Christ, what a load of nothing. Dare I ask if you played the expansion?
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# ? Jun 11, 2024 07:03 |
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What an piece of garbage. Thanks for the LP, TGEK - now, please stop hurting yourself by LPing games you hate, haha.
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I can't decide if ATOM should be categorized as be an actual game made by incompetents, a blinded-by-cargo-cultism tribute to Fallout, or a cynical paint-by-numbers cash grab intended to sucker in the edgy, RPGCodex crowd; perhaps it was all three. Either way, it loving sucked. Thanks for taking one for the team, GEK.
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You can tell they really liked the Master from Fallout 1, but had no idea what actually made that encounter great.
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anilEhilated posted:Christ, what a load of nothing. Dare I ask if you played the expansion? Nope and God willing I never will.
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It's odd that it's really hard to summarize why this game is so terrible, in part because it's terrible in so many ways. But not like say, solely because of incompetence. There's a lot of incompetence for certain, but I think the main takeaway is the creators were so completely soaked in cynicism and irony poisoning that they could never, at any point, actually say anything. And I think, even if they had been more competent, this still would have been the main issue. They had nothing to say because anything actually thematic would be too "simplistic" and not edgy enough in this hard man's world of hard knocks. But it's not actually cynical, or clever, it's just kind of pathetic.
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They wanted really hard to make a thing that said something, but didn't actually have something to say, like the difference between people who want to be writers and people who want to write. Sad.
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What a terrible game. Thank you for your service TheGreatEvilKing. Question tough, why did they choose a "RobertDeNiro with a full Beard"-picture for Hexogen?
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I believe that is supposed to be a Prokhanov portrait?
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Pacifist Walkthrough - spooky scary cultist-tons This update will deal with supernatural stuff hidden away in sidequests and rarely encountered NPCs, barely tangential to the main plot. But before we start delving into the paranatural, let’s go add Galina Bathory to our party. As she’s a Goth Harley Quinn cosplayer, you won’t be surprised to learn that there’s a mod that allows you to recruit her without turning everyone in the game hostile. Link to the relevant update in case you forgot who the hell Galina and the gang even are. ![]() ![]() Igor Death is actually based on a character from Chernobyl, which is thematically appropriate. No, not that Chernobyl. You wouldn’t know it, it goes to a different ![]() Also, both Fallouts and the Metro series go “of course you’ll have an inexplicably endless supply of raiders to fight, that’s what the post-apocalypse is all about”, while the DG brats get an explanation for their turn to banditry (abused, starving homes, wooden toys nailed to the floor [exactly the sort of timely and appropriate reference Atom RPG would be proud of]) and for their poetic turn. ![]() ![]() You can’t actually actually convince Lena to let you join the gang if you're a male, so being a pacifist, I send her off to murder and pillage anywhere else. Not our problem anymore. ![]() My mistake – I thought TGEK joined Igor’s group rather than Dima’s. Not much of a difference - you just impress Igor with your sensitivity, rather than your endurance. Anyway, if you notice that Arthur is now Sparkie in dialog – that’s why. quote:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() While in the caverns, let’s have a brief look at the rat king’s abode: ![]() ![]() ![]() But on to the actual point of visiting the caverns with a possessed character – the cultists that ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() So, basically, I decided to retcon the Hesperus Star into the Dark Goat religion. I even made up a theory, that the star is actually our Dark Goat's space daughter, birthed by the unholy spirit. How cool is that?! ...Don't answer. But when I introduced these changes to the guys, they started smirking and rebelling against my dark will! Quit conforming to the newest occult fads, they said. This is a silly idea, they said. The Hesperus Star is a natural phenomena, not a religious one, they said. Baseless hatred of new things, is what it is. Maybe you could talk some sense into them? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I told him loud and clear that I found it silly, and that I would never bother with the new rituals he made up. It's one thing to believe in an unholy forest spirit, the Dark Goat. He even has a cool statue made from a nice, hard granite-type stone. But stargazing is moronic, and beyond stupidity. But why do you ask? You want to change my mind, or something? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The woman pouts as if she's thinking about something really hard] Well, that's how our leader Anton Loshden describes the Goat's teachings anyway. The actual ancient texts about the Dark Goat are old and obscure, and you can only find them in ancient scrolls and stuff. ![]() ![]() [The woman smiles happily] ![]() ![]() Long ago, my granny used to tell me stories about some dark forest god, so I easily made Anton think I'm one of his kind. So, now I live here. Stuck in this hole. The pay for stay is truly low, but it costs me all I earn by washing clothes and sewing stuff for people. And you know what's the scariest part? I don't even think I want to leave anymore. I kinda have all I want in here. [As the woman finishes her monologue, her eyes lock on something beyond the dank walls of the dungeon. She shrugs and smiles weakly. Her next words come out as shy:] No, this is really a part-time thing for me. When I get enough money, I will leave. I will. Who in their right mind would want to spend eternity in a stupid cave ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The woman shrugs her shoulders and yawns] You can tell him I'm totally fine with accepting this new idea. God Bless the Hesperus Star, or something. ![]() In case you're wondering, I reacted like that to the goodness that still lingers in your heart My beastly senses can't stand goodness. It pisses me off. ![]() ![]() Hey! I didn't lick badger fat off an altar in the woods to later hear some scrub calling my beastly senses into question! Oh, how low Loshden hath fallen... First he became a heretic, then he invited some sort of a cultureless skeptic into the community... Tell me what you want to know, or leave me be! ![]() ![]() ![]() In strange aeons even death may die… ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() You owe me a bottle of good wine, buddy. And not some dry stuff. Red wine! Red, like blood! ![]() ![]() quote:
Anyway... some other stuff than a possessed character can get up to: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Hey, I better not hear you call me a drug dealer. It's true I sell certain substances, but not to create a buzz or other pleasures of the flesh, and my stuff isn't addictive. I sell substances that open the mind to other worlds, lucid dreams. There are many people in this world who are dissatisfied with our current reality. They need an escape. I concoct these potions from various mushrooms and herbs to give them some fun in their grey lives. However, since I myself am not a gardener, I buy my ingredients from someone else. And at this moment I'm out of stock. But what do you need hallucinogenics for? You look like you're doing quite all right for yourself. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() quote:
![]() ![]() ![]() Another traveller in these lands? Come closer, let's you and I have a little talk. This place is quite dull for anyone of superior intellect. ![]() ![]() [She pulls a shabby pre-war passport out of her pocket and slowly reads out:] Dana Evgenyevna Shustrova. ![]() ![]() She only remembers participating in our rituals once, as a child. She thinks it mere superstition, or doesn't understand that it... happened. Some people are offered the truth from birth, yet still they turn away. Human beings are idiots. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Well, aren't you a curious little fellow? Okay, I'm not going to tell you more than you need to know in any case. It may seem counterintuitive, considering the scale of the ecological disaster, but nature has in fact benefitted from the war. There are fewer people now, fewer pollutants, and all industry has been destroyed. At last, the forests have a chance to return to territories devastated by people and technological progress. I travel the regions and monitor nature's process, and also look for settlements that have developed to a degree where another genocide of trees might begin. ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ... Anyway, let's head to Peregon. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Here you go. I was saving this for myself, in case my brain ever needed a quick detox after getting shitfaced, but it sounds like your buddy needs it more than I do. This is a real pick-me-up, made with amphetamines. [The man hands you a bottle filled with an opaque liquid] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I have no idea what the hell is that... And how did it end up in my pocket... However this thing looks as if it's capable of making any antiquities salesman cough up a pretty penny for it. Take it, my friend. I won't take no for an answer! The time flows differently in the other world, my friend. My wanderings in the land of dreams led me to the chambers of a mad demiurge revered by some cultists. This monstrous, perpetually undulating mass of proboscis and pseudopodia crawling in the darkness, consoled only by the of (sic) wailing of the diabolical violins, got a hold of me... And it held me so tightly my sleeping body almost died of all the pressure! We fought, and for all the time that we fought, I was unable to return to my earthly body, because that would've meant me being distracted and possibly missing a deadly blow! There it took us several exhausting hours. Here - many, many days. ![]() ![]() Now that it became possible, I am not gonna dream of other worlds anymore. I'd rather write a book. Or go on a hike. Or I'll find a job as a caravaner. I will live my life to the fullest. And even if this joy I feel now wears off, even if this desperate reality pushes me to relapse, then I will start using again but in smaller quantities and take longer breaks between doses... quote:
