Repo Man11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 00:28:

I watched Dario Cassali's Half Life twenty fifth anniversary play through, and with all of the hype about how they updated a few things, I decided I'd try the Steam version again. It's different in some tiny ways, it still has some bugs ( I got hopelessly stuck in two different spots in On a Rail, some other things, I'm only half way through) but it's by far mostly the same.

they delisted half life source which frankly i never cared for anyway. GoldSrc (GoldSource or pre-source aka modified quake 1 engine) will always be superior. I loved Black Mesa though I doubt valve could have done the remake or remaster as well as crowbar collective.

twiz11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 01:08:

Repo Man11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 00:28:

I watched Dario Cassali's Half Life twenty fifth anniversary play through, and with all of the hype about how they updated a few things, I decided I'd try the Steam version again. It's different in some tiny ways, it still has some bugs ( I got hopelessly stuck in two different spots in On a Rail, some other things, I'm only half way through) but it's by far mostly the same.

they delisted half life source which frankly i never cared for anyway. GoldSrc (GoldSource or pre-source aka modified quake 1 engine) will always be superior. I loved Black Mesa though I doubt valve could have done the remake or remaster as well as crowbar collective.

I like Half-Life Source, but you have to get the version from the Half-Life 2 Game of the Year. From the YouTube videos I've seen, the version of Half-Life Source on Steam has all sorts of bugs, but the original release only has a few. Playing original Half-Life 1.1.1.0 has the elevator bug, which makes Zen impossibly hard because you can't hop to avoid it when you are on an elevator that spins, so I definitely prefer HL Source to that.

Repo Man11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 02:59:

twiz11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 01:08:

Repo Man11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 00:28:

I watched Dario Cassali's Half Life twenty fifth anniversary play through, and with all of the hype about how they updated a few things, I decided I'd try the Steam version again. It's different in some tiny ways, it still has some bugs ( I got hopelessly stuck in two different spots in On a Rail, some other things, I'm only half way through) but it's by far mostly the same.

they delisted half life source which frankly i never cared for anyway. GoldSrc (GoldSource or pre-source aka modified quake 1 engine) will always be superior. I loved Black Mesa though I doubt valve could have done the remake or remaster as well as crowbar collective.

I like Half-Life Source, but you have to get the version from the Half-Life 2 Game of the Year. From the YouTube videos I've seen, the version of Half-Life Source on Steam has all sorts of bugs, but the original release only has a few. Playing original Half-Life 1.1.1.0 has the elevator bug, which makes Zen impossibly hard because you can't hop to avoid it when you are on an elevator that spins, so I definitely prefer HL Source to that.

Definitely. That's why I didn't understand the complaints about Half-Life Source for a long time. Last time I played the Steam version was before the engine update and I had no issues. I think if they wanted to touch up any version of the game for modern systems, they should have did it to Source and leave the original alone.

RandomStranger wrote on 2023-11-25, 06:25:

Repo Man11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 02:59:

twiz11 wrote on 2023-11-25, 01:08:

they delisted half life source which frankly i never cared for anyway. GoldSrc (GoldSource or pre-source aka modified quake 1 engine) will always be superior. I loved Black Mesa though I doubt valve could have done the remake or remaster as well as crowbar collective.

I like Half-Life Source, but you have to get the version from the Half-Life 2 Game of the Year. From the YouTube videos I've seen, the version of Half-Life Source on Steam has all sorts of bugs, but the original release only has a few. Playing original Half-Life 1.1.1.0 has the elevator bug, which makes Zen impossibly hard because you can't hop to avoid it when you are on an elevator that spins, so I definitely prefer HL Source to that.

Definitely. That's why I didn't understand the complaints about Half-Life Source for a long time. Last time I played the Steam version was before the engine update and I had no issues. I think if they wanted to touch up any version of the game for modern systems, they should have did it to Source and leave the original alone.

