massive move in static/img/games towards respective subdirs
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@ -7,7 +7,6 @@ see [jefklakscodex.com](https://jefklakscodex.com)
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> find . -name "*.jpg" -exec convert {} -sampling-factor 4:2:0 -strip -quality 85 -interlace JPEG -colorspace sRGB {} \;
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### Twitter videos
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- Use `youtube-dl --no-check-certificate [m3u8link]`. Requires `ffmpeg` to be installed.
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- Cut/convert with https://ezgif.com/video-to-mp4/ instead of ffmpeg - faster!
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Add as alias `webo` in `.aliasrc` to quickly access cmdline.
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@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
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---
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title: About the Codex
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ignore: true
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disableComments: true
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---
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@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ Jeff is still playing the original Gamecube version of Animal Crossing - anno 20
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- 12. **Cherry blossom festival** - Yes! It just passed in April.
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- 24. **Catching Wisp's spirits**. He's grateful and gives an item in exchange, but I can't remember which one it was... I might have sold it. Whoops.
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(Via [jvgs.net](https://www.jvgs.net/acblog/2018/05/25/31-features/#comment-7281))
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@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
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---
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image: "/img/games/Arcanum/logo.jpg"
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image: "/img/hltb/557.jpg"
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date: "2007-03-30"
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title: "Arcanum: the Gunslinger"
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tags: ['Arcanum']
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@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ aliases: ['/articles/guides/arcanum-gunslinger/']
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- Various battle strategies
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- Your followers
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### The statistics of a good Gunslinger
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@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ aliases: ['/articles/guides/arcanum-gunslinger/']
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</li></ul>
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</p>
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### The Best Races
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@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ aliases: ['/articles/guides/arcanum-gunslinger/']
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</li><li><strong>Halflings</strong><br />The Halflings usually prefer to keep to themselves, staying away from politics. Although most aren't criminal in nature, they seem to have a natural talent for thievery. While Halfling women are treated as equals by their men, they are rarely seen outside the halfling communities. While Halfling men are usually not inclined to go out into the world, Halfling women are an even rarer sight.<br /><em>Statistics</em>: Halflings gain +2 to Dexterity, 2 ranks of Prowl and 1 rank of Dodge and +5% to their chance to cause a critical hit, but at the cost of a -4 modifier to Strength. The -4 modifier is crucial; no boms carrying around... But the prowling and DEX skill is nice! They'll do ok, but I prefer dwarves. Nothing keeps you from going the 'sneaky' way!
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</li></ul>
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<a name='bg' id='bg'></a>
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<a name='schematics' id='schematics'></a>
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@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
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---
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image: "/img/games/Arcanum/logo.jpg"
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image: "/img/hltb/557.jpg"
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date: "2007-03-30"
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title: "Arcanum: Magick VS Tech"
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tags: ['Arcanum']
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@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ First things first: you are not reading this wrong, it's magick and not magic. I
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A complete spell list/guide can be found on Terra Arcanum. There are 16 spell realms in total: Earth, Fire, Water, Air, Force, Mental, Black & White necromancy; Divination, Meta, Morphing, Nature, Phantasm, Summoning and Temporal. Each realm has its advantages and disadvantages: some realms focus on damage dealing spells, others to influence humanoids, or to summon undead. White necromancy is for example used mainly for healing purposes (by the NPCs Virgil and Dante).
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Of course you won't be able to select more than 4 realms, simply because you won't have enough CPs. Every level you'll earn 1 and every 5 levels 1 extra. That's 65 at the maximum level of 50... If you want all level #5 spells - the most powerful ones - you also need a very high WP, 18 or so. It's best to concentrate on two realms and use scrolls / item activations for other things. Yes indeed, some weapons/armor will unleash a certain spell.
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Every single character throughout the whole game has a Magick/Tech Meter. If you invest points into schematics, which are technology, you'll align yourself more with all technological people by the values of the meter. If you can cast a lot of different spells, you'll have a magick meter. This way, a magick user with a high meter (usually a powerful creature) won't be able to use any technological items, and vice versa. So, another advantage of magick-aligned users: you'll be able to wear magickal Armor/weapons!
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@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ When your meter is fully tech-aligned, you'll encounter little problems which ar
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Conclusion: tech makes the game more difficult throughout 1) equipment and 2) money. The Third thing is damage.
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Yes indeed, damage. There aren't many technological weapons, and if there are any good ones, they won't be enchanted because enchanting is magick. So, the only option you'll have left are guns. And that means carrying a LOT of bullets which cost a LOT of money and not being able to damage a lot per round in combat.
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Enough disadvantages, why do you want to be technological aligned anyway? Aha! Because 1) it makes the game much more challenging 2) it's way more fun! And the most important part - "crafting" in Arcanum is done trough schematics. You'll find a lot of them in-game without investing SPs (but you also can). You will actually be able to make your own "uber" armor (healing jacket)! Isn't that cool? Selling those things won't give you that much profit, but it's so much fun! Troughout the whole game, ingredients are scattered. Example: herbs which are combined to healing 'pills' (<> potions).
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@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
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---
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image: "/img/games/Arcanum/logo.jpg"
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image: "/img/hltb/557.jpg"
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date: "2007-03-30"
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title: "Arcanum: Party Seleciton"
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tags: ['Arcanum']
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@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ aliases: ['/articles/guides/arcanum-parties/']
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<div class='vspace'></div><h3>Party Numer ONE - November 2004</h3>
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<div class='vspace'></div><div><img src='/img/games/Arcanum/Laprovski.jpg' style='float: left;' alt='' title='' /> <img src='/img/games/Arcanum/Sogg.jpg' alt='' title='' style='float: left;' /> <img style='float: left;' src='/img/games/Arcanum/Jayna.jpg' alt='' title='' /></div>
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<div class='vspace'></div><div><img src='/games/pc/arcanum/Laprovski.jpg' style='float: left;' alt='' title='' /> <img src='/games/pc/arcanum/Sogg.jpg' alt='' title='' style='float: left;' /> <img style='float: left;' src='/games/pc/arcanum/Jayna.jpg' alt='' title='' /></div>
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<p style='clear: both;' class='vspace'><strong>Level</strong> - 25.<br /><strong>Laprovski</strong> - Male Dwarf - Raised by Monks<br /><strong>Skills</strong> - Technologist: firearms, gunsmithy, electricity & explosives<br /><strong>Stats</strong> - First PER Second INT Third DEX
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</p>
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<p class='vspace'>After a few tries, this dwarf managed to get himself to Tarant. There, the beautiful game acutally started with so many options - especially for technology! The dozens of shops give you plenty of possibilities and you'll never run out of your own gadgets. This was the *decent* first-try char, but actually I would like to have a few things changed - that'll be for the next few plays. He has 2 degrees in electricity for the "charged rings" which raise your DEX by 2 each and since I didn't have enough that's good. The backup plan is throwing but I didn't get enough points and a decent non-bullet-consuming weapon... Explosives for the damage & pushing monsters backwards, works really nice. Prowling is good too but your followers tend to disagree, heh.
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@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ aliases: ['/articles/guides/arcanum-parties/']
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<div class='vspace'></div><hr />
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<div class='vspace'></div><h3>Party Numer TWO - 01 February 2005</h3>
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<div class='vspace'></div><div><img style='float: left;' src='/img/games/Arcanum/Rhadek.jpg' alt='' title='' /> <img style='float: left;' src='/img/games/Arcanum/Virgil.jpg' alt='' title='' /> <img style='float: left;' src='/img/games/Arcanum/Geoffrey.gif' alt='' title='' /></div>
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<div class='vspace'></div><div><img style='float: left;' src='/games/pc/arcanum/Rhadek.jpg' alt='' title='' /> <img style='float: left;' src='/games/pc/arcanum/Virgil.jpg' alt='' title='' /> <img style='float: left;' src='/games/pc/arcanum/Geoffrey.gif' alt='' title='' /></div>
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<p style='clear: both;' class='vspace'><strong>Level</strong> - 31.<br /><strong>Rhadek Boktor</strong> - Male Halfling - Beat with Ugly Stick<br /><strong>Skills</strong> - Magick: Backstab, Prowling, melee, dodge, several magick realms<br /><strong>Stats</strong> - First DEX Second WP
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</p>
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<p class='vspace'>I like playing very very sneaky characters. Yup, they are usually evil aligned too. Virgil doesn't care anyway... This time, I'll go for backstabbing. Comes out its too bad I did that: all poor sap enemies don't even have a chance to hit me... I'm starting to think dodge are some wasted CP points! Prowl behind your enemies, backstab, un-prowl, let your compainons do something and repeat. Mostly, level 30 beasts are slain in round one when I'm level 12 or so. That's great but it's also way too powerfull and boring to play... He uses magick like haste, blind flash, charm e.d. too. Creep armor is good!
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@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
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---
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image: "/img/games/BaldursGate2/logo.jpg"
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image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
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date: "2008-04-30"
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title: "BG2: Cleric/Ranger Guide"
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tags:
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@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ So, what's the worst part about the cleric, in general? He can even wear full pl
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The cleric/ranger combination actually works pretty well: high wisdom is needed for both classes to cast spells. Dex and Str are very useful, especially the first one. Don't build it up to 18 wearing plate mail though as it dismisses your evade bonus completely. There are good leather armors later in the game (if you've installed Throne of Bhaal: the obvious dungeon & further upgrades)
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<a id="progression"></a>
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### Basic Progression guide
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@ -48,8 +48,8 @@ While playing the game, there is nothing much to follow or remember, just play i
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### Character Equipment
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<span style="float: right;">
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<img src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/flail.gif">
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<img src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/mace.gif">
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<img src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/flail.gif">
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<img src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/mace.gif">
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</span>
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Which weapon should you use? There is more than enough choice for this class. Since most other party members use a different type of (melee or ranged) weapons, you have the freedom to fully claim all maces/flails and morning stars for yourself. Try to get the Flail of Ages as soon as possible to +3 since the extra elemental damage helps quite a lot to certain otherwise immune enemies. An undead crushing mace and a skull crusher are always handy, equip when needed. It's generally not needed to grab your slingshot as a backup weapon: use buff spells or ranged magic.
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@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ Which weapon should you use? There is more than enough choice for this class. Si
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If you've installed Throne of Bhaal or the bonus merchants, you can get your hands on a nice leather armor quite soon. Shadow armor is always good (AC -1) and still one of the best leather armors there are in the game. But most of the time your thief or another character will claim those equipment pieces. If you can't find any decent set, temporary equip good plate mail. Remember to switch soon as it reduces your DEX bonus and completely nullifies your hard work to buff up the character.
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<span style="float: right;">
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<img src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/girdle.gif">
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<img src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/girdle.gif">
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</span>
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Buy a frost belt/girdle from one of the bonus merchants or find one of the many available. It'll help increase your damage output while swinging the dual maces or flails. If you plan on equipping another belt, you should have built your character different since 14 STR is not nearly enough. Of course, this build is quite melee minded, adjust as you see fit.
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---
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image: "/img/games/BaldursGate2/logo.jpg"
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image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
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date: "2008-04-30"
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title: "Baldur's Gate 2: Mage Talk"
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tags:
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@ -13,43 +13,43 @@ Ever wondered whatever the heck those crazy Arcane spellcasters say every time t
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**Update November, 2020**: Broken links galore... Replaced with embedded `<AUDIO/>` tags.
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<div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_ill.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_ill.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>1. <strong>Illusion</strong><br /><em>"Veritas, Credo, Oculos"</em> = "The truth, I believe, with my eyes"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_illusion.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_alt.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_alt.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>2. <strong>Alteration</strong><br /><em>"Praeses, Alia, Fero"</em> = "Protecting, another, I bring this forth"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_alteration.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_necro.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_necro.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>3. <strong>Necromancy</strong>: <em>"Vita, Mortis, Careo"</em> = "Life, and death, I am without"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_necromancy.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_div.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_div.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>4. <strong>Divination</strong><br /><em>"Scio, Didici, Pecto"</em> = "I know, for I have studied, with my mind"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_divination.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_abj.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_abj.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>5. <strong>Abjuration</strong><br /><em>"Manus, Potentis, Paro"</em> = "A hand, powerful, I prepare"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_abjuration.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_evo.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_evo.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>6. <strong>Evocation</strong><br /><em>"Incertus, Pulcher, Imperio"</em> = "Uncertain, beautiful things, I command"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_evocation.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_conj.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_conj.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>7. <strong>Conjuration</strong><br /><em>"Facio, Voco, Ferre"</em> = "This I do, I call, to bring you forth"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_conjuation.mp3" >}}
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/bg2_ench.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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</div><div class='vspace'></div><div><span class='rfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/bg2_ench.gif' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div class='indent'>8. <strong>Enchantment</strong><br /><em>"Cupio, Virtus, Licet"</em> = "I want, excellence, allowed to me"<br />
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{{< audio "/files/bg2_enchantment.mp3" >}}
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---
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image: "/img/games/BaldursGate2/logo.jpg"
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image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
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date: "2006-11-08"
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title: "BG2/Infinity Engine Mods"
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tags: ['Baldurs Gate 2']
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@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ The Refinements modification aims to correct several "mistakes" made by the BioW
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#### Divine Remix
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The Divine Remix aims to rebalance and change several aspects of divine-magic-using classes (clerics, paladins, druids, and rangers) in Baldur's Gate (via Baldur's Gate Tutu) and Baldur's Gate II. The mod originally began as Cleric Remix. The most notable change to the spell system is the proper implementation of spheres. Like arcane magic and its school system, divine magic can be broken into spheres such as animal, necromancy, protection, etc. And finally, druids are able to pick another alignment than True Neutral, as long as it has the keyword neutral in it. Clerics can pick special kits which gain innate abilities relevant to their chosen deity.
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##### The Tactics Mod
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##### The Tactics Mod
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Tired of playing Baldur's Gate II? You know all possible ways to defeat enemies and bosses? Well install this great modification and be prepared to get kicked in the ass bigtime again! Tactics does what the title says: it adds some serious tactics to most encounters. The enemy AI has been greatly improved, enemy spellcasters now act just like you: buffing, protection seeking, and then firing away. Bodhi, Irenicus, Bhaal, the Sahuagin City, Torgal, Golems (auch!), the Undead, ... - you name it, they've improved it. There have even been added some very challenging encounters such as the Acid Kensai "Kuroisan".
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#### Other Fixes
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---
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image: "/img/games/BaldursGate2/logo.jpg"
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image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
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date: "2007-03-30"
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title: "Baldur's Gate 2: Party Guide"
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tags: ['Baldurs Gate 2']
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</div></li></ul><div class='vspace'></div><h3>Party Numer TWO - 06 Jan. 2006</h3>
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<div class='vspace'></div>
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<table border='0' cellpadding='10' cellspacing='20' ><tr><td valign='top'>
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<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/xandarr.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/xandarr.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<p><strong>Attitude</strong>: Xandarr, my main character. I decided to create a melee divine spellcaster, for the very first time, since I've been using Arcane Magic way too much. I ended up with three members who are able to cast divinity spells, which is awesome. Xandarr is also the main melee mob killer, besides Keldorn. He performs this job very well using two maces or a flail, fully buffed up with his own spells.<br /><br /><strong>Type</strong>: Human Chaotic Good, Cleric/Ranger <br /><strong>Name</strong>: Xandarr<br /><strong>Strength</strong>: dual wielding melee combat, maces/flails, divine magic
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</p></td><td valign='top'>
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<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/keldorn.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
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<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/keldorn.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<p><strong>Attitude</strong>: Ah, my beloved Inquisitor. I love this guy, especially when he's wielding the Holy Avenger, the +5 two-handled sword carefully preserved by Firkraag. The only paladin in the game. His only weak point is the low DEX, but that can be easily fixed by a pair of gauntlets. Keldorn's True Sight and Dispel Magic are very powerful and useful too.<br /><br /><strong>Type</strong>: Human Lawful Good, Inquisitor <br /><strong>Name</strong>: Keldorn<br /><strong>Strength</strong>: melee 2-handled swords, crossbows, innate abilities
|
||||
</p></td></tr><tr><td valign='top'>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/valygar.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/valygar.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<p><strong>Attitude</strong>: I never picked up Valygar, besides the planar sphere quest. My party is always too full. Instead of creating the cheesy Kensai/mage I'm used to, I am doing fine unlocking Valygar's true powers: also katana's of course. Give him a pair of haste boots and some buffs and watch him kill. As a ranger, Valygar can also cast some useful (divine, again) spells. Radical Enemy is a plus!<br /><br /><strong>Type</strong>: Human, Chaotic Good, Stalker <br /><strong>Name</strong>: Valygar<br /><strong>Strength</strong>: dual wielding melee combat, katana's, special abilities
|
||||
</p></td><td valign='top'>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/cernd.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/cernd.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<p><strong>Attitude</strong>: Cernd is the only Druid/shapeshifter in the game and it's time to spread the word: shapeshifters are powerful if you use the right strategy. Partially thanks to the shapeshifter fix modification, of course. And Cernd has access to some pretty powerful spells, and can serve as a backup healer. Yes. <br /><br /><strong>Type</strong>: Human, True Neutral, Shapeshifter<br /><strong>Name</strong>: Cernd<br /><strong>Strength</strong>: melee (shapeshifted), divine magic
|
||||
</p></td></tr><tr><td valign='top'>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/jan.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/jan.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<p><strong>Attitude</strong>: I cannot live without a proper backup mage, whether it's a silly Illusionist or not. I did not rescue my sister yet, so chances are I'll ditch Jan in the future. I know all his silly stories and he was never really useful, except as a backup. But I need some thief abilities (my previous main char was an assassin).<br /><br /><strong>Type</strong>: Gnome, Chaotic Neutral - Illusionist/thief<br /><strong>Name</strong>: Jan Janssen<br /><strong>Strength</strong>: Magic: Illusions, ranged - crossbows
|
||||
</p></td><td valign='top'>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/img/games/BaldursGate2/kelsey.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<div><span class='lfloat'> <img src='/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/kelsey.jpg' alt='' title='' /></span></div>
|
||||
<p><strong>Attitude</strong>: Ah, the main damage output has finally arrived. There is sadly no sorcerer present in the unmodified version of <span class='wikiword'>BG2</span>, and I cannot live without Kelsey anymore. He never ever let me down: whether it's spamming fireballs or lowering mage's resistances and breaching their shields. Less spell picks, more spell memorization slots. That's a pretty good deal.<br /><br /><strong>Type</strong>: Human, Lawful Neutral Sorcerer
|
||||
<strong>Name</strong>: Kelsey<br /><strong>Strength</strong>: Arcane magic.
|
||||
</p></td></tr></table>
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
image: "/img/games/BaldursGate2/logo.jpg"
|
||||
image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
|
||||
date: "2008-04-30"
|
||||
title: "BG2 Solo Blade: A Report"
|
||||
tags:
|
||||
|
|
@ -73,15 +73,15 @@ After a few decent rolls, I managed to create a character with enough STR, DEX,
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_01_startstats.jpg">
|
||||
<img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_01_startstats.jpg" title="Level 7 start stats" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_01_startstats.jpg">
|
||||
<img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_01_startstats.jpg" title="Level 7 start stats" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Level 7 start stats</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_02_firstlvlup.jpg">
|
||||
<img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_02_firstlvlup.jpg" title="First level up" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_02_firstlvlup.jpg">
|
||||
<img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_02_firstlvlup.jpg" title="First level up" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>First level up</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -98,13 +98,13 @@ Armed with the shortbow, I manage to lure most second and third goblin mobs in p
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_03_otyguth.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_03_otyguth.jpg" title="Otyguth killed with a quarterstaff" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_03_otyguth.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_03_otyguth.jpg" title="Otyguth killed with a quarterstaff" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Otyguth killed with a quarterstaff</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_04_duergar.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_04_duergar.jpg" title="Duergar down with Skull trap" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_04_duergar.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_04_duergar.jpg" title="Duergar down with Skull trap" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Duergar down with Skull trap</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -121,13 +121,13 @@ Whoops, I forgot the lesser clay golem guards! Luckily, the last defensive spin
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_05_claygolems.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_05_claygolems.jpg" title="Clay golem guards" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_05_claygolems.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_05_claygolems.jpg" title="Clay golem guards" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Clay golem guards</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_06_airmephit.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_06_airmephit.jpg" title="Air portal: summon does work for me." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_06_airmephit.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_06_airmephit.jpg" title="Air portal: summon does work for me." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Air portal: summon does work for me.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -144,13 +144,13 @@ To get the anti-crushing-belt I had to kill another group of duergars. Good thin
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_07_portals.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_07_portals.jpg" title="Mephit portal + meteors = win." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_07_portals.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_07_portals.jpg" title="Mephit portal + meteors = win." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Mephit portal + meteors = win.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_08_copperguards.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_08_copperguards.jpg" title="Copper guards: huh 4 extra mages? Ouch!" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_08_copperguards.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_08_copperguards.jpg" title="Copper guards: huh 4 extra mages? Ouch!" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Copper guards: huh 4 extra mages? Ouch!</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -171,13 +171,13 @@ Before starting the slaves quest in the Copper Coronet, I first talked to Mae'Va
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_09_pickpocket.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_09_pickpocket.jpg" title="Checking out my pickpocket stats." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_09_pickpocket.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_09_pickpocket.jpg" title="Checking out my pickpocket stats." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Checking out my pickpocket stats.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_10_zerthblade.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_10_zerthblade.jpg" title="Yes! A very useful blade" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_10_zerthblade.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_10_zerthblade.jpg" title="Yes! A very useful blade" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Yes! A very useful blade.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -204,14 +204,14 @@ Tanner disappears, skull trap fires and the first one is injured. I flee back up
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_11_rune.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_11_rune.jpg" title="The Rune assassins." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_11_rune.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_11_rune.jpg" title="The Rune assassins." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>The Rune assassins.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
<center></center>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_12_sewers.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_12_sewers.jpg" title="Bye bye stupid hobgoblins..." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_12_sewers.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_12_sewers.jpg" title="Bye bye stupid hobgoblins..." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Bye bye stupid hobgoblins...</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -236,13 +236,13 @@ As for the crypts, I entered and encountered the first bunch of spiders (sword,
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_14_crypts.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_14_crypts.jpg" title="Whoops, wrong crypt!" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_14_crypts.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_14_crypts.jpg" title="Whoops, wrong crypt!" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Whoops, wrong crypt!</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_13_slavers.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_13_slavers.jpg" title="Cloudkill still works..." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_13_slavers.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_13_slavers.jpg" title="Cloudkill still works..." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Cloudkill still works...</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -257,13 +257,13 @@ The astral prison proved to be... Hard in the beginning, very easy in the end. T
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_15_spiders.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_15_spiders.jpg" title="Say hello to my little spider." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_15_spiders.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_15_spiders.jpg" title="Say hello to my little spider." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Say hello to my little spider.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_16_prison.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_16_prison.jpg" title="New shiny equipment" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_16_prison.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_16_prison.jpg" title="New shiny equipment" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>New shiny equipment</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -285,13 +285,13 @@ Instead of attempting to kill the guy with my current arsenal, I cast improved i
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_18_daystar.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_18_daystar.jpg" title="Lich + Breach = out of luck =(" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_18_daystar.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_18_daystar.jpg" title="Lich + Breach = out of luck =(" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Lich + Breach = out of luck =(</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_19_sewerparty.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_19_sewerparty.jpg" title="Stupid of them, demanding gold. Now they're dead." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_19_sewerparty.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_19_sewerparty.jpg" title="Stupid of them, demanding gold. Now they're dead." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Stupid of them, demanding gold. Now they're dead.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -307,13 +307,13 @@ Stole the amulet and reported to Mae'Var. He send me to Edwin, and I had to do h
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_20_rayic.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_20_rayic.jpg" title="Puny little mage." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_20_rayic.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_20_rayic.jpg" title="Puny little mage." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Puny little mage.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_21_maevar.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_21_maevar.jpg" title="What the heck is going on?" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_21_maevar.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_21_maevar.jpg" title="What the heck is going on?" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>What the heck is going on?</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -337,13 +337,13 @@ Anyway, on to the Temple District. Hello Inquisitor, no I don't need your servic
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_22_vampires.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_22_vampires.jpg" title="Taste Daystar, Vampires." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_22_vampires.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_22_vampires.jpg" title="Taste Daystar, Vampires." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Taste Daystar, Vampires.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_23_shadelich.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_23_shadelich.jpg" title="Getting the first Kangaxx part" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_23_shadelich.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_23_shadelich.jpg" title="Getting the first Kangaxx part" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Getting the first Kangaxx part</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -360,13 +360,13 @@ The beholders in the lair were as hard as the lower reaches beholder, maybe even
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_24_tensers.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_24_tensers.jpg" title="Tenser's Transformation = godly" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_24_tensers.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_24_tensers.jpg" title="Tenser's Transformation = godly" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Tenser's Transformation = godly</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_25_bonegolem.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_25_bonegolem.jpg" title="First level up" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_25_bonegolem.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_25_bonegolem.jpg" title="First level up" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Annoying bone golem!</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -384,13 +384,13 @@ Okay, time to try and get Celestial Fury. I arrived at the compound, fully buffe
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_26_druidgrove.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_26_druidgrove.jpg" title="At the Troll hideout" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_26_druidgrove.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_26_druidgrove.jpg" title="At the Troll hideout" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>At the Troll hideout</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_27_liches.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_27_liches.jpg" title="Another group of liches..." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_27_liches.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_27_liches.jpg" title="Another group of liches..." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Another group of liches...</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -406,13 +406,13 @@ I knew Kuroisan the Acid Kensai from tactics was going to spawn since I equipped
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_28_kuro.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_28_kuro.jpg" title="Kuroisan wants my Katana." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_28_kuro.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_28_kuro.jpg" title="Kuroisan wants my Katana." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Kuroisan wants my Katana.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_29_newequip.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_29_newequip.jpg" title="New and strong equipment" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_29_newequip.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_29_newequip.jpg" title="New and strong equipment" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>New and strong equipment</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -438,13 +438,13 @@ I can't exactly remember anymore how I killed him, but I do remember that in his
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_31_kangaxx.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_31_kangaxx.jpg" title="Thank you for the ring!" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_31_kangaxx.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_31_kangaxx.jpg" title="Thank you for the ring!" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Thank you for the ring!</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_30_sphere.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_30_sphere.jpg" title="Boom in the planar sphere" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_30_sphere.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_30_sphere.jpg" title="Boom in the planar sphere" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Boom in the planar sphere</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -464,13 +464,13 @@ The Shadows and Elder Shadows proved to be very annoying because of their "glare
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_32_shadowtemple.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_32_shadowtemple.jpg" title="Daystar rocks this world - and the next one" /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_32_shadowtemple.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_32_shadowtemple.jpg" title="Daystar rocks this world - and the next one" /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Daystar rocks this world - and the next one.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_33_byedragon.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_33_byedragon.jpg" title="Bye bye little dragon." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_33_byedragon.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_33_byedragon.jpg" title="Bye bye little dragon." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Bye bye little dragon.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -484,7 +484,7 @@ Last problem: the "shadow lord" awaiting outside at the temple. After the dragon
|
|||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<figure>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_34_badsaves.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/screens/b_34_badsaves.jpg" title="Death Spell - Death. Go figure." /></a>
|
||||
<a class="lbox" href="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_34_badsaves.jpg"><img class="img-responsive" src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/screens/b_34_badsaves.jpg" title="Death Spell - Death. Go figure." /></a>
|
||||
<figcaption>Death Spell - Death. Go figure.</figcaption>
|
||||
</figure>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
image: "/img/games/BaldursGate2/logo.jpg"
|
||||
image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
|
||||
date: "2007-03-30"
|
||||
title: "Baldur's Gate 2: Spell Protection"
|
||||
tags:
|
||||
|
|
@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ This is why 90% of the time, if you have breach and remove magic, you can kill a
|
|||
|
||||
Breach will strip out any elemental and physical protection, and almost nothing stops it...spell trap will not stop breach, spell turning will not stop breach, only spell shield will stop breach, but only once, and the spell shield is consumed by stopping breach. However due to its nature as a single target spell, you can stop enemies from breaching you by being improved invisible. It is a single target spell, after all. Liches are immune to breach, since they are immune to spells below a certain level, and breach is one of the spells liches are immune to. So how do you strip off the protections of a lich???
