All I can say is I would kill for a modern-day remake of Shadowrun (the SNES version, not the shitty Genesis game), and Secret of Mana. Devs can release all the Skyrims and Dragon Ages, and I don't care for them.
As to what it is going to share with the SNES version I'm not sure beyond it being isometric. It's a browser based MMO and the Devs are purportedly fans of the holy artifact known as SNES Shadowrun. The Genesis heathens are all over their forums though.
That's right I'm resurrecting console wars from 1991.
All I can say is I would kill for a modern-day remake of Shadowrun (the SNES version, not the shitty Genesis game), and Secret of Mana. Devs can release all the Skyrims and Dragon Ages, and I don't care for them.
The Genesis game was alright, but the SNES game was pure gold. On the old games are best games, I'll still play through PC games from the 90s on occasion. Especially, old adventure games: The Secret of Monkey Island, Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, Space Quest, Manic Mansion II: Day of the Tentacle, as well as X-COM: UFO Defense.
The best of those games played with a self-awareness of their technical limitations, their presence on a computer system, that was pure gold even back then. Arguably that authenticity isn't possible to recreate on our modern mega systems.
Of course, modern systems are awesome and I'd never want to turn back the clock. I just like to visit from time to time.
Also, Bioware made Mask of the Betrayor didn't they? That was stellar storyteling. So yes, it does happen. Just not when you stick something in super generic trope-filled fantasy land. The best part about DA:O was the mage stuff, because that was actually interesting.
Actually it was made by Obsidian Entertainment, which is the company made by all the same guys who made...you guessed it.
I'm sorry, what? The Genesis Shadowrun was so vastly superior to the SNES shadowrun as to seemingly be a completely different franchise.
Genesis shadowrun was actually.. you know.. shadowrun. I know, shocking, but it actually stuck much more closely to the proper ruleset. Also, hacking was fantastic, as was being able to get body mods and everything. I cant even imagine anyone prefering the SNES game, unless they just never played a game of PnP shadowrun.
If you want another take on a "modern" brawler that tries to look like it's a bit older, you can look into Dungeon Fighter Online (I might be a big fan of this).
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I'm sorry, what? The Genesis Shadowrun was so vastly superior to the SNES shadowrun as to seemingly be a completely different franchise.
Genesis shadowrun was actually.. you know.. shadowrun. I know, shocking, but it actually stuck much more closely to the proper ruleset. Also, hacking was fantastic, as was being able to get body mods and everything. I cant even imagine anyone prefering the SNES game, unless they just never played a game of PnP shadowrun.
I agree that the Genesis game copied the ruleset better and had a better hacking game. But I thought the SNES game had better atmosphere and story; in other words I thought it was a better 'game.' For the record, I both played and GMed Shadowrun (2nd Ed) before getting into the video games.
What the Genesis game taught me is that Shadowrun would probably work really well as a GTA clone.
While I'm not an "old" gamer, and I think modern games can and sometimes do rival the classics, the 90s will forever hold a place in my heart as producing some of the best damn PC games ever.
I've yet to find more atmospheric and memorable strategy games than Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri or Heroes of Might and Magic III. The gameplay is timeless, immersive and intelligent, the factions are fantastically well-realized and distinctive, the art is amazing and holds up OK even now, and the story (especially for SMAC) is phenomenal. SMAC used sounds and eerie music really well to create atmosphere, but I will champion HoMM III as having the best OST of all time; nothing else comes close to the beauty of that orchestral score.
Also, Freespace 2. I get depressed on a regular basis whenever I realize that Volition will most likely never be able to make another Freespace game; easily one of the best games of all time in my book. The gameplay was fun as hell and the story ranged from fun, exciting space adventure to magnificent epic to chilling and fervent emotional moments. GTVA Colossus, never forget.
Also, Bioware made Mask of the Betrayor didn't they? That was stellar storyteling. So yes, it does happen. Just not when you stick something in super generic trope-filled fantasy land. The best part about DA:O was the mage stuff, because that was actually interesting.
