Retro Game Night
Author: Doom Master 1990
The powerpuff girls were giddy on this bright Saturday morning. The professor was taking them to one of Townsville's many malls. They already knew what they wanted to look for. They wanted to look at the many video games the mall had to offer. Today, their intention was specifically to look for turn-based RPGs for the Super Nintendo and PlayStation 1.
"Oh my gosh," Bubbles squealed with delight, "I'm so excited!"
"Me too," said Blossom.
"I'm ready to kick some butt," Buttercup said.
The professor was in the lab looking for his car keys.
"Now, where did I put them?"
He looked on his desk. They weren't there. He checked the surfaces of one of his inventions. They weren't there either. Finally, he spotted them near the chemical X containers.
"That's strange. I don't know why I would put them there."
"Is it time to go yet, professor," He heard Bubbles ask.
"Yes Bubbles. I'm heading upstairs now."
"Yay!"
All four of them went into the garage, and the professor unlocked the car doors.
"I can't wait," Buttercup said in an excited tone.
"I know you girls are excited to shop for games, but there are a few things I need to get first."
"Okay professor," said Blossom with a smile on her face.
The family drove for a while before arriving at the mall on the west side of the city. Once they got out of the car, the girls began another conversation.
"What games should we look for," Blossom asked, "People online have been saying good things about Chrono Trigger."
"What about Final Fantasy," Bubbles asked in response.
"Star Ocean seems pretty cool from what Mitch told me," Buttercup said.
The girls began thinking about what series they were most interested in. All of a sudden, they looked at each other and squealed in unison with delight. This was going to be epic.
"I'm glad to see you girls are excited, but please don't startle me like that."
"Sorry professor," Blossom said.
All four of them went into the mall. There were stores and food courts as far as the eye could see. For several hours, the professor went from store to store looking for food, clothes, and things he could experiment with. Finally, they reached the entertainment stores.
"Here we are girls."
"Wow," they said simultaneously.
The girls looked through each aisle. They were looking for a very specific game series now. Bloosom had shown Bubbles and Buttercup screenshots from the series online. Now, they were really excited to be looking for it.
"Here it is," Buttercup said.
Blossom and Bubbles rushed to their sister's side. There, right before their eyes, was one of the games they had been searching for; Breath of Fire 1. They began flying around in circles out of sheer joy.
"Wait a minute," Blossom said.
"What is it," Buttercup asked.
"We need to look for the other games in the series. We have more than enough money saved up for them."
"I'll look for them," said Bubbles.
"Good idea Bubbles," Blossom Replied.
Bubbles continued searching. She found Breath of Fire 2 not far from where the original had been, and Breath of Fire 3 and 4 in the northern part of the store.
"I found them," she told her sisters.
All three of them went to the checkout counter.
"Hey guys. What's hapenin'," the guy at the counter asked.
"We'd like to purchase these games, please," Blossom replied.
"Ah, dude! These games are radical!"
The girls looked at each other; feeling assured that they were purchasing a good franchise.
"That'll be 210 bucks."
The girls combined their allowance money to calculate how much they had. It amounted to $300.00. They gave him the money for the games. After they left the store, they went to one of the food courts with the professor. Half an hour later, they were headed home. Bubbles was holding the bag with the games. They were ready for a marathon. It took only a few minutes for them to get home. They rushed out of the car.
"I'll get the popcorn," said Blossom.
"I'll start the game," Bubbles said.
"I'll get the ice cream," Said Buttercup.
The professor didn't mind unloading the car by himself today. He knew the girls were really excited, so he let it slide. Blossom put the popcorn in the microwave for a few minutes. Bubbles retrieved the games from the bag and popped the first game into the Super Nintendo in the living room. Buttercup got the Reese's ice cream from the freezer. Once the popcorn was ready, they turned the console on. The title screen popped up.
"Wow! He summoned lightning with his sword," Blossom exclaimed.
"I can already tell this game is gonna' rock," replied Buttercup enthusiastically.
They began the game.
"Okay, so far we know we are a warrior from the dragon clan, and we have to face the dark dragons to save the world. Our sister has been kidnapped, and we have to rescue her," Blossom began, reiterating the story.
"Sounds like us every day," Bubbles said, giggling slightly.
"What should we do first," Buttercup asked.
"Well, since we have the 300 coins from the treasure chest, let's go see what the shops have to offer."
