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Just jumping in here at the deep end, I saw the OP had his quota of games, and I'm kind of at a loss for things to play at the moment, literally been installing thing after thing on the PC and not touching consoles in the hopes that something will grab me but no luck so far. I've only read the last few pages of this thread or so, I will go back and read more but if something has already been mentioned that fits please point it out for me. So, the doors are wide open on this one, I have a pretty spec PC, I've been gaming over 20 years now so I'm not new, I also own pretty much every current gen console and handheld with the exception of the WiiU (Also most of the older ones going back as far as the Atari and C64). What I'm looking for is a game with either a strong story focus or something really unique on the game play front. I've played pretty much every CRPG, FPS and I'm not big on multiplayer though I used to play a lot of Q3 and UT back in the day. Also the last game I finished was Bioshock:Infinite. Before that it was yet another Planescape run, getting hyped on the KS like the overgrown man child I am. So to throw in some games I've played and would recommend for myself here's a rough list. Cave Story (2D Platformer that hopefully everyone knows by now) Half Life, Deus Ex, Thief, System Shock(and all iterations thereof, story FPS, FPS-RPG hybrid, Stealth FPS and Horror FPS-RPG) Amnesia:The Dark Descent (Indie Horror FPS game) Metroid, Castlevania, Zelda, and every incarnation of each also (2D and 3D Adventure Games/Platformers) Baldur's Gate 1+2+exp, Icewind Dale, Fallouts 1+2 (Obviously amazing CRPG's) Dragon Age gets an honourable mention I guess, have been encouraged not to play 2. (Modern day CRPG minus the DnD rulesets and Forgotten Realms lore) Planescape:Torment (Get's it's own line as best written CRPG I've ever played)(Also can't wait for Tides of Numenera) Silent Hills 1-3 (Amazing Survival Horror series that peaks with 2, Screw 4 and everything after it, not finished Downpour yet) Project Zero aka Fatal Frame (Japanese Horror strikes again, the first is still a personal favourite) Metal Gear Solid series (Love and hate in equal measure, seriously whats with those games? Stealth/Action Adventure thing) Lucasarts Adventure games (Yes every single one Starting with Maniac Mansion and finishing with Grim Fandango, 2D point and click except Grim which is 3D) Psychonauts (Schaefer Strikes again, 3D Platforming with an adorably mad story/setting) Curse of Monkey Island (Although it's not a true MI3, it gets an honourable mention too, I still remember every single drat word of the pirates song in chapter 3) Lots of things missing from the above but a list of every game I've ever played is a waste of everyone's time. I've played quite a few indie games in recent years, but mostly high profile ones like your Braids and Fez's or whatever. Also whacky poo poo like Katamari I still get addicted to for hours at a time. I'm willing to forgive a bad game if it has a great story or style/character. I'll also forgive a really awful story if the gameplay is unique and fun enough, as such FPS droll that rolls out on consoles these days kind of makes my head hurt. It's like I've been living groundhogs day since 1999 where I play the same game year after year, just shiner or set in space, or in the future, or a wasteland or something else. No wait, physics! Ugh. Anyway, I don't want to derail this thread with a shooter expectation syndrome from having grown up with some classics as named above, so I'll just leave this here for now. AnarkiJ fucked around with this message at 21:23 on May 2, 2013 |
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May 2, 2013 17:24
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Azathoth posted:Looking this over, this might be as close to what I am looking for as I'll find (except for the FPS-style targeting, but I can deal). My only concern is that it looks like it plays much more like an FPS dressed up in fantasy clothes than it does WoW's BGs (lots of frenetic jumping and focus on whoever gets the drop on the other player wins), but it still looks really promising. Is this basically an FPS or is this closer to MMO combat? Does anyone have any experience with this game? Here is a video of the Alpha build: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAYvIeFR5ek might give you a better idea of what they are trying for.
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May 2, 2013 17:56
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TehGherkin posted:I'm stuck back on my laptop for a while, not out of choice this time, unfortunately. The PC's broken down and it's in the shop. I'd just gotten close to the end of Far Cry 3 and bought Blood Dragon as well. Those are pretty different from each other, but here are some you might like: No One Lives Forever 1 and 2 (Bond/Austin Powers pastiche), Mafia (pretty "realistic"; less shooting and more dying), Star Trek Elite Force (straight up FPS) and Medal of Honor (you've probably heard of this  ).If you liked DX and SS2 for their complexity or you've played tactical shooters before, there's stuff like early Ghost Recon, SWAT 3, early Rainbow Six, Vietcong and Operation Flashpoint/ARMA: Cold War Assault Just watch the specs if your laptop really sucks. AnarkiJ posted:Just jumping here at the deep end, I saw the OP had his quota of games, and I'm kind of at a loss for things to play at the moment, literally been installing thing after thing on the PC and not touching consoles in the hopes that something will grab me but no luck so far. You've probably played them since you've been going at it for 20 years but if you haven't, NOLF and Mafia are for you, too.  Also The Witcher series.
