Part 17: A Very Sweet Oasis

Update 17: A Very Sweet Oasis











Hmm... gonna pass on that offer, thanks!





Requiscat in Toaste







Heart of the Desert





Well that entire ride was bizarre. How about a complete tonal shift?















Welcome to the land of sweets! Orange Oasis! Unlike the other areas of the game, this area is quite small and we should be able to get everything we need here in one update. Which works out to about 30 - 40 minutes of game time. We're going to leave some things undone, but they aren't really appropriate to do until the endgame.





For those of you wondering why I don't include more NPC dialogue, there you go. That's why.





...Granted, maybe I should be including more.















We still don't have a joke book, so this GRATE joke, will continue to go untold.





LARGE FACE: I smash my face to remember... but lightly. Any harder and it would break. Smash... any harder... and it would break.





You mean like that?





Sorry buddy, adventurer rules: Finder's keepers.





Jam Packets are your mega phoenix equivalent. They raise the entire party from toast. They will, of course, go unused. You may recall that there was another face-like imprint on a wall in Otherworld, that also holds Jam Packets... as do most of these walls.







Well hell, that's a fine greeting! If more NPCs greeted us like this, I'd be showing them more often. This is a cactus that knows how to get ahead!

You can also see another one of those golden doors next to us. We still don't know the password so we can't get in.





Eh? What's going on here?





Time to find out if Omori is a replicant.











...Bye? What just happened?? And no this will never be addressed again.





Welcome to the suburbs of Orange Oasis. We have business in all three of these places, believe it or not. Going from left to right...





We're here to talk to this nice donut grandma... because she's going to reveal some big LORE for us...







... This is not the kind of postcard you should be sending your grandma, Sweetheart.





So Sweetheart, who we still haven't met yet, is a donut. Worth keeping in mind, I suppose.





Next door we have a family of cats that, while cute, only have one puuuuuurpose for us.





A huge tunnel you say? Sounds like a job for some adventurers to go spelunking in!





The final house is an orphanage featuring two kids: Peanut and Jelly. And the house they live in? That's right, it's what some scientists would call a "hotdog".





JELLY: She's always been so loving and caring... I wish I could give her something super special...


And with that... we have a new quest! One that we won't be finishing today. It's also a really simple quest that you may end up finishing accidentally, but still - we will finish it.







Behind the little cul-de-sac we have.... er, what is this, actually?







Whoa! So cool!

But why?

ORANGE JOE: Because... I'm... sniff... Looking for my long-lost twin brother.... Oragne Joe...





Phew, thought I was going crazy there.


ORANGE JOE: We were separated at birth, but in my citrusy heart I know that he is still out there somewhere. Each orange is inscribed with a message explaining who I am and how to find me... I am hoping that by throwing these in all directions one of them will reach him and lead him back to me!

Awww... That's so sweet. I hope you find your brother eventually...

ORANGE JOE: Thank you, young lady! I know I will! My body is healthy and full of hope and vigor! But... just in case... if you do happen to see my twin, please give him this Orange Crest. I know it will lead me to him somehow.

Fear not, my dear friend Orange Joe. We'll find your brother for sure!


A quest to find a fruit that doesn't exist. Should be easy enough.





Heading into his house and wow... this dude loves citrus. You can be sure he's got a good immune system.





Blood Orange is an AMAZING weapon for Kel. It's only a slight upgrade at attack but gives an extra 30 juice. That's two more run and guns, or 3 rebounds. It's just so good and goes on Kel IMMEDIATELY.







The Orange Oasis Guardians are definitely enough proper nouns in a row to be capital "I" Important later on. You know what's important right now though?





Another mirror view







Right above the mirror, we can find this treasure map. This will be useful to us eventually, not right now though. I feel like that... has become the theme of this area.





Scott here wants us to scratch his butt for him. This, too, will be done eventually.





Ooh another telescope, what will we get to see behind this one...?







You expected a jumpscare, but instead it's a happy cactus! Orange Oasis is great! Speaking of great, Mari is in the very center of the desert. Since we've explored most of the area, let's check in with her.





Now isn't that sweet? Hehe!

It sure is hot out here, though... Remember to stay hydrated, everyone!


A land made of brown sugar sounds like heaven to me. I'm a brown sugar and maple kind of person, all I need is like... some pancakes and I'll be happy as heck...





Eh, those will work too.





The brown sugar feels good on my feet! I almost want to pick it off and eat it!

That's disgusting, Kel... why would you even think that!? You're so weird!

We all have weird thoughts sometimes.

Kel just doesn't think before he says them out loud!

Hey! I consider that a good thing! If you got something to say, then say it!

