tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post1522337724557732015..comments2024-03-18T21:14:09.798-04:00Comments on The CRPG Addict: Cheats and LiarsCRPG Addicthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comBlogger176125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-37285975200293690302022-10-22T02:18:37.038-04:002022-10-22T02:18:37.038-04:00A bit off-topic, but after reading "I'm s...A bit off-topic, but after reading "I'm sure that in their lives, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall got just as drunk as David Hasselhoff and Lindsay Lohan, but there's a reason we don't remember Bogart and Bacall as national jokes.", my take on this is:<br /><br />I'm not sure we can safely conclude that's just a question of character / behaviour (though it well might be and B&B surely come across as more "classy"). The reason could also be (at least partly) that in their time there were no ubiquitous mobile phone cameras and no internet. So a lot more could be hushed up or at least didn"t get widely distributed in graphical form which is harder to refute as exaggeration or pure slander than verbal or even written accounts.<br /><br />This 1952 article just provides a glimpse:<br /><br />"Once, producer Mark Hellinger took him to a Sunset Strip gambling establishment. The man at the peephole immediately locked the door. “Bogart is barred. Creates disturbances,” he said.<br />“This is the new Bogart,” Hellinger promised. “The sober Bogart. I vouch for him, on my honor.”<br />The peephole man bugged a big eye.<br />“Mr. Hellinger,” he said quietly. “Mr. Hellinger, look behind you."<br />Bogart was fighting with two parking-lot attendants."<br />(https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2017/06/humphrey-bogarts-dark-side/)<br /><br />You wonder how some prominent figures would be regarded today if back in their time they had to basically look over their shoulder 24/7. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-28585721311462053022021-04-28T18:20:14.316-04:002021-04-28T18:20:14.316-04:00I think even my rather conservative view of this i...I think even my rather conservative view of this issue would be flexible enough to say that once you've defeated a game, you've karmically "unlocked" it and are free to apply whatever mods or cheats during a replay that you want.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-91339234906127667872021-04-28T17:31:04.869-04:002021-04-28T17:31:04.869-04:00I somewhat agree with your mindset insofar that I ...I somewhat agree with your mindset insofar that I don't think cheating in any game should be desirable or the default. But I also played a couple of games with some unofficial additions/alterations and I had way more fun than if I played them 'vanilla'.<br /><br />To give an example, I use a mod for Diablo 2 that gives me unlimited storage for items, it unlocks certain features for Singleplayer that are usually Battlenet-exclusive (some of the better runewords and some endgame-ish bosses) and it gives me the ability to change my attribut- and skill-points around (it does not change the amount I have).<br /><br />For a purist that must sound horrifying. But I would have stopped playing long ago without those additions. Diablo 2 in Singleplayer is an enormous grindfest in any case and I don't want to re-level a character to level 90 because I misclicked after a levelup. To continue with one or more falsely allocated skillpoint(s) would drive me nuts.<br />And limited storage in a game that is all about item hunting was a questionable design choice from the start.Dragnipurakehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17491314816320427932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-69490294383940203822021-04-28T16:12:26.312-04:002021-04-28T16:12:26.312-04:00I addressed your various points in this entry:
ht...I addressed your various points in this entry:<br /><br />https://crpgaddict.blogspot.com/2013/06/cheats-and-liars.html<br /><br />In that post, you'll find text in which I articulate a) exactly why I think it's "wrong" even in a single player environment; b) a specific statement that everything that I'm talking about, including the "jackass" part, occurs in the context of a fairly trivial subject and thus should not be compared with how you would use those terms in the real world.<br /><br />I'd be curious what you think after you read that entry.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-4448226654745754542021-04-28T13:07:56.984-04:002021-04-28T13:07:56.984-04:00I find it a bit weird to equate not cheating in a ...I find it a bit weird to equate not cheating in a singleplayer game with building/having character.<br /><br />If I behave like a jackass to some person on the street, I am a jackass. If I reroll the stats for forty minutes in BG1 until I get a 90+ result I am not.<br /><br />I despise cheating in multiplayer games but as long as it is fun, there is nothing wrong with doing metagaming or exploiting the game mechanics in a singleplayer environment. I learned early on that the duplication bug of Diablo 1 completely took away any enjoyment of the game for me. So I stopped doing it.