The game kinda \ sorta has poo poo to say about cults and neo-paganism, but absolutely nothing about the Russian Orthodox Church, even though it was undergoing a massive revival in the late 80's \ early 90's, and really should be right there, supporting the regime and ordering the persecution of mutants. But unlike abstract corrupt politicians and generic cultists, "offending the feelings of believers" carries the penalty of a prison sentence (if within Russia) and \ or the remote possibility that the game won't be sold in the FSU. So the threat of real consequences stops all truth-telling edgelord takes on the spot. Xander77 fucked around with this message at 20:20 on Sep 20, 2022 |
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Xander77 posted:
The game refuses to comment on anything to be fair. I'm half convinced that it's a joke on the player - the Mushroom Cult almost means something, but it is the nuclear cloud imagery featured heavily in the game's imagery? Mushrooms as symbols of decay? Does any of it jive with Morozov and his plan to form a hivemind to stop the Hesperus Star? Is there a point to this game? After watching TehSnakerer's YIIK video and the first interpretation of how YIIK is a joke on the player and a gently caress you for playing, I'm convinced that's the point of ATOM, and the ultimate joke is that you will never get the money back. ATOM Team has your money. It's theirs now. It's going toward more ATOM games. Nothing matters.
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TheGreatEvilKing posted:...the Mushroom Cult almost means something, but it is the nuclear cloud imagery featured heavily in the game's imagery? Mushrooms as symbols of decay? Does any of it jive with Morozov and his plan to form a hivemind to stop the Hesperus Star? given the overall humor of this game it was probably a dick joke
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I kinda rushed the end of that post and forgot the most relevant part: The game kinda \ sorta has poo poo to say about cults and neo-paganism, but absolutely nothing about the church, even though it was undergoing a massive revival in the late 80's \ early 90's, and really should be right there, supporting the regime and ordering the persecution of mutants. But unlike abstract corrupt politicians and cultists, "offending the feelings of believers" carries the penalty of a prison sentence (if within Russia) and \ or the remote possibility that the game won't be sold in the FSU. So the threat of real consequences stops all truth-telling edgelord takes on the spot.
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Sex and Totally Unintentional Violence With any luck, I will manage to finish this off moderately quickly, getting into both content and themes that the main playthrough didn't really cover. First of all - a quick jog to Bunker 317, with a few stops along the way. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() What are you... an actor? Where did that terrible voice come from? It's as if the devil himself spoke through you. Ugh, and cursing too. So what if I'm a foundling? They never lied about it Father says they found me in the forest when I was five, walking alone to God knows where... ![]() ![]() ![]() [Love (and you'd bet your right arm it's love this girl's dreamy eyes are full of) sometimes finds a tricky way into people's lives...] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I'm afraid he might have seduced my wife. I'm not always home... Sometimes I cross the border to visit my family, or spend the night fishing... And she's here alone... Try to understand me, friend... We've been having it rough already. And if she's cheated on me with this Korallov... I have to know. As for checking... it's easy. This bloody Casanova gives a plastic ring to every woman he's seduced - as a keepsake... So if you could rummage through her things... and find the ring... It would all be clear as day. Could you do this for me? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [Tourist Korallov plucks up courage] Until the day an evil witch cursed me! I was hungry and didn't sleep for 24 hours, so when she begged me for money, I might have answered a bit ruder than I should have. What a grave mistake it was! The next second the witch flew above me like a vulture. Only one word her blackened lips uttered: "Heartthrob!" I closed my eyes, full of fear, and when I opened them again, she was nowhere to be seen. Since then... I've been obsessed with this desire to seduce women I meet on my way. I don't understand myself how I always find the right words, how my body assumes the right position... As if I'm possessed by some invisible demonic power... But my methods, for the most part, work like a clock. ![]() ![]() ... PACIFISM! TGEK visited the Thug Fortress slave camp, but never bothered to interact with the thugs. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The bunker is actually fairly easy as a pacifist. Just go straight through, no side passages, no rats or ants (our party did manage to aggro a single rat, but I'm pretty sure you can easily sneak past it). Your party members may be unwilling to craft, barter, inspect computers, pickpocket or do anything of use besides kill stuff… but they CAN lockpick, via the handy “help me” icon. Our “former” slave is now a dedicated skill monkey. ![]() ![]() Gozhin has charged me with watching the stalkers who move through the village. With those rascals you have to be a good shot and a devoted haggler! I could teach you one of these things, but only one. Anyways, let’s head back to KRZ, lots of stuff still there. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The woman smacks her right hand on the table, fingers spread. She then grabs a large knife with her left hand and starts stabbing the spaces between her fingers, each time aiming at a new gap. As she does this dangerous trick, she sings:] Oh, I have all my fingers, the knife goes chop-chop-chop and if I miss the spaces in-between my fingers would come off! But still I keep on stabbing, oh this is quite the feat! Now think hard for a second - is this the record you can beat? [After the song ends, the woman sticks her knife in the table and gives you a challenging look] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... Once again, I kinda like the idea that random NPCs around town have their little stories and can boost your skills, or that the major quest hubs have wandering NPCs that you only meet on certain days. The basic design isn't terrible. ![]() ![]() But now, when I finally see the potential risks of living in the open like that... Hmm... Hey guys, you wanna go live in the woods away from all traces of humanity? No? Well we're doing it anyway! Pack your stuff. ![]() ![]() ![]() And turn them into a combat god: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The game kinda has some issues with sex. ... Speaking of, do you remember the bra retrieval quest from the main playthrough? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... So… Let’s talk about how this game treats sex. Your first reaction may in fact be "this game treats sex the exact same way Fallout 2 treats sex, same as it does with everything else". And... sure, Fallout 2 had that Beavis and Butthead "boobs, hehe" attitude that "mature" games in that era often had. It had an actual sex quality mechanic behind the scenes, it had its own porn movie questline (and porn magazine questline), several brothels and a shotgun marriage. What it didn't have is a consistent fascination with adultery and Swiftian misogynistic emphasis on just how gross sex can be. Zhanna, the nurse a male PC can randomly boink is probably the most Fallout "you can just have sex with someone if you pass some We've got a chance to get it on with several married women, and several other married women cheated on their husbands in the backstory. Two of these stories can end in murder. We have a chance to get it on with several mutant \ drug addicted prostitutes, with the narration and our companions pointing out just how gross this is. We're asked to break up at least two young couples, often by playing up their jealousy. We can recruit for (and star in) a porn movie, with the narration emphasizing the abnormality of our co-stars, the principal NPC insisting that the point is neither to make money nor to sexually educate, but to corrupt Wasteland society with perverse sexual norms. Toilet Kruul and his romance with a "normal" girl is outright written to be as disgusting as possible (particularly interesting if you recall that Mutants are kinda meant to be minority representatives). The incest-family in Dead City are meant to be as disgusting as possible, but on a less comic note. The Mushroom cult specifically pairs us up with an opposite gender NPC to manipulate us, though no outright romantic options are presented. And the one near-romantic NPC relationship with Katya is never consummated. Anything I'm forgetting? Anyway, game is more weird and awkward about sex that usual. News at 11. Xander77 fucked around with this message at 20:29 on Sep 20, 2022 |
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The sex bits being weird and bad through trying to "be more mature" is just another example of the maturity of the writers, yeah, also it doesn't speak well of their ability to contextualize what the gently caress they are writing (but then again a lot of writers badly need to read The Iron Dream and then a good portion of them will need to have it explained to them) and speaks volume as to the quality of their souls.