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/lich.jpg" alt="" title="">
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/lich.jpg" alt="" title="">
|
||||
<center>Gebhard Blucher's Improved Lich. Painful at the very least.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
### Remove Magic VS Breach
|
||||
|
|
@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ Spell Immunity: Abjuration will not stop any Spell Protection Remover, not even
|
|||
So when confronted with such a spell defense, simply point your Wand of Spell Striking at the opponent and cast Pierce Magic twice or use a scroll of Spell Strike, preferable by a Simulacrum. This is much simpler than using a Chain Contingency of triple RRoR, such as UseRUnfriendly proposes, and moreover usable by a bard.
|
||||
Thanks Lark!
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/BaldursGate2/skeleton.jpg" alt="" title="">
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/skeleton.jpg" alt="" title="">
|
||||
<center>Project Image combined with Skeleton Warriors as decoy is so deadly...</center>
|
||||
|
||||
### Beating difficult Mages without magic
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ Let me give you an idea of what made Troika great. Here are two scenarios, one f
|
|||
|
||||
**What the developers were thinking:** Well, this has to be this way, right? I mean, the bartender has knowledge that keeps the quest moving along so we can't kill him. And what if we attacked someone else in the corner of the bar? We couldn't have that because it would look strange if the people just sat there! And I mean, c'mon, if you can kill this guy, wouldn't that mean you can kill the others too? Oh plus, our publisher informed us yesterday that we have to take out all the kids in the game because we can't sell the game in Germany if it has kid killing. Yeah..... killing people in a friendly town is out of the question.
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/Arcanum/screens/arc_tarant.jpg">
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/arcanum/screens/arc_tarant.jpg">
|
||||
<center>Let's kill her. I hope her husband will be happy.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
**Troika game:**
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ I failed. Miserably.
|
|||
|
||||
There is of course no clicking involved in a console version of Diablo, and let's start with the good parts: it runs extremely smoothly, even with a bunch of stuff happening on screen (like, say, exploding bodies on lightning-enhanced enemies). The revamped inventory screen and UI to match a console button layout is overall well-done. It's easy to walk through the world and through the screens, and it gets the job done. I of course prefer a full inventory screen instead of a list I need to scroll through but I understand the limitations of two analog knobs. Skills are assigned to face buttons and I never felt the need to use a shortcut to quickly switch between them, as you had to do in D2. There are more buttons than the 2 skills you had back then, so that might explain something.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
On to the fun part: **character building**! Or rather, what seems to be completely absent in D3. Why are my skills automatically unlocked? Why are runes a subset of skills now? Why can't I dump points into skills? Where is the **tree** in "skill tree"? Where are the attributes? I'm starting to feel like the Angry Video Game Nerd here. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy Diablo 3, and I hate myself for doing so, but all the complexity that was so amazing and an integral part of the predecessor now seems to be completely vanished... Locked in a soulstone, perhaps? I know this is a 6-year old discussion, but now I'm finally starting to understand Diablo 2 fans, as I am one. I spent more than 200 hours creating "WW bars", "CE necros", doing Mephisto runs at 3 AM. Good times. But what made those times so great was my own decisions and the **permanent impact** I made on my character. Diablo 3 seems to play with me instead of the other way around: it feels like cruising on auto-pilot. All skills are automatically unlocked at level 70 and you can switch between them as you see fit. In D2, you had to start over. That might be harsh, but that was part of the fun.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -22,11 +22,11 @@ Venturebeat talks about the [fun factor of D2](https://venturebeat.com/2018/07/0
|
|||
|
||||
Why would a game like this, completely built around the concept of "_runs_", automatically make choices for the player? That **defined** the previous Diablo games! That is hack & slash. Take a look at Path of Exile, for example. The screenshot below illustrates my attempt at explaining the endless possibilities of character builds. And no, these things are not unlocked if you level up. My Corpse Explosion necromancer with Bone Spikes doesn't need "Corpse Devour", as CE turns corpses into bombs. It's just ridiculous. When my character levels up, I shrug my shoulders. When my character levels in Diablo 2, I'm super excited as the game gives me a chance to _crunch the numbers_.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Another part of the fun was "MF runs" (magic find) - in Diablo 3, rare items drop at exceedingly regular rates. I can't remember ever wearing something blue ("simply" magical, instead of yellow "rare" or orange "unique"). Unique drops are still exciting though. Speaking of loot: runes seem to be gone forever, embedded in the amazing skill tree. The activation of a rune will slightly modify a skill, for instance enhancing it with frostbite or doubling corpse explosion range. Damage might be altered too, but in mysterious ways. I can't see what damage what skill does, and in Diablo 2 this was essential: do I put one more point into this skill or do I wait until the next subtree is unlocked and I switch from flesh to fire golem? Now, the Necromancer only has one "Golem" skill, which he can spice up using runes. Simply awful. **What were they thinking?**, I can hear the Angry Video Game Nerd saying.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
It's in fact quite an accomplishment that I still like the game, for some reason. The World of Warcraft-like graphics don't hold me back as much as I feared, and they've done a decent job at trying to integrate the story into the main game run by sprinkling auditive notebooks into the world here and there. I'm however not excited enough to do lot's of runs and will now say that I'm not interested in doing this online in any way, but local co-op play looks pleasant enough. My wife looked at me while playing it and said "that seems like a very repetitive, boring game". Indeed, but Diablo 2 was also very repetitive, that's the core of the game. I don't mind, but I do want choice and I do want to think about what I put where. Now, I feel like Blizzard thought younger gamers can't seem to think and make good decisions anymore. My wife asked me about something else while I was involved in a "heavy fight" with some enhanced monsters in a lair. I didn't even pay attention and just pressed Y (Corpse Explosion, boom headshot!). Not a scratch. I remember being vulnerable and weak in Diablo 2. I've never even used one single health potion. Even if this is a "normal" difficulty run, the game should "give" - it should be scary and difficult (well, at least provide a challenge), not be a walk in the park![^3]
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
title: Infinity Engine Mods
|
||||
image: "/games/pc/baldurs-gate-2/logo.jpg"
|
||||
date: 2007-01-18
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ First, let us take a look at each game in the list.
|
|||
|
||||
### [Diablo 2](/games/pc/diablo-2)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the retrospective](/games/pc/diablo-2). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ The question is, does any other game come close to matching its greatness?
|
|||
|
||||
### [Diablo 3](/games/switch/diablo-3)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/switch/diablo-3). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ The skill choice instead of tree greatly reduces the complexity, and the added s
|
|||
|
||||
### [Nox](/games/pc/nox)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/pc//nox). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ Westwood knows how to put the _charm_ and unique atmosphere in a game: it is vis
|
|||
|
||||
### [Dungeon Siege](/games/pc/dungeon-siege)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/pc/dungeon-siege). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -114,7 +114,7 @@ Being still an impressive looking game with a seamless world that does not invol
|
|||
|
||||
### [Titan Quest](/games/switch/titan-quest)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/switch/titan-quest). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ Titan Quest offers a titanic amount of hours in Ancient Greece, Egypt, and on Th
|
|||
|
||||
### [Sacred](/games/pc/sacred)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/pc/sacred). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -158,7 +158,7 @@ The unique world of Ancaria comes with goofy voice acting, funny but mostly mund
|
|||
|
||||
### [Torchlight](/games/pc/torchlight)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/pc/torchlight). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -181,7 +181,7 @@ The surprise hit Torchlight strikes just the right tone to the Diablo fan, espec
|
|||
|
||||
### [Torchlight 2](/games/switch/torchlight-2)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Read [the full review](/games/switch/torchlight-2). There, we concluded:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ I love [Wizardry 8](/tags/wizardry8) - I really do. I've been bragging about the
|
|||
|
||||
So, after spending the necessary hours being stuck in the character creation sheets - I really couldn't choose - this is the party I've decided to go for:
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "wiz8-party.jpg" "The starting party." "wiz8-inventory.jpg" "My Samurai doesn't let down." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "wiz8-party.jpg" "The starting party." "wiz8-inventory.jpg" "My Samurai doesn't let down." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
- Ninja: _Muesli_, Felpurr
|
||||
- Lord: _Mielie_, Rawulf
|
||||
|
|
@ -54,13 +54,13 @@ Right, our ship crashed. Correction: it was shot out of the sky! We're stranded
|
|||
|
||||
Next time, I'll keep my fingers positioned on top of `Q` (quicksave) and occasionally `CTRL+Q` (quickload) - and hopefully will not mix up both hotkeys. A second try did help with the slime, but my mage got overconfident, trying to cast a higher level _Frost_ than he'd probably be able to handle. *BOOM* - backfire. Shit. This time though, I knew what to do: `CTRL+Q`!
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "monastery-slime-death.jpg" "Noxious Slime: 1. Party: 0." "monastery-backfire-death.jpg" "Great, spell backfire: another death." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "monastery-slime-death.jpg" "Noxious Slime: 1. Party: 0." "monastery-backfire-death.jpg" "Great, spell backfire: another death." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
After a business meeting with **Gregor** in the main hall (the deal fell through), we were well on our way to grab the _Safe Key_ by plucking at the skeleton head of the statue - that is, after getting rid of Gregor's little helpers, and they know how to bite (and gang up on us). I hope your party formation is in order! Okay, so we now have `6` portions of resurrection powder: three from the safe and three from the hidden waterfall place, after "sleeping with the fishes" near the iron bridge. I couldn't remember where to get the key for the "dangerous weapons", according to a cryptic Rapax note, but after a few minutes, I thought it must have been near Arnika itself.
|
||||
|
||||
So, nothing much left to do than to clear out the Upper Monastery Floor - and meet another enemy type: bandits. We spot a shiny piece of samurai armor equipment, but it's sealed shut behind glass. Hmm... Should we "microwave" it, like how we got the chip for Wooly our Gadgie? It turns out that there's a key that unlocks a door in the Silent Room, where we can ring the monastery bells. Crank it all the way up and all the glass in the entire building breaks! Oh-oh... Luckily, the Higardi Monks have long been gone, and all that is left for us to do is to read their boring administration, grab all the spellbooks we can get our hands on (including a soon-to-be important note), and get the hell out of here.
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "monastery-key.jpg" "The Monastery Safe." "monastery-messenger.jpg" "A mechanical messenger." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "monastery-key.jpg" "The Monastery Safe." "monastery-messenger.jpg" "A mechanical messenger." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Christina our Bishop is as crappy as can be expected from an untrained low-level Bishop. I already shiver when I think of the many hours of "exercise" (casting _Knock Knock_ in the Arnika vaults) I used to put into such builds. I'm not sure if I'll be able to do that this time. Anyway, when entering a side chapel, suddenly, in a flash, a robot appears! Oh no, wait, it was waiting for us but it _disappears_ in a flash. We were impressed. But what to make of it? It seems that there's a race going on, a quest to "**ascend**", and for that, we need to be as "smart as the cosmic lords". How do we do that? By getting three important artifacts! The flags on the walls hint towards these, but other than that, there's not much here. We grab a few more unnecessary potions, Wooly's first gadget, spot more hidden piles of stones for Wooly's Omnigun, and get going by opening the front door.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -70,13 +70,13 @@ Christina our Bishop is as crappy as can be expected from an untrained low-level
|
|||
|
||||
After a long, long road - basically a big slog - the most gruesome part of Wizardry 8 is finally over: the road from the Monastery to Arnika. A lot of people gave up on this road, and a lot of reloads were needed. Enemy mobs scale to your level, and if you camp too many times, multiple mobs will spawn and make your journey even more difficult. I managed to trash the rogues guarding the treasure fairly quickly, but after closing in on the abandoned house (housing a hidden portal), I got stumped myself.
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "arnika-patrols.jpg" "So many nasty rogues out here!" "arnika-vi.jpg" "We rescued Vi!" %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "arnika-patrols.jpg" "So many nasty rogues out here!" "arnika-vi.jpg" "We rescued Vi!" %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Arnika itself isn't what it used to be: many people flet since the arrival of the _Dark Savant_. The bastard build a huge tower here, from where he shot down our ship. We can't seem to access it yet, but a shady looking character named _Myles_ reports on a kidnapping. Naturally, we comply, and temporarily accompany Myles to the location of the crime: another crashed ship, with a destroyed house. There, we rescue Vi from a bunch of angry droids, and we find another interesting part that might come in handy for Wooly our gadgeteer.
|
||||
|
||||
In this game, you are nowhere safe, not even in He'Li's bar, not even in the rooms she rents, as another group of mercenaries were keen on stealing our money and shiny looking equipment. After stealing Antone's keycard, plundering the bank and getting every piece of useful information out of all NPCs, we prepare to leave for Trynton. Muesli, our Feline Ninja, "guarded" Myles' gear, as we politely asked both Myles and Vi to leave. _All your XP are belong to us!_ No, really, wee need it, desperately - especially after getting our butts kicked by a guardian golem in the vaults. The treasure was worthless. It was a sad day. Sharptooth got killed, and said _"next time, help me BEFORE I die!"_ after sprinkling him with our priceless resurrection powder.
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "arnika-wheel.jpg" "Grabbing the Wheel Key after being interrupted by ghosts." "arnika-bank.jpg" "Lured a mob into the bank, whoops! A few rounds later, Lorrac the clerk gave up and fled." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "arnika-wheel.jpg" "Grabbing the Wheel Key after being interrupted by ghosts." "arnika-bank.jpg" "Lured a mob into the bank, whoops! A few rounds later, Lorrac the clerk gave up and fled." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
I can't stand the fact that we have to go back to the Lower Monastery in order to fetch those damn "special weapons" after getting hold of the Wheel Key - thanks, Lord Braffit! (We handed over an official signed declaration, it's okay!)
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -88,11 +88,11 @@ Right, the _Wheel Key_. We need to go back to the Monastery - to the lower level
|
|||
|
||||
After another excruciating long walk to the Monastery, and being ambushed by poisoning and sleep-inducing plants that nearly kicked our butt, we finally make it back. The crypt is guarded by two floating heads, but this time, Muesli our Ninja does his first **insta-kill** and Christine our Bishop manages to turn undead for 92 damage. Boom - the treasure is ours!
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "monastery2.jpg" "Ah, the secret weapons of the Monks." "thievesdagger.jpg" "We were finally able to afford Muesli his Thieves Dagger." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "monastery2.jpg" "Ah, the secret weapons of the Monks." "thievesdagger.jpg" "We were finally able to afford Muesli his Thieves Dagger." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Back - again - to Arnika, before heading to Trynton. Why? Because Christine could do with some training, and Muesli could do with better equipment. We've heard that Antone has his special daggers back in stock - the _Thieves dagger_ - and we were hoping he could make us a nice deal. It turned out to be freakishly expensive: over 10k! So now we're broke, and it is up to Christine her Alchemy skills to fix that. Before being rich again and being able to afford all spellbooks, she'll need to do some Identify Item training (Divinity, Mental Magic) and Knock Knock (Alchemy/Wizardry, Earth Magic). It is not especially pleasant to do, but it turned out to be very much needed. In the end, she trained well, and the party is satisfied.
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "training1.jpg" "A training session with Christine in the secret bank vault." "training2.jpg" "Nice job, Chrinstine!" %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "training1.jpg" "A training session with Christine in the secret bank vault." "training2.jpg" "Nice job, Chrinstine!" %}}
|
||||
|
||||
We hope those misfires - and especially backfiring Mental Stabs - will happen less often now. We're finally ready to pack up and travel to Trynton!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -102,13 +102,13 @@ We hope those misfires - and especially backfiring Mental Stabs - will happen le
|
|||
|
||||
On our way towards Trynton, we come across a shady looking character that introduces himself as _Rattus Rattus_, and wants us to deliver a "note" to the Arnika Bank. _Sure thing, bro!_ - we say. But after reading the note (_THIS IS A STICK UP!_), we discard the idea and continue southwards, until we see a desolate graveyard. A mummy and a few ghosts roam the area, we quickly pick up crafting ingredients and get the hell out of there. Bad vibes!
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "graveyard.jpg" "Mielie smells danger. Let's get out of here!" "instakill.jpg" "Muesli's Ninjitsu mastery is coming in handy, INSTANT KILL!" %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "graveyard.jpg" "Mielie smells danger. Let's get out of here!" "instakill.jpg" "Muesli's Ninjitsu mastery is coming in handy, INSTANT KILL!" %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Muesli our Ninja and Sharptooth our Samurai are becoming real pro's at hitting the right notes in combat. Muesli's _INSTANT KILL_s are very gratifying, especially if it's with a simple fairy dart, as ninja's can also do critical kills using thrown weapons. Trynton's tree is a big maze mess, and we do our best to scour every secret (Wooly's exclamations _"What is that??"_ help) to fill our bags with loot.
|
||||
|
||||
On the third Bough, the Trynton Zoo is open, and a sign reads _DO NOT FEED THE HOGAR_. Of course, we feed the hogar (with drugged meat). The beast falls asleep, we steel the gadget its guarding, and let the beast live. On the other hand, we do slaughter the pixies: those little pests scare us, and their Eye for an Eye magic caused all sorts of mayhem. Santa wasn't paying attention, hurled a Fireball in their direction, but it came right back and killed a few crew members... Great...
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "hogar.jpg" "Welcome to the Trynton Zoo." "barlone.jpg" "BAM! We'll Get 'em! The Don and our team become good friends." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "hogar.jpg" "Welcome to the Trynton Zoo." "barlone.jpg" "BAM! We'll Get 'em! The Don and our team become good friends." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Get the Zuzu petals - check. Buy the Mystery potion - check. Find the seventh Bough - check. Get high - check. The no-magic zone gave us a bit of trouble too: Christine wanted to eagerly heal everyone but we forgot that it wasn't allowed, so a Spider bit and killed her when retreating. Whoops. Oh well, Resurrection Powder is still in stock, right guys? After meeting Madras, he instructs us to kill "Breeders", "big as a house, wide as a ..." - yeah we get it, it's a deal.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ The Rattkin tree proved to be a walk in the park after a good night of sleep and
|
|||
|
||||
Right, the swamp. An ugly place, full of mud, with muddy colors, and our shoes get all mucky. Mud. Oh, and insects - that too, a lot of 'em. Some highly poisonous swarms manage to surround and basically kill us, so watch your step! A few occasional reloads later, we arrive at Corck's shack which allows us to stock up on Level 4 spellbooks, practice some more magic, and buy... Rapax Perfume. The smell isn't exactly tantalizing, but it is said to capture the Rapax' attention, and we have the feeling we'll bee needing something like that.
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "swamp1.jpg" "Skill building at Crock's house." "sewilderness.jpg" "The boobalicious Aeromancers massacre our party..." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "swamp1.jpg" "Skill building at Crock's house." "sewilderness.jpg" "The boobalicious Aeromancers massacre our party..." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Close to Corck's place, there's a big hollow tree, housing a big ol' Alligator that's as tough as nails. Our ninja shines again here with an INSTAKILL after a few rounds: awesome! The crocodile hide might be useful for Antone when we eventually make it back to Arnika. For now, we did not come across the Dark Savant yet, and I thought he was supposed to drop a fake Dominae? Strange. Not all paths have been treaded, though. First, we explore a path leading to the "South-East Wilderness". Only to return to the Swamps fifteen minutes later since a couple of sensual Aeromancers with their lesser Air Elemental pet ("Level 4: Puny"! And it eats us for breakfast!) massacres our party... This does not end well! CTRL-Z!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ We're not exactly welcomed with open arms here: eight or so T'Rang patrols stop
|
|||
|
||||
After avoiding a apparently non-working crushing trap, a lift suddenly takes us down to the inner workings of the Bluff, and we meet Z'Ant, the leader of the T'Rang. He proposes us to work for him in exchange for... well... money and fame? Sure thing, bro. What do you want us to do? Aha, a flag, you say. Where? Mt. Gigas? Dude, that's way up North! Oh well. Okay then.
|
||||
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/img/games/Wizardry8/playthrough/" "zant.jpg" "Yesss, a new cooperation!" "deadtrang.jpg" "Watch out for booby-traps! What a strange note..." %}}
|
||||
{{% dualscreens "/games/pc/wizardry-8/playthrough/" "zant.jpg" "Yesss, a new cooperation!" "deadtrang.jpg" "Watch out for booby-traps! What a strange note..." %}}
|
||||
|
||||
Since we're here already, let's snoop around a bit more. A broken catapult allows us to climb the fortress and we discover a dead T'Rang with his arm chopped off. Aha, that might solve the closed door problem with the strange imprint on it in the lower levels! We're not sure yet what to make of that note.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
image: "/img/games/Wizardry8/wiz8.jpg"
|
||||
image: "/games/pc/wizardry-8/wiz8.jpg"
|
||||
date: "2008-04-30"
|
||||
title: "Wizardry 8: Classes Guide"
|
||||
tags: ['Wizardry8']
|
||||
aliases: ['/articles/guides/wizardry8-classes/']
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/bishop.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/bishop.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
### The Bishop
|
||||
|
||||
#### Race
|
||||
|
|
@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ Best Races:
|
|||
or if you like, try to go for the staff & wand skill. just practice trough combat, that'll do.
|
||||
If you are going for the Elf, you'll want the MACE skill + some shield. Very nice AC bonus, and a good weapon.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Training the different skills is very difficult. You should at least try to cast a variety of spells in combat. Start with a protective spell, use some healing, cast insanity and start throwing rocks. This makes use of all 4 realms much better. Another tip: use 1 level of rogue (they level quite fast, you'll need 1000 XP instead of 1600 as specialist class) and train stealth - a lot-. Every 10 points in the skill allows you to increase your AC by 1. Or, if you like to train a lot, you'll need to do the following:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ Some recipes:
|
|||
|
||||
### The Monk
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/monk.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/monk.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
|
||||
#### Races
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ Best Race:
|
|||
- Psionics (SEN/INT; it's always nice to cast a terrible spell before engaging fist-to-fist with your high speed)
|
||||
- Eventually throwing (I do not encourage, use your magic instead!) and a staff (the Bo's/Staff of Doom) >> STR based which is not good...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Do you go with a quick, agile Monk, capable of delivering an insane amount of attacks with a chance to critical on each blow landed? (Maximize as fast as possible SPE and DEX. Then go for SEN and INT) The trade-off is that you wont deal much damage per hit. Or do you develop a Monk capable of dishing out incredible amounts of damage with each hit and able to withstand even the mightiest blow from the enemy? The trade-off with this route is that you won't have as many attacks per round when compared to the above setup. (Maximize first DEX, and SPE/STR, go for SEN/INT after that)
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ Practise psionics with healing, charming and mindreading (last works best, highe
|
|||
|
||||
### The Ninja
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/ninja.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/ninja.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
|
||||
#### Races
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ Best race:
|
|||
|
||||
As a ninja, you have access to the thrown criticals special skill. It would be wise to invest into throwing stuff like shurikens/slings because you'll be able to archive a nice #hits per round and a good critical strike skill maximizes the chance of instant-killing with every hit. If it doesn't equip a lot of alignment-changing items like KO/Poison/etc because you also automatically penetrate! Keep in mind, ranged user = maxing senses, keeping dex very high. just like the samurai you'll want many hits, hence the speed factor.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Controlling skills:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -130,7 +130,7 @@ Other advised close-range weapons are the staff (extended reach, some good usabl
|
|||
|
||||
### The Samurai
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/samurai.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/samurai.gif" style="float: right;"/>
|
||||
|
||||
#### Races
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -151,7 +151,7 @@ Best Race:
|
|||
|
||||
Try to maximize STR and eventually INT for the power skills. You don't need to keep SEN over 80 (second controlling for dual plus it only adds half of the points into hit, AR as STR or even DEX does.)... Although it is wise to keep on bumping points into dexterity because it is a controlling attribute for both close combat, your sword skill AND dual weapons!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Controlling Skills:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
image: "/img/games/Wizardry8/wiz8.jpg"
|
||||
image: "/games/pc/wizardry-8/wiz8.jpg"
|
||||
date: "2007-06-17"
|
||||
title: "Wizardry 8: General Tips"
|
||||
tags: ['Wizardry8']
|
||||
|
|
@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ aliases: ['/articles/guides/wizardry8-tips/']
|
|||
A warm welcome to you, stranger. Right here where you stand, you will eventually be able to find some very useful information about the best Role-playing game I've played ever on the PC! Isn't that marvelous? Let me start directly with the tips: number one - if you are looking for spoiler quest information or a walktrough, you are on the <i>wrong</i> place click on the related articles in the navigation bar to your left. Otherwise, read on!
|
||||
<br /><br />
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/map.jpg" alt="the wiz8 map">
|
||||
<img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/map.jpg" alt="the wiz8 map">
|
||||
|
||||
The beautiful world map to your right has been provided by the late Flamestryke. If you are eager to visit her site and actually 'navigate' the worldmap, please do so by surfing to her [recovered wiz8 guide](http://www.zimlab.com/wizardry/recovered/flamestryke/wizardry8/flamestrykes_w8.html). If you are a first time player, please read the tips carefully, some might actually save your day on Dominus! (the planet) Oh; the tips were collected from several forums and websites and most of them are my own of course. You can copy everything if you like, but keep in mind some things are not home-made. Oh forgive my rambling, let's just get on with it...<br /><br />
|
||||
</td>
|
||||
|
|
@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ They are also influenced by positive magic like soul shield - you can even heal
|
|||
Whenever using resurrection powders, make sure the person using it isn't blind, they may pick a wrong target, like an alive character, thus wasting one of your precious powders early in the game.</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/Wiz8_killthetemplars.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/Wiz8_killthetemplars.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ Psionic Blast is a great spell because it goes around corners and attacks enemie
|
|||
At the fountain in Trynton there's a riddle which increases ALL your chars +5 INT so never put more points than 95 into INT...</li>
|
||||
Develop the bow skill (or throwing / sling) of at least 2 characters. By the time you get to the fifth or sixth level, it really helps in melee. Besides there's nothing worse than being stuck after being surprised waiting to move and not being able to do anything except deplete spell points. Ranged attacks are great for just chipping away the hit points of monsters.</li></ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/Wiz8_professions_S.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/Wiz8_professions_S.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>The open road is very dangerous in the beginning of the game (especially the road to Arnika), your party will have only a few items of weak equipment, but your enemies, with a few fixed exceptions, are randomly created or re-spawned near the level of your party (they go up in level as you do). Therefore most experienced players move fairly quickly through the open road portions of the early game, until civilization is first reached. There you will find help, equipment, and less dangerous initial experience. Soon you will be strong enough to take on almost any location in the game that seems like a logical next choice.</li>
|
||||
|
|
@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ alchemy bug/misfeature. it seems that mixing 2-5 stacked potions at once vs. 1 p
|
|||
<li>To Survive you will need protection from magic. Magic protection is hardly necessary for about the first third of the game, but when you do need it as the game </li>progresses - you need it A LOT. Magic protection varies, but the two main spells you’ll need are element shield and soul shield (and magic screen is highly recommended as well).</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/Wiz8_luredcrabs.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/Wiz8_luredcrabs.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ If you ever find yourself surrounded, kick a blind/terror Area of Effect spell i
|
|||
<li>For you phased combat goers, instead of pressing enter to start your turn, you press the '\' button twice. This way, if you want to make a change, you can just enter continuous and change it. Also, if you for some reason started the turn normally, if you keep on switching, you will eventually reach the continuous mode where you can change your actions.</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/img/games/Wizardry8/Wiz8_inventory.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
<div align="center"><img src="/games/pc/wizardry-8/Wiz8_inventory.jpg" alt="Wiz8 screen" align="center"></div>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -20,11 +20,11 @@ Yes! The Acorn festival starts today! I managed to grab 15 acorns as quickly as
|
|||
I received a Mush Chair and End Table in exchange for his acorns. Pfew, luckily I threw the rotten ones away. Oh yeah, and it's Drift's Birthday. He got a Raven Pole from me, hehehe.
