Xard

ouch pwned

I could copy paste my answers earlier on but I prefer this: L0L

Yeah, there are great jRPG's with great turn based combat systems - being jrpg doesn't equal to crappy FF7 or 8 gameplay I really mean what I said about Troika and ToEE. It is entirely Troika's fault game was such POS. Atari had already planned out franchise from ToEE and its engine. That's how much they trusted Troika's skill and turn based combat as great system in modern era. And yes, it means we might've got load of TB combat games merely from Atari. If ToEE had been success (and reason it wasn't had nothing to do with it being TB) we'd see nowadays a lot RPG's with turn based combat because reverred and succesful games tend to be influential, so others would've followed. By screwing up ToEE they spelled doom for TB combat in mainstream CRPG's for years to come - up to this day, really. Everyone claiming TB games can't be succesful in modern era obviously have intentionally or not excluded millions of people carrying their money for DS titles and jrpg's. Here in Finland Silent Storm was picked by people AND critics both as GOTY (we did that for JA2 too, lol). It seems to be only America with problems to respect TB combat

coz developers thinks it lacks mass appeal, ToEE had the bestest combat of all DnD computer games released (evvar), on second place you'll find the old gold box games. Problem is that a trailer featuring this kinda combat just doesn't look very cool lol no See the difference between combat system and actual combat. ToEE has best combat system*, but combat itself wasn't anything special. IWD's and BG's had easily better combat as did even Fallout 2, PS:T, NWN1 HotU and some other recent titles in some places. And that's sad remembering the awesomeness of system. Troika deserves all the blame for ToEE's failure. In fact the so reverred Troika should be nailed to tree for destroying the once in a lifetime possibility to revive great TB combat in RPG's. Thanks ****ing a lot, Tim Cain *though crappy interface did its best to screw it

Syd Barrett - Dominoes

This is how taxes should be. Go go Obama! It is just fair increasing taxes of very rich people

I'd say memory is important for game like MTW2, so maybe 1 gig over 512 mb would make world of difference.

I remember reading official finnish PS2 magazine (whatever happened to it anyway, one day it just disappeared from stores...) about the game and vast hype about its revolutionarity and depth of system and how you could blow up nearly any wall anywhere and advance through levels however you wanted etc. Come to think of it, NWN1's and Bethesda games hype gets a lot flak around here and elsewhere, but Red Faction hype contrasted with what we got may be worst case of bull****ting ever Well, there's Daikatana of course

I wonder to what extent we can destroy our enviroments I've been bitter and skeptical about that aspect of games ever since Red Faction came out

Ehh, the expansion pack is winrar Main game is better version of R:TW but too similar to make it exciting to play after Rome.

I'll write answer here tomorrow, but it's not that I think you're snobby because you don't like ps:t's philosophising. It's just the overall dismissing and narrow attitude you channeled on anime, modern art and what not But more on that tomorrow edit: btw, it is kinda alarming if I tell someone he shows snobby characteristics edit2: and snobby might be bit off, let's just say dogmatic in bad way

HotU had some great encounters such as Lich Dragon in Act II. In the fundamentals, it's a bit like taking one KotOR, removing melee combat, seasoning it with Pohl and Reynolds and adding lesbian sex. That sounds really fcking awesome until you realize how silly a game K1 was. edit: Last time I played HotU was about two years ago though and I was a lot worse D&D player back then. But I remember combat being rather good in that expansion pack, easily best in NWN franchise with some tough fights. Who knows, maybe HotU would be breeze now

practically all people I know who've played ME has said "It's kinda like Kotor 2.0 without lightsabers"

dude, no just no

Yes, they are crushing, so many people without any taste. I'd understand this if you'd raise MotB, PS:T, Fallout or something on the pedestal instead of ME, but when one raises Kotor over Mass Effect it's just silly. They're very much same thing Sorry, I've noticed that too. As soon as people quit attacking me, I'll get off the subject. It's not attacking, it's questioning

judging by amount of people really liking the game - even those who hate everything Bio spew out after BG2 or alternatively HotU - compared with those who liked kotor but didn't like ME like you...well, numbers are crushing

WoD, did you consider the fact circumstances surrounding you playing K1 shroud your judgement? I personally only started to dig in RPG's in 2003 and K1 was one of the first games I played. And it was just pure awesome. However, more I played games and esp. older RPG's Kotor's status started to drastically weaken. Game that was for quite a while my Number One Game Ever doesn't even make it to my Top Twenty anymore, even though I have many of my fondest memories gaming memories with that game. Playing K2 never was such "OH MY GOD WOW" moment like K1 had been, but nowaday I consider K2 to be hundred times better game. Mass Effect from all I've seen, read and heard just can't be worse. It actually has more than one important decision to make, better combat system (kotors one is horrible), better graphics and production values etc. Only thing Kotor 1 seems to have over ME is the setting, because Star Wars in kotor era still retains the magic Original Trilogy Star Wars had. But as a game it should be inferior in every way. By the way that mission comparison wasn't fair at all. Kotor missions were chockful with simply killing crap Korriban was awesome though

but you can still like his vice-president in your mind...