<br />But if someone else does it I could not care less.Dragnipurakehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17491314816320427932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-38335797850216386432021-03-28T21:53:41.667-04:002021-03-28T21:53:41.667-04:00Oh, found out with your new entry on The Tomb of D...Oh, found out with your new entry on The Tomb of Drewan that some computers allowed for saving to TAPE as well. Sweet Jesus.P-Tux7https://www.blogger.com/profile/03201162995038006540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-83526244035689691532021-03-19T18:43:43.656-04:002021-03-19T18:43:43.656-04:00I've said for years that all games ought to ha...I've said for years that all games ought to have a (probably optional) setting that forces you to wait a certain amount of time after death, no matter how fast the program is capable of reloading. I'd force myself to get some work done during those intervals.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-73706220975495349402021-03-18T20:16:00.799-04:002021-03-18T20:16:00.799-04:00One immediate way to stop save-scumming is to pret...One immediate way to stop save-scumming is to pretend that one is saving to an actual floppy disk, like a lot of these games were back then. Not to mention that LOADING a game was an arduous affair too, and I'm not sure if you needed to rewind the cassette for games that came on that storage medium as well. Though it should be said that even giving yourself an imaginary break when you save or load to keep yourself "honest", one still has the temptation of idling on the Internet while pretending to be waiting. Good thing CRPG players like to read because all you had back then to pass the time for saving/loading were books.<br /><br />As much as that Ultima IV chest exploit goes against the game's mature themes and detesting of greed, it also sounds hilarious for those exact reasons and sounds like the type of thing everyone should do even if they'll reload and play fairly right afterwards.P-Tux7https://www.blogger.com/profile/03201162995038006540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-30467202855174375242020-10-23T18:33:15.061-04:002020-10-23T18:33:15.061-04:00I must be the only person to ever beat Planescape:...I must be the only person to ever beat Planescape: Torment twice without ever playing an INT/WIS/CHA monster character. This might also be why I never felt the game's combat was as bad as so many other people claimed, because to me it felt like you were a nigh-invincible badass with your 25 STR and amazing weapons. But that is because I was busy missing the "real" game all along, haha.Quarexnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-54944402582792399262019-12-08T10:32:30.735-05:002019-12-08T10:32:30.735-05:00I'm not seeing how V:tM - Bloodlines doesn'...I'm not seeing how V:tM - Bloodlines doesn't fit every one of his RPG criteria unambiguously.<br /><br />Also, from what I've seen, the fan patch is uneven. Parts of it add to the game; parts of it effectively shout "this is a really amateurish addon" (thinking mainly of the museum quest that ends in a boss called "The LaSombra" who uses an Uzi).Kishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11456086726407491007noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-80096085863361535832019-09-30T12:57:24.488-04:002019-09-30T12:57:24.488-04:00Broken record again, I think OpenXCOM should requi...Broken record again, I think OpenXCOM should require some consideration when our author gets to XCOM.BoardGameNuthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03573162816708652568noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-74993899389378651392019-09-30T12:45:19.531-04:002019-09-30T12:45:19.531-04:00Speaking of fixes and XCOM, there is a community p...Speaking of fixes and XCOM, there is a community project called OpenXCOM that does its best to remain faithful to the original XCOM game but fixes the obvious bugs the original developers knew about and weren't able to fix like the delete base building bug costing you money for a now empty space. They do have a few enhancements to the user experience, but I think they are all optional in the configuration menu. Of course, there are mods to the game, but again those are optional as well.BoardGameNuthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03573162816708652568noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-67382073006274010712015-06-15T18:54:49.655-04:002015-06-15T18:54:49.655-04:00I agree with you, anything worth doing is worth do...I agree with you, anything worth doing is worth doing right, and all the enjoyment and sense of accomplishment is removed when you cheat....not that i've always felt this way, but I'm older and wiser now. On a separate note I've also recently decided that being a completionist is no fun and makes me not want to play rpgs at all as it's not fun to systematically search every nook and cranny. It's far more fun to just follow the story, see where it takes you, and not worry about what you've missed along the way. Sure you might miss something cool but you also avoided countless hours of combing every inch of every map, thats a good trade in my opinion.Jonesyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10646365932452250447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-84863962992147022562015-02-13T13:06:09.886-05:002015-02-13T13:06:09.886-05:00Fallout 2 definitely offers some interesting RP qu...Fallout 2 definitely offers some interesting RP quandaries.