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Ugh! So this line is (as you may have guessed) from Othello where the titular character murders his wife over false allegations of infidelity, while Desdemona literally lies on his behalf and damns herself to hell for love of him. Meanwhile Borislava is unfaithful (I believe you have to bone her to get the bra recovery quest) and this guard is no tragic hero poisoned by the lies of a jealous man, he's just a dumbass working knowingly or unknowingly for The Conspiracy. If we are being generous it's a nod to Borislava not sleeping with the tourist as she doesn't have the ring, but I refuse to give this game any credit. Xander77 posted:And remember TGEK asking about why a real life person facsimile can have sex with the PC? Because that’s the “sneakily kill her” option, of course. That doesn't make it better! I do wonder if there's something to be said not just about this game's treatment of sex but about this game's treatment of women as well - all of the cheating spouses are women, for one thing. gently caress it, I've overanalyzed this game enough.
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TheGreatEvilKing posted:gently caress it, I've overanalyzed this game enough. ![]()
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TheGreatEvilKing posted:That doesn't make it better!
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The weirdest thing about all of this is that there are so many literary references, but the writing is terrible. You'd think that writers this well-read would have a little bit more to say.
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Xander77 posted:Oh, and you can get her Turban, which I believe is unique. +5 to gambling (at least it's not +5 to explosives, I guess. If only because Eastern European edgelords operate on a different set of stereotypes) plus ca change etc
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Propaganda and Politics I’m going to treat this game’s take on elections and propaganda as though it’s making an allegory for 2013 Russia. I’m sure that’s not at all what the developers intended, because naturally this game has nothing to do with anything ever, but… the author is dead, and this is the most coherent and least charitable take I have to give. You need to remember that when this game was written, pre-2014, Putin’s government was mostly considered a quietly corrupt kleptocracy, rather than a genocidal fascist dictatorship. So the takes on propaganda and politics are indicative of certain trends, but not quite seeing where said trends will inevitably lead. Let's start with the Trudograd journalists hanging out at the KRZ hotel. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() And I almost forgot... Maslov! Sergey Maslov..! Bloody liar. He says he was fighting at our side at that time. Serving at the checkpoint But we never had an officer with this name! He wasn't anywhere near the wall! I might be drinking, but I have no problems with memory! And his uniform! Ask him someday to put it on. He only wore it once to press the Chamber of Commerce to pay his pension. It's three times bigger than mine! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() They provoked the protestors to move ever closer to the wall! That was when Serezha Kulikov, our sniper, noticed that one of these people in plain clothes was carrying something under his trench coat. And now he crouched down and was attaching this ‘something’ to the base of a wall, while hiding behind the hippies that surrounded him... ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Maslov... Maslov... No, I don't remember him. I didn't have anybody with that name. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... What do you want now, comrade? I’ve answered your questions already. ![]() ![]() ![]() Edit - OF COURSE Sergey Maslov's name is a reference. What else would it be. Anyway, should we reveal the truth or ![]() 1. A direct polemic - a "take that", if you will - to Fallout's "who knows or cares who fired the first shot that led to WW3 now that they're all dead? If it wasn't our side, we've done our share of provocation and escalation". Nope, just evil Western invaders. We all know just how much Russia's enemies apparently love to hide behind civilians and kill their own population to make Russia look bad. To be fair, at the time the game was written there was no way of knowing that... outside Chechnya (1 and 2)... Georgia...Syria... 2. The framing of the question \ moral quandary is very much in the style of Russian propaganda. My dad, RIP, used to watch a lot of Russian talk shows. Solovyov and all that sort of garbage. They had a fairly common way of framing issues. "Since we know that [insane fact du jour] – for instance, that the reptilian ZOG government is coordinating the destruction of Russia and everything holy – what should we do about this obvious fact? Should we conquer the west with conventional weapons, or nuke the lot? Since we know that trans people only transition to earn money, should we exterminate them or just deny them human rights? Discuss amongst yourselves". Once the “fact” is well established as the foundation for further arguments about means and ends, the actual discussion is beside the point. This is why the journalist is just as happy to accept a story praising heroic soldiers or a scandal about stolen valor and military pretenders – that's not the point once the basic story is accepted. If anything, WW3 would have the same in-setting cult as WWII has in RL Russia. 3. The value of propaganda. In-game, most propaganda distributors and consumers are deeply cynical. Whether writing for newspapers (shame we don't actually get involved in TV news), repairing televisions, getting interviewed or consuming the new cycle, the prevailing opinion is that those in power know they're lying, and the consumers know they are being lied to. Would anyone take this nonsense seriously? Is anyone actually getting brainwashed? Yeah. They do. They definitely do. Not necessarily saying that KRZ should be conducting a(n even more) genocidal cleansing against mutants and "enemy" settlements in the area, but... ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Gubtsov smoothes out his neat beard dreamily and sighs] And the strangest thing is, as soon as this idea occurred to me, the editor-in-chief -of ‘”Shoot to Kill Print House" came to town for some business! This publishing house prints hundreds of materials, from survival, manuals to fiction Alas, I failed to persuade him that publishing my stories was a good idea... But if you think my plan is worthy... Maybe you could talk to him..? He's staying not too far from here, in the hotel! His name is Vladislav Zhirenko. ![]() [Hexogen turns to you and continues his speech in a whisper] Hexogen: Tell him to go screw himself, son! He's a moron! tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQizEQMo2ec ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Hexogen may take his name from a 1990's anti-Semitic thriller, but the in-game character draws from a number of dissident writers who hated the Soviet Union but also "Western Values" and had an abrupt nationalist turn towards the end of their career, looking for a strong leader to bring back Russian-Christian values blah blah blah. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [Uttering this odd phrase, the merchant calmly rises to his feet, then yells out loud:] WE HAVE A SLAVER OVER HERE! THIS SLAVER WANTS TO KILL ME! ![]() ![]() That's true. I became too emotionally invested. All right As long as Maximovich doesn't mess up my deals, he will probably even be helpful. It won't hurt to delegate him some of my work. ![]() ![]() ![]() [Entering the room, you hear a telltale click. Turning around, you find a mustached man in a cap aiming a gun at your belly] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() So where's your Cadillac parked? Siberia? Magadan? Be quiet, okay?! All right, I didn't serve in the army. But after me and the boys stopped looting people on the river, we had to come up with a pretty legend. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Only to end up at the entrance. ![]() But what if we really didn’t tolerate pedophile serial killers? ![]() ![]() ![]() I don't even know. You disposed of the people who kept the situation in Peregon from becoming a true nightmare. Money will likely become a real problem in the near future. Take these 500 rubles, three tins of food, and ten 9mm cartridges, as well as this Kasparamid pack. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... What we've got here is Which is why this is the good option. tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() It's true he's experienced. But he's also a coward, a doormat and a liar, if my initial impression of him is correct. However, with Denis Denisovich by his side I believe he will implement beneficial policies for the village. You might be interested to learn that there are two people in the village dead set against his candidacy. First of all, Vasya, the barman from the pub, who obviously supports his sister. Second, a certain Akhmed, a big moustached man, a former tractor driver. He himself is against Grankin, has set his wife against him, and is generally muddying the waters for everyone else. You've got to find these people and... convince them to change their minds. [The man slicks back his receding hair and moves closer to you] - The elections have to go smooth as silk, by which I mean one hundred percent turnout. Like it was in the USSR, may it rest in peace. But the problem is that two men in the village refuse to vote! Worse, their recalcitrance is confusing the other villagers. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() Next time - Mafia and organized crime, with practically no meaningful differences between different paths. Xander77 fucked around with this message at 17:40 on Sep 21, 2022 |
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Xander77 posted:
Is...is that a Zelda CDI reference?
