Gaming... it's coming back!

[Novdid]

Originally posted by Gurm
I want that C&C feeling too.

I want the feeling I got when I first played Civilization.

Or when Steve Wilbur sent us the first playable alpha of Doom.

Or the first time I fired up Dune 2.

Or King's Quest.

Or Prince of Persia.

I could go on and on, but things ARE getting better. Like I said, the new Zelda is un-****ing-believable, and Dark Cloud 2 is a masterpiece.

- Gurm

One thing I don't like though, you have to have all the platforms to not miss out on a good game. The poor student that I am I can't afford that kind of expences. And one of the other things that piss me off is that some games that usually rock on PC's are nowadays mainly being developed for some console instead and then later, a year or so, gets ported over to the PC non optimized...that makes me mad, especially if it's a game I would like.

BTW, my first comment on high standards, was directed at ahardjan, that wasn't something anyone could figure out by the post.

[Topha]

While all this is true, we shouldnt forget those series that improved over the years:

Warcraft->Warcraft2->(Starcraft)->Warcraft3 Loved all of those!

Dark Forces->Jedi Knight->Jedi Outcast (I think JKII is one of the best games ever, I just love the lightsaver (and they seem to be working on part 3 ))

But for the rest youre right. All those games that are said to be oh so great never really impress me, my last disappointment was gothic Maybe it is fun when you get into it, but the game just didnt do that for me, so i never played it much.

[Wombat]

I find WC3 to be a bit of a letdown. I beat it, and then, uhhh....

[Cobos]

A really great RPG, and one of the few games were you really are actually roleplaying (not rollplaying) on the PC is Deus Ex... I just love the free hand you are given, and the fact that your actions actually results in consequences.
Another game I would strongly recommend is Europa Universalis 2, which is a grand strategy game set in the timeperiod 1419-1815. It is a heavy game and takes some time to get to know, but it is great (assuming you like complex historical games) and it has an active support from the community as well as the developer (i.e. one of those independant developers people wanted

[Kurt]

Deus Ex, along with Half-Life, is the best FPS I've played +/- recently. RTCW was disappointingly linear with some unrealistic and buggersome limitations in gameplay (invisible walls and the like). Red Faction started pretty well but ended in an almost impossible bloodfest. Still to try CC Generals and Max Payne (I have it somewhere but I'm not hooked at all...). Quake was very enjoyable too. Q2 and Q3...well...not enough of an improvement. They sure look nice...Doom and Jedi Knight are also old favorites (JK had some pretty difficult enigmas and the SW universe is always nice ).

Halo on xbox lacks the control you get with mouse + kb. A PC version could be more fun (and that's about all my experience on the xbox )

Mankind was a very cool online RTS game (persistent universe)until the publisher f*cked the developers and they in turn limited the game to save money which basically killed it and then went bankrupt...too bad cause the game was great and its community was the most interesting I've seen so far...

Like Gurm I'm also looking for abandonware. I guess it's part nostalgia too, but when you can't wow ppl with your graphics, you've got to make a great game so ppl buy it...I miss Dungeon Master sniff

Anyway, the NBG will probably happen online or come from the mod community( like HL). The game industry ressembles Hollywood a bit more everyday and that's not a compliment.

Luckily with frree (and decent) 3D engines (like Quake and Quake2 -or soon for Q2) developers should concentrate on the content. Sth they can't/don't do in pro houses since they graphics budget is so high...



edit: Red faction, not Red Shift...

[GNEP]

Hmmm... I agree with the "too many sequels" bit above. But here's my take:

I have played many mediocre games over the years (most, if not all, on the PC since 8086 days). But I have also played some exceptional ones.

