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Reply 3000 of 5850, by gerry

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tried playing 'the nomad soul', a very interesting game set in an early 'open world' (which isn't really that open), is probably the only game where the player can choose to attend a bowie concert with original material. It's a 3rd person rpg/action hybrid with an element of collect & do things to solve puzzles. It also made me somewhat travel sick visually and the controls are awkward so couldn't continue 🙁

Reply 3001 of 5850, by badmojo

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appiah4 wrote on 2021-05-07, 07:33:

Episode 4 (Thy Flesh Consumed) is better than all 3 episodes of Doom combined imo. I'd say it is even better than Doom II and my favorite Doom experience.

All these years playing DOOM 1 and 2 I don't think I've ever really tried that episode, sounds like I'd better give it a crack!

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Reply 3002 of 5850, by newtmonkey

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AD&D Curse of the Azure Bonds (PC DOS)
Finished! Overall, I enjoyed the game, but felt it was quite a step down from Pool of Radiance.

I'll get the bad out of the way first. The structure of the game is actually pretty lame. It's "nonlinear" in that you can tackle the middle portion of the game in any order, but there is a clear order you are meant to progress through the game (there is even a location you can visit telling you which "boss" you should kill next 🤣). You do have some optional locations to explore, but they are just mazes without any interesting encounters—simply a way to gain experience and treasure.

One of the biggest letdowns with this one is the lack of a true wilderness to explore. Pool of Radiance really feels massive and open in comparison, with a large wilderness to explore step-by-step and plenty of interesting locations to find. Curse of the Azure Bonds, in contrast, has you selecting a handful of locations from a map menu.

Now for the good. I was impressed that there was still plenty of room for my party to develop; they were nearly unstoppable at the end of Pool of Radiance, so I was happy to see enemies still putting up quite a fight. Really excellent encounter design in this one, even if it does rely too heavily "hold person" and "poison" (basically instant death if unlucky).

The final battle was a nightmare. I didn't take the time to roll up super characters back in Pool of Radiance, and I began seeing their limitations at the end of the game. The last boss is a storm giant surrounded by, I dunno, 30-40 margoyles (strong melee fighters) backed up by 12 high priests. The combat also starts you basically all bunched together up against a wall with the enemies all in your face, so that you have no chance to really reposition your party. If your rolls are unlucky, the combat starts with the boss throwing a lightning bolt at your party, which is 30-60 damage per person per direction (it bounces off walls). For me, that meant instant death if he targeted either of my magic users or even my strongest melee characters if they were unlucky enough to also get hit on the rebound.

After a half dozen attempts with me eking out every advantage I could though pre-combat buffing, I was getting nowhere. I had to resort to using the Dust of Disappearance, which isn't cheating per se (it's an item you find early in the game, and it isn't even really hidden) but it sure did feel like it. This makes your entire party extra invisible for an entire single combat; so invisible, in fact, that enemies cannot target you and can only engage in melee if you are right next to them. I moved my magic-users down the hall to pelt the enemies with a barrage of fireballs, sent my thief out to the boss, and within a couple rounds I had completed the game without taking hardly any damage at all. A cheap victory, perhaps, but it's not like the other side was fighting fairly themselves!

---

I'll probably take a break from Gold Box games for a while. When I do resume the series, I will probably play in the order the game were released, so will start a new party in Champions of Krynn before continuing my adventures in the sequel to Azure Bonds, Secret of the Silver Blades.

Now it's time to think of what to play next. I'll probably go with Might & Magic II since I'm already a good ways into it.

Reply 3003 of 5850, by newtmonkey

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I installed a few games and gave each an hour or so, to decide what to play next:

Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire / Pathfinder: Kingmaker
I list these together because, even though they are quite different in mechanics, they are similar in style.
I just can't get into these, and I think it comes down to two things:

1) I want full party creation from the start.
2) I don't really care for clicking through dialog trees. I find both games to be very wordy, which is saying something since I generally enjoy the writing in Planescape: Torment (it helps that P:T has better writing, and a more interesting world to explore, though).