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Yup. There's also an Icewind Dale reference.
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Mafia and Criminal Activity![]() … We are now tasked with investigating the source of the takeover attempt. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Anyway, let’s go ![]() ![]() In Peregon, there's a pimp who calls himself Aurum. He likes to chat up poor women from the North, tell them he's got connections to cooking or dry cleaning jobs if they come with him to Peregon or Krasnoznamenny. Once they're away from their friends and family, he forces them to become prostitutes or worse, sells them to rich perverts. Quite a lucrative scam, right? … Local gangs won't touch him, so we need someone who will in fact touch him. Fatally, if possible. That someone is you. Walk around Peregon, find this cat, and show him what for. I'll wait for you in Fogelevka. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() We're with Uncle Hook's gang. We were looking for Aurum, but it seems like you found him first You're like some scout or something! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [You reflexively take the stranger's hand. His handshake is firm, but not overbearing. With the pleasantries over, the man grabs a bottle from the rack and pours everyone a drink] For your health. Uhh... Nice. Hey, you're probably expecting a reward, right? We got you covered. Tawfik, get the money and loot out. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The men gathered around Valera look at one another and start cackling. You quickly understand the situation... There will be no meet up. Uncle Hook didn't believe you when you said you could not find the drugs, and decided to kill you for theft] ![]() ![]() [Accelerated to unimaginable speeds by the tornado, the rusty, diseased razors cut your enemies one by one, as they attempt to run away, tearing through backpacks and armor, turning boots into rags, and flesh into mince meat. You soon hear not a scream of pain, but a horrible death rattle. You don't know it yet, but that noise is made by Valera Dober himself. His jugular was torn asunder by one of the thousand flying blades, and he fell to the ground, gurgling, quickly losing blood] [The metal storm calms down as quick as it descended upon you. The screams and moans also go silent, one by one, as your terrified, injured enemies lose their final drops of blood. You finally get up in the middle of the chaos... Untouched. Seems like you were lucky enough to jump straight into the eye of the storm] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Yeah, I guess you got used to calling him by his real name long before he picked himself that cool nickname. I dunno about you guys, but I think this kid is legit saying the truth. How about we go for a quick smoke, while he meets his bro? ![]() ![]() ![]() [Seems like your words turned on a switch hidden deep in the man's brain. He loses his cool attitude and starts jumping around and punching thin air with his scary looking boxing gloves] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The bandits bow their heads and leave one by one. Hook is the last one at the exit. He stops suddenly, and squints his eyes at you. It's hard to tell what goes on in this man, who lost everything he fought for all these years...] These Wastes now have a mortal enemy. One day I shall return and knock this loving place out! … So… basically, nothing changed, regardless of who we sided with. Things even end in the exact same location, facing the same enemies. … Let’s try following things up with the non-sewer mafia. Last time, TGEK called in some debts for them, returning the cash in exchange for a small % of the money and access to the boss. We’re going to do basically the same thing, but first: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() There are no differences worth mentioning when you talk to Rosario. But! If we happen to annoy the mafia boys, possibly by trying to break into their little side room, we could kill them all without aggroing the rest of the city. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I'm not surprised. Those rats would serve the Devil himself if it meant saving their own hides and earning some cash. They will be the first to die when it's time to clean up that city. Dan: Okay, I see you told me the truth. Let's get back to Syoma Voronok's bandits. Do you know where to find them? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I ![]() [Grishka winks at you] Why does that cult need the stones is anyone's guess... Such stones are usually used to make all sorts of pretty jewelry items or... for some high-tech stuff. God knows. I don't even care why they need them. ![]() I ![]() ![]() I ![]() As for me... It's time to meet the buyer I'll sell these stones, and after that... There's a lot of places to visit! The Legendary Trudograd, Mountain Pass of Woes, the lands of the oil barons. Maybe I'll see you again one day. Last but not least, let’s go get Kovalev’s car. First thing’s first – the car we get from the mutant scrap yard is not acceptable, we have to get and renovate the car junked next to Dan’s factory. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() He... He's a reminder of a failure from long ago. ![]() ![]() Just before the war, all the factories were working to supply the army. Times were rough. Everything was dedicated to the war effort, even though some people were starving. That was when we first heard about cars being stolen. We increased our patrols and sent undercover operatives to check things out. We assembled a civilian militia from some willing volunteers and had them watch in places with a lot of parked cars. Finally we found out a small gang of car thieves was operating in town. Artemyev was their leader. [Kovalev goes silent for a moment. Then he stretches his back and continues] He was thought to be a good man, a true communist, a local factory mechanic who knew his craft. But when the war started, it turned out he wasn't interested in making an honest living. He faked sickness to avoid conscription, gathered a bunch of his deadbeat pals, and started stealing from honest folks. The cars he stole were broken up for spare parts on the black market. This business filled his pockets with precious cash! In time the gang became savage - they attacked a truck carrying tractor motors! ![]() ![]() So we planted an ambush and caught his gang red handed. But then Artemyev started shooting at us! Who knew he would stoop that low? ![]() ![]() ![]() As long as we’re here, we can pick up some doggy armor: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Yeah, I got those. I can deliver them in a couple of days, but it will cost you a pretty penny. 7000 rubles for the carburetor. 10000 for the starter. Yeah, it's a lot, but these days this stuff is really rare. Although there are other ways to pay. You can work for me, if you don't have enough cash on yo ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The second job is a fair bit more interesting. Close to the town, there's this locked bunker. They say it was used for intercepting communications of supposed enemies of the state. There should be a gadget in this bunker, called the "K22 Decoder". You don't need to know what it does. I just need you to fetch it for me. If you complete both tasks, you'll get your parts and more. Any questions? Hope not... ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() We could go buy a gas mask, or hold out for the Dead City toxicity-proof suit, but I manage a no-damage run straight to the decoder and back, possibly glitching the game. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … At least it’s only one bottle of gasoline, and I already got some for my own car. ![]() [The old man pours the fuel into the tank, grabs the wheel and gives you a sign. You switch on the starter... and the car starts chugging! Black smoke is shooting out of the exhaust] It works. |t works! I'm going to drive to Krasnoznamenny real fast and get some more parts! See you in Otradnoye when I get back. [With that, Kovalev, looking much younger all of a sudden, drives away, ignoring the surprised shouts of the village guard and the maniacal barking of his mutt] ![]() ![]() ![]() [You find the car you repaired. It's been shot several times and is on fire. Near it lies the former Head of Otradnoye, Kovalev. He looks bad, covered in blood, his clothes torn to rags and burned through in some places. Burn marks on his skin as well...] ![]() ![]() ![]() No use... I'll pass on soon. You know... it was a good life. I served my country well. I helped people. I built Otradnoye. And you helped me with my daughter! I know she loves this old fool... It's just that I won't have time to see her get married... or get to hold my grandkids... ![]() ![]() Don't tell anyone I died. But promise me you'll look after my girl! Give her good advice. Don't let her get into trouble. This... This is my final request! [The old man's gaze becomes foggy. He coughs, then wheezes, and suddenly goes limp. It is over. Kovalev has left the Wastes for the snowy High Tundra of Heaven] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I already know everything! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() What are you saying?! I don't believe you! Please don't joke like that... ![]() ![]() Xander77 fucked around with this message at 21:00 on Sep 21, 2022 |
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Here i thought we'd covered most of the poo poo in the game but selling people into sex slavery is vile.
