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Trapped in the PC gaming bargain basement of 2001!
cabacon
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I am happily behind the times in my gaming, but I've gotten so far behind that I don't even have a map of what's out there anymore. So I turn to you, the forums, to seek guidance.
My most recent console is a PS2. I like that I can go grab Greatest Hits for $20 and play some really good games. In a few years, I may pick up one of the current-gen consoles and go through its greatest hits. But my real leap forward in gaming technology is ... Windows XP! I've been on a Mac for a long time now, so I've been missing out on PC gaming. My most recent game was Diablo II, which I got in some value-pack this winter with Diabo/Diablo II/Expansion pack because it ran on a Mac. But now I have a VM on a dual-core mac that can run Windows, so I figure it's time to go off to the gaming races.
I'm pretty sure I'm going to go pick up the Gold Box and play some Portal. I'm vaguely interested in the Elder Scrolls games, but only if I can get a couple of them on the cheap. What other golden oldies are floating around there from the last decade that I should go play? I'm really only interested in single-player games, nothing that involves playing against/with other people. I don't care too much about the genre of game, just that it's part of the cream of the crop; I don't have a ton of times for games, and there are so many excellent things I haven't played (and, frankly, don't have time for) that I want to be grinning from ear to ear when I play.
My most recent console is a PS2. I like that I can go grab Greatest Hits for $20 and play some really good games. In a few years, I may pick up one of the current-gen consoles and go through its greatest hits. But my real leap forward in gaming technology is ... Windows XP! I've been on a Mac for a long time now, so I've been missing out on PC gaming. My most recent game was Diablo II, which I got in some value-pack this winter with Diabo/Diablo II/Expansion pack because it ran on a Mac. But now I have a VM on a dual-core mac that can run Windows, so I figure it's time to go off to the gaming races.
I'm pretty sure I'm going to go pick up the Gold Box and play some Portal. I'm vaguely interested in the Elder Scrolls games, but only if I can get a couple of them on the cheap. What other golden oldies are floating around there from the last decade that I should go play? I'm really only interested in single-player games, nothing that involves playing against/with other people. I don't care too much about the genre of game, just that it's part of the cream of the crop; I don't have a ton of times for games, and there are so many excellent things I haven't played (and, frankly, don't have time for) that I want to be grinning from ear to ear when I play.
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Also I would reccomend getting Hitman: Blood Money and CoD2. Both games you can pick up for $20.
T-Nation blog
Because that's like ten bucks now
PSN ID : DetectiveOlivaw | TWITTER | STEAM ID | NEVER FORGET
Deus Ex (as mentioned, that was 2000)
System Shock 2 (1999)
Freespace 2 (hmm, 1999)
Half-Life 2 (and pretty much every single Valve game since, so Ep 1, 2, Portal etc)
Bioshock (if you can put up with the draconian copy protection)
Civilisation 3 and 4
Oblivion, Elder Scrolls 4
Battlefield 2 (if you're into multiplayer, this is a great game.. forget 2142)
Chronicles Of Riddick
C&C 3 Tiberium Wars
Galactic Civilisations 2
Star Wars Knights Of The Old Republic (2 too, although it's a bit buggy)
Prey (yes, I liked it.. fuck you)
Call Of Duty series
There are loads more, but i'm working from memory here.
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I've got a spare copy of Portal, if anyone wants it message me.
Deus Ex is also a complete must. Excellent and immersive storytelling, great plot, good action. Ignore the sequel, and preserve a pristine vision of that franchise.
Hard also to not recommend Thief Deadly Shadows. Atmospheric, compelling, riveting and a whole load of other five dollar words.
If you want something brand new grab Bioshock from steam. It's still pretty pricey but really, worth every penny. Also in that vein grab Orange Box (though Ive heard it called Gold box from two separate sources now lol) because it is the most value for money this century.
While you are at it, get Audiosurf. 9 dollars, and if you have any kind of mp3 music library it is literally amazing. Oh, and Peggle, because well, just peggle.
Let's look at some genres.
FPS games:
Avp2 I hear is stupendous. I havent played it yet ever and Im saving that for a let's play that Im planning complete with girly screams of horror and pant wetting.
Grab the Valve anthology from Steam if you can, dunno how much it is but it gets you a fuckton of games on the cheap and includes everything from HL1 through to TFC I think.
Also in that vein, either the id super pack or the Unreal Deal things from Steam are also a great way to quickly and cheaply get a load of games for your PC. they include dozens of classics and really, are absolute steals.
RTS
If you are looking for cheap classics it's hard not to tell you to get some of the classic Westwood games, Red Alert 2 + yuris revenge is a fantastic place to start, Tiberium Sun in my opinion less good but still great.
Rise of Nations/Legends are also pretty fucking sweet.
Any of the later Age of Empires too, 3 is particularly stunning. All of these are absolute bargain basement prices everywhere but so good.
For something new? Maybe Company of Heroes, though the system spec is high. That said, literally (no joke) the best RTS game ever. Dawn of War scales super well and has a load of content if you get the Gold Anthology pack, thats super good value.