Actually it was made by Obsidian Entertainment, which is the company made by all the same guys who made...you guessed it.
PS:T
Anyone else think that bioware's writing quality is inversely propotional to the amount of pandering they've been doing to the silly romances?
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Ninja Snarl PMy helmet is my burden.Ninja Snarl: Gone, but not forgotten.Registered Userregular
Also, Bioware made Mask of the Betrayor didn't they? That was stellar storyteling. So yes, it does happen. Just not when you stick something in super generic trope-filled fantasy land. The best part about DA:O was the mage stuff, because that was actually interesting.
Actually it was made by Obsidian Entertainment, which is the company made by all the same guys who made...you guessed it.
PS:T
Anyone else think that bioware's writing quality is inversely propotional to the amount of pandering they've been doing to the silly romances?
Ugh, I hate how that's all we ever hear about when they write a game. I get sick of hearing all sorts of hullabaloo about different romance options because I want them to make a good story (and game), not waste time on utterly useless nerd-bait socialization options.
Seriously, these guys are fighting for the fate of the entire galaxy and you want to take twenty minutes to talk about feelings? And do it badly? Way to reinforce that whole image of gamers as antisocial lackwits.
I just reinstalled FreeSpace 2 Open Source again. I keep reinstalling and playing that game every couple of years. It's like a tradition, or a vigil of sorts. It's just so perfect. Partly it's cause I just upgraded my video card and wanted to test out all the shiny effects. All the new MediaVP models have transparent cockpit windows now, so that's nice.
Dragon Age: Origins is the best game ever. Period.
No game comes close in terms of characterization and choice in the story.
There were roughly 15 minutes of DAO worth playing, right around the Landsmeet. The rest of the game was trash. The combat was pisspoor, the characters were laughable, the plot was pulp quality at best, and the 'grey' moral choices were uninteresting.
We need another Earthbound/Mother, or at least a spiritual successor... The Japanese are so cruel. "Hey, you stupid Americans don't want Mother 3! Here, take Mario: Wall St. Edition instead!"
Reminds me of the days that Japan used to completely dumb down its RPGs when they shipped them over here. Americans were too stupid to play the proper version of Final Fantasy IV, apparently. Never will forgive them for never bringing Seiken Densetsu 3 over here. Secrets of Evermore was... okay, but nowhere near as good.
All I can say is I would kill for a modern-day remake of Shadowrun (the SNES version, not the shitty Genesis game), and Secret of Mana. Devs can release all the Skyrims and Dragon Ages, and I don't care for them.
Why even a remake? I've always thought this.
For example: Think about how many people and how much money it took to make Baldur's Gate 1 way back when. That game wasn't exactly the 3d wizardry of other titles at the time but it was cutting edge. I honestly believe the only barrier to some indie startup making a real BG3 in the infinity engine is the writing side of the thing. It would still take the same amount of text and dialogue and storytelling, but the mechanics of the engine would be a walk in the park. Modders today are making total conversions of Ue3 games in their sleep. I'd imagine given a small budget and about a year or two of modest development, a small twenty man dev team could make an actual BG3 and make huge profit. Better that then trying to step outside your means and compete in the big-boy's world and go up against thirty million dollar juggernauts.
Here's another: How much would it realistically cost SEGA to dig up their old 1994 mega drive dev kits and have some men in a basement make an actual Sonic 4. None of this 'inspired by' bullshit. Everything, and I mean everything, Sonic related since Knuckles has been shite. Even the times when they tried to go retro but completely missed what was good. Why hasn't that happened? No really, why haven't they just made a new 16 bit title for basically no money at all and made huge profit off the nostalgia junkies alone? No need for any of this Perfect Dark/Halo:CE retro-remake bullshit. Just a flat out, clunky and unwieldy 16bit Sonic game. No extraneous characters other than Tails and Knuckles. No aspirations for epic storytelling. No fucking voice overs. Seriously, the game I'm imagining in my head is brilliant and it would be no trouble whatsoever.
