Planescape : Torment

[Evnissyen]

So, I've been playing Planescape, lately, and... man, this is a good game. Sure, the actual gameplay is a little clumsy... it's tedious -- and difficult -- to select the character you want to attack (since you can only select them by clicking on their toes, which can be difficult to find in mass melee), it's difficult to cast spells or use items . . . but, still, it's one of the best-written CRPG's I've ever played (notwithstanding the lack of logic regarding the mortuary, as to why your items aren't taken when you're re-admitted even though they're taken at the start of the game). Plus, the storyline is much more original than your typical CRPG, and also the novel approach to the CRPG (for example: emphasis on character-interaction rather than battle) is interesting as well. And... really: just the idea of a game based on death itself almost makes me ecstatic.

Also, any game that includes dialogue/interactivity options like "Can you dig in my body to find anything?" or "Take a bite from my arm", or which permits you to, say, bite off your own finger or tear out your eyeball to replace it with one that you've found, is one cool game in my book.

And Morte is the coolest companion.

It's really too bad that the game didn't sell well, if that's actually what happened, which is what I think it looks like. (Somebody correct me if I'm mistaken, here? Well... it did, after all, fall out of print.)

Maybe it's the lack of emphasis on battle (even though you're free to attack pretty much anyone you like and fight as many foes as you like) that accounted for the lack of sales? Or maybe it was just the interface that people didn't like? I don't know... . Really, the interface isn't much more annoying than some other, more popular games I've played, and the writing more than makes up for it . . . not to mention I rather like the graphics, as well.

Anyway, I'm glad it's finally being re-released . . . but I wish it was also being re-released in the U.S.A., and other countries as well, not just the U.K.

...In retrospect, I'm starting to wish I'd ordered the game new from Amazon U.K. instead of from a third party through the original/local Amazon... at the very least as a "vote" in favor of its re-release, if not to actually support the developers themselves.

...Too bad, though, that I can't register the game. It won't bring up a proper webpage for me to register on, and doesn't recognize my internet connection, or my printer. So I have to go through an annoying ritual of batting away registration messages . . . but that's very minor, so long as it doesn't cut me off, sometime along the way.

[CrazyBernie]

It's really too bad that the game didn't sell well, if that's actually what happened, which is what I think it looks like. (Somebody correct me if I'm mistaken, here? Well... it did, after all, fall out of print.)

There wasn't really a lot of advertising for the game, and the style of play as well as the non-traditional setting appears to have turned off a lot of potential players (myself included). Even with Icewind Dale... I didn't touch them until some years after release.

Anyway, I'm glad it's finally being re-released . . . but I wish it was also being re-released in the U.S.A., and other countries as well, not just the U.K.

...In retrospect, I'm starting to wish I'd ordered the game new from Amazon U.K. instead of from a third party through the original/local Amazon... at the very least as a "vote" in favor of its re-release, if not to actually support the developers themselves.

Black Isle Studios is no longer in business... so I'm not sure who would be getting your support. Interplay, I suppose. One of the websites I frequently check for deals has the game for sale.

[llew silverhand]

I traded my copy on Goozex a while back - I played it for a while, and while I found the storyline enjoyable, I lost interest after a while - not that it isn't a good game...it's more I just get easily distracted by other games. I have what I like to call "Short Attention Span Theater" when it comes to console/pc games.

[quasimodo]

This is by far the best story based RPG I have played. I remember the first time I finished the game I just sat there sort of dazed staring at the screen with visible goose bumps on my arms.

[CrazyBernie]

This is by far the best story based RPG I have played. I remember the first time I finished the game I just sat there sort of dazed staring at the screen with visible goose bumps on my arms.

That happens to me every time I finish Final Fantasy VI.

[Evnissyen]

Quasi: Now I'm curious, but I'm too wrapped up in the story at the moment to think about how it ends... which is obviously a sign of good writing.

I remember one place in NWN2 (where Elanee is speaking) which borders on pure poetry... and that game is relatively well-written for an RPG as well... but this game: wow. While the words themselves might not be pure poetry (although the intellectual depth of some of the protagonist's dialogue options is striking, coming from a CRPG), it's not what you expect from a computer game . . . and even starting at the fact that this is game is essentially an existential journey is amazing in itself, that the writer(s) would have the daring and ambition to go that far. (Yes, I still have to check the credits to see who's responsible.) Going from the amazingly daring and original plot and add in the startling dialogue/interactivity options . . . and they've gone way, way beyond any other game I've played, in the writing department. Sure, there're other (newer) games that have smoother interfaces and smoother graphics . . . but none that can compare to the narrative depth of Planescape.

Also, the game is much more based on character interaction than battle, which defies the typical wisdom/mentality for RPG-development but pleases me no end... it's narrative-based from the beginning and hardly lets up, it pulls you through by story rather than by cheap battle.

I've always said that narrative and character is more important to me than anything else . . . and this game proves it to me. I can deal with the clumsy interface, because I'm so interested in the narrative. For once: the protagonist actually interests me and I actually want to know more about him.

It seems strange to me that with CRPG's, where battle seems paramount for most people: I'm most interested in narrative and character; whereas in literature, where for most people narrative and character are most important: I'm more interested in language.

