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Magister Lajciak

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Posts posted by Magister Lajciak

    Eulogy for a game

    in Star Wars: General Discussion

    Posted

    MMOs are like vampires sucking in the creative energy of the company concerned and leeching of all story elements of the franchise to feed their habit. Because of their pervasive nature (and the heavy resources/concentration expended on them by the developers), they automatically render other games in the franchise unlikely. Calax has pointed out the reasons for this succintly and eloquently.

    NWN2: Storm of Zehir is out!

    in Computer and Console

    Posted

    We've consistently used Icewind Dale as a comparison for the game, along with Fallout and Darklands and a few other inspirations, although we've never said it would be devoid of dialogue (there's still a decent amount of VO in the game, just not for every single conversation option from every party member). The focus here is on Full Party Creation with fewer companions to bring along for the ride (although you can still find over 10 of those as you play). Dialogue is intended to propel your adventure, and the game is well-written, but SOZ is really about adventuring and seeking out fortune and glory instead of talking to an NPC for ten solid minutes. We've been pretty up front about that, in my opinion.

     

    Yeah, this is true - Icewind Dale comparisons were plentiful, as was the emphasis on the gameplay/party system/overland map, rather than story/dialogue. It will be an interesting test whether Obsidian can shine in those areas, because other Obsidian games were particularly strong on the dialogue/story and MotB was absolutely superb in these. Indeed, it is these aspects that attracted me to Obsidian's games in the first place, so it will be interesting to see how well you guys have pulled of a less story/dialogue driven game.

    Computer arrive - thanks for the help!

    in Skeeter's Junkyard

    Posted

    Thanks for the info ML. That's a good bargain on your link. Unfortunately I can only buy from Korea (visiting now) or NZ when I get back home, and the range of models and bargains available are much more limited. I'm braving a famous electronic goods market in Korea (lots of bargains in the hundreds, but sometimes second-hand or modified goods) with an expert, and probably looking at something a step below that - penryn, 3gb ddr2 ram, 9600m gt 512mb ddr2, etc.

     

    I'd have thought you could pull a bit more than that out of your laptop regarding FO3, but I suppose you haven't pushed it yet. Sounds fairly promising though, I'm not that bothered about massive resolutions.

     

    Yeah, as I said, it turns out I was running something in the background that slowed it down. But I have been so absorbed in King's Bounty: The Legend since then, that I have put Fallout 3 on hiatus until I complete that game (and it is huge)!

    Pathfinder RPG Beta

    in Pen-and-Paper Gaming

    Posted

    The main playtest of classes has now finished, but playtesting continues for other areas. I think there will be substantial changes to the classes based on the playtest feedback. There certainly were strong hints in this regard. I have also been an incessant advocate of bringing down the power level a notch, so we will see what happens with that.

    *The* DRM thread

    in Computer and Console

    Posted

    King's Bounty demo also has StarForce.

     

    ! :lol: I guess I am lucky it didn't do anything to my computer!

     

    Are you sure about this? The full English version of King's Bounty uses SecuROM, but without the limited installations and without the need for online activation, so it is only a disk-check (I know for sure - I bought the full game [bTW: It is excellent!]), but the Russian version does use Starforce (though the DRM has supposedly been completely removed in the latest patch).

    Personal reactor in five years

    in Skeeter's Junkyard

    Posted

    I don't know how to react to this. On the one hand, it is a great thing, enabling cheap reliable distributed power and providing a stable power source for remote communities. Yet, I cannot help but think about the huge proliferation issues this may lead to in the long term. It will make access to radiological materials easier, particularly in countries with little-to no security capabilities that might want this most in the first place. It will also probably spread nuclear technology. Once a country buys a reactor, it will want to develop the capability to refuel it itself (and some to build it themselves in the first place) and will thus have an excuse for building enrichment facilities. I don't see this as a rosy development in the area of nuclear proliferation.

     

    We will also see how nuclear waste disposal will occur. If sell such a supposedly hassle-free reactor is sold to say the Central African Republic, I have strong doubts that nuclear-waste disposal is going to be dealt with responsibly...

     

    I can see the enormous potential of these mini-reactors, but the associated problems could be considerable too. I have not made up my mind yet as to whether the positives or the negatives predominate and this despite the fact that I am generally supportive of nuclear power. Regardless, I do have to say that this is innovative and exciting in the technical/economic sense.

    Question about release dates for Obsidian staff

    in Obsidian General

    Posted

    Generally release dates are set by publishers, yes. It used to be the case that all the media would have street dates that fell on a Tuesday (this is still the case in bookstores and music, as far as I know), because it's easier to stock new titles on a Monday night/Tuesday morning, which is usually the slowest part of a week. (This also helps to drive sales during the slow part of the week, as well.) Over the last few years, though, it's been getting a bit more open; Nintendo regularly makes a case of releasing games on a Sunday, if I recall correctly.

     

    Most games will still come out on a Tuesday, but if a publisher wants to try and make their game have an EVENT RELEASE, they'll move it around in the week so that it comes out on a day where they're not fighting with a dozen other games. It might not affect sales at all, but it can sometimes result in more press in the gaming press, especially, if your big-name game is releasing on a Friday while everything else is releasing on the previous Tuesday.

     

    I'm sure there are other aspects to it as well...

     

    Thanks for the expose.

     

    There is another case for releasing on a Friday rather than a Tuesday. Major gaming websites and online gaming magazines are not usually updated over the weekend, so the game is pretty much guaranteed to stay on the front page for three days rather than one! :thumbsup:

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