Tales of the Isometric

jjstraka34

There probably isn't on soul on these forums who isn't a die-hard fan of the isometric RPG genre. And while we all know that the Infinity Quintet (The BG Saga, Icewind Dale 1 & 2, and Planescape:Torment) are essentially considered the pinnacle of this genre, there are plenty of other, lesser known titles out there that often straddle the line between CRPG and ARPG. Disregarding the obvious Diablo series (hardly anything more needs or can be said about it), what are your favorite games, moments and memories from this unique perspective??

CrevsDaak

I always enjoyed Age of Empires (even if I only played III) and Age of Mythology, I also played lots of Star Wars:Empire at War in the days I haven't won the game from both Empire and Rebels (I never got the expansion) around 700 times.

jjstraka34

CrevsDaak said:

I always enjoyed Age of Empires (even if I only played III) and Age of Mythology, I also played lots of Star Wars:Empire at War in the days I haven't won the game from both Empire and Rebels (I never got the expansion) around 700 times.

Never played either (though I contemplate picking up Age of Mythology every time I go to Target), but the same crew made what I view as the best ARPG in Titan Quest. The skill and class system is pretty ingenious actually. Pick one spec at level two and another at 8 and that determines your class, and with 9 trees you are basically looking at 30+ classes to choose from. Want to be an archer with control of the undead?? No problem. A sword and shield tank who also happens to be a pyromancer?? Combine them both and become and Juggernaut. In a pure ARPG, the skills are paramount, and Titan Quest got the idea exactly right, plus I think I got the whole thing on Steam for $3, which feels like a theft now that I've owned it for awhile. Looking to try Sacred soon, as I'm finding the "Diablo clones" often have more going for them than the series they are inspired by. Purchased Divine Divinity today as well and that also looks promising.

Isandir

Though it's not lesser known (or perhaps it is to the newer gaming generation), several titles the Ultima series were among the first isometric RPGs I ever played, and I still love revisiting them. V, VI and VII in particular were excellent, as they added a grittier, more realistic tone to the world of Britannia.

One of my favorite gaming experiences in Ultima VI was when I stumbled across Buccaneer's Den for the first time. I had no game map and no sense of the world, so I was amazed to find a town full of pirates and couldn't find it again for days. Ultima VII had a fantastic story and quite a few genuinely shocking moments, including the brutal murder of one character.

@jjstraka34: I loved Titan Quest as well, and I was pretty excited to find out that many of the original developers have been working on a new title: Grim Dawn. You can play it in the early access beta, but I've been waiting for the final release.

jjstraka34

I'm planning on getting Grim Dawn, even the early release to support them. I'm just wondering if it will run fairly well on my machine. Since it is essentially a updated Titan Quest engine I can't imagine it would be too much of a problem, but system requirements are a tricky business and I don't want to throw $25 bucks down the tube. I can run Titan Quest at max, but I'm sure Grim Dawn has more graphical effects going.

Isandir

The minimum requirements they have listed are on the site, but it looks like it hasn't been updated in a while (as they still reference some outdated information). My guess is that it you'd need something more powerful than this to run it smoothly with most graphical options turned on.

Windows XP/ Windows Vista/Windows 7
x86 compatible 2.0GHz or faster processor
1GB RAM
5GB or more free hard drive space
256MB NVIDIA GeForce 6800 series or ATI Radeon X800 series or equivalent
DirectX 9.0c
DirectX 9.0c compatible 16-bit sound card
Keyboard and Mouse

jjstraka34

I've heard alot of great things about Ultima VII especially, but the overhead viewpoint of the screenshots I've seen makes my head spin, though I've heard that Exult really makes things look alot better. Is that just a straight-up mod?? Regardless, it seems very highly regarded, almost as much as BG2 from what I can tell.

Isandir

Exult is absolutely wonderful! It is a pure mod, and it simply allows you to run the game on a modern OS, though you can also adjust the graphics a bit. The only downside is that VII wouldn't be anywhere near as good for most players if they aren't already familiar with the Ultima story and characters, as the game has a massive number of references to past events.

Mordiscus

Well isometric related we have Commandos series that are must play, it has spectacular & hardcore scenarios to avoid it playing, it isn't a RPG, but has some resemblance elements, also some strategies are so damn funny when executed. I wish there were more games like this. Desperados is the only another one that I known.

jjstraka34

I did "buy in" to the Grim Dawn alpha (or beta, I'm not even sure). Seems to run fine on my machine so far even without having the minimum specs required. You definitely feel the Titan Quest engine roaring back to life as soon as you set foot in the game. I can already tell that as a project, it is certainly more ambitious. The combat mechanics are far below Diablo 3 or Torchlight 2, but this is a indie developer, and it is still light years ahead of Path of Exile. Looking forward to playing what they have done so far.

Isandir

@jjstraka34‌: I loved Titan Quest, so I've been looking forward to Grim Dawn for quite a while now. Thanks for the info; I hadn't heard any feedback from anyone who had actually played it yet.

@Mordiscus‌: The original Commandos was fantastic. I first played the demo and fell in love with the mechanics, but by the time I bought the full version, my new computer was too powerful for it. I was never actually able to play through the whole game.

Buttercheese

I started playing Shadowrun returns recently (yay for Steam Summer Sales and friends who know your tastes) and I am liking it so far!
Gameplay wise it feels like a very linear version Fallout 2, though I played that one when I was like 11 or something, so I don't really remember.
The fighting system is a lot like Banner Saga (which is also great!) though a lot more complex, due to different character classes.
Overall, everything is very 80s/90s steampunk (the way the characters talk and such) and you have your obligatory foreign characters who use random words from their respective native languages which feels weird.
The story is interesting though there is not that much roleplay variance (usually you have three different answers to pick from which basically only vary in tone and get the [assumably] same results).
Since I never actually played the Shadowrun pen & paper, I can't tell if the rules are ported properly.

But I guess quite a few of you guys might like it, so next time it's on sale, you should try it out

Isandir

If only these were real... (from http://www.stasisgame.com/labs)

Assassin's Creed 4


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