<br /><br />eg. Early on you meet a vendor who is a total jackass and a fence to boot. You're poor and underequipped, and he has stuff you want. Killing him may raise the town's total utility, and it certainly raises the region's total utility by increasing the likelihood that you save many lives. So do you cap him in the back of the head?<br /><br />From a gameplay perspective though, it skips a degree of the early challenge.<br />Tristan Gallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16769219573533545742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-58414600928698029022015-02-13T05:53:51.976-05:002015-02-13T05:53:51.976-05:00...2. I forgot about the car in Fallout2. You may ......2. I forgot about the car in Fallout2. You may have a lot to put in the boot and it was pretty cool too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-13033785117482006052015-02-13T05:42:39.840-05:002015-02-13T05:42:39.840-05:00...3. eg. in Fallout 1 or 2
You could rob a gun ......3. eg. in Fallout 1 or 2 <br /><br />You could rob a gun store guard in broad daylight; taking his flamethrower and a bazooka (which probably was slung over his shoulder) and a guy do not feel anything and not not realized that he had been robbed - absurd.<br /><br />And this completely killing atmosphere of the game.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-11427930567647575412015-02-13T05:11:46.664-05:002015-02-13T05:11:46.664-05:00While I play in a CRPG I still have a few other ru...While I play in a CRPG I still have a few other rules.<br /><br />1. I do not kill everything that moved to gain experience<br /><br /> eg. in BG always tried to avoid and not to kill animals<br /><br />2. I try not to collect all the items that I find (it always seemed to me to be silly when my character wore ten swords with him, five armor etc. - capacity limits are not always ideal)<br /><br /> eg. in the Fallout series and Diablo could carry tons of equipment to later sell them<br /><br />Exception and also an interesting solution had a game DungeonSige where you could purchase mules, donkeys (even to create a caravan) who wore your belongings. It looked really cool.<br /><br />3. if I play a good character or team doesn't steal from everyone I meet and I dosen't search all the lockers.<br /><br />The exception are the spoils of the expedition and defeated the evil creatures or characters.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-23911882719686950412013-11-29T14:53:21.253-05:002013-11-29T14:53:21.253-05:00I occasionally cheat a little - I'm too incomp...I occasionally cheat a little - I'm too incompetent and lazy to use hex-editors, trainers and the like. But yes, I searched the internet for hints to several games. But I always make an honest first effort without them. I occasionally save much more than needed - for example, if my companions die (especially Dogmeat in Fallout). Well, that's partly my defense against bad AI.<br />Anyway, I think the Addict has to obey his rules. This elevates this blog from simple game reviews to actual experiences. I am still a little annoyed that he used a hex editor for Mission: Mainframe, which was basically a cheap short-cut (but I understand that it was necessary for the blog to move on, as there were several Wizardries, Bard's Tales and french games to play at the same time and too many failures could have broken the blog...but... since this is a long-term project of a serious, historic nature, there have to be rules. This isn't only about enjoying oneself or killing some time. The goal is not just to check boxes on a list (ok, that's part of it), but to play these games as intended. And if one starts to make some exceptions to the rules - where will it end?Alexander Sebastian Schulzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15135338616598357444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-71958986212871676952013-08-28T12:49:06.712-04:002013-08-28T12:49:06.712-04:00I meant to add that I would agree with your "...I meant to add that I would agree with your "saving time" position for certain boring tasks for which there IS no alternative. Imagine an otherwise-fun RPG that forces you to navigate a huge maze to progress. There's no way around the maze. There are no challenges, treasures, enemies, or role-playing options in the maze. You just have to spend hours slogging through the maze until you finally reach the exit. In such a case--assuming you don't like mazes much--I could see a case for just cheating your way to the end and continuing from there.<br /><br /><i>BattleTech</i> had such a scenario. The final maze was so utterly rote and pointless, that I wouldn't consider it cheating to just look up the shortest path in a walkthrough. The controls for becoming a "space ace" in <i>Ultima I</i> are so difficult, the process so boring, and the entire sequence so silly and un-RPG-like, I could see a case for just hex-editing the reward into your character. If there had been a way to just hit the major plot points--skipping all the aimless wandering--in <i>Faery Tale Adventure</i>, I might have finished the game.