I promise I'll stop derailling the thread into a discussion about Dragon Age.
About Dragon Age 2, I'm disappointed. There is only few area assets all recycled during the full game. It's like a copy-pasted world build from few bricks. Most of the story takes place in the city with few missions outside. Also unlike Dragon Age:Origins, where the encounters were more naturally appearing, the enemies just kinda pop-up from nowhere in waves. The game feels like a rushed product, packed with fight-action. The only thing I like more in DA2 than in DA:O, is the combat gameplay. It feels more dynamic and fun to watch.
The things you've noticed are lack of polish, which we can blame in part on EA, as proven by, most notably, Inon Zur's interview about how much his own work as the game's composer suffered due to the publisher's desire to 'capitalize on DA:O's success'.
I for one was most disappointed at the change of direction, especially how BioWare seems inclined towards not expanding the level of choice/consequence presented in Origins but even diminishing it considerably and make what few consequences survive cosmetic - case in point the origins mechanic from the original game was a major point of character creation that, though could have influenced the game a bit more, still did change a thing here and there and still did provide the player with different viewpoints, which might change one's choices and outlook through the story.
And instead of expanding on the background choice, they axed it, most likely to cut corners and I'm sure that voicing the protagonist influenced that decision. In fact, they left us without the choice of background and didn't really bother to explain it as you played the game at the beginning.
The changes (for the worse) in Class, Encounter and Difficulty design, plus the stupid camera decision kept me from seeing any good in combat so I dunno about that.
I was using the same tactics over and over. Mana burn the enemy caster, send in the melee team, prison cage, prison cage, battle over. In BG every single battle requires its own special tactics and spell use.
Indeed, I found this not only a problem with Encounter Design (one of the highlights of the BG series, especially in Shadows of Amn) but also the fact that BioWare's implementation of the Mana system, plus a few really broken spells can really break the game. The two spells I kept myself from using were Mana Clash and Fireball, a simple gesture that greatly improved the game, showing that a similarly simple change in the game itself could have done wonders.
Mind you, what I think really kills replayability in DA:O is that the game's best moments, the 'moral dilemas' often have absolutely perfect choices for the player, effectively killing the dilemma.
If anyone sees this, I wonder what you people thought of Troika's Arcanum?
If anyone sees this, I wonder what you people thought of Troika's Arcanum?
I really liked the atmosphere, the violin music, the rustic feel of clothes, weapons etc. in short, the concept was great, but the game itself was less so... the main story felt unfocused, and sometimes the mix of magic and technology wasn't smoothly implemented making the clash of the two genres seem chaotic and messy... still, the game is very reminiscent of the first two fallout games, and that ain't a bad thing. Arcanum is one of those games that I remember strongly, but that don't quite make it into the top 10... kinda like Temple of Elemental Evil (which incidentally was also made by troika... hmmm).
Skyrim: Playing Skyrim was fun, until the rimlag hit (I had a PS3) and it took Bethesda 3-4 months to fix the damn problem. How a game with so much problems could be released in that state and still win GOTY in some parts is simply beyond my comprehension. For what's its worth though, the game was fun, but after a while I got tired of the quests being the same thing: go to that cave/castle/dungeon, kill everything, rinse and repeat. A game having a lot of quests is great, but not when the vast majority of them are completely uninteresting. The world was beautiful though, but the story was simply lacking for me. The combat system was pretty boring though (needed a lot more variety of opponents), and I didn't like the control scheme.
For me it was the fact that what would appear as a normal cave in Skyrim would almost always become a considerable longer ancient tomb. I don't recall there being very many all natural caves in the game, as the others were mining tunnels. That, and the fact that the quests were boring. There was also the fact (and maybe they've changed it with patches) that the thieves guild quests could be completed with rewards granted even if during them you killed people. I remember that one quest where you are tasked with burning the beehives then breaking into that manor. I spent a good 40 minutes sneaking past all the guards without being detected save for the one guard in front of the vault, only to find out later that it was a waste of my time. I mistakenly thought you could not be detected without losing your reward. Turns out I could have just killed them all and received no penalties for doing so.
I never played Da2, but my opinion of Dragon age: Origins is that it lacked in a number of key areas. I found that your origins didn't matter enough in the game, and considering that it is part of the title you would think that they would matter a little more than they do. Yes, there were subtle dialogue changes, and at least one romance that couldn't be fully explored because of your race, but by-in-large there wasn't enough variety for me. I also never felt they did enough to make it seem like there was a civil war going on. You only ever see I think the one battle, although subsequent DLC may have expanded on it a bit. Plus, the magic system was boring. Yes, the spells were interesting. But the fact that you could only learn the same number of spells as any other class (in the number of skills they could learn) just seemed too convenient for me. To be honest, I found I could get through almost the entire game solely casting one of the freezing spells on my opponents, and if I had two mages in my party it made fighting bosses a lot less challenging (even after they nerfed Cone of Cold - which I think was the spell I'm thinking of). That said, I really loved the ethical decisions you had to make in the game and how past actions could have an impact on the options you had later (like what to do about Connor). They could have expanded upon this, but I thought it was probably one of the games redeeming features. I have other thoughts, but as others have pointed out this is not the thread for it
In terms of a list of games I like
Strategy Games:
-age of empires 2 (#1 is too old for me to play anymore) -Command & Conquer (Just the games before C&C3) -Rise of Nations + ToP -Rise of Legends (it had a great multiplayer balance I thought) -Homeworld/Homeworld:Cataclysm (I was not much of a fan of Homeworld 2) -Civilization 2, 4, possible 5 if the latest expansion is any good.
