tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post783906331227854860..comments2024-03-28T04:44:28.648-04:00Comments on The CRPG Addict: Game 269: Ancients 1: Death Watch (1991)CRPG Addicthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-66569165644815087142022-09-01T16:13:08.758-04:002022-09-01T16:13:08.758-04:00"PNG at the time *officially*, per government..."PNG at the time *officially*, per government *policy* refused to enforce copyright law"<br /><br />we need more Papua New Guineas :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-23103903677686122982018-09-30T05:45:01.563-04:002018-09-30T05:45:01.563-04:00Ancients II was, I think, the first RPG I ever pla...Ancients II was, I think, the first RPG I ever played, bought on a cheap floppy disc from my local newsagent here in Yorkshire.<br /><br />I was too young to really understand how to play, and I had no knowledge of how RPGs really worked (the game taught me somewhat), but I remember just fighting for hours to see what would happen when I levelled. I never progressed far.<br /><br />So it holds a special place in my memory since it was the first Tolkien-like game I ever found. <br /><br />I leapt at the chance to play Legend of Grimrock because I still think the first-person view is more immediate and atmospheric. Now that I have discovered just how many there were - Eye of the Beholder, Ishar, Lands of Lore, Might and Magic, etc - I'm playing some on GoG and Bard's Tale looks the most similar.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-33915255596382349532018-06-25T13:41:03.831-04:002018-06-25T13:41:03.831-04:00OH, well then I'd like to apologize for not re...OH, well then I'd like to apologize for not reading your info boxes.Canageekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03770924810559440307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-77629936928364387942018-05-21T13:25:49.911-04:002018-05-21T13:25:49.911-04:00This isn't anywhere close to your first RPG. Y...This isn't anywhere close to your first RPG. You had <i>Alien Fires</i>, <i>Deathlord</i>, <i>Gates of Delirium</i>, and two 1989 games I haven't played before this.<br /><br />Wait...why do I show <i>The Magic Candle III</i> as a Canadian game when the first two weren't?CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-5364007852968788392018-05-20T20:53:59.207-04:002018-05-20T20:53:59.207-04:00Canada would like to apologize for its first RPG b...Canada would like to apologize for its first RPG being rather mediocre. ;)<br /><br />(And I'd like to apologize for not reading for ages again.)Canageekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03770924810559440307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-47186834701079984272017-12-12T12:58:15.574-05:002017-12-12T12:58:15.574-05:00I'm glad to see that you finally made it to th...I'm glad to see that you finally made it to this game and enjoyed it well enough. This was one of the games I checked to see if you'd covered when I found this blog years ago, oddly enough one of the few older RPGs I had played randomly because it was shareware. As basic and straightforward as it is, there is something comforting and fun about it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-3982678756427016002017-11-25T03:12:07.345-05:002017-11-25T03:12:07.345-05:00I appreciate your enthusiasm, Rangerous. I'm g...I appreciate your enthusiasm, Rangerous. I'm glad you found the game an adequate experience.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-981152914707846292017-11-22T19:52:26.297-05:002017-11-22T19:52:26.297-05:00Thanks for another great review! Again, your revie...Thanks for another great review! Again, your review inspired me to try one out that I hadn't seen before, and having just completed it, (of course :) your assessment was spot on. <br /><br />One of your comments that I totally missed, was the absolutely anticlimactic nature of the boss fight. You would think that an Ur-grue might have presented a maxed-out defensive screen or something... <br /><br />Otherwise, it was a fun if prosaic example of reliable and satisfying skills progression enabling entry into increasingly challenging areas.<br /><br />Thanks for putting in all this effort, and lending your great writing skills, to this effort! Obviously from all the comments, your site is a go-to for many of us which we look forward to every day. Keep up the great work!Rangerous the Secondhttp://www.fategatesofdawn.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-81778925184545669942017-11-21T20:00:39.984-05:002017-11-21T20:00:39.984-05:00Yeah, pre-Interplay, classic rpg experiences tende...Yeah, pre-Interplay, classic rpg experiences tended to be mechanically satisfying rather than immersive. Explore, fight, get loot, level up.Tristan Gallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16769219573533545742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-88703705859866587812017-11-21T16:20:01.439-05:002017-11-21T16:20:01.439-05:00I consider that part of a DESIRABLE role-playing e...I consider that part of a DESIRABLE role-playing experience, but if that was the definition I used, it would eliminate 95% of 1980 and early 1990s RPGs. Beyond the <i>Ultima</i> titles, there just isn't much out there with meaningful NPC interaction.