News:

"Wings and a Prayer [L-E]"
Congratulations OfferedToEros & Random for completing your RP!

Main Menu

What are you playing? [SPOILER TAGS PLEASE]

Started by Sabby, May 31, 2009, 12:45:35 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 3 Guests are viewing this topic.

Hemingway

You know what my problem with BG2 is? The villain's name is JON IRENICUS.

Let's hear that again. Jon Irenicus.

All right, I'm all for not giving villains hysterical cliché names, but Jon Irenicus sounds like he might be the guy behind the deli counter at your local supermarket. Come on!

Heaven Sent Blossom

It's easy listening night here at the Ruby Lounge, and boy do we have a treat for you. Fresh off a tour of Guyana, get ready for the soothing tones of Naples's favourite son, Jon Irenicus!

Hemingway


Nyarly

Sounds more like a generic latin-sounding name, that may or may not be an real name, in a fantasy game. Which it pretty much is.

I found Imoen in the first game rather annoying, but since she didn't have much dialogue (due to being a late addition), it wasn't too bad. In the second, game she changed quite a bit. Initially, I thought it's good that isn't so overly cheery, but since her dialogue in the first dungeon consists mainly of whining, that could be summed up with "It's dark and scary here, I want go, CHARNAME", she annoyed me only further.

Jaheira is pretty bad too. Also, Aerie. Seems that they had quite some trouble making good female characters. At least ones that don't go on my nerves. The only one to manage that is Viconia (and she managed that while being quite a bitch). Also, I'm interested in the halfling fighter, who would probably be a paladin, if AD&D rules didn't suck so much.

Hemingway

Jaheira is pretty cool, if you ask me.

Also. My conquest of Europe in WEE continues. I just won the closest victory ever. Basically, the enemy totally crushed me in his first attack. MP matches are basically a race to kill enemy units worth 1500 points ( for 1v1 ), and by the time his attack stopped, I'd lost 1480 points worth of units. He asked me if I wanted to give up. I figured, nah, I've still got some anti-air stationed in the middle of the map, and given the size of his force, he probably didn't bother defending his starting zone. He didn't. That was his fatal mistake. My anti-air units rolled into his base and took out his only command unit, resulting in instant victory for me, despite the fact I only had about 300 points while he had 1480.

Lirliel

To be honest, Jon Irenicus' real name is Jonaleth which is arguably a more 'cool' name for a villain.

My main love for the BG series might be some degree of nostalgia goggles, but also that you are slowly introduced to being a Baal spawn, what it means, what it means to people around you and how the world now perceives you. That mixed in with the Iron Crisis in the first game made it stand out, it started fairly 'normally'. Ok so my Foster father gets killed, I decide to meet his friends, they tell me of a Crisis sweeping the sword coast, we go down south, meet some more assassins along the way. We figure out that whatever we are is pretty valuable, we 'solve' the crisis, only to be introduced to a bigger mystery, that of the Iron throne. Now the rest of the game etc.

The second game kinda goes along the same formula, clearly Jon-Jon wants something from you. But you are never shown just exactly what until you arrive in Spellhold and by then it's already too late. The game lags a bit in the Underdark, in my opinion at least, before returning to Athkathla and your quest for vengeance/to restore Imoen's soul, after which you figure out just why Irenicus needed your soul, I won't spoil that much for you.

ToB is basically, "Talk Talk", Fight Fight, all the way to the end, it was a low-point of the series in my opinion, I would have liked more talking, then again I love Planescape Torment so maybe it's just that.

Also, playing right now:
Crusader Kings 2: I am now King of Ireland (and Duke of Brittany (thanks pope!))
Modern Warfare 3: Doing spec-ops with a friend.
Skyrim: Mods Mods MODS!
"Jealousy would be far less torturous if we understood that love is a passion entirely unrelated to our merits."

"A minute of perfection was worth the effort. A moment was the most you could ever expect from perfection."

Hemingway

I never got past the Underdark myself. BG2 is pretty good, but I don't understand the people who insist it's the best game ever. I don't understand the people who say Planescape: Torment is either, for that matter. The latter is a very good game, sure, but it's not some sort of flawless masterpiece.

Lirliel

It isn't, Planescape is a very good game, but not the be all and end all. To be honest, there never will be a game like that.

There are games that are universally praised, Planescape/BG/Fallout etc. But none that are flawless.

For me the game that comes close to delivering atmosphere are usually FPS'es, for me walking through those empty corridors in FEAR only to have Alma suddenly pop up. That scared the hell out of me, jump-scares do work, ask Dead Space, also a game that whilst not perfect does atmosphere and suspense quite well.