RPG
-BG1+2, Icewind Dale, Planescape Torment (I hated IWD2 - I found it to be too boring and I never got past the goblin fortress) -The Witcher (I still haven't played 2) - Nox - The Old Republic (I played the bounty hunter and jedi sage, though I didn't stick with the game long enough to complete either storyline I still found it to be enjoyable) - KOTOR 1
Shooters
-Crysis/Warhead -Far Cry -Far Cry 2 (it was worth the $5 I bought it for) -The Gta series
It started with X-Com, and ended with BGII. In the middle you had Fallout, Fallout 2, Might and Magic 1-3, Torment, and Icewind Dale. After BGII nothing could hold my attention.
Well, it started with X-Com if you don't include all the countless hours (days, months, years?) on Atari 2600, Intelavision, Coleco Vision, NES, and SNES that is.
BG Series, IWD series ----My personal all time favorites games without a doubt. Xcom / xcom terror from the deep ----- second faves all time (can't wait for the new one coming out) Space Quest/Kings Quest/Leisure Suit Larry's..first 3 anyway were great.
Arena/Daggerfall/Morrowind/Oblivion/Skyrim---amazing to think I've been playing this series for nearly 20 years..Yikes I'm getting old :-)
FPS--started and ended with Wolfenstein --- I've never been a fan of these..tried a bit of Doom I think and never looked back
Original NES,Genesis owner..various games..I liked platformers Super Mario/Sonic etc etc..Loved Chrono Trigger on SNES great game fun story..and of course Zelda, Zelda 2, & Link to the past...latter being the best IMO. Never played any newer ones..
The amount of enjoyment I've gotten from the IE D&D games is unsurpassed..I'm just finishing up another IWD2 play through now..With the remakes and mods and hopefully some new 2d ISO party based dnd games I hope to get another few decades of enjoyment out of them :-) 14 years down..forever to go....
Somebody above mentioned the new shadowrun coming out too...looks like its gonna be pretty sweet. That one is on my list too. This has been a great year for gaming news for us old skool guys..BG coming back to life! XCOM coming back to life! Shadowrun! I'm phreaking stoked!
Somebody above mentioned the new shadowrun coming out too...looks like its gonna be pretty sweet. That one is on my list too. This has been a great year for gaming news for us old skool guys..BG coming back to life! XCOM coming back to life! Shadowrun! I'm phreaking stoked!
Thank you dev's for doing this :-)
@pkloop Don't forget the old Black Isle team reuniting to make Wasteland 2, kickstarter FTW
We’re going back to the original and building from there. No first person shooter, we’re going top down so you get a tactical feel for the situation. And we’re not ditching the party play to turn it into some hack-and-slash bloodfest. It’s turn based, tactical, with a storyline that will be deeper and broader.
We’re determined to keep the gritty, grim and satirical writing. We’re going to pitch those moral dilemmas at you. You’re going to be faced with the consequences of your actions.
Sega Mega Drive Favourites: Mortal Kombat 1-3, Alex the Kidd, Road Rash 1-2, Sonic 1-3, Robocop, Dune 2, Aladin, Earthworm Jim, Street Fighter, Altered Beast, Paper Boy.
PC Favourites: Baldur's Gate 1+2 & expansions - best game of all time. Half-Life 1 (favourite in the series), Half-Life 2 (all episodes). Thief 1-2 (favourite stealth game ever). Diablo 1-3. Deus Ex 1-2, Counter-Strike (Best online FPS ever), Max Payne 1-3, Splinter Cell: Conviction, Unreal Tournament, Portal 1-2, Team Fortress 2.
Playstation Favourites: GTA Vice City - hands down my favourite GTA game. best story, best setting, best characters, best radio stations. "And it's got two digestive tracts!". God of war 1-3, Resident Evil 1 & 2, GTA San Andreas, GTA 3, GTA IV, L.A. Noire, Midnight Club 1-2, Gran Turismo 1-2, Dirt 3, Dirt Showdown.
Xbox Favourites: Gears of War 1-3, Borderlands, Assassins Creed 1 & 2, Trials Evolution, Far Cry 2.
Notable Mentions: GTA 1-2, Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem, Wolfenstein, Carmageddon 1-2, Lemmings, Worms, Age of Empires 1-3, Sim City, The Sims, Warcraft 3, World of Warcraft, Dragon Age 1-2, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, Battlefield Bad Company 2, Battlefield 3, Sniper Elite V2, The Walking Dead episode 1&2 (telltale games), Minecraft, Oblivion & Skyrim, Cod Modern Warfare 1-3 + Black Ops, Bioshock 1-2, Neverwinter Nights 2, Civilzation V, Sim City, The Sims, Batman Arkham Asylum + City, Crysis 1-2.
Looking forward to: BGEE, The Last of US, God of war: Ascension, Gears of War: Judgement, Hitman Absolution, Resident Evil 6, Assassins Creed 3, Black Ops 2, Dishonoured, Medal of Honour: Warfighter.
I played countless games. Really, I have been born and raised as a gamer. Not even today I know how many boxed games I own (around 50-60 is my estimate). Add to the collection the games I own digitally and, yeah, you get quite a bit. And mind you, those are not all the games I have played, since I didn't own any game until later on in my years of life.
My first game that I played I believe was Warcraft 2, later on followed by Red Alert and Little Big Adventure 2. Now, between the three, there is a spacious break of time, but I really played and loved them a lot.
So now, let me answer those questions!
Are you a gamer? - Definitely. Always was and not hiding it. It's how I am and I like to play games. They are my hobby, my way to keep a certain amount of calm as well as keep a balance to things.
