Other CRPGs like this one?

RaymondLaw · Post by **RaymondLaw** » October 14th, 2007, 12:25 pm

Hi gang. Been following development of Eschalon for a few months, and lurked around the forums a bit. I'm quite interested in Eschalon because it's not party-based (unlike Baldur's Gate or Icewind's Dale), and was wondering if there were any "old-school" RPGs that resembled this one in that manner?

Off topic: Eschalon FTW

Rune_74 · Post by **Rune_74** » October 14th, 2007, 1:45 pm

Well you could try geneforge games from spiderweb software...

Um alot of the older crpgs tried this...arcanum is also another good one.

Jora · Post by **Jora** » October 15th, 2007, 1:23 pm

Arcanum and Fallout are excellent RPGs where you don't need to have a party.

Teudogar and the Alliance with Rome is an old-school shareware RPG in the style of Ultima 7 (the world is a lot smaller though). You control a single character who must unite Germanic barbarian clans to either join the Roman empire or resist its expansion (the latter storyline is longer and more satisfying). The world is higly interactive. The NPC behaviour system as well as the historical accuracy help to create one of the most immersive gaming experiences ever. http://www.teudogar.com/ - Download the free demo and see if you like it.

Arx Fatalis is the spiritual successor of Ultima Underworld so it's fairly old-school too. It's a first person RPG with an interactive and atmospheric world. Here's a video showing the gameplay:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtlEB8U5 ... ed&search=

RaymondLaw · Post by **RaymondLaw** » October 15th, 2007, 2:20 pm

Aha Thanks for the replies

I checked all of 'em and they look pretty leet :O They'll make for a nice, cheap collection of gifts for Christmas

mrmunka · Post by **mrmunka** » October 15th, 2007, 5:44 pm

Arx Fatalis is a fun game, I hope Arkane Studios conciders making a second.

Rune_74 · Post by **Rune_74** » October 15th, 2007, 7:22 pm

They did consider it, then made dark disciples of might and magic...what a step down.

Grue · Post by **Grue** » October 16th, 2007, 5:04 am

Rune_74 wrote:They did consider it, then made dark disciples of might and magic...what a step down.

Sorry to nitpick, but I believe it was called Dark Messiah of Might and Magic (or just Dark Messiah). Even though it was the so-called spiritual successor of Arx Fatalis, it didn't have the same feel at all. Basically, Dark Messiah was an FPS with swords, not an RPG, IMO. I'd say, if you're looking for a first-person RPG, better go with its predecessor.

Gallifrey · Post by **Gallifrey** » October 16th, 2007, 8:44 am

Jora wrote:Arcanum and Fallout are excellent RPGs where you don't need to have a party.

Well, I suppose you don't need a party for those games, but a new player wouldn't do so well soloing them I'd suspect.
Fallout 2 is a bit more party-friendly than Arcanum though.. Having a party in Arcanum is sort of a mixed blessing. On the one hand having backup is always handy and the group is a bit inter-active. But on the other hand, if you're playing a sneaky sort of character a party will only get in the way, but if you get into a fight you're kind of doomed.

Jora · Post by **Jora** » October 16th, 2007, 3:15 pm

The rumor I heard is that Arkane couldn't find a publisher who would be interested in funding Arx2 so they accepted Ubisoft's offer to make a first person action game using Ubi's newly-acquired M&M license.

Gallifrey: Yeah, having a party the first time you're playing Arcanum might be advisable, though it depends on what kind of character you create. A half-ogre fighter can survive without one, and the dog Worthless Mutt is a helpful companion even to solo palyers.

RaymondLaw · Post by **RaymondLaw** » October 16th, 2007, 7:26 pm

Wewt

Just got Arcanum in the mail, and it kicks serious butt ^_^ Defiinitely what I was looking for, thanks! Can't say the same with Fallout ; My comp is too 1337 to handle it (despite the aging GeForce 4MX Video Card + 256 MB RAM), and doesn't play sound T^T Coincidentally, the same problem occurs when I try to play the original Rayman game made for DOS, but that's neither here or there.

Jora · Post by **Jora** » October 18th, 2007, 12:51 pm

If you like the mechanics of Arcanum (reactive world, freedom in creating a wide variety of supported characters, multiple ways to handle quests etc.), there's an indie RPG in the horizon that might interest you: Age of Decadence

http://www.irontowerstudio.com/

It will have a non-linear storyline with plenty of different and distinct endings, lots of character types from loremaster to con artist, turn-based combat system, and non-violent paths through the game. The release date is uknown though they say the project is very far along (not as far as Eschalon though).

edit: I'm glad you like Arcanum. It's probably my favorite RPG of all time thanks to its amazing atmosphere, carefully crafted world and freedom of choice. The interface and the combat system are big turn-offs for a lot of people but there's a real gem underneath them.

RaymondLaw · Post by **RaymondLaw** » October 18th, 2007, 2:26 pm

:O!! AoD Looks quite promising (though not as much as Eschalon :X) and I hope there'll be a demo soon. And regarding your comment about Arcanum - I firmly agree! Combat is pretty lame, and the interface is uber-confusing [particularly when you don't have a manual to refer to -__-]. Still, the game world is rich in atmosphere and depth. Talking to people and doing quests is quite fun XD

EDIT: Just took a look at the combat video for AoD - looks REALLY funny [and bad =/], but funny nonetheless. The dodge animation=hilarious

Jora · Post by **Jora** » October 18th, 2007, 3:11 pm

They've stated they're aware of the faults in the combat video and they are dealing with them (part of the reason it's taking so damn long for them to finish it: they create something, show it to forum posters, listen to the complaints, and go back to the drawing table).

If the concept of Eschalon interests you the most, keep an eye out for Darghul from Wolf Mittag, the guy who made Teudogar and the Alliance with Rome. Darghul will be an old-school style RPG (after all, it's an enhanced remake of his old DOS game!) with a gigantic world where you can interact with evey object (for instance, you can cut down trees and build a house from them).

Here's the website:

http://www.darghul.com/newe.htm

And here's an interesting discussion thread where you can ask the developer questions and make any kind of suggestions. He'll always answer (though it may take some time) and he's a very intelligent and nice guy:

http://www.rpgcodex.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=18659

Gallifrey · Post by **Gallifrey** » October 19th, 2007, 5:39 am

The Age Of Decadence video may not be perfect, but for a super-indie game I think it's quite impressive. And as Jora points out, the devs are aware of the animation flaws and are fixing them. I think the lead said he knew it was flawed before release, but wanted to get the video out to show other elements in action. And the video is apparently at a slower speed than the actual game.

Darghul looks quite good, but that camera angle gives me a weird sense of vertigo. I've never liked that directly downwards view, didn't like it 15 years ago, don't like it now. Makes me feel like I'm going to fall or something.

Jora · Post by **Jora** » October 19th, 2007, 6:50 am

Regarding AoD: Yeah, the battles are said to be quicker and deadlier than what was shown in the video.

Darghul: I didn't like the camera view the first time I was playing Teudogar but I got used to it. The rest of the game is just too good.