Humodour

I'm pretty sure Volourn is drunk. Nobody can make that many typos and be that arrogant in one post. Not even Volo.

But it had pretty graphics. And I agree, Tigranes, that a universal inventory system is a bad idea (I believe that's what you were implying); it should be designed to suit the game.

http://games.slashdot.org/games/08/07/13/0122213.shtml Not unexpected? I wasn't expecting it. I didn't think Hellgate: London was doing poorly, and though I think it could have been handled a lot better.

Ah Volourn, you're too much.

Seconded. But then, mkreku said similar about the Dragon Age trailer, which I found was also graphically acceptable. I mean, come on mkreku, do you really want to encourage the cult of graphics? Perhaps graphics have gotten to a point where they are sufficiently detailed that improvements can be made, but it's not worth the development time/resources which could be better spent on story and gameplay? Graphics can't improve at an exponential (or even linear) rate forever; graphics and processor hardware is slowing down in improvements, and once it hits the wall, game graphics will soon follow. I hope you won't be saying "Graphics look ****! They're 4 years old." then. I've certainly noticed a trend towards ever less stunning/amazing graphical improvements over the years (i.e. things look better all the time, but the margin by which they look better gets smaller all the time). It's particularly interesting because many observers have noted that Moore's law is somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy. As for what Ranger said... well, yeah that's a different kettle of fish. I'd agree with him for things like Oblivion because it's somewhat shallow, but dark-themed games it doesn't seem like a youthful, beautiful character would really suit. (Making a character look pretty and making a character look graphically aesthetic are disparate.) Edit: What am I smoking. I thought this was the Hinterland thread. Well, point remains, although now mkreku is getting angry about one game's graphics instead of two.

you guys saw this article, right? i think it's on the money: on the one hand, being able to carry unlimited amounts of loot is silly. on the other, it's kinda dumb to make carrying your gear such a major part of gameplay. as the article points out, most story-driven CRPGs approach it more sensibly, by having weight limits tied to character strength. but it still comes across as kinda arbitrary sometimes, e.g. you get DEX penalties for wearing a certain kind of armour, but no penalties for hauling fifty scrolls, fifty scrolls, two staffs, two swords, three shields and twenty library books into combat... Haha. I wouldn't try to rationalise it. For me it's just part of the complexity dynamic; complex enough to be interesting, but not so complex it's hard or annoying to use. Diablo 2's inventory system verges on annoying to use, as does the IE engine's. I found Deus Ex did it well, even though it would seem there's little difference. It certainly worked well to balance the weapon system and such. I wouldn't really shed any tears if such a system were reworked as Night suggests. However, if we're simply to end up with Bloodlines's or Fallout's system, that's hardly better.

Based on the article it would certainly seem differences in expectations of console gamers and PC gamers is the reason for it being console only. Suppose it is (and I concede there's a degree of ambiguity); where does that leave games designed to cater to both groups at once?

I presume you've all gone to Ravenholm?

I thank the host, Mr. Tulip, and leave. My nostrils burn. I sneeze out a white powder; I realise it is powdered mothballs. I am most displeased. I lurch over to my kangaroo and hop on. I notice somebody is lying in a pool of urine on the sidewalk. I am most displeased. Giddy up.

What, you mean like this: Wait, didn't you just describe Diablo 3? invalidated your argument? Definitely not unless my argument was "Diablo 3 isn't a frenetic or social game". Or "PC's don't have any games which share traits in common with games on consoles." So, let's hear it: what are your thoughts on this, Dan? Clearly this developer is implying that the console market is different to the PC market in its needs and desires w.r.t. video games, no? Different enough that they felt console gamers would enjoy a game specifically catered for them more than one that tried to juggle PC and Console markets. What, then, do you think those differences are? If the console market is sufficiently different from the PC market to design a game specifically catered for it, as the Stormrise developers clearly feel, then does that not imply that a developer trying to design a game to cater to both markets simultaneously would be making concessions in quality to one market or another - or both, in order to make a solid game that sells well in both markets?

I have arrived at the party. I get off my kangaroo and greet the host. We all snort some cocaine and laugh, because that's what we do in Australia when we're not mugging nobles and consorting with harlots.

Well it invalidates the crux of Hell Kitty's argument.

BREAKING NEWS: No.

I am laughing maniacally at this thread.

The 'mission statement' of the game; what it's design to be, what it's designed to achieve. The same reason people might be excited about Alpha Protocol or Aliens.

I'm lurching around, thinking about going for a swim in the harbour.

I'm pretty sure Bioware are glad Volourn has no affiliation to them as well, with his attitude.

I'm lurching.

It'll be **** anyway.

I had no problem with KOTOR 1 or 2. KOTOR 1 was a very fun game, and KOTOR 2 improved upon it a lot. It wasn't 'better' due to bugs and cut content, but it was certainly still entertaining. Now I'm not a fan of the direction Bioware is heading, or rather has already ended up, but that said I am looking forward to Dragon Age, since I have an incling it'll be a refreshing diversion from Bioware recent path.

*lurches up to thepixiesrock, accidentally headbutts him, then starts gnawing on his brains, but not finding them very tasty as far as brains go*

If this is an actual bug, and not you requesting a language translation, then you might want to consider communicating this to one of the developers directly so they can pass it on.

You mean like with a movie? If you're making a quip about publisher's cut, I'm not sure whether or not Steam necessarily makes Obsidian directly more money, although I know Chris Avellone said he likes Steam. The thing is, in this case the publisher is Sega, and as far as I can tell they're supportive and excellent to work, for so I wouldn't really want to circumvent them getting their cut.

Well, I don't think making decent mod tools necessarilly detracts from the role-playing experience. You likely already have them as developers anyway, so it's simply a matter of making sure you code the engine in a way that's modular, and/or possibly recoding your dev tools somewhat to make them easier to use.