Do you stick to RPG's, or do you play other genres as well--or is it even just Baldur's Gate that you like? - I play everything. There is no game style I haven't played yet. RPGs, shooters (first, third, isometric) puzzlers, twin sticks, adventure, action, cheesy, horror, weird, racing, sport, simulations.
Do play a wide variety or stick to just a few you think will be worth your while? - I play any game I've either heard good things about or games that appeal to the eye to me personally.
What platforms have you played on? - PC and PS3. Hopefully Xbox 360 soon though (FEZ, Spelunky, Trials Evolution, oh my god, the drool!)
How long have you been gaming? - Ever since I was 5. And I was born in 1990
So, let's see what games I played, or tried, or quit, or never touched. This might be a bit impossible to describe entirely, there were simply so many. I'll try to stick to their genre :
Roleplaying Games : - Baldur's Gate (first RPG ever for me), 2 - Fallout 1, 2, Tactics, 3, New Vegas - Icewind Dale 1 + Heart of Winter (trials of the luremaster), 2 - Diablo 1, 2 - The elder scrolls : Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim (Morrowind favorite one for me) - Gothic 1, 2, 3 (good lord, the ragequits XD ) - Neverwinter Nights 1, 2, expansions - Deus Ex - KOTOR 1, 2 - Dragon Age 1 (great game), 2 (please god no...) - Risen - Mass Effect 1, 2 (theoretically I don't define the second one an RPG) - Many more, but that's all on the top of my head...
Strategy games (ALL which have partially strategic elements) : - Warcraft 2, 3 - Simcity 2000, 3000, 4 - Red Alert 1, 2, 3, Command & Conquer 1, 2, 3, Generals - Anno 1701, 1404, 2070 (last one being my favorite game of all times currently) - Stronghold 1, Crusader, 2, Legends - Heroes of Might and Magic 4 - Disciples 2 - Age of Empires 1, 2, 3 - Age of Mythology - billions of other. Strategy is my favorite genre of games actually
Shooters (all kind, useless making separated categories) - Wolf 3D - Duke Nukem 3D (nice games for a 8 years old to play I guess XD ) - Doom - Quake - Unreal - Half Life 1, 2, episodes - Left 4 Dead 1, 2 - Just Cause 1, 2 - Uncharted 1, 2, 3 - Call of Juarez - No one Lives Forever 1, 2 - Grand Theft Auto 1, 2, 3, VC, SA, 4 - Mafia - Many others... will update here and there this list anyway.
Race Games (good lord, just Needs for Speeds make it 20 or so? XD ) - Need For Speed, from the first one all the way to Underground 1, took a break, got ProStreet (which weirdly enough is my favorite of the series), took a break, got Shift. And that's the end right over there. - TrackMania 1, Sunrise, United, Forever - Modnation racers
Simulation (depends on what you consider as simulation. In my case, it's just 2 game(series) - the X series (space simulation games) - Kerbal Space Program (last game I bought)
Indie games (oh god, this is going to be long) - Terraria - Wizorb - Sanctum - Amnesia - The Binding of Isaac (oh my god... addictive level 1000%) - Minecraft...? (is that an indie right now?) - billions of others I can't remember. Even more the indies that I bought but haven't played yet (Super Meat Boy, Braid, Limbo, Lone Survivor, Cave Story, Bastion, Superbrothers... notice that most come from Humble Indie Bundle 5)
Other games I haven't mentioned for no particular reason : - Portal 1, 2 - Pat & Mat - Magicka - Assassin's Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood
Games I bought but never played : - Indies mentioned above - Metal Gear Solid HD Collection - Assassin's Creed Revelations - Arma 2 CO (for DayZ of course) - The Guild 2 (and expansions) - Psychonauts - Avadon : The Black Fortress - Many other games that I got from a Magazine but never got to play them because I didn't like the genre (along the lines are The Longest Journey, Syberia, etc...)
NOTE : This list is subject to change with time. It was way too long to think of in one go XD
RPGs include: -BG series -ID series -NWN series -Elder Scrolls series -Fallout series -Gothic series -Risen -Planescape Torment -Diablo 1&2 -Fate -Torchlight -Dragon Age -Kingdoms of Amalur
Strategy include: -Starcraft series -Warcraft series -Dawn of War series -Total War series -Empire Earth series -Civilization series -Might and Magic series -Age of Mythology -Battle for Middle Earth -Dragonshard -Kings Bounty -SW Empire at War
Also console fighting games, including: -Streetfighter series -Tekken series -Soul Calibur series -Mortal Kombat series -Wrestling games
Well well well , looks like ,most games I played were played by most ppl here ,any way let's see ... Hmm ... Civ 1,2&3 , alpha century , colonization , warcraft 1&3 ,starcraft 1 and recently 2, X com 1&2 ,monkey island ( dun laff ) , master of orion 1&2 - hate moo 3 ,realm of arkania trilogy , Sim city series , star wars Simation series , but the first game was Dune2 the original RTS , and of course BG 1,2 and the add on , IWD 1 with.add on and IWD 2 . Tried NWN , but don't like it . Oh yes wolfenstien and doom there are some others but not so ,memorable . Maybe I will recall some more
Started playing computer games age of 4 on my elder brothers Amstrad CPC. The loading times were just crazy, sometimes we had to wait up to 20 minutes and then you had to be lucky it all loaded correctly. From the Amstrad gaming can clearly remember playing Ikari Warriors or Freddy Hardest 2nd side of tape was just awesome with the computer hacking. When I moved on to PC remember enjoying "Where is Carmen San Diego?" at a friends house when I was around 8 years old. Really started hardcore gaming years after with the following: Sierra Games Quest for Glory, Police Quest, Leisure Suit Larry Eye of The Beholder (My first real RPG game, my brother did some incredible handmade maps, remember back then we did not have Prima Guides) Pools of Radiance Day of the Tentacle Monkey Island I & II Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis Half Life I & II Baldur´s Gate I & II Icewind Dale II Planescape Torment Diablo II Neverwinter Nights I & II KOTOR Dragon Age The Witcher I & II
Sure I am missing some great titles, but these are the ones I keep best memories of.