Low standards? No, awesome standards. Have to say I'm bit more inclined towards Meshugger's point...

Ahh, it is the same central philosophies you hear MCA and other OE folk spout out nowadays. You know, "choices and consequences bla bla bla choices and consequences bla bla interesting writing bla choices and consequences". The main difference is that Vince as kind of freelance guy makes these looong analyzes and arguments for his view. I'd guess you could summarize it as putting C&C as N. 1 Governing factor in RPG designing Wait a second. Isn't Dweller supposed to be cool and edgy? How can he be that if he is essentially an independent OE? It's cheap to just say "read the interviews", but you get the idea only that way really indepth. Vince's campaigning for TB combat and other such "outdated" stuff have been great and hilarious read. I'm not FAN of him (it would be kinda silly as he hasn't shipped anything!) but AoD is one of top games in my waiting for list. Other thing that sets him apart from others is how he challenges many basic truths aka presumptions about RPG designing. Just see parts about "monsters don't listen to diplomacy. Ergo -> combat encounters" and "non-combat gameplay is just maxing your speech skillz and clickin through dialogue" myths and how he marvelously debunks them. I think even OE could learn from things like that. Of course grain of salt is always needed. anyway, here's direct Avellone quotes from one of his latest interviews: and Of course he shamelessly buffs C&C in all AP interviews and previews. heh Same with many Obz devs in interviews you can find from Iron Tower Forums Heck, I'd go and say Iron Tower Forums has best collection of RPG related interviews ever. Just see that indepth Sawyer interview about gameplay mechanics for example

Ahh, it is the same central philosophies you hear MCA and other OE folk spout out nowadays. You know, "choices and consequences bla bla bla choices and consequences bla bla interesting writing bla choices and consequences". The main difference is that Vince as kind of freelance guy makes these looong analyzes and arguments for his view. I'd guess you could summarize it as putting C&C as N. 1 Governing factor in RPG designing hmm, a few posts back you were claiming this guy's definitions were objective truth. now you're simply saying that you agree with his overall take on things. let's wait a few more posts, so you can shift positions again... Read more carefully, I never claimed to be objective. It should be pretty clear by now that I do not believe in objectivity. Heck, even science is epistemological and not ontological. Check out my last post on the previous page. That's closest I can come up with calling something objective. Play some FPS's Let me see... Half Life, Half Life 2, Half Life 2 Episode One, Half Life 2 Episode Two, S.T.A.L.K.E.R., Doom 3, Doom 3 Resurrection of Evil, Crysis, Sniper Elite, Clive Barker's Jericho, Far Cry, etc... I did not know those were not first-person-shooters. Clearly you see how vastly inferior Bloodlines combat then is.

If I have to painfully specific I mean his takes on choices and consequences, roleplaying, importance of skills and character deviation through them etc I think Vince's liking for non-linearity etc. is part of his overall design philosophy, not what are requirements for good roleplaying in CRPG. edit: You are standing in front of a fortress and dying to get inside because that's where all the cool kids are. There is a gate, but it's guarded. You need a pass to enter. Your options are: I'd add to that you can roleplay in combat too (not drink any potions etc. because your character has potionphobia or something ) but really, what's to whine about in that? That is of course on ideological level, free of constraints of resources and development. You CAN'T throw that much options to player all the time in CRPG like you can in pnp, but the basic philosophy is sound

Age of Decadence

ask WoD lol edit: this is to say as part of Iron Tower forums he must know many good links to interviews and stuff

sure we did. is 'cause they is simply opinions. start from pov that Cannism is Only or Right way to do something is... wacky. again, we is talking 'bout game development, not religious dogma, so notion o' canon is misplaced. HA! Good Fun! Ahh, but so is everything, at least in my nonreligious worldview. I'm relativist. Not to push armchair philosophising here (there's enough in PS:T tangent) but that's reason why I pretty much follow Plato's definition of ("objective") truth as "truth is well argued true belief" (free translation by me) And what VD does is arguing for his true beliefs and I find core of those arguments to be very well found on. I have no reason to dismiss or criticise them down to nothing. There's stuff I disagree with - the utter moral greyness in instances where it doesn't fit and is only "original" revising such as his take on SW Ep III - but his core arguments what constitutes roleplaying are very easy to agree on. Just because those are just opinions doesn't mean there isn't seed of (subjective/objective) truth in them. Anyway, that's enough for this. I don't want to be part in creating THIRD separate tangent in such short while here in OE