Furthermore, why isn't everything released before, say, 2002 on GOG.com? Really, why are there any licensing issues at all? You can't even buy in shops half the games I want to rebuy, for money, and have run stably on my rig. If I was Mr Big Time CEO at a big publisher, I'd be on the phone to the archives department and say 'give them everything, we'll make money again'.
I just reinstalled FreeSpace 2 Open Source again. I keep reinstalling and playing that game every couple of years. It's like a tradition, or a vigil of sorts. It's just so perfect. Partly it's cause I just upgraded my video card and wanted to test out all the shiny effects. All the new MediaVP models have transparent cockpit windows now, so that's nice.
I very well may end up dropping the $ for a serviceable joystick this holiday so I can give myself a real FS2 Open (and Blue Planet and War in Heaven) playthrough experience; it's been far too long.
Any recommendations, if you use one yourself?
Also, if you haven't seen this fan-made FS2 Open trailer, I highly recommend it. Best damn fan-made trailer I've ever seen, but I'd expect no less coming from the game that has what is, to this day, my favorite intro cinematic of all time.
Every time I play Planescape Torment, I'm a slightly different person at that point in my life and that results in me taking different choices than I did before. I always try to play it "honestly" (my one time trying to play a really evil character resulted in me quitting during act 2 after getting really depressed), and yet it's still a new game every time.
Planescape: Torment allows you to be a complete fucking monster. It's difficult to actually complete the game this way because you will usually eventually depress or disgust yourself and feel bad about it.
I just reinstalled FreeSpace 2 Open Source again. I keep reinstalling and playing that game every couple of years. It's like a tradition, or a vigil of sorts. It's just so perfect. Partly it's cause I just upgraded my video card and wanted to test out all the shiny effects. All the new MediaVP models have transparent cockpit windows now, so that's nice.
I very well may end up dropping the $ for a serviceable joystick this holiday so I can give myself a real FS2 Open (and Blue Planet and War in Heaven) playthrough experience; it's been far too long.
Any recommendations, if you use one yourself?
Also, if you haven't seen this fan-made FS2 Open trailer, I highly recommend it. Best damn fan-made trailer I've ever seen, but I'd expect no less coming from the game that has what is, to this day, my favorite intro cinematic of all time.
Sorry, I always played FS2 with a mouse and keyboard. Might give the X360 controller a try one of these days.
I'm sorry, what? The Genesis Shadowrun was so vastly superior to the SNES shadowrun as to seemingly be a completely different franchise.
Genesis shadowrun was actually.. you know.. shadowrun. I know, shocking, but it actually stuck much more closely to the proper ruleset. Also, hacking was fantastic, as was being able to get body mods and everything. I cant even imagine anyone prefering the SNES game, unless they just never played a game of PnP shadowrun.
I agree that the Genesis game copied the ruleset better and had a better hacking game. But I thought the SNES game had better atmosphere and story; in other words I thought it was a better 'game.' For the record, I both played and GMed Shadowrun (2nd Ed) before getting into the video games.
What the Genesis game taught me is that Shadowrun would probably work really well as a GTA clone.
Yea, I prefer the Genesis game in mechanics hands down. I, personally, think it captured the atmosphere better than the SNES but both did that far better than we had any right to expect. I agree that the SNES wins on story as well as presentation. Looking at the genesis game now makes me cringe.
I've yet to find more atmospheric and memorable strategy games than Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
SMAC, because it used voxel terrain, was one of the few Civ-like games that allowed terraforming with destructible terrain. No land bridge between you and your rival? BUILD one. Not to mention melting the polar ice caps to drown all of the opponents' costal cities.
Also, the Shadowrun games need a total remake. The graphics and story have not aged well, and neither have the mechanics (which are addressed in future editions of Shadowrun quite nicely). A Shadowrun game with proper initiate grades for magickers, Bioware and Nanoware for cyber folk, and all sorts of fun gear that was subsequently added to the game since then would be nice. This is coming from someone who has been playing Shadowrun in all editions on tabletop for about twenty years. My gaming group is still playing a 4th edition game, currently.