|
||||
So here is a picture of Jefklak's washing/tubbing/cleaning room with too cool swords and the new mush furniture -
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
And Drift enjoying his present with his two best buds: me of course and Alfonso (yes that is a pretty crappy picture this time)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>Strange Neighbours on the Flea market</h3>
|
||||
<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 07/10/2006 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ Bluebear tries to persuade me to sell her own Picture she gave me a month or two
|
|||
friends anymore? Or is she just a little bit greedy? Anyway, the deal is off and she's disappointed. Bluebear shouldn't be since she bought my Coconut palm, an Exotic
|
||||
Screen and even my Modern Sofa! Luckily I know where to find Nook's Catalog.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>Life in Arnika</h3>
|
||||
<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 20/09/2006 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
|
||||
|
|
@ -43,11 +43,11 @@ This is one fine day in Arnika. Jefklak decides to do some gardening in town. Wi
|
|||
white roses (positioning them next to each other) according to the guide, there might grow a purple rose.
|
||||
The result of weeks of gardening, patience and a lot of love is pictured here:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
If you manage to keep your town clean and beautiful for 20 straight days, a special gift will be awarded. You'll have to plant enough trees, but not too much, and weed the town every day.
|
||||
Be sure to plant enough flowers everywhere so your neighbours can fully enjoy them and don't forget to water the dried up ones! Check your work by contacting Pelly at the Town Hall.
|
||||
Once you did everything correctly, ta-daa:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ game_developer: 'Konami'
|
|||
aliases: ['/games/castlevania-portrait-of-ruin/']
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Castlevania games tend to pop up each year on Nintendo's Handheld platform. The last entries: Aria of Sorrow and Dawn of Sorrow, followed the story of Soma, who mysteriously inherited Dracula's dark abilities. Forget about all that, and the soul harvesting system. Portrait of Ruin is the spiritual successor of Castlevania Bloodlines on the SEGA MegaDrive/Genesis. Jonathan Morris is the son of Bloodlines' whip-equipped hero. PoR takes place during or just after the second World War. Dracula's castle reappeared because of the many sacrificed souls during that era. Together with your childhood friend Charlotte, you'll have to explore the castle and beat Dracula, again!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ Yes indeed, like the unlockable Julius mode in Dawn of Sorrow, you can now switc
|
|||
|
||||
Using these two vampire hunters, Konami implemented a couple of little puzzles which can only be completed using them both. You can order one of them to "standby" instead of following. New orders are received through cubes like in Symphony of the Night and Harmony of Dissonance. Sadly these puzzles are more annoying than enjoyable, just like the ice blocks in Dawn of Sorrow. Speaking about those: there is no touch interaction, whatshowever. Which is good. The upper screen is still used as a map though. Many monsters make their return (of course there are new ones), mostly copied from Symphony of the Night. Most of them have been completely remodelled, which gives PoR a nice retro feeling. As said before, the soul hunting system has been replaced by a similar skill system: monsters drop either weapon or spell skills, usable by Jonathan and Charlotte respectively. Killing enough minions using these techniques allows you to "master" it and do more damage.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### The Vampire Killer
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -19,13 +19,13 @@ While this was 1989, the launch year of Nintendo's Gray Brick, Mario already adv
|
|||
|
||||
Revisiting Super Mario Land in 2021 will inevitably result in disappointment. We are simply used to better 2D platform games---even from the same 8-bit old system. The sprites are teensy tiny: Nintendo R&D was still figuring out how to program for the Z80 CPU. No big surprises then, that the GB hardware natively supports `8x8` sprites, and that not even bosses look that much bigger. In perspective, though, the technological leap that was made in-between Mario Land 1 and 2 is astonishing. 2 is bigger (literally), longer, bolder, and yes, much better.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
There is little reason to replay Super Mario Land on the Game Boy---except, of course, for nostalgia. I wanted to see what was beyond world 2! Forty-five minutes later, I was flabbergasted. The game showed its _the end_ message. What the? How did I _not_ finish this when I was a kid? Later levels aren't particularly harder. If any, my attention span for gaming now is much shorter than it was back then! The lack of a savegame or password feature might be one reason. Parents declaring _That's enough son, now come and eat your soup_ meant switching the GB off: there goes your progress.
|
||||
|
||||
There is one thing I do love about this game, besides that it was a kick-start to a grand series. And that is the scenery. Yes, there are many world 2 Mario designs that are sandy, but none take place _inside_ a pyramid with sphinxes shooting fireballs at you. I have yet to encounter a Mario game where I can jump into a submarine. Or how about Mario's travels to Japan? Lush bamboo forests and ninja's are refreshing to look at, even if the limited sprite capacities impede more variety. I wish more Mario games would experiment with original and varied world design instead of the obligatory greenery-desert-ice-mountain-etc.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
There's little time to wonder what those things in the background or foreground are. Before you know it, you're facing the boss and it's off to the next world---of which there are only four.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ This immediately reveals _Wendy_'s biggest problem. There weren't many cartridge
|
|||
|
||||
Yes and no.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Yes---the game is great, and we'll delve into that. No---the game is extremely short. Without speed running, it's easily finished in about 45 minutes---less than an hour! Fifty euros for an hour of retro platforming fun is very steep. Replayability is limited: the game only has 12 levels (spread in a 3x4 fashion) and there's little extra to collect except beating your high score. But there's no save state present, so you'll have to write that down, diminishing its appeal by quite a bit.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ So what's the Witchy deal with this kiddy platformer? It's a late GBC game, mean
|
|||
|
||||
2D Game Boy Platformers are rarely known for their back story. Wendy can jump and shoot with her wand (which can power up if you collect enough stars). The unique premise of this game compared to other platformers is the fact that Wendy herself can "flip" during a jump, sticking to the ceiling, avoiding pits and all manner of sharp objects among the way. This opens up a lot of clever level design that has you flipping over Wendy several times every few seconds to navigate her through the castle maze.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The shortness of the game felt a bit of a missed opportunity as to me, the floor/ceiling gameplay mechanic could be explored and experimented with more to create truly crazy (and challenging) levels. Wendy is far from a hard game, and the concepts are gradually introduced without the need of any text. The music is catchy, but not great enough to stick around, even though some levels use recycled versions. In-between stages, a short broomstick flying session keeps you on your toes and has you collecting more stars. The more enemies you manage to zap with your wand, the higher the score. These sections feel a bit like a Schmup, which is a nice change of pacing.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ Bringing up this argument might sound weird coming from someone who hates certai
|
|||
|
||||
I want to grind when I feel like it, not when the game tells me I haven't encountered enough enemies yet to progress through that part of the map. That indicates a design flaw to me - or a way to artificially lengthen the game, as it did in the NES days. The Dragon Quest formula hasn't really changed since then. I don't mind: I'm a retro gamer. But as McGonigal points out: we need to be **intrinsically motivated** to do anything well, from playing a game to doing chores in real life.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Running around to reach new places can become boring if the world is empty or if it takes a long time to go from point A to B. Aria of Sorrow has neither. Even without Black Panther to dash, a quick travel system allows you to jump from one area to the next and even those aren't too far away if you decide to do things on foot. Hollow Knight, a great and highly acclaimed modern Metroidvania, doesn't offer quite the same: there are a lot less but more dangerous enemies and it's a bit too large to reach one of the edges for my liking. Souls aren't readily harvested so punching the same monsters in the face again and again will net you something interesting instead of simply gold.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ Getting to the end boss does net you a scrolling stage select screen that also g
|
|||
|
||||
Without #2, Diablo wouldn't exist. Why would anyone be motivated to do Nightmare or Hell runs in Diablo 2? To gain experience quickly, and to find nice items in the form of monster drops. Aria of Sorrow enemies also drop items and it's also a rarity that could be increased with the right soul or support items. Another reason why backtracking isn't bad here.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
"Getting better" also means getting more flexible: unlocking a double jump, or being able to fly with the Giant Bat soul. Soma literally strengthens on the screen, separate from the statistics only visible in the character screen or in the health bar number. The implementation of all those things combined yet to be matched in my mind.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ The last piece of the puzzle why Aria of Sorrow is one of the best Metroidvania'
|
|||
|
||||
Aria of Sorrow's [Soundtrack](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6i-D60cxt0&list=PL5312754A0D082327) is a masterpiece that still sounds amazing, 15 years later, ripped from the Gameboy Advance. The opening song, "Castle Corridor", sends shivers down my spine every single time I hear it. To be fair, all the Castlevania DS soundtracks are at least as good, as is of course the Playstation instance.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
So, would I burn through this game again anytime soon? It can be over in 5 hours, with the map reporting "97,5%" explored. I neglected to mention the map! Another great piece of the puzzle that is required in games like this. The castle map that slowly becomes more and more visible also serves as an immediate graphical feedback on the feeling of progress. Games like [Etrian Odyssey](/articles/etrian-odyssey-review/) add another dimension to this mechanic by making you draw the map edges yourself, but the core concept remains: each "block" is slowly automatically discovered when you enter that particular area.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ As the hunt continues, from [Aria of Sorrow](/articles/aria-of-sorrow-retrospect
|
|||
|
||||
If you've read the reviews, you know that Circle of the Moon is considered a hidden masterpiece, but you also know that it was "too dark", had "drab" graphics, was "too difficult" and that Iga even scratched it from the official Castlevania timeline, thereby admitting it might have been a mistake. The darkness can be solved with a GBA SP, modded GBA or Nintendo DS, but the difficulty is something you have to get used to - especially if you've played Aria of Sorrow before, like I did.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I'm still not sure whether I like the difficulty or not, or the game in general. It tries to do it's own thing: different enemies spawn in familiar locations after defeating certain bosses, forcing you to never let down your guard, even while backtracking. As backtracking is such a big thing in the Metroidvania series, it got me to swear quite a few times. Simple axe armors are replaced by Dark, Light, Forest or "whatever" _armors_ and these guys know how to dish out damage: three strikes and you're out. Taking the odd and too economically placed save rooms into account, that can hurt my gameplay experience quite a bit.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -27,13 +27,13 @@ Nathan uses his "DSS" card system to pull off magic attacks like Soma uses his S
|
|||
|
||||
### So... Why bother then?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
And yet, it still managed to hold my attention for over 6 hours to reach the end boss. The music is magnificent with a great opening track and some remixes thrown in. Sound effects are a bit lackluster though: the hollow sounding footsteps and "ugh" effects take me out of the experience. The castle is huge and Nathan feels puny compared to enemies, stairs and hallways. The player sprite is literally smaller than in AoS - it's part of Circle of the Moon. I honestly did not like the endless staircase repetition, even if the castle is unique and big it grew tiresome in some places rather quickly compared to Aria. The worst part is the first relic you acquire: _dash boots_ that lets you run. What? Double tap the directional pad and you can finally increase the snail-like speed of character movement? I had to stop playing on my Gameboy after an hour because my hands got cramped after constantly double-tapping - I can't believe they didn't playtest that for longer than 5 minutes.
|
||||
|
||||
Circle of the Moon feels like a more classic mix between classic Castlevania and Metroidvania: the inclusion of the subweapons, the increasing difficulty and oh, the big kickback after being hit is _very_ painful. The bosses are all very challenging, even the first one got me to reload three times! Of course, once you find the cross, all other subweapons are obsolete and bosses are a bit easier to defeat because of their big hitboxes. If you don't like a cakewalk like Aria of Sorrow or Harmony of Dissonance you'll find what you're looking for here.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
It was actually not the castle design, the card system, subweapons or relics that got me hooked, but the challenge and unique monster design that did. A lot of the enemies make it into the later games that were invented here: the ice maiden and floating tables are recognizable from Aria and Dawn of Sorrow. Where Aria shines in item, soul, castle and graphic design, Circle shines in the challenge _an sich_. There is still a big sense of progress with a gradually unlockable castle and the item hunt in the form of HP, MP and Heart upgrade containers from Symphony of the Night are also present - mostly hidden behind breakable walls that are a lot of fun to search for.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ howlongtobeat_id: undefined
|
|||
game_name: "Wonderland Dizzy"
|
||||
game_release_year: 2015
|
||||
game_developer: 'The Oliver Twins'
|
||||
image: "/img/games/wonderland-dizzy/cover.jpg"
|
||||
image: "/games/nes/wonderland-dizzy/cover.jpg"
|
||||
game_genre: 'Adventure'
|
||||
tags:
|
||||
- adventure
|
||||
|
|
@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ Twenty-two years after the development of this NES adaptation of _Magicland Dizz
|
|||
|
||||
The (beautiful) [Amiga port](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAzmgWG_nUc) and [Spectrum original](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lc5Ivdiy5cw) can be marveled at on YouTube, and do show similarities in gameplay and story. Since the Evercade instruction manual hinted at _Wonderland_ being the most accessible one for unexperienced egg-players, I started with this one. Let's find out if this 22 year old Dizzy conversion was a great find, or if it was better left undiscovered.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## The Dizzy principle
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ The catch is: Dizzy's pockets can only store three items at any time. So you hav
|
|||
|
||||
In the original ZX Spectrum games, the inventory screen ("You are carrying", not "You are holding"---strange!) is an overlay: the rest of the world and Dizzy is still visible. In this game, it's a different screen, artificially breaking up the gameplay to fiddle with the inventory. Calling it a technical shortcoming because of the NES would be strange, why would an even older machine (the Speccy) be able to pull it of, but not Nintendo's machine?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Of course, these gripes have to be seen in perspective. For one, it's essentially an eighties game. Second, I'm a Dizzy newbie, and although I've tried out a few others on the Evercade cart, I still have to finish those. But this again puzzles me: for instance, in _The Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy_, falling from a great height, such as from clouds, does nothing. But in _Wonderland_, Dizzy is stunned and essentially loses a life. Why would you change these mechanics, on the same platform, for the same kind of game, from the same devs?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ I did misuse Dizzy's dizziness (ha!). If you decide to play with 2 characters, D
|
|||
|
||||
Speaking of inconsistencies. In one particular puzzle, you have to do something with a pond of water. But everywhere in the game, you quickly learn that a slight misstep off a water lily leaf results in death: water---just like any other moving pixel---is to be avoided at all costs. Some puzzles can be solved by selecting the appropriate item _in front_ of the receiver. But I can't fill a bucket in front of the pond: I have to get IN the pond. Which I didn't dare, until a walkthrough told me to do so.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## By Jove!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -19,23 +19,23 @@ Hooray hooray for classic urgh-so-bad-graphics-but-so-good-gameplay RPG-games li
|
|||
|
||||
What's going on, George?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
As some of you probably already know, this is a very strange game. No classic setting (orcs, elves, magie & mythes) but a mix of those same settings in combination with early technologies like guns, steam trains and such. The first time you open up the character creation window, it took me 5 hours to create a character I liked. Yes, the options and settings are incredibly deep and sometimes too complicated. At least, at the first time. Each faction balances out the other one: when you create a magic casting Elf, he won't be able to touch most technology weapons and vice versa. It is even possible you won't have access to tech stores halfway trough the game anymore! In the stats screen you'll see a Magick/Tech meter wich points what faction you are leaning towards. Magic armor with a bonus to your Armor Class is useless for a tech dwarf, for instance.
|
||||
Doctor Bomb Thrower
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
It's also very important wich NPC you carry with you. Virgil for example, the Human you meet at the beginning of the game with his funny voice (too few voice acting in the game!), is a magick user. His heal spells won't have much effect if you are leaning towards the tech side too much. Luckily there is also a tech sided healer but Jayna does not play a huge role like Virgil in the plot/game. She can create spices and healing herbs from two different ingredients, provided you have the right schematic for this. You can buy schemes but they are very expensive. You can also select a few when leveling up, wich of course is limited by certain stat points. You can become doctor in traps, armor, weapons, ... by stepping up every time. Start creating a dagger, and end with a pretty big and deadly two-handed sword. Don't go screaming nerf! yet, there are pretty big stat requirements present. You won't be able to create another category (ex. armor and weapons, electricity and chemicals, ...) since you pumped all points in one way.
|
||||
Turn Based and other Options
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Guns require bullets wich you will eventually be able to create yourself. But carrying ammo requires a lot of strength and repeater rifles empty your pocket in no time. Very annoying, constant restocking. Well, that's why you should take that big fat huge dumb ogre with you. But! There is another solution: get your hands on a bullet recipe. You only need to carry the two ingredients (lightweight) instead of the finished product. Explosives such as Molotov coctails (wich send enemies flying while you have enough time to blow a couple of holes in their head) are heavy too.
|
||||
Since we're talking about combat anyway, there are three different options to battle. real-time, semi turn-based and full turn-based. The last option is adviced. At the bottom of the screen, a bar appears wich represents the amounth of Actions you still can do (walk, shoot, reload, ...). People playing Fallout will recognize this. Real-time is basically a poor execution of a click fest like Diablo. It's funny to hear Virgil's comments on the enemy or your actions when things turn out bad. If you create a low-INT character, you'll only be able to talk me wanna sell stuff too. People will think less of you, but you'll be able to hit harder and faster. Balance, you see. By the way, ogres have a different clothing size. This means you won't be able to equip your ogre (or dwarf) with regular sized material. Neat! Or not.
|
||||
What do you mean, Ugly?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The world itself is very beautiful put together. I'm not talking about the raw graphics engine, but about the little details here and there: trash bins near the streets actually have randomized -- well, trash content. Wich you eventually will use to create new items; for example rags can be used as a fuse for molotovs. Some fields are filled with spices and herbs, a crash site actually contains little springs and metal plates, and so on. The quests give you quit a bit of freedom. Will you kill the bandits for justice, will you bribe them to join you, will you insult them and chase them away, or won't you do anything at all?
|
||||
Yes, it's time. Time to talk about the actual graphics in Arcanum. Well, they suck. That's that. Remember: it's all about gameplay folks. Gameplay. And that one thing is more than present in this magnificent game. The game does require a good amounth of patience -- Arcanum throws something like ''figure it out yourself, damnit!' at you. Luckily the original box and game comes with an oversized manual. The budget edition does not, wich is a shame.
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ Not many first person action Roleplaying games are well known, except the Ultima
|
|||
|
||||
What does Morrowind share with Arx Fatalis? Arx is a FP RPG, combat is basically hit- and run tactics, eurhm... I guess that's it! Not quite a lot indeed. It is safe to assume Arx Fatalis was meant to be Ultima Underworld III. As Wikipedia states, Arkane Studios couldn't get the proper license for the name, but in the end that doesn't really matter. Arx is a pure dungeon crawler, you will never see big open (and mostly empty) spaces as seen in Morrowind. You will never see more than 5 cities with enourmous amounths of NPCs without any realistic conversations. And that's good.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Goblins and Trolls
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -27,14 +27,14 @@ Arx is the biggest (and human) city in the game. The game is built using separat
|
|||
|
||||
NPC Interaction is at the very least, weird. There are no dialog options to choose from, you just do what you're told to (and ask about yourself since you don't even know your own name). There are no alternatives in any way. The text scrolls rather slow and less important persons don't even have subtitles (since you don't interact with them: they say I'm guarding or go to x, without the need of having to reply something). Lip synchronization does not exist, it's rather a "mouth open, closed, open closed, open, ..." mechanic. Okay, the game is from 2002, so that doesn't bother me at all. The game engine is remarkably nicely done though. There are beautiful lightning effects and everything seems very streamlined. Except while killing enemies, the engine slows down for a second or two when a body falls to the ground. Very annoying if you're facing multiple foes!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Game mechanics
|
||||
|
||||
The best part about Arx Fatalis is easily the world interaction. Just like in Ultima Underworld, your character has to eat occasionally. Combine a rope with a stick and you've got yourself a fishing rod, nice! Catch some fish, cast the Ignite spell on a fireplace and throw your fish into the fire. After a while, they'll be baked. You can also combine water with flour and put the dough in the fire which results into lumps of bread. Many more combinations are possible, from eating to repairing to brewing your own potions. The spell system is rune based: you collect different runes and at different spell levels, chain-casting runes form new spells. (Ha, a Vista rune!) Casting runes means drawing (2D) gestures on the screen. Be careful though, as the interpreter is very unforgiving and sometimes you'll have to try three times in a row to get it right. Thankfully, pressing SHIFT sets the spell in "pre-cast" mode, accessible via three quickslot keys.
|
||||
Although melee combat is as clumsy as in all other first person RPGs ever made, ranged combat can be quite fun. You can vary your slashing with holding the direction keys but in the end it's just hit, run, hit, run, repeat. Mostly run, in the beginning. A good thing the character development system allows fighters to cast spells as it's skill based, not class based. You simply need to put enough points into mind, strength, or other key stats for your skills (casting, ranged, melee combat, sneaking, object knowledge, ...) to raise.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Review-Cat says: A welcome addition to dungeon crawling in real time. Better tha
|
|||
|
||||
**Addendum** - The latest 1.17 Patch fixes many major engine faults and crashes, and includes nice little additions such as auto sorting in the inventory (really needed) and apparently an auto-map (press R). Most important locations in the map are now automatically marked ("smithy", "throne room", ...). If they fixed the journal, kill engine slowdowns and the weird speech volume adjustments (maybe this is my PC? All envoirnment sounds overpower the speech - whichever option I try to finetune), the game would maybe be worth a 9. Of course the combat system and liniar story progressioin can't be that easily patched. But no mather, if I wanted to play a dialoge heavy RPG, I'd pick Planescape Torment or Fallout.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Video footage
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
|
|||
date: "2019-07-31"
|
||||
title: "Experiencing the Enhanced Baldur's Gate"
|
||||
aliases:
|
||||
- /articles/features/bg1-ee/
|
||||
- /articles/bg1-ee/
|
||||
tags:
|
||||
- 'Baldurs Gate 1'
|
||||
- 'Baldurs Gate 2'
|
||||
|
|
@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ We move from one tree to the other, carefully glancing towards the ever so black
|
|||
|
||||
After a short trip to Beregost, we come across a shady looking figure that offers us to pay a royal amount of gold coins, provided we escort a young lady and protect her from two attacking buffoons, who are madly in love with her. Careful investigation reveals the lady was crazy, and not the guys chasing after her. So we killed her. No wait, she killed us. We reloaded, and then she killed us again. And again. And again. After quaffing a potion or six, and meticulous planning, we were able to behead the crazy bitch, before she could launch a lightning bolt towards our asses. Pfew. The shady figure shrugs, says "oh well, I expected that", and asks to join us. We welcome Garrick with open arms.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
That was a decision we regretted after a few more fistfights in the woods. When things get tough, Brave Garrick the Great gets goin'. Instead of jamming his harp and calling forth dangerous spells, the coward runs for shelter like a little boy! Luckily, we managed to train and harden our beloved Chaotic-aligned bard, making him a well-rounded asset in our team of killers. It took us a while though. He kept on yearning for this super expensive crossbow that was displayed in the window of the blacksmith in Beregost. We paid the cash and let him have it. Now Garrick enjoys shooting lightning-enhanced bolts at greater ghouls, and we enjoy Garrick.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -32,13 +32,13 @@ However, he is usually the second to die when not hanging in the back. Jaheira i
|
|||
|
||||
Mother nature awaits. But, the Omnipresent Authority Figure is always looking to tell others what to do. And perhaps this group does not need as much help as she think it would. As these phrases are among the favorites of Jaheira's things to say, most party members need to resist the urge to bash in her head, as we did with her husband. At least she can heal some wounds and cast Summon Insects and Call Woodbeing. And Since Emmetrius, our great leader, is looking for "multi-talented people", he has a soft spot for multi- and dualclassed people like her. Emmetrius himself is an adept Berseker, planning to go rogue by classing into a mage at level 9. That is, when we ever get to finish the first party of this ever lasting Baldur's Gate story. Yeslick (fighter/cleric), Coran (fighter/thief), Jaheira (fighter/druid) - all interesting party members capable of dishing out damage in more than one way. Add Neera for the french kisses and we're all set.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
While wandering around, our party discovers and finds... most of the time nothing. The in-between spaces of Baldur's Gate are surprisingly empty, but there is always at least something to do beyond the fog of war, even if it is killing Ankhegs, saying "yes dear farmer, your sun is dead, now shut it!", and blasting fireballs against a group of sorry ass bandits. The woods serve as a short trip, for adventurers like us, as a short break, before hitting pure stone walls like Durlag's Tower. The massive tower does not look impressive. "Let's loot the place!" Coran says. Jaheira, as usual, says nothing. Is she thinking about Khalid? Luckily, Emmetrius does not care: he yells "forwards!", and forwards we go.
|
||||
|
||||
Until we land on a cloudkill trap, and have to reload. Whoops. "Coran, could you possibly, you know, use your keen eye and find the goddamn traps?". "I can dance on the head of a pin, as well!" - oh wait, that was Yoshimo, another beloved thief that ended in a tragedy. As Coran's thieving abilities are not up to snuff compared to Imoen's (thanks to multiclassing), we have to rely on potions. Some fireball traps are unable to avoid. "Hey, I have like, a great idea, haha. Or whatever. Can we maybe cast, you know, protection of Fire?" Great idea Neera, go ahead. _Wild surge: protection from Ice._ What the hell? "Oh erm, that was what you wanted, right? Shall I try Again?" Yes, please. _Manus, Potentis, Paro_. _Wild surge: a cow drops from the heavens and kills Yeslick._ Why, Neera, why? "Well I was an abused child and never really got to learn stuff propertly..." Okay, that makes sense. This romance seems to get along nicely, so let's abuse each other right now. "Okay!". Jaheira says silent. Maybe she's preparing to be jealous in BG2.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In the end, we managed to kill some kind of stupid looking Demon Knight, who is said to be the most dangerous thing in the game. Guess again: our party is. The guy didn't even put up a fight: after a few nice snipe shots from Coran, a hasted berseked dual wielding Emmetrius, and a few spells from my lover, things were over pretty quickly. The stupid mirror wasn't even touched. However, we were not quite prepared for the Soultaker dagger quest, were we. We took the thing up North, but cult members came after it and demanded it's return. Emmetrius responds, as usual, "fuck off", and fuck they did. The fucked us up pretty well. Backstabbing cult members instantly killed Coran and Neera, almost followed by Garrick, who spills the beans. Reload. Jam on space, cast haste, confusion, holy smite, skull trap. Neera's trap kills two innocent boys, a cow and a chicken. Reload. Backstabbed again. Reload. Arrgh!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -46,6 +46,6 @@ In the end, we managed to kill some kind of stupid looking Demon Knight, who is
|
|||
|
||||
Time to rest, let's look for a tavern. And no Coran, let's stay within our room, last time you were caught sneaking around and opening other people's drawers, we had to kill a few Flaming Fist guards, and people did not handle it that well, remember? "Oh yeah, our reputation is quite low, do something about it or I might leave!" But you did that yourself! "No, you made me to!" Okay, that is correct. I should not have picked Neutral Good as my alignment, as I am clearly more Chaotic Neutral or even Evil-aligned. I wish we could drag Edwin along, but as I'm fucking Neera, things are 'wild' enough already. "Show me your wares!" demands the bartender. "I'll show you something... What about my spider's bane +2? Nice and shiny." No two-handed sword wielders here, so here, gimme al your money.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
You must gather your wits to venture forth. We became quite powerful, gathering a lot of cool equipment from Durlag and co. It is time to walk past the big bridge and enter Baldur's Gate itself. Time to finish things, let's find that other Bhaalspawn and end him. "That will be quite easy to do, since I'm the Demon Killer." grins Emmetrius. Right you are...