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May 2, 2013 17:58
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Captain Scandinaiva posted:You've probably played them since you've been going at it for 20 years but if you haven't, NOLF and Mafia are for you, too. You'd be surprised I've missed lots of things but I try to be thorough and find gems I skipped or didn't get so that's why I'm here! NOLF I only remember playing the demo for when it came out but that looks like it needs to go on the play-list, a stylish FPS could be just what I need right now. I was always put off the Mafia series because at the time I had just developed an aversion to open world sandbox games that bore a resemblance to the current GTA games. Seriously GTAIV, it's not a bad game but man was it boring for so long. Then Saints Row 2 hit, and it was a breath of fresh air to play an open world game that tried to put the fun first and everything else second. I get that Mafia is more serious and I might be inclined to give it a look, but when I first considered it, I remember thinking nothing is as as good as Gangsters: Organized Crime by HotHouse creations, that's still the Gangster game to beat but maybe I'm just being a bit of a curmudgeon. The Witcher fell off my radar due to reading some internet review somewhere that implied misogyny in it's main character. Mostly I like having authorship of the experience when it comes to RPG's and I get it's all optional and not forced upon you, but I will admit I've probably been spoiled by my DnD days and how well those earlier CRPG's allow you to make your own character. It's why Dragon Age: Origins gets a pass but DA2 doesn't for having a tightly scripted player character. Not that I'm trying to say there's anything inherently wrong with any of that, I still quite liked Mass Effect, despite still wishing Bioware would just quit EA and take to KS along with the rest of their peers. So it's not like I hate the idea of it, I was just initially put off. If I were to pick it up where should I start, with the first one, or could I jump into a later entry? AnarkiJ fucked around with this message at 21:22 on May 2, 2013 |
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May 2, 2013 19:39
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There's only two Witcher games, but I'd recommend starting with the second. It's much better gameplay-wise and the stories are not that strongly connected. The misogyny bit came from Geralt in the first being able to have sex with almost all of the female cast (there were bloody collectibles from it,) while the second doesn't have that issue at all (he's settled down somewhat with a regular partner.)
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May 2, 2013 20:39
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I used "later entries", as knowing my gameplay schedule there could well be a Witcher 3 by the time I get around to checking it out. Sounds like the second one is the place to go if I feel like checking it out anytime soon, so you basically answered my question about it anyway so thanks, I'll be sure to fit it in sooner rather than later!
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May 2, 2013 21:09
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I'm sure something like this has been asked in the thread before, but I'm looking for a co-op game to play with my fiancee, preferably on the 360. She's semi-competent at console games, but I'd nonetheless like a game that's low-pressure and that doesn't have a large penalty for failure. The best example I can think of for what I'm looking for is Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, which we played when it came out and had an absolute blast with. The game has a goal, but basically lets you gently caress around as much as you want, and it respawns a player almost instantly if they die with no penalty at all unless you care about high scores. My first thought was a "building game" like Minecraft or Terraria, but she claims she has no interest in those. Can anyone give me suggestions?
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May 2, 2013 21:24
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TheOneAndOnlyT posted:I'm sure something like this has been asked in the thread before, but I'm looking for a co-op game to play with my fiancee, preferably on the 360. She's semi-competent at console games, but I'd nonetheless like a game that's low-pressure and that doesn't have a large penalty for failure. The best example I can think of for what I'm looking for is Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, which we played when it came out and had an absolute blast with. The game has a goal, but basically lets you gently caress around as much as you want, and it respawns a player almost instantly if they die with no penalty at all unless you care about high scores. Best bet for something recent that's co-op and a bit different would probably be The Cave, It's on Xbox Live Marketplace, and is pretty easy to pick up and play with no prior gaming experience. It's a puzzle platformer by Ron Gilbert of Monkey Island fame, so there's some good humourous dialogue. It's also good to play through a few times to see all the endings, but it's also bad for the same reasons. Alternately there's Deathspank, which is sort of a weird ARPG Diablo clone with Monkey Island style dialogue, also made by Ron Gilbert. It's also really easy to play and a good co-op adventure with comedic dialogue. It has it's shortcomings also but there's worse ways to play co-op with your partner, like say Halo. Oh I'd also be an idiot if I didn't point you at Portal 2. The best Co-op Triple A title on Xbox of late that isn't a broshooter. Cheapest would be Deathspank which is around 400-800MSP Then The Cave is 1200MSP Portal 2 is obviously a retail title but it's probably fairly cheap by now. AnarkiJ fucked around with this message at 21:58 on May 2, 2013 |
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May 2, 2013 21:48
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So, as poorly executed as it may have been, I really like Final Fantasy II's freeform approach to making your party members more powerful—instead of experience levels, you gain proficiency in weapon types and individual spells as you use them, you gain HP and stamina by being hit, you gain agility by dodging attacks, etc. I'm looking for more RPGs with fun alternatives to traditional experience-based leveling. One thing I've heard time and time again is that if you like Final Fantasy II, you'll like the SaGa series—which in my limited experience with it (playing a little bit of FF Legend 2, SaGa Frontier, and SaGa Frontier 2), I've found to not be true. I don't even see how they're similar aside from having the same creator. If someone who's a fan of the SaGa series can help me "get it," or recommend the one that's closest to what I'm looking for, that would be great too.