Of the two, I think I prefer Pathfinder. The writing is more natural (PoEII suffers imo from trying too often to come up with new words for things just to be weird) and the setup makes more sense (it's "generic fantasy"). On the other hand, Pathfinder sticks you with a kingdom management minigame that's "mandatory" (you can set the game to automatically play it and not lose in the options), and seemingly many of its main quests are on (generous) timers.

Realms of Arkania: Blade of Destiny HD
Yes, it's the remake and not the original. However, I think it's worth playing this version for two reasons:
1) The towns are a definite improvement. The 3D engine allows for MUCH more interesting town layouts.
2) The game is not at all dumbed down (as far as I can tell), but the UI gives you a lot more information on what's going on. Attributes, spells, and skills all have mouse-over tooltips and the game in general is just much more user-friendly. I was able to make a decent party and level them up to level 1 in less than an hour or so, and that includes doing some research before playing, rerolling for decent stats during character generation, and then leveling up with the game set to manual character leveling.

I'm intrigued by this one, so I'll probably stick with it for now.

Reply 3004 of 5850, by newtmonkey

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I feel bad about posting back-to-back-to-back, but can't help it haha

I decided to give Pathfinder: Kingmaker another chance, as I did some research and it turns out that it actually is possible to create a party once you get through the short tutorial. You can hire mercenaries at an inn after the first quest after the tutorial, but I found it to be cost prohibitive; however, the cost of mercenaries goes up with level, so the key is to put off leveling your main character until after you hire the mercenaries—that way, you can hire a full team for very cheap.

When you hire a mercenary, you actually get to create the character from scratch, so I ended up creating (in addition to my main character) a front row fighter, front row cleric, rear row bard, rear row sorcerer (specialized mage), and rear row wizard (generalist mage).

Anyway, I am really liking this now! I'm using the turn-based combat mode, and I like it so far. I know that this mode was added later on (based on a fan-made mod from what I understand), but it really feels quite natural. I'm only a couple of hours in, but so far I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a modern turn-based RPG with a good amount of freedom and exploration.

Reply 3005 of 5850, by Joakim

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gerry wrote on 2021-05-07, 08:07:

tried playing 'the nomad soul', a very interesting game set in an early 'open world' (which isn't really that open), is probably the only game where the player can choose to attend a bowie concert with original material. It's a 3rd person rpg/action hybrid with an element of collect & do things to solve puzzles. It also made me somewhat travel sick visually and the controls are awkward so couldn't continue 🙁

I tried it once many years ago and I really liked it but quit quite early for some reason. I picked up it for for free on steam when Bowie left us. The game is sitting there in my steam library glaring at me.. I might try it again as the game was pretty original but I'm hesitant..

Reply 3006 of 5850, by badmojo

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I've been trying to beat 'Pete Sampras Tennis '97' here - this is the PC version of Sampras Extreme Tennis on the PS1 which is a favourite of mine. I didn't know there was a PC version until recently-ish but it's pretty good - SVGA so much sharper looking than the PS1 version and sounds great via WSS (after some modding with Audacity to fix the levels). The controls are a lot less sensitive than the PS1 version which isn't necessarily a good thing - mastering precise shot placement was a joy on that version. Instead the PC version is made more challenging by upping the opponents abilities which gets pretty frustrating towards the end - 'ol Pistol Pete is superhuman and I feel like I'm getting cheated at times. No-one can smash my lobs when they're up at the net damn it - no-one!

The other challenge with the PC version is that it's speed sensitive RE refresh rate. I assume it's coded for 60Hz but I like to up the SVGA refresh rate on this machine because it's easier on the eyes. The difficulty levels are based on how fast the game runs basically so 'hard' is impossibly fast at 75Hz, so I'm playing on 'medium'.

Anyway swings and roundabouts - it's the better version in some ways and I'm enjoying it. Just need to beat that that hyperactive superman Pete!