<br />CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-60253809180288307002013-08-28T12:42:12.664-04:002013-08-28T12:42:12.664-04:00Matt, I appreciate your detalied thoughts on the i...Matt, I appreciate your detalied thoughts on the issue. Let me address one point that you made, regarding "saving time" cheats. While I understand where you're coming from, I disagree a bit. Most of the "busywork" tasks that you mention are things that provide an alternative: not doing them. Not doing them may make the game harder, but you have to make the role-playing decision between difficulty and tedium.<br /><br />Consider, for instance, how I started <i>Space Rogue</i>. I spent a few hours simply flying back and forth between two space stations, trading goods, until I had enough money to properly outfit my ship. I suppose I could have decided that since I was willing to fly back and forth for hours, I might as well skip the tedium and hex-edit my way to riches. But doing so would have elminated the constant temptation to STOP and just try to make my way with less powerful weapons and armor. By refusing to do that, I retained the challenge of the game. Granted, the "challenge" became staying awake rather than staying alive, but it was still a challenge.<br /><br />In the Gold Box games, the "Fix" command isn't cheating because it's part of the game, but I sometimes wish it weren't. Not because I enjoy memorizing and casting the same spells over and over, but because I don't. Since I don't like the tedium associated with the process, I'm less likely to stop and do it after every battle. I'm more likely to rely on my existing memorized spells and ration them carefully. I'm more likely to enter battles at half-health and thus have to more carefully plot my tactics. And if I don't feel like doing all of that--well, I always have the option to manually memorize and rest. But by adding the "Fix" command, the developers removed any likelihood that I would choose the challenge over the boredom and, ultimately, made it less challenging.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-70648159203319122532013-08-28T09:15:26.990-04:002013-08-28T09:15:26.990-04:00I've got a lot of thoughts on this subject, bu...I've got a lot of thoughts on this subject, but I'm not sure I can articulate them all adequately. I'll give it a go.<br /><br />Ultimately, what *is* cheating? I'd argue that it's changing the rules of the game to ones that suit how you wish to play it. <br /><br />Now, I'm in two minds about this. On the one hand, player empowerment, take an a-la-carte game and tailor it exactly to your tastes, and you'll have a good time; hooray. On the other - the purist stance espoused by the Addict - if you're changing the rules, you're fundamentally *playing a different game*. Subtly so, in some cases, but not insignificant.<br /><br />It gets a little trickier with some of the more edge-cases. The example was given earlier in the original post of games that were designed with the *expectation* of save-scumming, and balanced around it. If the designer expected save-scumming, then the 'true' game would require the player to exploit save-scumming - but the player wouldn't necessarily be aware of that.<br /><br />There's an important distinction here, too, between the rules actually set by the game and the rules implicitly and willingly set by CRPG Addict - had you chosen to limit the reference resources in the Elder Scrolls titles, you would - much like cheaters - again be modifying the rules in a way that suits your taste. And that's fine, too, but it's not quite the game as it was designed; modified to be harder rather than easier, but still modified.<br /><br /><br />On the subject of myself, thinking about it, there's two situations in which I would have little objection to cheating in CRPGs - one I feel a little guilty about, the other I am completely comfortable with. I should add that I have a naturally grindy playstyle, so I do often end up a little overpowered in a well-balanced game just because I'm such a meticulous explorer.<br /><br />The cheat method I'm comfortable with is when it's simply saving time. If there's something that is trivially endlessly repeatable, I don't really object to allowing the player to skip the busywork involved in doing so. The (F)ix command example from earlier is an excellent example of that. Technically it's breaching the rules, but in practice it's something that the player could easily do in another way but would be thoroughly unchallenged and bored in the process.<br /><br />There's another example, and I'd be interested to hear feedback and opinions on this: In the endgame of a title on the DS, Etrian Odyssey, to totally complete the bonus content in the postgame you have to get rare item drops that occasionally appear when you defeat certain strong boss enemies - who only spawn once every three (in-game) days.