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Hehe...
Many would argue, convincingly, that Star Wars *is* medieval fantasy.
I agree with you Wrangler, they are extremely linear. The second though does have very interesting characters and the linear adventure is at least interesting. I'd love a good single-player less-linear Star Wars RPG, one where you aren't forced (heh) into being a Jedi.
RPGs that influenced me the most...
Well, the first CRPG I played was Ultima Exodus. This was in 86, and I was only ten years old at the time...so to a wannabe computer nerd like me, it was like finding the holy grail. Took me two years to beat it, which when looking back now, seems pretty sad.
After that, I got into the Gold Box games. Played Pools of Radiance on my C64 and joined a small but devoted D&D pnp group at my school. Bought an SNES for Final Fantasy (Back when the series was somewhat decent) and played most of the SNES/Genesis RPGs.
I'd say Ultima 3-6, the first 3 Might and Magic games, the Wizardry series, and Daggerfall were the CRPGs that influenced me the most. I suppose this is why I hate real-time RPGs and prefer stat-heavy, strategic combat rather then the paper thin stuff they release nowadays.
After that, I got into the Gold Box games. Played Pools of Radiance on my C64 and joined a small but devoted D&D pnp group at my school. Bought an SNES for Final Fantasy (Back when the series was somewhat decent) and played most of the SNES/Genesis RPGs.
I'd say Ultima 3-6, the first 3 Might and Magic games, the Wizardry series, and Daggerfall were the CRPGs that influenced me the most. I suppose this is why I hate real-time RPGs and prefer stat-heavy, strategic combat rather then the paper thin stuff they release nowadays.
Definitely Ultima III: Exodus, played on an Apple IIe during the summer of 1983. That hooked me on computer games in general and crpgs in particular. I'll never forget the thrill of finding the hidden town or the first time I entered the treasure room in Death Gulch.
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xander_hal
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There was an old used book store where I grew up, and one day I picked up a book of forgotten realms short stories called Tales from the Underdark. In this book I read about some intense characters, Zaknafein and Drizzt Do'Urden. Some time later, I came upon a CD strewn about in my friends place labelled "Menzoberranzan". I took the game home, installed it, and to my surprise about 1/2 an hour into the game Drizzt appeared and joined my party! Keep in mind that I was a young lad and this was before R.A. Salvatores accursed case of sequel-itis. The combination of discovering the great books and being able to play along my own story with some of the main characters on my PC was what really got me hooked on RPG's. This is why some RPG's with poor stories (Oblivion comes to mind *cough* *chough*) just don't do it for me. The RPG I've replayed the most times is probably Arcanum because this game had a phenomenal character creation and development system and an extremely well developed and immersive story. So for me and RPG's it pretty much boils down to having detailed control over the creation and development of my character and a well detailed and captivating story.
Cheers,
Xander
Cheers,
Xander
Where is the FUN ?
Sorry for the bad english...
Sure, call me an old whiner... but... i miss the FUN when i play modern RPGs. The last RPG which really hooked me was BG 1&2 / Icewind Dale....
I cannot describe the FUN i feel when i played Fallout 1&2. This was the best RPG i ever played, in this time period.
Other great experiences come into my mind, a.e.: Dungeon Master. A true classic. I will remember forever the first mummy, and this THING moved ! How scary ! In real time !
Ultima Underworld, the Golden Box series, Betrayal at Krondor, Wizardry VI ... if i compare this true RPGs against OBLIVION, ahhh what a mess.
Oblivion, i cant play this, it hurts me.
I am looking forward to play Eschalon.
Sure, call me an old whiner... but... i miss the FUN when i play modern RPGs. The last RPG which really hooked me was BG 1&2 / Icewind Dale....
I cannot describe the FUN i feel when i played Fallout 1&2. This was the best RPG i ever played, in this time period.
Other great experiences come into my mind, a.e.: Dungeon Master. A true classic. I will remember forever the first mummy, and this THING moved ! How scary ! In real time !
Ultima Underworld, the Golden Box series, Betrayal at Krondor, Wizardry VI ... if i compare this true RPGs against OBLIVION, ahhh what a mess.
Oblivion, i cant play this, it hurts me.
I am looking forward to play Eschalon.
The game that influenced me the most ?
Eye of the beholder series
(Fantastic first person game, and no learning curve for me as I was a rabid ADDer at the time
. Still am 
.)
n°1 is great, n°2 is definitely the best of the series. n°3 wasn't made by westwood but the same engine was used, and it was OK.
Lands of lore (the real follow-upto EOB2 was great, too. I didn't like the full3D follow up though (never tried n°3).
I like the gold box series (good stories, fantastic tactical combat (ADD rules again) but very poor graphics and sounds, even at the time. gold is very poorly implemented too (too much weight... money should be weightless)). Replayed champions of Krynn a few months ago, and it was still OK but there are better games to replay...
In the same vein, I loved Anvil of dawn.
Then came the baldur's gate series. BG2 is the best CRPG ever IMO. best implementation of ADD rules, great story (even if railroady in the throne of Bhaal extension), many interactions with the NPCs with specific secondary quests adding "replay value" (and you had to take care of the alignments of your teammates, too). I'll definitely replay the whole series in the future, but I still remember too well the story. it's too early.
A "modern" 1024/768 version of EOB keeping its simple interface, but with added interaction with NPCs (dialogs a la baldur's gate or ToEE and a better story would make my day... And a bit of IA for the monsters too).
Eye of the beholder series
(Fantastic first person game, and no learning curve for me as I was a rabid ADDer at the time
. Still am .)n°1 is great, n°2 is definitely the best of the series. n°3 wasn't made by westwood but the same engine was used, and it was OK.