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Reply 3008 of 5850, by Namrok

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newtmonkey wrote on 2021-05-07, 13:35:
AD&D Curse of the Azure Bonds (PC DOS) Finished! Overall, I enjoyed the game, but felt it was quite a step down from Pool of Ra […]
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AD&D Curse of the Azure Bonds (PC DOS)
Finished! Overall, I enjoyed the game, but felt it was quite a step down from Pool of Radiance.

I'll get the bad out of the way first. The structure of the game is actually pretty lame. It's "nonlinear" in that you can tackle the middle portion of the game in any order, but there is a clear order you are meant to progress through the game (there is even a location you can visit telling you which "boss" you should kill next 🤣). You do have some optional locations to explore, but they are just mazes without any interesting encounters—simply a way to gain experience and treasure.

One of the biggest letdowns with this one is the lack of a true wilderness to explore. Pool of Radiance really feels massive and open in comparison, with a large wilderness to explore step-by-step and plenty of interesting locations to find. Curse of the Azure Bonds, in contrast, has you selecting a handful of locations from a map menu.

Now for the good. I was impressed that there was still plenty of room for my party to develop; they were nearly unstoppable at the end of Pool of Radiance, so I was happy to see enemies still putting up quite a fight. Really excellent encounter design in this one, even if it does rely too heavily "hold person" and "poison" (basically instant death if unlucky).

The final battle was a nightmare. I didn't take the time to roll up super characters back in Pool of Radiance, and I began seeing their limitations at the end of the game. The last boss is a storm giant surrounded by, I dunno, 30-40 margoyles (strong melee fighters) backed up by 12 high priests. The combat also starts you basically all bunched together up against a wall with the enemies all in your face, so that you have no chance to really reposition your party. If your rolls are unlucky, the combat starts with the boss throwing a lightning bolt at your party, which is 30-60 damage per person per direction (it bounces off walls). For me, that meant instant death if he targeted either of my magic users or even my strongest melee characters if they were unlucky enough to also get hit on the rebound.

After a half dozen attempts with me eking out every advantage I could though pre-combat buffing, I was getting nowhere. I had to resort to using the Dust of Disappearance, which isn't cheating per se (it's an item you find early in the game, and it isn't even really hidden) but it sure did feel like it. This makes your entire party extra invisible for an entire single combat; so invisible, in fact, that enemies cannot target you and can only engage in melee if you are right next to them. I moved my magic-users down the hall to pelt the enemies with a barrage of fireballs, sent my thief out to the boss, and within a couple rounds I had completed the game without taking hardly any damage at all. A cheap victory, perhaps, but it's not like the other side was fighting fairly themselves!

---

I'll probably take a break from Gold Box games for a while. When I do resume the series, I will probably play in the order the game were released, so will start a new party in Champions of Krynn before continuing my adventures in the sequel to Azure Bonds, Secret of the Silver Blades.

Now it's time to think of what to play next. I'll probably go with Might & Magic II since I'm already a good ways into it.

I beat Curse of the Azure Bonds a few years ago. I wish I'd kept the dust of disappearance for the final boss! Instead I used it in this optional room. Some meeting of the monster's association. Basically the only way to survive the encounter. It was... ok. Felt a bit like when an unstoppable object hits an immovable wall. The room was packed to the gills with all the most deadly creatures in the game, but they couldn't do much of anything to me as I hurled end game magical death at them from a safe distance.

My memory is fuzzy, but I recall having to redo the final sequence of the game a couple time, because I got locked in the final dungeon, and couldn't rest or recover. After some trial, error, and luck, I managed to beeline to the boss room in relatively good shape, only to struggle through that as well. I did import the characters into Secret of the Silver Blades, but never got around to actually playing it.

As for myself, I kind of got bored of Dungeon Siege 2, and stared playing Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War. That's been a blast. I was one of those people who really missed the base building in Dawn of War II, and Dawn of War III just... I donno. It made no impression on me almost what so ever. Go figure.

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Reply 3009 of 5850, by DosFreak

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vad4r wrote on 2021-05-14, 06:53:

I start my first look in System Shock 2, but the bobbing make me sick - I had to find a solution for it first...

IIRC, NewDark has a configuration setting for that.