I played alot of games, but a game that is really underated and I loved ALOT is Operation Flashpoint 1 - yeah its graphics are not much and heavy, but this is by far the MOST REALISTIC war game I have ever played, one bullet - one kill, bullet in the leg - you crawl , bullet in the hand - its hard to aim.
Not talking about how to story progress and the Open World.
Even the US Marine corps later used a VBS1 ( Virtual Battlespace Systems ) Which is based on this game.
@mch202 I remember Operation Flashpoint fondly. Horrible graphics, vertical difficulty curve, unforgiving 1-hit kills and all. It got a lot better once you were in command of a squad. The early missions where your squad would advance under fire and get taken out, leaving you to complete the mission alone were frustrating.
I'm a bit surprised that no-one's played System Shock 2. It's a great game that used audio brilliantly, was really atmospheric and pretty much defined western survival horror. Receiving ingame emails, finding audio logs and reconstructing horrific events, a great baddie (who still gets top 10 spots on lists 13 years later), it's got it all. It was out in 1999 but suffered from the same problem as Thief: The Dark Project in that noone actually bought it. It was made by Looking glass, the same studio as Thief and uses the same engine, so anyone who likes Thief 1 or 2 would do well to check it out. I still play it on my netbook using a few graphic update mods. I'm not 100% sure where you can get hold of the game now apart from Ebay though.
@mch202 I remember Operation Flashpoint fondly. Horrible graphics, vertical difficulty curve, unforgiving 1-hit kills and all. It got a lot better once you were in command of a squad. The early missions where your squad would advance under fire and get taken out, leaving you to complete the mission alone were frustrating.
@Corvino Well I agree that the graphics werent that good, SLOW and alot of other disadvenages, dont forget that the game is from 2001.. but still introduced an open world gameplay, you actually had to drive real distances in order to get to your destination, and if you had to walk half an hour - you had to walk!! ( of course you could speed up the proccess ) - and the unforgiving 1-hit is the beauty of it!!! you could do the mission PERFECT, and the one moment you are not careful - you can die, and even if you careful it sometimes is not enough . some missions require alot of patience. you are right that its get alot better once you are a squad commander - or a platoon commander.
at the expansion "Resistance" for example, you could collect weapons that you take from the battlefield and use it later missions and giving it to your units. it really motivate you to get ALL the cargo from the convoy you just ambushed.
and if you have a tank, you actually need a driver, commander and a gunner, without one of them the tank is useless.
oh and one last thing, The company who made this game is Czech ( Bohemia Interactive ), so all the world map including villages and road signs look like those in Czech/Poland, It was nice ( although im not from either of those countrys ).
As a former Soldier I appreciate this game alot, they really took care for details.
As for System Shock, I have never played it, I presonally dont like FPS unless its Realistic/Military related. so my main gaming is RPG'S (Although since DA:O I decided that Modern RPGS are not for me ) and looking forward to Armed Assualt 3 which is like Operation Flashpoint and from the same company. :-)
@mch202 I was an army cadet at the time I was playing operation flashpoint, and I remember using stuff I'd learned from fieldcraft ingame, moving by sections, that sort of thing. It was rock hard, but that just made it better. I guess that like BG1 it didn't hold your hand all the way through, so when you completed a mission you felt you'd really earned it.
I didn't realise you could speed up time until about 3 missions from the end. I spent literally 20 minutes once crawling in a straight line at night to remain undetected. It was a fantastic, raw experience overall but left me frustrated so many times.
Besides Baldur's Gate 1&2, my favourite games of all time would be:
Deus Ex, Neverwinter Nights 1&2, Thief (all 3), Morrowind, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale 1&2, Quake III Arena, League of Legends, Age of Empires: Conquerors, Battlefield 3, The Witcher, Heroes of Might & Magic 3 4 and 6, Need For Speed Hot Pursuit (all 3), Sim City 3000 and Diablo 2
@smeagolheart I liked both DA's quite a bit, Origins more than DA2. I was however, incredibly let down by Origins after they kept marketing it as "the spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate." There wasn't one aspect of that game that reminded me of BG.
Not too fussed about fancy settings/ graphics/ lip syncing. Tend to play strategy games (usually paradox), but I love the classic RPG's- such as BG of course
I think i'm considered as a gamer by market-analysts. Buys 10-15 games a year.
I pretty much stick to strategy and RPG's with a little cross-genre in ME2+3. Played some Playstation(the first one), but it never caught on, so I stick with the PC. Started out with a Commodore 128 and an Amiga 500 before moving on to PC.
I have played many af the titles already mentioned. Heres a short list of my favorites from 1990 onwards.
Elite Frontier II Tiefighter War in Middle-earth (Still have the boxed copy from 1988, but its on 5 1/4 floppy) Genghis Khan (KOEI) Turn based stategy Death Knights of Krynn (I were hooked on SSI games in the early nineties but this was my favorit) Master of Orion 2 (Never liked the first one) Master of Magic Colonization (original) Warcraft 1+2 Starcraft Fallout 2 BG +BG2 (my favorites of all time) IWD + IWD2 PST (I'm really looking forward to this one with updated graphics) Heroes of Might and Magic 1-3 Total War series (I think all are great but Rome still stands out) KoToR + KoToR 2 Space Rangers 2
New'ish games: Still don't know which games will be on my alltimes great.