I've yet to find more atmospheric and memorable strategy games than Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
SMAC, because it used voxel terrain, was one of the few Civ-like games that allowed terraforming with destructible terrain. No land bridge between you and your rival? BUILD one. Not to mention melting the polar ice caps to drown all of the opponents' costal cities.
Also, the Shadowrun games need a total remake. The graphics and story have not aged well, and neither have the mechanics (which are addressed in future editions of Shadowrun quite nicely). A Shadowrun game with proper initiate grades for magickers, Bioware and Nanoware for cyber folk, and all sorts of fun gear that was subsequently added to the game since then would be nice. This is coming from someone who has been playing Shadowrun in all editions on tabletop for about twenty years. My gaming group is still playing a 4th edition game, currently.
A lot of the mechanical fixes that have come into the table top are oddly not as big a deal with a computer to handle the giant fistfuls of dice. I think the genesis game actually used the matrix rules fairly close to as written from when they were pretty horrible to actually use.
Though a Shadowrun game where PC's don't lack what is common current tech would be nice. "Cell Phone? What's that chummer?"
A lot of the mechanical fixes that have come into the table top are oddly not as big a deal with a computer to handle the giant fistfuls of dice. I think the genesis game actually used the matrix rules fairly close to as written from when they were pretty horrible to actually use.
It used the iconography, but not the actual Matrix rules. The rules themselves weren't terrible, but they were time-consuming for novice GMs who don't know what they are doing. An average Matrix encounter takes less than 5 minutes to resolve, if you are prepared. The problem is, most GMs aren't.
I would really like Obsidian to say "fuck all these new engines, we suck at programming (obviously), let's just move back to the Infinity Engine".
Sometimes I have dreams about that, wake up, and feel sad that it was only a dream. I guess now is a good time to revisit PS:T, it's almost been 10 years since I first played it :
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BlandlytastefulGruelmasterThe Dark LunchroomRegistered Userregular
Referring back to something someone said on the first page... that old X-Men beat em up is actually available on PSN, and according to Co-optimus, you can still play with 6 players. I'm surprised the XBLA and PSN type things aren't being mentioned as much in this conversation. That sprang to mind when Snake Rattle and Roll was coming up. (I loved that one, too.) I could totally see something like that being a downloadable now.
Snake Rattle and Roll, Bubble Bobble, and Rampage consumed so much of my childhood playing with my best friend. Absolutely nothing short of WoW has been as huge of a time sink for me as those games, and I loved every minute of it.
Referring back to something someone said on the first page... that old X-Men beat em up is actually available on PSN, and according to Co-optimus, you can still play with 6 players. I'm surprised the XBLA and PSN type things aren't being mentioned as much in this conversation. That sprang to mind when Snake Rattle and Roll was coming up. (I loved that one, too.) I could totally see something like that being a downloadable now.
And the DnD arcade games were brought up. Which did indeed get a Saturn port.
Japan only, both came in one double case. I touch mine tenderly before bed each night.
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
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I made a game! Hotline Maui. Requires mouse and keyboard.
Dragon Age: Origins is the best game ever. Period.
No game comes close in terms of characterization and choice in the story.
There were roughly 15 minutes of DAO worth playing, right around the Landsmeet. The rest of the game was trash. The combat was pisspoor, the characters were laughable, the plot was pulp quality at best, and the 'grey' moral choices were uninteresting.
And I hear they made DA2 even worse somehow. Ugh.
Everytime I watch the in-game cutscenes for Bioware games, i'm always blown away at how lifeless their character models are. Everyone looks dead inside, and the facial voice synching is atrocious.
It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't in every Bioware game. That takes special dedication talent to neglect such a basic concept.
Whenever the stars align to shine on great works, their creators/backers do nothing to sell or even inform people that they have been created, and the obligatory, half-hearted marketing attempts they do make quickly become jokes.