The 'ultimate' game idea for me would be a Fallout game, with the depth of writing that Planescape had, the world that Fallout created and the slow story that Baldur's Gate had. Mainly because the writing in Planescape was good, the Fallout world is one that appeals to me and the slow pacing of BG makes it one of my favorite RPG's.
"Jealousy would be far less torturous if we understood that love is a passion entirely unrelated to our merits."

"A minute of perfection was worth the effort. A moment was the most you could ever expect from perfection."

Nyarly

Playing Thief Gold. Encountered my first "Gold" mission, the thieves guild. Like it quite much so far (I think, I'm near the end) except for two little beasts in a part of the sewer and a similar bigger beast in Reuben's basement.

I really don't know what's up with that. I was scared of spiders as a child, but not anymore (only feel slightly uncomfortable around them). On top of that, fictional spiders never scared me in the first place. I even had a rubber spider when I was five (which I kind of miss now, as immature as it may be). And yet, the spiders in the first two Thief games really creep me out. I don't dare to get near them, kill them with arrows instead (which may be a good idea actually, I don't use broadhead arrows much). And even when I just walk past their dead bodies, I feel very uncomfortable. Yes, they creep me out and I have no idea why.

Hemingway

I got Alan Wake's American Nightmare, which is like an Xbox Arcade sequel to Alan Wake. It's not Alan Wake 2 per se ( at least they're talking about doing a full sequel ), but focuses on Alan Wake and Mr. Scratch ( whose name is pronounced "Mr. *record scratch sound*" in the game ).

What can I say? I love it. Alan Wake was a fantastic game, and this is equally as entertaining. It remains to be seen if it has the cutscenes and such that made the first game so good, with all the Twin Peaks references and such, but ... it's a good game, and costs about a quarter of what a full release does. I was also very impressed by the intro scene, which was in full motion video. If there are more like that, then damn!

Cold Heritage

Heya, it's me, Imoen!

You must gather your party before adventuring forth.

Cannot unhear. The voices will not stop.
Thank you, fellow Elliquiyan, and have a wonderful day.

Inkidu

Quote from: Hemingway on February 28, 2012, 06:40:40 PM
I got Alan Wake's American Nightmare, which is like an Xbox Arcade sequel to Alan Wake. It's not Alan Wake 2 per se ( at least they're talking about doing a full sequel ), but focuses on Alan Wake and Mr. Scratch ( whose name is pronounced "Mr. *record scratch sound*" in the game ).

What can I say? I love it. Alan Wake was a fantastic game, and this is equally as entertaining. It remains to be seen if it has the cutscenes and such that made the first game so good, with all the Twin Peaks references and such, but ... it's a good game, and costs about a quarter of what a full release does. I was also very impressed by the intro scene, which was in full motion video. If there are more like that, then damn!
My problem with Allan Wake is that it... started out good, got worse, got good again, and ultimately came out average. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed the few times I did play it. The combat wore thin really quickly. It was like they realized this, and threw in the rock stage battle and the penultimate team up at the end. Those were cool and all, but hardly horror in any degree.

The times when Allan was alone were great. The town scenes were hit and miss. I still think the FBI agent is one of the best characters. He's so cheap novel stock, but he realizes he's a character so well done; it's a real mind screw.

Mostly though my problem is with the T rating. I'm not saying I need buckets of gore, but I couldn't help but feel that the restraints did the horror no credit. As a want-to-be author I kind of connect with it, but I'm also immune to a lot of it as well. I stopped being scared long before the half way mark and already put together most of the pieces way before I should have.

Ultimately I think it just devolved at some point and didn't live up the the scares it was trying to bring to the table.
If you're searching the lines for a point, well you've probably missed it; there was never anything there in the first place.

Hemingway

Alan Wake's American Nightmare seems to have less fighting. It also has more weapons and a larger variety of enemies. It's still basically the same, but at least there's more to it.

I'm also curious as to what pieces you put together, considering that, even by the end of the game, many of the essential questions remain unanswered.

Inkidu

Quote from: Hemingway on February 29, 2012, 12:48:48 PM
Alan Wake's American Nightmare seems to have less fighting. It also has more weapons and a larger variety of enemies. It's still basically the same, but at least there's more to it.

