neopets the darkest faerie when it came out. My parents bought it for me and would play it with me watching (I was still very little at that age) Eventually I got where I would play it whenever I got the chance. I still play it to this day! I also have all of the cutscenes memorized and I love listening to the music. I also know all of the secrets and glitches in the game. It is super calming. This game is my Roman Empire and I do not think I will ever get tired of playing this game. I cannot wait until I have kids and get to tell them about the game! It is by far my favorite game.
There is a lot here that connects to the online game. I remember they introduced Altador to the site a few years later, many of the monsters you fight are either on a TCG card or are on the site, and so on and so forth. ALSO! Mote means "a tiny speck of a thing." I've heard it used for magic or elementals before. I think the mote + emote thing was more or less a joke about it. Neopets just has that kind of humor. They love wordplay.
in world of warcraft in outlands you would get mote of X of all the elements and a stack of 10 would make the elemental thingies what were used as ingredients
For some reason, watching this video, reminded me of _Darkened Skye,_ an adventure game for the Gamecube set in a fantastical world with a plot that revolves around Skittles, the source of all magic. No, that's not a joke, it was a tie-in for the candy, Skittles, and it was very tongue-in cheek, with lots of fourth wall humour. The whole thing was very surreal.
Now that game, is way more obscure than The Darkest Faerie. Only found that out through a random find at the game store. I guess that game was by the same devs who made the M&M games, but they wanted it to be an original ip and forced to shoehorn skittles?
I think the company had a license to both M&M and Skittles, (both are owned by the same people) made some M&M games, then wanted to make a Skittles game. The person they asked to do this almost quit, until she negotiated to get some creative freedom. The game took inspiration from the Skittles commercials of the time, which were kind of fantastical in nature, and used that as a springboard, allowing her to create an entire fantasy world, one that was self-aware and used lots of fourth wall humour. I guess at some point, they realized that using lots of Skittles branding on it may not be necessary, and might even turn off some people, as by then it had developed enough of an identity to be its own thing, because the final packaging didn't broadcast the Skittles connection much at all. Mind you, this is all second or third hand information. I don't know how much is accurate, as stories like this take on a life of their own.
Learning that this was originally designed for the PS1 would explain why the FMV cutscenes are rendered at like 15 frames per second. These must be repurposed remnants of that canceled version. Also, oh GOD! Code Monkeys were involved?? The developer switch must have been a good move despite how the final game turned out.
I still have my copy of this game for some reason and recall looking on TH-cam 3 years ago for long reviews of it (for some reason) sadly i wished this game had a co op when you unlock Roberta...
I think the darkest faerie was also inspired by the Neoquest RPGs on the site in terms of wanting to make a real RPG not bound by limitations on the site itself, they really loved those Neoquest games they designed back then and for what they are, they are nice.
the animations on the main character are way better than i was expecting after watching the intro seems like they actually put more effort into this game than i thought
30:45 I guess the Acara design lends itself well to magician type characters because there was a character named Mipsy in another game called NeoQuest II, who was also the mage of the party.
Duuuuuuude this was definitely one of those games I got back in the day as a kid where I never asked for them but adore to this very day. This game was so neat despite how awkward its structure gets.
I’m not too familiar with Neopets or any of this lore but even I can see how high quality it is gameplay aside Especially with the cutscenes, sure they are a bit dated but the production value is pretty impressive from what’s shown here, especially for a game this old The voice acting is solid, the animations while limited convey the emotions really well and the mixing with the music is perfect, I was kind of suprised how well put together it all is Even if the story is wacky, the fact that I found the cutscenes engaging watching this review is a nice change of pace especially when there are games from later consoles that look worse than this At least that’s what I think
This game is WAY better than it has any right to be. Seriously, it's a pretty dang good adventure game. I remember reading somewhere that it was originally supposed to be a ps1 game but never found confirmation about it.
This has to be the most in-depth look at Neopets: The Darkest Faerie on TH-cam. And Nitro nailed it. Speaking of, not only is Sophie one of the best designed characters, she also starred in her own comic where she's revealed to be a badass witch in her own way. Among other feats, she overpowered a Faerie, who are basically the strongest magical beings in her world without even breaking a sweat, and developed the cure that lifted the curse on her hometown, saving everyone including her family.
I don't know what makes this better. The fact that I'm seeing a favorite TH-camr cover a game that was a huge part of my childhood, or the fact that Adventure Quest was brought up!
This was literally my FAVORITE game growing up (and I remember all my friends made the whole "dark souls jokes" about it a while back when I was a kid) , I remember enjoying it so much for replays, I was just sad that you were kind of locked in the ending and always had to make new saves/plays to enjoy the story again I must have played it so many times and each time I found more new sidequests, upgrades for both characters I missed, and always came back to that super dark ambience that genuinely frightened me as a kid, but looking back it really gave the whole "the land has fallen and darkness roams the world" thing better than most games did for me at the time, like I was extremely frightened to be swarmed by monsters and leaving the safe havens, but the bosses and dungeons were well worth adventuring for
Same for me! I loved this game since I was like 6. And English is not my mother tongue, so I struggled even more by trying to understand what they were saying. However, growing up with this game really made some good memories.
Same; I was always so freaked out by the dark zones, haha. I never beat this game as a kid but my god, I was obsessed with it and its whole world and atmosphere.
Honestly. This game has a lot of passion and work behind it. I’m impressed even if it’s not perfect. As always, James just knocks it out of the park with this! I always feel so fortunate to be introduced to new games through this channel. But why do I feel James was absolutely giggling like crazy knowing he got this video up just before the year ended?
Oh my god, I so love this game as a kid. I remember hearing people talked about this game when it first came out and watching the commercials showing cool graphics and awesome gameplay. This was part of my childhood and glad it has been revised again. Thanks, Nitro Rad!!