That's just wrong, Kel! You should always thing before you speak! Have some self-awareness!

Says who? You, Miss Bossypants!?

I have plenty of self-awareness! I know where I am at all times!


Who's the better character? Dream Kel or real Kel? Because right now, I cannot decide.


Yeesh... Loosen up, you two...

Balance, guys... It's all about balance...

Hero... you coward.

That's the laziest answer I've ever heard! I expected better from you.

Aww man... What'd I say now?


Congrats Hero, on finally uniting Kel and Aubrey for the first time ever - by getting them to be mad at you. Now then, how bout those pancakes?







Those Who Forget History





The enemies in this area are all bunnies of different food groups. None of them are tough and are actually really good to grind against for a bit, due to being quick to kill and dropping a decent amount of XP. I try to not stay too far ahead that the future battles become unfun to watch, but I do get a couple levels in while I get the chance. Besides... I need to kill enough bunnies for leafie.







I'm sorry buddies, you look so cute and sweet.





There's a little area tucked over to the right, it's not very important but I guess we should explore it anyway.









GOOD LORD!! THAT MAN IS ON FIRE!!







YES THAT PROBLEM IS YOU'RE BURNING TO DEATH.


MAN ON FIRE: Let me tell you something, child. When you know that an arduous and difficult future lies ahead... all you need is hope! Be hopeful of yourself and be hopeful of the future! Yes! Anything is possible if you believe! And if all else fails, know that at least I will believe in you, alright?





After that... inner vision... he teaches Hero how to make spicy food. A skill that damages the opponent and makes them angry. Very niche uses, in my opinion. Still, I know of at least one fight in the future where we will be using it so it's already better than curveball is.







...Wait, is that how he caught on fire? Eating some good indian curry? My God, between the cajun food and asian food I eat it's only a matter of time for me.





This is what's all the way to the right. Seems like a Breadyard, but there's nothing we can do right now. We will come back... eventually.





Remember those cats that found an underground tunnel? Well, guess what's in front of us! Time to go spelunking!









PRANKED





I wonder what landing on a large amount of brown sugar would feel like. My assumption would be like landing on a beach.







There's arrows leading the way to the end of the tunnel. So obviously, you want to go the other way to fully explore the area.





...Or not.







Going the wrong way in the tunnel is a great way to meet some new enemies! Meet the Gingerdead men, they're a little stale and want to kill you! They aren't that tough, but they're tougher than the bunnies and provide like 1/4 of the experience so fighting them kinda sucks.





The Toast Ghost is pretty similar in stats to the Gingerdead men, if a little more sturdy and actually provide some XP - if no clams. Their main difference is they always do damage to Juice as well, even if you aren't sad. This could hurt you if you're a bit underleveled since you might have to use some items, but it's still not too bad.












Uh... I guess the right is the... right way?







Why you...







And there we go! We made it through the tunnel! What do we get for that? Well, we get to keep playing the game! Is that not enough of a gift for you?





The tunnel leads back here in case we ever feel like going down there again to... I don't know, fight Gingerdead men?





If we head back to where Mari was camped out at the titular Orange Oasis, this... er, creature, helps point out that theres an interactable point next to them in the pond.





And stare we shall!







Puddles









How's this for a 2 for 1 special? Welcome to Rain Town, population... like 10 I think.





The Veggie kids here all tell us about being uncomfortable, though only mildly so. They seem to blame the slight rainfall that's coming down as to the reason why. I assume Rain Town is basically Seattle, then. The Veggie Kid in the center of town has a lightbulb over their head so maybe they can clue us in on how to fix it.





VEGGIE KID: There is a mystical valve nearby which controls our rainfall, but only the CHOSEN ONE is able to turn it... If no one helps us, we are doomed to be slightly uncomfortable forever!





This must be the valve the Veggie Kid is talking about. Should be a piece of cake to just turn it and stop the rain.





Uhhhh, shoot, they didn't say what direction its supposed to go. Well then, maybe left? What's the worst that could happen?









...Oh. Uh, haha *tugs on collar* maybe we should uh, not do that!





Righty TIGHTY, Leftie LOOSY.













Good thing that, as the CHOSEN ONE, I also have the ability to go back in time and stop me from doing dumb shit!







VEGGIE KID: If that is your wish... CHOSEN ONE... This child wishes to join you on your quest. She is yours now. Please take good care of her. Go forth, heroes! Your journey awaits you!


And that's it for Rain Town! We came in, saw the introduction, got given the quest to save them, killed them all saved them all, and turned in the quest all in like one page scroll! By the way, that Veggie Kid becomes an accessory to equip that gives +10 HP and +10 juice. I put it on Hero because Hero having 10 more juice is another free heal on someone. I would normally want to put it on Kel, but he's about to get a better accessory.