And then, after digging through the detritus of yesterday, we stumble across these broken diamonds, show them to our friends, and gather together in little cults, worshiping them, polishing their razor-sharp edges without complaint or prejudice, thinking of what could have been.
Fuck, other than a few games that get my eyes shining, I'd rather play make-believe.
I've yet to find more atmospheric and memorable strategy games than Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
SMAC, because it used voxel terrain, was one of the few Civ-like games that allowed terraforming with destructible terrain. No land bridge between you and your rival? BUILD one. Not to mention melting the polar ice caps to drown all of the opponents' costal cities.
I still remember the first time I used a Planet Buster in SMAC. I was like ten or twelve and (obviously) had no idea what I was doing; played exclusively on Blind Research and never got past Doctrine: Air Superiority, Chaos Guns, or Fusion.
So when I got a cool new piece of technology that let me make a missile that looked kind of like the Conventional Missile but was called a "Planet Buster", I thought "hey, why not try that out? Sounds kickass, am I right?"
Anyways, one thing lead to another, and several turns later I had my own Fission Planet Buster ready and rarin' to go, with just one problem; I had no idea what it did.
Now, as any SMAC player knows, the Lord's Believers are a real bunch of assholes when lead by the AI; they will get aggressively up in your shit, stay there, and refuse to surrender even after you've beaten the ever-loving hell out of them time and time again.
As it happened, the good Sister Miriam was my next-door neighbor that game, and she had really been grinding on my nerves. So, unknown new piece of military tech with a suitably ominous name, what to do; test it on the Believers, of course!
Two clicks later, the Fission Planet Buster had been selected, targeted on New Jersusalem, and set in motion. I watched with great anticipation as the Fission Planet Buster moved to New Jerusalem and...disappeared off the map? What a disappointment-
And then New Jerusalem, and the surrounding eight or so squares of land, blew the fuck up.
I think I stared in awe at my screen for about ten minutes; it was one of the most memorable gaming experiences I've ever had. All that was left was ocean. The idea that I could literally wipe an opponent off of the map; just incredible.
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
I have to say I never really played much of Baldur's Gate. The story seemed interesting enough at first but the actual gameplay felt very off to me. I think I retried it 3 times before giving up on it each time about an hour into the game.
Strangely though I really liked Dragon Age even with the horrible console controls, and dungeons that kept going on and on and on and on....If there is one thing Dragon Age 2 did right is making the combat enjoyable.(on a console at least), instead of the "lets pause the game every second to fight the interface" type of thing,
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
BG is pretty hard to enjoy these days, but back then we didn't know any better. It was actually far less obtuse then a lot of other comparable games at the time. what, Radiant Pools, Fallout, the old TES games? I mean, not a gold mine by any stretch as far as non-shitty systems go.
BG2 is a good deal better and thanks to things like TATU you can play all of BG in BG2s engine.
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AriviaI Like A ChallengeEarth-1Registered Userregular
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
The crazy thing is that what makes BG 1 and especially 2 so good is the labour of love Bioware did in actually making the rules playable.
All the spell counters and focus on ranged combat are largely Bioware's invention.
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
It plays much better once you get into higher levels (one of the reasons BG2 is much better), because of how many options you get with spells. Low level combat is pretty hack and slash.
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}
"Orkses never lose a battle. If we win we win, if we die we die fightin so it don't count. If we runs for it we don't die neither, cos we can come back for annuver go, see!".
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
BG is pretty hard to enjoy these days, but back then we didn't know any better. It was actually far less obtuse then a lot of other comparable games at the time. what, Radiant Pools, Fallout, the old TES games? I mean, not a gold mine by any stretch as far as non-shitty systems go.
BG2 is a good deal better and thanks to things like TATU you can play all of BG in BG2s engine.
Sure fallout was way slower than it needed to be, and a bit on the clunky side, but the text descriptions for critical are way more charming than the completely ridiculous gibbing FO3 brought
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L Ron HowardThe duckMinnesotaRegistered Userregular
Dragon Age plays like a worse, 3d version of Baldur's Gate, which uses a continuous turn based system instead of the turn based proper. The system has its advantages (not needing to play out insignificant actions) and disadvantages (movement isn't quite as controlled).