<br /><br />When I was at the point where I'd done literally *everything* else, I didn't have any qualms about savescumming to ease the process of getting those last few items. Although on that note, the RNG was always the same when I did this, so I also had to investigate methods to give the RNG a nudge each time I reloaded the save to give the actual drop a chance to appear!<br /><br />The second one - the one I do feel a bit guilty about, but not one I'm likely to change: I'm a completist. I'm going to want to see as much content as possible in a given single playthrough. To that end, it's quite common for me to use walkthroughs and other pieces of advice just for advanced warning when I'm going to be encountering content which may be missable later on. I do dislike this practice in myself - largely because I'll often find out information I *don't* want in such an investigation (spoiler-free 'missability' charts are something you don't see often enough in the world of FAQs, I'd certainly appreciate them), but the desire I have to see the 'whole' game - in so far as that is possible - overwhelms that.Matt Cnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-87114057056703910982013-08-16T02:50:06.884-04:002013-08-16T02:50:06.884-04:00Baldur's Gate is a 'read the manual' g...Baldur's Gate is a 'read the manual' game; The thing is like 200 pages thick, and peppered with boxes of advice. Among them are instructions to make a balanced party, (Rogue, Fighter, Wizard, Cleric, etc). There are lots of hints in the first game that you should be good at traps: They get pretty nasty, pretty quickly, if you aren't good at them, so I think I got my rogue to 100% by Cloakwood Mines. Also, almost every other skill other then Open Locks that Thieves get is utterly usefulness ('steal small amount of gold or item you only knew about using a spoiler' skill and two 'go off alone and die' skills!<br /><br />The rest, I'm not sure. I never finished BG1, as I'd explore everything and it would get too easy. <br /><br />KoTR I hated, as I want to be Han Solo and it is really obvious you have to be Luke Skywalker, and so I constantly felt stupid taking blaster skills when I know I'm going to get a lightsaber. Needless to say I didn't get far (Under the city, in that area with the human tribe-people).<br /><br />I never optimize my character builds and just toss games that force me to (I'm looking at you Dragon Age)<br /><br />I should finish The Witcher, I got to the plauge city, did like, 8 hours of stuff, then found I'd screwed myself by accusing the wrong people, so I've got to go back and start over from an old save. Canageekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03770924810559440307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-8205408132680440252013-08-15T15:02:26.162-04:002013-08-15T15:02:26.162-04:00CHANGING DIFFICULTY MID-COMBAT
With the exception...CHANGING DIFFICULTY MID-COMBAT<br /><br />With the exception of Arcanum, I can't remember an RPG where I truly felt like I was playing a role. I'd argue combat is really the ONLY thing most RPGs have going for it, because your choices are usually meaningless within the grand scheme of things, especially if you refuse to play the boring goody-two-shoes the writers expect you to be.<br /><br />This is especially true of a game like Skyrim, as I've never met a person who--regardless of their character's class--didn't do and see everything there was to do. Forget about bragging to your best friend about your Mage's Guild accomplishments--his Dunmer mage has already completed that questline--as well as the questlines for the Thieve's Guild (!) and Fighter's Guild (!?). Your decision to become a Stormcloak or Imperial doesn't matter, because the events that unfold from both are nearly identical; only the names have changed. Try to roleplay a villain, and your dialogue choices are downright stupid. And even though you've got a reputation as a BAMF who can kill a man just by shouting, it still doesn't stop Mila Valentia from giving you her life story every time you enter Whitetun (for the record, I hate the Elder Scrolls games, although I've yet to play Morrowind).<br /><br />Can we all agree that Elder Scrolls combat is poorly balanced? Is there such a thing as an optimal Elder Scrolls character build? You're either killing things left and right or mashing right trigger and popping health pots like M&Ms. There is nothing wrong with changing difficulty mid-combat, especially in a game like Skyrim. <br /><br />Another example: when I first played KOTOR, I played the game completely blind, on normal. I thought the game's balance was nearly perfect: fights were challenging, but never frustrating. A few boss battles upped the stakes, but I never felt that things were out of control.<br /><br />The difficulty was normal, as it should have been, right up until the end game. I absolutely HATE when developers think simply overwhelming you with enemies makes for a good challenge. It doesn't.<br /><br />This goes double for games that strip you of the rewards you've spent all game working towards. Like when you've spent all game trying to get the Sword of Guaranteed Critical Hits, only to have the endgame consist of nothing but undead/constructs. Or when you roll up a character who excels in charms and mind control, only to have your DM make every game world NPC wear a tin-foil hat.