|
||||
|
|
@ -21,7 +21,8 @@ Black & White is one of the most talked about games of the past year. There is t
|
|||
|
||||
Don't expect too many big changes to this expansion pack: B&W was a great weirdly crafted game that got its way anyway, and this expansion is no exception. Dropping "B&W" usually reminded you of great AI and an extensive gameplay world. This game removes the mistakes the previous version made, which they should perhaps have already made in their first version ... You must try to conquer the faith of all the people in the world by working miracles so that they can to worship. This gives you "power" and you can try to conquer other peoples with the help of your lap dog / giraffe / elephant / ...
|
||||
__
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||

|
||||
#### Beast raised
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -31,7 +32,7 @@ In Creature Isle, your animal still accompanies you, and in the beginning of the
|
|||
|
||||
You will have to complete several smaller games in the grand scheme of things together with your creature. You have to go bowling with a lazy cow, play a marble game with a monkey, play football with the baboon and his friends, race with a turtle, rescue a bear that has been held captive by a gorilla, ... They are well built and varied, so you will always complete the game to see what your next assignment is.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Small mistakes
|
||||

|
||||
|
|
@ -47,7 +48,7 @@ There are like a Rhino and a giant chick (no not Jozef) new creatures that you c
|
|||

|
||||
Every time you complete an assignment, a new beast that you can switch with your creature will now appear in the main menu. You can also fight the new beasts if you want, but be careful, your beast must be well trained to win all those fights ... Most assignments can be redone if you want, but I don't really have that. had a lot of sense, because then you are again confronted with those stupid mistakes. Playing time of this expansion is approx. 15 hours, not really that much for an expansion. Rather buy BGII: Throne of Baal if you don't already have one!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ game_developer: 'Monolith'
|
|||
|
||||
Ah, 2D platformers. This genre disappeared after the DOS era on the PC. Also the consoles liked more the 3D platform games like hundreds of Mario 64 clones. There was almost never an attempt to revive the classic 2D side-scrolling action and add a few modern elements to it. Except for Monolith Productions of course! We know Monolith mostly from First Person games like the recent F.E.A.R. and of course the No One Lives Forever series. Claw was one of their first titles which proved Monolith was quite capable of putting together a complete game package, even including a level editor and multiplayer options, in the PC world. Blood is probably the oldest known game from these developers. Hungry 2D platformes which refuse to buy a decent handheld system to ease the pain will likely enjoy Captain Claw. Let's see what the game has to offer. (Or had...)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Act I, Level I. Escape!... Again?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ It immediately show that Claw will be an unique experience once you star the gam
|
|||
|
||||
Every act is divided into two levels and at the end you'll have to face a boss. If you manage to stay alive, you'll be rewarded with one of those nine jewels. If you don't... Ah, but a pirate won't be defeated that easy, won't he? Every stage breathes a fresh and unique air: a big fort, a wide forest area, the ship yard, ... The music tunes on the background are very pirate-ish and are quite suited for the game.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
During your search for the jewels, you will of course face several different enemies. Claw comes equipped with a pistol with a finite amount of ammo, little dynamite bombs you can throw at platforms and a very powerful (but very limited) spell Magic Claw which literally rips trough all enemies directly facing you. Hmm, did I forget something? Oh yeah, and of course one to rule them all: your blunt, crude but shiny pirate sword! When Claw attacks and the enemies are too close to use the rather big sword, he'll kick and punch instead. Very funny animations by the way.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -30,14 +30,14 @@ Enemies drop loot after being defeated. Coins, golden crowns, King Staves, you n
|
|||
|
||||
### My cat against yours, Let's do it.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
A feature of this game which stands out is the multiplayer possibility. Claw even has a built-in netplay module so you'll be able to battle or co-operate with your friends via the Internet. Sadly Captain Claw still uses rather old methods to setup the connection: the out dated IPX method. But it's not impossible to play with your friends thanks to various wrapper scripts found on your beloved friend Google.
|
||||
Bored with the standard levels? No problem, just make your own! Yes indeed, like in Jazz jackrabbit 2 you can make your own fully-featured levels and distribute them via the Internet. By fully-featured, I mean fully: powerups, treasure, all kinds of platforms, background whistles, etc. Sadly, it is not possible to smash different levels into one complete package called an Act like the main game. Since there are only nine main themes available, the level tool might get boring after a while.
|
||||
|
||||
### Oooh, a cut-scene.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Between the different acts, you'll be rewarded with an impressive cut-scene. These little videos are animated which expand the story of Claw's past and future. The scenes are very well animated and of high quality, after a while you really have the feeling you've entered a pirate world and you're being chased by the inquisitors. After finishing an act, you can re-watch each cut-scene via the Main Menu. Maybe Monolith should have made this game into a series of multiple ones... Ah well.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ Westwoods Command & Conquer was one of the first and most influential real-time
|
|||
|
||||
Normally it is best to discuss the gameplay first, but because it is not 'good' to always do the same ("look at your own!" Ed.) We will start this time about the graphics of this game. Everyone knows by now that Renegade is westwood's first 3D game. The developers put their cautious feet in dangerous territory that nearly kills each other in competition, which they should not do. That's why they don't expect much from the graphics, but this time Westwood has pleasantly surprised us: the graphics are not that bad at all ... Of course you should not expect an RTCW or MOHAA level, far from by the way, but still ... For the first time ... Without any doubt, it is okay. Havoc's mouth looks a lot like a barn door or rather a * cough * afin you know ;-), but still. The buildings are beautiful from afar. The closer you get, the more angular everything gets quite angular, but that's normal, and doesn't just happen here.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Euuh what the breeding is it RTS or FPS?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ How stupid you can be, but just a little bit of explanation for the people who d
|
|||
|
||||
As you can see in the score, this game doesn't really get that much for addiction. There is of course also an explanation behind this, namely that it starts to get boring after a while ;-) I mean: The buildings inside are always the same, once you know what to do inside such a building, there is nothing left at all On. Take out officers, shoot black hand guyz, plant some C4, rescue some jacks and it's in the pocket. On the other hand, the missions themselves are quite varied (9 on gameplay is not for nothing). It's always nice to use a big tank to blow those rotten NOD transport helicopters out of the air before those extra men can drop to make you one cup smaller. Another funny thing: you can ALWAYS reload! Even if you still have all the bullets, when you hit that Reload button, reload Havoc obediently ... This may not be a big deal for other people, but I find it quite annoying, because I always reload as much as possible with every game. Also a pity that the weapons were not more extensive. That standard machinegun starts to get you seriously on your alarm clock after a while, always that same sound and that moth-eaten run ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Weapons & Tools
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ This does not mean that the game is really linear - it is not that bad - The com
|
|||
|
||||
HOW but the multi part makes up for almost the whole game! This rocks dirty people - right in the middle of the action that comes out even fiercer than the single player part. You really have to work as a team here to reduce the NOD or GDI base to scrap together ... You can buy new rifles & stuff at terminals in your base (standard a machine gun - grenade or shotgun costs nothing). You get money through the tiberium refinery so no tiberium = no money = no tanks = no victory ... If you have enough money you can buy one of the main characters (Deadly six) who are much stronger and each have a specific ability. For example, you have Havoc with a ramjet rifle, quite deadly. Here you have the feeling that you have to achieve everything together, which is also the case, in contrast to the Red Alert series where you as "god" also planted the buildings that are already there in the beginning of a multiplayer session.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ Direct attack is not always the best way, this concept lies close to the heart o
|
|||
|
||||
As you can see very well that this atmosphere is also radiated in many classic war films. That's also because Commandos 2 (and 1) is inspired by many of these films, such as The Guns of Navarone, Bridge on the River Kwai, or maybe even the recent Saving Private Ryan. You will easily notice if you have seen one of these films that the game plays on it: for example you have a mission in China where you have to cross a large bridge ... [see screenshots]
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Variation
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ There are a total of 10 major missions in the game, and if done well you will al
|
|||
|
||||
Questie characters have everything like mustache: Just like in Commandos 1, you have about 7 elite soldiers at your disposal including a dead-like Green Beret, a spy (and a lady-like!), A thief who can climb anything, a mechanic who cars can ride and throw bombs, a bomb expert who can use flamethrowers and bazookas, and a fast navy who throws knives! Enough choice, isn't it? Naturally you can't just choose your characters in every level, that would make the whole game way too easy ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Lots of dragging
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ Another of the strongest assets of this beautiful strategy game is that you can
|
|||
|
||||
Once in a house, the engine automatically switches to 3D, so you can rotate your screen 360 ° that is sweetheart. Sometimes this is necessary because some enemies are behind desks and you do not see them directly on your screen. Do not forget your thief and the navy in the house, which is vital! The Navy can defuse enemies by throwing its knife, which is quite an advantage. But this is a review, not a walktrough ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,13 +28,13 @@ After searching for and cleansing the Den of Evil, you start to grasp the basic
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Still, the build quality of the game is so high that these occasional _'shit, dead end, again'_ curses are bearable. The UI is slick and the look and feel of the 2D art feels just right. It's an old game, and a resolution of `800x600` without mods is everything you're going to get, but that's all right: Diablo II has aged exceptionally well. Sure, these screenshots look grainy and sometimes it's hard to see what's going on (too dark, too many corpse explosions, ...). But after hurting my eyes on [Torchlight](/games/pc/torchlight)'s cartoony graphics and [Sacred](/games/pc/sacred)'s out of place hybrid engine, pumping up skills with my Druid feels great again.
|
||||
|
||||
The rain of Act I looks a bit silly but is part of the retro charm, and of course, Sacred's towns are much more detailed (and vast). However, compared to Diablo 2, I feel that little games ever matched the brilliance of the grim looking world, simple UI, and hotkey-able skill tree. Admittedly, after breezing though the normal difficulty to start over again in nightmare and hell, repetition does set in. I seem to have more trouble with this than I used to as a 16-year old, but that might not be the fault of the game.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ The five Acts of Diablo II (including the expansion) provide ample variation, bo
|
|||
Most Diablo clones, except maybe [Diablo III](/games/switch/diablo-3), fail to throw that many enemies at you within a cramped and dimly lit space. The respawn rate is fortunately not as ridiculous as Sacred, but if you like to farm, be it for gear or for experience points, this is definitely the game for you. Just make sure to socket that three-slotted helmet with flawless topazes to boost your magic find! Diablo 2 isn't as forgiving as its successor, both on difficulty as on drops, and I actually prefer that: here, it actually excites me to see a yellow item drop (rare). When my brother-in-law and I encounter multiple uniques, we go nuts. And love it. Of course, it always turns out to be junk, but we love it nonetheless. No _Stone of Jordans_ were found during this review...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Enemy AI is non-existing: it goes as far as the rule _'approach and kill'_. And that is a good thing, as I hated the sneaky little goblin bastards from Sacred that fire off a few arrows and then make a run for it. As soon as I was able to cast _Hurricane_, things got considerably easier, especially in Act VI, where teleporting minions can be a headache. Now, they simply teleport within the reach of Hurricane and die.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ Each Act (except the fourth) has six main quests that are all tied into the stor
|
|||
So, to be fair, Diablo II loses a few points here. There is player vs player after reaching level `90`, or of course Mephisto or Baal runs and trade stuff through Battle.net, but compared to newer H&S games, the options are limited. And yet, [Europebattle.net](http://europebattle.net/d2), the server we played on, is still surprisingly active, for a game that is twenty years old! Hardcore runs and Diablo II clans are still a thing. Color me impressed.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 2. Loot
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -63,7 +63,7 @@ Speaking of Mephisto runs: let's talk about loot. Diablo invented the normal/soc
|
|||
|
||||
Chests are still interesting enough to open, while in Sacred, I felt these were completely meaningless. Too much money can be solved by visiting the gambler, something faithfully restored by [Torchlight](/games/pc/torchlight) and of course Diablo III. Item durability is a thing, but it's not that pricey, and items are never completely broken and suddenly gone as in [Nox](/games/pc/nox). Patches added a lot of unique items, and especially runes and _runewords_: combine the right rune in a piece of equipment to create your own unique and very potent weapon indeed. Screw up and well, off to yet another search for the `amn` rune!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
There are no hidden dungeons within dungeons, no treasure goblins, no timed battle chests, and no seasonal goodies. This game only contains the (superiorly executed) bare bones of what we know as hack & slash: loot, monsters, skills. And that is not a bad thing, but if you're spoiled and got used to new trinkets, expect to be disappointed.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ There are no hidden dungeons within dungeons, no treasure goblins, no timed batt
|
|||
|
||||
Every time you level up, there are `5` stat points to distribute: strength (barbarian/paladin), dexterity (amazon/assassin), vitality and energy. If you carefully inspect build guides, you'll notice they all share the same strategy involving the distribution of these points: dump everything you can in vitality (more life, thus more survival), and crank up the rest only to be able to equip your end gear. Many pieces of armor have strength or dexterity requirements. So, as complex as this might look, it all boils down to doing the same thing for every class - a bit of a letdown.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Skills
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ The skill tree, on the other hand, is where most of the tweaking takes place. Ea
|
|||
Skills receive passive bonuses from early invested points, so not everything is wasted, although it is generally a very good idea to hold off assigning most points until you're either level 24 or 30. That brings us to the biggest downside of the system: under level 24, if you're in need of a skill out of reach, you will struggle to survive _and_ to properly enjoy the game. I was a close combat imposter until _Tornado_ and leaned a lot on the fire traps of my party member. However, suddenly, at level 30, the druid quickly became much more potent, to the point that it was laughably easy - at least in normal. This signifies a bit of an imbalance in the tree, and I can see why games like [Torchlight](/games/pc/torchlight) just have level pre-requirements, or why [Diablo III](/games/switch/diablo-3) does not have a skill tree at all. Still, to me, planning and the early pain is part of the fun.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -96,7 +96,7 @@ The few NPCs you'll meet will be significant to a certain quest, and be appropri
|
|||
|
||||
There is no need to waste words on the discussion of whether any more recent game came close to matching Diablo II's dramatic cinematics. The answer is of course _none_ - except maybe Diablo III. The CGI cut-scenes are great and help in understanding the relationships between the prime evils. Simply excellent.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -30,13 +30,13 @@ The engine responsible for the atmosphere of the Dungeon Siege world did its bes
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Compared to the 3D-rendered player and enemy designs of Sacred from two years later, DS1 still holds up surprisingly well (I'm ignoring the facial area here). The fully three-dimensional world runs smooth and there are no load times - which is impressive for a game from 2002. There is a bit more variety in special effects compared to Sacred, but I still prefer the pixels of Diablo 2's Firewall and Ice Orb. The Nature magic Zap spell or the Combat Magic fireball feel and look a bit weak.
|
||||
|
||||
There is no day/night cycle, but the scenery does change from summer-looking farmlands the player starts in to snowy mountains after emerging from the Krug-infested mines. The engine delivers a fine job, but it's all very static. It feels more like an early Aurora engine game such as Neverwinter Nights. What about the UI then? Passable at best: things are a bit too small when you crank up the resolution to a daring `1024x768` and the font is absolutely horrible. Luckily, you won't be spending a lot of time fiddling about as there simply are not a lot of choices to be made, compared to other more complex hack & slashers.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ This is where the games gets mildly interesting again. I've read a few reviews t
|
|||
|
||||
Alas, mob design is an entire different matter. There are no elite mobs as in Diablo 2/3/Sacred, but there are unique mini-bosses that are more likely to drop a few pieces of hopefully magical equipment. Yet none are lightning-enhanced or anything else crazy, and enemies are "set" in the world of DS: no respawning, so no farming. Wait, how are you going to do your magic find runs then? You're not - except for re-creating multiplayer instances.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Enemy AI is not as bad as the donkey but it doesn't need to be complex if you simply dump everything in a dungeon and attack at sight. Enemy spellcasters occasionally gave me trouble because of their healing or reviving abilities so that was a nice surprise.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ Another minus, perhaps. The main quest, told in in-game rendered cut-scenes, did
|
|||
|
||||
This might have been my own fault: In Diablo 2, you're even given much needed skill points, and in Sacred, the whole map is filled to the brim with sidequests (admittedly, most of them are stupid fetch quests, but they do offer precious runes!). I shouldn't have played Sacred before this.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
NPC design - or city architecture, for that matter - is also a bit lacking. In Sacred, NPCs also "go to sleep" and move about a bit, while in Dungeon Siege, they're as static as everything else. Most cities are not bigger than five houses, of which three provide facilities such as your smithy and magic bookshop.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ In hindsight, when I wrote in the [Sacred review](/games/pc/sacred), "_The loot
|
|||
|
||||
Caves and dungeons are littered with crates and trapped chests that contain nothing but potions (much needed) and gold (also much needed). The problem is, it's not that compelling to open - even if needed. After all, hack and slash games resolve around loot, a key game mechanic, and the reason why I'm playing this. And that is clearly wrong: Dungeon Siege is another kind of game. Its successor, Dungeon Siege II, goes a tad wilder on loot and items.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
On the plus side: since you're playing with a party of up to seven members, you can equip up to seven characters. Found a nice axe, but started as a mage? No problem, give it to your fellow dwarf! Instead of selling cool items that are unusable because of class restrictions, you can use everything - and not only because there are no classes at all!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -75,13 +75,13 @@ On the plus side: since you're playing with a party of up to seven members, you
|
|||
|
||||
Veteran hack & slash players will be amazed when trying to distribute points after leveling up: there's no such thing in Dungeon Siege. Instead, the game employs a classless system where skills grow as the appropriate item gets more use. Whack at enemies using a melee weapon? Okay, you're now a knight. Use your bow a lot? There, ranged combat. Then there are two kinds of magic: nature magic (summons, heals, good AoE stuff) and combat magic (mostly explosive offensive stuff). You can mix and match, but training jack of all trades in DS is usually a bad idea.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Next to the four basic skills, you have your run-of-the-mill attributes: strength, dexterity, intelligence. Equipping items require a certain amount of a certain attribute. The trouble is, my primary character was an archer, that automatically raises ranged combat and of course dexterity. There are "secondary" attributes: occasionally, strength would go up too, albeit at a _much_ slower rate. However, many armor pieces had quite high strength requirements. This forced me to wield a sword for a few hours to bump up strength - which made my character useless in fights. The medium difficulty gave me a lot of trouble as an archer without many companions in the first half of the game. I don't like hit-and-run strategies in these kinds of games, but they were needed to survive. In the end, I got tired of it and switched to easy. Indeed, that is possible in-game, without having to start over again. According to forum posts I've read, this also alters the amount of XP distributed, and _might_ alter drops. I didn't see a any of that.
|
||||
|
||||
If you dislike choosing and putting a lot of effort into a single build, this is the game for you. The companions you'll drag along with you each are either fighter, archer, or one of the two mage types. In the end, in a single game run, you'll have experienced it all, instead of having to build a specialized ice sorceress or whirlwind barbarian in Diablo. The downside of this system is micromanaging your party. While in combat, quickly switching to another spell means clicking, clicking, and more clicking. There are two "quickslots", as seen in the screenshot below, and besides switching from damaging to healing spells, I didn't use them very often.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ Every NPC encounter is fully voiced, without the funny tones of Sacred. The cut-
|
|||
|
||||
To show off the 3D engine, cinematics are all in-game and quite fluent. But exactly because of that zero transition, they don't really feel as a cinematic. Diablo 2's excellent CGI grabs players by the throat - something that few non-Blizzard games manage to achieve.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ I already wasted a few nostalgic words on the game at [Brain Baking](https://bra
|
|||
|
||||
When you replay the game now, "looking incredible" might be stretching it a bit too far. Remember Quake 2's texturized enemy faces? Those flat looking monster dudes that all look like they were cloned, no matter the variation? It's more or less the same here. Blocky galore. When scoring a goal, a few team mates execute exactly the same animation (fall over, do a slide, ...) at sometimes exactly the same moment: it's hilarious to think that this was cutting edge 1997 technology.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Still, gameplay wise, RTWC98 has everything to offer. You can play inside, there are plenty of countries and stadiums included, and even the pre-World Cup qualification matches can all be played. This was probably the only way for me to imagine Belgium winning a World Cup game: they didn't even make it through the group stages back then.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ Still, just jamming the run button as soon as my attacker has the ball and press
|
|||
|
||||
After a lot of exciting and less exciting matches, and after a lot of red cards (whoops, wrong button, slide tackle!), we ended up on top, easily defeating Romania with 9 - 1:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The game still manages to increase my blood flow. I still clap my hands from excitement every time we score a goal, or curse when I provoke a penalty that manages to hit the net. What more do we want from a game such as this? The only gripe against the PC version could be that a game such as FIFA is more enjoyable with a friend, thus perhaps a controller or two and a couch is the recommended way to play it. I had fond memories of it playing on a Pentium on my brand new CRT as a kid, so I bought the big box version on eBay---because god knows what I did with my original copy.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -18,19 +18,19 @@ Am I the only one wondering what the heck the lead artist ate the day he **creat
|
|||
|
||||
Every year an article pops up about Adventure games and the death of the genre and every year a fantastic game gets released to counter this myth. Sadly, only a few of those games are really worth playing trough. That's why I'd like to take a look at the past with you to games wich are worth mentionning. How did this genre fare in the DOS era, when pixels ruled the world and nobody shouted like hell **oh no these graphics suck!**. Retro is in.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Please be kindly reminded of the legendary LucasArts adventure games wich still circulate in the second hand market for +$60 new. Too bad some abandoned software is still ESA Protected. Coktel Vision, the adventure game developêr of the **Goblins** series, already produced quality adventure data in the mid-1980s. The Goblins need your help puzzling trough various open ended stages. In this version, you'll get Fingus, the wannabe-intelligent but total-not-funny goblin, and Winkle the dumb-but-so-funny dude. You will need to combine their efforts to achieve some items wich can then be used in another stage, and so on: classic adventure gameplay indeed.
|
||||
|
||||
### Progress trough the Game
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Let's talk a bit about the story. The **Prince Buffoon** has sadly been kidnapped! What will happen now? Fingus and Winkle will have to retrieve the prince by all means - alive or... well, alive. Let's imagine the following scene: two old people are sitting on a bench by a big tree. Behind them, an empty bottle. You'll need the bottle to water the flowers, wich you'll need to... Do something else, let's not spoil it. How do you successfully nab that bottle? Let Winkle do something stupid, the old guys laugh like hell and won't pay attention on Fingus. Point & Click: nothing more, nothing less. With a bunch humoristic tricks and scenes added. Winkle will for instane literally **'eat**' your valuable items if he's hungry, so you can't just solve each puzzle using the same goblin. Woah, that's crazy, good sir! No, that's an intresting twist.
|
||||
|
||||
### Kind of stuck here, a little help?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
There is always the cheesy and easy way to finish adventure games: scan the whole scene with your mouse cursor and pick up anything you are able to use. Combine everything with everything and try to interact with every usable object lying around. Should you think 'aha, I will try to match logical objects with each other', think again. Goblins is a whacky game and the puzzles are sometimes too wacky for it's own good. Ever tried catching a fairy with honey sirup? Or getting matches via a big bear carpet? The right or wrong animations are very well done, but it will get frustrating after a dozen tries.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ It promises to be tough times again. GTA 3 isn't quite out yet, and Hitman 2 is
|
|||
|
||||
Hitman 1 was one of the games that was released under great expectations. Unfortunately, this one has not lived up to all expectations, but that does not mean that it was a bad game. The graphics were amazing then, and the atmosphere was original to say the least. But Hitman was such a game in which you could get stuck, because it sometimes took 3 hours to complete 1 mission, and you could NOT save in between! "Fortunately" (OEF man ed.) This has been fixed in the 2nd (and hopefully better version) of Hitman.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### The story
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -30,13 +30,13 @@ As you can see in the screenshots, you still play the dangerous assassin who doe
|
|||
|
||||
The main difference from the first version of Hitman is that you now have full control over the killing itself. You only get to know in advance that you have to kill person X or Y, but how you decide! Of course you also have to make sure that you are not discovered ... That is less easy than with the 1st version: pick up the 1st and best package and put it on - if you work this way, you have a good chance that a 6 MM bullet through your bald head ... An example: in a certain mission you have to make sure that an open heart operation of a Mafia boss goes to pieces. So the best thing you can do is dress up as a surgeon and screw up the surgery, but make it look like a medical blunder has happened. Another mission is to snipe a particular gang member. Small detail: you are not sure who it is. You do have a vague description of the character, but the hit must be done in a crowded place with even more people. You can't afford innocent victims, so you need to find out who to kill and then find him. Another way to kill people is to poison them. Another example: a mafia boss is almost impossible to approach, so you put poison in his son's food. Big funeral, and just when the father bursts into tears, you pull out your hardball player and pop his eyes out. Not really sensitive, but it is well found!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Larger range of weapons
|
||||

|
||||
How creative we are today: there are about 9 more weapons in it than the previous version! That is of course great fun. These weapons range from a fair share of snipers, but there are also plenty of close-combat weapons included so you don't have to aim your scope at someone who is stabbing you with a knife. The next novelty in terms of weapons is that you no longer have to select them in advance for each mission: You can choose the exact weapons in a kind of shop during the game and put the job in the shakosh. But with some missions there are also metal detectors, and then you can only use your choke cord (read: fibrewire).