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Reply 3010 of 5850, by newtmonkey

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Baldur's Gate
Playing the original (GOG release) rather than the Enhanced Edition. I use an integer scaler app to run the game at 640x480 scaled to 1280x960 centered in the screen with black borders all around... looks absolutely fantastic.

This time around I gave up on my standard single-player game and restarted a fake multiplayer game so I could create a full six-person party from the start (Fighter/Paladin/Cleric/Thief/Magic-user[x2]). Over the weekend I became quite addicted and was able to get a lot of exploring and questing done, reaching level 2 or 3 for each character (you level VERY slowly in this game, especially with a large party). One quest awarded me with a bunch of gold, so I was able to pick up some magic equipment for most of my characters. When I pick up next time, I'll head to the mines and continue the main quest.

[EDIT]
Hopelessly addicted! I cleared out the mines and in the process leveled a few characters up and got some nice equipment. Really enjoying this!

I found that customizing the auto-pause settings just right gives the game an almost turn-based feel. I started by turning all options on, then began turning off the options I found annoying. It works out great, as I get to take my time giving orders to each character when combat starts, and then only really need to respond from then on if something important happens. Having said that, I still prefer the combat in Gold Box, due to how precise it feels.

Reply 3011 of 5850, by Joakim

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newtmonkey wrote on 2021-05-16, 09:50:
Baldur's Gate Playing the original (GOG release) rather than the Enhanced Edition. I use an integer scaler app to run the game […]
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Baldur's Gate
Playing the original (GOG release) rather than the Enhanced Edition. I use an integer scaler app to run the game at 640x480 scaled to 1280x960 centered in the screen with black borders all around... looks absolutely fantastic.

This time around I gave up on my standard single-player game and restarted a fake multiplayer game so I could create a full six-person party from the start (Fighter/Paladin/Cleric/Thief/Magic-user[x2]). Over the weekend I became quite addicted and was able to get a lot of exploring and questing done, reaching level 2 or 3 for each character (you level VERY slowly in this game, especially with a large party). One quest awarded me with a bunch of gold, so I was able to pick up some magic equipment for most of my characters. When I pick up next time, I'll head to the mines and continue the main quest.

[EDIT]
Hopelessly addicted! I cleared out the mines and in the process leveled a few characters up and got some nice equipment. Really enjoying this!

I found that customizing the auto-pause settings just right gives the game an almost turn-based feel. I started by turning all options on, then began turning off the options I found annoying. It works out great, as I get to take my time giving orders to each character when combat starts, and then only really need to respond from then on if something important happens. Having said that, I still prefer the combat in Gold Box, due to how precise it feels.

I love that game... Revisited it a bunch of times. But often get a little tired of one bad roll and you're dead thing. Also I really do not like rebuffing all the time, but I've been told you can make macros.

The setting however, the music. And ring of wizardry.. 😀

Once I attempted to solo it with a dualweilding fighter cleric wizard build (some mod let me play with bg2 rules.) It was stupidly beyond compare to 'gib' everything but I had some good laughs..

Reply 3012 of 5850, by appiah4

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Not using any of the NPCs in Baldur's Gate is missing out on half the game though..

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Reply 3013 of 5850, by Namrok

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appiah4 wrote on 2021-05-16, 19:51:

Not using any of the NPCs in Baldur's Gate is missing out on half the game though..

It's weird thinking about it now, but I recall at the time a bunch of Gold Box veterans played almost exclusively that way. It was considered a minor knock against the game that you couldn't natively roll your own party in single player.

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Reply 3014 of 5850, by appiah4

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Namrok wrote on 2021-05-16, 22:33:
appiah4 wrote on 2021-05-16, 19:51:

Not using any of the NPCs in Baldur's Gate is missing out on half the game though..

It's weird thinking about it now, but I recall at the time a bunch of Gold Box veterans played almost exclusively that way. It was considered a minor knock against the game that you couldn't natively roll your own party in single player.

Gold Box games actually let you take NPCs; even if you roll all six characters in the beginning you can get up to two NPCs to join you and it is often great fun to have them along. Same with Eye of the Beholder series.