Dragon Age Origin Mass Effect 1-3 Fallout New Vegas (Way better than 3) The Witcher 2 Deus Ex Human Revolution Skyrim (The other TES-games are also okay but Skyrim is the first one i really got into)
Yeah, I'm not gonna list my entire gaming history here. In recent years I've played a lot of Civlization 4, which is exceptionally great with all the mods that are available to it. I've now moved onto Civ 5 though. I'm a big fan of last years best game, Witcher 2 and of CDProjektRed generally.
Battlefield 3 is also a great game that I enjoy a lot. It's no BF1942, which is still the best in the series in my opinion, but it's very fun.
I also spend a lot of time playing Paradox Strategy games, Europa Universalis and most recently I've been trying to get into Crusader Kings 2.
Almost forgot, Team Fortress 2. I haven't played that in long time, but I like how great and stupid that game is.
@Aliteri, I really like Arcanum, I came here again to see if anybody else mentioned it(seems to be slept on). The game really felt overwhelming at first run; and Virgil is just grand, he stands tall among Infinity Engine's NPCs; I also like how he reminds me of Dante's journey through Inferno, as Virgil is doing his very best to guide you through Arcanum.
Oh my, after Baldur's Gate, no RPG could even come close to it's awesomeness...
Played Dragon Age for a while, didn't stick with it....
If the gameplay was better I would say Star Wars The Old Republic is the closest that can come near BG. The characters, the NPCs and the story are great, however I hate the gameplay of MMORPGS, and SWTOR too. I mean when you stab someone with a lightsaber, they should die, right? Or when you slash someone into two with a lightsaber, they should split in two...
I'll be waiting to see if it's a shoddy console port 1st (shame that that's so necessary these days), but once it's vetted in that department I might give Dark Souls on the PC a try. Anyone else played it and can tell me what sort of game it is?
Also being a fighting gamer I'll have to give Skullgirls on PC a try, too.
I recently bought a bunch of games on the Steam sale one of which is Divinity 2. It seemed to have very low ratings but I enjoyed the demo. Unfortunately I discovered after purchase that it randomised loot each time you reloaded, both treasure and shops. You can make drastic swings in difficulty just by reloading a few times to get an overpowered weapon (and the prices make no sense, sometimes being very easy to buy). This is the worst kind of thing for me because I'm a bit OCD when it comes to save-scumming. Not sure if I'll be able to pick the game back up now.
Simcity classic and 2000 Transport Tycoon in all incarnations Might and Magic 6 - 9 Heroes of Might and Magic 2 - 5 Chuck Yeager's Air Combat Need for Speed 3 + 5 Railroad Tycoon 1 + 2 The Incredible Machine Warcraft 1 + 2 Desert Strike, Jungle Strike Age of Empires 1 + 2
I still pretty much only play games from the late 90s.. Some recent exceptions: Just Cause 2 Guitar Hero
Comments
I for one was most disappointed at the change of direction, especially how BioWare seems inclined towards not expanding the level of choice/consequence presented in Origins but even diminishing it considerably and make what few consequences survive cosmetic - case in point the origins mechanic from the original game was a major point of character creation that, though could have influenced the game a bit more, still did change a thing here and there and still did provide the player with different viewpoints, which might change one's choices and outlook through the story.
And instead of expanding on the background choice, they axed it, most likely to cut corners and I'm sure that voicing the protagonist influenced that decision. In fact, they left us without the choice of background and didn't really bother to explain it as you played the game at the beginning.
The changes (for the worse) in Class, Encounter and Difficulty design, plus the stupid camera decision kept me from seeing any good in combat so I dunno about that. Indeed, I found this not only a problem with Encounter Design (one of the highlights of the BG series, especially in Shadows of Amn) but also the fact that BioWare's implementation of the Mana system, plus a few really broken spells can really break the game. The two spells I kept myself from using were Mana Clash and Fireball, a simple gesture that greatly improved the game, showing that a similarly simple change in the game itself could have done wonders.
Mind you, what I think really kills replayability in DA:O is that the game's best moments, the 'moral dilemas' often have absolutely perfect choices for the player, effectively killing the dilemma.
If anyone sees this, I wonder what you people thought of Troika's Arcanum?
I never played Da2, but my opinion of Dragon age: Origins is that it lacked in a number of key areas. I found that your origins didn't matter enough in the game, and considering that it is part of the title you would think that they would matter a little more than they do. Yes, there were subtle dialogue changes, and at least one romance that couldn't be fully explored because of your race, but by-in-large there wasn't enough variety for me. I also never felt they did enough to make it seem like there was a civil war going on. You only ever see I think the one battle, although subsequent DLC may have expanded on it a bit. Plus, the magic system was boring. Yes, the spells were interesting. But the fact that you could only learn the same number of spells as any other class (in the number of skills they could learn) just seemed too convenient for me. To be honest, I found I could get through almost the entire game solely casting one of the freezing spells on my opponents, and if I had two mages in my party it made fighting bosses a lot less challenging (even after they nerfed Cone of Cold - which I think was the spell I'm thinking of). That said, I really loved the ethical decisions you had to make in the game and how past actions could have an impact on the options you had later (like what to do about Connor). They could have expanded upon this, but I thought it was probably one of the games redeeming features. I have other thoughts, but as others have pointed out this is not the thread for it
In terms of a list of games I like
Strategy Games:
-age of empires 2 (#1 is too old for me to play anymore)
-Command & Conquer (Just the games before C&C3)
-Rise of Nations + ToP
-Rise of Legends (it had a great multiplayer balance I thought)
-Homeworld/Homeworld:Cataclysm (I was not much of a fan of Homeworld 2)
-Civilization 2, 4, possible 5 if the latest expansion is any good.