Baldur's Gate itself was a retro revival.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
It plays much better once you get into higher levels (one of the reasons BG2 is much better), because of how many options you get with spells. Low level combat is pretty hack and slash.
I haven't played enough PnP DnD to get a really high level or anything, but after a certain point you're just facestomping everything to death in BG(1 & 2) and PS:T.
Also, we have Minsc and Boo. How can anyone hate a miniature giant space hamster?
With Fallout, I think the whole point was to try to break the game. I mean, in both games, within 5 minutes, you can get powersuits and just destroy everything that is in your way for a while.
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As to what it is going to share with the SNES version I'm not sure beyond it being isometric. It's a browser based MMO and the Devs are purportedly fans of the holy artifact known as SNES Shadowrun. The Genesis heathens are all over their forums though.
That's right I'm resurrecting console wars from 1991.
The Genesis game was alright, but the SNES game was pure gold. On the old games are best games, I'll still play through PC games from the 90s on occasion. Especially, old adventure games: The Secret of Monkey Island, Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, Space Quest, Manic Mansion II: Day of the Tentacle, as well as X-COM: UFO Defense.
The best of those games played with a self-awareness of their technical limitations, their presence on a computer system, that was pure gold even back then. Arguably that authenticity isn't possible to recreate on our modern mega systems.
Of course, modern systems are awesome and I'd never want to turn back the clock. I just like to visit from time to time.
Actually it was made by Obsidian Entertainment, which is the company made by all the same guys who made...you guessed it.
PS:T
Genesis shadowrun was actually.. you know.. shadowrun. I know, shocking, but it actually stuck much more closely to the proper ruleset. Also, hacking was fantastic, as was being able to get body mods and everything. I cant even imagine anyone prefering the SNES game, unless they just never played a game of PnP shadowrun.
FFXIV: Tchel Fay
Nintendo ID: Tortalius
Steam: Tortalius
Stream: twitch.tv/tortalius
I agree that the Genesis game copied the ruleset better and had a better hacking game. But I thought the SNES game had better atmosphere and story; in other words I thought it was a better 'game.' For the record, I both played and GMed Shadowrun (2nd Ed) before getting into the video games.
What the Genesis game taught me is that Shadowrun would probably work really well as a GTA clone.
I've yet to find more atmospheric and memorable strategy games than Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri or Heroes of Might and Magic III. The gameplay is timeless, immersive and intelligent, the factions are fantastically well-realized and distinctive, the art is amazing and holds up OK even now, and the story (especially for SMAC) is phenomenal. SMAC used sounds and eerie music really well to create atmosphere, but I will champion HoMM III as having the best OST of all time; nothing else comes close to the beauty of that orchestral score.
Also, Freespace 2. I get depressed on a regular basis whenever I realize that Volition will most likely never be able to make another Freespace game; easily one of the best games of all time in my book. The gameplay was fun as hell and the story ranged from fun, exciting space adventure to magnificent epic to chilling and fervent emotional moments. GTVA Colossus, never forget.
Anyone else think that bioware's writing quality is inversely propotional to the amount of pandering they've been doing to the silly romances?
Ugh, I hate how that's all we ever hear about when they write a game. I get sick of hearing all sorts of hullabaloo about different romance options because I want them to make a good story (and game), not waste time on utterly useless nerd-bait socialization options.
Seriously, these guys are fighting for the fate of the entire galaxy and you want to take twenty minutes to talk about feelings? And do it badly? Way to reinforce that whole image of gamers as antisocial lackwits.
I just reinstalled FreeSpace 2 Open Source again. I keep reinstalling and playing that game every couple of years. It's like a tradition, or a vigil of sorts. It's just so perfect. Partly it's cause I just upgraded my video card and wanted to test out all the shiny effects. All the new MediaVP models have transparent cockpit windows now, so that's nice.