What does this say? Who's weirder, me or "other people"? Hmm... .

If all computer games were all about narrative and character . . . would I be looking for all battle? I don't know... .

[quasimodo]

Well I do tend to enjoy good combat games the most. Games like X-COM, Jagged Alliance, ToEE and KotC are my favorites. But PS:T is unique. It is the only story game I have played that completely pulled me in. I was The Nameless One and my first time through this game is probably the high point of my gaming hobby.

[Evnissyen]

I just tend to get tired/bored quickly with combat-only games.

Back to Planescape, though, I have to admit: Annah is one creepy tiefling (not to mention annoying - at one point she even attacked me... I had to put her out of her misery). But then: Sigil is a creepy place, full of creepy, creepy people. Moreover, my whole gang is pretty creepy, starting with the Nameless One.

It's easy for me to see the relevance of the touch/draw of Torment, with all these characters.

The Dusties make perfect sense to me, in this world, as do the Chaosmen, and the Starving Dogs Barking.

(One of the latest highlights in the game, so far: a "painted thug" fighting a centaur-like creature (bauriaurs, I think they're called), with the thug shouting: "This'll teach you not to go around painting people in their sleep!")

Man, I love this game.

[Evnissyen]

This thread is quickly turning into a one-man show, here.

So, I recently found this page: RogueDao Studios -- these people are apparently using the NWN2 toolset to construct a new Planescape Trilogy... it looks like they've been working on it for quite some time, now, but I find it very interesting. They've got screenshots and all... .

...Not sure how they plan on paying for all their time and effort and other expenses, using a toolset owned by another company... I suppose we shall see.

Anyhow... fixes:

I've got the 1.0 version of Planescape ("new" aka "unopened" (supposedly)) . . . but it's not the 4-disk version, nor is it the 2-disk version, it's only 1 disk incorporating everything... so since a number of the fixpacks mention whether or not to apply the fixpack depending on whether you have the 4-disk or 2-disk version (the 2-disk being already updated, supposedly) : I'm alittle annoyed that it says nothing about my 1-disk version.

Anyhow... .

I was able to install the "official 1.1 patch" fine, of course, since that was self-installing . . . and installing one of the fixpacks (forget which one . . . Qwinn's I think) was easy, since it just required replacing a number of the files in the Override folder (after, of course, duplicating the original folder "just in case") . . . with Qwinn & co's additional v4.0 fixpack, I'm still trying to figure out what to do with the files... it looks like a big, annoying job to me. Somehow I doubt the game is going to recognize the separate folders that Qwinn's new fixpack supplies, since the game doesn't contain any folders, as it is, with colorful titles... which means I have to copy all of these files into some folder(s)... I just have to figure out which one(s). The sound files (Mortai's interjections) are maybe a little more of a puzzle as to where I'm supposed to put them. The Override folder, again?

(sorry if I can't give you the websites I got them off of -- I'll have to go back to the BootCamp partition and get a hold of them, then put up a post listing them . . . . but any web-search should find them for you. Sorcerer's Place has lead to at least one of them, anyhow.

I'm particularly interested in the Banter files, though... because I love banter! In-party banter is one of the things that made NWN2 NWN2.

[sirdilznik]

I consider this to be the best RPG ever made. Amazing story, really interesting characters that you wind up giving a damn about, thousands upon thousands of lines of some of the most entertaining dialogue in a game ever, different, unique (especially for the time it came out), and extremely interesting setting, unconventional gameplay ideas, and one of the first, if not the first, truly good implementation of playing an evil character all made this game excellent.

However what really set this game apart from the rest in my eyes is that it was the first game I can remember that truly eliminated power-levelling/grinding and needless hack n slash. You could go through large chunks of the game and bypass large areas of potential fighting by using dialogue and your wits, and you didn't get penalized for it, in fact sometimes avoiding combat and taking a more diplomatic, or devious approach granted greater rewards, both in terms of loot and experience. On the flip-side, if hack n slash was your thing, you could advance through many of those areas in that manner instead and it was all well balanced so each style of play worked well. Sure there have been other games where you could bypass combat with dialogue and wit but you generally wound up missing out (whether on loot or experience) when choosing that approach it those other games.

To this day I consider Planescape: Torment to be the best story and dialogue driven RPG ever. I think it was just too ahead of its time when it came out to be a commercial success, and the lack of advertising didn't help either.

[Arkos]

I really need to pick this game up sometime. I don't think I've ever heard anyone describe it with anything less than great praise. Plus, I like Planescape anyway, although I was always more into Spelljammer personally.

[llew silverhand]

I actually picked up the campaign setting for D&D because of this game...just never found anyone to play it with...

[Arkos]

Yeah, my own players always found Planescape and Spelljammer too 'out there' and never wanted to use those settings. 'Tis a pity, because I always thought they were rather fascinating.

[Pholostan]

All this talk about Torment made me dust off my copy and play again. Suddenly I've lost half a day. It is all your fault!

Great game, I really like the atmosphere. All the little hints...

[Pholostan]

Argh, after playing for ages, I'm stuck in the "Finding Ravel"-arc. I can't talk to Quell about Ravel, and nobody else either it seems. I've done everything else, but I can't get the key to Ravel's maze. Maybe a bug...