The existence of this video feels like a fever dream to me. Was obsessed with neopets when i was little and knew about this game existed, but never really knew anything about it. And then, you decided to play it just when i remembered it existed and started looking for reviews. Timing couldn't have been better.
my favorite part of this game honestly was he soundtrack. it's so good and especially that every place that is overtaken by the darkness is now in a different minor arrangement. i still listen to it just by itself to this day.
I gasped seeing this video pop up. This game was a such a fond memory in my childhood. It's still so surprising how good it is, especially for being a Neopets PS2 game!
I find it interesting how this game opens up in a similar way to Zelda: Twilight Princess with the main character growing up on a far, hanging out with younger kids, herding animals, and then gets to go on a big trip to the castle before things get hairy.
Congrats for getting married, dude 🙂 I can’t believe, that the funny RPG Maker-and-Platformer guy, I started to watch all those years ago, came so far in his life. I wish you a happy new year and good luck for what comes next🍀 Stay rad, dude👍
The last 2 videos were among my favorites. I have been watching this channel since the Silent Hill days, and even now, when James speaks about something he is passionate about, I also feel passionate about it, even if I don't know what Neopets is. Great job, dude! Hope you have a good 2024 my man.
It's funny, I never really played neopets all that much in the early to mid 2000s, but I LOVED this game. I played it all the time, I still remember finally getting to the end and not being able to go back to the main overworld and being trapped in the faerie world and being really upset lol. It was one of (if not my first) open world adventure games I've played and I just loved exploring this super fleshed out world.
I remember seeing adverts for this in the old Disney Adventure magazines - or maybe it was Nickelodeon magazine, I can’t remember - but I was DEEP in the Neopets rabbit hole around that time. But just as quickly as I saw the advertising for it, it just went away without any other feedback. Edit: Congrats on your marriage!
It is refreshing to see someone who has played (and willing to talk about) games when I was younger. And you’ve also played Yokai Watch too? My goodness! And I do like the casual laid back approach you’ve done in most videos, giving both praise for what the game does as well as valid criticism. This is good stuff right here.
This game is SO FREAKING GOOD! It doesn't matter if you like Neopets or not, the exploration is just amazing, and with a few exceptions, it's just so much fun to platform through this game world while collecting everything you can find, searching for secrets and grabbing Neopoints. I honestly like it more than some 3D Zelda games (mainly because Twilight Princess limits your exploration into chunks, and the three day repeating time limit of Majora's Mask gets on my nerves, but that's still really high praise). The combat does take some time and patience to get down, but it also feels so freaking good to upgrade to better gear and stomp the enemies that gave you trouble earlier on. Maybe it's just because I love the kind of well crafted exploration experience that's so often lost in more open world games, but I can't agree at all with the assessment of this as a mediocre game. It's way too much fun to be less than great, if somewhat flawed, in my opinion, but I have a similar opinion on some Zelda games, so you should really try it out and decide for yourself. Also, if this game ever gets a sequel, I will be purchasing it immediately. I would love to dive into another game just like this one.
I remember that puzzle you struggled with! The noise scared me to death, so I couldn't beat it for a long time, however, to solve it you would need to sneak around with the brown cloak. You have to wait on the platform for longer than expected so that the creatures load in properly because they reset every time you step on it and get a bit funky if you don't have the brown cloak on.
All I remember about this game are the ads I saw on TV that made it seem way more epic than it probably was lol. Ah, the days when stuff like this and Webkinz were popular…good times
There’s also the PSP game Petpet Adventures that came out after the Darkest Faerie! I don’t know if that one’s as well remembered, but I played it a fair amount. It’s about as mediocre but nostalgic as Darkest Faerie, and kid me had a grad old time with it.
I remember that game too, but it was so much harder to come across. Partly because the psp wasn't as big as the ps2. I still had trouble finding it even after getting a PSP.
This is one I’ve been waiting for you to review for forever! The first time I played it was around 2018, and I thought it would’ve been perfect for your channel! Awesome to see it! The review is great
OH SHIT IT'S THE GOAT!! This was my introduction to games with stories--before this I played mostly sports and racing games; this game showed me games could have stories and characters like my favourite books. Without this game, I wouldn't have found games like 'The Witcher' and 'Diablo'. I'll still pop it in and play it every now-and-then, despite the jank.
I had such a long day at work and when I saw the notification for this video pop up it motivated me to get through the day. I played this game a bit later in life (when I got back into my Neopets phase after a hiatus 😅) and if I had the energy to break out my PS2 I'd probably play it again. Your wife's reaction to seeing your copy of TDF is exactly what mine would be if I saw that game on someone's shelf. I'd be like "Get out that PS2 we're playing now!" (Also not me staring at your cat whispering "Don't knock those figures off.. .. ..don't-") It really is so nice to see other folks' view on this game and the Neopets storyline (especially as someone who to this day loves the plots and characters). It's been so long since I've played TDF that it was nice to hear you note a lot of details that I may have forgotten with time or didn't catch originally. I really hope Neopets goes back to making memorable plot points/comics/events like you mentioned. I keep poking my head around the site to see if they have anything fun planned- and recently they DID mention (and actually started) hinting at a new plot. So I'm slowly making my way back on to get into the daily habit of going on again. Maybe we'll see something fun in the future akin to TDF game! It was nice to see that you overall had a nice time playing the game, and this video was a great way to end the year for me. Awesome as always. (b ' v ^)b ☆
Honestly the presentation for the game is surprisingly polished. The art direction, world details, smooth animations, running at 60fps, etc. Obviously it isn't the best game, but you can clearly see the devs put a lot of care into it. It definitely wasn't a cash grab or anything of that sort.
I’m so used to him sounding like a smiley guy but then at 57:06 he actually sounded out of character. The sole and only time I felt unsafe watching his comforting videos.