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-34366142983430307942017-11-21T10:42:26.388-05:002017-11-21T10:42:26.388-05:00Interesting. What I consider a solid, classic role...Interesting. What I consider a solid, classic role-playing experience would rather be: "talk with inhabitants, learn where to go, get there, talk with more inhabitants" (or "iNhaPitanCs", i.e. NPC :) ). Anyone whose preference is similar to mine? After all, I discovered role-playing games because I was looking for more fantasy novels. Ah, well, we all like role-playing video games the same, regardless of which aspect we like most.Abacosnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-81193162220608666092017-11-21T02:22:05.737-05:002017-11-21T02:22:05.737-05:00I bought this old Toshiba laptop that had belonged...I bought this old Toshiba laptop that had belonged to a tax accountant. It was so drenched in tar, I got a contact buzz just from typinghvkhttp://www.metager.denoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-60860413363759295232017-11-20T07:31:22.770-05:002017-11-20T07:31:22.770-05:00I used to work in a computer repair shop and the n...I used to work in a computer repair shop and the nightmare system was the ubiquitous all-plastic eMachines computer, with seven pounds of dust and four pounds of tar (from smoking) inside of it. The combination created a sticky orange gunk that smelled terrible and was very difficult to remove safely. <br /><br />However, the thought of opening a computer and finding it full of mold is far worse.Raifieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08478524519453417677noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-15971485425385512472017-11-20T04:15:26.394-05:002017-11-20T04:15:26.394-05:00I like hard data. This is just the sort of thing I...I like hard data. This is just the sort of thing I would do if I didn't have a list of 1,000 games to play. For some reason, I still allow myself to get sucked into statistics whenever there's a gambling system in a game.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-70053510623062404662017-11-20T04:13:52.597-05:002017-11-20T04:13:52.597-05:00This is an awesome comment. I know like 300% more ...This is an awesome comment. I know like 300% more about Papua New Guinea than I did 10 minutes ago.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-64039703352419523882017-11-19T21:38:08.984-05:002017-11-19T21:38:08.984-05:00Fascinating... or, err... not so much :). By which...Fascinating... or, err... not so much :). By which I mean, that upon reading this entry, the one thought going through my head was - wow, I didn't remember any of this except for the image of the cleavage-showing lady in the main menu (and even that, really, I only recall because a good friend I was playing the game with made some funny comment about it that I no longer recall). In this sense, it's really remarkable how utterly forgettable the game was. I know I finished it. But I remember nothing of it.<br /><br />Nonetheless, your assessment is absolutely correct: for what it was, it *was* satisfying. For me at the time... well, I was living in Papua New Guinea, a place where no software was sold at all, and there were about two shops selling computers in town. The bunch of us kids, living in the staff compound of PNG University of Technology, were in the somewhat peculiar situation of having excellent access to computers (our parents did work at the University of *Technology*, after all), but abysmal access to games and software. Because most of our parents were unwilling to spend money on expensive air travel without necessity, new games would arrive only under two types of circumstances - a new staff member arriving with children, or one of our families travelling overseas for the once-every-18-months holiday paid for by the university. There was always at least a couple of people who'd come back in February from the summer holiday with a couple of cool new games - but it really was a once-a-year thing. I suppose we were fortunate that given the difficulty of buying software, and the fact that PNG at the time *officially*, per government *policy* refused to enforce copyright law, nobody had any qualms about copying disks for their friends. Ironically, sometimes those acts of piracy would ultimately save the game for the original owner in a sense, because the tropical climate of the place meant that mold grew on everything, and most floppy disks died in the space of a year or two unless they were kept in an airconditioned room. So, it wasn't at all unusual to re-install a game after a few months, only to hear that very characteristic uhg-ungh-hrmm sound of a disk drive struggling to read data. Your heart would pause, as you waited to see if it succeeded or failed... :)<br /><br />Then, around 1995, I believe, one of the new arrivals brought along a few CDs filled with pirated games from the early 1990s. My head practically exploded when I suddenly gained access to something like a hundred new games all at once.Jakub Majewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04346544936010598248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-13556609257986763472017-11-19T19:57:01.928-05:002017-11-19T19:57:01.928-05:00The graphics were nothing to sneeze at at the time...The graphics were nothing to sneeze at at the time. In terms of first-person RPGs, this originally came out between Wizardry 6 (EGA) and Wizardry 7 (VGA), and in terms of shareware this originally came out before Apogee's first VGA title, Wolfenstein 3D.HunterZhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17049065099652976143noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-39344061478853040852017-11-19T19:15:59.594-05:002017-11-19T19:15:59.594-05:00This is the sort of art that you end up with if yo...This is the sort of art that you end up with if you don't know how to draw, you don't use reference and you suddenly go from 8-bit computers with their hard-coded 8 and 16 color palettes to unlimited VGA with 256 colors on screen.<br /><br />Straight ramps, painfully primary. Make a palette first, go 'ok, for greens I'm going to have .... 16 greens, from almost pure blackish green to the most vibrant 0, 255, 0 green there is!'. All straight ramps, soft shading, use all the shades you got, because VGA is better than an Amiga, right?<br /><br />Helmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00584102280299430293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-34707190417495340532017-11-19T13:31:56.566-05:002017-11-19T13:31:56.566-05:00Between Ancients and Twilight 2000 you have an exa...Between Ancients and Twilight 2000 you have an example of a game that aims low and mostly hits it, and a game that aims high and falls short. It feels like this blog has covered more games in the latter category.Tristan Gallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16769219573533545742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-83777029642258192742017-11-19T10:01:27.101-05:002017-11-19T10:01:27.101-05:00Has kind of a DeluxePaint look to me. There weren&...Has kind of a DeluxePaint look to me. There weren't a lot of better DOS tools available.HunterZhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17049065099652976143noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-16485621404261197102017-11-19T09:46:42.905-05:002017-11-19T09:46:42.905-05:00Yeah! As a digital artist with tons of great tools...Yeah! As a digital artist with tons of great tools to choose from (who didn't work "back then"), I wonder what method the artist used to make these assets? I just don't have any idea...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-74119886131994305112017-11-19T09:42:12.358-05:002017-11-19T09:42:12.358-05:00That is a perfect name for them.That is a perfect name for them.Mr. Pavonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13286558267156792637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-66841456891465586802017-11-19T03:25:03.570-05:002017-11-19T03:25:03.570-05:00These instances of unintentional wordplay are appa...These instances of unintentional wordplay are apparently called "eggcorns".AWJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00239905738733896915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-70561556386679732302017-11-19T03:19:29.482-05:002017-11-19T03:19:29.482-05:00Is it just me, or does the vampire image make anyo...Is it just me, or does the vampire image make anyone else think of early 3D rendering?Twibathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11872080022551062309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-69334607092020481222017-11-18T23:37:59.899-05:002017-11-18T23:37:59.899-05:00I played this for quite a bit back in 2010-11, as ...I played this for quite a bit back in 2010-11, as it was one of the games packaged with a DosBox distribution. I gathered a bit of data trying to analyze the statistical effect of the protection spells by repeatedly running into the yellow moss room with various combinations of protection spells in effect, and then letting the moss hit my party. Short version - I couldn't detect any effect on the damage taken; it looks like all the effect was on the chance to hit.<br /><br />An unprotected party had a 41.2-51.9% chance of getting hit (95% confidence interval), 1 Party Armor spell (3rd level MU spell) dropped that to 28.7-35.5%, 1 Safeguard Party (2nd level cleric spell) came in at 32.8-42.8%, and 1 Party Waver (6th level MU) dropped it all the way to 14.5-25.1%. The combination of PA+SP came in at 34.8-41.4%, so presumably the spells didn't stack. This was measuring a few hundred of each type of attack; getting the numbers more precise would have taken a bunch more data.<br />Dave W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/02933734333796126524noreply@blogger.com