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May 2, 2013 22:34
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AnarkiJ posted:I was always put off the Mafia series because at the time I had just developed an aversion to open world sandbox games that bore a resemblance to the current GTA games. Seriously GTAIV, it's not a bad game but man was it boring for so long. Then Saints Row 2 hit, and it was a breath of fresh air to play an open world game that tried to put the fun first and everything else second. I get that Mafia is more serious and I might be inclined to give it a look, but when I first considered it, I remember thinking nothing is as as good as Gangsters: Organized Crime by HotHouse creations, that's still the Gangster game to beat but maybe I'm just being a bit of a curmudgeon. Mafia is only technically an open world game, you basically only drive between missions (you can do whatever you like, but there's no real way to save between missions) in the city. A lot of people found this tedious since you drive slow-rear end 30's cars and the police can come after you for running a red light. For me, it helped me get into the atmosphere of the game, which is superb. Also the missions are really varied and the story is honest to god great. Actually there is a game mode which is like a series of mission out of Saints Row but I think it only unlocks after you complete the story mode.
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May 2, 2013 22:46
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TheOneAndOnlyT posted:I'm sure something like this has been asked in the thread before, but I'm looking for a co-op game to play with my fiancee, preferably on the 360. She's semi-competent at console games, but I'd nonetheless like a game that's low-pressure and that doesn't have a large penalty for failure. Does she play shooters at all? Borderlands 2 is fun to dick around with and it's pretty easy until you start doing the high level farming modes. There's death but you can revive each other and the checkpoints are frequent enough that it doesn't really set you back much, so the only time it really matters is if you both kick it in a boss fight and have to start over. Co-op in Portal 2 is awesome too for a non combat (but arguably more stressful...) option. A bit short though...
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May 2, 2013 22:56
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Rollersnake posted:So, as poorly executed as it may have been, I really like Final Fantasy II's freeform approach to making your party members more powerful—instead of experience levels, you gain proficiency in weapon types and individual spells as you use them, you gain HP and stamina by being hit, you gain agility by dodging attacks, etc. I'm looking for more RPGs with fun alternatives to traditional experience-based leveling. I suppose technically the Elder Scrolls series is the most accurate recommendation based on RPG levelling mechanics. Though after Oblivion and Skyrim I have a hard time genuinely pointing at it as something you should play. Morrowind with a buttload of mods is probably the next best thing really. Usually you don't see much experimentation outside of Roguelike RPG's on levelling mechanics themselves. There are a few older RPG's which dabbled but most were still ripping off DnD and it's ilk liberally. It does seem strange that not more RPG's have experimented with the levelling mechanics beyond grinding xp for level ups. I suppose people just associate that mechanic with the genre, and removing it for another would cause longtime RPG fans to get the pitchforks and torches out. If you're looking for something typically JRPG, the last good JRPG I played that didn't make me ill was probably something like Disgaea, which is an absolute game nightmare to ask some people and crack to others. Particularly if you like turn-based strategy RPG's. Someone else is probably more up on JRPG's than myself, I kind of gave up after FF10, 11 and 12. I've since refused to play 13, because I just can't handle it anymore, they're mining the river for gold right next to a perfectly good goddamn mountain of it. It really depends on how you look at it, Zelda(specifically LttP comes to mind) is technically a Role Playing Game, and indeed the originals LOZ games were said to be heavily inspired by fantasy roleplaying. However this point is greatly contested because it's absolutely nothing like any other video game RPG ever made. Particularly in the late 90's and early 00's RPG meant something derived from DnD or at least some form of PnP RPG. To call something like the Binding of Isaac a Role Playing game would have been impossible back then, but things like the rise in popularity of roguelikes I think have opened RPG players eyes to other roleplaying game mechanics. So I like you would love for something else to be done in that space but can think of nothing off the top of my head, so hopefully someone can surprise