Lancer

Some of my favorite movies (in no particular order): The Matrix/Matrix Revolutions Rocky IV Troy Return of the Jedi Cyborg Fist of the North Star Spaceballs The Naked Gun movies

I just played Scrabble for perhaps the first time couple of weeks ago with an experienced player. Got my a$$ handed to me but it was a fun one shot deal.

Heroquest was my favorite boardgame of all time. It has been well over a decade since I last played it. Played Heroquest right before making the move to fantasy RPGs. Great game. I used to play a lot of chess as well when I was younger. But other than sporadic one shots here and there I am not an avid boardgamer. I have long since sold my soul to RPGs

Oh, of course! You mean "good" combat? Like Diablo or IWD? No thanks. I like profound games with engaging storylines, branching dialogue options and deep meaningful NPCs. If good combat means a half-a$$ed storyline/npcs then by all means I'd rather have "bad" combat.

Ultima VII was undoubtedly an awesome game. What you say here is also applicable to Torment, however. People constantly complain about the "bad combat" but it was virtually a non-factor in that game too. I was too enthralled about the storyline, the gameworld, the in-depth NPCs, and learning more about TNO and co. to be worried about the next demon I was going to run my sword through.

Are you an engineering major?

Ah crap, now I have to go back to Karate. I use to take Karate, but then quit when it became too much of a hassle to go. I really liked it, but I could bring myself to actually get there. I still help my brother practice his moves, so I still remember everything that I was taught. I only got up to a purple belt though. :"> Anyway, I like to read, I program small games (battleship and the like) in my spare time. I also go to school and regularly procrastinate on my homework. I've nearly turned it into a science. " <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I also took karate but got only up to blue belt and then had to quit because we moved. I would love to start it up again...

I love PnP and Online RPG gaming(currently designing my own homebrew), Baseball, Dancing, Traveling... I also enjoy reading and in my spare time read science articles usually about astronomy, psychology and other sciences, websurfing, and of course chasing the ladies!!! I am currently a grad student in Planetary Science/Geology.

You know what I meant .. When I think "dialogue system" I am thinking of how npcs are handled as you state here. So yeah.. Semantics aside... I agree with what you say here 100% And you are being remarkably civil! That is refreshing!

I said "dialogue" system. Not skill system. TNO has much more say in determining what happens to Dak'kon, Annah, or Morte than the Vault Dweller does in dictating Ian's or Marcus's actions for instance. Torment's characters had *SOUL* and *DEPTH* that I would argue is the best I have ever seen. Aside from being combat buddies, there wasn't really that much depth to FO's characters in many respects. But this was ok, because the emphasis on FO (as opposed to Torment) was on influencing the gameworld rather than influencing the NPCs. FO was better than Torment in that your actions mattered to the actual gameworld, but Torment was superior to FO in that your actions determined the fates of the characters you journeyed with. It is really a matter of taste which side of the coin you prefer. P.S. But then again this debate will never have end between us. We have argued this very thing since the old BIS days.

It is not hurtful to me in the least. I don't really care if you or the next guy enjoyed Torment or not. But when say something that I feel is an erroneous (unfair) representation of Torment (especially for Meshugger who just got the game) I will be among the first to jump in and correct it. What one considers "poor combat" differs from person to person. I for one didn't think the combat was poor at all. And never understood the folks that do. edit: We *are* replying too quickly.. I will probably need to go and get that sleeping bag.

If you think that FO had a better NPC dialogue system than Torment. I have nothing else to say to you The closest to it would probably be Arcanum's.

There is a difference between HAVING combat and FOCUSING on combat. I can't help you with the distinction. And so did I. I never said Torment had a dearth of combat.. In fact if you had paid attention to my posts, I had actually argued the contrary! You keep saying this and I will just continue smiling back at you.. "Yeah, if you say so.." " It is indisputable that combat was much more of a focus in the BG series than in Torment. Continuing to say otherwise is just searching for ways to belittle this awesome game. Keep searching. :D

When you finish the game let us know your thoughts on it.

..yeah and just like diablo right?I am sorry you feel that way. *shrugs* Although I don't deny that there was a suffice amount of combat in PS:T, saying that it was as much as a focus "just like in the BG series" is a far stretch to say the least. There was a good amount of combat in Torment, although it was nowhere near as combat-focused as the BGs. Period. Maybe you just like more combat in your games which is the true source of your ire? Perhaps this is why Torment just didn't suit your tastes regarding combat? But claiming that Torment is as combat-focused as the BGs is a 'clear as day' erroneous statement. Here is another one: You already forgot about Torment's awesome NPC dialogue system? It is clearly the best in any RPG then or now. Certainly better than BG2's. The music sucked too? This is a first. What about the superior writing?

But in response to the original poster (and true purpose) of this thread.. Yes, you purchased the best one possible up to the current day.

Umm.. This is just not true. "Chaos" spell anybody?

Hmm.. I'd love to be a thief in that one.

Next time don't assume that people are talking about you when they are not.

Fighting giant skeletoins in the crypt oiuitside the moirtuiary was diffuicuilt if that was oinei oifi the first quiests yoiui toioik. The loiwest floioir in the tenement oifi thuigs was alsoii quiiite difficuilt. There were alsoi soimie toiuigh encoiiuinters with ghoiuils in the sewers. All in all it was noit as easy as soime peoiiple like toi claim. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> There were a lot of satisfying encounters in Torment (despite what the naysayers say) it is just that some people felt you didn't get "enough" of them. The problem is that every person has their own built-in meter of how much combat is "enough" in a game. It might also have to do with the lack of weapon/armor assortment in Torment as compared to the BG games. People like to try out a lot of different weapons and armor and Torment just wasn't as rich in this as the BGs. I just don't see any real justification for the "Torment combat is easy" excuse that people bring up. It just doesn't hold any weight.

Temper.. temper.. I didn't specifically ever mention you. I do ,however, imagine that there are quite a few people that feel that Torment's combat was bad because there just wasn't "enough" fighting in their eyes. Not so much that the "quality" was bad per se... Just the quantity.

This is a more logical response. One that I agree with. Torment's non-combat parts were better.. Or the other IE games? Are you saying that combat was less enjoyable in Torment than other IE games just because it was so overshadowed by its roleplayins aspects?

I don't. Ultima VII's combat I admit was lacking (even in comparison to Torment) yet I loved Ultima VII. I just honestly don't understand why some believe that Torment's combat was "bad."

People complaing about how "easy" Torment's combat was is just an excuse to hide what they really mean... I believe they were just annoyed that you weren't thrust into some battle or another every minute or so like the BGs.

If you thought that Torment "focused" on combat then you completely dropped the ball. Nope. Combat was definitely secondary.