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Also 1st Person View
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Surprisingly, the makers also took into account that all people complained about
|
|||

|
||||
You can change cameras whenever you want. Attention has also been paid to the difficulty level: fixed saves have now been created (x number per level) and the missions have been slightly reduced in terms of surface area. IO claims that it should therefore not become less exciting, and nothing could be further from the truth ... Unfortunately there is no news about the multiplayer that could be 'possibly' in it, but I have my doubts about that . No!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ After the successful and beloved Jagged Alliance squad-based turn-based strategy
|
|||
|
||||
### Mad Mercs for Hire
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
When you boot up JA2 for the first time, you'll enter a fake Computer Operating System, your operation base: the laptop. This portable will help you fund your hard earned money by hiring new team/party members trough various on-line methods. Later in the game, a huge internet store is accessible trough the laptop. It has never been easier to buy a couple of AK's - free delivery! Also crutial mission information will be directly e-mailed to you via the OS. Nice touch.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ Next to the general personalities (voice, appearance) every character has a hate
|
|||
|
||||
### Money makes the world go Round
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Between the hiring of new mercs and the buying of weapons trough the internet or shops distributed among various cities, you'll have to watch your budget constantly. In the beginning of the game there is no income. None. You won't be able to hire a full team and will need to use cheap hardware like pistols. When you take over some cities, there are a few opportunities to earn (a lot of) money trough different quests. For instance, liberate an occupied mine and you'll be rewarded with the monthly income of that mine. Do not forget to keep occupying the mine with militia! Yes indeed, you are able to train militia from towns folks by using your highest educated team member. Of course using a low educated one will also work but it'll take longer and your skills won't increase that often. Be aware once you are training militia, you cannot use that member to do something else. Same story with fixing broken weapons and sleeping.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ During the main mission you'll cruise trough a lot of different cities and villa
|
|||
|
||||
### Combat
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
As said before, JA2 is a TBS game, which means it plays very much like a standard board game using turns. As long as your mercs don't see or hear any enemies you can walk freely in the area and the game switches to a real-time mode. As soon as one of your team members notices something dangerous, the game switches back in TBS mode and you'll have to set actions for each party member. Every merc has Action Points (more agile members obviously can do more stuff) which you can spend during your turn to walk, run, crawl, shoot, scan, ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Aside from shooting, one of my favourite ways to silently liquidate enemies is u
|
|||
|
||||
### Sir-Tech's bad side
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Talking about the graphics is obviously a little bit over-the-top. A game from 1999 can't possibly look as good as a nowadays shooter (BOOM HEADSHOT! - Last time, I promise!). Still, back in 1999 the bad part about Jagged Alliance 2 were the graphics. Wizardry 8 did not have a potentially beautiful engine either, but both games are just so nicely put together we'll barely make that a discussion point. Sadly most gamers disagree again. Damn you all! Oh yeah, the game features OK-ish cutscenes which explain the main plot in the game. They are of mediocore quality. But another great thing about all Sir-Tech games is the amazing achievement of the composer Kevin Manthei, which also made the Wiz8 soundtrack. The bad graphics feeling completely fades once the great music tracks shows up and you are getting attached to your crew members.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -17,25 +17,25 @@ tags:
|
|||
|
||||
_Adventure games are dead_---the title of a forum post that pops up every few months since 1996 or so. Then devs reveal a promising title at E3, the hype is real, the tension rises, the game is released, and everybody posts _adventure games are dead_ again. Sure, there are exceptions, such as Gilbert and Winnick's Thimbleweed Park. But wait, even a year before that release, _Kathy Rain_ popped up, Clifftop Games' debut no less. A forgotten (at least, by me) retro-inspired noir point & click adventure, set in 1995, that delivers on almost all fronts.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Let's start with getting the negative(s) out of the way. It's really short, even for an adventure game: you'll be craving for more after a little more than five hours. Okay, is that it? Well yeah, I can't fault the game on any other part, really. The atmosphere is great, the pixelated graphics are great, the protagonist is great, everything is fully voiced, ...: everything you've come to expect from the genre is present and accounted for. I did play the _Director's Cut_, which included a revamped soundtrack and some restored/extended puzzles.
|
||||
|
||||
Speaking of which: no Moon Logic or crazy fluff like in [Gobliins 2](/games/pc/gobliins-2) in Kathy Rain. Instead of hunting pixels, you'll be needing your head, as most puzzles are logic-based. Kathy and her friend Eileen are quick to give hints though, especially in the beginning. She sometimes wonders what's still missing, how to do x or y, providing a gentle way to get you back on track. I never really felt the need to brute-force COMBINE x WITH y here, although admittedly, with every new item, there was the urge to go back and revisit every character in the game to see what they had to say about it, hoping for a piece of information I might have otherwise missed.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
What starts off as a rebellious attempt to differentiate herself ends as an inevitable path down to hell---or whatever you want to make of it. Kathy is a journalist major, nosy, bitchy, chain smoker, bike babe, and lover of the word _fuck_. She regularly gets herself into trouble because of that. The game revolves around her deceased grandfather and his strange "vegetative state" his wife called it. Kathy decides to investigate, finding herself getting dragged into the mysterious and mesmerizing trio-light thingies, which also happen to be present on the tainted windows of the church. Strange.
|
||||
|
||||
At one point, the story took quite a dark path, reminding me of _Sanitarium_, a psychedelic adventure game revolving around a psychiatric patient and his inner struggles. The first hour or two starts of normal though: get an item, ask questions, unlock new locations, combine stuff, solve things, retrace your steps, and so forth. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of locations in the game, but you'll be revisiting them often. The game's pacing is crafted beautifully though.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The game sucked me in. Completely. I wanted to continue, to unfold the story, but also to keep on staring at those beautiful pixels, the purposely chosen low resolution, or the ridiculous shifts in perspective that are just dead wrong, reminiscent of Guybrush Threepwood appearing from afar. If you've ever played one of the old SCUMM games and liked those, you'll appreciate Kathy Rain even more. If not, it might come over as hampered, although the controls are intuitive enough, and you never need to do anything more besides the occasional click and drag. There are no complicated commands like in Simon the Sorcerer or Monkey 1: Kathy just does whatever you want her to do---automatically.
|
||||
|
||||
Her dead grandfather (and others, I won't spoil it for you) come alive in the form of retrieved tapes, which is a neat way to add otherwise absent characters to the story line. It makes sense too, since Joseph, Kathy's grandfather, was investigating something that presumably led to his death, which Kathy now is retracing. Sort of. The trusty tape recorder also comes in handy when "creating" fake telephone calls---another clever puzzle!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In the end, Kathy Rain is an adventure game dear to adventure lovers' hearts. It does not only deliver on nostalgia levels, but also on story, puzzles, and atmosphere, managing to stand on its own for those who do not wear rose-tinted glasses like I do. Sure, the scarce animations are a bit stiff, the music might not be very memorable compared to the Big Hitters, and the story ending will leave you flabbergasted, even with the "fixed ending" in the Director's Cut (expect to say _huh??_ more than a few times). But I've enjoyed every single minute of this clicking my way through, and I bet so will you.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ This game was on everyone's Christmas list long before it came out, but unfortun
|
|||
|
||||
The game starts when you find yourself in an army truck together with your fellow American soldiers. You drive down a bumpy dirt road at night while your sergeant gives instructions for the mission. Turns out you're on your way to an occupied camp where one of our best spies is being held captive. So there you are, snuggled under the green tarp of the truck and just when you start to think you're in some kind of Half-Life-esque intro, all hell breaks loose. From that moment on, the cozy feeling is over, the only feeling you will experience in the coming days is war, pure war!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### You're not alone in this doom
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ This game is not easy at all, which is why your buddies are also much better in
|
|||
|
||||
#### Cool missions
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The missions are not the least you can call original ... There are missions that build on the previous one, such as eg. when you have to steal a German tank (prototype) with a few specialists. When you and your mates finally conquer that stupid tanker, your next mission is to get through town in one piece with that same tank! And of course YOU have to control them ... The big problem is that enemy units there also have anti-tank weapons stabbing, and then if you shoot that whole city at your leisure, they have a chance to defuse you ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ It gets more and more exciting with the storyline, because on the latter you som
|
|||
|
||||
If you are a gamer buy this game, if you don't you better get lace making, because this is the best binary war experience for PC ever! You shouldn't let something like that pass you by ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
- Gameplay: 10
|
||||
- Graphics: 9
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -18,8 +18,7 @@ Anyway, welcome to a world of furious Power, angry Magic, dirty Politics and abo
|
|||
|
||||
### What's up with this Interface?
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/MightAndMagic7/screens/05_wanderaround.jpg"/>
|
||||
<center>Strolling trough the biggest city.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Don't forget to breathe while watching the videos or viewing the screenshots. Let's be blunt: **The game is ugly as hell**. That's a fact and there is no review in this world which will change it, not even this one. But all Might & Magic games in the long running series suffered from this bad point. The game itself is only playable at 640x480, like Planescape: Torment. Not that it matters much once the game grabs your throat and you are addicted. New World Computing finally tried in version Might and Magic IX to **tighten up** the graphics by using the No One Lives Forever [-(Lich-Tech)-] engine, but on the way they apparently forgot to adjust the controls to a First Person Roleplaying game instead of a shooter...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -27,8 +26,7 @@ What has version VII to offer if you are still playing VI? A lot, really. All pr
|
|||
|
||||
### Huge Possibilities
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/MightAndMagic7/screens/04_loading.jpg"/>
|
||||
<center>Beautiful loading screens.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Like many other RPG games, you've been given a **lot** of choices during the course ànd creation of the game. A fresh reminder: the Might & Magic games play like a turn-based First Person RPG, just like [Wizardry](/tags/wizardry8). You can switch to turn-based mode any time by pressing the ENTER key. At the bottom of the game interface, you'll see your four main character portraits, wich you'll have to create all by yourself. Additional NPCs may join you but will only function as a **modifier**: for example hiring a travelling locksmith will grant you a whopping **'5%**' bonus to your lock pick skills, at the cost of a set amount of gold or a base percentage on the gold you stumble upon during your numberous adventures.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -36,8 +34,7 @@ There are four races available: Goblin (strongest and quick), Elf (weak but smar
|
|||
|
||||
### Student and Master
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/MightAndMagic7/screens/09_spellbook.jpg"/>
|
||||
<center>My druid's spellbook.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Every character can specialize in his class. This means your newbie monk can kick quite a bit of butt as a **Master** monk later in the game, also enabling him to cast Body Magic (in a lesser degreen than a Cleric of course, but still). acquiring those titles will require you to finish a difficult task near the end of the game. A sorcerer for instance can choose to become an archmage or a lich - the light and dark sides of the sorcerer. Each side has special abilities: casting powerfull undead spells or big godly ones like Mass Heal, the choice is up to you.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -45,15 +42,13 @@ Choices - if you like to consider and eventually make them, this game was writte
|
|||
|
||||
### Skill Progress
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/MightAndMagic7/screens/13_inventory.jpg"/>
|
||||
<center>The inventory screen of my thief.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In contrast to Baldur's Gate and co. where you are out of luck if you find a shiny weapon you cannot use, or to Wizardry where your skills progress as you use the weapon type, you can "**buy**" weapon type skills in Might & Magic games. If you didn't choose to pick the sword skill at the character creation window, you can still learn it from various NPCs like weapon merchants in the game (for a **fair** price of course). After you level up you can pump points into a skill and if these values are high enough you can upgrade the skill level. Only certain classes can get progressively better at a certain skill: Paladins only can Grandmaster the **repair item** skill. Every skill has four levels: basic, expert, master and grandmaster. An expert dagger character can equip two daggers at once and a grandmaster dagger thief adds additional bonus damage to his attacks. To get a skill upgrade you will have to find the appropriate teacher though. Trainers are sperad across the whole M&M VII universe, but luckily the game records the locations once you've visited them.
|
||||
|
||||
### Let's Play a card Game.
|
||||
|
||||
<img src="/img/games/MightAndMagic7/screens/16_acromage.jpg"/>
|
||||
<center>Acromage, the card game.</center>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Imagine that. I'm strollig trough the biggest city in the game, searching for a tavern to fill up food supplies. Once inside, the waiter tells me a new card game has become quite popular in the taverns across the country. You can win a lof of money so I'm in. It's called "**Acromage**". He even bet I couldn't win in all taverns, hah, bring it on old man! "**Read Rules?**" Nah, we're hardcore! Damn, what the hell are all those cards and what do they do? Uh-oh, I somehow recognize all this - there was this one time I occasionally played **Magic the Gathering**...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -30,13 +30,13 @@ You are Jack, a young lad that - whoops - gets zapped into a TV (huh?) - only to
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The 2D engine is serviceable, maxing out at `30FPS` with drops to `20` when things get a bit crazy, such as the attack on Castle Galava with all the fire demons. Oh, and speaking of fireballs: expect to die a lot. Some enemies are capable of one-shotting you, and they are not that uncommon. This game is a speed assessment, a dexterous test that flexes your hotkey muscles. The game map is basic but instructive, and certainly better than in Dungeon Siege.
|
||||
|
||||
Equipping your character does change your visuals. The fact that Jack still wears his T-shirt and sneakers you can sell (worth more than other clothes) of and/or trade for a medieval shirt says a lot. The interface is clean and intuitive, and you have your easy access spell slot at the bottom, which is scrollable with the mouse wheel. Then there's mana, health, and the `Z` hotkey to cure poison. Those poison clouds are impressive, too - as long as you don't step into them, especially in the Swamp chapter... Enemy casters can be invisible and you'll have to cast a TrueSight spell, which is also cool and reminds me of Baldur's Gate's True Sight, although I doubt it was inspired by D&D rules.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ I'm not exactly sure what to say about what we'd call _mobs_ in hack and slash g
|
|||
|
||||
So, no unique, elite or whatever groups - just urchins, ogres, wolves, and undead. This is more akin to an action RPG in this respect. If you chose to play as a conjurer, you can charm enemies - provided you acquired the correct beast scroll. Later on, you can also conjure them out of thin air. Bosses feel challenging enough, although I had to resort to cheap tactics a few times, casting stun, firing off an arrow, running, and casting stun again. That said, playing this game as a warrior feels just _wrong_. Do yourself a favor and pick one of the two spellcasters.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In a few occasions, you'll be accompanied by an NPC on your quest. Sadly, this only lasts for a very short time. The AI is more than competent enough, and I liked the company of a wizard on my dangerous trip trough the Dismal Swamp. If you fail to rescue these guys from their attackers, they die and you're stuck on your own.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ On your main quest to rescue everyone in Nox from the evil queen [Hecubah](https
|
|||
|
||||
Still, I don't mind the lack of subquests. This is a game that keeps me entertained, that is long enough but not too long, that is varied enough but not too varied, and above all: is engaging and charming. I can't quite explain it, you'll have to play it in order to fully understand it.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 2. Loot
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -63,7 +63,7 @@ Again, this ain't that kind of game. The more I replay Nox, the more I cannot un
|
|||
|
||||
There are interesting twists in the game, though. For one, things break. First, your inventory will color yellow, next red, and next, it will simply break and you'll be left in your undies. So, instead of selling off all unused staves as I did, try to keep a few ones as spares! Otherwise, deep inside the crypts of Valor, you will end up with a broken staff and thus no melee weapon. In more than one occasion, quivers were also scarce, and that was okay: I sometimes had to make deliberate decisions on either shooting and possibly missing an arrow or casting _Ra-Ra_ (Meteor) with my limited mana supply that does not regenerate that fast.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Coin is in short supply: repairing equipment, buying new spellbooks to upgrade spells and beast scrolls to be able to control them as a conjurer, ... I simply resorted to picking up as much crap as possible and hauling it to the next available merchant. Pro tip: when you're overburdened, keep the bigger shields of the skeleton knights, and leave the round iron shields for what they are. I found each store to sell compelling items, but I also found secret nooks and crannies to contain them. Breaking every single wooden barrel and container there is is quite satisfying!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -73,13 +73,13 @@ Coin is in short supply: repairing equipment, buying new spellbooks to upgrade s
|
|||
|
||||
Nox is quite simple in this regard, even compared to [Dungeon Siege](/games/pc/dungeon-siege). As seen in the screenshot below, there's health, mana, strength and speed. That's it. Furthermore, equipment can modify speed (boots of speed) and health regeneration, but there are no iconic +x skill items. That also means there is nothing to gain here for powerplayers who like to min-max their characters, as there are no points to distribute yourself.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The same holds true for skills: there are none. That said, there's more than enough variety to be found in the spell books, and warriors do have "skills", which are actually toned down versions of spells, categorized in green instead of blue. These spells/skills do level up for each time you can get your hands on the same manual, that's why these magic shops are also of paramount importance. The spell _Pixie Swarm_ for instance casts two pixies at power level one, and three at level two. To be honest, for most spells, the difference between level one and two/three does not matter.
|
||||
|
||||
Also, leveling will only happen nine times at most throughout the single player campaign. Most power instead comes from learning new spells and gathering new equipment, from the _flimsy_ sword to the _grand_ one. It is not possible to "dual class": everything is set in stone, since the campaign is also uniquely tailored to your class, which is one of the strongest aspects of Nox.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ Still, the various sound _are_ great, especially the spell casting part. Every s
|
|||
|
||||
There's an opening and ending cinematic, done in very low quality pre-rendered things, resulting in a rather bad and goofy looking pair of movies. Luckily, the voiced narrative in between chapters is very pleasant, as are the artful progression screens as seen below. It feels like someone is reading a medieval scroll that instructs me what to do next. Again: it's part of the charm. Contrary to [Sacred](/games/pc/sacred), I did not have the urge to skip these.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ game_developer: 'Red Storm Entertainment'
|
|||
|
||||
It's amazing that the second disk is still readable by my [Retro WinXP machine](https://brainbaking.com/post/2020/10/building-a-core2duo-winxp-retro-pc/). It has been heavily abused in 2003 and the years after that. Rainbow Six' third installment, Raven Shield (or simply RvS), is quite a departure from the crude looking Rogue Spear. For once, the gun you're shooting with is rendered, and the game is operating under the Unreal 2 engine now. But the most fundamental change is the focus on action, rather than the planning.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Mind you, the planning is indeed still a big part of the core game, as each mission should be thoroughly prepared, and multiple teams can be deployed optimally at various extraction points in the map. However, when it comes down to business, RvS plays more like a blend of FPS shooters and its tactical predecessor, and that is a good thing. What's not such a good thing is the crappy AI of your bot colleagues. The amount of times I've heard _off the man!_ and cursed cannot be counted - and death of a teammate is permanent, given you want to finish the campaign with at least one Rainbow member standing.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -29,13 +29,13 @@ The decline in _tactical_ gameplay of _tactical shooters_ is a sad truth, accord
|
|||
|
||||
> [...] Even traditionally tactical shooter series like Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon have seen their sequels drift away from tactical realism towards cinematic action centered themes, as can be witnessed by, e.g., contemporary Rainbow Six sequels which completely do away with the series' iconic pre-action planning stage (last encountered in Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield), or the overly futuristic settings of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, which provides players with invisibility cloaks and shoulder-mounted anti-tank rockets while failing to adhere to simple tactical realism paradigms like one-shot-one-kill.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Fortunately, there is one immense draw in playing this game - even today - and that is **cooperative multiplayer**. Setup a local network, invite some friends, and enjoy the game it's meant to be played. I've had countless hours of fun doing exactly that back in 2003, when we as students had time but not the money to buy multiple games. Now, we don't have time but do have money. Guess which alternative is better.
|
||||
|
||||
If a friend is killed in battle, you can still switch to ghost cam and help him out by instructing or warning. I did not mind dying first and had just as much fun helping out that way. I usually died first anyway, especially in the bank level where my reckless shotgun charge usually caused my friend to roll his eyes. We both knew what was going to happen (_Off the man!_) but that didn't stop us from having fun. I double-dipped for this very reason by buying another copy through Steam: you'll be needing multiple valid serial keys for the local network mode.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Reinstalling and playing the game through the missions again (of which I know most enemy placement by heart) was a very nostalgic ride through memory lane, which did leave a bit of a bitter aftertaste. Not because of the game, or it's lackluster sequels that never managed to reach RvS' heights (Rainbow Six Lockdown, its sequel, is the first game to completely remove the planning phase. It was developed with an unfortunate focus for console gamers...), but because playing it single player now simply sucks compared to playing with friends. It makes me miss those uncomplicated times where we biked to the nearest game shop as soon as the first expansion, **Athena Sword**, was released. Finally, more maps! The second expansion, [Iron Wrath](https://www.moddb.com/games/tom-clancys-rainbow-six-3-raven-shield/downloads/rainbow-six-3-iron-wrath-manual-installation), is now freely available as a mod. I don't think we ever managed to go through all these missions.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ The year is almost over and more and more big PC action games have been delayed
|
|||
|
||||
Return To Castle Wolfenstein is like No One Lives Forever, the game that was last year's game of the year. Both at NOLF and RTCW the game is played in a run-and-gun state which gives a lot of kicks. The story is told through cutscenes using the engine, but these scenes are nowhere near as funny as NOLF and even the great hero B.J. Blazkowicz doesn't say a word in the entire game! unbelievably boring.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Quake 3? How so?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ The hero Blazkowicz is trapped in a castle guarded by the Germans, named Wolfens
|
|||
|
||||
As in Kingping, Gray Matter has made sure that there are different variations of soldiers. This is because each soldier consists of many particles that are randomly chosen, so you hardly ever get to see the same guy who pops your eyes with an MP-40, quite handsome! Not only do you have to bite soldiers in the sand, but also undead monsters like mummies, skeletons and the like. Since a distant cousin of Hitler is rediscovering black magic from the past, you must of course stop this.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Weapons & Tools
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ Even when fired, the soldiers dive away or seek protection behind tables or chai
|
|||
|
||||
How happy we are that there was also a 2nd team! The single-player mode was a bit (much) too short! Once you understand the tactics of how to play the game properly, there is nothing left to it ... That is why the score is so high: the multiplayer part is, in short, Super Mega Cool! You work team-based and about everyone gets a kick out of that, but you know that for sure, everyone has already downloaded the multiplayer demo ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -30,13 +30,13 @@ I actually preferred Sacred's world progression compared to D2's chapter-divided
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Sacred's engine renders characters in 3D and backgrounds in 2D. The result is a sometimes clunky (characters running) but most of the times lovely look (especially in cities). You can actually stroll into buildings seamless and the effect is gorgeous, even in 2020. Spell effects are less stellar, and most shooting effects are the same: whether it's the dwarf firing off his cannon shot or the vampiress sucking blood out of a particular enemy. The UI is good enough. Swords and shields can be quick-slotted and are unique and 3D-rendered.
|
||||
|
||||
However, when exploring the world, the scenery starts becoming pretty mundane quickly. Trees and bushes do not move whatsoever, and the dark forest of the even darker elves looks like smeared out dirt. When again comparing to D2, I don't think it's better or worse, since D2's overworld becomes boring too. Since enemies scale to your level, respawn, and even fight each other as the main quest unfolds, the world looks a tad more alive than Diablo's. Especially considering there is a weather system and a full day/night cycle my vampiress' combat arts are even dependent upon!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ Speaking of mundane, let's move over to enemy design. The first five hours are e
|
|||
|
||||
The biggest problem I have with Sacred isn't the diffusion of enemy types, but the mob design. In Diablo II, seeing a lightning-enhanced mob should send shivers down your spine because you know you're either going to die or going to get a bunch of good items - or level up. In Sacred, there are also three enemy types: regular (black text), stronger ones (blue text), and "unique" mob bosses (yellow text, like the spider in the screenshot below). Item drops should act accordingly, but does not: you're going to get crap anyway. Only one of the nine dragons drop a decent amount of goodies, akin to your typical _Mephisto run_ in D2.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Another irk is the behavior of enemies: the shoot-and-scoot kind of behavior that's more than irritating. Enemy spellcasters also love trapping you in a magical web, that also brings your horse to a dead stop - literally. The animal gets slaughtered easily and before you know it, you end up being surrounded, while all you wanted to do is quickly ride to town.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ This is where Sacred gets more interesting - sometimes. Towns are full of peasan
|
|||
|
||||
The problem is that NPCs need to look after themselves - something they are seemingly unable to do. I've had multiple deaths on my hands trying to bring back a lost lover or to help "Poor Globba" explore the world. If you're used to zooming through lower level mobs you don't feel like fighting and brought a companion, you better fight anyway!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Subquests are more fun than in Diablo 2 simply because Diablo merely has any. However, when it comes to the main plot, there's hardly any competition. It's the standard betrayal story that ends in a weird way. I could not bring myself to be engaged in the storyline, something that is impossible not to do in the Diablo universe.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ The loot system might be my biggest problem with Sacred. In a hack & slash game,
|
|||
|
||||
Money is completely useless in this game. I ended up with a million in cash, unable to sink it into something like a gambling merchant. And you better pick the "trading"/"merchant" skill as your character levels up: it is supposed to increase the likelihood of encountering rares in the shop. Item rarity categories are the same as in D2. My vampiress used the same sword and shield for the whole second half of the game! Damage does increase through stat boosts, but my item hunger was not fulfilled at all.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Nice items do drop now and then - specialized gear for other classes, of course. And no, there's no way to transfer that item to your other builds. What a missed opportunity. The blue chest in the town square used to store your stuff does not transfer over to other saves or new games (sure, there are [complicated ways of doing that](http://darkmatters.org/forums/index.php?/topic/14579-transfering-items/) using multiplayer games). That would have been a great incentive to replay the game with another class. There's a +% money drop item stat, but I have not encountered the classic "magic find". Proper item drops should encourage exploration, questing, and killing stuff. Instead, I stopped caring about chests all together. Isn't that depressing in a game like this, to not care about the contents of a chest?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ As the [game difficulty](http://www.sacredwiki.org/index.php/Sacred:Game_Difficu
|
|||
|
||||
Leveling up in Sacred is your standard affair of distributing points across various well-known attributes such as strength, dexterity, constitution, and so on. Hovering over it will reveal the potential gain in health/damage/defense so you don't invest in the wrong things.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Next to that, there are various skills to pick after a set amount of levels, with a maximum of 7, as seen in the above screenshot. These skills are what make your build unique compared to other vampiresses, for example. However, there's not much difference between _Sword Lore_, _Weapon Lore_, and _Two Weapon Lore_: all increase attack and damage. Only the latter allows you to dual wield. After picking a skill, there's no turning back. You can again dump points into these.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ What makes Sacred unique, however, are not what the game calls "_skills_", but r
|
|||
|
||||
For my vampiress build, the CAs weren't all that compelling. My wolf companion always died in two hits, whether it was a low or high level summon. Blood bite proved to be useless too, so I ended up with using a few over and over again (Ripping Claws, Blood Bats) - maybe not unlike D2. There's enough meat here to go back and try out different classes and their CAs, as I've seen the Deamon and Battle Mage have a whole slew of completely different CAs. Magic wielders don't need to quaff mana potions: there's only the CA cooldown time, making this another difference compared to D2. In the end, I like the uniqueness of the system, but would prefer a "proper"/classic skill tree instead. The biggest downside of the system is that in order to learn new arts, you have to find the correct rune. Luckily, you can trade in runes of other classes.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ The voice acting is _very_ goofy, but perhaps fitting, as the game tries (and su
|
|||
|
||||
Again, no comparison. There are cut-scenes - let's keep it at that. Diablo 2 is a masterpiece in storytelling, music, and cinematics. it would be rather unfair to compare it with that. In the end, that's not the reason I would pick up an hack & slash game anyway.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ SOF1 will undoubtedly be remembered by everyone. It caused a lot of commotion be
|
|||
|
||||
No servers ... WTF? Yes of course the beta has no servers, you dumbass! Therefore host ffe itself (this is also possible via network). The first impressions once you have your feet on the ground next to a helicopter and you say "Go, Go, Go!" hears his "wooowww" shout ... It really looks like the Quake 3 Team Arena engine is far from over! (see Jedi Knight II, MOHAA, RTCW, ...) Also in this multiplayer version there are two teams (DM -deatchmatch- is in the full version but we have not been able to test that yet ... Here is the Team DM) ; the terrorists who have to rob a suitcase with important papers and the 'shop' members (the CTs here) who have to prevent this. Unfortunately there was only 1 map in this preliminary version, which makes it boring after a while because you know the map rats by heart ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### How multi works at SOFII
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ As mentioned, we play with 2 teams, just like with CS. Here too you can start yo
|
|||
The weapon models look cool ... The AK47 looks cool (although you look at your weapon more 'from above' here) and the M4 with grenade launcher built in is also very nicely finished. But there are also outrageously ridiculous weapons like that auto shotgun (see screenshots - USAS 12) that doesn't really pull off much. The weapons also shoot way too hard which seems unrealistic. Your feet also play a role here: your footsteps hears someone else close to you and that is not good ... But here Raven drops a stitch: the footsteps sound as if you have steel bones on all the time. on wooden floor succeeds !! And hard ... Not really logical. But yes, this is a beta and my PC has problems :-p. By the way, you can run this game smoothly at 1024 pixels - the specs required are not as high as it seems. Which is good on the one hand, but also a shame on the other because the textures look less great.