I'm also curious as to what pieces you put together, considering that, even by the end of the game, many of the essential questions remain unanswered.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
I figured out that the clicker was a Chekov's gun, I figured out that the evil scary lace lady was the lover of the first Author and general antagonist, I figured out who the lady of the light was nearly instantly. It has a lot to do metaphysically with writing, so basically. I also figured out that Alan had no recollection of writing the manuscript, but that he did write it. I didn't quite catch the "He had to forget to put himself in the story though, but I had a hunch that he did put himself in the story. I write a lot, so I share a lot of the mental process. There are rules to writing, rules that the work dictates to the writer even though the writer starts it and seems in control. They took a horror spin on it though.
If you're searching the lines for a point, well you've probably missed it; there was never anything there in the first place.

Bayushi

While somewhat sporadically playing WoW, I have been spending a fair bit of time playing Magic the Gathering Duel of the Planeswalkers 2012.

Hemingway

Quote from: Inkidu on February 29, 2012, 05:38:18 PM
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
I figured out that the clicker was a Chekov's gun, I figured out that the evil scary lace lady was the lover of the first Author and general antagonist, I figured out who the lady of the light was nearly instantly. It has a lot to do metaphysically with writing, so basically. I also figured out that Alan had no recollection of writing the manuscript, but that he did write it. I didn't quite catch the "He had to forget to put himself in the story though, but I had a hunch that he did put himself in the story. I write a lot, so I share a lot of the mental process. There are rules to writing, rules that the work dictates to the writer even though the writer starts it and seems in control. They took a horror spin on it though.

Oh, that I can believe. That still leaves a lot of questions unanswered, though. This probably bothers some people, but I love it.

Also, Alan Wake's American Nightmare is turning out to be a perfectly worthy entry into the series. It's less confusing than the first game, but it has a lot of the things that made the original such a good game in my eyes. Including a new song by Poets of the Fall.

Seriously, I don't think anything expanded the fanbase of Poets of the Fall more than that one scene in Alan Wake where War is playing in the warehouse toward the end.

Brandon

More tribes Ascend and I just had the most amazing flag capture Ive ever done. I normally play a Pathfinder  which is the highest mobility class in the game but arguably the least durable. A common tactic I use is to ski through a flag post at high speeds to simultenously grab the flag and rocket away from the defense as fast as I can.

It started as a standard flag grab, I skied down a hill and rocketed past their defense before they knew what happened but this time I killed two people as I sped by. One heavy class (not sure what he was but I want to say brute) got one shotted by a direct hit from my bolt laucher. Then just after I grab the flag and rocket off the platform I turn around, fire another one at the people starting to come after me and one shot another person (I dont have a clue what they were playing though). Then as Im looking behind me I throw a couple grenades at my chasers and before I turn around I get another kill as they run face first into my grenades. Just then I hear the indications of a Sabre missile locked onto me which pretty much means certain death if you dont use terrain to block it or shoot it down. I pull out my assault rifle, and just start shooting as best I can till the thing blows up

So Im skiing down the path as fast as I can, going about 260 mph and having glancing blows of spinfusors and as I speed by a big fight I help a buddy out with a random bolt. I wasnt really aiming and get the kill while hes in the air! I get down to just a sliver of life left by the time I get our flag in sight. Then enemy Pathfinder tries the same thing and just as he picks up our flag he gets my bolt to his face. A second later I land on top of our flag post simultaneously recovering our flag and turning in the enemy one.

I know most people wont understand but it was just amazing. Ive never done a speed capture and kill so many people before I can turn it in, let alone stopping an enemy from getting our flag and returning it. I love this game soooo much!

Brandon: What makes him tick? - My on's and off's - My open games thread - My Away Thread
Limits: I do not, under any circumstances play out scenes involving M/M, non-con, or toilet play

Hemingway

I can't claim to be good at Wargame, but out of the few matches I've played online, I've won a little less than half. I always win in the same way, too. Well, in this last one, my enemy surrendered, but it was due to the same strategy. It seems that most players pool their points at the beginning of the match into strong units, with no regard for supplies or for controlling territory. It's a rush, basically. The problem is that it leaves you very vulnerable to sneak attacks. I won this last game by clever use of some of absolute cheapest units in the game: jeeps armed with recoilless rifles. Just for reference, in 1v1 games you start out with 1500 points. The cost of tanks ranges from around 35 ( usually very poorly equipped ) to around 120 ( heavy tanks with powerful main guns and heavy armor ) points. Jeeps are 10 points apiece. Of course, they can't stand up to anything in a straight fight, but they don't have to. They're obviously quick and sneaky, and if even one gets behind enemy lines to where he's got his command unit - often this will be the only one they have - it doesn't matter how many tons of steel they've got rolling toward my lines.

