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Diogo Ribeiro

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Posts posted by Diogo Ribeiro

    Mini games and button mashing

    in Computer and Console

    Posted

    Even worse, I believe time doesn't pass while you pick locks. That kills all the tension!

     

    How so? Does game time not pass while everyone goes about their merry way or does it freeze the AI like Deus Ex, where you would hack a computer terminal and NSFers would stand there waiting for you to log out to start shooting?

    What you did today

    in Way Off-Topic

    Posted · Edited by Diogo Ribeiro

    Who the what, now?

     

     

    How did that happen?

     

    They are doing a show about the subject on the 16th of December (broadcast by TVI) and I guess they decided to look for videogame sites to talk with actual gamers. I was writing for a videogame website, and my email was there. Other people on the same site pointed out they received that email as well, and I suspect other sites must have been contacted too.

     

    That's pretty much the only explanation I can find, really.

    What you did today

    in Way Off-Topic

    Posted

    Ok, today I've stared at my laptop screen, not knowing what I should do.

     

    Because I've received an email from a journalist.

     

    Asking me if I was available to talk about videogame dependency.

     

     

    On television.

     

     

     

    WHAT.

     

    THE.

     

    DEALIO.

    Is Metal Gear Solid 4 any good?

    in Computer and Console

    Posted

    I didn't have trouble finding her actually, but what's that crap with the tranquilizer darts? Didn't do anything to that wicked monster. It was helpful for the FROGS though. Anyway, she's now gone, and I finsihed Act 2. That Vamp vs. Raiden fight was really awesome, and I mean generally the cutscenes are the best directed I've seen anywhere. This game definitely deserves more hype and respect. Now I'm in Eastern Europe, it's really well modeled.

    I better go and take some closer look to Matthews link again. I feel I really missed out a lot by not playing the predecessors. Oh btw, was the younger Snake the protagonist in the previous games, or wasn't that some different guy?

    the "young" snake was the protagonist in Metal Gears 1 & 2 and Solid 1 in Metal Gear solid 2 Raiden was the protagonist, then they went back in time 30-40 years to the 70's and did a game about Big Boss (who's the spitting image of Snake) the story is convoluted to say the least

     

    Also, if you ever feel like playing the really old ones - for curiosity on how the gameplay evolved or the story and characters were - avoid the NES games like the plague and go for the MSX versions. While the NES Metal Gear is fairly spot on in comparison to the MSX title, the second was an atrocious action shooter that had nothing to do with the series. And with a villain called Higharolla ****amamy, you can guess why.

    My opinion on the words "dialogue" and "dialog".

    in Way Off-Topic

    Posted

    Wonder if my post on the Fallout 3 thread prompted this? :thumbsup: Like I said, I had seen it used many times before, but to the best of my ability always used dialogue since that was the spelling I learned as being correct in my younger days.

     

    I propose senate hearing to ferret out the culprits. If it works, then we can move on to other areas of concern, such as "rogue" and "rouge" (a pet peeve of mine).

    Help on explaining certain concepts

    in Pen-and-Paper Gaming

    Posted

    Your face is a nerd.

     

    In seriousness, today I didn't go to work; had to take care of some health issues at the hospital for a family member. I found public transportation is great for two things - appreciating that mankind has put effort into inventing deodorant, and thinking about elements for the adventure. Since I've began work on this, I've been thinking about giving plenty of opportunities for all classes and prestige classes to shine. Problem is, would people expect this to be applied to the community's own PRCs? There are many, and considering venues for each and every one would be taxing for a one man train wreck in progress. On the other hand, by sticking to the base classes and PRCs, it would allow me to develop a lot more options.

    Help on explaining certain concepts

    in Pen-and-Paper Gaming

    Posted · Edited by Diogo Ribeiro

    Thanks a bunch, Sawyer :) The Nelanther Isles seem like a perfect fit for what I had in mind, and the pirates serve as one of the plot hooks to reach the island. I'm still not sure of a proper timeline, though.

     

    With that in mind, I think I can talk about this a bit more in order to discuss and refine some of the ideas behind the project. This adventure is actually two projects in one; two NWN modules that didn't see the light of day. One was mine, which I talked about in the past and was being spearheaded by me and Volourn. The other was a project Monte Carlo had, where I was also briefly part of the team. Suffice to say, neither really took off for some reason or another. I guess the main pitfall was one of the reasons espoused by Sawyer in an article he wrote about module development - ambition without the means to see through it.

     

    Now that the above left me feeling like a one man Troika, I think it's safe to say I'm looking at this in a different way now. It's still an ambitious adventure, but while some of my past ideas are still present, the scale is definitely on par with what MC envisioned. Rather than an almost new setting, I'm trying to put most of the Forgotten Realms' lore to use. It's also set on a large dungeon, with an equal measure of combat and role-playing; in particular, I am looking into exploring party dialogue mechanics like those seen in Icewind Dale 2 and introduce events and consequences tailored to a players' choice. One area in particular is meant to be generated based on the PC's class, making it a different kind of challenge for different players (although I still need to learn how to have NWN recognize what class to opt for when a character is multiclassed).

