The Let's Play Archive

Robotrek

by Azure_Horizon & Kobold

Part 35: Rat to the Future

Just a word of warning before the update for today: this chapter goes SLIGHTLY ahead of where Azure is. It really doesn't do much more than spoil his cliffhanger, but those who don't like that sort of thing might want to skip this update until he does his next post.

For those who don't mind such things, have some more time shenanigans in...



After the fall, the Light and Drill are missing, forcing our hero to actually explore the Caves rather than just head straight for the exit and have Pinky kick Rose's teeth in. Fortunately, it's still just as easy to see outside the circle of light as it was back in the Old House. The only things that are hard to notice are drillable walls, and Brain can't do anything about them yet. So that's a bit of a moot point.



So, the first order of business is to swing around the outside of this part of the Caves and nab the last of the Scraps to be introduced - Scrap 8. It has one use, and we'll be capitalizing on that use as soon as Brain either gains a level or hits up an Invention Machine.



That's the only worthwhile thing to get at this juncture, so Brain makes like James Sunderland and takes a knee-breaking drop into the next part of the earthy labyrinth. There IS another passageway on the northern side of the chamber, but it leads to a dead-end. Doesn't even have any goodies to make it worthwhile.



Going left from the landing spot leads to a drillable wall, but heading right leads to a Repair and a door.



Beyond the door is a Big Fan who is apparently trying and failing to scratch Napoleon. Without a hundred years of rusting away, he's actually one tough bot. Despite that, he doesn't seem to want to actually hurt the guy, so our hero does it for him. It's a generic Big Fan fight, so you can probably guess how that went.



You better believe it. Anyway, turns out Napoleon actually is rather beat up and needs a Repair to regain functionality. In doing so, he becomes our hero's temporary light and drill. The big circle of light in this room is actually being generated by him, which is around twice as big as the Light item gives. Really handy.





Clearing a way back results in that desired level. All the points go into Energy, but that's no real surprise at this juncture. Time to bring purpose to that Scrap 8.



Strongest weapon in the game obtained. However, it still needs pumping up before its murder potential can be realized. However, its starting stats are actually only slightly worse than the Sword 4's max stats. Problem is, its similar "hit everything" capability doesn't kick in until its been leveled some. So Pinky's going to hold onto the thunder sword for a little while longer.





It should be noted that Napoleon works as a "Drill" in the same manner he did in the Shrine: he bashes the walls down. There's no risk of him breaking down like in the Present Day, either, so there's no need to worry about that.



Returning to the previous drillable wall by the drop-down point, our hero reclaims his Light.





And just beyond that is Rask's crash site, where Napoleon flips out a bit and runs off. This leaves Brain alone in the darkness, but he's already found his Light and the Drill is conveniently in the capsule sitting in this room. The two of them don't really match up to having Napoleon bum-rushing his way through obstacles, but our hero will have to make do with what he has.





Continuing right is a straight shot to a staircase leading to a North-South split on the next floor. Heading North leads to... an Invention Machine. Rask must have put this here, because there's not much other reason why it would be in a place like this. However, it's time for the only instance of grinding for our hero. It's not for Megs, though.



It's for Equip levels. The goal being to get that Blade 4 all the way up to Level 9. This saves time doing it later against enemies that aren't quite so easy to deal with. Plus, having the R&D a stone's throw away means less of a drain on consumables.





However, despite how forthcoming the game has been in the past, it decides to be stingy on the Equip Level Up capsules. After traversing the room five or six times with only a level and two Blade 4 levels to show for it, it becomes time to show off one last little mechanics gimmick. It all starts by getting into a fight, then it's a simple step by step process.



Step One: Get all capsules on a battlefield.
Step Two: Retreat.



Step Three: Wait for enemy to stop spinning and re-engage.



Step Four: Repeat.

To clarify - running from combat resets all the conditions in the fight you just fled from, including capsule placement. In addition, any Big Bombs found or Equip Level Ups gained remain collected despite not actually completing the battle. You can even retreat while under the Stop condition. So, it just becomes a game of "Spin the Clown" until...



Blade 4 is maxed out. It uses up the same amount of Charge Gauge as a Shot does per swing, but to much more damaging effect. It does require some positioning since it shoots out from Pinky towards the other end of the screen, but that's not so much of a problem when it's the first thing you do. The attack also destroys any capsules in its path, but that's not such a bad thing at this point.



Mainly because capsules aren't really needed anymore. Thanks to a little luck and smart combining, Pinky has the load-out he will be using for the rest of the game. The only change to this setup will be to slap on that Shield 5 before boss fights. Otherwise, this is his final setup.





Speaking of boss fights, it's time to go pay Rose a visit now that the Light and Drill have been recovered. The next room isn't the actual boss room, as the symbol might imply, but slapping on a shield is recommended anyway.