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Haha, what a reference, Atom RPG! Did this game ever have any humour that wasn't referential or, I dunno, "whoa isn't it funny we brought up rape and slavery haha"?
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LJN92 posted:Did this game ever have any humour that wasn't referential or, I dunno, "whoa isn't it funny we brought up rape and slavery haha"? Xander77 fucked around with this message at 21:00 on Sep 21, 2022 |
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Crime and Punishment, I guess? That said, we’ll start by breaking strict pacifist rules to show off the damned car. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … Anyway, let's get to the actual crime and punishment part of this update. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Anyway, we give things the very briefest of pokes… ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() It's nothing... A trophy. ![]() ![]() drat, you're eagle-eyed... Only these aren't scratches. That's a name. Of one citizen... Kostya the Yob... ![]() ![]() Ah... This is a story from a whole different life. My life... But sometimes I even forget about it. And begin to think it's from someone else's. From the life of an ordinary soldier who, after the war, came to his home village... To his father and mother, and his son, to his wife pregnant with their second child. And he was lucky, that green youth - he saw everything the way he left it half a year earlier. The same faces, the same houses. Only everyone around had gone wild. As the first post-war winter came, the raids started. First they were cunning, in the night, with masks on the mugs of the looters. Then the looting became open and shameless. Why the hell did I decide to organise a resistance? At first it didn't go too well. But then, me and other ordinary, civilian men managed to fend off an attack! And on top of that, we've wiped out half of the gang! With hunting rifles, can you believe that? And also with my Makarov gun that I brought from the army... We thought things would get quiet... ![]() ![]() Bang! Seryojka fell down too... Bang! My mother fell down with a hole in her chest! Bang! My father! Bang! Bang! My friends, Ivan and Stasik with precise holes in their foreheads... ![]() But when Kostya the Yob finally pointed my own gun at me and pulled the trigger... only a click came out of it. The bullet got stuck in the chamber and rolled out, in the mud, through the ejection port. Can you believe that? The last bullet got stuck. My bullet. My... [With a shaking hand, the man grabs the bullet on his neck chain and clenches his fist until it goes white...] And now it's his... I swear on the names of my loved ones... This bullet will find Kostya the Yob. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The man's nostrils go wide, his eyes become bloodshot, but he manages to get a grip on his emotions, and calmly says:] Thank you. Thank you for finding him. Thank you for keeping calm and not killing him on the spot But now... Now I have to pay a visit to Fogelevka. Meet an old pal... ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() … But remember, you need to talk to all three of them! Chigurov's not some idiot who's just going to lay out his master plan. But I know a few things already and if you're really thorough, we might stumble upon something useful. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … Ok, enough faffing around – let’s go down to the dog-fighting area and find our informer: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … As long as we’re here, let’s do the truck escort quest and meet the old gang: ![]() ![]() ![]() [Everyone looks at each other, baffled... Where the bandits stood just seconds ago, there's a small circular hole in the ground. The bandits themselves lie dead, killed by your celestial savior. Nobody says a word. The situation is far too strange for celebration. You just nod your head and whisper:] ![]() ![]() The bandits are actually all around the truck, but changing the text so that the satellite debris hits all around you was apparently too much work. And now that we’re back in KRZ, might as well get one last last bandit hunting mission (until the next last bandit hunting mission), from Hannibal ![]() ![]() ![]() I need someone to gather the men I need together, and perhaps even participate in the forthcoming operation himself. It'll be one hell of a clash, trust me. ... A professional team. Lyudmila the sniper, a trooper known as Major Pronin, and Konstantin Arkadyevich Smirnov, a well known saboteur. These three used to work together until they had a falling out and went their separate ways. Now they can't stand the sight of each other. Such a pity! I've never seen a better team of killers. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I appreciate your candour... Once you've fought as many battles as I've had — you will start hiding not only your name, but even your favorite brand of vodka as if it was a matter of national security. ![]() ![]() [The giant takes one step forward with truly unexpected grace and is now standing right in front of you! His muscles are tense, his eyes are red with rage! "Punishment is inevitable" — it's very clear to you now... but suddenly you feel a heavy yet playful pat on the shoulder instead:] I see you don't scare easily, rookie! You're still soft as clay, however after a proper burning you'll probably be really hard to break! In the good old days boys like you used to carry my ammo for me. And all the others were jealous of them. Okay, you earned it. My name is Major Pronin. Afghanistan, Angola, Bolivia, Costa-Rica, Tanzania... GRU... And after all that — a border outpost on the road to Peregon and Krasnoznamenny. ![]() ![]() [The Major listens to you with a stony face and then shrugs dismally] Sounds interesting, I must admit. But the bureaucracy got me trapped in here, I don't even know when I will be able to leave. See, for example, this is the duty roaster for this month... [The man takes out a yellowed piece of paper and starts to straighten it out on his broad palm. When the paper starts to more or less resemble a document it once was, Major takes out two more papers] This is the days off plan. And our work contract. What do we have here? "Obliged to serve in the "Wolves of Peregon" detachment for three months after the date of filing an official resignation letter in duplicate." Have you seen that? In other words, let's meet at the Strategist's place. [A smirk reappears on the vet's face. With a swift movement he stuffs the rolled up piece of paper with some chart printed on it with tobacco, lights up, throws the rest of the papers on the ground and leaves... The commanding officer aims his gun at his back and threatens to shoot.. But then gives up and just waives his hand and lowers the gun] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The fight started and ended almost instantly. The battlefield is covered with the bodies of the unsuccessful conquerors of Otradnoye, and the heart-rending cries and sounds of gun shots are replaced by the ringing silence. You shiver involuntarily...] [All three mercenaries approach you still clenching their weapons. Major Pronin looks pleased, sniper Lyudmila and Smirnov the saboteur on the contrary, seem a bit tired. Lyudmila is first to break the silence:] ![]() ![]() [Somewhere in the distance a howl sounds, a howl of a wolf, or a jackal, or a wild dog, or some other creature, unknown to the human kind altogether. Soon the bodies of the dead will be eaten and thus returned to nature] ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() Xander77 fucked around with this message at 07:17 on Sep 22, 2022 |