And I hear they made DA2 even worse somehow. Ugh.
Reminds me of the days that Japan used to completely dumb down its RPGs when they shipped them over here. Americans were too stupid to play the proper version of Final Fantasy IV, apparently. Never will forgive them for never bringing Seiken Densetsu 3 over here. Secrets of Evermore was... okay, but nowhere near as good.
Why even a remake? I've always thought this.
For example: Think about how many people and how much money it took to make Baldur's Gate 1 way back when. That game wasn't exactly the 3d wizardry of other titles at the time but it was cutting edge. I honestly believe the only barrier to some indie startup making a real BG3 in the infinity engine is the writing side of the thing. It would still take the same amount of text and dialogue and storytelling, but the mechanics of the engine would be a walk in the park. Modders today are making total conversions of Ue3 games in their sleep. I'd imagine given a small budget and about a year or two of modest development, a small twenty man dev team could make an actual BG3 and make huge profit. Better that then trying to step outside your means and compete in the big-boy's world and go up against thirty million dollar juggernauts.
Here's another: How much would it realistically cost SEGA to dig up their old 1994 mega drive dev kits and have some men in a basement make an actual Sonic 4. None of this 'inspired by' bullshit. Everything, and I mean everything, Sonic related since Knuckles has been shite. Even the times when they tried to go retro but completely missed what was good. Why hasn't that happened? No really, why haven't they just made a new 16 bit title for basically no money at all and made huge profit off the nostalgia junkies alone? No need for any of this Perfect Dark/Halo:CE retro-remake bullshit. Just a flat out, clunky and unwieldy 16bit Sonic game. No extraneous characters other than Tails and Knuckles. No aspirations for epic storytelling. No fucking voice overs. Seriously, the game I'm imagining in my head is brilliant and it would be no trouble whatsoever.
Furthermore, why isn't everything released before, say, 2002 on GOG.com? Really, why are there any licensing issues at all? You can't even buy in shops half the games I want to rebuy, for money, and have run stably on my rig. If I was Mr Big Time CEO at a big publisher, I'd be on the phone to the archives department and say 'give them everything, we'll make money again'.
I very well may end up dropping the $ for a serviceable joystick this holiday so I can give myself a real FS2 Open (and Blue Planet and War in Heaven) playthrough experience; it's been far too long.
Any recommendations, if you use one yourself?
Also, if you haven't seen this fan-made FS2 Open trailer, I highly recommend it. Best damn fan-made trailer I've ever seen, but I'd expect no less coming from the game that has what is, to this day, my favorite intro cinematic of all time.
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Sorry, I always played FS2 with a mouse and keyboard. Might give the X360 controller a try one of these days.
Yea, I prefer the Genesis game in mechanics hands down. I, personally, think it captured the atmosphere better than the SNES but both did that far better than we had any right to expect. I agree that the SNES wins on story as well as presentation. Looking at the genesis game now makes me cringe.
Also, the internet.
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Also, the Shadowrun games need a total remake. The graphics and story have not aged well, and neither have the mechanics (which are addressed in future editions of Shadowrun quite nicely). A Shadowrun game with proper initiate grades for magickers, Bioware and Nanoware for cyber folk, and all sorts of fun gear that was subsequently added to the game since then would be nice. This is coming from someone who has been playing Shadowrun in all editions on tabletop for about twenty years. My gaming group is still playing a 4th edition game, currently.
A lot of the mechanical fixes that have come into the table top are oddly not as big a deal with a computer to handle the giant fistfuls of dice. I think the genesis game actually used the matrix rules fairly close to as written from when they were pretty horrible to actually use.
Though a Shadowrun game where PC's don't lack what is common current tech would be nice. "Cell Phone? What's that chummer?"
Sometimes I have dreams about that, wake up, and feel sad that it was only a dream. I guess now is a good time to revisit PS:T, it's almost been 10 years since I first played it
Japan only, both came in one double case. I touch mine tenderly before bed each night.