That's what I like about this game. If you play defensively, you risk letting the enemy capture territory, amass artillery, flank you, whatever. If you play aggressively, you leave yourself completely open. Both can work, but both can backfire in spectacular ways. But if you want a more balanced force, that's when you've got to start thinking. It's possible to just roll a large force into the enemy base, but it's also possible to defeat a much larger force through planning and clever use of cover and terrain, and above all through proper recon. For instance, when my opponent's rather large helicopter force thought my tanks would make an easy target, they didn't realize they'd be flying right past my anti air units. It didn't end well for them. If they'd scouted the area out, that wouldn't have happened.

Inkidu

Got my first fighter in X-Com. The Firestorm. You know though, if the re-imagining later this year decides to drop humans having the cliche' flying saucer look when they reverse engineer alien tech I'm all for it.

No, homo sapein looks good riding around in a dish... I just need something that can take down the new crap they're throwing at me.
If you're searching the lines for a point, well you've probably missed it; there was never anything there in the first place.

Bayushi

Not exactly playing yet, but I am currently pre-downloading Mass Effect 3 (Digital Deluxe Edition).

Soooo can't wait!

Sabby

Painkiller. Amazing game. They they brought out Painkiller: Overdose. New levels, new weapons, new monsters. A decent game, but not even close to the original. Couldn't say why, it just lacked something. Then came Painkiller: Resurrection. It was just a fan made mod turned commercial game, so some original levels but the same enemies and guns of the first game.

And now comes Painkiller: Recurring Evil. Hoh... Lee... FUCK! They nailed it. Fucking NAILED it. Finally, a worthy Painkiller game. Even if it is mostly the same assets from the first game. I think what I love about it most is how the levels are more claustrophobic but have more branching paths. A good example is the toll booth bridge level, where there are plenty of cars, vans, and booths to break up the area. When you have dozens and dozens of enemies spawning constantly from all 12 directions, it doesn't matter which way you turn, there's something else in your way, and with the monsters being herded by the tighter spaces, it's like one snarling, thrashing mass surging after you.

It's actually pretty harrowing. And hard!

Wolfy

You know, Sabby..I keep clicking that link in your sig but nothing happens. :/

Inkidu

You know, I don't know if it's a fault of the game's design or just that special kind of loving that one can only get from the God of Random Numbers, but X-Com does very little to make you feel like you've actually got a handle on things, and God help you if you think that lesser aliens can now be treated with any modicum of impunity.

I could be rolling two hover tanks, twelve highly trained guys in power armor (half in flying) whose minds could melt the very fabric of time and space, cure world hunger, and play seventeen games of chess all at the same time. They could be brutally accurate with everything from heavy plasma rifles to rocket launches. I could literally cut a swath and bring hell like only we monkey-people can.

And I'll still get offed by one young, ambitious Sectoid with everything to prove. Or God help me one of those bugs with the Saturday Morning Slasher smile. If you can't see one of those it's already too late. Don't look behind you, just run. Run!

The always-essentially powerless feeling really frays me. I get that it's real to have anyone die at any time, but when having said element basically renders my research pointless (at least in spirit) it gets old really quick. The late game plays just like the early game only with more mind rape and alien numbers. Plus the computer really cheats. I mean really, really, really cheats.
If you're searching the lines for a point, well you've probably missed it; there was never anything there in the first place.

Brandon

It may seem like it cheats but that isnt the case. Usually its tactics that we dont think of. For example sometimes it seems like they can shoot you without being close enough to see you but really what the computer is doing is walking out far enough to see you. Then they move back and fire at the last position they saw you at
Brandon: What makes him tick? - My on's and off's - My open games thread - My Away Thread
Limits: I do not, under any circumstances play out scenes involving M/M, non-con, or toilet play

Sabby

Got Vessel, yet another Indie game flogging a physics engine. Not complaining though, it's pretty damn awesome. You play an inventor in a steampunk world whose created Fluros, devices that form fluids into workers. They've started running amok and, against all odds, evolving into new forms, and you have to try and put a stop to it.

It comes across as 3 points Mario Sunshine, 2 points Portal, and 27 points Metroid and Castlevania. The fluid physics are pretty impressive. Spraying water on lava creates steam and forms a hard crust that's safe to walk on, for instance. Plus the lava Fluros that are hostile to you jump at you like Sonic and lose their form in mid air, causing it to rain burning hot liquid down on you.