us both or else I'll kick myself for forgetting something obvious. Captain Scandinaiva posted:Mafia is only technically an open world game, you basically only drive between missions (you can do whatever you like, but there's no real way to save between missions) in the city. A lot of people found this tedious since you drive slow-rear end 30's cars and the police can come after you for running a red light. For me, it helped me get into the atmosphere of the game, which is superb. Also the missions are really varied and the story is honest to god great. Hmm, I'm not sure that more like Saints Row counts as a plus for the tone of the game, although the fact it's post-game content probably means it's not a concern. Again, LA Noire still worked within a technically open-world, despite having bugger all to do other than story missions, so I'm not saying I dislike it for that. If the story is truly a recommendation though I'll give it a look and evaluate it on those merits, not on it's similarities or lack thereof to GTA. I love Gangster movies and Gangster games are something that seems to be really hard to do. Arguably Vice City is the closest thing I've played in recent years but only achieved by being a poor parody of Scarface. San Andreas was almost better mechanically in that sense with the whole gang warfare and taking territory mechanics. I still hold Gangsters: Organised Crime and it's sequel up as a kind of measuring stick. You get to be a mob boss, and slowly take over the city starting out with extortion rackets and building up to heists and drug running and such. I would really love it if something else like it came out, but obviously it's got a niche appeal so it's not going to show up in the Triple A industry anytime soon. Speaking of, Monaco seems to be a great little heist game that's getting some good press, has anyone played it yet to give a recommendation? AnarkiJ fucked around with this message at 23:12 on May 2, 2013 |
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May 2, 2013 23:02
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AnarkiJ posted:I suppose technically the Elder Scrolls series is the most accurate recommendation based on RPG levelling mechanics. Though after Oblivion and Skyrim I have a hard time genuinely pointing at it as something you should play. Morrowind with a buttload of mods is probably the next best thing really. Usually you don't see much experimentation outside of Roguelike RPG's on levelling mechanics themselves. There are a few older RPG's which dabbled but most were still ripping off DnD and it's ilk liberally. It does seem strange that not more RPG's have experimented with the levelling mechanics beyond grinding xp for level ups. I suppose people just associate that mechanic with the genre, and removing it for another would cause longtime RPG fans to get the pitchforks and torches out. I probably should have specified that I'm not looking for an action or strategy RPG (though strategy's a possibility), but regardless, Disgaea has the traditional experience-based leveling that I specifically said I don't want, and Zelda is completely irrelevant to my request in every way.  But something more JRPG-ish would be what I'm mostly looking for, and if somebody who has experience with the SaGa series could help me out with that, I'd really appreciate it. Rollersnake fucked around with this message at 00:19 on May 3, 2013 |
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May 3, 2013 00:16
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Rollersnake posted:I suppose technically the Elder Scrolls series is the most accurate recommendation based on RPG levelling mechanics. Though after Oblivion and Skyrim I have a hard time genuinely pointing at it as something you should play. Morrowind with a buttload of mods is probably the next best thing really. Usually you don't see much experimentation outside of Roguelike RPG's on levelling mechanics themselves. There are a few older RPG's which dabbled but most were still ripping off DnD and it's ilk liberally. It does seem strange that not more RPG's have experimented with the levelling mechanics beyond grinding xp for level ups. I suppose people just associate that mechanic with the genre, and removing it for another would cause longtime RPG fans to get the pitchforks and torches out. It's more that the Elder Scrolls style of leveling tends to encourage intolerably dull gameplay. With XP-based levelling, if you want to get more powerful, you kill monsters, which is fun. With a "skills improve as you use them" system, if you want to get more powerful, you lockpick a chest, re-lock it, and then lockpick it again over and over, or you strap on your best armor and let a rat gnaw on you ineffectually for a couple of hours. Which is insanely boring. That said, there are games that use this sort of levelling mechanic and aren't completely inept about it: Betrayal at Krondor comes to mind as a relatively decent example. Not a JRPG, though.