After Black Mesa (2012 mod), the first Half-Life version I played was Source from Steam and I also recall not having too much issues (the worst I remember was the Marine AI which had sniper aim).
Maybe after the SteamPipe update, Half-Life: Source was broken and Valve didn't care to fix it 😁 (I wouldn't too as GoldSrc HL is the better version).

Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession

Interesting. Most of these old classics have cluebooks or websites that document the best weapons and armor. Not this game. I have two swords that are very close in damage. I'm trying to determine which one is best.

Ancient Elven Sword +2: Damage: 2-9/2-13: Weight 3
Paladin's Sword +3: Damage: 1-8/1-12: Weight 3.5

The two damage ratings are "Damage vs. Small and Medium Creatures" / "Damage vs. Large Creatures"

BTW, this is for my created Paladin. On the surface, the Ancient Elven Sword seems best. But I did some experimenting on an undead creature I turned (see my previous post), and both swords seemed to do about the same damage per hit. For now, I'm sticking with the Ancient Elven Sword (my Paladin is Human). I figured there'd be some fansite out there that documented all the best weapons and armor, but I haven't found it yet. 🤷

Paladin's sword is better because even though it is on average 1 pts less damage it is +3 to hit vs +2 which means it is 5% more likely to hit everything.

It is also entirely possible that the Paladin's sword in the hand of a Paladin may be functioning as +5 instead. You can check this out by looking at the character's THAC0 with each weapon in hand. Lower THAC0 is better.

Also, I don't know if Ravenloft 1 has them but there are creatures immune to magical weapons below +3 in AD&D.

I think both swords actually would have the same damage range in effect, since the + is also added to all damage rolls (a +3 sword is incapable of doing just 1 damage, minimum would be 4).

That would make the Paladin's Sword the better weapon, since it also has a higher chance of hitting (as mentioned by appiah4 above).

Thanks @appiah4 and @newtmonkey.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
I decided to resume this one. I previously had completed the first planet, which gets you access to the rest of the planets. I decided to go with Tatooine, since that's where the first movie starts. I was surprised at how tiny this area is! What's worse is that it's padded out with a few mostly empty desert maps that are boring to run through. Oh well, it had some nice quests in it and looked cool.

So far, I like this game. It's nowhere near as good as Baldur's Gate, but much, much better than Neverwinter Nights. The dialog is a bit childish, but it's quite atmospheric between the alien environments and soundtrack. Combat seems mostly mindless once you've gained some levels, though using items and abilities adds some strategy. I've got used to the interface now, but it's still quite bad imo... clearly designed for controllers and living room TVs first, and then awkwardly adapted to mouse and keyboard.

I'll probably do Kashyyyk next, since that's the only other planet I recognize from what little I know about Star Wars.

'Shadow of the Tomb Raider' has now been completed, 100% (excluding achievements, which I don't prioritize.). A pretty good series, combat is far and away more interesting and fun than it has ever been. Similar to my enjoyment of the military encounters in 'Half-Life,' I really liked these sections. Puzzles in the game are fine, but it's another area of gaming with which I don't prioritize.

This is the first 3rd-person game I played using only a mouse and keyboard. Now that I am used to the precision of the mouse, it will be difficult to return to a controller if I ever need to aim at anything.

The game became a lot longer than expected. I expected to finish the game this weekend and I'm unsure if I can on the next one. Roughly 10 game hours ago I unlocked the endgame armor, fully upgraded my weapons, finished most if not all the side missions, and the... Chapter 2 started. Combat is no longer a challenge, unless I get swarmed by high level enemies. One thing that annoys me that even people in my own faction I outrank being a regent, and also having some notable achievements, they are still regularly disrespect me. It's not exclusive to this game, most don't handle well the player character's authority.

I've been playing The Simpsons Hit and Run on my Pentium 4 Win XP machine. Im on level 5 of 7. Trying to 100 percent each level before moving on. Very fun game , great graphics and sound .

