alanschu

I feel sorry for you because you're pretty much setting yourself up to be unable to enjoy the game due to irrational preconceived notions of it, and banal nitpicks. Further compounded by the fact that apparently the same shortcoming in Baldur's Gate allow it to become one of the best games you've ever played.

Well no **** Sherlock. The joys of it being a video game is that EVERYTHING needs to be explicitly coded into the game. If someone didn't think of a choice, then you're ****ed. What choice did you have in Baldur's Gate. Quite frankly you're either remembering Baldur's Gate incorrectly, or you're a being hypocrite. Nothing escapes you from the fact that you are a Child of Bhall in Baldur's Gate, and nothing stops you from being raised in Candlekeep. All the random exploration in the world doesn't change the fact that the plot in the game is as linear as a straight line is. How Baldur's Gate, one of the games that offers quite literally a stunning lack of choice in terms of character origin as well as plot, is one of your favourite games of all time absolutely baffles me. I guess the pink hair and colour customization of your character just puts it over the top. But I guess because there was a variety of races and classes (afforded simply because it's a game based on AD&D) it somehow allows all this freedom of creation? Would your opinion of the game be that much less if Gorion had given your character a last name? If you want to bitch that you don't think the game will offer the same, non-plot related exploration that Baldur's Gate has and you love then fine. But when you're nitpicking Bioware for creating 6 uniquely different ways to start your character off with unique backstories as being restricting in choice, while claiming that Baldur's Gate with it's single forced character backstory as one of your favourite games of all time, then something is clearly amiss. Anyone that thought the story would arc in unique ways and you'd ultimately get 6 significantly different playthroughs based on the origins (i.e. 6 games in one) is just being exceptionally unrealistic.

Well quite frankly, I find the games with the blank slate character are rather generic and cliche. If this is a sticking point for you, I suggest you stop bothering about the game. You seem pretty intent on not enjoying it, and even if you try to convince us that you'll still give it an honest try, you really won't. You seem so intent on finding ANYTHING to slam about the game, that you're just going to go through the same motions when playing the game, scrutinizing every detail so that you can find something to gripe about. All this instead of actually trying to enjoy the game. Quite frankly, I feel sorry for you. So what's the problem? In DA you'll create your character, give him/her a name. You'll chose a sex, class, and a background for your character. You'll get to decide where you'd like attribute points to go, what skills and talents you'd like to have. Here's a tidbit for you. Every Bioware game is quite linear. Baldur's Gate is probably their most linear plot (with a bunch of random exploration if you want to do that). For all intents and purposes, DA is a lot more non-linear than Baldur's Gate. For instance, you don't have to start in Candlekeep (or perhaps Fallout's starting off in Vault 13, or Fallout 2 starting out as the Vault Dweller's decendent, etc). As others have mentioned, the fact that there's a point of common ground where the stories sync up on occasion is common in virtually every RPG. Endless choice = endless development time. Even a sandbox game has choke points in its story (even there's any in from the main story at all).

This is why it's useless to answer your rambling rants. I'm through talking to you. I think he has a pretty good point to be honest. No game looks nicer than this one?

When I read it with the an I found myself naturally reading it as "an Oooniversity" hahaha

Shouldn't that be "a" University? Or do you pronounce University differently than I do?

How is he weird? I can't recall other games that had conversations quite like his. It's the type of thing where if I were to describe a conversation with him to you without context, you'd probably be like "that doesn't sound very interesting," but I think it's just the way the character comes together. Like, imagine yourself explaining to someone what it is like to play SimCity. It doesn't actually sound very fun at all, but when you play it you actually enjoy it. I am looking forward to playing around with him more later.