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Clown world, amirite?![]() I said in the past that I liked the rumor system and how you get truths, myths and semi-truths mixed together, but we get so many clues tying the expedition to the Mushroom Cult from so many angles, that a random civilian pointing us that way feels like too much. How about some red herrings \ false leads? Maybe the mailman conspiracy recruited the expedition. Maybe they all definitely disappeared in the Roaring Forest? Maybe Sema loving Voronok took them out? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Yes, that actually sounds like a bargain. I'll get new inventory at half the market value. Listen, I've got some money stashed and I'm ready to spend it to gain a bottle! ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() But I was so sure about you. You gave me so much hope... Ugh, I see now that I was mistaken. You really disappointed me, and lost out on an ideal opportunity. [Ariadna looks at you regretfully and waves her hand] What can we do with you now? Nothing. It saddens me to say it, but we can no longer work together. You may come and go as you like, but you will never be one of us. Oh, and while we’re at it, we could gently caress up the very first assignment: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Check the city above us. Is it true that some con artist is telling people the dead man in his box are the remains of Lenin? Is it true that another man, dressed like a jester, is ready to die for a statue of Lenin in the market square? We could also try to help trader Yashin: ![]() ![]() [Sablin looks at you very seriously] I am myself a member of the noble Mycelium. I love their key principle of Unification, as do all good people! What can I say... Do you want to live? Then you do what it takes. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() But once we head to the circus… ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() It was never about choice. Life made this name for me. [The clown touches his round red nose] Like my nose? Think it's a prop? Heehee. What did the good doctor from Otradnoye say? "Cancerous growth". Probably something to do with all those times Mother threw boiling water at my face. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Here we go... ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Everyone wants to see the supreme mockery of nature that I represent, so we make a cool 500-600 rubles each month! Sometimes kids and old folks give me bread and sacks of grain too. So lovely of them! There's just one thing I don't like. The embryos inside those eggs always turn up dead. Except for one time... but I don't want to talk about that. ![]() ![]() Okay. Maybe sharing my pain with you will reduce my suffering. Once I laid an egg that wasn't the same as the others. It had a living baby inside it. One of my colleagues even heard it's tiny heart beat through the shell. I was so happy! But during the night, someone snatched the egg from my bed, smashed it open, and ate the baby! I didn't know who to blame -who would even think to do such a thing?- until someone told me it was Barbara the Bearded Lady! And to think I trusted her completely. She was my best friend! Now... Now I hate her guts! ![]() ![]() Don't you dare even mention that bitch's name! I've laid tons of eggs in my life, but only one had a living embryo inside! I was going to raise him as my son! I was planning to call him Vadim the Egglayer or something like that. But that stupid bearded bitch broke his egg open and not just killed him but ate him! I'm not going to talk about her anymore. I can never forgive what she did. Ever since my loyal new friend Ivan the Crane reported Barbara's evil deed, she is dead to me. Dead! Ohhh... Why did you even bring this up? What Ivan says is true: in all this cruel world, only he understands me. ![]() ![]() ![]() But those blissful times ended when my dear papa died during a hunt. After half a year of grieving, my dearest mother married Zheka "Mutantslapper" Matveyenko, a true Leninist and hater of all things mutant. His ignorance made my home life impossible. Thus, I found myself enlisting with this troupe of misfits. ... Oh, what I really want is to create art on a real theatre stage, not here. In the circus, I mostly sit in a makeshift nest taking care of plastic eggs, or just stand on one leg as the crowd cheers or jeers at me. Ivan the Crane: Although a few times, me and Gutsy the Clown acted out our own theatrical shows. One of I these, "The Emerald Mammoth" received a standing ovation. In that show, I played a burned-out Soviet officer whose service awards were stolen by his friend. I stood on one leg and made bird noises, begging my stage partner to give them back, but he just insulted me in return. Twas a real old-fashioned drama! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I... I even asked him that night... why was his beak so red. He told me he'd been pecking at some beets. But in reality, the stains were the blood of my unborn child! My Vadim the Egglayer! My god! And I've been cursing Barbara all this while. How many times did I beg God for her death? How many black gypsy candles did I burn for the Devil to claim her soul? While the real filthy baby-killer was right at my side! Forgive me, sweet Barbara the Bearded Lady. Forgive me for being such a fool! [Yana the Egglayer falls face first into the dirt and covers her head, shaking with sobs. She needs some alone time now] ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Forgot to claim the reward - there was a “humorous” “This is just a rat killing job, what kind of reward do you expect” bit. ![]() … ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() I know... I... l... Deep down I've always known. I know that I'm dealing with an idiot! And if you only knew when to leave, you could've made it out of here alive. Guard, get over here! ![]() Weirdly, this is one of the dialog breakdown points – the conversation completely ignores the circus folk running away, so you can get him to agree to the circus sticking around. But let’s pretend that's not an option. ![]() ![]() That's bad, very bad in fact. I asked you to eliminate the threat, not merely weaken it. Keep half what was promised you for partly completing the mission. [The man extracts the money from his breast pocket and hands it to you] ![]() [ ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() And as usual, I pair guarded praise of the game with another fuckup – when you pickpocket something, transferring the item from your inventory to that of a companion without leaving the inventory screen first counts as a separate pickpocket attempt and might get you caught. ![]() ![]() ![]() Ordinary merchants turn their backs on finds like these. But I've heard that somewhere around here is a man, or a whole gang of men, with bottomless pockets and a desire to buy these bizarre trinkets. At ANY price! No one knows where to look for this man, however the name "MystPromTorg" often pops up in conversations with stalkers getting drunk after suddenly coming into loads of money. ![]() ![]() You know, I strongly advise against you looking for that man. I've heard it said that people who owe their fortunes to him have a very short life expectancy. And not always from being robbed by other gold diggers. It seems these particular fatcats just run out of luck. I heard one got killed by a falling brick, while wandering around the Wasteland with no buildings in sight. The other had a rat crawl into his open mouth while he was asleep. A third was pecked to death by pigeons. You get the idea. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... Sorry for that eclectic collection, hope some of it was interesting. Next time, we'll hopefully get to Dead City and the Mountain pass and finish the game.
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They're advertising the power armor pretty heavily for Trudograd, yea. I'm kind of ashamed of myself for missing more postal conspiracy nonsense, but on the other hand ATOM is staying uninstalled.
