The first 1994 game is on the list! (Again—there was one there for a little while, but we found some new 1993 games to bump it off. I don't remember what it was, so I re-rolled a new one from the list.) After that, I'll go back to the usual practice of alternating a "current" game with one from the backlist.
As a reminder, this discussion is to offer:
- Opinions about the game's RPG status. While applying your own definitions to such a discussion is fine, what really helps is if you apply mine. The FAQ (7th question) covers my definition.
- Tips for emulating the game
- Known bugs and pitfalls
- Tips for character creation
- Trivia
- Predictions for my reaction and/or the GIMLET score (without specifics that will spoil the game).
- Sources of information about the game from around the web, particularly obscure ones that I might otherwise miss during my pre-game research.
These are the next six titles:
- Fates of Twinion (1993 | Sierra | DOS). I have to admit, I don't really look forward to this one. It's an expansion to Shadow of Yserbius (1992), an online, multiplayer game that really suffers in its offline format. I don't know what to expect from the sequel.
- Infinite Fantasy Adventures, Volume 1: The Fantasy Worlds of Tamrak (1993 | Independent | DOS). This shareware Ultima clone may have been created with the DC Games kit. It looks a lot like The Rescue of Lorri in Lorrintron (1991).
- Stone Mist 2: Legend of the Overfiend (1993 | Bit Brother | DOS). Not looking forward to this one, either. I had a lot of trouble with the first game in the series.
- Sword Dream (1993 | Independent | Macintosh). This is a creation kit that produced top-down games in its 1993 version and first-person games in its 1997 3D incarnation. They look reasonably good, but the extent to which I play it is going to come down to whether there are sample scenarios included with the kit.
- Realms of Arkania: Star Trail (1994 | attic | DOS). I had mixed feelings about the original, which disappointed some readers, but I'm looking forward to seeing what's new in the sequel. MobyGames suggests there are more side quests and role-playing options.
I await your thoughts. Please remember to keep the discussion spoiler-free.
In that case, Happy New Year! (well, almost)
ReplyDeleteCan we just skip Fates of Twinion, if it was mostly designed to play as MMORPG? Or maybe brief it?
ReplyDeleteSword Dream also seems like something that should be briefed, unless you want to go down the rabbit hole of all the expansions.
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On a side note, can you perhaps made the saves of the games you abandoned available for download?
From what I remember, Fates of Twinion is exactly the same as Shadows of Yserbius, just with different maps and framing story. I agree that a BRIEF is all that's needed.
DeleteYour memories aren't correct, then. Twinion has some significant changes to character development. Even if it didn't, that would be like skipping all the Gold Box games after the first one because it's just the same engine with different maps, story and enemies/items.
DeleteI would second skipping or 6-houring Twinion; it's a snoozefest.
Delete@Buck: but as it turned out, none of the later Gold Box games topped Pool of Radiance's GIMLET score. From a certain point of view, skipping the later Gold Box games could have been a defensible choice. I'm no Addict, but the reviews I read here of many of those games do run together a bit in my memory.
DeleteThen again, skipping large numbers of impactful games is probably antithetical to a site whose stated goal is "going through all RPGs in chronological order."
I'd say skipping any game would be antithetical to a site whose stated goal is "going through all RPGs in chronological order." ;)
Delete@Buck, it gets murky with offline versions of essentially online games.
DeleteIt's entirely possible that I'm forgetting details or didn't make it far enough in Twinion to notice. I likely bounced off this one pretty quickly back in the day having tried it right after Yserbius.
DeleteIs it easy to summarize the changes to character development? I'm curious.
Just a minor note on Realms of Arkania: You can shoot diagonally now which is a lot more user friendly. Also, it speeds up the fights a bit. I am really looking forward to this (German) classic.
ReplyDeleteThere is a certain choice in Star Trail between a tough battle and giving up the mcguffin that is not in fact a choice as the battle is meant to be unwinnable. But you can technically win it if you cheese enough - which will put you into a more or less walking dead state.
ReplyDeleteRealms of Arkania II! At last. That’s one of the titles I have never played but always wanted. Das Schwarze Auge (the German title for Realms of Arkania) was my gateway to Fantasy roleplaying and therefore has a special place in my heart - even if I haven’t touched it in >30 years.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to what you‘ll say about it. German magazines of the time widely agreed it was a vast improvement on the well-received, but unpolished and sometimes clumsy first part. Should be low level roleplaying with a lot of wilderness.
That's basically what I was going to say, except that I played the game, and I think Chet will enjoy it, as it improves upon the original while still delivering a classical roleplaying experience.
DeleteI feel like the only game worth playing on this list is Realms of Arkania: Star Trail. It looks interesting to me at least.
ReplyDeleteTreat Twinion like an old school dungeon crawler, forget the fact that it was also a MUD, and draw your own maps. There's no guarantee that you will, but I really enjoyed it that way. It doesn't seem to have a good reputation, even among fans, but I found it even better to play as a solo game than Yserbius. If you want to cut yourself some slack, use this item list to check which items have flags that give you resistances (because getting petrified/incapacitated is the most frustrating part of the early game): https://github.com/ZaneDubya/YserbiusData/blob/master/Twinion/Data/Items.csv
ReplyDeleteIt's also well documented, so there is no pressure to finish it.
Looking forward to your take on some of these and really looking forward to your take on some of the others on the list.
ReplyDeleteI thought you enjoyed Arkania reasonably well given that you were unfamiliar with the tabletop system. Combat in Arkania is slow, and it's worse if you're not familiar with what makes your characters hit better. Maybe reading up on some of the 3rd edition tabletop mechanics would help, though I don't know if there is a good english language source for that.
ReplyDelete