SydLexia.com - The Forums :: View topic - Their is always a reason for everything in a game

Joined: Feb 01 2007 Posts: 31

What about the fucking chainsaw in Maniac Mansion?

Posted: Jan 29 2009 08:52 pm

What about the Kuribo's Shoe in Super Mario 3? You couldn't take it anywhere like the normal suits, so it was pretty much worthless (awesome, but worthless).

Or any item in Animal Crossing? What the shit am I supposed to do with a couch, besides place it down?

Posted: Jan 29 2009 08:57 pm

Char Aznable wrote:

Or any item in Animal Crossing? What the shit am I supposed to do with a couch, besides place it down?

Decorate your house for contest points.

Posted: Jan 29 2009 09:01 pm

I'd always lose those, anyway.

Alright, what about the locket in Rambo.

Joined: Dec 05 2008 Posts: 32

I havent found a single item in Shadowgate that isnt used in some integral way. Yeah you can carry about 500 torches more than you might need, but everything else IS used at least once.

That or i missed picking up the 1 or 2 things that arent.

Now one of the OTHER games of that type (uninvited i think it was called) Had shit that killed you just for having it in your inventory, and NOTHING to tell you about it.

IDK how many times i died for what i thought was not beating the game in a pre set # of turns or something before i figured out what was doing it.

OHHH i found a video of it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Je1tKzOczIs

Title: Comic Author Joined: Dec 12 2008 Posts: 1179

Well, after taking a quick look through an faq, I came up with this little list of entirely useless items...

Bone
Bottle 3
Bottle 4
Bottle 5
Crest
Cup
Helmet
Testtube

Then there's the Bottle 1 and the Poker, both of which have no use, but you can at least kill yourself with them. Other than that, Necro's right, every single other item in the game does have a specific purpose.

Joined: Dec 05 2008 Posts: 32

Actually, most of those items are possible answers to the Sphynx's riddle. It's a random question with a crapload of answers.

I forget what the other bottles did, maybe they DO only kill you. Ill have to load up my emulator and try a run through to see. Any excuse to play again XD.

EDIT:
after looking over that FAQ i agree with he 3 bottles being "useless" other than the funny message, i actually remember those now. I'm still fairly sure the bone did SOMETHING...but then again i'm "old" and my memory isnt what it once was. lol

Posted: Jan 30 2009 04:24 am

Then again, there is the trope that you'll find a cool item in a dungeon (thinking of Zelda here) and you only get most of your use out of said item in the dungeon that houses it. leaving the dungeon you sometimes have little or even no need to ever use it again like the Dominion Rod in Twilight Princess.

Posted: Jan 30 2009 09:18 am

Necrosaro wrote:

Now one of the OTHER games of that type (uninvited i think it was called) Had shit that killed you just for having it in your inventory, and NOTHING to tell you about it.

In Leisure Suit Larry 2 you could get some cole slow or something perishable. I believe you needed to get it to advance, actually, but then there was a point when you escape a cruise ship on a lifeboat, and if that's still in your inventory then you die because it goes bad and then you eat it.

Posted: Jan 30 2009 10:45 am

The bone is a red herring. You can pick it up in the dragon's lair instead of a real item.

You can pick up like a million rocks by the waterfall.

Posted: Jan 30 2009 01:23 pm

Maniac Mansion was full of shit you don't need, like the chainsaw in the kitchen.

Title: Comic Author Joined: Dec 12 2008 Posts: 1179

Necrosaro wrote:

Actually, most of those items are possible answers to the Sphynx's riddle. It's a random question with a crapload of answers.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/nes/file/563455/34128

Not one of those items I listed is a possible answer for the Sphynx's riddle. Nor do they have any other actual use, as I stated initially. All they do is fill space in your inventory. I did do my research, thank you. Wink

Posted: Jan 30 2009 08:06 pm

Anything in the Elder Scrolls that's worth nothing. Like, a fork or something. My character eats everything with his hands, so that's useless right there.

Posted: Jan 31 2009 01:28 am

You know what always got on my nerves while playing Shadowgate? In the room towards the beginning where you get the arrow, there's NO way to get inside the door above the arrow (the ledge breaks when you try to go through the door). It's not even one of those trapdoors that automatically kills you when you go through it, it's just...there.

Thought of two more, both being in Deja Vu 2:

1. I like how the game gives you keys that aren't used for anything. Seriously.

2. I also like how there are various doors and mailboxes in the game that, upon examination, are heavily implied that they can be opened with a key ("Your detective skills tell you that the lock can probably be opened with a key!"), yet the useless keys you actually have cluttering up your inventory don't work in them.

Fernin wrote:

Well, after taking a quick look through an faq, I came up with this little list of entirely useless items...

Bone
Bottle 3
Bottle 4
Bottle 5
Crest
Cup
Helmet
Testtube

What about the Bellows? I could never figure out what that was for...
And I think the various bottles just existed to increase the level of interactivity in the game. "Hey, I can kill myself/drink various unknown chemicals! REALISM!!!11!!!1!" - Kinda like that.