Law212 wrote on 2023-11-27, 21:43:

I've been playing The Simpsons Hit and Run on my Pentium 4 Win XP machine. Im on level 5 of 7. Trying to 100 percent each level before moving on. Very fun game , great graphics and sound .

😀 i have an old copy for ps2 - its fun and agree it looks and plays really well, but i'm not much good at it!

gerry wrote on 2023-11-27, 22:01:

Law212 wrote on 2023-11-27, 21:43:

I've been playing The Simpsons Hit and Run on my Pentium 4 Win XP machine. Im on level 5 of 7. Trying to 100 percent each level before moving on. Very fun game , great graphics and sound .

😀 i have an old copy for ps2 - its fun and agree it looks and plays really well, but i'm not much good at it!

Im stuck on an Apu mission in lvel 5. Its a times mission and I always run out of time right at the end.

Beat Deus Ex for the first time. Extremely impressive, cannot believe I've never played it before.

JC is gonna have to be added to my list of FPS heroes.

I tried giving Kingpin Life of Crime a chance, but I couldn't exactly figure out what was going on. I woke up after being jumped by 2 guys and wasn't told what to do really. Walked in a gun store and was asked if I could grab something from a warehouse crawling with gang members in exchange for a 1911.

bobsmith wrote on 2023-11-28, 15:07:

Beat Deus Ex for the first time. Extremely impressive, cannot believe I've never played it before. […]
Show full quote

Beat Deus Ex for the first time. Extremely impressive, cannot believe I've never played it before.

Spoiler

I personally choose the New Dark Age ending, and it's sad I couldn't keep Paul alive, but I didn't even know I could save him.

JC is gonna have to be added to my list of FPS heroes.

I tried giving Kingpin Life of Crime a chance, but I couldn't exactly figure out what was going on. I woke up after being jumped by 2 guys and wasn't told what to do really. Walked in a gun store and was asked if I could grab something from a warehouse crawling with gang members in exchange for a 1911.

i have played deus ex a few times and love the 'world building', it seems to become more believable over time strangely!

some people comment on graphics and gameplay elements not aging well, but to me its fine as it is

agree on kingpin - there might be a good game in there but it doesn't draw you in

bobsmith wrote on 2023-11-28, 15:07:

Beat Deus Ex for the first time. Extremely impressive, cannot believe I've never played it before.

Deus Ex is indeed a masterpiece, and has stood the test of time quite well. The graphics may be outdated, and they weren't so great even back then, but pretty much everything else in that game is still awesome.

A word of caution of you intend to play the sequel Deus Ex 2: Invisible War. It's a very different game, and many fans of the original don't like it, so temper your expectations accordingly.

bobsmith wrote on 2023-11-28, 15:07:

Beat Deus Ex for the first time. Extremely impressive, cannot believe I've never played it before. […]
Show full quote

Beat Deus Ex for the first time. Extremely impressive, cannot believe I've never played it before.

Spoiler

I personally choose the New Dark Age ending, and it's sad I couldn't keep Paul alive, but I didn't even know I could save him.

JC is gonna have to be added to my list of FPS heroes.

I tried giving Kingpin Life of Crime a chance, but I couldn't exactly figure out what was going on. I woke up after being jumped by 2 guys and wasn't told what to do really. Walked in a gun store and was asked if I could grab something from a warehouse crawling with gang members in exchange for a 1911.

Thats funny, I started playing Deus Ex on my Pentium 3. I have never played the game before. I am on mission 2 so far. THe first one was great. Cant wait to get further into the game

Flamesuit ON: System Shock 2 is everything Deus Ex is and more.

appiah4 wrote on 2023-11-29, 10:59:

Flamesuit ON: System Shock 2 is everything Deus Ex is and more.

I don't think you'll get much argument on that. Most people who like Deus Ex also enjoy System Shock 2 and vice versa.

Personally, I'm slightly more fond of Deus Ex because its setting better suits my tastes, and also because it doesn't have respawning enemies. But I have to say, the Deus Ex bad guys pale in comparison to the nightmare that is SHODAN.