Gotta love the charm keeping things together, for the most part at least! Thanks for covering this game, I hadn't played it before but I could feel the nostalgia from the involvement of Neopets alone, as well as seeing some of them being conveyed in a 3D environment! Also helloooooo Nitro Cat at 5:11 :)
I played the absolute hell out of this game when it came out rofl. I was a teen and high on neopets still and then they dropped a 3d guide to how places in Neopia look and I was bustin down doors to get this game. And then it went and exceeded my expectations by having collectable foods and pets and outfits to unlock. I developed such an appreciation for stories off this game. I didn't look at my neopets as static letdowns because I couldn't focus long enough to save for a paintbrush. Now they could each have value by having a history and preferences and outfits and etc. Also the Ixi raiders were an actual monster on neopets. They often had story arcs (comics) on the website that would release bits at a time and eventually they became a tool to introduce new lands when they were first coming out like Altador or Moltara. It was really nice to see the devs of this game bring in some story villains besides just the faeries.
57:00 I really appreciate the raw emotion here lmno. Most moments in games that were extremely hard as a kid ended up being barely an issue when I was older. But some games still have those moments that almost make you wanna end your playthrough, because you try over and over forever and ever and aren't able to make it. ngl if I was the one playing this I might just give up. Or see if anyone on the internet has a reliable method.
I was recommended this video by a couple of my neopets friends! Really loved this deep dive into one of my favorite childhood games, and also loved the validation that parts of the games I found hard were in fact hard lol. I’ll be checking out your other videos!!
I have a script for this game from 5 years ago. I was going to do a whole lecture on all of the lore books and piece together a full history. I ended up hating the game so much that I never finished it lol. Thank you for making a video on this game!
Definitely gonna give this game a play. Randomly got a few writing ideas from listening before jumping to the closing thoughts to save the rest for myself so my interest was thoroughly peaked.
58:28 - I had to replay that a few times to get that it was just him being silly and not actual dialog from the game XD But yeah, another great video, and a nice way to cap off this year~
This is a very cutesy and impressive adventure of Neopets, I'm not too familiar with the franchise (I just sadly didn't get into it as a kid! I felt like I missed out for sure heh.) Looks like they really put a lot of effort into this game. Would be awesome seeing this getting reworked/remade. Thanks for the video Rad, and I do gotta agree- -Roberta's face is pretty funny looking.
OH MY GOD!! I always dreamed you would do a video on this game, James. I had it when it came out andme and my ilder brother loved it back when we were big into Neopets. I had so many nostalgic memories with this game until we gave the PS2 and games away years later to a friend who was moving. Laat I checked several years ago, there weren't many prolific game reviewers who actually took a dive and explained this game to those who didn't get to play it. I feel like your video will give this underrated game the spotlight and critique it deserves. Seriously, I felt like there was always enough in the game for you to do an in-depth review. I'm gonna enjoy the next hour.
I haven't even watched the vid yet and I don't care if you like the game or not but this was my favorite game as a kid and seeing this vid pop up made me literally scream in joy
Not that I thought the game was bad or anything as a kid, I’d always see it at the store. I’m just shocked at how expansive it is! Looks very well made
Your old game Manuel’s having mustaches drawn on characters reminds me of when me and an old friend of mine used to do something similar as kids. Anytime we found a picture with a character whose mouth was open we’d draw a corn dog in their mouth and at 11-13 years old, that was peak comedy to us back then 😂
Oh man! I remember having a copy of this game when I was younger! Don't think I ever made it past the chores before becoming a knight. But I remember having fun just running around cutting grass.
Love that you covered this game. It’s by no means a perfect game, but it deserves the love it gets. In addition to an amazing soundtrack, this game also had a very talented voice cast.
I have fond, and rather interesting memories about this game. Example 1: There was a point in time where I was NOT allowed to play this game because I accidentally saved over my older brother's save file (he was near the end. I still feel so bad about that.) Example 2: I was always lost. Always. I had a super bad sense of direction as a kid. Example 3: It took me 2. Hours. To do the Endless staircase section. Half because I legitimately had no idea what to do, half because the sound that played everytime you passed the statue made me giggle. Example 4: I restarted the game 4 times because I kept forgetting how to do stuff 😂
5:24 Dunno why I find it funny seeing NitroRad’s cat just chilling in the background while he talks about Neopets. XD 58:35 Ok, for a second, I thought that was an actual line in the game. XD
neopets was the first internet community i was in and its where i met a lot of friends i still have today and started making art. i still play it because i just can't let go of my hoard of critters has anyone given you a lecture about how neopets itself started antromorphising the pets yet? 'cause i had to pause to point it out; major characters in site plots and events are always bipeds(with... hair? or wigs? we'll never know) with few exceptions !! so happy to see the coolest dude review the coolest PS2 game :]
Oh heck yeah. This game has... questionable visual design but a _wildly_ underrated soundtrack IMHO. HONK IF YOU STILL PLAY NEOPETS WOOHOO. Was pleasantly surprised to hear you mention Neo is making a comeback, most people talk like they don't realize it's still up lol. They just changed management and became an independent company, got a bunch of investors onboard and it has a plot planned for next year. Get hype
@32:20 When you mentioned the endless staircase puzzle not being told to you, there is actually a book in the faerieland library that mentions the endless staircase.
I remember renting this game from Blockbuster and only playing the intro until I gave up, yet that brief playtime has remained stuck in my brain for over 2 decades.
@Nitrorad I wanted to comment on the stealth section. If you wanted to make it easier on you, equip the cloak and dont sprint. As long as youre not sprinting they will not notice you just walking around. Trust me, it will save you a massive headache
Fun fact: there's a cut area left in the game under Meridell that you can still access through cheats/glitches. Look up the ancient castle spires, there's a video showcasing it. Sections of it show up in trailers of the game, and it blew my mind when I finally saw where those mysterious areas I never saw before came from. The area looks pretty cool too, not sure why the maze part of the dungeon made it in instead of the spires.