Yeah, DA was very much Baldur's Gate with modern graphics, situationally inferior gameplay, and less content.
Everytime I watch the in-game cutscenes for Bioware games, i'm always blown away at how lifeless their character models are. Everyone looks dead inside, and the facial voice synching is atrocious.
It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't in every Bioware game. That takes special dedication talent to neglect such a basic concept.
And then, after digging through the detritus of yesterday, we stumble across these broken diamonds, show them to our friends, and gather together in little cults, worshiping them, polishing their razor-sharp edges without complaint or prejudice, thinking of what could have been.
Fuck, other than a few games that get my eyes shining, I'd rather play make-believe.
I still remember the first time I used a Planet Buster in SMAC. I was like ten or twelve and (obviously) had no idea what I was doing; played exclusively on Blind Research and never got past Doctrine: Air Superiority, Chaos Guns, or Fusion.
So when I got a cool new piece of technology that let me make a missile that looked kind of like the Conventional Missile but was called a "Planet Buster", I thought "hey, why not try that out? Sounds kickass, am I right?"
Anyways, one thing lead to another, and several turns later I had my own Fission Planet Buster ready and rarin' to go, with just one problem; I had no idea what it did.
Now, as any SMAC player knows, the Lord's Believers are a real bunch of assholes when lead by the AI; they will get aggressively up in your shit, stay there, and refuse to surrender even after you've beaten the ever-loving hell out of them time and time again.
As it happened, the good Sister Miriam was my next-door neighbor that game, and she had really been grinding on my nerves. So, unknown new piece of military tech with a suitably ominous name, what to do; test it on the Believers, of course!
Two clicks later, the Fission Planet Buster had been selected, targeted on New Jersusalem, and set in motion. I watched with great anticipation as the Fission Planet Buster moved to New Jerusalem and...disappeared off the map? What a disappointment-
And then New Jerusalem, and the surrounding eight or so squares of land, blew the fuck up.
I think I stared in awe at my screen for about ten minutes; it was one of the most memorable gaming experiences I've ever had. All that was left was ocean. The idea that I could literally wipe an opponent off of the map; just incredible.
Good job.
It's very difficult for me to believe that anyone, at any point in time, derived any enjoyment from actually playing Baldur's Gate. ADnD is just such an incredibly shitty system, so all the games based on it, by extention, have incredibly shitty gameplay.
Like, I can understand someone liking the story or characters. I mean, I didn't, but whatever. The game is total shit.
Strangely though I really liked Dragon Age even with the horrible console controls, and dungeons that kept going on and on and on and on....If there is one thing Dragon Age 2 did right is making the combat enjoyable.(on a console at least), instead of the "lets pause the game every second to fight the interface" type of thing,
BG is pretty hard to enjoy these days, but back then we didn't know any better. It was actually far less obtuse then a lot of other comparable games at the time. what, Radiant Pools, Fallout, the old TES games? I mean, not a gold mine by any stretch as far as non-shitty systems go.
BG2 is a good deal better and thanks to things like TATU you can play all of BG in BG2s engine.
The crazy thing is that what makes BG 1 and especially 2 so good is the labour of love Bioware did in actually making the rules playable.
All the spell counters and focus on ranged combat are largely Bioware's invention.
I know, right? She had it coming.
It plays much better once you get into higher levels (one of the reasons BG2 is much better), because of how many options you get with spells. Low level combat is pretty hack and slash.
"Orkses never lose a battle. If we win we win, if we die we die fightin so it don't count. If we runs for it we don't die neither, cos we can come back for annuver go, see!".
I haven't played enough PnP DnD to get a really high level or anything, but after a certain point you're just facestomping everything to death in BG(1 & 2) and PS:T.
Also, we have Minsc and Boo. How can anyone hate a miniature giant space hamster?
With Fallout, I think the whole point was to try to break the game. I mean, in both games, within 5 minutes, you can get powersuits and just destroy everything that is in your way for a while.