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May 3, 2013 00:49
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All the games in the Saga series, as far as I have played, have very obtuse, under-explained , and complicated mechanics. They are also generally pretty unique. The biggest reason not to play them is that the actual game play and character building, that is the part you actually deal with directly, tends to be very shallow. The computer gets to have the fun, not you. Unlimited Saga is not this way. It is ruthlessly abstruse(like other Saga games) and hard, but you actually have a ton of engagement with the very nonstandard leveling system. If you have a lot of time and patience, check it out for sure, and make sure to watch the tutorials on YouTube.Ashenai posted:It's more that the Elder Scrolls style of leveling tends to encourage intolerably dull gameplay. With XP-based levelling, if you want to get more powerful, you kill monsters, which is fun. With a "skills improve as you use them" system, if you want to get more powerful, you lockpick a chest, re-lock it, and then lockpick it again over and over, or you strap on your best armor and let a rat gnaw on you ineffectually for a couple of hours. Which is insanely boring. The point is that those skills increase while you play normally. Of course games aren't fun when you just grind. Grinding blows in every single game. Fergus Mac Roich fucked around with this message at 00:55 on May 3, 2013 |
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May 3, 2013 00:51
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Rollersnake posted:I probably should have specified that I'm not looking for an action or strategy RPG (though strategy's a possibility), but regardless, Disgaea has the traditional experience-based leveling that I specifically said I don't want, and Zelda is completely irrelevant to my request in every way. Sorry man, I wasn't trying to give you useless recommendations, more trying to illustrate that it's a tough ask and I honestly couldn't think of much that fits the bill of JRPG and non-standard levelling that isn't FFII or something so old and obscure playing it would be a chore. I only mention Zelda when talking RPG's because it is pretty much a Role Playing game in that it's a fantasy adventure schtick, minus the levelling and stat mechanics that's expected of the genre, again I was thinking old zelda rather than new and you're right it is barely relevant so I won't mention it again. Honestly I'm in pretty much the same boat as you, I tried the SaGa games and didn't get it myself. Which was about the time I decided to get out of JRPG's anyway. Ashenai posted:It's more that the Elder Scrolls style of leveling tends to encourage intolerably dull gameplay. With XP-based levelling, if you want to get more powerful, you kill monsters, which is fun. With a "skills improve as you use them" system, if you want to get more powerful, you lockpick a chest, re-lock it, and then lockpick it again over and over, or you strap on your best armor and let a rat gnaw on you ineffectually for a couple of hours. Which is insanely boring. I'm with you on that front, that's why FFII gets a pass and as does Morrowind but something really needs to be done to make progression in non-combat skills far more interesting, rinse/repeat minigames are not a good alternative to combat based skill grind. Some things work great with a "the more you do them the better you get" but some other skills like lockpicking and particularly crafting comes to mind, really need alternatives that are fun to play without needing to stab something. I've not played Betrayal at Krondor myself so could you elaborate on how that leveling mechanic works if you don't mind as you've piqued my interest.
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May 3, 2013 02:11
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AnarkiJ posted:I'm with you on that front, that's why FFII gets a pass and as does Morrowind but something really needs to be done to make progression in non-combat skills far more interesting, rinse/repeat minigames are not a good alternative to combat based skill grind. Some things work great with a "the more you do them the better you get" but some other skills like lockpicking and particularly crafting comes to mind, really need alternatives that are fun to play without needing to stab something. I've not played Betrayal at Krondor myself so could you elaborate on how that leveling mechanic works if you don't mind as you've piqued my interest. Skills mostly advance as you use them in BoK, although there are other ways (for instance, you can meet a friendly dwarf who'll offer to teach your party a few tricks about keeping your weapons in good repair, increasing everyone's Weaponcrafting skill.) The difference is that there's really no easy way to "grind" most skills, and there's not much need to do so, either. The skill system just ends up feeling more organic, and skills go up at their own pace. It's not particularly revolutionary, though, just an example of this type of advancement scheme done well, I think.
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May 3, 2013 02:48
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I think the reason that more games use the XP leveling system is because it's mathematically easy to determine progress for all players. Going through a certain area, you can generally predict how many monsters a player will kill. Players can deviate from this and kill more, but you can easily tune the XP for these mobs to be very low and the reward for non-repeatable things (quests, boss kills, furthering story, etc.) to be very high, effectively allowing you to give players an open world, but without incentivizing soul-crushing grinding. It exists because it's programmatically easy to implement and most players are fine with it. The alternate level systems that I've seen based around the concept of skills you use leveling you up all seem very prone to incentivizing the worst kind of grinding (letting a low-level mob hit you to level up your armor, finding a spot and taking advantage of poor mob pathfinding to level a ranged skill, etc.). Even if the programmer deals with this in an elegant way, it still boils down to this system having a much more linear "time=levels" mindset. It encourages the worst aspects of MMO gameplay in a single-player setting. Having said that, please do not think that I believe that the XP system is inherently superior, I very much don't care one way or the other. What I want out of any system is to be able to play the game and gain more powerful abilities organically as I progress. If I ever say "I need to kill 12 more rats and then I'll reach level 18!" or "I need to shoot 44 more lightning bolts to get Thunderstrike 4!" instead of "I need to get to the end of this dungeon and rescue the princess!" then I'm probably at the point where I should stop playing the game. Once the curtain gets pulled back and the inner workings of the system exposed, I tend to enjoy the game less.
