Line #46 VideoGame/LilMonster


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lil_monster.png]]
2
3	''Lil Monster'' is an obscure Platform/GameBoyColor EasternRPG, released in 1999. [[FollowTheLeader Inspired by]] ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'', you make a monster beat up other monsters with a "deck" of attacks chosen at random, in the vein of ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork''.
4
5	While the US saw only ''Li'l Monster,'' Japan had two entries in the franchise--this game, known as ''Gem Gem Monster'' there, and a prequel called ''Kandume Monster'' ("Canned Monster").
6
7	!!This game contains examples of:
8	* AntidoteEffect: Even though they're hard to get, Canaries are mostly useless.
9	* ArtificialStupidity: Confuse your opponent right after you poison them? Deliberately putting bad gems in your deck? Sure! However, there are times when the CPU ''does'' do some pretty smart things...
10	%%* BettingMiniGame: Gemrock.
11	* BossInMookClothing: The aptly-named Tricky, with its super-speed, powerfully damaging attacks, and lots of healing abilities.
12	* BloodlessCarnage: Surprisingly ''averted''. Cutting and clawing attacks result in visible spurts of blood.
13	* BraggingRightsReward: The [=StarChange=] gem renders all of your attacks super effective against enemies and gives you no weaknesses, but you only get it once you defeat the final boss.
14	* CainAndAbel: Hot Joe (good) and Cool Joe (evil). Interestingly, Cool Joe is the younger one.
15	* {{Combos}}: The "Combo" gem, which gets more powerful the more of them you have in your hand when you use it.
16	* ContinuingIsPainful: While continuing allows you to change your monster's species, it also halves their love for you, resets their weight, and makes you lose the gem you use.
17	* CounterAttack: The Dream, Counter, and Reflect gems all do damage to your enemy when they attack you. Dream and Counter don't do as much damage as Reflect, but there are several powerful moves that can skirt Reflect.
18	* CuteMonsterGirl: Macron and the "Isar-" family.
19	* DeathIsNotPermanent: If your monster dies, you can just turn it into another one by using another gem.
20	* DeathMountain: Mt. Coral.
21	* DemotedToDragon: Kromar is the FinalBoss of the first game, in the second he's the penultimate and is just another of Cool Joe's lackeys.
22	* DiscOneNuke: Minhand, which doubles your attack power. You can only get it if you you use Dowser's gem to summon the monster, however.
23	* ElementalRockPaperScissors: Actually, it's ''card suit rock paper scissors.'' Spade beats Heart, Heart beats Club, Club beats Diamond, and Diamond beats Spade.
24	* ExcusePlot: You aren't even trying ToBeAMaster, really.
25	* FaceHeelTurn: In ''Kandume Monster,'' Cool Joe--the primary antagonist of the second game--was a fairly harmless ringleader who helps you earn points to buy new gems.
26	* FirstTown: Olive Town is the first and ''only'' one.
27	* FixedDamageAttack: The (Blank)-Killer gems, which do 100 damage to an enemy of that type no matter what. Also, Clutz, though it's more like ScratchDamage.
28	* GainaxEnding: When climbing the Spiralwood to confront Gizmo you'll notice what appears to be a planet on the other end. Defeat Gizmo and you discover the other end of the spiralwood connects to a town, with ''your'' name on it. Try to access this town and- The End, Roll Credits.
29	* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: The end of Mt. Coral suddenly casts you into a MirrorMatch for no good reason.
30	%%* GiveMeYourInventoryItem
31	* GreenHillZone: Tan Field.
32	* GuideDangIt: Many of the puzzles in this game involve using items in random places, though you'd never think of most of them--such as using the [=MiniCar=] in the first area of Mt. Coral to enter the [=MiniCar=] Grand Prix, or using the Battery in the second area of Aloe Lake to open the FishingMiniGame. The lack of [=NPCs=] to help you along doesn't help.