Oooooh, you got to this game! Blue Stinger, Illbleed, Darkest Faerie... we fans of obscure charming goofy games are eatin' good lately! When I played this game ages ago, one thing that stood out was the sound design of different equipment. Really helped solidify that sense of progression - metal just *sounded* so much more effective than wood. I was excited to hear you talk about the water hazards. It almost feels like it was all instadeath at first, but then someone went "okay, nah, that's a bit harsh, let me go through and change all the water hazards to just do a little damage instead"... and stopped after they changed half of them. I doubt that's actually what happened, but it sure feels like it. I also find it funny that the Game Over jingle plays even for the not-Game-Over water. :P Hold on... a charming Zelda clone adventure with great worldbuilding and messy gameplay, where you play as an anthro canine? This gives some Kingsley's Adventure vibes.
Anyone else really enjoy Mr Insane's games? He made NeoQuest 1 & 2, as well as platformers like the Hannah games and Escape from Meridell Castle. He also made Invasion of Meridell, which really sparked my interest in SRPGs, Fire Emblem on GBA released soon after and it was amazing. NeoQuest really got me into JRPGs too like the older Dragon Quest (Dragon Warrior back then) and Etrian Odyssey games. It's really silly, but NeoPets really taught me a lot about life, like not getting scammed as well as give me a rudimentary explanation of how stock markets worked because of their minigame called the NeoDAQ, I'm not joking.
Oh wow, this is a treat. I've actually just gotten back into Neopets lately (the site's under new management and they've been giving away a ton of rare items for free lately), so this one's especially relevant to my interests
You said everything I could possibly say about this game. Love it to death. So happy that someone *finally* made a long form video essay about it. What a thing to wake up to on my birthday.
I always loved the pet designs but our family computer sucked and barely anything on the site worked for me. Im sure I would have loved this game if i knew it existed
![[FULL] RETROSPECTIVE : Final Fantasy Tactics](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RUBmYqs1jZ0/mqdefault.jpg)
![[#2024MAMA] G-DRAGON - 무제(Untitled, 2014)+POWER+HOME SWEET HOME+뱅뱅뱅+FANTASTIC BABY | Mnet 241123 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ox29z5Nf1Uk/mqdefault.jpg)
![[Vinesauce] Vinny - Super Mario Galaxy Compilation](/img/n.gif)
Fun Fact, this was one of the earliest games to try and use procedural loading to remove load times from an open world. I remember reading an article about how it partially loads areas next to the one you're in, and fully does when you start getting near the area transition.
This. And it surprisingly used the entire power of the ps2 on it. Like, if i can recall correctly, people even had issues trying to play this game in emulators at the time. For a ps2 game to have a set amount of map loaded for all purposes was really awesome (hence why at times you get back when falling or get a game over. There's even one guy explaining why a side quest in Altador was missing, although it appears on the map).
"Wife"
Whatttttttt, dude. Congrats. It's wild seeing all your videos about silent hill, blinx and rpg maker horror games throughout the years, and now you got frickin married. I'm happy for you, dude. It's crazy seeing how much you've grown.
That took me by suprise too, I remembered back in his update in 2021 that he mentioned his girlfriend which is kind of crazy that so much time has passed since then
He's been married for a few years now, if I recall correctly. Not really relevant to the videos, so it's not brought up much.
Oh my god…the memories…
I was gonna comment something similar. So cool to see him growin’ up.
I'm glad I wasn't the only one surprised. I'm happy he's happy.
That "stealth" area that you got to is where you have to "sneak" around when holding the square button it's a huge slog as you slowly make your way to the switches. That way you're able to get to the bridges.
however the game NEVER tells you this, so the fact you were able to get around it definitely highlights the jankyness of the game overall. Still it definitely has such charm and was great to see you talk about it!
WOWWWWWW
See, when I got to that part of the video, I wondered if maybe the enemies showing up out of nowhere was another use for the Meowclops petpet seeing invisible things? Like you bring one with and it lets you see the enemies and you use that to time sightlines and stuff
@@JacklynBurn
I was thinking you were supposed to use the cloak
@@-ZH God, I'd forgotten about that lmao
I love how the game has (at least) two explicit stealth-adjacent mechanics introduced earlier with setups teaching you how to use them, and then instead of that you're apparently supposed to use a secret sneak button that was just always there and never useful or explained
@@DKsStrongestSoldier Well, I'm just gonna play Devils Advocate, but how often do you need to use said mechanics throughout the whole game? Did the game actually encourage using an ability that would only really have importance in this one segment at the very end?
If Neopets was still owned by Nickelodeon, we could have had Tormund and Roberta in Nick Brawl
If only 😔
DAMN! that'd be awesome
We could see Roberta’s offputting lips, but in HD
the good news is, fortunately it is not anymore a property of the church of scientology
they have gone independent again last year and the creators are trying to overhaul the site
@@obananagato THEY WERE OWNED BY WHO??????????
I got neopets the darkest faerie when it came out. My parents bought it for me and would play it with me watching (I was still very little at that age) Eventually I got where I would play it whenever I got the chance. I still play it to this day! I also have all of the cutscenes memorized and I love listening to the music. I also know all of the secrets and glitches in the game. It is super calming. This game is my Roman Empire and I do not think I will ever get tired of playing this game. I cannot wait until I have kids and get to tell them about the game! It is by far my favorite game.
I thought i was the only one! I will always love this game
There is a lot here that connects to the online game. I remember they introduced Altador to the site a few years later, many of the monsters you fight are either on a TCG card or are on the site, and so on and so forth.
ALSO! Mote means "a tiny speck of a thing." I've heard it used for magic or elementals before. I think the mote + emote thing was more or less a joke about it. Neopets just has that kind of humor. They love wordplay.
in world of warcraft in outlands you would get mote of X of all the elements and a stack of 10 would make the elemental thingies what were used as ingredients
Also to add to that faerieland would eventually crash down except this time it was stopped.