RPG
-BG1+2, Icewind Dale, Planescape Torment (I hated IWD2 - I found it to be too boring and I never got past the goblin fortress)
-The Witcher (I still haven't played 2)
- Nox
- The Old Republic (I played the bounty hunter and jedi sage, though I didn't stick with the game long enough to complete either storyline I still found it to be enjoyable)
- KOTOR 1
Shooters
-Crysis/Warhead
-Far Cry
-Far Cry 2 (it was worth the $5 I bought it for)
-The Gta series
Well, it started with X-Com if you don't include all the countless hours (days, months, years?) on Atari 2600, Intelavision, Coleco Vision, NES, and SNES that is.
Xcom / xcom terror from the deep ----- second faves all time (can't wait for the new one coming out)
Space Quest/Kings Quest/Leisure Suit Larry's..first 3 anyway were great.
Arena/Daggerfall/Morrowind/Oblivion/Skyrim---amazing to think I've been playing this series for nearly 20 years..Yikes I'm getting old :-)
FPS--started and ended with Wolfenstein --- I've never been a fan of these..tried a bit of Doom I think and never looked back
Original NES,Genesis owner..various games..I liked platformers Super Mario/Sonic etc etc..Loved Chrono Trigger on SNES great game fun story..and of course Zelda, Zelda 2, & Link to the past...latter being the best IMO. Never played any newer ones..
The amount of enjoyment I've gotten from the IE D&D games is unsurpassed..I'm just finishing up another IWD2 play through now..With the remakes and mods and hopefully some new 2d ISO party based dnd games I hope to get another few decades of enjoyment out of them :-) 14 years down..forever to go....
Somebody above mentioned the new shadowrun coming out too...looks like its gonna be pretty sweet. That one is on my list too.
This has been a great year for gaming news for us old skool guys..BG coming back to life! XCOM coming back to life! Shadowrun!
I'm phreaking stoked!
Thank you dev's for doing this :-)
Nuts and bolts time.
We’re going back to the original and building from there. No first person shooter, we’re going top down so you get a tactical feel for the situation. And we’re not ditching the party play to turn it into some hack-and-slash bloodfest. It’s turn based, tactical, with a storyline that will be deeper and broader.
We’re determined to keep the gritty, grim and satirical writing. We’re going to pitch those moral dilemmas at you. You’re going to be faced with the consequences of your actions.
Looking good :-)
PC Favourites: Baldur's Gate 1+2 & expansions - best game of all time. Half-Life 1 (favourite in the series), Half-Life 2 (all episodes). Thief 1-2 (favourite stealth game ever). Diablo 1-3. Deus Ex 1-2, Counter-Strike (Best online FPS ever), Max Payne 1-3, Splinter Cell: Conviction, Unreal Tournament, Portal 1-2, Team Fortress 2.
Playstation Favourites: GTA Vice City - hands down my favourite GTA game. best story, best setting, best characters, best radio stations. "And it's got two digestive tracts!". God of war 1-3, Resident Evil 1 & 2, GTA San Andreas, GTA 3, GTA IV, L.A. Noire, Midnight Club 1-2, Gran Turismo 1-2, Dirt 3, Dirt Showdown.
Xbox Favourites: Gears of War 1-3, Borderlands, Assassins Creed 1 & 2, Trials Evolution, Far Cry 2.
Notable Mentions: GTA 1-2, Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem, Wolfenstein, Carmageddon 1-2, Lemmings, Worms, Age of Empires 1-3, Sim City, The Sims, Warcraft 3, World of Warcraft, Dragon Age 1-2, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, Battlefield Bad Company 2, Battlefield 3, Sniper Elite V2, The Walking Dead episode 1&2 (telltale games), Minecraft, Oblivion & Skyrim, Cod Modern Warfare 1-3 + Black Ops, Bioshock 1-2, Neverwinter Nights 2, Civilzation V, Sim City, The Sims, Batman Arkham Asylum + City, Crysis 1-2.
Looking forward to: BGEE, The Last of US, God of war: Ascension, Gears of War: Judgement, Hitman Absolution, Resident Evil 6, Assassins Creed 3, Black Ops 2, Dishonoured, Medal of Honour: Warfighter.
My first game that I played I believe was Warcraft 2, later on followed by Red Alert and Little Big Adventure 2. Now, between the three, there is a spacious break of time, but I really played and loved them a lot.
So now, let me answer those questions!
Are you a gamer?
- Definitely. Always was and not hiding it. It's how I am and I like to play games. They are my hobby, my way to keep a certain amount of calm as well as keep a balance to things.
Do you stick to RPG's, or do you play other genres as well--or is it even just Baldur's Gate that you like?
- I play everything. There is no game style I haven't played yet. RPGs, shooters (first, third, isometric) puzzlers, twin sticks, adventure, action, cheesy, horror, weird, racing, sport, simulations.
Do play a wide variety or stick to just a few you think will be worth your while?
- I play any game I've either heard good things about or games that appeal to the eye to me personally.
What platforms have you played on?
- PC and PS3. Hopefully Xbox 360 soon though (FEZ, Spelunky, Trials Evolution, oh my god, the drool!)
How long have you been gaming?