I don't know. Probably someone in Ethiopia or the Congo. Happy now? Unlikely. How about Australia? Canada? Brazil? Those are the three largest suppliers of tantalum. In 2004 Australia supplied 75% of worldwide demand. If you want to believe Wikipedia, less than 1% of worldwide Coltan supplies comes from the Congo. I'm very glad you've deemed yourself qualified enough to declare me morally in the clear. Though if I have a connection with African children, so do you. It's pretty convincing though when you have to shift words to such powerful things as "probably." I know you're enjoying rationalizing your life away to prevent any cognitive dissonance. Unfortunately, regardless of whether or not you are directly paying for your own internet connection, your use of it continues to contribute to the demand for internet services, which means you're still quite complicit in maintaining the demand for computer related equipment to maintain the various servers and backbones that provide us with the internet service we value so highly. Not to mention that these tech guys also use cellular phones to be available in case there are any outages. So, you are not morally "in the clear." Hate to break it to you. Furthermore, I'm curious why you bother visiting a videogame website to discuss this since video games themselves place a significant demand on technology and help drive the industry forward. The PS2 helped place a large demand on Coltan. Always nice to see some application of Godwin's rule. Your quote is stupid though, because Hitler's might was stopped by Allied and Communist forces. Because they had greater might than the Axis forces, we get to go around and impose our will on the world while the Nazi's don't. Making the connection to Hitler doesn't invalidate Killian's claim (even if I disagree with it).

I find conversations with Sten interesting in a weird sort of way. I didn't play much with him this playthrough, so I didn't get to unlock much about him, but some of his conversations I had in my limited interaction with him were quite interesting.

I like the Khabibulin signing.

I find KotOR 2-s amnesiac beginning a funny example, as a lot of people don't realise that the amnesia goes as far as..a week? And it's just temporary too. Are you referring to KOTOR's amnesia? It's hard to say it only lasts a week when there's really no context of time given in the game.

Does that make it generic, or does that just make it fit within a particular genre? Isn't there a bit of familiarity with making a fantasy game with making a fantasy game that has Elves and Dwarves. The type of context that helps people establish a sense of the setting? Would people still be happy buying a fantasy game that is set with races called the Hibone, Jeebway, and Marklarks? Maybe "happy" is not the best word to use, but hopefully you know what I mean. I remember people criticizing Alpha Protocol because Michael Thorton "looked generic." Well, what exactly are people hoping for with respect to a spy? Though perhaps appropriately, when I see your examples of great evils, lame farmboys, and village burning down, I would consider those cliches. Were people hoping that elves and dwarves wouldn't be in Dragon Age? Would people have been happier if elves are subterranean mountain dwellers, and dwarves living in the forest? People hate the amnesia thing today, but many of us are quite okay with it in Planescape: Torment, for example.

Personally I feel that the terms "generic" and "cliche" are tossed around a bit too much. What makes a game "Generic?" I can understand cliche characters, but at the same time, is that necessarily bad? What are people hoping for in terms of things not being cliche or generic?

Ah fair enough. I'd agree.

Interesting. Certainly different than WITP in that regard. I suppose it makes sense given that land combat can be much more involved.

http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/v...eloperId,27153/ Look through there to find games, go to credits. Greg did a lot of programming on Shattered Steel.

I'm pretty sure they didn't work on MDK since that wasn't a Bioware game

Especially when considering such subjective things as "the best thing ever."

You assume that I actually purchased this computer, and further that I own it. I have never bought a new computer. No. You're assuming that when I say "your computer" that I am referring to a computer that you own. I was referring to the computer that you currently using. Instead of avoiding the question though, who mined the Coltan in the computer you're currently using? This computer was produced, marketed and sold without my involvement. Buying used things has no influence on their rate of production. Oh I see. So I'm in the clear if the computer I have was purchased used? Or would you like to rationalize things further in order to avoid any cognitive dissonance?

Who cares?

I am pretty sure he was talking about Mass Effect though.

I was most certainly lifted on occasion. The toughest fights I had were against Biotics.

I think it's bad because it'll make the characters too boring personally.

Does Kaiden have lift? I think so. And yeah, it seemed like a win button to me too. Incapacitates hostile while I shoot his face off.