For some reason, watching this video, reminded me of _Darkened Skye,_ an adventure game for the Gamecube set in a fantastical world with a plot that revolves around Skittles, the source of all magic. No, that's not a joke, it was a tie-in for the candy, Skittles, and it was very tongue-in cheek, with lots of fourth wall humour. The whole thing was very surreal.
Now that game, is way more obscure than The Darkest Faerie. Only found that out through a random find at the game store.
I guess that game was by the same devs who made the M&M games, but they wanted it to be an original ip and forced to shoehorn skittles?
I think the company had a license to both M&M and Skittles, (both are owned by the same people) made some M&M games, then wanted to make a Skittles game. The person they asked to do this almost quit, until she negotiated to get some creative freedom. The game took inspiration from the Skittles commercials of the time, which were kind of fantastical in nature, and used that as a springboard, allowing her to create an entire fantasy world, one that was self-aware and used lots of fourth wall humour. I guess at some point, they realized that using lots of Skittles branding on it may not be necessary, and might even turn off some people, as by then it had developed enough of an identity to be its own thing, because the final packaging didn't broadcast the Skittles connection much at all. Mind you, this is all second or third hand information. I don't know how much is accurate, as stories like this take on a life of their own.
Bruh i love darkened skye, the atmosphere in this game is GREAT. The OST is banging too
Learning that this was originally designed for the PS1 would explain why the FMV cutscenes are rendered at like 15 frames per second. These must be repurposed remnants of that canceled version.
Also, oh GOD! Code Monkeys were involved?? The developer switch must have been a good move despite how the final game turned out.
You think you're done with TH-cam for the year, then NitroRad hits you with an hour long Neopets video. You love to see it!
Klonoa!! Yeeee!
I still have my copy of this game for some reason and recall looking on TH-cam 3 years ago for long reviews of it (for some reason) sadly i wished this game had a co op when you unlock Roberta...
Couldn't say it no better I'm glad I got my cannabis to blaze to this new video
Every video in the last 6 years has been a banger.
MARIJUANA MOMENT 🚨 🙀
No better way to end of the year than with good old neopets .
I think the darkest faerie was also inspired by the Neoquest RPGs on the site in terms of wanting to make a real RPG not bound by limitations on the site itself, they really loved those Neoquest games they designed back then and for what they are, they are nice.
the animations on the main character are way better than i was expecting after watching the intro
seems like they actually put more effort into this game than i thought
The story about your wife geeking out seeing this game on your shelf is the most adorable thing. Glad you two found each other
30:45 I guess the Acara design lends itself well to magician type characters because there was a character named Mipsy in another game called NeoQuest II, who was also the mage of the party.
Duuuuuuude this was definitely one of those games I got back in the day as a kid where I never asked for them but adore to this very day. This game was so neat despite how awkward its structure gets.
I’m not too familiar with Neopets or any of this lore but even I can see how high quality it is gameplay aside
Especially with the cutscenes, sure they are a bit dated but the production value is pretty impressive from what’s shown here, especially for a game this old
The voice acting is solid, the animations while limited convey the emotions really well and the mixing with the music is perfect, I was kind of suprised how well put together it all is
Even if the story is wacky, the fact that I found the cutscenes engaging watching this review is a nice change of pace especially when there are games from later consoles that look worse than this
At least that’s what I think
"Why did I draw moustaches on everything as a child?"
Because you were making the world a better place
This game is WAY better than it has any right to be. Seriously, it's a pretty dang good adventure game. I remember reading somewhere that it was originally supposed to be a ps1 game but never found confirmation about it.
Right? Like, yeah, it's a Zelda clone, but it's a decent Zelda clone.
Seriously, I think it did so well for its time
That's literally on the video
This has to be the most in-depth look at Neopets: The Darkest Faerie on TH-cam. And Nitro nailed it.
Speaking of, not only is Sophie one of the best designed characters, she also starred in her own comic where she's revealed to be a badass witch in her own way. Among other feats, she overpowered a Faerie, who are basically the strongest magical beings in her world without even breaking a sweat, and developed the cure that lifted the curse on her hometown, saving everyone including her family.
I don't know what makes this better.
The fact that I'm seeing a favorite TH-camr cover a game that was a huge part of my childhood, or the fact that Adventure Quest was brought up!
This was literally my FAVORITE game growing up (and I remember all my friends made the whole "dark souls jokes" about it a while back when I was a kid) , I remember enjoying it so much for replays, I was just sad that you were kind of locked in the ending and always had to make new saves/plays to enjoy the story again
I must have played it so many times and each time I found more new sidequests, upgrades for both characters I missed, and always came back to that super dark ambience that genuinely frightened me as a kid, but looking back it really gave the whole "the land has fallen and darkness roams the world" thing better than most games did for me at the time, like I was extremely frightened to be swarmed by monsters and leaving the safe havens, but the bosses and dungeons were well worth adventuring for
Same for me! I loved this game since I was like 6. And English is not my mother tongue, so I struggled even more by trying to understand what they were saying. However, growing up with this game really made some good memories.
Same; I was always so freaked out by the dark zones, haha. I never beat this game as a kid but my god, I was obsessed with it and its whole world and atmosphere.
I genuinely love that the cutscenes exude so much of the same energy that kid cartoons had at the time. They are incredibly charming
Mote just means a small piece of something, often used in fantasy to describe magic or energy. "A mote of fire" for example
5:11 I'm looking at the cat in the background, waiting for it to knock those Medabots figures off the shelf.
Honestly. This game has a lot of passion and work behind it. I’m impressed even if it’s not perfect.
As always, James just knocks it out of the park with this! I always feel so fortunate to be introduced to new games through this channel.