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May 3, 2013 03:33
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TehGherkin posted:I'm stuck back on my laptop for a while, not out of choice this time, unfortunately. The PC's broken down and it's in the shop. I'd just gotten close to the end of Far Cry 3 and bought Blood Dragon as well. Strife is a Doom engine game that has a wicked cool adventure game / RPG elements thrown in. You probably also know Heretic and Hexen, though I never liked the latter. AnarkiJ posted:Just jumping in here at the deep end, I saw the OP had his quota of games, and I'm kind of at a loss for things to play at the moment, literally been installing thing after thing on the PC and not touching consoles in the hopes that something will grab me but no luck so far. Try Crimson Skies. It's an arcade flight combat game with a lot of character and crazy fun (sometimes annoying) missions. It's got the most likeable protagonist of all time! 
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May 3, 2013 12:12
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AnarkiJ posted:I'm with you on that front, that's why FFII gets a pass and as does Morrowind but something really needs to be done to make progression in non-combat skills far more interesting, rinse/repeat minigames are not a good alternative to combat based skill grind. Some things work great with a "the more you do them the better you get" but some other skills like lockpicking and particularly crafting comes to mind, really need alternatives that are fun to play without needing to stab something. I've not played Betrayal at Krondor myself so could you elaborate on how that leveling mechanic works if you don't mind as you've piqued my interest. If you've tried the SaGa games and not liked them, I understand -- they tend to be very confused in how they work and it's often offputting. In that sense, I'd recommend you maybe try The Last Remnant, which is by the same team as FF2 and the SaGa games, but unlike the latter has a definite storyline and motivation to proceed, which makes it a lot more like FF2 than anything else by them. Also, it's got a very good PC port, which is superior to the console version and can be had cheaply fairly often. It is not quite as freeform as FF2, but it may appeal to you.
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May 3, 2013 13:01
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Azathoth posted:Having said that, please do not think that I believe that the XP system is inherently superior, I very much don't care one way or the other. What I want out of any system is to be able to play the game and gain more powerful abilities organically as I progress. If I ever say "I need to kill 12 more rats and then I'll reach level 18!" or "I need to shoot 44 more lightning bolts to get Thunderstrike 4!" instead of "I need to get to the end of this dungeon and rescue the princess!" then I'm probably at the point where I should stop playing the game. Once the curtain gets pulled back and the inner workings of the system exposed, I tend to enjoy the game less. I like xp systems if only for the fact that if I'm playing a mage, get bored, and start using a sword for a few levels, I can still gain xp and still put that xp towards mage skills. I think usage-based experience is awful because for me it does exactly the opposite of what the developers intend. As a mage, I internalize that I *can't* use a sword, otherwise I'll get a bunch of points put towards melee or strength and my build will be screwed up. I know what you mean about the curtain metaphor though. Personally, I tend to play through games I really like two or three times. The first time as going-in-blind and as naturally as possible, then the 2nd time through and on I go in min-maxing, using wikis, exploring everything and exploiting systems, trying out different builds, that kind of stuff. I guess it's the same thing as when you were a little kid and you got a new action figure. First you'd play with it for a while and pretend with it... then you take it apart and put it back together to see how it really works. GreatGreen fucked around with this message at 15:01 on May 3, 2013 |
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May 3, 2013 14:58
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GreatGreen posted:I like xp systems if only for the fact that if I'm playing a mage, get bored, and start using a sword for a few levels, I can still gain xp and still put that xp towards mage skills. I think usage-based experience is awful because for me it does exactly the opposite of what the developers intend. As a mage, I internalize that I *can't* use a sword, otherwise I'll get a bunch of points put towards melee or strength and my build will be screwed up. Well it's tried and tested and obviously there's a lot of great RPG's out there, so it's not exactly the first place most people would think to go in terms of redefining the genre. Love it or Hate it, the Fable series tried to have a meaningful levelling system, you always get xp for killing poo poo, but you also have special xp based on how you killed them, with ranged, magic or melee. On Paper it's a great idea, because you're always getting better generally, but you will end up being best at the thing you do the most, it was a very natural and organic growth. I'm not going to argue that Fable is also a really bad example of how an RPG should be, but I appreciate it for what it tried to do, it made the ARPG style of game more casual and more accessible and more open. One thing I'd like to see more RPG's try, particularly when the game has a strong narrative focus, and you're in noncombat encounters as often as you're not. Is perhaps two XP systems, one for combat