|
||||
Speaking of textures ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Some are great like the boxes scattered all over the hallways. But some are also downright ridiculously badly finished like the 'round' oil barrels which are more hexagonal than anything else ... But yes again it is a beta and multiplayer and it may be that Raven has dropped a bit of graphic violence because this too must be smooth playable via the internet (which they have succeeded in anyway, although if the server PC occasionally has trouble with the graphics, the entire clients jerks with it ... yeah!) gets to see something very nice flat ... Exactly the Quake engine is starting to slack a bit, although your first impressions are still wow. But half-life is no longer graphic splendor, so I don't think this is really negative. SoFII single player may be a bit better, but for mulit it is fine.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ Some are great like the boxes scattered all over the hallways. But some are also
|
|||
|
||||
Euuh more than 25 limbs that can be shot off - WTF? The only gore I've seen is beheading with a sniper (damn * Moi * don't shoot me! LOL) and the occasional arm or leg through a shotgun shell. But if you stab someone in the back with a knife, do you see blood? not at all! That guy just falls down and no more fun. You can't even work him on the ground .... Grab a shotgun and shoot in the throat - the opponent falls down nicely grabbing his throat but some blood? nuu, nothing! Hopefully the final release is a bit more "correct" when it comes to announcements ... (ambiguous boy :-)) Another (small) comment: the soundtrack of this map (shop under siege) was beautiful in the beginning but on the last so exciting that some users of misery had to turn their sound off ... The track comes back every 30 seconds and there is almost no variation in it. But here again this was only 1 folder and it can change.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -21,13 +21,13 @@ The tension was on. Everybody wanted a sequel, but nobody expected to receive a
|
|||
|
||||
The first thing that the player is greeted with, is a lovely cut-scene, where Elaine declines LeChuck's proposal (again) because... she has to wash her hair tonight? It's all done in a lighthearted way, as if you're watching a funny animated movie---which, basically, you are. This is _LucasArts_, remember? From what I've read, they had to consult another team, experts at crafting animated cut-scenes. In any case, the tone for these is right, which is lovely, although the abrupt ending could have been much improved by another long one. Oh well, can't have it all.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Is that Guybrush? Wrapped in a floating donkey device? Yes and yes. He sure looks a lot different compared to Monkey 1 & 2, and that's something that I couldn't get used to. Outside of the cut-scenes, Guybrush's cartoony-long legs and odd head just doesn't feel right either. All the characters could do with a bit more bold outlines. Try differentiating Guybrush and the owner of the fine Chicken Soup establishment below: it all sort of blends into each other. And sure, it could do with a bite more liveliness, but even Daedalic's 2012 _Deponia_ is very static. I didn't mind.
|
||||
|
||||
That said, the art style, while a radical departure from 1991's pixels, is still lovingly detailed. Each scene is filled to the brim with funny little details, and it felt like experiencing an interactive cartoon. [William Tiller](https://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,2924/) did a wonderful job as a lead background artist. Before that, he worked on The Dig, and after _Cruse_, another notable game is A Vampyre Story. [Maria Bowen](https://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,2925/) and [Kathy Hsieh](https://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,2926/) joined as background artists and also worked on _Outlaws_, one of my favorite 1997 western shooters, as featured in [the retro shooters article](/articles/retro-shooters/). Outlaws also contains cut-scenes that are indeed reminiscent of Curse's color palette!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## _I can't use the skeleton arm with that_
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ The problem is, I _liked_ that. It was CLEAR as how to control the game and what
|
|||
- I wanted to USE a packet of gum. You know, _eat_ it. I kept on pressing USE, and Guybrush kept on noting "the gum feels warm". I don't care dude, put it in your mouth! Go on! Turned out I had to use the parrot button, which is usually TALK, but somehow turned into EAT. What the?
|
||||
- Later, I wanted to blow out a candle. US-no wait, blowing, that's with the mouth, right, so TALK to candle as to BLOW OUT candle? Ding-ding, jackpot! Sheesh.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Another problem: the inventory bar is also scrapped. Right-clicking opens a treasure chest, somehow taking up the entire screen. After rummaging through, you can go back to the scene and try out a few things. _She wouldn't like that. That doesn't need loitering up. Hmmm, no. I can't use the skeleton arm with that. I can't use the skeleton arm with that. I can't u..._
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ Does this sound like I'm brute-forcing my way through a puzzle? 'Cause I am. I k
|
|||
|
||||
I don't mind crazy puzzles---Hey, I like Gobliins 2---but when patience runs out, and you can visit a lot of different scenes (or carry items from previous chapters with you), things are starting to feel like a drag instead of a joyful experience.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Action action action?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ Then you find yourself in the midst of piratey battles at sea: an uncontrollable
|
|||
|
||||
The final showdown with LeChuck takes place in a similar way as the ending of Monkey 2: it's time-based, and you have to gather things to put an end to it "once and for all"---or at least until the next sequel. It also means quickly clicking and fiddling with the giant chest, before LeChuck chases you off and you have to do it all over again. Not a great way to end the game, but at least there the added tension was part of the story line.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## A pirate I was meant to be...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ Everyone is now certain that The Sims is one of the most successful Sim games ev
|
|||
|
||||
The best-selling add-on game from The Sims is without a doubt Hot Date because Maxis managed to recreate not only the household on PC, but also the whole social life! Now that a party was already being held, your houses were better furnished, your love was virtually packed, what does Maxis have to come up with this time to keep the Sims fans quiet? Well, Sims can go to town to shop if they feel like it. But taking a real vacation is not yet possible. This is what they mean in this extension: taking a 'break' - away from those children who shit their pants - away from your sweetheart who comes to see her earrings - lying on the beach or enjoying skiing with friends.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### What's new?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ The game will feature a whole new area (like the town of Hot Date): Vacation Isl
|
|||
|
||||
#### Vacation Island
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
As we mentioned before, Vacation Island is a very special environment that can best be compared to Downtown at Hot Date. You can go anywhere you want or you can call a Taxi. Vacation Island is also fully customable - i.e. fully customizable - so if there's one thing you don't like: break it down! Vacation Island has it all: Ponds for fishing, ski slopes for snowboarding, Beaches for volleyball or sunbathing ... you name it. You have an unlimited budget with which you can build up all the hotels you want and then stay in them yourself!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ As we mentioned before, Vacation Island is a very special environment that can b
|
|||
|
||||
It's actually as simple as anything: pick up the phone, call a cab and you're on Vacation Island ... But what happens at your house? Actually nothing at all: time 'freezes' for the largest part. When you get back home, almost nothing will have changed except for a few things. The main thing is that your friendship (relationship) with other people who are not in your family will deteriorate, which is normal if you do not see them on your holiday. To keep that up, you can also buy postcards and send them to all your friends who stayed at home, just like the real thing ;-)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Cheat money
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ Of course you can solve this in other ways. Maxis has thought about this careful
|
|||
|
||||
It is also possible to rent a metal detector on the beach and try to find old coins and then sell them to stay longer ... Far fetched, but still original. You can spend the night in a cheaper hotel or in an igloo / tent / open air, which costs much less. But that is of course at the expense of 'room' and comfort ... But beware: annoying Sims in tents = a fight ... Especially in Hot Date the restaurants where sometimes a bit of 'mess' is made ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Conclusion
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,14 +28,14 @@ The trouble is, it all feels very mechanical. You can teleport (of course with a
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The first thing you'll notice when booting Torchlight is the cartoony graphics and interface, something players will either love or hate. I did not mind the direction they took with the game, but compared to Diablo 2, my preference is the dark and more gritty atmosphere of burning Tristram. Still, the colorful spells, environment, enemies and NPCs are pleasant to the eye and provide enough constrast to make out the difference between background and foreground. If I had one remark to make, it is the inventory art with the icons that look a bit too childish for me.
|
||||
|
||||
The 3D engine is smooth enough and delivers a fine job, although the frame rate (on my WinXP PC going at `115`+ FPS) occasionally takes big hits when a lot of stuff is going on at once. Sometimes, ten enemies throwing lightning balls at you, and you returning fire with ice blasts, the game even stutters to a halt - if only for one second. Still, panic sets in: do I press `F1` to preemptively heal or will things be all right? The most annoying part of Torchlight is not the occasional dip in FPS, but the _load times_. For some strange reason, even if your PC config is way above the recommended specs, staring at a load screen after descending stairs is inevitable.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ This game really shines in enemy and mob design, especially compared to other Di
|
|||
Elite mobs are notably absent, something that its successor Torchlight II should hopefully fix. At the end of every few levels, a mini-boss encounter makes you gobble ten mana and health potions and hope for the best loot drops. Be sure to wear your best magic find gear! Yes, it is _that_ similar to Diablo. The drop rate is just right and kept me hooked to do _just one more run_. With the absence of a "real world" and "proper quests", this game feels even more rogue-like than Diablo. That comes at a price: at one point, it will get boring and very repetitive.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In Torchlight, you'll be exploring the mines by yourself: there's no party or any temporary follower. Except for your pet, of course. No simple [Dungeon Siege](/games/pc/dungeon-siege)-esque mule, but a potent killer that you can equip and even dump unwanted items on to send it off to town. After thirty seconds, your kitty will happily rejoin you and bring back the hard earned cash to be gambled away in the near future. On higher difficulties, the pet will become a bit redundant as it will have trouble actually damaging enemies and dying - or at least running away - more quickly. There are opportunities to fish using an awkward and boring mini-game that fetches different kinds of fish. These can be fed to your animal that temporarily transfer it into a fire elemental to more effectively aid you in boss fights. I hated fishing and completely skipped that.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ Well... Which ones, exactly? There is a main quest, which is meaningless, so I w
|
|||
As said before, towns feel mechanical and only serve as a toolbox to get rid of your stuff or buy more or change it in some way. There's a guy serving as a living Horadric Cube that merges ember pieces instead of gems. There's a goblin that mashes embers out of socketed items, and there's one that cracks open the item to keep the ember instead. And of course, you can try your luck and gamble, hoping for a unique item. NPC interaction is hilarious at best, and the interaction screens feel awkward and out of place:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 2. Loot
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ Aah, loot, next to enemies, the most compelling reason to play Torchlight. In th
|
|||
Nobody likes portalling too much loot back and forth to town, so in Torchlight, you can simply send your pet instead, and continue exploring the depths of the seemingly endless Ember mine. Occasionally, you'll encounter a friendly looking goblin merchant in hostile areas - the last one idly stood by while I franticly tried to shoot down two dragon unique mini-bosses. I'm also pleased to see that unlike in older Diablo clones (or Diablo 2 itself), there is a _shared stash_! That means if you happen to come across a really powerful sword, but you're a mage now, tuck it away and simply start another run with a new character. I hated not being able to do that in [Sacred](/games/pc/sacred). There, the unique classes made me want to try out new things. In Torchlight, not so much: there's only the mage, the archer, and the warrior.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
It is also great to see the return of the classic _magic find_ item attribute. There is no shortage of attributes in this game: sometimes, hovering over an item to see what it does almost completely fills your screen. Set bonuses are also back, although I never managed to complete the set I was aiming to wear. Oh well, better luck next time... There is also ample opportunity to mess with sockets or to try and imbue items with extra properties (watch out, it can backfire). Sometimes, in dungeons you'll find special upgrade shrines that do just that.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -75,14 +75,14 @@ It is also great to see the return of the classic _magic find_ item attribute. T
|
|||
|
||||
As you level up, you can tweak your build by distributing points into the four basic attributes strength, dexterity, magic, and defense. Since each class is geared towards either strength, dexterity, and magic, the illusion of choice here is a bit weak. Of course the same holds true for Diablo itself, except that most power builds dump points in vitality and the rest until their gear requirements are met.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The skill system is more interesting than the character stats. Although it feels less complex than the tactical tree in Diablo, there are also three different tiers for each class to specialize in, as visible in the screenshot above. For instance, my ember mage maxed out ember lance, an offensive spell stream, while my archer used traps and an arrow pierce skill. As you level up, more skills open up in the tree, but none provide passive bonuses for others (except the inherently passive bonuses). This again means that heavily investing in early skills can limit the potential of your build.
|
||||
|
||||
The solution is to either look up a guide, or to shrug and do whatever you want since we're not in multiplayer hardcore mode anyway (there is no multiplayer option! That's saved for Torchlight II). Contrary to Diablo, most maxed out early available skills are more than potent enough, albeit a bit boring. You can quick-swap between active skills by pressing `TAB`, and in the end, I only used two or three regularly: throw a trap that shreds enemies into pieces, switch to the piercing arrow and start spamming. The arrow pierce skill is dependant on what the game calls "DPS" - damage per second - meaning equipping a better weapon also increases the damage output of the skill itself. Of course these are item-dependent!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ The background music in town comes off as a bit too much after hours of running
|
|||
|
||||
I cannot remember seeing one. The "epic" feel of a grand adventure is a bit missing: it's more of a stroll into a mine. The sense of urge is there as your blight infection is worsening, and things are looking grim for the villagers, but still: nothing is as pressing as the eminent prime evils escaping their soulstone prisons.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ Sirtech’s last and probably last role-playing game, Wizardy 8, was in developm
|
|||
|
||||
A good thing in Wizardy 8 is how the game appears. The environment looks surprisingly good, but this is Sirtech’s first game in full 3D polygons… For example, the monsters in this game are represented by high quality 3D models, so graphically everything is fine. Still, some of the outdoor locations (especially the expansive ones) are a bit blocky, but they did their best at Sirtech with quest graphics.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
#### Sound & Voice
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ The voice sounds are funny because both the playing and the non-players (NPCs) w
|
|||
|
||||
#### The Locations
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
There is plenty of time to explore the world (that's okay with a game of 3 CDs or 1.8 GGB install size) as there are many expansive locations and alternations between dark dungeons, green forests and many densely populated cities. The estimated playing time is more than 70 hours, so Wizardy certainly does not fall short of that compared to Half-life: Blue Shift…
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ You can also set the battle formations of your choice (normally the first half o
|
|||
|
||||
The most interesting thing about this game is watching your party members grow and get stronger with every hit or thrust. This is truly addictive! It is clear to see that with each level that you gain more and more power, and can balance yourself more in different skills.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The skill system is very similar to that of Everquest and Asheron's Call; you can improve the skill by spending points on different skills, the so-called “skill points”. That is why there is another reason to play this game several times: try out a different race / class with different skills and who again have a drooling mouth ...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -18,14 +18,14 @@ Without further delays, let's head straight into the building fest, because Zeus
|
|||
|
||||
### The basics: Building a City.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The basic concept exists as said before longer than the day Zeus: Master of Olympus saw the green light. Successfully build up a large city, create an army to protect and empower yourself, give residents enough food and other supplies, erupt wars between neighbour cities or try to haggle with them, ... There are so many possibilities to finish a mission (or sandbox mode), but let's start with the ultimate beginning. How is this game actually played?
|
||||
The start is quite simple: "Reserve" equally big land pieces for potential inhabitants to create their home. To do this, you'll have to place a house mockup selected from the right side build menu on a piece of empty land (no rocks, stones, whatever). Every house (or future house) should be accessible by basic needs: water and food and such. To ensure your water carriers stroll trough every part of your city you'll have to carefully lay well-placed roads. If you do this in a rectangular fashion and don't create a too wide distance between the facility (a market) and the destination (houses), the business people will automatically reach the houses and they will automatically buy what they need. You can also create road blocks to ensure some parts of town are inaccessible by those people, for instance the industry part.
|
||||
|
||||
### The Revolution
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
When there's no water supplied to houses, the critical basic needs are not met. What does this actually mean? Your houses won't "upgrade", of course. And that is the ultimate point of creating and building a city: increasing the maximum upgrade capacity! No rich person will want to live in a poorly built house which does not provide olive for instance. Inhabitants each have their own needs and they will increase once you upgrade the house structures a couple of times. For example, the second house upgrade requires a doctor access to further upgrade. After that, people will want to visit temples, or a theatre. There are numerous of possibilities to fur-fill the inhabitants needs. You can built a philosophers house or a theatre, they both satisfy the relaxation need. Of course at later stages the richest and stinkiest bastards will want them both. Argh!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ Keep in mind all those facilities have to be placed within the initially created
|
|||
|
||||
### Weird guys, those Greeks?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
So what separates Zeus: Master of Olympus from all previous City Building games from Impressions? Good question. The easiest and best answer can be concluded from watching the screenshots: the Greek mythology setting of course. The whole game breathes a fancy Ancient Greek air. You will encounter friendly Gods and not-so-friendly ones (refer to the rude introduction I gave you. Sorry for that!). Gods will get attrackted to your city eventually once you've built enough temples devoted to them. For instance, Dyonisius requires a temple devoted to him and a yearly production of 20 wine bottles. Once you've got him so far to stroll among your streets, you can ask the God to aid you in your quest of vanquishing the enemy - or surviving yourself.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ Next to Gods, you can also call upon your favourite Ancient Greek heroes by buil
|
|||
|
||||
### Demanding 10 Ton Marble.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
What else can you achieve in Zeus? Why, ruling the import/export business of course. Once you've set up a growing industry zone, like marble, and you keep mining the expensive raw material even if your people have no need for it. Build a couple of storage spaces and try to get one of your neighbour (or daughter!) cities to trade for it. Certain materials can really slide the game balance. At least, as long as they are interested in trading and keep it that way: once a city is at war he will not want to continue trading or buying your goods and you'll have to find other ways to earn hard cash.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -17,13 +17,13 @@ After finishing [Hollow Knight](/games/switch/hollow-knight), I rather fancied p
|
|||
|
||||
After playing Super Metroid for about an hour, one thing becomes immediately apparent: it plays _quick_. I'm not sure if that is the right word for it, but the rate of upgrades that I stumble upon in my path towards the core of the planet Zebes is staggering. Compared to other [castlevania](/tags/castlevania)-likes, the pace here is higher. Even though in [Aria of Sorrow](/games/gba/castlevania-aria-of-sorrow) (AoS), I had the feeling I was progressing more slowly, according to Howlongtobeat, they're both done in under seven hours. Of course, Soma does not need missile upgrades. In AoS, as you make your way through the castle, you regularly spot shiny looking swords you cannot access yet. A typical metroidvania puzzle: come back later when you have the sliding/double jump/whatever ability. The difference is that these items are usually visible. Yes, there are exceptions: Claim Solais, the best weapon in the game, is well-hidden behind a not-so-visible breakable wall.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Speaking of upgrades, most of them are well-hidden: after finishing it, the game told me I only found `66%` of the items (and that was _with_ the occasional peek at a guide). Super bomb upgrades are stashed away in breakable walls, except that no single pixel reveals that the wall can be broken in the first place. The "wall" is a tile here, `16x16`pixels, not a whole wall, resulting in a lot of tedious bombing for a sinle "wall". In the first part of the game, it feels a bit ridiculous, randombly bombing stuff up or having to shoot at each block in each room---just in case. Later on, you're awarded an X-Ray (provided you can find it), but to my horror, even that trinket does not find everything. The quality of life upgrades more contemporary metroidvanias have (slight visible cues, thank you) are sorely missed here.
|
||||
|
||||
Samus' gun is effective, and enemies never pose a real threat, not even the bosses. Super Metroid is quite easy. The real difficulty lies in the getting-lost-where-to-go-ness part of the game that can sometimes be a bit overwhelming, considering there is no fast travel included. That was something introduced in Symphony of the Night. Backtracking is of course a big part of the game, as it should be. However, some parts did leave me confused and demotivated. I had no idea you could break the glass tube, for instance. Or, arguably the worst part of the game: wall/space jumping controls. Pressing the opposite direction on the D-pad, what the hell Nintendo?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The atmosphere is indeed fantastic. Every section of the planet, separated by lift shafts, is its own micro-cosmos, inhabited by different creatures, with different music and different present tiles and vibes. There's an underwater section, a volcanic part, a lush green part, and so on. The sometimes rightfully so creepy music perfectly accommodates Samus' careful but thoughtful exploration mission to track Ridley and the stolen Metroid. Too bad that even Ridley does not pose a real threat. I had to stock up on energy and missiles, but after two attempts, The Cunning God Of Death died himself. Or herself? Who knows. I like the fact that some bosses get angry if you use super missiles, forcing the player to rethink the attacking strategy.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ After more or less seven hours of blasting my way through Zebes, I killed Mother
|
|||
|
||||
I'd rather take a stroll to soak up the atmosphere.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Let the countdown for Metroid Dread begin!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -24,13 +24,13 @@ Remember the [Animal Crossing: Wild World Adventure Blog post](/articles/animalc
|
|||
|
||||
<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 27/12/2020 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Playing the game on what they call "Toy Day" was a lot of fun. Jingle the reindeer instructs you to give gifts to every inhabitant of the island, and you're given a big white sack to do so. It acts like any other equipment and even appears in the ring menu. After everyone received their gifts, you're treated yourself. Too bad I had to return the bag!
|
||||
|
||||
Some villagers mistook me for the mailman, like Static for instance. Everyone said something really funny, and on Christmas day, I bought some red wrapping paper for everyone and wrapped the toys temporarily available at Nook's Cranny, as an extra present. They mostly returned the favor with weird clothing... We're working on that.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Besides dealing out gifts, the daily donations to the museum finally paid off: Blathers gives a big **thank you** after receiving the final piece! Now at least one part of the museum is complete. Next up: catching more fish, insects, and buying more genuine paintings/sculptures. If only Redd visited the island more often...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ Besides dealing out gifts, the daily donations to the museum finally paid off: B
|
|||
|
||||
<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 20/12/2020 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I should have played this game more often. Villages complain that they haven't seen me in more than two months, my weeds are getting out of control, and I have no idea what to do with all those pumpkins. Apparently, a famous chef came by at the end of November. I'm missing out on every single festive activity and to my shame, also on a lot of villagers' birthdays. Oops.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -50,13 +50,13 @@ Well, I started today on a positive note:
|
|||
|
||||
It is high time that I try to see Redd more often. The museum is full of stuff, except paintings and sculptures. The Christmas Trees are taken out, pine trees have jolly lights in them, and everybody is looking forward to what they call _'Toy Day'_.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Another positive note: I finally win at the stupid card game with camping visitors, where you have to guess which kind of card they're holding. Basically a one out of four guess chance. My prize is... A stinkin' working top? Dude! Shep is sick and I got him some medicine, hopefully he'll be pumping iron again soon.
|
||||
|
||||
### In Fall, we Taste Mushrooms
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I love the fact that Animal Crossing: New Horizons keeps on getting patched and updated (v.`1.6.0b` on 20th of December). And I also hate it, as it clearly shows that the game wasn't nearly as finished as it should be when initially released. Imagine a Gamecube mini-DVD with a game called Animal Crossing on it, with two missing seasons. How are you going to patch that? Supply gamers a second DVD?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ On another note, I'm starting to feel the "Animal Crossing Fatigue"; after playi
|
|||
|
||||
Vesta and Antonio are chatting away, talking about _industrial baking_ nonetheless. They seem to be under the impression that whipping up a ton of dough can easily be done using a set of big mixers. Little did they know that the eavesdropping Villager (me) is a [professional baker](https://redzuurdesem.be/)! I have to say I disapprove of their method.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I can't remember what the conversation actually was about - Vesta likes to make silly analogies. I like her, never a dull (haha) moment with the black sheep of the family. Antonio, on the other hand, is mostly interested in pumping iron, running around and yelling "MUSCLE MADNESS". I did see a lot of other neighbours doing heavy lifting workouts, which are not that personality type. Something new in New Horizons?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ I can't remember what the conversation actually was about - Vesta likes to make
|
|||
|
||||
Sort of.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I really like the combination of the floor with the rustic woody wallpaper. That Greek bath cost me a fair amount of bells, but not as much as the outdoor whirlpool (90.000) or the 50 inch flatscreen TV (89.000). The bathroom also counts as a secret stash for turnips - these netted me around 450.000 on a lucky day. Bought at 91 bells a piece, sold at 500. I've never seen a price that high in my own town! Bingo!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -98,7 +98,7 @@ I really like the combination of the floor with the rustic woody wallpaper. That
|
|||
|
||||
What to do with all those special Nookinton points? Exchange them for tickets to mystery islands - who knows we might get lucky. One of the things I dislike about the new Animal Crossing is the lack of getting new fruit or anything related without having to buy a Nintendo Online account to connect to (forum) friends. My wife and I used to play the (3)DS version a lot, and we loved visiting each others' town. After a while, our fruit orchard was flourishing.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Now, the mystery island tours look like shit. The islands are small, and the only reason to go there is if you have a vacant spot, to 'pick' the neighbor you want instead of letting fate decide. Oh, and bamboo - you know, the ultra-fast growing annoyance you now can plant safely onto the higher plateaus - you can only get it on one of the random islands. Actually, that's not true: after I finally managed to get there, the turnip seller sent me some bamboo shoots through mail!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -110,7 +110,7 @@ I do miss the vacation island of New Leaf. Cutting all trees, catching those rar
|
|||
|
||||
So the wheather is beautiful today. That means a lot of bugs, such as butterflies in the air and stinkbugs on flowers - like floating bags of bells, happily chirping until I catch them with my net to trade for hard cash. That also means some fish are easier to catch. I made some fish bait and tried my luck at the ocean.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
This tuna is almost bigger than myself, and Blathers from the museum was very happy with it. No bells for me, better luck next time. I always try to prioritize on the expansion of the museum exhibits. After gathering around 100.000 bells today, I have enough to put up a few more ramps and open spaces to invite others to live in Poezista. We're expanding!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ This tuna is almost bigger than myself, and Blathers from the museum was very ha
|
|||
|
||||
It's yellow and it bursts with energy! A tennis ball? A yellow bird? Nope, it's Zipper, the personal Bunny Day representative. He loves to trade eggs (and I was short on water and air ones) so naturally, we kindly exchanged foodstuffs. **Boingity boing!** _Let's trade eggs!_
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Zipper told me I was only 1 recipe away from completing the limited edition Bunny Day seasonal DIY recipes. I have no idea what I missed, but I'm glad it is finally over. Now I can ditch those clothes and go buy a decent hat. Do notice that awesome backpack - you can even wear backpacks in New Horizons, it's crazy. When I go to sleep at night (in real life), I cannot _unhear_ the whooshing sound of a balloon present passing by...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -130,7 +130,7 @@ Zipper told me I was only 1 recipe away from completing the limited edition Bunn
|
|||
|
||||
I do not believe they call it the Major's house or the Town Hall this time, but rather Nook's Resident Services 'building'. In any case, gone are the pesky tent and the wooden planks that hurt the eyes. Instead, a nice paved square welcomes weekly visitors, such as Kicks, the guy who sells shoes. I wonder whether he will also settle down some day, like the clothing sisters did. I had to place their shop, and we're still out of bridges to build, which is higly annoying.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Five residents and counting! I managed to convince a dog to stay - he stopped by the place where peeps can set up their tent to visit Poezista. Now let's get rid of easter so I can dig up materials with confidence again, instead of finding eggs (that do bring in a nice amount of bells). I also wonder what to do with all those cherry blossom petals...