Lands of lore (the real follow-upto EOB2 was great, too. I didn't like the full3D follow up though (never tried n°3).
I like the gold box series (good stories, fantastic tactical combat (ADD rules again) but very poor graphics and sounds, even at the time. gold is very poorly implemented too (too much weight... money should be weightless)). Replayed champions of Krynn a few months ago, and it was still OK but there are better games to replay...
In the same vein, I loved Anvil of dawn.
Then came the baldur's gate series. BG2 is the best CRPG ever IMO. best implementation of ADD rules, great story (even if railroady in the throne of Bhaal extension), many interactions with the NPCs with specific secondary quests adding "replay value" (and you had to take care of the alignments of your teammates, too). I'll definitely replay the whole series in the future, but I still remember too well the story. it's too early.
A "modern" 1024/768 version of EOB keeping its simple interface, but with added interaction with NPCs (dialogs a la baldur's gate or ToEE and a better story would make my day... And a bit of IA for the monsters too).
There's an Eye Of The Beholder mod for NWN, and it's pretty good:PaSquall wrote: A "modern" 1024/768 version of EOB keeping its simple interface, but with added interaction with NPCs (dialogs a la baldur's gate or ToEE and a better story would make my day... And a bit of IA for the monsters too).
http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=Mo ... il&id=4028
There are worlds out there where the sky is burning. And the sea's asleep and the rivers dream … People made of smoke and cities made of song … Somewhere there's danger, somewhere there's injustice, somewhere else the tea's getting cold!
Influencing CRPG's
Well, for me, the first and best influence was Tunnels of Doom. It was exclusive to the TI-99/4a. It had tactical turn-based party combat, 3D dungeons, auto-mapping, dozens of monsters, treasures, traps and items, and infinite replay value. Not too shabby! I played it enough that I think I can still hum the tones of it loading from cassette. (It also came on disk, but most 99'ers only had a cassette player.)
I cover a bit about it on my website at http://www.adamantyr.com/crpg/article_01.htm There's also a review of it up on Armchair Arcade, and a remake in the works by Dream Codex.
Adam
I cover a bit about it on my website at http://www.adamantyr.com/crpg/article_01.htm There's also a review of it up on Armchair Arcade, and a remake in the works by Dream Codex.
Adam
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BasiliskWrangler
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Yes, there's several. This site has a listing of them, as well as general information on getting started: http://www.99er.net/emul.shtmlBasiliskWrangler wrote:adamantyr: Cool looking stuff on your page! Now that is old-school.
Is there a TI-99 emulator for Windows?
Probably the best one is Win994a, which is actually a simulator rather than an emulator. It has a lot of the old cartridge software built right into it, so you can get going right off. You can download it here: http://www.99er.net/win994a.shtml
The MESS emulator does a fantastic job of emulating the TI as well. I use that for my development work. However, you'd have to get ROM images and other things to get it going.
Tunnels of Doom is very popular among 99'ers, so usually a first task in any emulation/simulation development is making sure it runs properly.
Adam
I think I've mentioned before -- Betrayal at Krondor. Still a favorite. Love those Moredhel puzzle chests. And for some reason, I liked waxing bowstrings and sharpening swords. I didn't mind being locked into playing a certain character because the story (written by Raymond Feist) carried the game along. And you could play music in the taverns to make money (but you'd get booted out if your skill was too low).
And Darklands -- boy, would I love to see updated graphics for that. There's been nothing like it since. Set in medieval Germany. No magic in the sense it's implemented today, but there were alchemical potions, and you could pray to various saints for blessings (but you'd have to have sufficient virtue, and you'd have to discover them first). There's a huge newsgroup of people that still play it.
Liked most of the ones you mentioned as well (already discussed the Wiz 7 music obsession), including World of Xeen, and most of the ones other folks have mentioned -- Star Trail. etc. Never really got into the Ultimas for some reason. I think it's because I started with Ultima Underworld, which gave me motion sickness.
I actually kept hoping Cleve Blakemore would one day finish Grimoire.
And Darklands -- boy, would I love to see updated graphics for that. There's been nothing like it since. Set in medieval Germany. No magic in the sense it's implemented today, but there were alchemical potions, and you could pray to various saints for blessings (but you'd have to have sufficient virtue, and you'd have to discover them first). There's a huge newsgroup of people that still play it.
Liked most of the ones you mentioned as well (already discussed the Wiz 7 music obsession), including World of Xeen, and most of the ones other folks have mentioned -- Star Trail. etc. Never really got into the Ultimas for some reason. I think it's because I started with Ultima Underworld, which gave me motion sickness.
I actually kept hoping Cleve Blakemore would one day finish Grimoire.
Speak of the devil.I actually kept hoping Cleve Blakemore would one day finish Grimoire.
RPG Watch points this out:http://www.grimoiresystems.com/
Of course, he's missed the last 5 or ten years of deadlines, but I remember playing and enjoying a demo of one iteration of this game years ago. It was totally Wizardry VII.
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BasiliskWrangler
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BasiliskWrangler
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You're probably right, GSV3MiaC. It seems like so much of the game has been completed though; if he would just release what he has done the community could essentially beta test it and he could keep patching it up and adding to it. Isn't that basically what the Mount & Blade team has done?
Of course, he probably has "perfectionist syndrome" and he won't release it until he is completely satisfied with the entire game (which may be never). I know exactly how that feels because I can change a specific map tile in Eschalon 50 times before realizing that I've wasted 2 days on something that nobody is going to notice or even care about.
Of course, he probably has "perfectionist syndrome" and he won't release it until he is completely satisfied with the entire game (which may be never). I know exactly how that feels because I can change a specific map tile in Eschalon 50 times before realizing that I've wasted 2 days on something that nobody is going to notice or even care about.