Also, if rolling your whole party is your thing then give Icewind Dale 1/2 a go.

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Reply 3015 of 5850, by pete8475

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I've been playing through the Elder Scrolls: Oblivion lately, so far I like it.

I've put a few minutes in here and there over the years but lately I've been playing through a few quests or two every night.

Reply 3016 of 5850, by gerry

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some years ago i bought 'soldier of fortune 2' cheaply and never played it - so for a test I installed it on an windows XP Athlon 1400 with an fx 5200 graphics card and it plays smoothly at 1280x1024 with most things maxxed out (I didn't worry about smoothing curves even more, but was interesting to see that option!). I was impressed with the visuals. The game itself is fun enough, a mix of sneak and combat, mostly combat!

Reply 3017 of 5850, by badmojo

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gerry wrote on 2021-05-17, 15:52:

some years ago i bought 'soldier of fortune 2' cheaply and never played it

Yes it's a good looking game that - controversial back in the day because you could blow people's limbs off 😁Forced stealth with seemingly arbitrary rules around if you've been spotted or not always turns me off but I did love this one when it came out.

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Reply 3018 of 5850, by clueless1

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Kingdom Come Deliverance

Just a quick update. I'm now 55.5 hours in. I've never been the type who spends much time in side quests, but I'm enjoying them so much in this game that I'm putting the main quest off (I'm on Nest of Vipers) for a bit. I think building my character up will be a good thing anyhow because Nest of Vipers sounds like it's going to lead to a pretty big battle.

I've said it before, but I can't get over the authenticity of the world! I start cutting through a wooded area to get to my destination quicker and I stumble across some mystery that leads me away from my original path. I see a beautiful hill or some rock outcropping and it looks SO EXPLORABLE that I can't resist the urge to check it out. And many times, you WILL find something interesting to make it worthwhile.

There are various treasure maps that you can find throughout the game (either bought, found or stolen), and they are just easy enough to make out that it's a pleasurable experience seeking it out. The whole idea of having to learn to read opens this realm up as well as the ability to read skill books to train. Stuff wears out at the right pace where you're not annoyed to have to either repair yourself or pay someone to do so. One of the most pleasurable experiences of the game is when you complete a quest and head to a nearby town to sell your loot, repair your gear, get well fed, rested, and restocked. Interestingly, my best gear has either been found, looted, or given as reward. I haven't had to buy much clothing, armor, weapons, or food. Most camps or villages have communal pots of stew that you can replenish your hunger at, so I just keep a few dried goods in my inventory "just in case." And I will buy some meat for my dog to keep his obedience maxed out. I love just about every aspect of this game.

I have not spent much time training up my sword fighting or hand-to-hand combat. I use a bow most of the time. The thrill of a headshot instakilling a well-armored fighter is priceless. Most of the story and side quests are well written and motivating enough to push through. I've only encountered one really bad voice actor (Father Godwin) and the choices available to you during quests is amazing. Want to be a womanizer? Fine. Want to be morally upright? Do it. No penalities, just a different way of building your character. To get around the limited saves, I just quit and save. I'm forced to wait 1-2 minutes to relaunch the game, but no big deal. I could see this being painful with a spinning drive, but with a solid SSD it's not a big deal.

That's all for now.

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Reply 3019 of 5850, by gerry

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badmojo wrote on 2021-05-17, 21:57:
gerry wrote on 2021-05-17, 15:52:

some years ago i bought 'soldier of fortune 2' cheaply and never played it

Yes it's a good looking game that - controversial back in the day because you could blow people's limbs off 😁Forced stealth with seemingly arbitrary rules around if you've been spotted or not always turns me off but I did love this one when it came out.

ah yes the 'ghoul engine', both 'sof' games were very violent but still with an element of cartoonish quality somehow. Now that i've played it a bit more i see what you mean about the stealth, i'm ok with the making noise thing but notice that enemies can be real good at spotting you from distance even ducked down at times and instantly spring into action like aimbots! probably more to do with me not being very good at the combat though 😀