skills and one for non-combat skills. It makes sense that if you swing a lot of heavy weapons around, you'd get unilaterally better at all forms of melee combat if you so chose, however, being good at murdering poo poo shouldn't suddenly make you have an epiphany and be able to cast spells, lay traps and pick locks, or talk your way out of a sticky situation. That way players who want to engage in non-combat are thusly rewarded for doing so and become better at it, but just because you're good with words, you should still suck at fighting if you run away a lot. perhaps in order to balance it out, like fable there could be a third general xp, that you get less of but can spend upgrading both skill types regardless of what you do, and the special xp should be the more dominant type depending on when you're in combat or not. Anyway, this is all way way off topic, but if anyone knows any games that aren't PnP RPG's that have tried this system please do mention. I really can't seem to think of anything. AnarkiJ fucked around with this message at 17:08 on May 3, 2013 |
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May 3, 2013 17:05
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I can't think of any examples off-hand, but it's mostly because cRPGs tend to be so heavily combat focused, while social aspects are relegated to a couple dedicated skills and a dialogue tree. One sort of middle ground is games where your skills go up through using them. Liberal Crime Squad has a pretty big social aspect and although you mostly get "level up" experience from violent actions in that game, you stats only determine where your skills cap. Your actual skill value is trained by just doing stuff, so talking to a lot of people makes you better at persuasion, dealing with hostages makes you better at interrogation, etc.
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May 3, 2013 17:42
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Are there any recent or somewhat-recent village/city building and management type games where I start with a small group of people or creatures and begin slowly building up a lovely village, with various industries and trade? It would be great if the game made it easier to care about individuals (give them names and feelings and whatnot), but that's not necessary. If I had a choice, I'd go for fantasy/medieval/historical rather than modern day settings, but that's also not a requirement. Recently, I enjoyed Gnomoria and also spent a ton of time playing Pharaoh and Zeus back in the day. The thing is, I'm really looking forward to the following 3 games, all of which won't be released until much later in 2013  and I really want to play something right now in the same vein:Banished - You control a group of exiled travelers in a new land. They have only the clothes on their backs and a cart filled with supplies from their homeland. The objective is to keep the population alive and grow it into a successful culture. Options for feeding people include hunting and gathering, agriculture, trade, and fishing. Sustainable practices must be considered to survive in the long term. Stonehearth - A game about exploration and survival in an epic fantasy setting. Your job is to help a small group of settlers survive and carve out a place for themselves in a hostile land. You’ll need to establish a food supply, build shelter, defend your people, and find a way to grow and expand, facing challenges at every step. Folk Tale - A sandbox fantasy city builder strategy game in which you lead a ragtag band of peasants in growing a small settlement into a thriving market town, while the dastardly Slavemaster Urzal and his minions plot your downfall. Sound the rallying call and head out into the wilds with parties of heroes and fight back the tide of evil in a game of endless possibilities. Midrena fucked around with this message at 04:32 on May 4, 2013 |
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May 3, 2013 17:58
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Azathoth posted:I'm looking for a game recommendation for something that is basically World of Warcraft's battlegrounds, but a separate game. Take a look at Smite. It is a MOBA but it controls a lot like WoW instead of top-down RTS style controls. It has your typical MOBA 3-lane map setup but also a few other maps/modes like Arena (team deathmatch, essentially) and a Capture Point-style map called Domination. All of the "champions" are gods from real-world mythology. It's also free to play so you have nothing to lose. There's an SA thread here.
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May 3, 2013 19:23
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Shab posted:Take a look at Smite. It is a MOBA but it controls a lot like WoW instead of top-down RTS style controls. It has your typical MOBA 3-lane map setup but also a few other maps/modes like Arena (team deathmatch, essentially) and a Capture Point-style map called Domination. All of the "champions" are gods from real-world mythology. It's also free to play so you have nothing to lose. There's an SA thread here.
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May 3, 2013 19:45
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Recommend unto me a good game for griefing that is not Minecraft .
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May 4, 2013 01:00
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Gray Area posted:Recommend unto me a good game for griefing that is not Minecraft . Terraria!
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May 4, 2013 01:10
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Gray Area posted:Recommend unto me a good game for griefing that is not Minecraft . Would it be stupid to suggest Dark/Demon's Souls?