- Ever since I was 5. And I was born in 1990
So, let's see what games I played, or tried, or quit, or never touched. This might be a bit impossible to describe entirely, there were simply so many. I'll try to stick to their genre :
Roleplaying Games :
- Baldur's Gate (first RPG ever for me), 2
- Fallout 1, 2, Tactics, 3, New Vegas
- Icewind Dale 1 + Heart of Winter (trials of the luremaster), 2
- Diablo 1, 2
- The elder scrolls : Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim (Morrowind favorite one for me)
- Gothic 1, 2, 3 (good lord, the ragequits XD )
- Neverwinter Nights 1, 2, expansions
- Deus Ex
- KOTOR 1, 2
- Dragon Age 1 (great game), 2 (please god no...)
- Risen
- Mass Effect 1, 2 (theoretically I don't define the second one an RPG)
- Many more, but that's all on the top of my head...
Strategy games (ALL which have partially strategic elements) :
- Warcraft 2, 3
- Simcity 2000, 3000, 4
- Red Alert 1, 2, 3, Command & Conquer 1, 2, 3, Generals
- Anno 1701, 1404, 2070 (last one being my favorite game of all times currently)
- Stronghold 1, Crusader, 2, Legends
- Heroes of Might and Magic 4
- Disciples 2
- Age of Empires 1, 2, 3
- Age of Mythology
- billions of other. Strategy is my favorite genre of games actually
Shooters (all kind, useless making separated categories)
- Wolf 3D
- Duke Nukem 3D (nice games for a 8 years old to play I guess XD )
- Doom
- Quake
- Unreal
- Half Life 1, 2, episodes
- Left 4 Dead 1, 2
- Just Cause 1, 2
- Uncharted 1, 2, 3
- Call of Juarez
- No one Lives Forever 1, 2
- Grand Theft Auto 1, 2, 3, VC, SA, 4
- Mafia
- Many others... will update here and there this list anyway.
Race Games (good lord, just Needs for Speeds make it 20 or so? XD )
- Need For Speed, from the first one all the way to Underground 1, took a break, got ProStreet (which weirdly enough is my favorite of the series), took a break, got Shift. And that's the end right over there.
- TrackMania 1, Sunrise, United, Forever
- Modnation racers
Simulation (depends on what you consider as simulation. In my case, it's just 2 game(series)
- the X series (space simulation games)
- Kerbal Space Program (last game I bought)
Indie games (oh god, this is going to be long)
- Terraria
- Wizorb
- Sanctum
- Amnesia
- The Binding of Isaac (oh my god... addictive level 1000%)
- Minecraft...? (is that an indie right now?)
- billions of others I can't remember. Even more the indies that I bought but haven't played yet (Super Meat Boy, Braid, Limbo, Lone Survivor, Cave Story, Bastion, Superbrothers... notice that most come from Humble Indie Bundle 5)
Other games I haven't mentioned for no particular reason :
- Portal 1, 2
- Pat & Mat
- Magicka
- Assassin's Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood
Games I bought but never played :
- Indies mentioned above
- Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
- Assassin's Creed Revelations
- Arma 2 CO (for DayZ of course)
- The Guild 2 (and expansions)
- Psychonauts
- Avadon : The Black Fortress
- Many other games that I got from a Magazine but never got to play them because I didn't like the genre (along the lines are The Longest Journey, Syberia, etc...)
NOTE : This list is subject to change with time. It was way too long to think of in one go XD
RPGs include:
-BG series
-ID series
-NWN series
-Elder Scrolls series
-Fallout series
-Gothic series
-Risen
-Planescape Torment
-Diablo 1&2
-Fate
-Torchlight
-Dragon Age
-Kingdoms of Amalur
Strategy include:
-Starcraft series
-Warcraft series
-Dawn of War series
-Total War series
-Empire Earth series
-Civilization series
-Might and Magic series
-Age of Mythology
-Battle for Middle Earth
-Dragonshard
-Kings Bounty
-SW Empire at War
Also console fighting games, including:
-Streetfighter series
-Tekken series
-Soul Calibur series
-Mortal Kombat series
-Wrestling games
From the Amstrad gaming can clearly remember playing Ikari Warriors or Freddy Hardest 2nd side of tape was just awesome with the computer hacking.
When I moved on to PC remember enjoying "Where is Carmen San Diego?" at a friends house when I was around 8 years old.
Really started hardcore gaming years after with the following:
Sierra Games Quest for Glory, Police Quest, Leisure Suit Larry
Eye of The Beholder (My first real RPG game, my brother did some incredible handmade maps, remember back then we did not have Prima Guides)
Pools of Radiance
Day of the Tentacle
Monkey Island I & II
Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
Half Life I & II
Baldur´s Gate I & II
Icewind Dale II
Planescape Torment
Diablo II
Neverwinter Nights I & II
KOTOR
Dragon Age
The Witcher I & II
Sure I am missing some great titles, but these are the ones I keep best memories of.
Not talking about how to story progress and the Open World.
Even the US Marine corps later used a VBS1 ( Virtual Battlespace Systems ) Which is based on this game.
I'm a bit surprised that no-one's played System Shock 2. It's a great game that used audio brilliantly, was really atmospheric and pretty much defined western survival horror. Receiving ingame emails, finding audio logs and reconstructing horrific events, a great baddie (who still gets top 10 spots on lists 13 years later), it's got it all. It was out in 1999 but suffered from the same problem as Thief: The Dark Project in that noone actually bought it. It was made by Looking glass, the same studio as Thief and uses the same engine, so anyone who likes Thief 1 or 2 would do well to check it out. I still play it on my netbook using a few graphic update mods. I'm not 100% sure where you can get hold of the game now apart from Ebay though.