Mostly because the last of the invisible super-Hackers roams the next room. He throws a ball and does sizable damage. However, since Pinky's prepped for dealing with a boss and not generic mooks, he has no problems with them.





In the next room, the Master MacGuffin's true purpose is revealed. It can allow the user to both see and move through time. However, it can only be used properly by people who know how it works. Like Rask and Gateau. Napoleon bursts in at this point and chases after Gateau as he runs away.



Rose, on the other hand, is fed up with our mousey main character screwing everything up for her. Apparently Gateau built a robot for her in the short time between his arrival at the Cave and now, and she's going to use it to try and get rid of the rodent once and for all.



De Rose. She's actually a very dangerous boss - able to do upwards of 100+ damage on back attacks and pretty damaging normal attacks besides. She can attack your robot on any row, and has 2000 hit points to chew through before she finally goes down. Guides recommend upwards of level 45 when confronting her. Pinky's 39.

However, with his top tier gear and massive mobility, this fight turns out sadly once-sided. The most damage De Rose can do to Pinky is about 20, and that's if she can actually land a hit. To make things worse, his Solar Pack means he's constantly healing whether she lands a blow or not. Combine that with a Move of 8, and it literally becomes a game of Ring Around the Rosie. Move behind her and attack, she flails and retreats a short distance, and Pinky moves behind her again to repeat the process.



Really, the only troublesome part about this fight is that De Rose takes single-digit damage from Run commands. That means we have to sit through going through 2000 HP at about 160ish damage a swing, not counting crits. So it takes a little over a dozen hits before she goes down, all the while she' flailing haplessly against the metal behemoth that is Pinky.





Who gets a level for his efforts. Believe it or not, considering how little damage she did, it's feasible that Pinky could've just as easily taken her out back at around level 35 if not earlier. All he needs are those 99s in Guard and Speed, some good gear, and enough Energy to take a couple hits if they slip through. The Power just makes it take less time, and a lot of that is offset by having a good weapon.



Mechanics aside, Rose is still a bit in denial about losing yet again to a mouse on a mission. She leaves to demand the Master MacGuffin from Gateau, who she seems to blame for building her a faulty robot.



Our hero, on the other hand, pauses in his chase to nab this Blow 2 and the 3000G from the other capsule.



Turns out Rose ends up falling for the same trap door she used on Brain at the start of this whole rigamarole. I wonder if she's related to Mint at all. Considering all the ancestry and time-shenanigans involves, it's not that far off a possibility.



Anyway, the next stop - oddly enough - is Rococo. Going to the ship to find Gateau results in nothing beyond note from Cookie saying she's going to see Rask. Turns out Rask is refusing to return home, and Cookie's slow-paced pestering is cut short by a call from Napoleon. Plot's happening elsewhere, so she leaves to go see what's up. A short chat with Rask and Brain's off to the plot as well.

Well, he would be. However, we're going to take a quick detour first.





And get a little recognition for all the cash Brain donated to the Mayor's house project.



Fun fact: It only takes 5000G to get this event to trigger. Handy to know for those who need the money. A less fun fact is that this is a mistranslation. There will be no giant mouse statue in the middle of town when our hero finally manages to return to his own time.



There's also a photo-op.



Right. Back to the plot. There was something our hero had to do about a guy having an immensely powerful MacGuffin?



Turns out that Gateau's about to ditch everyone and take off into space with the Master MacGuffin. Napoleon ducks into the engine room to try and keep this from happening. That's the only time the Engine Room door actually opens, and Brain never gets to see what's inside.



Instead he has to go into the cockpit to receive plot. Turns out that Gateau's jealous of Rask, wants to use the MacGuffin to rule over time, blah blah blah. He tries to activate the Master MacGuffin, but it reacts oddly with the presence of our mousey main character. It all seems a bit familiar.



And then everything fades to black. Kind of.



Turns out it was all a dream or something. Father destroyed the laser and Brain was found in the resulting rubble. He's apparently been sleeping the whole time. Which is odd, considering Pinky still has his awesome equipment made in the dream-past.





Trying to leave results in an earthquake, followed by a bit of deja vu from dream-Past Rococo. However, our hero's not so sure about the whole thing being nothing more than a dream. So the strange light can wait while he goes to check some things out.





First off - the feuding families are no longer at odds. In fact, they're excitedly expecting the event. It's hard to tell if things were just patched up or if Brain's time shenanigans were the cause. After all, the no-longer-sickly granny still has the Little Robot our hero gave her.





Checking the Photo Album, however, results in a familiar mouse being where he wasn't before. It would also explain how Napoleon knew Brain when they had apparently never met before. It's all starting to make sense now... minus the whole dream thing. Right, time to go check up on that strange light at the Cave.



...

...

... Who the hell is this guy?

Next Time: Not Enough Space