Universe at War is also decent.
RPG
Obviously like I said, proceed directly to Morrowind, do not pass Oblivion, do not collect 200 dollars. It is the best of the elder scrolls series, has a metric assload of mods for it that add a preposterous amount of content and it can probably be found for less than 10 dollars. Great game.
Neverwinter Nights is also great but really, unless you already have them, grab everything from BioWare and Black Isles early days. Baldur's Gate 1 + Tales of Sword Coast and BG2 + all the expansions, Icewind Dale 1 and 2. All solid fucking gold.
Neverwinter Nights 2 though, with some patching, is excellent. The expansion is arguably the best thing in RPGs since Baldur's Gate 2. Superb games, really deep rpg adventures.
What is your computer spec?
You're evil.
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I've got a spare copy of Portal, if anyone wants it message me.
He said he's picking up the Gold Box, so it can't be all that bad
Yeah, but valve source engine games still run pretty well on low end hardware. Hell, I had Half-Life 2 running at a decent speed on a GMA950 (Macbook) a while back.
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I've got a spare copy of Portal, if anyone wants it message me.
If you want to roll 2001-style and do the above, I recommend (if there's any way you can find it at all) Anachronox.
It's a RPG from Ion Storm somewhat in the form factor of Japanese RPGs with the best story and characters I've ever played. Still. I mean, I've played some fine titles in the last seven years but that crazy old gem still stands out as the most impossibly good combination of the epic, the poignant, and the hilarious.
It's also by far the most inspiring use of low-res textures and the Quake 1 engine ever.
PSN:RevDrGalactus/NN:RevDrGalactus/Steam
I have played System Shock 2, absolutely loved it. I've also played the original Thief and enjoyed it, so I should probably check out the sequels.
My machine is a Macbook Pro, 15" dual-core 2.25GHz, 4GB mem. So the processor power should be fine, and I've got the better video card out of the two available, so I'm hoping that graphics shouldn't be too bad either. It'll all be running in a VM, but you can dedicate most of your resources to the VM, so I don't think it'll be that much different than running on a Windows laptop of similar specs. Now that I write that, though, I should probably also consider dual-booting. We'll see, if it's a pain in the VM I can always install bootcamp.
For Civ3, I've played Alpha Centauri, and I just don't have the patience for those games. They're fun, and I want to like them more than I do, but you can only fight your own nature so much. Age of Empires, though, I bet I'll like. I've played the DS version, but it has to be more fun on a PC interface.
I really want to try it, but the price of entry seems steep.
To the OP, Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines for an RPG, F.E.A.R.(not the expansions) for an FPS. Especially if you like System Shock 2; very similar creepiness.
Hold on, you'll be playing the games under a VM? You do realise that a. Fusion and Parallels only do Direct 3D 8. b. you'll have a massive performance hit.
Use bootcamp, I have a Macbook Pro too. My bootcamp partition is specifically for games. I also have VMWare Fusion for any windows programs that I may need to run/test.
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I've got a spare copy of Portal, if anyone wants it message me.
It's on Gametap, trial month is like a buck I think. This assumes of course you're in the US, not sure if it works for canadians or those outside the US.
I assume you are talking about VMWare or Parallels on an Intel Mac.
If that's the case, then you really should run the games natively in Boot Camp. Gaming in a VM is iffy at best.
Ok, you need to be aware of a couple of things.
First of all, the drivers that Apple provides for windows under bootcamp are quite outdated. Download the latest graphics card drivers etc from http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/.
Also, uninstall the bootcamp volume controls and use input remapper it's better than the Apple controls plus unlike the Apple ones it does not lock the laptop when changing the volume in a game.
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I've got a spare copy of Portal, if anyone wants it message me.
Allegiance*
America's Army*
Anachronox
Armed and Dangerous
Baldur's Gate II
Barkley Shut up and Jam Gaiden*
Battlefield 2142
Beneath a Steel Sky*
Beyond Good & Evil
Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 and Earned in Blood
Chivalry is Not Dead*
Combat Mission: Beyond Overlord, Barbarossa to Berlin, and Afrika Corps
Crimson Skies
Crysis
Diablo II
Dungeon Keeper 2
Empyreal Nocturne*
F.E.A.R and F.E.A.R Combat*
Fahrenheit
Fallout and Fallout 2
Freedom Fighters
Freedom Force and Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Freespace* and Freespace 2*
Galactic Civilizations II
Gears of War
Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2
Giants: Citizen Kabuto
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grim Fandango
Ground Control*
Guild Wars
Hidden and Dangerous 2*
Homeworld 2
IL2 Sturmovik
Jedi Academy
Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II
Jedi Outcast
Knights of the Old Republic and KOTOR 2
Lego Star Wars and Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
Mafia
Masq*
Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries
Mount and Blade
N*
Neverwinter Nights 2 and Mask of the Betrayer
No One Lives Forever and No One Lives Forever 2
Oblivion
Planescape: Torment
Rainbow 6: Vegas
S.W.A.T 4
Silent Storm
Sim City 4
Sins of a Solar Empire
Splinter Cells 1, 2, and 3
Starsiege: Tribes*
Supreme Commander and Forged Alliance
Synaesthete*
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay
The Witcher
Thief, Thief 2, Thief III
Total Annihilation: Spring*
Tron 2.0
Tropico
Warzone 2100*
World in Conflict
XIII
On Steam:
Assassin's Creed
Audiosurf
Battlestations: Midway
Bioshock
Call of Duty, Call of Duty: United Offensive, Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 4
Civilization IV
Company of Heroes and Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts
Dark Messiah of Might and Magic
Day of Defeat: Source
DEFCON, Darwinia, Uplink
Deus Ex and Deus Ex 2
DiRT
Disciples II
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
Full Spectrum Warrior
GUN
Hitman: Something or other
Jade Empire
Jagged Alliance 2
Just Cause
Max Payne and Max Payne 2
Medieval 2: Total War
Orange Box
Overlord
Painkiller
Project: Snowblind
Psychonauts
Quake Wars: Enemy Territory
Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45
S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Shadow of Chernobyl
Sam and Max: Season 1 and 2 (Season 1 Episode 4 is *[free as in beer])
Sid Meier's Pirates!