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -140,7 +140,7 @@ Five residents and counting! I managed to convince a dog to stay - he stopped by
|
|||
|
||||
... And it proves to be hell on earth. It's raining balloon gifts, and they are all easter-flavored: a certain bunny hopped by and told me to nab as many hidden eggs as possible. Sometimes, a gift I shot down contained DIY recipes for those eggs. Don't you love seasonal presents? They can only be made/given in a certain time frame, and after the 12th of this month, it's game over for the easter bunny. I remember gathering acorns in [Wild World](/articles/animalcrossing-wildworld/) like it was yesterday, so naturally I set to work.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
After decorating my head, my door, and all other inhabitants by forcing gifts upon them, I think I've had enough eggs for the week. The trouble is, they all take up inventory space - of course they do. There are air eggs (you shoot down), earth eggs (you dig up), leaf eggs (you shake down), water eggs (you fish out), and stone eggs (you shovel out). It's one big feast, and one big mess trying to manage item space.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ The most frustrating thing about the upcoming easter festivities is that my prec
|
|||
|
||||
Yup, I came across that sleepyhead again. He landed on the beaches of _Poezista_, trying to message his comrades, using a modern tool no less. However, not only the reception is bad, but the thing was utterly broken. Guess what, I had to go on a hunt for resources! But first, clear out some inventory space please, because five broken parts need to be dug up somewhere in the area on the beach.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The guy was kind enough to send me a present via mail the day after. Not that I was really into the Tiki lady figurine that resembles a bobblehead, but hey: my tiny living room needed that piece of furniture to cheer up the place a bit. I hope that mortgage will be paid soon, maybe a bathroom won't be bad. I managed to craft myself a _shell rug_ using three giant clams I found on the beach, so that's not bad!
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -164,6 +164,6 @@ One of the coolest, and also annoying, additions to New Horizons is the Do It Yo
|
|||
|
||||
Luckily, Tom Nook's Shack (that hopefully will get upgraded some day, they only sell shit over there!) is also willing to buy my handmade things. That's where things get interesting: once a day a certain DIY item is worth twice that price. And if that item is an umbrella you can easily make out of clumps of weed, it's time to pull some weeds!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I think I sold more than 20 umbrellas that day. It was a good day. My 189.000 bells loan got paid off quickly. Now I have a 345.000 bells loan... Ouch. The core of the game hasn't changed much: it's still a grueling grind, and it's still ever so lovely and addicting!
|
||||
|
|
@ -22,21 +22,21 @@ After years and years (and more years) of waiting, the game was finally released
|
|||
|
||||
Except when you play it on Switch. I've had it crashing on me multiple times - and that is especially painful if not making it to a save room. What's more, loading screens are terrible. Before the patch, jumping on a high platform to reach the next castle section resulted in a black screen in over three seconds!!! After that, you had to guess when the next frame was being rendered in order to position yourself, or risk being hit and fall back down, only to wait three more seconds. Luckily, a patch somewhat fixed that. Still, try not to die, as another 50 seconds are wasted.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Miriam controls terrible. It feels very janky, especially with the thumb stick, and the Pro Controller's D-pad is not that great. She wants to duck when I don't want her to and swings are especially slow (yes, I know Sword Expertise exists). Compared to [Soma](/games/gba/castlevania-aria-of-sorrow), Alucard, or even [Circle of the Moon](/games/gba/castlevania-circle-of-the-moon), it feels like two steps back (if only taking a step was that easy).
|
||||
|
||||
Then there's the graphical part, the Unreal Engine. Dracula X Chronicles was also a 2D castlevania rendered in 3D, but it is clear now that it's not the best direction to take. Many parts of the castle look like drab: a few colors smeared all over the screen, making it impossible for me to see the difference between foreground and background. Inferno Caves are red, the Sorcery Lab is green, the Forbidden Underwater Caves are purple. Add some sheen to rocks, color the enemies the same, and there you go. To what purpose serve game graphics? To add atmosphere and to be able to actually _see stuff_! What purpose do they have if I'm unable to see the difference between an enemy and a useless animation of lava flowing in the background? It's especially frustrating if that part of the castle is difficult, I'm out of potions/food, and I'm desperately looking for a save or warp room.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I don't mind a female protagonist, but I do oppose against a talkative one that has to yell at every single spell or sword swing. Shut up already and get on with it! Soma never said anything when executing his moves, and even in Order of Ecclesia it wasn't that bad. This game somehow feels more weird, in a bad Japanese way, than all the other Igavanias.
|
||||
|
||||
For example, there's crafting. Good. Once you crafted (or "cooked") something, it's also available in the shop. Good, now my money can be put to good use, provided everything wasn't that damn expensive. But why does Miriam need to make these weird moves when "combining" a few simple raw materials? Models look ugly up close. It definitely feels a bit too weird for me. The game can be very menu-driven when tinkering with ingredients and shards, and I'm okay with that, why adding more development time with something stupid as that?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Some boss fights like Bloodless are ridiculous damage sponges that required me to use a cheap trick such as spamming Bunnymorphosis kicks or holding down `R` for the Heretical Grinder. Boss design is overall good, and I did throw my controller a few times out of anger (or incompetence). Compared to the Twin Dragon and other challenging bosses of Circle of the Moon, these still feel like cheap to me.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ Apart from _The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker_, the game that came packed with our
|
|||
|
||||
I have been waiting for such a game for _ages_! Ever since _Super Paper Mario_ and the disappointing 3DS Paper Mario sequels, it was clear that Nintendo wasn't going back to a more stat-heavy based Mario RPG. Instead, we were left pasting stickers again and again. No interesting backstory with lots of optional quests, no RPGness, no huge world, no multiple joinable NPCs. The wait is finally over! How does it hold up?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Well, the answer is simple: great! Let's see, what did I enjoy in the Paper Mario (and especially the GC one) series?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -30,17 +30,17 @@ Well, the answer is simple: great! Let's see, what did I enjoy in the Paper Mari
|
|||
|
||||
As a professional baker myself, I especially adored the baking honeybee in the Golden Outpost, that exclusively sells flour, which you can use to bake tarts, doughnuts, croissants, glazed honey treats, cupcakes, and more. Discovering new recipes was a great distraction---albeit an expensive one, if an expensive ingredient was turned into a mistake, healing one measly HP and TP ("team points", or _mana_, just like in Paper Mario).
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Moonsprout wasn't constrained to the Mario universe, and that was perhaps a good thing. I thoroughly enjoyed walking around as a bug, meeting other friendly and less friendly bug races. On a few occasions, the game hints at you being part of a bigger "universe", ruled by "giants". I was able to catch a glimpse of a "great wooden structure"---a _garden shed_:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Bug Fables' story isn't all too compelling, but its wonderfully cheery and joyful world kept me entertained. This ain't your heavyweight role playing jPRG or wRPG. You play Paper-like RPGs to have _fun_, not to go deep and roll D20 dice. And once again, the Nintendo Switch is simply excellent for this kind of pickup-and-play gameplay.
|
||||
|
||||
It took me 27 hours to finish the game. There's a lot backtracking involved which isn't a big deal thanks to the ample unlockable shortcuts---given you collected enough berries, the local currency, throughout your adventure. After halfway through, the game is starting to feel a bit like a drag. Bug Fables runs out of ideas after a while, and the monotony of selecting the same TP skills time and time again starts getting a bit dull. In Paper Mario, you could switch up your party. I also never really felt the need to fiddle with badges as much as I would have liked. At that point, I started realizing that although I really _really_ like Bug Fables, it's not Paper Mario 3.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Yes, the side quests are mere fetch quests. But they also _fetch_ cool badges, and even cooler books. Books? Books! You can fill up an entire library shelf and read them. The extra lore is only a few sentences long per book but a loving addition to the Bug Fables universe. And of course, these are all entirely optional, but you would be missing out.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ A side quest eventually unlocked a hidden shop, and another one brought home an
|
|||
|
||||
One of the least exciting parts of the game are the platform sections. The jump button feels a bit iffy, and some platform-based puzzles rely on repetition---presumably because I was too dumb to precisely position the team? It felt much more polished in Nintendo's RPG adventure.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In sum, if you're a Paper Mario fan, you simply must play this game. If you're a big jRPG fan, I'd say hold off until it's available at a discount. It's not a hundred-hour game, and there's not a lot of complexity involved. But nobody plays a Paper-like game expecting these things. It's a perfect addition to other cheerful Nintendo-based games like Animal Crossing and Mario Party.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -26,27 +26,27 @@ To get the obvious out of the way: Aria of Sorrow is still one of the best GBA g
|
|||
|
||||
I'll let the screenshots do most of the talking here.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Aria is the culmination of two other GBA Castlevania attempts. Circle of the Moon's atmosphere (and perhaps its emphasis on castle design, although some things went wrong there) and Harmony of Dissonance's bright and big graphics. The conversation text box and the in-game menu reveals that it shares (more or less) the engine with its predecessor, but the annoying bits and pieces of Harmony of Dissonance have been completely fleshed out.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
These games are almost twenty years old and they're still better than the average metroidvania rip-off released nowadays. That is pretty telling. Iga knows his stuff really well---apart from getting [Bloodstained to run well on switch](/games/switch/bloodstained-ritual-of-the-night)... Aria's soul system was recycled in Dawn of Sorrow and the unofficial Castlevania sucessor Bloodstained. It is a clever way to keep the player farming for both more gear and abilities that works better than Circle of the Moon's DSS card system, simply because of higher drop rates.
|
||||
|
||||
Soma can equip weapons in Aria of Sorrow, just like Alucard could in Symphony of the night. For Harmony of Dissonance and Circle of the Moon, you're playing as a Belmont, and your whip is mandatory. There are still plenty of ways to upgrade or enhance it, though, but to me, it never felt as great as being able to equip a cooler weapon. Furthermore, in Harmony, I spent ages walking around before finding the _Steel Tip_ that ups my damage. On the other hand, once you've got your hands on weapons like Balmung and Claihm Solais, you likely won't equip anything else in Aria. It's a delicate balance that works well enough in all three games, although I prefer Aria's system.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Don't play this collection starting with Aria of Sorrow: try to adhere to the original release dates. Because that's exactly what I didn't do, and it was admittedly a bit tough to get back to Harmony of Dissonance after finishing the masterpiece that is Aria. The castle layout is a big chore: Konami stole the dual castle layout (and enemy layout and elevator sprites and ...) from Symphony of the Night, increasing the backtracking rate to an alarming rate.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The game never really clicked with me until I finally reached the clock tower and was able to unlock the better portion of the game. Harmony's castle is full of what I'd call _hard stops_: barricaded walls, locked doors, and dead ends. Although the latter might contain a HP Max Up item, you'll only be able to overcome the former near the end of the game. This, again, makes backtracking a pain. There aren't as much neatly placed portals sprinkled around as in Aria and the music can sound really awful at times.
|
||||
|
||||
That sounds bad for an Iga-Metroidvania, but in practice, it's still a very good installment. The chiptune like music was the consequence of going big and bright on the graphics---which was a consequence of the critique Circle of the Moon got, thanks to the Game Boy Advance's absence of a backlit screen. You can see why they needed two "test"-games to get the third one right. Circle of the Moon is the least pleasant to replay in 2021: double-tapping to run gets old _very_ fast. The castle is large but empty and the card drops that help you take on the sometimes too difficult enemies are frustratingly uncommon. The bosses are excellent though, if you can handle the huge difficulty spikes.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
As for Dracula X, the addition is a pleasant surprise. Not being a Metroidvania, the game might not be the reason to buy the Advance Collection, but it wasn't there in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection. Rondo of Blood was, which still is a superior game compared to this SNES port. Still, the music is awesome, and the Mode-7 graphics are still impressive. A nice dessert after you've ploughed your way though the main course.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ Besides the presence of the obvious save state and not so obvious rewind system,
|
|||
|
||||
The emulation work is top notch here, which can be expected from M2, who also were responsible for putting out the Anniversary Collection, the Genesis Mini and the TurboGrafx-16 Mini.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Perhaps the best reason to buy this collection, even if you like me already own all three GBA games, is the ability to play them on the go (on Switch) or the big screen. The pixel-perfect rendering option does a great job at putting out these retro pixels on any screen. It's still a joy to watch the graphics and animations from the GBA era.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ I think it's safe to say that Blizzard knows how to create engrossing worlds. Th
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
As you can see in the screenshot above, the scenery is simply beautiful. The 3D engine renders fluently. I played Diablo on the Nintendo Switch, and whether in handheld or in docked mode, both performed great, characters and spell effects are cool, the UI is clean and everything is easy to read and follow - regardless of the amount of wreckage going on at once. I have to admit that I'm impressed it runs that good. Compared to Torchlight II on the switch, it is lightyears ahead, especially in terms of accessibility and UI. It took the game twelve years to finally evolve to the third dimension, and it's done well.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ What is interesting to notice, is that compared to [Sacred](/games/pc/sacred), a
|
|||
|
||||
The Switch UI items are accessible through a ringwheel interface that is implemented well enough to be serviceable. It certainly is less annoying than in Torchlight II, where the game constantly mis-interprets what I am trying to do. A lot of ease-of-use features are added in D3: you automatically see which weapon will net you more damage, defense, or special abilities, without having to equip it. These things are really needed as a console lacks a mouse and precision aiming.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ Imagine a Diablo installment where enemy design would be lackluster. It would be
|
|||
Now we enter the more muddy waters: difficulties in Diablo 3. Besides the normal, nightmare (hard), and hell, there are multiple 'Torment' modes that unlock after completing the game. Of course, drops dramatically improve, as do the health points of the enemy. Sadly, the normal difficulties do not provide any challenge whatsoever - even hard. Only the torment III nephalem rift runs provide a bit of a challenge. I don't get why the game has you slogging trough `20` hours of mindless hack and slashing before deciding to crank things up a little bit. Diablo II is hard, also on 'normal'. _Ease-of-use_ is one of the key aspects of D3, and while mobs rushing at you look impressive, they are easily disposed of with a few button presses, leaving you behind with a bit of a hollow feeling of victory.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Health automatically regenerates _fast_, health globes that monsters drop automatically replenish it if that is not fast enough for you, and mana potions are absent. Diablo III feels like a modern shooter, like the last installment of Call of Duty, while DIablo II feels like an early Rainbow Six game that one-shot kills you. I prefer a mix of both, but if challenge is what you are looking for, prepare to first do a lot of yawning, or take a look at other hack & slash games instead.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ In Diablo 2, there are six quests for each Act (except for act IV, of which ther
|
|||
Besides those events, there are 'nephalem rifts', portals to increasingly difficult and timed randomly generated dungeons, akin to the lost dungeons from [Torchlight](/games/pc/torchlight). These are modern equivalent of the secret cow or mephisto runs, and provide the most loot and excitement after reaching level `70`. It's funny to see that while many reviewers praise the originality of this system, they overlook the fact that Torchlight did this three years before Diablo 3.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 2. Loot
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ Another point of remark for this game is the loot system. While I generally enjo
|
|||
As said before, Diablo 3 equals ease of use. Not only is gold automatically picked up, town portal and identification scrolls don't exist: simply press a button and ta-da: another way to completely kill excitement over new equipment. The unwanted gear can be deconstructed and converted into raw material, which you will be needing to craft in the improved Horadric Cube called Kanai's Cube. This cube even allows you to extract enchantments off items to permanently 'equip' these bonuses. The game went all-out on everything: too much gold, loot, crafting, monsters, awesomeness that all make things a bit more mundane than it should be.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Sure, I appreciate these more modern takes on the genre. But this is definitely _not_ a hardcore hack & slash game. It's a casual game that you can enjoy from your couch. I admittedly like it a lot as a Switch game: it does not require me to think too much when I'm too tired to do anything else but kill stuff, pick everything up, and haul it back to town, only to do it all over again. While my wife enjoys her favorite show on TV, I can sit beside her and play in handheld mode, instead of locking myself into my retro PC room to play computer H&S games.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ Sure, I appreciate these more modern takes on the genre. But this is definitely
|
|||
|
||||
Class builds are besides loot and monster design the most compelling reason to play hack & slash games. Alas, in Diablo 3, there's little to 'build': you simply _configure_ your build, instead of building it. Again, the ease of use is clearly present. This is both positive and negative: if you don't like a hammerdin, go use another skill. No points wasted. However, as it's that simple to swap in and out skills and runes, where exactly lies the challenge of perfecting your build?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
That challenge lies in finding the correct gear to equip. In Diablo 3, 'builds' equals equipment. There are paladin shields that are perfect for hammerdins, providing huge bonuses towards these skills, or shields that greatly improve the bounce rate of the shield bash skill. Instead of dumping points into skills, you now need that one piece of equipment even more. As you level up, skill slots and runes are automatically unlocked. This gives you a false sense of progression, since the real game beings when you reach your max level anyway, with the torment difficulties.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ One of the remarkable things is that a left mouse click doesn't execute a regula
|
|||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ Honestly, I much prefer the sound and music from [Torchlight I](/games/pc/torchl
|
|||
|
||||
Compared to all other Diablo clones, Diablo III: Eternal Collection again contains astonishing cinematics. I had high expectations of this one, and they were all met. You can even watch the D2 and D3 cinematics on YouTube, everything combined is more than an hour long and the whole thing feels like a big budget movie!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -16,24 +16,24 @@ Collecting Skull and Bones---no, not the 2001 Cypress Hill album---is part of th
|
|||
|
||||
In Flipping Death, you take control of Penny---and others---as the temp of Death himself, who decides to go on a holiday to the moon. Penny's job is to... reap souls? By possessing someone on "the other/flipped side" (the living, that is), you can jerk around and let the poor souls do the dirty work for you. The core of the gameplay involves manipulating various poor sods in certain orders, having them push buttons, paint stuff, shoot meatballs at dogs, pop balloons, extinguish or spread fire, and so forth. These puzzles are neatly sewn together in several different chapters, where in-between the narrator does a good and funny job at telling you the latest situation. Only, that loading screen, which you'll see a lot and a long time, gets old fast.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Each chapter, you're given assignments from dead souls. Paint my boat, I died before I could. Fetch my significant other, I still want to say sorry. Revenge me, I somehow got killed before being able to marry. The trouble is, these tasks are dealt by ghosts after talking to them, and after a while, the task list gets confusing: you know you're supposed to press that button, but you can't precisely remember anymore which ghost asked you to do that, or in what chain of events it's supposed to facilitate progress.
|
||||
|
||||
The game, of course built with Unity, is very charming. The boney figures with large thin legs and arms seem to somehow fit in this strange world, every conversation is fully voiced, and when NPCs "talk", their jaws almost drop, on the brink of turning into a skull. Seeing that _Death_ is part of the title, this is somehow very fitting. The game largely takes place in the outskirts of a single village, where during every chapter new buildings can be entered and souls can be possessed. The first chapter, your goal is to throw a murderer in jail. The next one, the convicted still is in jail---a nice touch---but no longer relevant to the story. Even the flashback chapters revisit ancestors of the same NPCs, making it easier for the player to remember which guy/gal gives what power.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Now, is this an adventure game? Not really. Is it a puzzle game? Not really. Is it a platform game? Ah. Everything but, except there _are_ timed platforming sections that are simply horrible. The jerky controls and floatiness of the characters make it very difficult to succeed in those platform-dependent tasks.
|
||||
|
||||
Speaking of controls, who thought it was a good idea to map the `A` button to the map screen? And worse yet, who decided it would be a good idea to use `B` to activate things there, or to only use left/right to navigate when you can clearly see you should use up/down instead? I just can't get over the clunky and awkward control scheme on the Nintendo Switch. It's just horrible. Every five minutes I'd curse because I possessed the wrong body by accident or navigated to the wrong side of the village. And this should be an "easy to navigate" 2D game.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
_Flipping Death_ is short: in about five hours, you'll be staring at the credits screen. I didn't care: it was a nice diversion from "real games". Although this game is very real, and judging from the credits, a lot of people were involved, it still feels like a filler game, which is a bit of a shame. Puzzles are over quickly and too easy. Once you're used to the layout of the village, you quickly know what to do. The only thing that drags you down are the frustratingly bad controls.
|
||||
|
||||
In a world filled with instant-gratification gimmicks (achievement unlocked!), Flipping Death dutifully takes part: there are tiny "sidetasks" (I don't think _quest_ is the right word for this game, it's barely a task) that have you unlock ghost cards with cool art and another portion of optional backstory. The text side of the cards were very hard to read, even on our TV. We regularly had to squint in order to read the task list.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Overall though, we bought and played it during Halloween for a hefty discount, and even at `€10` or so, you can't go wrong with this charming macabre game that oozes with charm. Don't expect a full-fledged puzzle or adventure game, because it's not. [The reviews are quite positive](https://www.metacritic.com/game/switch/flipping-death) overall, praising the sassy humor and accessible puzzles. It's just a shame that the control scheme ruined so many funny moments. The game tries to be funny and largely succeeds, if only I was able to precisely control the actions I wanted to pull off...
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ tags:
|
|||
|
||||
"Guacaaameleeeeee! Super Turbo Championship Editiooonnn!" yells the narrator as I boot up the (enhanced edition of the) game. Woah. Even the title screen immediately makes it clear: this game is lighthearted and doesn't take itself too seriously, the complete opposite of other metroidvanias like [Hollow Knight](/games/switch/hollow-knight). I've seen Guacamelee appear in countless of "top metroidvania games" lists and never really thought about it, until last week a Switch sale allowed me to pick up this now almost nine year old game for just `€2.60`. Even if it turns out to be not my thing (which it kind of did), this seemed to be a harmless way to try it out.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## First Impressions: meh
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -22,14 +22,14 @@ In Guacamelee, you're Juan, a poor and heart-broken agave farmer that gets kille
|
|||
|
||||
As you can see from the screenshots below, Guacamelee is very vibrant and colorful, to the point that it sometimes hurts my eyes if playing in dimly lit areas. The game is divided into different sections, which, just like other metroidvanias, you can fast-travel to using drunken (??) statues. There's cities, toxic underground sewers, lush forests, plenty of temples, and so forth. The problem is, after a few hours of playing, they all start to look, feel, and sound the same.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Each "dungeon" (usually a temple-like area) that ends in a funny boss fight comes with the same soundtrack. Why, I wonder, while other areas do have enough musical variation? Some themes are quite catchy, but after hearing one of the less stellar ones over and over again, it's clear to me that this ain't no Castlevania, even though DrinkBox Studios clearly put in a lot of effort to make the player feel at home.
|
||||
|
||||
Talking about variation: you'll be smashing the same six or so enemy types throughout the entire game. In the later parts, the white skeletons become black and get a few extra moves, but their assets are basically the same. Those later parts also quite quickly made me stop and pause more often. Just take a look at all that purple and you'll immediately know why.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Second Impressions: all right
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ Talking about variation: you'll be smashing the same six or so enemy types throu
|
|||
|
||||
In that sense, yes, Guacamelee is a bit like other Metroidvanias: you can/have to upgrade Juan's skill set, and can also boost his health/stamina/etc meters by collecting enough heart pieces---perhaps a wink to the Zelda series? There are no levels and experience points to distribute.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
During the last third of the game, it dawned to me: this isn't a Castlevania, but it's much more like [The Messenger](/games/switch/the-messenger)! The unlocked skills allow you to pull of combos that make you reach high ceilings you couldn't get to before, run on walls, and so forth. As these pieces come together, the level design starts evolving from simple platforming to intricate tiny platform placement that has you press the right button combination.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ As I wrote in my The Messenger review, I'm not a fan of (too) challenging platfo
|
|||
|
||||
The humor of the game is hit and miss. They've done an admirable effort, but the technical setup of the game doesn't particularly lend itself to this. Guacamelee is not a hard game, although later parts can be very challenging. I must admit that I simply skipped the optional "Tree Top" platforming challenge. No thanks. That said, if you're into this kind of thing, there are plenty of hidden chests and secrets to unlock, and the hell area is completely devoted to time and fight challenges (which I also skipped).
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
It took me eight hours to beat the game. Add three more for collecting and unlocking everything. But perhaps the best part of Guacamelee is the ability to play co-op with friends! That might be a valid reason to run through the agave fields once more. As a [metroidvania](/tags/metroidvania), compared to the big hitters, it doesn't quite hold up: it's not as deep and atmospheric, has less emphasis on exploration, and is quite short. But as a funny brawler with some intense platform sections, it can be quite enjoyable.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -33,13 +33,13 @@ Quod Erat Demonstrandum. Only, I just couldn't stop playing---it's that captivat
|
|||
|
||||
Because, apart from the atrocious difficulty, the game is one of the best [metroidvania](/tags/metroidvania)s I've ever played.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Why? In essence, it has everything a great metroidvania game has: a superior sense of progression, atmosphere, items and upgrades, and a living, breathing (and very unique!) world. The first few hours, you're left wondering what the heck is going on. Every new section of the "castle" (the underground fallen kingdom of Hallownest) leaves you wondering where to go to. Initially, there is no map, until you come across a humming cartographer that is friendly enough to sell you a new part.
|
||||
|
||||
But the map itself is useless: sights have to be added by buying pins. Money, or Geo, is initially hard to come by, although this gets easier as you progress in the game. Even your own location depends on the equipment of a charm---which, to be honest, is quite ridiculous in a game about exploration: it forces the player to give up a charm notch, making equipping battle-related charms to soften the difficulty more cumbersome. I did find the not-immediate availability of a map to be refreshing as wandering, exploring, and adventuring is part of the core gameplay of Hollow Knight. Sadly enough, every single moving--or immobile--part in the game can kill you. Hallownest is a _very_ dangerous place. Too eager explorers will die again and again. And as Blake mentioned, like Castlevania's save rooms, you are revived on benches.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
That is, if you manage to find one.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ The last part of the game, the White Palace, is one big platforming test, almost
|
|||
|
||||
Have I talked about the punishing boss battles yet? Yes, everything is punishing in this game. But some boss battles... Well, they are borderline insane. After reading [the 10 hardest Hollow Knight bosses](https://www.thegamer.com/hollow-knight-hardest-boss-battles/), I was convinced that I would never ever finish the game with the true ending. To make matters worse, after a few patches, Team Cherry "rebalanced" the gameplay by making a few must-needed charms less usable and by making a few bosses even more insane by having them do two damage instead of one and up the attack frequency. Good job, guys. I had to dig through YouTube to find cheesy strategies to overcome most bosses. That's a bug, not a feature.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
For those who like to enjoy the game's immersiveness without having to go into a heart rate overdrive, you're out of luck. Yoshi's Crafted World includes a _"Mellow"_ difficulty option my wife likes to use to just wander around and enjoy the game. Yoshi's given wings; if you manage to fall off a cliff, no big deal. I'm not advocating for something like that to be enabled by default---it can be hidden away in a few submenu options---but at least give casual players a chance to explore your game. I don't even consider myself a casual player and had to really push myself to take on a boss for the nth time in order to progress. The Traitor Lord in Queen's Gardens (the one that got buffed up with the patch) was the reason almost I quit again: simply reaching him from the nearest bench is a pain, and the two damage is ridiculous[^1].