<br /><br />I almost always optimize my character builds not because I want to but because I expect to be punished (usually at the end) for not doing so.<br /><br />*I skimmed through DSimpson's walkthrough, as I have no intention of ever completing SoA.<br /><br />**I love the Witcher games because of their in-game bestiaries. It makes sense not only from a roleplaying standpoint (Geralt is a skilled monster slayer) but it also justifies things like casting buffs before fights. The knowledge to overcome seemingly impossible odds should be available to the player willing to put the time in WITHOUT the need for trial-and-error.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-31355741681564420652013-08-15T15:01:38.303-04:002013-08-15T15:01:38.303-04:00USING A GUIDE:
My ignorance of ADnD rules means m...USING A GUIDE:<br /><br />My ignorance of ADnD rules means my Bhaalspawn's build was far from optimal, and to my knowledge, recruitable BG NPCs are the same way. <br /><br />How am I supposed to KNOW that (according to DSimpson*) every party should be able to disarm traps, remove level drain, and remove combat protections? Is it even possible to beat this game without such abilities (assuming I've only taken the party members who appeal to me)? <br /><br />How am I supposed to KNOW how to fight a Beholder or a Dragon or a Vampire? Is there an IN-GAME RESOURCE that tells me how to do so**? If not, then I feel things like save-scumming are justified. <br /><br />I'm passionate about gaming and I want to have a say in things. My SoA experience was the complete opposite of fun and so yes, "THE END" message was the only thing that mattered. How else would detractors of beloved classics be able to defend themselves? <br /><br />"I hated [classic game] because blah blah blah..."<br /><br />"Did you finish it?"<br /><br />"No."<br /><br />"Then your argument is invalid." OR "Stick with it, I promise it gets better after [wherever you stopped playing]." <br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-23450682655865092842013-08-15T14:59:52.939-04:002013-08-15T14:59:52.939-04:00I know I'm late to the convo, but I couldn'...I know I'm late to the convo, but I couldn't help but contribute my two cents. <br /><br />I'm only just getting into the older games that were before my time: all of the Infinity Engine games, Betrayal at Krondor, Anachronox, Arcanum, Fallout 1 & 2, the first Neverwinter Nights (HotU specifically), Ultima IV, Ultima Underworld, etc.<br /><br />I am guilty of nearly every jackass playstyle above, except for the first and last ones (I don't think I've ever played a game where the former could be applicable). A lot of CRPG tropes have bred these "bad habits" within me, and while I always play clean in the beginning, it's not long before my inner jackass is awakened. Examples:<br /><br />(SPOILERS for BALDUR'S GATE 2, PLANESCAPE: TORMENT, and KOTOR ahead)<br /><br />SAVE-SCUMMING: <br /><br />I cannot, for the life of me, complete Baldur's Gate 2. I've played through the first one three times, twice without mods, a third with the Enhanced Edition. I loved the first game (and I know nothing about ADnD rules); I played a Bard Skald named Rolan and used a Guybrush Threepwood soundset for him. The Enhanced Edition, with the addition of Neera, allowed me to finally assemble my dream team of joke characters. <br /><br />When I reached Shadows of Amn, however, everything got serious. I was rarely given dialogue options that allowed me to play Rolan as the loveable loser I imagined him to be--if I couldn't select something like "I-I-I don't want a-any trouble! Take my gold, all of it!" my choices were usually holy paladin brave or psychopathic villain evil (or chaotic stupid, as I like to call it...seriously, why are evil dialogue choices in CRPGs restricted to senseless violence?). Sure, I could simply make someone like Anomen party leader, but if the story is built around MY character, why bother? The game also has the annoying habit of setting up my expectations and disappointing them. Gaelyn, much like Caleb in Neverwinter Nights 2, instructs you to perform a task in exchange for help with your quest, but nearly every time you report back to him, there's "something else you must do." <br /><br />Just when I thought I was finally going to put an end to Bhodi (and Gaelyn's crap) she disappeared before I could finish her (*roll eyes*) and now I have to slog through yet another dungeon/maze before I get the opportunity to fight her again. Did I mention I hate when developers give you a dozen dialogue options, only to have EVERY SINGLE ONE lead to a fight (Bhodi, Ravel, nearly every other CRPG antagonist ever).<br /><br /> I didn't find the combat particularly rewarding (I can't even begin to tell you how much "fun" I had fighting my first Beholder). BG2 fans may argue that the story is your reward for perseverance, but I found the game to be highly overrated in terms of plot and characterization. Because of all this, you'd best believe I save-scummed at every opportunity.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com