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I think the Anna Karenina joke is just about the only one that actually hits being funny in this game.
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Mountain Pass of Woe and the end of Pacifism![]() 2 Battle gauntlets (each made from 2 spiked gloves, which in turn are made from weighted gloves) 2 Makarovs, wires and a tool box. The final result is: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … But that’s just ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() You... You-re bluffing! You don't want any innocent blood on your hands. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() [ ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() If you haven't showed up, none of this would have happened! drat it! Get out of my way! [The woman lifts her head up high and leaves the Caravanserai at a cracking pace. You follow her with your eyes and nod your head] ![]() ![]() Thank you! Thank you very much! I'll pay you back, as soon as I reach Trudograd. l'll mail the money to you. Alright, I'll be on my way. Ta-ta! ![]() TheGreatEvilKing posted:
As an aside, nothing about the postman quest here changes if you kill the conspiracy dude without ever talking to him. ![]() … Moving on to the castle proper: ![]() ![]() ![]() … ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() What did you say? Cheburov? Never heard the name. ![]() ![]() Argh... Where are my loyal fighters when I want to cut an arrogant freak..? Okay, you can lower your fists. I do know Chigurov, and I respect him in a way, despite his complex of a Wasteland Savior. I saw him some three weeks ago... But all I heard from him regarding his location was that he planned to go into hiding under the very nose of the debt collectors sent for his skin. I mean the bank he had robbed to buy that orphanage off the city of Far Gate authorities, who had planned to demolish it... … ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [The girl unbuttons the top of her shirt, letting out a tiny bit of her breast. Her boyfriend bites at his lips and sticks out his fists] But first you'll have to kill me! Go on! Tear me to pieces! Only then will I move from this spot and return too my father! ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Back to the fort to turn in the quest, nothing much new. Into the bunker we go. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() More info about what the Mushroom entity is trying to do. There’s also disturbing note from Ivanenko himself that I couldn’t find it on this playthrough. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Now you're talking business! Okay, listen. There's a gang led by a guy called Guber walking around within the city's perimeter. I and many others have wanted him dead for a while now. This piece of poo poo believes he's the Savior of the Wasteland. He and his sidekicks wander around, shoot a few mutants and gangsters, then pop in to our tent city to put the squeeze on people "for protection and ammunition". Some pay him gladly and thank him, but I'm not happy about it. I know how to avoid mutants and gangsters, so why should I pay these chumps? I'd rather give my money to you, if you can eliminate this wanker. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() It happened a few days ago. I thought I'd drink a few vodkas with the guys, but when I neared the harbor a bullet whistled past my head! And then another one! I ducked into cover. That's when I took out my binoculars and saw Misha Altayskiy shooting at me with his Vintorez! He was shooting, screaming and flailing around like a crazy man! Why would he do that? And who will be next to betray me? Brother... pal, buddy, friend, amigo... Please find out why he did what he did, I beg of you. Not knowing - it cuts me like a knife. I'll even pay you. ![]() ![]() ![]() [The professor looks at the contents of his syringe and licks his dry lips as if thirsty for the substance] After I added several... Hmm... Very special components to the formula, I became a little bit hooked on the stuff. But you don't need to know such things! So? Will you try this amazing product, my friend? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [ ![]() ... [Personality] I'm a stalker. They call me Killdozer. ![]() [ ![]() ![]() ![]() [Press the far side] [You press on the side farthest away from you. The cube clicks nine times. That side stays pressed in. You cannot press it again right now] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Hey there, human. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ... There’s no way to get the key via barter or dialog, but I happen to be a pickpocket specialist. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() That's probably her ghost, stalking me in the night. She's making me anxious, fearful, and dull-witted. She's taking vengeance for the life I helped take from her. But maybe... just maybe... if I put the glass eye with her in her grave, she will vanish and let me be. What do you think? [The merchant loudly swallows and grabs you by the hand] Please, do this for me! I will give you all the money I have left! Here's some in advance. Call it payment for finding out what you found out ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... Quick visit to the three-breasted hooker: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Xander77 fucked around with this message at 21:21 on Sep 11, 2022 |
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Is it over ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() … TGEK talked to the artifacts woman in the Stalker base, but only had one artifact to present (as they are appropriately hard to find). ![]() [You tell her about your misadventures in the Roaring Forest and the tunnels beneath.] ![]() Sounds like a fascinating adventure, and this figurine would most likely be of great interest to historians, but it's not for me. Sorry, I am more interested in... "special" items. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() …. ![]() ![]() … ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Our bones are not yet buried... They remain uncovered, playthings for the draft, food for the rats, seedbeds for rot and fungus. Cover us, protect us, I beseech thee! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Face McPunchy, from the hit game ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() 2000 each. I stole it back mostly as a matter of principle, it’s not like we have anything to spend the money on. ![]() ![]() I really hoped we'd get a first-timer into the tournament. Watching the amazing professionals you've followed all your life isn't what makes these things fun. Anyhoo, here's the deal: each contestant, including you, will be given a volunteer to act as a canvas for your tattoos. The creator of the most purdy tat will get a fabulous prize, a nice stack of money or a unique tattoo from me personally. You like? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [Dexterity]: 6 [Intellect] [Attention] [Draw a huge rat in a hat] [Success] [You quickly yet naturalistically draw a rat in a fedora on your model's body. The job looks quite impressive, but it's not ready by a long shot. You need to decide on the details surrounding the main drawing] [Crudely ink in a bucket of fecal matter next to the main drawing] [With the tip of your yellowish tongue curving up to touch the tip of your nose, you look at the real looking rat in a hat and add a bucket of fecal matter to the empty space next to it] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() [Happily, not all of the drawing was washed away by Hake Merluccius's stinking snot, but the dirty cheater is already preparing a follow-up “sneeze” at your work. You quickly grab up the rag you're using to sponge away your model's blood, and hold it out to Merluccius as if to offer him a handkerchief] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Next, I'll look at the rat in a hat you drew... Oh my! Flawless. Such depth, so much detail! This kid has talent, ya hear me, guys? Now let's review the small details. Quality isn't too important in this category, the main thing is the juxtaposition of the central image with the background stuff. In this case it works perfectly, kid. The tattoo of a rat in a hat is a perfect fit for a bucket of poo poo next to it. Airtight. ![]() ![]() tl;dr posted:
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... But joining the Death Gang (even at the last moment) and massacring the Mushroomers kinda goes against the pacifist ethos. How about we just join the cult? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() We also understand that there may, theoretically, be other ways of solving the problem our planet has gotten itself into. Therefore, you may leave. Look for alternative solutions! Who knows? Our plan might not be the only one that could save us. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ... Xander77 fucked around with this message at 04:21 on Sep 21, 2022 |
