The hidden side quest

[Moogy]

The side-quest on disc 4 including the Benero brothers, anybody realized that ?
It was confirmed 2 years ago that no one had reported it as existing.

The one where you go back and forth from Memoria to Lindblum and get Protect Ring as reward (Which aint worth it lol).

I did but i made 1 mistake and couldnt finish it lol.
Somebody really wanted to make (almost) impossible challenges in this game, this one and ExII. Impossible without guides that is.
Personally i hate "must guides", which is so annoying because everything else about this game rocks and this side-quest is fun though, ExII is not lol.

[D]

I've done this in an E2PG ;) Interesting sequence, and very well hidden indeed

[Moogy]

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

Thank you cpt obvious.

You're welcome.
It's not very long time since this was confirmed and not all people know this.
But ofc there are people that wanna get hugs like you :)

[Edward Elric]

Originally posted by Moogy:

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

Thank you cpt obvious.

You're welcome.
It's not very long time since this was confirmed and not all people know this.
But ofc there are people that wanna get hugs like you :)

+1

[Corfaisus]

This raises the question: is the fact that it was hidden for so long actually a sign of bad game design?

Now, I love the game to pieces and I have since way back in the early 2000s when my friend's brother introduced me to it, but from a technical standpoint, having a piece of gameplay that is so far out of the consciousness of the player (and is, in fact, disconnected from the game itself to the point of being practically nonexistent) really strikes me as non-intuitive. If the game designers wanted you to know that such a thing existed, they would've used subtle hints that would eventually lead you to believe that something will happen if you do a certain thing.

Completely disconnected and 'accidental' secrets are actually very rare in game design. They are only so not-in-your-face enough to still be surprising when you actually do find them, but the sense of wonder in a game will eventually lead you to them.

[D]

Originally posted by Corfaisus:

This raises the question: is the fact that it was hidden for so long actually a sign of bad game design?

Now, I love the game to pieces and I have since way back in the early 2000s when my friend's brother introduced me to it, but from a technical standpoint, having a piece of gameplay that is so far out of the consciousness of the player (and is, in fact, disconnected from the game itself to the point of being practically nonexistent) really strikes me as non-intuitive. If the game designers wanted you to know that such a thing existed, they would've used subtle hints that would eventually lead you to believe that something will happen if you do a certain thing.

Completely disconnected and 'accidental' secrets are actually very rare in game design. They are only so not-in-your-face enough to still be surprising when you actually do find them, but the sense of wonder in a game will eventually lead you to them.

That's the thing that makes the NSFQ (Nero Family Side Quest, for those who don't know) so unique though. The requirements for accomplishing it are so far out of left field that it makes it a truly unique gem in gaming.

A similar instance is the Rainbow that appears at North Gate (near Burmecia) on Disc 3 when Freya is in the party, for a limited time only. It serves no purpose, and exists under very strict circumstances in a place that is very obscure for the point in the game it exists at.

It's just a neat little thing for those who go the distance in the game

[Corfaisus]

Originally posted by donniesmithers:

Originally posted by Corfaisus:

This raises the question: is the fact that it was hidden for so long actually a sign of bad game design?

Now, I love the game to pieces and I have since way back in the early 2000s when my friend's brother introduced me to it, but from a technical standpoint, having a piece of gameplay that is so far out of the consciousness of the player (and is, in fact, disconnected from the game itself to the point of being practically nonexistent) really strikes me as non-intuitive. If the game designers wanted you to know that such a thing existed, they would've used subtle hints that would eventually lead you to believe that something will happen if you do a certain thing.

Completely disconnected and 'accidental' secrets are actually very rare in game design. They are only so not-in-your-face enough to still be surprising when you actually do find them, but the sense of wonder in a game will eventually lead you to them.

That's the thing that makes the NSFQ (Nero Family Side Quest, for those who don't know) so unique though. The requirements for accomplishing it are so far out of left field that it makes it a truly unique gem in gaming.

A similar instance is the Rainbow that appears at North Gate (near Burmecia) on Disc 3 when Freya is in the party, for a limited time only. It serves no purpose, and exists under very strict circumstances in a place that is very obscure for the point in the game it exists at.

It's just a neat little thing for those who go the distance in the game

But that doesn't really answer the question of whether or not it's bad game design in principal.

As a game dev, I want for the player to have the tools to experience as much of my game's content as possible - regardless of whether or not it requires more than one run to do so (although, if I'm to be honest, I despise games with multiple paths that throw up superfluous borders to what you can and can't experience) - because of the care and time investment that went in to putting that content into the game.

If you develop a chunk of your game that no one ever sees, that's time wasted.

[D]

Originally posted by Corfaisus:

Originally posted by donniesmithers:

That's the thing that makes the NSFQ (Nero Family Side Quest, for those who don't know) so unique though. The requirements for accomplishing it are so far out of left field that it makes it a truly unique gem in gaming.

A similar instance is the Rainbow that appears at North Gate (near Burmecia) on Disc 3 when Freya is in the party, for a limited time only. It serves no purpose, and exists under very strict circumstances in a place that is very obscure for the point in the game it exists at.

It's just a neat little thing for those who go the distance in the game

But that doesn't really answer the question of whether or not it's bad game design in principal.