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -61,13 +61,13 @@ For those who like to enjoy the game's immersiveness without having to go into a
|
|||
|
||||
Now that we know the biggest flaw of Hollow Knight, let's talk about the biggest selling point: the atmosphere. Hollow Knight is simply put, beautiful to behold. Every section (Forgotten Crossroads, Queen's Gardens, Deepnest, Kingdom's Edge, ...) is a feast for the eye and completely different. In-between both sections, you can slowly see the world changing: mushrooms and spores gathering at the edges where you can access the Fungal Wastes, desolate darkness creeping in where Deepnest tunnels begins.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Not only that, the NPCs are lovely too: they are funny and implicitly provide multiple subquests that are very naturally intertwined into the core gameplay, unlike the stark contrast made by Bloodstained' item fetch quests in the town, for instance. Furthermore, as you rescue people or come across new bugs to talk to, the town evolves. The world also changes as you make progress and I love that. It is truly a unique game, and a very long one, clocking in at about 30 hours, compared to the usual 12 for an average metroidvania game. Multiple hidden branches take you to loot, or more often than not, _lore_. I've read people on Reddit to be disappointed by this, but I personally loved that. Discovering a secret chamber to find a petrified version of an enemy with a line of background info---what's not to like? The effort Team Cherry put in to make Hallownest a living, but sometimes dark and creepy place, is astonishing. Not every nook and cranny has to be filled with items or double jump upgrades.
|
||||
|
||||
That being said, sometimes the game does drag on a little bit. The map design is good, but not as great as classics such as [Aria of Sorrow](/games/gba/castlevania-aria-of-sorrow/): the game requires you to backtrack too often, possibly further increasing the death count. Later in the game, to be able to access the true ending, you have to redo a couple of boss battles and fetch "Essence" with your Dream Nail. To me, it felt like an arbitrary way to prolong the game and could easily be cut for the better. Especially the beefed up rehashes of earlier bosses were more annoying to deal with than fun.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Another reason to me the game does not _quite_ stack up to classic [GBA](/tags/gba) Metroidvania's is the musical score. It is excellent and very fitting, perfectly accompanying the atmosphere of each part of Hallownest. But it is not as memorable: when I turn my Switch off, I don't whistle Vampire Killer-esque notes all day. As soon as I think about Aria of Sorrow, I hear _Castle Corridor_ and can't think of anything else all day. Hollow Knight hasn't had that kind of effect on me.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -77,4 +77,4 @@ That is up for debate, although a lot of fanboys at [ResetERA](https://www.reset
|
|||
|
||||
It's just too bad that because of this marriage with Demon Souls-style gameplay, I'd rather do another castle run than a Hallownest run.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,13 +28,13 @@ For each of the above generations, there have been lots of recent re-imagines an
|
|||
|
||||
## "Talk shit? Get shot."
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Besides the returning lovingly cheesy one-liners ("_Some assembly required!_", "_HOLY SHIT_" when dismembering heads, "_Talk shit? Get shot._", ...), there are plenty of (hidden) references to the older Duke3D game. Even within the first five minutes of playing, you come across a bar. Remember Duke's rooftop explosion? Check. Bar in the cinema? Check. Pinball machines? Check. I love this kind of stuff.
|
||||
|
||||
It gets more subtle: cameras with the main antagonist talking shit (see above screenshot) are a throwback to Duke Nukum I, the original DOS game. I got through the trouble of replaying the first few levels (via [The Internet Arhive MS-DOS games](https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos), [play here](https://archive.org/details/DukeNukumVersion2.21993)) just to prove my point:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
But wait, I saved the best one for last. Listen carefully to this logo sequence, shown when booting the game:
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ As soon as you finish one of the first episodes of Ion Fury, you will start to a
|
|||
|
||||
Sound effects and music design are top notch too, perfectly contributing to the murky atmosphere of this steampunk shooter. Streets are filled with litter (you can destroy with your baton to scrape together a few healthpoints), more than 20 secrets are scattered across each level (I only manage to find at most five), and it's full of graffiti with winks and references.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The only downside are the obligatory boss battles. I hate these in shooters like this - why do they have to be present? Duke's shootout in the football arena wasn't particularly great either: simply circle-strafe, empty your bazookas and hope not to get hit in the process. The "Warmech", the first real boss I encountered, was a pain in the ass. I'm not great on the aiming part, even with gyro controls enabled. After seven attempts, I learned quickly unloading my crossbow bolts into his back did the trick.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -74,6 +74,6 @@ In all honesty? The complete opposite. I'm very happy to have stumbled upon the
|
|||
|
||||
Addendum, 11/06/2020: Just to prove that I finished the game:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The last boss sucks even harder than other bosses. And yes, I played on the lowest difficulty setting, because my aiming also sucks. Nonetheless, I had a lot of fun with Ion Fury. Definitely recommended! Lots of secrets yet to discover...
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ What do you get when you mix the humor of _The Curse of Monkey Island_ with the
|
|||
|
||||
I honestly never heard of it and picked it up on the Nintendo Switch in on a sale. Because of it, expectations were low---boy, were we _wrong_! Irony Curtain is fully voiced, fully witted, and will fully tickle your classic point & click urges (up to a certain degree). In the game, you are Evan, a naive American reporter that fell in love with the mystical land of Matryoshka and its divine Great Leader, which of course turns out to be a bit of a misnomer. After a lecture gone wrong and a faked home-jacking, Evan ends up in a hotel in Matryoshka, is unwillingly involved in a coup d'état, shuffled along with the resistance, thrown in jail, and of course, ultimately, cooks up a happy ending.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Structure and puzzles
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ There are very few red herrings in the game, compared to Monkey Island 2, where
|
|||
|
||||
In chapter 3, puzzles followed each other in quick succession, but each one was fairly easy, so I quickly made a lot of progress---that is, until I ended up in the last chapter, where the difficulty (or amount of phases you have to get through) suddenly ramped up. In terms of the interface, it's a fairly standard "modern" adventure game system: clicking = interacting, no verbs like the classic games, and just "talk", "inspect", or "use" (enter/open/combine/...) will get you through.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Graphics, atmosphere, music
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -37,13 +37,13 @@ Compared to 1992's Monkey Island 2, there's little variation. Picking up stuff d
|
|||
|
||||
The least compelling part of Irony Curtain is the music. It's atmospheric at best, but the repetitive Russian/Matryoshkan jingles get boring---or even, irritating---fast. I cannot remember a single piece of the soundtrack, so it's hard to apply the word "memorable" here. Granted, [Kathy Rain](/games/pc/kathy-rain)'s is also more atmospheric than _orchestry_ like in the iconic Monkey Island games. But that game is gritty and dark, and I _do_ remember the police station and depressing lake house tunes.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Who is this game for? For Monkey Island fanboys? For Broken Sword puzzle addicts? For Sanitarium horror-like enthusiasts? I think the answer is clearly the former: its jokes clearly refer to the "good old" LucasArts days, and Evan's puns and some scenes remind me a lot of _The Curse of Monkey Island_. It is really difficult to get the humor right when stepping into the shadow of a giant like Monkey Island, but Artifex Mundi really pulled it off. The game is designed to be funny, and towards the end, a bit of sorrow and seriousness is induced to counterbalance the jokes.
|
||||
|
||||
Scenes are stuffed with clever puns and secret remarks. The town square refers to Grim Fandango and Machinarium. In the ending, Evan learns to never pay more than 20 rupryeshka's for an adventure game. I'm sure I missed more than a few of those genuinely funny moments.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Controls and platform
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ In fact, my Definitive Edition of _Legends_ contains unlockable _Origins_ levels
|
|||
## Level design
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The game is gorgeous. The worlds are varied---lush greenery, underwater and submarine levels, Olympus above and well beyond the earth, food-inspired levels, frog-invaded swamps, deserts, you name it, and it's all beautifully drawn. Some journalists perhaps rightfully so claimed that "Rayman is the best 2d Platformer game that is not Mario". I do have a few gripes with the design and overall structure, though.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ Every world and level is entered through a painting, in the same vein as Mario 6
|
|||
|
||||
On to the platforming itself, which is great, until the later levels start to reiterate on the many chase scenes a bit too much for my liking. I like exploring stuff. Yes, Sonic also rushes through levels, but that's by design. After finishing the harder levels (denoted by an amount of skulls below the painting), I felt little incentive to go back, even though I love the art.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Rehash rehash rehash
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ The problem gets worse after unlocking "captured levels" that are essentially ti
|
|||
|
||||
Competitive players will sure like these additions. But I felt they subtracted from the original Rayman experience: to explore a 2D world full of wonderful colors and animals. To me, all that extra fluff just stands in the way of the actual gameplay---which undoubtedly still is great. But I don't care about these challenges and races with others. For instance, each week, there's a challenge to race through a level the fastest, which gets recorded to Ubisoft servers. Even if it's optional, a bothersome scrolling "WARNING: WEEKLY CHALLENGE IS ABOUT TO END" message takes away from the experience instead of adding to it.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Not even half of the _Origins_ levels are unlocked here and that's a shame, I really want to play them. But I don't want to force myself plodding through some half-baked challenge or redoing time attack variations of previous chase scenes I'm glad I finished in the first place.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,13 +28,13 @@ Now, if that video did nothing to you, then you can stop reading and go do somet
|
|||
|
||||
What makes sonic Mania so special for me is its resemblance with the older 16-bit era Sonic games. I grew up with a MegaDrive, not a SNES, and my sisters and me played Sonic 2 and 3 over and over again. Well, one of the sisters was handed the second controller. "You can be Tails, there you go!" - we all know what that means...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Many stages in Sonic Mania start of as a homage to the original 16-bit Sonic (2) game(s). For instance, there's the _Chemical Plant Zone_, of which the first act is almost an exact replica of Sonic 2's Plant Zone, including loops, bridges to take before you run out of oxygen underwater, enemy placement, and even death traps. Until you zip through it and progress to the next Plant Zone stage, where the music suddenly is a very catchy remix of the original, and the Chemicals in the Zone are multiplied. New gimmicks, jumpboards, background art, foreground tunnels, enemies, and so forth are introduced that blend perfectly with the classic first stage that has set the scene. I loved every minute of it.
|
||||
|
||||
Sonic Mania does this on many zones: Chemical Plant, Hydrocity, the first Green Hill, ... It got a fair bit of critique because of that, as it's not seen as very "original", and it should try to get out of its predecessors' shadows. I concur: the first sections of those zones merely act as an introduction to the original, new compounds that Whitehead and his team has cooked up for us. It jogs the memory, brings back the nostalgic memories, and then slaps you in the face with a modern remix of the same elemental pieces of the game design puzzle.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## The New, _New_ Zones
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Of course Sonic Mania also has its weaknesses. The last Zone for instance was qu
|
|||
|
||||
At least Whitehead managed to create a _proper_ classic 2D sonic game. SEGA was unsuccessful for a long time, and [Sonic 4](https://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/sonic-the-hedgehog-4-episode-i) left me and other critics cold. I know there are fans of the 3D Sonic-on-rails games, but I've had my stomach full of awkward 3D platformers and [the Italian mustache guy](/articles/super-mario-64-aged-badly/) for a while now. Granted, I simply suck at navigating 3D games. Still, looking at the Meta Critic scores of all recent Sonic games, only Mania firmly stands out.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## The Extras
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -56,6 +56,6 @@ There _are_ [Sonic Mania 2 Rumors](https://www.thegamecrater.com/sonic-mania-2-d
|
|||
|
||||
> That being said, I feel like focusing too much on Genesis-Sonic nostalgia could hamstring the series a bit. One of the recurring jokes in the fandom is that everyone is sick of playing Green Hill Zone and Chemical Plant Zone. But there’s a grain of truth to that.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Maybe a part of that is true: as much as I enjoyed Hydrocity and Chemical Plant, I liked Studio Metropolis' originality even more. Let's hope for the best in the (maybe) upcoming sequel! Until then, I think I'll go ahead and beat the game for a fourth time, just to be able to get that smile back on my face.
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ Almost.
|
|||
|
||||
Everyone who saw a trailer or a clip about the game - or even a screenshot - knows it's a 2D action platformer with clear retro vibes. Sabotage Studios doesn't try to hide The Messenger's legacy. The Ninja Gaiden inspiration never feels blunt, and the NES chiptunes - that later evolve into 16-BIT Genesis ones - complement each level perfectly. The first few hours of the game are quite manageable for the occasional 2D platform gamer like me. But then... A few difficulty spikes in the form of boss battles literally kick your ass.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
I'm no stranger to the genre, but I do detest masocore-like games such as Super Meatboy. I'm used to a bit of difficulty present in many [Castlevania](/tags/castlevania) or Metroidvania-like games, but the Cloudstep mechanics, the unique ability that allows for a double-jump after hitting a target, took a very long time for me to settle in. At first, it's only occasionally needed, but the game does a good job at gradually throwing other things at you such as a dart rope and a wing suit. All these things work together and help The Messenger in becoming a swift Ninja-like killer.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -32,13 +32,13 @@ That is, if you manage to get your timing precise. I didn't.
|
|||
|
||||
Many times, this ended with bitter frustration. Luckily, the game allows you to continue where you left off an indefinite amount of times - that is, starting from the last Shop Portal which also acts as a save point. These points are sometimes spread a bit too thin to my liking. You are expected to die again and again, and yet, unlike in Celeste, it's clear that the game laughs at you. Quite literally: the little devil helper called Quarble comes up with funny lines such as the following:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
In Metroidvanias, save points act like save havens and replenish your health. Not so in this game. In Celeste, dying simply means resetting the current on-screen stage. Not so in this game. It is also striking that the music resets after dying, and even though I absolutely loved the soundtrack (which you should buy [at Rainbowdragoneyes' Bandcamp page](https://rainbowdragoneyes.bandcamp.com/)), only hearing the first 10 seconds and falling in that same pit again and again starts to wear off pretty quickly.
|
||||
|
||||
Still, the first part of the game could - besides a few major hickups - be called straightforward. After defeating the "big boss" in the Temple of Time, you're suddenly transported into the future, which visually and auditory catapults you forward from 8-bit to 16-bit: a very pleasing experience. And the first major plot twist. This proves that when it comes to the story, The Messenger has a lot of tricks on its sleeve: it's far from a standard run-and-gun 2D platformer.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Part II: Backtracking. Where to?
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ After the Temple of Time and a few other stages, the game suddenly "opens up". W
|
|||
|
||||
The trouble is, I absolutely do **not** want to backtrack in this game. Especially not in pesky stages that had me die a lot! Even though [Circle of the Moon](/articles/retrospectives/castlevania-circle-of-the-moon/) is also considered _hard_, I had less trouble navigating those castle corridors compared to the many jump-through-the-hoop stages in The Messenger. This was mostly due to my incapability of mastering the Cloud Jump. Only the seventh hour or so in, it finally started to feel like even difficult paths were doable. Pfew...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Usually, backtracking in Metroidvania games involve slight level adjustments that introduce other pathways. The Messenger is very clever in this by introducing "time rifts" that enable rapid switching between 8-bit and 16-bit environments, where hurdles suddenly disappear or appear. You're sent on fetch-quests that involve collecting demon artifacts, bridge builders, magic faeries and even tea leaves and candles - that one was particularly hilarious. It's all done with flair and a few well-placed jokes that never feel over the top. I love The Messenger's atmosphere.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ Thanks to that guide, that is.
|
|||
|
||||
## Part III: The finale, another plot twist?
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
After finally collecting even more seemingly random stuff, such as music notes, without particularly knowing why, the last part of the veil is lifted, and another plot twist is introduced (the second-last: after defeating the final boss, there's this "_haha, be continued!_" one). For a game that is inspired by classic NES-era "hardcore 2D platformers", the story is indeed surprisingly deep.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ In the end, The Messenger is truly a one-of-a-kind. It is responsible for days a
|
|||
|
||||
Yet, I also hated the game and the way it laughed at my feeble attempts to get to the next screen. It does a poor job at soothing me, saying "It's okay, just try again", like Celeste's "proud" death counts. Here, Quarble simply mocks you, proclaiming things like "_zigged when you should have zagged?_" or "_If someone is watching, you can say it was input lag_". As much as I appreciate the humor, at that moment, it only adds to my anger.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
So there you have it. The perfect love/hate relationship. I would have no problems paying `€60` for a game like this, but instead, it's regularly available for `€10` in the Switch e-shop. Just remember that The Messenger should not be classified as a Metroidvania game.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ Originally released only two years after [Sacred](/games/pc/sacred), Titan Quest
|
|||
|
||||
I slogged through more than twenty hours of repetitive and frustrating gameplay and wrote all this to spare you from the same misery, so do me a favor and simply don't bother: look at [better hack & slash games](/articles/the-best-and-worst-retro-hack-and-slash-games/) instead. The game was re-released for Nintendo Switch in 2018, and that's the one I regretted playing. You'd think that twelve years after the original release, most bugs would have been fixed. Think again!
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## The World
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ Wow, the AoE co-creator and Braveheart writer - this has _got_ to be good, right
|
|||
|
||||
Okay, so the game looks good - or looked good in 2006. It's fully rendered in 3D, although most scenery is pretty static. On the Switch, it looks and plays quite fluently - aside from the texture mapping bugs here and there. The game look and feel reminds me a lot of [Dungeon Siege](/games/pc/dungeon-siege) because of its seamless transition in and out of underground dungeons and caves. But also because of the boring gameplay - mostly because of that. All I had to do with my dual wielding melee build was to press and hold the `Y` button on my controller - that's it. That's it? That's it - well, besides the constant thirst for health potions my character had, that can be quenched with a press of the `L` shoulder button.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Gameplay
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ This was especially true for my build: I was a skilled _warfare_ and _rogue_ mel
|
|||
|
||||
## Loot
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
What about loot, one of the most compelling reasons to play games such as this? Well, it's there. Items are categorized in different orders of rarity: common (white), magical (yellow), rare (green), unique (blue), set items (also green?). That sounds suspiciously familiar - and that's a good thing. In the beginning, since rare and unique items are _very_ uncommon, I picked up every single yellow thing I saw. That ended with too many trips back and froth to town in order to sell unwanted items. You really feel lucky when a rare item drops! And I suspect that some drops are set, such as several boss monsters that just so happen to drop the items they were using against you.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ Besides the regular loot, you collect other spoils of war: boar hides, fangs, de
|
|||
|
||||
On a TV screen, it is very difficult to see what's what, especially with those tiny 1x1 things in your inventory. The inventory screen does not make use of a ring-based menu system like [Diablo III](/games/switch/diablo-3) or [Torchlight II](/games/switch/torchlight-2), but rather falls back to the PC implementation. That means that scrolling through stuff you'd like to sell or equip is also a pain, although the overview is better than in aforementioned games. I'm starting to get the feeling that _if_ you still would like to play this game, you'd better do this on PC...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## Performance
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ What's more, enemy glitches happen frequently: animations mowing through a solid
|
|||
|
||||
And yet, death animations are really cool, you can sometimes even see their armor realistically falling next to the fresh corpse. Chests release their goodies with flare, shadows are really cool, and there's a day and night cycle. Too bad that many of the bad things outweigh the good...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Another "bad" thing on the console is navigating the menu or overworld map. There's no semi-transculent map that can be enabled with one button: you have to press `+`, use the thumb stick to try and aim for a world map, and press `A`. The trouble is, that ring-menu is horrible. It selects the wrong menu more than half of the time, and having to slog through it in order to see where the hell I'm supposed to be going is _very_ off-putting. Not that getting lost is easy, though: the game is very liniar, and simply guides you from point A to point B, in a similar fashion to [Dungeon Siege](/games/pc/dungeon-siege). Even the enemy variation reminds me of Dungeon Siege: there is variation, but only after the scenery changes. By then, you'll be moaning at the sight of yet another centaur in Act I, skeleton in Act II, or lionmen in Act III.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ Might the questing system be a superior version, compared to Diablo 2? Again, I'
|
|||
|
||||
Another thing that irritated me was that finishing a quest by finding a required item or killing a local nuisance simply resulted in a message saying _Quest Updated_. What does "updated" mean - do I still have to do something? After inquiring in the quest log, the quest was ticked off - and thus, finished - so the answer would be no. Huh? Shouldn't I go back to town and tell the poor woman that I killed the bandit leader? Nope, she'll hear it from a local guard, but here is your money anyway. Where did I get that money form? It fell out of the sky - a God gave it to you.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## The verdict
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ The pacing of the game is very relaxed. You can't "die", there is no time limit,
|
|||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Besides your trusty camera, you also carry a Walkman with you, aptly named the Hikelady. Songs in the form of cassettes can be handed out after finishing a quest or discovering a new location. This is a lovely way to let you choose which music you prefer. Of course, the soundtrack is also appropriately relaxing.
|
||||
Besides your trusty camera, you also carry a Walkman with you, aptly named the Hikelady. Songs in the form of cassettes can be handed out after finishing a quest or discovering a new location. This is a lovely way to let you choose which music you prefer. Of course, the soundtrack is also appropriately relaxing. The soundtrack can be purchased separately via the [Steam store page](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1747350/TOEM_Original_Soundtrack/) or the [Epic Games store](https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/toem--toem-original-soundtrack) and is highly recommended.
|
||||
|
||||
I loved selecting the Hikelady option in the ring menu and picking a track: the player is treated with an animation of the cassette jumping and clicking into the Hikelady before the song actually starts. There neat little touches make the game even more charming. Considering TOEM was made with a very small team, its aesthetics are minimalistic but very stylish. You can rotate the camera and zoom in and out, but it's mostly a fixed viewpoint affair (the game was made using Unity, a very popular option lately).
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ I also love the variation: there are four times as many different monsters, item
|
|||
|
||||
### Graphics
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
On my Nintendo witch, the game oozes color, to the point of almost hurting my eyes. The cartoon style of the original is even more present here, a hit-or-miss which, as I played, did not really bother me. However, the menus and interaction with things (items and people) look a bit odd to me. As said before, I prefer a more gritty scenery for hack and slash games, but it was amusing enough, especially the optional pirate king quest. Each area is unique and there is always something interesting to see.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ That said, in my [Diablo 3 review](/games/switch/diablo-3), I proclaimed that ga
|
|||
|
||||
Do _not_ play a melee-focused build on Switch. You've been warned.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
### Enemies and Mobs
|
||||
|
|
@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ As advertised: great. Many unique mini-bosses roam the dungeons and overworld, a
|
|||
|
||||
_Fame_, a concept form the original 2009 game, prominently returns. It is satisfying to see the label being gradually upgraded from _Unknown Ember Mage_ to _Liked_ and _Widely Known Ember Mage_ - although I am unsure what else it should do. If there is one thing that this game absolutely nails, it is the bosses. Instead of only one real boss at the end of every act like in the Diablo games, this game throws a big bad guy at you in every single dungeon, and they are all completely unique and nicely fitted within the current theme. Sadly, most of them go down in a few seconds on _normal_, but at least the drops are compelling. Big golden chests await you after the battle, and the dungeons are littered with normal chests, hidden chests, and of course mimic chests - annoying little buggers.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
You can again feed fish to your pet to help combat the enemies, but it again feels tacked-on and I never once used it. Mind you, in New Game Plus or on higher difficulties (stupid Switch!), it might be needed to rely on them. Potions were still useful as I sometimes became a bit over-confident. You can select your own penalty for dying: lose some money and start at the beginning of the dungeon, lose a lot and be resurrected on the spot, or lose nothing and start back in town. Since gold was never a problem, I usually picked the first option.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ Every act has about five bigger main quests with a few optional paths sprinkled
|
|||
|
||||
Farming is a bit of a pain: the world is randomly generated, but monsters are 'set', unless you return to certain previous areas from another act. Most of the times, previously visited dunes will stay empty (or littered with junk you didn't pick up). On normal, the indicated recommended levels for dungeons quickly ramped up, but it was still manageable. I fear for higher difficulties as there one will have to go back and forth to grind a bit. That said, quest rewards can be hand-picked, although I found them to be almost always worthless:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 2. Loot
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ In my original Torchlight review, I wrote that this is one of the reasons to pla
|
|||
|
||||
Take a look at the screenshot below. That is a _unique_ piece of shoulder armor, with `+20%` poison damage and `+18` dex. That's it. Yes it's got an empty socket, big deal. To me, that is a bit of a letdown. On the other hand, the drop rates are just right: you will get to see many green items (magical), a few blues after opening regular chests or killing mini-bosses (rares), and if you're lucky a single piece of orange (unique) after a dungeon boss. I still have to make the color-code translation `blue = yellow` in my head though...
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
Items have level requirements, which can be bypassed if your stats are high enough. For some strange reason, set pieces are indiscernible from rare items: they are both blue, while in the original Torchlight, they were purple. Fiddling with items to buy/sell/equip is a real pain on the console version of this game. The ring menu interface is awkward and, compared to Diablo 3, sometimes does things I did not intend to do. To be honest, I didn't enjoy equipping my guy as much, and that is a real shame.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ Items have level requirements, which can be bypassed if your stats are high enou
|
|||
|
||||
The three skill tree system has remained stable in this new installment, except that for many but not all skills, extra _'ranks'_ unlock after a set amount of points pumped into the skill. For instance, reaching certain ranks could net bonus damage multipliers, like my Ember Mage's _Prismatic Bolt_ in the screenshot below. I went with AoE reach: start with a _Hailstorm_ that can stun enemies, add massive mana/life leach with _Death's Bounty_, and then finish off with bolts. Big bosses or slow mobs get additional lightning damage with a _Thunder Locus_. The rest of the skill points went into passive buffs.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
The skill screen demos each skill on a dummy, and while that looks cool, it also shows another major weakness: the skills - or classes, for that matter - aren't all that interesting. You've got the usual suspects: fine, fire - ice - lightning stuff. I expected the Engineer to be cooler, but besides building healing bots or traps, he's just a toned down barbarian wielding a slow attack 2-hander. I find Diablo 2's skills and classes to be much more compelling. Even Diablo 3's stupidly simple skill-assignment system is more fun to effectively use, as Corpse Explosion or Holy Hammers are more inviting than the mundane Torchlight 2 skills.
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ There is a possibility to re-assign the last 4 spent skill points in town, in ex
|
|||
Besides skills, you can assign your basic 5 stat points to either strength, dexterity, focus (mana) or health. Contrary to Diablo 2, it is _not_ a good idea to ignore dex as a mage. I felt a bit lost sometimes trying to decide what was best to do. Diablo's more item-oriented stat boost system does not always pay off, as gathering gear in single player games can be hit-or-miss.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## 4. Ambience
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -96,7 +96,7 @@ Since my pet does not have a visible healthbar anymore, and I guess that also me
|
|||
|
||||
Since, contrary to Torchlight I, this time, there seems to be a more coherent story, animated but simple are effectively part of the game. It is serviceable to inform the player, but obviously nowhere near anything that we can marvel at in Blizzard's games.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
## To Conclude
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
title: "No Copyright and no tracking"
|
||||
ignore: true
|
||||
disableComments: true
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
title: all
|
||||
ignore: true
|
||||
type: platforms
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
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Reference in New Issue