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All righty then. I already wrote up a review on steam, so let's see if I have anything to add, as well as what I and The Great Evil King agree and disagree about. Some relevant background - I am, in fact, a former Russian and an avid RPG player (LPer, guide writer). Huge fan of Fallout, Stalker, Metro and a lot of the same classic sci-fi (Soviet and otherwise) that the developers claim to be inspired by. Gameplay Unlike TGEK, I didn't suffer through every bit of gameplay. Quite the opposite, I occasionally had a fairly fun time (particularly when modded to be less of a hassle). As my playthrough demonstrated, this game has like 1 bit of (fairly difficult) mandatory combat in the main questline, and most sidequests can be completed with little to no fighting. If you do decide the engage the wide host of random encounters and optional combat, even gimping yourself by playing a melee character will allow you to facetank (and save-scum) your way through most fights, and you'll tear through the combat encounters with anything moderately optimized. Thoroughly engaging with every bit of content will shower you with permanent benefits (skill and stats increases in dialog and sidequests) and temporary stat increase items (having a thorough meal with tea, coffee, cookies and condensed milk makes you a combat machine). All the boosts are reasonably common and last for a while, so that you generally won't regret using them. Cooking giving you a tiny bit of xp is a great positive incentive to use all that food you pick up. The common stat boosts and wide variety of stats used in dialog ensure that you're rarely unable to complete a quest (and as worst case scenario, you can always resort to violence). Issues with the gameplay include the same clunky combat, barely upgraded from the original Fallout. Almost anything would be an improvement - using the Fallout Tactics combat system, including a real time combat setting, direct control over your companions actions, allowing you to start combat mode with the press of a battle, an entirely different UI... just about anything would be better. Another gameplay issue that doesn't really come across in a screenshot LP is just how stupidly oversized and empty most locations in the game are. Trying to evoke a sense of place that the graphics and design can't handle, we end up with dozens of pointless named NPCs and hundreds of empty or trash filled containers, all working to waste the player's time as it takes minutes to run from one end of a moderately sized dungeon to another. A hundred crafting designs, most of which are useless and can't be found in-game. I kinda have a thing about games wasting my time, but this sets a brand new standard. I went on about this in detail over the course of the LP and in the review linked above, so I won't waste more of your time complaining about the waste of mine. Edit - oh yeah, the lockpicking. So many of these endless doors and containers are locked. If you don't have the required lockpicking skill, you can't try to open them. If you do... you get to fail over and over until the dice finally land in your favor. The worst of both New Fallout approaches. And being locked doesn't even guarantee the container will contain anything of value, or anything at all. Writing Once again, unlike TGEK, I didn't hate every single line of dialog in this game. "Dull realistic prose" didn't murder my parents, and frankly, it takes far more tedious and pointless RPG writing for me to get genuinely annoyed. ATOMG RPG is miles away from something truly unreadable like Pillars of Eternity or something truly vile like Planet Alcatraz. It helps that my first playthrough was in Russian, and a lot of the references at least got an "I recognized this" out of me. If anything, I feel like more deep cuts about 1980's Russia would work better than Shrek or crypto currency. Russia had the same revival of 80's nostalgia in the 2010's as the US (unlike now, as we seem to be going back to the good old 1930's). The companions had coherent and (with the exception of Fidel) vivid personalities. Some of the more absurd jokes, like the Luck outcomes for difficult combat encounters, actually landed. Most of the game's content and sidequests was tied together into... well, not a thematically coherent whole, but at least tied to the same in-universe lore. The Mushroom cult and the Postman conspiracy were involved in almost everything that happened. TGEK posted a "conspiracy board" of the various relations halfway through the LP, and I feel that updating it now would make it more complex than the KGB LP conspiracy chart. On paper, it's better than a bunch of things happening in total random isolation from other. I consistently praised the rumor system - all these NPCs have something to say, and you're never entirely sure whether it's directly relevant to the game, a bit of lore or just made up bullshit. The game at least mentions a lot of very interesting subjects, and is subtle enough about it that TGEK first assumed that the game barely has any supernatural elements in it. On the flip side, the writers seem to think that references are the same as jokes, and that mentioning something is the same as discussing that. There's a lot of "hey, this doesn't belong in post-apocalyptic USSR!" stuff that's meant to be funny on its own, and a lot of concepts are brought up and never followed up on, with the game acting as though it's done something clever. There's also a lot of... charitably, edgy cynical internet hot-takes from people who get a lot of their humor and worldview from Lurkmore \ 4chan. Less charitably - bullshit alt-right takes "sneakily" wedged into the game. With all that, I didn't find the game the worst thing in the world... but with the revival of Fallout-likes over the past few years - Encased, Underrail, Shadowrun, even Wasteland (3), there's really no reason to go with this. Even if you're a Russian Fallout fan, this game doesn't really lean into the aesthetic and the references in an interesting way, and you'd be better off with Fallout mods. Xander77 fucked around with this message at 22:03 on Sep 22, 2022 |
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Xander77 posted:All righty then. I already wrote up a review on steam, You reckon that "Cunning Fox" person was a troll or a bonafide nutcase? "I see nothing wrong with chauvinism" is a hell of a take.
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The proudly and smugly self aware shitstain is the T10 entry in the main shitstain line, just got to upgrade the engine and bob's your uncle, no nutcase to be seen and no real need to look any further, some people are like that.
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Xander77 posted:Once again, unlike TGEK, I didn't hate every single line of dialog in this game. "Dull realistic prose" didn't murder my parents, and frankly, it takes far more tedious and pointless RPG writing for me to get genuinely annoyed. I think I need to clarify here that I am still going to die on the "dull realist prose" hill because this isn't a history textbook, it's supposed to be a surreal conspiracy story full of untrustworthy characters, talking pigs, alternate universes, cosmic horror, and fourth-wall breaking characters who look like celebrities. This is done by dully describing character mustaches. Taken with the empty rooms, endless empty containers, excruciating lockpicking, and other waste of time mechanics I think it's reasonable for the dull and excessive verbosity to be the time wasting straw that breaks the camel's back. If you can stomach it, more power to you, but I think the game is overall weaker for trying to present a surreal conspiracy by combining dull realism and the Unity Asset Store.
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Honestly, the most surreal thing I've seen in this thread is someone trying to use multiple-award-winning RPG Pillars of Eternity as an example of a bad game with bad writing. I appreciate both of you going to so much effort to show this thing off; I picked up Atom a long time ago but bounced off it several times just because the prose is so dang clunky. For a game that's mostly about reading, you really need text you can sink your teeth into, and bumping into a dozen grammatical errors during the tutorial really just turned me off of it. Nevertheless, I always worried that I might have been missing out on some amazing game experience as a result of this, and the dual LP here has convinced me that, no, I really wasn't. Thank you for playing this game so that we don't have to.
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idonotlikepeas posted:Honestly, the most surreal thing I've seen in this thread is someone trying to use multiple-award-winning RPG Pillars of Eternity as an example of a bad game with bad writing. As to writing quality... I could appeal to goon consensus, but more to the point, it takes a remarkably bad game for me to drop it based on interminably wordy, dull and purposeless writing. PoE is honestly one of the very very few RPGs that managed that feat, and it will always feature a place of loathing in my heart. I won't even try the sequel, which is consistently billed as "in retrospect, the first game was poo poo, but we promise that this one is better". Xander77 fucked around with this message at 16:08 on Sep 23, 2022 |
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# ? Jun 11, 2024 07:03 |
Xander77 posted:Hey - did I say it was a bad game? It sure as gently caress is, absolutely terrible, but my initial post didn't say anything about that. For what it's worth the stuff in the first game stretches the story of the second into, um, bizarre incoherence. Maybe i should do the Pillars games sometime.
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