Before we go, though, I do believe Mari had a picnic set up for us!







Mmmmmmm... Yummy... Thanks for the soup, Mari...

This... soup... is... slurp... delicious...

Can I... have some seconds... please...?

What's wrong, guys? Is there something wrong with my soup?

Urf... Lazing around in the rain is fun and all, but eating in the rain is a whole 'nother thing...

I can't tell where the rain ends and the soup begins...


This is why you have those umbrellas, just for these occasions. Shame on you Mari.

As much as I enjoy the chill environment and music in Rain Town, that truly is all there is to do here. So we'll head back to the Orange Oasis.





Now for the last thing there is to do in the Orange Oasis.




X Marks the Spot





First off, we've a very important job to do here...





If we go talk to Scott, he'll give us his hard hat which gives a 5 point bonus to defense. Pretty good, but we're gonna be rocking other accessories.





Welcome to the main attraction of Orange Oasis - Dino's Dig.




An Archaeic Resonance





So what's the Dino Dig? Do you see those 3 spots with Xs on them over something that looks like it was clearly burried in a hurry? For $100, you can dig on those spots and get different items - most of them healing or battle items. And they're pretty good healing or battle items, one's that you'd spend $100 for just one of them. The catch is that the spoon you get for free can only dig 5 times before breaking. If you want a better spoon, you need to find dino dollars and buy one at the store. Three dollars buys you a spoon with 10 digs, Five dollars gets you 15 digs, and ten dollars gets you 20 digs. The true goal of the place, is to find something called the pyramid key, which lets you go to the next level. There's four levels total, with better items on each floor with some fantastic items on the top floor. Of course, finding the pyramid key is a matter of luck so, enjoy losing your best spoon digging everywhere on floor 2 and still not getting the key!





The downside... do you see those enemies? Yeah, we are NOT ready to take them on. They will deal one hit kills to us at this point. It's to keep you a bit honest about the place, so we're going to be stopping at level 2 today. We're here to find something on level 1, and then something on level 2 before heading back to the Forests.





Wait... WHAT!?




Tumbleweeds









I have a family now.





Wait! Hector Jr! What are you doing? Are you saying that you want to join them? That there's more to life than just staying here? Oh, Hector Jr... I... I understand you well... Even this old stone knew how to have fun once. May you all have memorable adventures together! Go and join him, Hector Jr... Into his pocket!





Yeah... Just like that. Sniff... I guess this is farewell, then. Thank you for never giving up on finding me, Kel. Hector Jr... You be good, okay? Don't forget your family! We're always here for you. I hope that the next time we meet you'll have flourished into a wonderful polished rock!

Don't worry, Hector! I'll take good care of Hector Jr!

I know you will, Kel... Just don't lose him this time, alright?

I won't... I promise!


Now, I know what you're thinking... you love awkward family reunion moments and want to see some more... well, I HAVE GOOD NEWS!!





After digging for long enough, we find the Pyramid Key and can head to the second floor to find...







Oragne Joe! Everyone's second favorite citrus fruit-twin creature thing!





Wait a second... You look kind of familiar. That body shape... That citrusy exterior... It's undeniable!

You must be Orange Joe's twin brother... Oragne Joe!





The name plate doesn't lie, buddy.


Yeah, and he's been looking for you all this time! Here, take this crest! He told us to give it to you!

ORAGNE JOE: This... This crest! Could it be? Ever since I was young, I have looked everywhere for my true home... The only thing I've had to my name was this pendant with an orange-shaped crest engraved on it... The same one that appears on this Orange Crest! It all makes so much sense now... I know who I am! I must be... Oragne Joe!







ORANGE JOE: There is no mistake! I can feel it in my citrusy heart. Oh how I've missed you, dear brother!

ORAGNE JOE: Yes! My body is full of hope and vigor! How I've waited for this day! We meet at last, dear brother!

ORANGE JOE: Let us embrace!





ORANGE JOE: I must thank you, children... I have thought about my dear brother for ever yday of my life, and now he is finally here!

ORAGNE JOE: Yes! Thank you for reuniting us... I have waited so long to find my one true home!

ORANGE JOE: Come now, dear brother! Let us go home!

ORAGNE JOE: You are too gracious, dear brother! In celebration of this meeting, let us walk together!





The citrus brothers both give a life jam before they leave. Which is good, because I'm going to immediately use one on me after turning to toast from family reunion overload.

Polderjoch" post="513279495 posted:

There's actually one more thing to do in Rain Town if you stand in the empty patch of potato soil for a bit.

I love this game.