33	* HelloInsertNameHere: Weirdly enough, even though you give your character a name, most [=NPCs=] will only refer to your ''monster''.
34	%%* HyperactiveMetabolism
35	* InterfaceScrew: Several varieties. [=GemWave=] completely randomizes your hand, the Confusion status effect will keep you from choosing your moves, Bio and Combat transform your gems into ones that hurt you, and Virus slowly replaces all of your gems with itself, which causes 25 damage every time you use it.
36	* InUniverseGameClock: ''Li'l Monster'' has one, though the cycle is pretty long--it takes about 3 or 4 real-world hours of gameplay to trigger night. The game can be ''beaten'' in less time than that. Averted with ''Kandume,'' which used a real-time clock.
37	* InfinityPlusOneSword: The Meteor Drop and Star Change gems. Both as attacks, and when transformed into the [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity Plus One]] ''Monsters'', Kromar and Gizmo.
38	* KillerRabbit: Par for the course in a children's {{Mons}} game. Including literal, bright-purple rabbits!
39	* TheLostWoods: Pop Forest, and the more sinister Spiral Wood in the endgame.
40	* MirrorMatch: The boss at the end of Mt. Coral.
41	* {{Mons}}: It's right there in the title.
42	* MonsterArena: The appropriately-named Arena. It's completely optional until the end of the game, where it plays host to the penultimate boss fight. It's also the only way to obtain certain gems.
43	* NPCScheduling: In ''Kandume,'' certain areas of the world only open up during certain times of day.
44	* PermanentlyMissableContent: The Dowser and Dragonscale ability gems, and their associated monsters, Gyro and Argon. These two monsters are fought as bosses. However, the bosses will only appear once, and if you lose to them, they'll vanish. You'll never be able to get their ability gems. To make things even more annoying, due to a variant on {{Tech Tree}}s, failing to get Dowser will prevent you from getting the ''extremely'' useful Minhand, which doubles your attack.
45	* PetInterface: Moreso in the original than the sequel--the original had a full-on Toys/{{Tamagotchi}}-style interface with a real-time clock.
46	* PoisonMushroom: The Virus and Death gems, which do damage to you. Luckily, two gems, Bio and Combat, let you give them to your OPPONENT instead...
47	%%* PowerCrystal
48	* ProtagonistWithoutAPast: You, the person playing the game, are supposed to be the main character, so...
49	* QuadDamage: The Minhand gem, which doubles your attack, and the [=HiSpeed=] gem, which does the same for your speed.
50	* RandomEncounter: Notable for being a complete and total aversion--except for a few boss fights, you never even see enemies wandering the map! You choose not only when you'll fight, but ''what'' you'll fight.
51	* ShiftingSandLand: Pin Desert.
52	* SkippableBoss: You don't have to beat Gyro or Argon at all to advance the plot! But if you lose, you'll lose a pair of unique gems.
53	* StatusEffects: Poison decreases your health slowly. Palsy prevents you from moving for a turn. Confusion is an InterfaceScrew.
54	* SuperDeformed: ''All'' of the monsters. Even Gizmo, who's supposed to be a kind of EldritchAbomination.
55	* ToiletHumor: One thing your monster can do is poop.
56	* UndergroundMonkey: Because you can fight almost any monster anywhere, you can have some pretty weird matchups in different places--such as fighting the dolphin-like Cupee in the Tan Desert...
57	* UselessUsefulSpell: The Reflect gem. Although it's a powerful CounterAttack that will deal any damage dealt to you back at your enemy, there are several gems which it ''doesn't'' affect... two of which are the second-most-powerful gems in the game, and are found in the arsenals of most of the strongest enemies. However, it can be Not so useless against enemies that like to spam you with the ''most'' powerful gem, Meteor Drop.
58	* UseYourHead: The Headbutt gem does ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin.
59	* WakeUpCallBoss: Gyro, who is suddenly ''much'' tougher than anything else you've fought so far.
60	%%* AWinnerIsYou

Context VideoGame / LilMonster