Star Wars: Republic Commando
The Longest Journey
Titan Quest
Tomb Raider: Whatever the good ones are, by Crystal Dynamics or whatever
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
X3: Reunion
Mods (all free):
Battlefield 2:
Battlefield Pirates 2
Forgotten Hope 2
Point of Existence 2
Project Reality
Half-Life:
Natural Selection
The Specialists
Half-Life 2:
Age of Chivalry
Fistful of Frags
Hidden: Source
Insurgency
Minerva: Metastasis
Pirates Vikings Knights 2
Revolt: The Decimation
My gods, how long did that take you to type up. You even alphabetised it.
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I've got a spare copy of Portal, if anyone wants it message me.
Like, everyone should reaad _A Fire Upon the Deep_. But not everyone needs to read Iain M. Banks' books, even though they're pretty great, and if I knew you liked sci-fi I'd recommend them.. I don't spend a metric ton of time playing games, so I'm hoping to skim the cream and enjoy the time I do spend playing as much as possible.
That said, you did list Sam and Max, and I completely forgot about those seasons of content because I couldn't play them when they came out. But I love me some LucasArts point'n'clicks, I'll have to remember to get those. Also thanks to the multiple people who have pointed out the good deals on Steam. I knew Steam existed at some point in time, but it's never been much in my mind because it didn't apply to me. I'll go sign up for it when I get bootcamp installed.
I also get a little worried that, say, jumping to the graphics of 2006 will make me go "Meh." when I try to play a great game from 2003, even if it's really quality. Again, if my will-to-game were stronger, maybe it wouldn't matter what order I played them in, but I know myself, and I think the quality of graphics will be like a ratchet - once it gets better, I won't want to go back. That's why I provided Diablo II as a graphics touchstone - that's about as good as I've seen lately.
Well, okay, that's a lie. Ratchet&Clank or Jak II on the PS2 have better graphics. But it's a touchstone for my PC gaming.
But I digress, BioShock is a good time. Also look up Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines, but get one of the unofficial patches.
As for prices, PC games (at least in the UK) tend to crash in price pretty quickly. I've seen World in Conflict, Bioshock, Company of Heroes etc in stores for £10
But if you're not using a desktop, then joysticks might be a little out. Freespace NEEDS a joystick.
Needs.
I once tried playing it with a 360 controller.
Burns. It buurrrnnsss uussss!
That is, a complete simulacrum of a plane's cockpit. I'm inclined to believe that that would be kickass.
But I appreciate the suggestions people have had, I'd definitely have missed some of the suggestions on offer if I hadn't asked. Not to mention the good advice about how to setup an Intel Mac for Windows gaming.
Oh - on the freespace joystick front, I don't even have an external mouse yet. I assume I'll pick one of those up lest I be driven insane by touchpad gaming, but I'm not sure I care enough to also get a joystick. Wikipedia claims that the mouse isn't so bad for the game, but it sounds like I can assume the article been tainted with lies.
With a mouse it becomes fiendishly hard.
As far as I know, the advantages to NWN 2 over Baldur's Gate 2 are a simpler interface, 3d graphics, lower difficulty and the ability to make your own maps. They're both from the same broad type of game, but Baldur's Gate 2 has a much higher standard of plot and character writing, and has you controlling more characters in combat, making it rather more tactical.
Morrowind is very different from both. The plot is more background as opposed to conversational, and the game is more you roaming in a gigantic world as opposed to you being the centre of the storyline.It's less about interestcing with characters and more about wandering off and discovering things.
Basically, if you don't mind about graphics and like story, go with Baldur's Gate 2. If you'd rather just wander around in a world, go with Morrowind.
If being a space pirate intrigues you, do yourself a favor and look up the game.
GTA lack of story, I think, though I've never actually played it much.
The problem is that every individual in the game seems connected to an information-dispensing hive-mind rather than having any personalities of their own.