     

    That's also my choice of platform, for better or worse - I know NWN2 is the superior engine but at this point in time I have absolutely no way of making modules for, let alone play, NWN2. And the original NWN seems to have a bit more player support for it as well, like the CEP. The reason I'm talking about this at the Pen and Paper Gaming forum is that I intend to release as many notes as I can about the module on release, possibly resulting in enough documentation for DMs to use in game sessions.

     

    Since this is becoming too long already, the basic outline of the adventure is this.

     

    In the past, four arcanists arrived on the Nelanther Isles (thanks again, Sawyer :wub: ), negotiating with the ruling pirate lords and constructing a tower in a nearby isle, the Black Isle. The tower served their needs for reclusion and study, and nearby trade with the pirates allowed them enough supplies and research materials to stay there. The high, jagged cliffs also offered some degree of protection against other means of intrusion as well. Over the years, however, they became more and more secluded, to the point of cutting off all deals with the pirate lords and never venturing off the tower again. The pirate lords saw their self-imposed exile as a possible threat and decided to investigate but all their efforts were thwarted, either by the impenetrable walls of the obsidian tower or the magical traps and wards in place. Eventually they gave up, in part because of repeated failures, and also because the various races that compose the bulk of the pirate forces in Nelanther were too busy among their own faction wars and raiding nearby shipping lines.

     

    One day things became worse. A large, thunderous sound was heard coming from the Black Isle and suddenly, magical energies started flowing uncontrollably from inside of it. Various weather phenomena began manifesting, from raging currents to gale force winds. Several pirate lords saw their valuable raids utterly lost as several ships were pulled towards the island's gravitational forces, crashing into its cliffs. When these effects subsided, came the worse - the island became the afforementioned magnet of magical energies. Not only did it began interfering with common trade routes and the pirate lords' raids, but also with almost everything around it. Anyone casting the smallest of cantrips found themselves teleported to the island's grounds, with very slim chances of escape.

     

    The weather and magical phenomena destroyed some of the magical defenses in place, allowing the pirate lords to send in men to scout the area, but almost none returned. Those that did return spoke of destruction and madness, but also of riches untold. Whether they had been manipulated by the wizards into giving these informations is unknown, but the pirate lords do know that something happened inside the tower. And they want to know if they need to fight against it or if they can profit from it.

     

    This is where the PCs come into play, as rumors of the tower spread quickly along the trade routes of the Trackless Sea. The starting point could be either Nemesser or Irphong, although I think there’s some kind of curse in the latter regarding pirate ships. Players would arrive on a ship and perhaps investigate a local tavern in search of information about the island, along with possible means of transportation to reach it (although I am thinking of exploiting that magical magnet to teleport the PCs there).

     

    Level layouts for the island and tower are a bit nebulous at the moment, not because I haven’t planned them, but because they’re undergoing revision in regards to enemy placement and combat, since I want it to be a bit more challenging than vanilla NWN (again, looking to IWD2 for inspiration). The tower eventually leads into a central area connected to a large set of caves and passages, the latter having been used by pirates in the past. Several areas within the tower and the island are derelict and destroyed, with certain floors collapsing into the ones below; while others are rich in encounters and traps – from resilient golems and undead, to portals that take you places you wish didn’t exist. And each mage is meant to have its own “token” area. Whether they are still in the premises is a mystery, though.

     

    I’m trying to set up some of these encounters with other factions in the Realms in mind. Since the Black Isle started to draw attention, certain groups and organizations have tried to investigate the place, which means it’s possible you come upon a handful of Thayans looking to take advantage of the situation or a paladin order of sorts that could feel the stench of undead miles away.

     

    Anyway, I feel like I wrote too much and said nothing of worth.

    Prince of Persia is out

    in Computer and Console

    Posted

    Otoh, simply removing death from a game a la Bioshock or even Planescape really takes a huge chunk out of the urgency to stay alive, which really hurts the intensity of gameplay.

     

    But even with the absence of death - and the inclusion of a chance to retry at almost zero cost, such as the time necessary to jump back into the fray - you're still left with goals to overcome, which may be intensive or not within the framework of the game. If you're close to saving someone from being killed but die yourself in the process, for example, that's still demanding of players.

     

    Also, you *can* die in certain areas of Torment. Of course, these are very few and operate more as alternative endings to TNO's path (

    like becoming the new Silent King

    ).

    Ready for Xmas?

    in Way Off-Topic

    Posted

    Bought the gifts, wrapped them and they should all be sent by the end of this week.

     

    Same here. But then I started thinking "man, the shipping costs aren't worth it". So I just put them under the tree, and on Christmas Day, I'll just look at them with surprise. As if the gifts I bought weren't all for me in the first place.

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