Baldur's Gate (1,2, 2.5)
Neverwinter nights
Icewind Dale
Puzzle games -
Portal
Portal 2
Myst
Shooter:
All Points Bulletin Reloaded MMO
Borderlands (ADDICTED)
Left4Dead
Left4Dead2
Team Fortress
MMOs:
Aion
Scary games:
Amnesia (EEEEP!)
Otherwise I think that's all - I like some Ps2 Games, like Monster Rancher, it feeds my micromanaging bug
Well I agree that the graphics werent that good, SLOW and alot of other disadvenages, dont forget that the game is from 2001.. but still introduced an open world gameplay, you actually had to drive real distances in order to get to your destination, and if you had to walk half an hour - you had to walk!! ( of course you could speed up the proccess ) - and the unforgiving 1-hit is the beauty of it!!! you could do the mission PERFECT, and the one moment you are not careful - you can die, and even if you careful it sometimes is not enough . some missions require alot of patience. you are right that its get alot better once you are a squad commander - or a platoon commander.
at the expansion "Resistance" for example, you could collect weapons that you take from the battlefield and use it later missions and giving it to your units. it really motivate you to get ALL the cargo from the convoy you just ambushed.
and if you have a tank, you actually need a driver, commander and a gunner, without one of them the tank is useless.
oh and one last thing, The company who made this game is Czech ( Bohemia Interactive ), so all the world map including villages and road signs look like those in Czech/Poland, It was nice ( although im not from either of those countrys ).
As a former Soldier I appreciate this game alot, they really took care for details.
As for System Shock, I have never played it, I presonally dont like FPS unless its Realistic/Military related. so my main gaming is RPG'S (Although since DA:O I decided that Modern RPGS are not for me ) and looking forward to Armed Assualt 3 which is like Operation Flashpoint and from the same company. :-)
I didn't realise you could speed up time until about 3 missions from the end. I spent literally 20 minutes once crawling in a straight line at night to remain undetected. It was a fantastic, raw experience overall but left me frustrated so many times.
Deus Ex, Neverwinter Nights 1&2, Thief (all 3), Morrowind, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale 1&2, Quake III Arena, League of Legends, Age of Empires: Conquerors, Battlefield 3, The Witcher, Heroes of Might & Magic 3 4 and 6, Need For Speed Hot Pursuit (all 3), Sim City 3000 and Diablo 2
I liked both DA's quite a bit, Origins more than DA2. I was however, incredibly let down by Origins after they kept marketing it as "the spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate." There wasn't one aspect of that game that reminded me of BG.
I pretty much stick to strategy and RPG's with a little cross-genre in ME2+3. Played some Playstation(the first one), but it never caught on, so I stick with the PC. Started out with a Commodore 128 and an Amiga 500 before moving on to PC.
I have played many af the titles already mentioned. Heres a short list of my favorites from 1990 onwards.
Elite Frontier II
Tiefighter
War in Middle-earth (Still have the boxed copy from 1988, but its on 5 1/4 floppy)
Genghis Khan (KOEI) Turn based stategy
Death Knights of Krynn (I were hooked on SSI games in the early nineties but this was my favorit)
Master of Orion 2 (Never liked the first one)
Master of Magic
Colonization (original)
Warcraft 1+2
Starcraft
Fallout 2
BG +BG2 (my favorites of all time)
IWD + IWD2
PST (I'm really looking forward to this one with updated graphics)
Heroes of Might and Magic 1-3
Total War series (I think all are great but Rome still stands out)
KoToR + KoToR 2
Space Rangers 2
New'ish games: Still don't know which games will be on my alltimes great.
Dragon Age Origin
Mass Effect 1-3
Fallout New Vegas (Way better than 3)
The Witcher 2
Deus Ex Human Revolution
Skyrim (The other TES-games are also okay but Skyrim is the first one i really got into)
Battlefield 3 is also a great game that I enjoy a lot. It's no BF1942, which is still the best in the series in my opinion, but it's very fun.
I also spend a lot of time playing Paradox Strategy games, Europa Universalis and most recently I've been trying to get into Crusader Kings 2.
Almost forgot, Team Fortress 2. I haven't played that in long time, but I like how great and stupid that game is.
Played Dragon Age for a while, didn't stick with it....
If the gameplay was better I would say Star Wars The Old Republic is the closest that can come near BG. The characters, the NPCs and the story are great, however I hate the gameplay of MMORPGS, and SWTOR too. I mean when you stab someone with a lightsaber, they should die, right? Or when you slash someone into two with a lightsaber, they should split in two...
But that's totaly another discussion point
Also being a fighting gamer I'll have to give Skullgirls on PC a try, too.
I recently bought a bunch of games on the Steam sale one of which is Divinity 2. It seemed to have very low ratings but I enjoyed the demo. Unfortunately I discovered after purchase that it randomised loot each time you reloaded, both treasure and shops. You can make drastic swings in difficulty just by reloading a few times to get an overpowered weapon (and the prices make no sense, sometimes being very easy to buy). This is the worst kind of thing for me because I'm a bit OCD when it comes to save-scumming. Not sure if I'll be able to pick the game back up now.
Transport Tycoon in all incarnations
Might and Magic 6 - 9
Heroes of Might and Magic 2 - 5
Chuck Yeager's Air Combat
Need for Speed 3 + 5
Railroad Tycoon 1 + 2
The Incredible Machine
Warcraft 1 + 2
Desert Strike, Jungle Strike
Age of Empires 1 + 2
I still pretty much only play games from the late 90s..
Some recent exceptions:
Just Cause 2
Guitar Hero