But why do I feel James was absolutely giggling like crazy knowing he got this video up just before the year ended?
All I could think during you talking about your wife gushing about the game was, "Never let that woman go."
Imagine if she decked him for the voice. "I was NOT that high-pitched!"
He got a good one, that's for sure.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess actually starts with you herding goats and learning how to fish (which you only use once after the tutorial).
57:01 i love how you can hear the genuine rage in his voice
Oh my god, I so love this game as a kid. I remember hearing people talked about this game when it first came out and watching the commercials showing cool graphics and awesome gameplay. This was part of my childhood and glad it has been revised again. Thanks, Nitro Rad!!
My name is torie and have been playing neopets for over 20 years. I LOVED this video but the last 10 seconds were a punch to the face lol
The existence of this video feels like a fever dream to me.
Was obsessed with neopets when i was little and knew about this game existed, but never really knew anything about it. And then, you decided to play it just when i remembered it existed and started looking for reviews.
Timing couldn't have been better.
my favorite part of this game honestly was he soundtrack. it's so good and especially that every place that is overtaken by the darkness is now in a different minor arrangement. i still listen to it just by itself to this day.
I gasped seeing this video pop up. This game was a such a fond memory in my childhood. It's still so surprising how good it is, especially for being a Neopets PS2 game!
I find it interesting how this game opens up in a similar way to Zelda: Twilight Princess with the main character growing up on a far, hanging out with younger kids, herding animals, and then gets to go on a big trip to the castle before things get hairy.
Congrats for getting married, dude 🙂
I can’t believe, that the funny RPG Maker-and-Platformer guy, I started to watch all those years ago, came so far in his life. I wish you a happy new year and good luck for what comes next🍀 Stay rad, dude👍
The last 2 videos were among my favorites. I have been watching this channel since the Silent Hill days, and even now, when James speaks about something he is passionate about, I also feel passionate about it, even if I don't know what Neopets is. Great job, dude! Hope you have a good 2024 my man.
It's funny, I never really played neopets all that much in the early to mid 2000s, but I LOVED this game. I played it all the time, I still remember finally getting to the end and not being able to go back to the main overworld and being trapped in the faerie world and being really upset lol. It was one of (if not my first) open world adventure games I've played and I just loved exploring this super fleshed out world.
I remember seeing adverts for this in the old Disney Adventure magazines - or maybe it was Nickelodeon magazine, I can’t remember - but I was DEEP in the Neopets rabbit hole around that time. But just as quickly as I saw the advertising for it, it just went away without any other feedback.
Edit: Congrats on your marriage!
speaking as a guy thoroughly invested in neopets lore, this video was very funny to watch because it's... a very different perspective from my own.
It is refreshing to see someone who has played (and willing to talk about) games when I was younger. And you’ve also played Yokai Watch too? My goodness! And I do like the casual laid back approach you’ve done in most videos, giving both praise for what the game does as well as valid criticism. This is good stuff right here.
I kept telling myself "2023 isn't over yet!", but this wasn't how I expected it to end. Happy New Year, James.
This game is SO FREAKING GOOD! It doesn't matter if you like Neopets or not, the exploration is just amazing, and with a few exceptions, it's just so much fun to platform through this game world while collecting everything you can find, searching for secrets and grabbing Neopoints. I honestly like it more than some 3D Zelda games (mainly because Twilight Princess limits your exploration into chunks, and the three day repeating time limit of Majora's Mask gets on my nerves, but that's still really high praise). The combat does take some time and patience to get down, but it also feels so freaking good to upgrade to better gear and stomp the enemies that gave you trouble earlier on. Maybe it's just because I love the kind of well crafted exploration experience that's so often lost in more open world games, but I can't agree at all with the assessment of this as a mediocre game. It's way too much fun to be less than great, if somewhat flawed, in my opinion, but I have a similar opinion on some Zelda games, so you should really try it out and decide for yourself. Also, if this game ever gets a sequel, I will be purchasing it immediately. I would love to dive into another game just like this one.
I remember that puzzle you struggled with! The noise scared me to death, so I couldn't beat it for a long time, however, to solve it you would need to sneak around with the brown cloak. You have to wait on the platform for longer than expected so that the creatures load in properly because they reset every time you step on it and get a bit funky if you don't have the brown cloak on.
All I remember about this game are the ads I saw on TV that made it seem way more epic than it probably was lol. Ah, the days when stuff like this and Webkinz were popular…good times
Webkinz was one of my biggest online obsessions back in the day, along with Poptropica.
Oh it's you again.
still on the webkinz frontlines to this day man 🫡 I’d never abandon my pets
I remember those ads. They made me think the game was also a lot darker than it ended up being. I never got this game but it always interested me
@@paranormeow That makes me curious on what you feel about the ugly modern "Webkinz Next" they've been pushing
Starting this video at 10:53 pm just so the year starts when this video ends. A good start and a fresh mind.
This game just radiates pure charm, just like Neopets itself. Even if it seems a bit clunky
There’s also the PSP game Petpet Adventures that came out after the Darkest Faerie! I don’t know if that one’s as well remembered, but I played it a fair amount. It’s about as mediocre but nostalgic as Darkest Faerie, and kid me had a grad old time with it.
I remember that game too, but it was so much harder to come across. Partly because the psp wasn't as big as the ps2. I still had trouble finding it even after getting a PSP.
The cloak of heroes given to you prevents you from being seen by enemies. That's what you needed to use for that puzzle btw lol
This is one I’ve been waiting for you to review for forever! The first time I played it was around 2018, and I thought it would’ve been perfect for your channel! Awesome to see it! The review is great
OH SHIT IT'S THE GOAT!!
This was my introduction to games with stories--before this I played mostly sports and racing games; this game showed me games could have stories and characters like my favourite books.
Without this game, I wouldn't have found games like 'The Witcher' and 'Diablo'.