As a game dev, I want for the player to have the tools to experience as much of my game's content as possible - regardless of whether or not it requires more than one run to do so (although, if I'm to be honest, I despise games with multiple paths that throw up superfluous borders to what you can and can't experience) - because of the care and time investment that went in to putting that content into the game.

If you develop a chunk of your game that no one ever sees, that's time wasted.

There's no clean cut way to define bad game design. The world simply isn't that sort of absolute.

The way I see it, it's a very ambitious move, and it's meant to reward a select group of people that are willing to do it; think of it as the designer's special salute to anyone sharp enough to uncover such well hidden events.

[Yok 2D God]

Well, this one is easy. When people still find new stuff 20 years after release, it's a super awesome thing. But it has to be a good game though, otherwise people won't even bother 20 days after release.

[Falcus]

That article always bugged me. Because 2 years ago wasn't the first time it was ever reported. Myself and several others I know saw this posted online over a decade before the article was posted 2 years ago. Around 2003-2004 it was reported on gamefaqs.
A friend of mine said about him reading and trying it out around 2004 when it was posted on a forum dedicated to Final Fantasy but I forget the name.

It's long known, the information just didn't circulate well.

I tried going through it before but only did 3 of the events iirc. It was a long time ago though and I don't think I'll bother doing it in this release.

[Moogy]

Originally posted by donniesmithers:

Originally posted by Corfaisus:

This raises the question: is the fact that it was hidden for so long actually a sign of bad game design?

Now, I love the game to pieces and I have since way back in the early 2000s when my friend's brother introduced me to it, but from a technical standpoint, having a piece of gameplay that is so far out of the consciousness of the player (and is, in fact, disconnected from the game itself to the point of being practically nonexistent) really strikes me as non-intuitive. If the game designers wanted you to know that such a thing existed, they would've used subtle hints that would eventually lead you to believe that something will happen if you do a certain thing.

Completely disconnected and 'accidental' secrets are actually very rare in game design. They are only so not-in-your-face enough to still be surprising when you actually do find them, but the sense of wonder in a game will eventually lead you to them.

That's the thing that makes the NSFQ (Nero Family Side Quest, for those who don't know) so unique though. The requirements for accomplishing it are so far out of left field that it makes it a truly unique gem in gaming.

A similar instance is the Rainbow that appears at North Gate (near Burmecia) on Disc 3 when Freya is in the party, for a limited time only. It serves no purpose, and exists under very strict circumstances in a place that is very obscure for the point in the game it exists at.

It's just a neat little thing for those who go the distance in the game

Wow didnt know that, at what point at disc 3 can you go there ?

[D]

Originally posted by Moogy:

Originally posted by donniesmithers:

That's the thing that makes the NSFQ (Nero Family Side Quest, for those who don't know) so unique though. The requirements for accomplishing it are so far out of left field that it makes it a truly unique gem in gaming.

A similar instance is the Rainbow that appears at North Gate (near Burmecia) on Disc 3 when Freya is in the party, for a limited time only. It serves no purpose, and exists under very strict circumstances in a place that is very obscure for the point in the game it exists at.

It's just a neat little thing for those who go the distance in the game

Wow didnt know that, at what point at disc 3 can you go there ?

I'm a little rusty on the exact timeframe (I think it's any time after you get the Blue Narciss and before you enter Desert Palace). The E2PG has you going there to pick up a few items (and see the rainbow of course ;p) in between Treno auction sessions.

[Taka]

Originally posted by Moogy:

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

Thank you cpt obvious.

You're welcome.
It's not very long time since this was confirmed and not all people know this.
But ofc there are people that wanna get hugs like you :)

I knew of its existence, but not how to do it. Thanks. Sorry the other guy had to be a creep.

[Moogy]

Originally posted by donniesmithers:

Originally posted by Moogy:

Wow didnt know that, at what point at disc 3 can you go there ?

I'm a little rusty on the exact timeframe (I think it's any time after you get the Blue Narciss and before you enter Desert Palace). The E2PG has you going there to pick up a few items (and see the rainbow of course ;p) in between Treno auction sessions.

E2PG? Whats that ?

Originally posted by Trump is Satan:

Originally posted by Moogy:

You're welcome.
It's not very long time since this was confirmed and not all people know this.
But ofc there are people that wanna get hugs like you :)

I knew of its existence, but not how to do it. Thanks. Sorry the other guy had to be a creep.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/197338-final-fantasy-ix/66283454
Here are the details =)

[D]

Originally posted by Moogy:

Originally posted by donniesmithers:

I'm a little rusty on the exact timeframe (I think it's any time after you get the Blue Narciss and before you enter Desert Palace). The E2PG has you going there to pick up a few items (and see the rainbow of course ;p) in between Treno auction sessions.

E2PG? Whats that ?

Originally posted by Trump is Satan:

I knew of its existence, but not how to do it. Thanks. Sorry the other guy had to be a creep.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/197338-final-fantasy-ix/66283454
Here are the details =)

E2PG stands for Excalibur 2 Perfect Game. Due to the restriction of Excalibur 2, it is a well defined 100% challenge for FFIX. The most complete 100% possible on the original (psx) version

[Moogy]

I love stat maxing, it was great to have a guide of that.
Finished everything in my save, except players on lv96 without rope-jumping.
Have everything else and i guess im about to play it again on steam lol