After looking at the weapons and items the shops had in stock, they decided to buy a few healing items.
"Alright," Blossom said, "now let's get to the fighting!"
They left the town, and within less than a minute, were confronted by three slimes.
"Ew," Bubbles said, "those are gross!"
Buttercup just smiled. Blossom decided to attack first, and Ryu swung his sword.
"Wow, he took that thing down with one blow," She exclaimed.
For a little under an hour, they explored and defeated the first few bosses of the game. It was then they game upon a white temple.
"What's this place," Blossom asked.
"No clue," Buttercup replied.
"Let's check it out."
They went inside the temple.
"We need to break a seal to unleash our powers? That means we haven't even been fighting at full strength this whole time?"
Blossom's sisters just stared in amazement and anticipation. What kind of power were they about to unlock? They fought against the first dragon.
"Ugh, this guy's tough."
Blossom healed and attacked over and over again, eventually defeating the dragon. The groups of mystical stars merged themselves with Ryu, and the powers of the dragons were awakened.
"I think I get it now," Blossom said.
"What just happened," Buttercup asked.
"We're a hybrid between a human and a dragon. We can be either one at any time we want."
"Woah! That's so cool!"
They continued with the game for a few more hours. Finally, they reached the last stage.
"This is so awesome," Blossom said excitedly.
"I want to be as hardcore as Ryu," Bubbles said.
"Mhm," her sisters responded in agreement.
At last, they reached the final boss.
"We're going to cream this boss," Said Buttercup.
At this point, she was more than likely right. They had obtained some of the best equipment and abilities in the game. For half an hour, they fought the boss with all their might, unleashing the power of Agni, the ultimate dragon.
"Phew, it's over. That was intense," Blossom said.
"No kidding," Buttercup replied.
They watched as each character returned to their hometown. It was a glorious victory. As Ryu made his way back to Drogen, an image of Sarah appeared over the sun. It was over. They had won.
"Girls, it's time for dinner," the professor said.
"Okay professor," Blossom responded. It was time for a break anyway.
They ate dinner without saying much. They were eager to start the next game.
"How is your dinner girls," the Professor asked.
"It's great professor," Blossom said in response.
"I'm glad you like it."
After finishing their meal, they went back to the living room. Bubbles grabbed Breath of Fire 2 from the game bag.
"Come on. Let's pop that sucker in," said Buttercup.
Bubbles inserted the cartridge into the console, and Blossom fired it up.
"The title screen is much more detailed in this one," said Blossom.
The girls started the game.
"We're playing as a little kid," asked Buttercup, feeling disappointed.
"I guess," Blossom replied.
The story unraveled for a few minutes.
"This is so sad," Bubbles said, almost ready to cry.
"It's okay Bubbles. Maybe something good will come out of this later. For now, I'm curious about this 'god' the opening mentioned."
Buttercup was so intrigued she didn't say anything. After the intro, they realized what was going on. Ten years had passed in the game, and the character had become a ranger. He was looking for his missing sister and father.
"Ooh, he has a ponytail," Blossom said, pleased by the character design.
"I want to see his fighting style," said Buttercup.
"I want to go fishing," Bubbles said.
After a few more minutes, they left the town, and it wasn't long before their first encounter.
"How is going to defend himself? He doesn't even have his sword ready," Said blossom.
She selected the attack option anyway, and quickly realized he was using a much more defensive fighting style than the character in the last game.
"Man, he didn't even touch that thing, and he still hit it," said Buttercup.
The sisters explored the game for a few hours. It was clear this was going to be longer than the last one.
"Girls, it's time for bed," they heard the professor say.
"Aw man," Buttercup said.
"We'll play some more tomorrow," said Blossom.
The girls brushed their teeth and got into their pajamas. The professor tucked them in once they were in bed.
"I'm glad you girls had a good day. Maybe you can show me how to play sometime."
"You like video games professor," Blossom asked.
The professor nodded.
"Good night girls."
"Good night," the girls said in unison.
After the professor left the room, they continued talking for a few minutes.
"The music was so cool," said Buttercup.
"I know," Blossom said, excited to continue the game in the morning.
"I liked the dragons," said Bubbles.
"They were so strong," said Buttercup.
"What do you think the third and fourth games will be like," Blossom asked.
Buttercup shrugged.
"I don't know, but they should be just as good," she responded.
The girls talked about the games until they fell asleep. They were ready for another day of awesome gaming.