I'll still pop it in and play it every now-and-then, despite the jank.
I had such a long day at work and when I saw the notification for this video pop up it motivated me to get through the day. I played this game a bit later in life (when I got back into my Neopets phase after a hiatus 😅) and if I had the energy to break out my PS2 I'd probably play it again. Your wife's reaction to seeing your copy of TDF is exactly what mine would be if I saw that game on someone's shelf. I'd be like "Get out that PS2 we're playing now!"
(Also not me staring at your cat whispering "Don't knock those figures off.. .. ..don't-")
It really is so nice to see other folks' view on this game and the Neopets storyline (especially as someone who to this day loves the plots and characters). It's been so long since I've played TDF that it was nice to hear you note a lot of details that I may have forgotten with time or didn't catch originally.
I really hope Neopets goes back to making memorable plot points/comics/events like you mentioned. I keep poking my head around the site to see if they have anything fun planned- and recently they DID mention (and actually started) hinting at a new plot. So I'm slowly making my way back on to get into the daily habit of going on again. Maybe we'll see something fun in the future akin to TDF game!
It was nice to see that you overall had a nice time playing the game, and this video was a great way to end the year for me. Awesome as always. (b ' v ^)b ☆
67 minutes of Nitrorad is a pretty good way to see off this year!! Happy new year everyone!
Honestly the presentation for the game is surprisingly polished. The art direction, world details, smooth animations, running at 60fps, etc.
Obviously it isn't the best game, but you can clearly see the devs put a lot of care into it. It definitely wasn't a cash grab or anything of that sort.
I’m so used to him sounding like a smiley guy but then at 57:06 he actually sounded out of character. The sole and only time I felt unsafe watching his comforting videos.
Gotta love the charm keeping things together, for the most part at least! Thanks for covering this game, I hadn't played it before but I could feel the nostalgia from the involvement of Neopets alone, as well as seeing some of them being conveyed in a 3D environment!
Also helloooooo Nitro Cat at 5:11 :)
I played the absolute hell out of this game when it came out rofl. I was a teen and high on neopets still and then they dropped a 3d guide to how places in Neopia look and I was bustin down doors to get this game. And then it went and exceeded my expectations by having collectable foods and pets and outfits to unlock. I developed such an appreciation for stories off this game. I didn't look at my neopets as static letdowns because I couldn't focus long enough to save for a paintbrush. Now they could each have value by having a history and preferences and outfits and etc.
Also the Ixi raiders were an actual monster on neopets. They often had story arcs (comics) on the website that would release bits at a time and eventually they became a tool to introduce new lands when they were first coming out like Altador or Moltara. It was really nice to see the devs of this game bring in some story villains besides just the faeries.
57:00
I really appreciate the raw emotion here lmno. Most moments in games that were extremely hard as a kid ended up being barely an issue when I was older. But some games still have those moments that almost make you wanna end your playthrough, because you try over and over forever and ever and aren't able to make it. ngl if I was the one playing this I might just give up. Or see if anyone on the internet has a reliable method.
I was recommended this video by a couple of my neopets friends! Really loved this deep dive into one of my favorite childhood games, and also loved the validation that parts of the games I found hard were in fact hard lol. I’ll be checking out your other videos!!
I have a script for this game from 5 years ago. I was going to do a whole lecture on all of the lore books and piece together a full history.
I ended up hating the game so much that I never finished it lol. Thank you for making a video on this game!
Thank you so much for making a video about this! I adored this game as a kid and nearly jumped when I saw this upload notification pop up lol.
OK, I'm cutting it at the half way point. I gotta play this, commenting for support. Will finish after I complete it myself
These long dives into these jank-but-memorable games are my favorite content you put out, thanks for making these. What a way to close out 2023!!
I'm loving the longer videos!! Only you can make anything interesting and fun, even if I've never heard of it. What a great end to the year!
Definitely gonna give this game a play. Randomly got a few writing ideas from listening before jumping to the closing thoughts to save the rest for myself so my interest was thoroughly peaked.
SO happy to see you cover this game, and even happier to learn that Sophie is your favorite too! Big smile on my face, great work!
Didn’t even know how much I needed NitroRad covering NeoPets the Darkest Faerie until I had it in front of me! Thank you!!😊
58:28 - I had to replay that a few times to get that it was just him being silly and not actual dialog from the game XD
But yeah, another great video, and a nice way to cap off this year~
This is a very cutesy and impressive adventure of Neopets, I'm not too familiar with the franchise (I just sadly didn't get into it as a kid! I felt like I missed out for sure heh.) Looks like they really put a lot of effort into this game. Would be awesome seeing this getting reworked/remade. Thanks for the video Rad, and I do gotta agree-
-Roberta's face is pretty funny looking.
OH MY GOD!! I always dreamed you would do a video on this game, James. I had it when it came out andme and my ilder brother loved it back when we were big into Neopets. I had so many nostalgic memories with this game until we gave the PS2 and games away years later to a friend who was moving. Laat I checked several years ago, there weren't many prolific game reviewers who actually took a dive and explained this game to those who didn't get to play it. I feel like your video will give this underrated game the spotlight and critique it deserves. Seriously, I felt like there was always enough in the game for you to do an in-depth review. I'm gonna enjoy the next hour.
I haven't even watched the vid yet and I don't care if you like the game or not but this was my favorite game as a kid and seeing this vid pop up made me literally scream in joy
Not that I thought the game was bad or anything as a kid, I’d always see it at the store. I’m just shocked at how expansive it is! Looks very well made
Your old game Manuel’s having mustaches drawn on characters reminds me of when me and an old friend of mine used to do something similar as kids.
Anytime we found a picture with a character whose mouth was open we’d draw a corn dog in their mouth and at 11-13 years old, that was peak comedy to us back then 😂
The Visceral “THIS IS THAT PART” at 57:06 caught me off guard ngl
THAT TRANSITION FROM OUT OF THE COMPUTER SCREEN AND INTO THE CONSOLE GAME WAS SOOO SMOOTH!