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May 4, 2013 02:34
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Great Zombie Roguelike for $15 that isn't Project Zomboid. Or really any good game with both decent survival mechanics, and fight mechanics. I want to build a farm and try not to fall to a tide of enemies. Bonus points if it's co-op and I can buy 2
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May 4, 2013 02:49
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Turtlicious posted:Great Zombie Roguelike for $15 that isn't Project Zomboid. Have you tried Don't Starve? It's not Co-op, and there's no zombies (yet), but it's about you surviving by (usually) building a base and fending off horrible, horrible abominations.
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May 4, 2013 03:39
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Midrena posted:Are there any recent or somewhat-recent village/city building and management type games where I start with a small group of people or creatures and begin slowly building up a lovely village, with various industries and trade? It would be great if the game made it easier to care about individuals (give them names and feelings and whatnot), but that's not necessary. If I had a choice, I'd go for fantasy/medieval/historical rather than modern day settings, but that's also not a requirement. Recently, I enjoyed Gnomoria and also spent a ton of time playing Pharaoh and Zeus back in the day. Imperium Romanum is a decent Caesar clone and has individually named citizens going about their work etc.
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May 4, 2013 03:56
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Turtlicious posted:Great Zombie Roguelike for $15 that isn't Project Zomboid. There's UnReal World, it's free. It's a roguelike set in the Finnish iron age with very detailed survival mechanics (you most definitely can build a farm) and the fight mechanics that inspired Dwarf Fortress'. Sadly no co-op. http://www.unrealworld.fi/
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May 4, 2013 04:50
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I'm looking for a singleplayer top-down racer! Preferably one without nitro and powerups and all that, but still with a career mode. Track editors are also great. For example, Roadclub is a lot of fun- http://solidcore.se/roadclub/index.php Also, is there anyone out there with the answer to this one? TroubledWaters posted:Are there any indie or lesser known sports games out there that aren't terrible? It doesn't even have to be a real sport.
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May 4, 2013 05:04
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I'm looking for some games which are story driven and in the ballpark of maybe 3-5 hours long. I'm open to any genre, really.
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May 4, 2013 05:12
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V for Vegas posted:Imperium Romanum is a decent Caesar clone and has individually named citizens going about their work etc. Thanks, I'll check it out.
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May 4, 2013 05:35
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Are there any games on the current-gen consoles or PS3 exclusives that are anything like SOCOM 2? I'm looking for a shooter or even something like Metal Gear Solid that fives you a single player campaign where you can play stealthily or aggressively.
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May 4, 2013 07:44
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Squirtle Squadee posted:Are there any games on the current-gen consoles or PS3 exclusives that are anything like SOCOM 2? I'm looking for a shooter or even something like Metal Gear Solid that fives you a single player campaign where you can play stealthily or aggressively. Only thing I can think of, though it's a bit of a leap from SOCOM, are Deus EX:Human Revolution, and Dishonored. Both are Single player games with stealth and combat that allow you to play almost every section either way. DE:HR is a bit rubbish due to the fact the boss fights you are forced to kill, but most of the game is still pretty great, you can stealth or shoot your way through. Dishonored is a little better in this regard, and like MGS will reward you for completing missions without actually killing or being spotted once.
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May 4, 2013 13:27
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Ashenai posted:You should definitely play the Marathon games, they're basically Doom only with a really awesome storyline. Durandal and Tycho easily rival SHODAN in how cool and memorable they are. Thanks everyone for their recommendations, I'm gonna try all the ones I can (or can afford to, at the moment.). But thanks in particular to Ashenzai, since A1 was free I got straight on that and after a little fidgeting getting it to work, I got to the second level and died in a horrific ambush. I really enjoy the game, it's got a nice creepy vibe, cool music. All alone with these unexplained and unnamed aliens. The pistol feels like a nice, meaty weapon and I grinned hard when I hit alternate fire with my fists and brought up my lefty to smack down some alien hide. A couple times I caught aliens laid flat against walls peeking round corners waiting to jump out at me and poo poo, I thought that was a brilliant touch for the era. So there I was in the second level, feeling invincible because I found a chaingun with an attached grenade launcher that I was only busting out for big fights when I go down these stairs and without warning, my radar is covered in red triangles, commence an epic last stand where I'm pincered in by a bunch of floaty guys and purple and green dudes, I nearly made it maaaaan. Am I supposed to be seeing a cutscene or anything at the start of the game or not? I just wanna make sure I don't miss the cutscenes whenever they DO come.
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May 4, 2013 13:29
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Grimes posted:I'm looking for some games which are story driven and in the ballpark of maybe 3-5 hours long. I'm open to any genre, really. How about bastion? It's more like 6 though. Charles Barkley shut up and jam gaiden is only about 4-5 if you're ok with ridiculousness and insanity.
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May 4, 2013 15:32
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