Another neopets kid here!
Many players are now getting their childhood dream pets on the site. So many, MANY people have gotten that baby pet now.
My baby wocky was a random event. I think it was by a Bruce named Boochi?
so glad to be seeing this game get some exposure and recognition, one of my favorite games growing up!
58:28 Your voice-over had me fooled there
1:01:30 SERVES YOU RIGHT!
Duuuude what an awesome surprise for New Years Eve! Commenting at the start as an old school Neopets kid, stoked to watch the vid!
Whoa, not only is this on my birthday, but it's with me having Neopets open in another tab idly wandering the lands.
Oh man! I remember having a copy of this game when I was younger! Don't think I ever made it past the chores before becoming a knight. But I remember having fun just running around cutting grass.
No way you're pulling out one of my BIGGEST teen memories than with neopets on ps2!
I remember the NeoPets TCG. The Mystery Island series was some of coolest cards to come from it and brings back a ton of memories from 2004-2005
9:54 Twilight Princess began with herding animals.
I am surprised he didn't remember that
Love that you covered this game. It’s by no means a perfect game, but it deserves the love it gets.
In addition to an amazing soundtrack, this game also had a very talented voice cast.
I have fond, and rather interesting memories about this game.
Example 1: There was a point in time where I was NOT allowed to play this game because I accidentally saved over my older brother's save file (he was near the end. I still feel so bad about that.)
Example 2: I was always lost. Always. I had a super bad sense of direction as a kid.
Example 3: It took me 2. Hours. To do the Endless staircase section. Half because I legitimately had no idea what to do, half because the sound that played everytime you passed the statue made me giggle.
Example 4: I restarted the game 4 times because I kept forgetting how to do stuff 😂
I accidently saved over my older sisters save file! She was very upset, I still remember it vividly.
6:10 A fellow connoisseur of the mustache mantra. Glad to see another who loved adding snidley whiplashers to everyone just because.
5:24 Dunno why I find it funny seeing NitroRad’s cat just chilling in the background while he talks about Neopets. XD
58:35 Ok, for a second, I thought that was an actual line in the game. XD
neopets was the first internet community i was in and its where i met a lot of friends i still have today and started making art. i still play it because i just can't let go of my hoard of critters
has anyone given you a lecture about how neopets itself started antromorphising the pets yet? 'cause i had to pause to point it out; major characters in site plots and events are always bipeds(with... hair? or wigs? we'll never know) with few exceptions !!
so happy to see the coolest dude review the coolest PS2 game :]
Oh heck yeah. This game has... questionable visual design but a _wildly_ underrated soundtrack IMHO.
HONK IF YOU STILL PLAY NEOPETS WOOHOO. Was pleasantly surprised to hear you mention Neo is making a comeback, most people talk like they don't realize it's still up lol. They just changed management and became an independent company, got a bunch of investors onboard and it has a plot planned for next year. Get hype
@32:20 When you mentioned the endless staircase puzzle not being told to you, there is actually a book in the faerieland library that mentions the endless staircase.
I remember renting this game from Blockbuster and only playing the intro until I gave up, yet that brief playtime has remained stuck in my brain for over 2 decades.
@Nitrorad I wanted to comment on the stealth section. If you wanted to make it easier on you, equip the cloak and dont sprint. As long as youre not sprinting they will not notice you just walking around. Trust me, it will save you a massive headache
Man they put so much work into this game. Really cool to see you cover it!
Fun fact: there's a cut area left in the game under Meridell that you can still access through cheats/glitches. Look up the ancient castle spires, there's a video showcasing it. Sections of it show up in trailers of the game, and it blew my mind when I finally saw where those mysterious areas I never saw before came from. The area looks pretty cool too, not sure why the maze part of the dungeon made it in instead of the spires.
After that insane stealth section hearing Nitro say, "THIS I THAT PART," in that intense growl was pretty damn cathartic.
Oooooh, you got to this game! Blue Stinger, Illbleed, Darkest Faerie... we fans of obscure charming goofy games are eatin' good lately!
When I played this game ages ago, one thing that stood out was the sound design of different equipment. Really helped solidify that sense of progression - metal just *sounded* so much more effective than wood.
I was excited to hear you talk about the water hazards. It almost feels like it was all instadeath at first, but then someone went "okay, nah, that's a bit harsh, let me go through and change all the water hazards to just do a little damage instead"... and stopped after they changed half of them. I doubt that's actually what happened, but it sure feels like it. I also find it funny that the Game Over jingle plays even for the not-Game-Over water. :P
Hold on... a charming Zelda clone adventure with great worldbuilding and messy gameplay, where you play as an anthro canine? This gives some Kingsley's Adventure vibes.
Anyone else really enjoy Mr Insane's games? He made NeoQuest 1 & 2, as well as platformers like the Hannah games and Escape from Meridell Castle. He also made Invasion of Meridell, which really sparked my interest in SRPGs, Fire Emblem on GBA released soon after and it was amazing. NeoQuest really got me into JRPGs too like the older Dragon Quest (Dragon Warrior back then) and Etrian Odyssey games. It's really silly, but NeoPets really taught me a lot about life, like not getting scammed as well as give me a rudimentary explanation of how stock markets worked because of their minigame called the NeoDAQ, I'm not joking.
Oh wow, this is a treat. I've actually just gotten back into Neopets lately (the site's under new management and they've been giving away a ton of rare items for free lately), so this one's especially relevant to my interests
You said everything I could possibly say about this game.
Love it to death.
So happy that someone *finally* made a long form video essay about it.
What a thing to wake up to on my birthday.
I always loved the pet designs but our family computer sucked and barely anything on the site worked for me. Im sure I would have loved this game if i knew it existed