For Example:
Elite
Ultima IV (think I missed 1,2 and 3 )
Civilisation (+ Civ2/CtP/Civ3)
KQ1/2/3 (bought them together so count them as one)
Populous
Wolfenstein 3D
Ultima Underworld
Tetris (on the Gameboy)
Total Annhiliation
Half-Life
Dark Forces + JK2 (missed the middle one)
Diablo 2 (missed the original, so this was fun to play)
Unreal Tournament (incl 2003)
Morrowind

These games are actually, if memory serves me right, spread out over the last 10 years reasonably evenly. Gaps will occur when I was "between computers" for example during the first couple of years of my degree.

Also there are a good number of games I've missed out there as well I am sure.

My point? Well, when we look back and compare, we see "now" and "history". The problem is, "now" is at most "this year" and "history" goes back at least 10 years. Hardly a fair comparison. Also, as we experience better games, our standards get higher and so games have to do even better than before to get an "excellent" rating in our heads. Add that to the rose-tinted effect, and I would have to disagree with Gurm - I think that the gaming industry is still doing well, and have no reason to complain.

[3dfx]

You know I might even pick up a cube for the price, You can get a cube in the Uk with Zelda and a mem card in Argos for £78 so that's around $120 After hearing Gurm describe it I have to get ..hehe I did like previous Zelda's and it looks like a classic to me

[Sethos]

E Bloody Gad Zooks! isn't that like the second or third time that Galaxies has been delayed now? When to this time?

~Sethos

[Gurm]

Sethos:

I'm not sure. Electronics Boutique still lists a date and price, but I don't believe it.

- Gurm

[Paddy]

I bought a GBA SP yesterday. I spent all night playing Super Mario World. Now that's a classic! Shame they wont release sonic/sonic 2

Can anyone recommend any other GBA titles, bar Zelda of course

[Gurm]

Paddy,

I have a nice little cartridge labeled "Sonic Advance" right here. Maybe it's only out in Japan/USA? It also interacts with Sonic 2 for the GameCube.

Super Mario Advance 1-3 are all good.

1 = Super Mario Brothers 2 w/Extras
2 = Super Mario World w/Extras
3 = Yoshi's Island w/Extras

(Extras, of course, means digital sound and cleaned-up graphics, etc.)

Wario Land 4 is also quite good, Mario Kart Super Circuit is... Mario Kart (hence cool).

Metroid Fusion is also available.

Also, if you're into simple and cute yet somewhat involving games, Kirby is good.

And the best original RPG for a portable system, bar none, is of course Golden Sun. Of course you can pick up Lunar for it as well, and rumor has some of the old FF titles coming to GBA later this year.

I have spoken.

- Gurm

P.S. Having your spouse/friend/sibling play as Tingle while you're playing GameCube Zelda is hella cool... and you don't even have to own Zelda for the GB!

[Topha]

At the moment I am enjoying Mafia, nice game

[az]

Kirby was cute and fun

Mafia is a great, very athmospheric game for the PC.

BTW, there is a new big mod out for it, with new textures, sounds, cars etc., which takes place in the present, AFAIK.

AZ

[rugger]

Ah memories.

The games I loved to play were:

1) Final Fantasy 7: Maybe I am just shallow or easy to please ... but I simply loved playing this game (on the PC). The graphics were awesome for its day, and I found it really immersive.
2) Commander Keen: I remember spending so much time getting this game done ... crazy. I love these side scroller games, yet there hasn't been a decent one for a while
3) Spyro, year of the dragon: Sort of like Commander Keen, just in 3d.
4) Wolfenstine 3D: I remember completing the full game on somebody elses PC. (a old 286) A lot of fun ... with simple weapons that were cool fun to use.
5) Simcity: I spent ages attempting to build big cities.
6) Might and Magic 6: while the graphics where rather bland, the story was good and much fun was had.
7) Zelda 64: brought a N64 just to play this game. Haven't brought any other games for my N64
8) Diablo: lots of action, some RPG, a fair bit of fun.
9) Neverwinter nights: Nice "diablo like" RPG, but with more technical finnese.

I found Unreal 2 to be fairly good for a "turn your brain off and fire" game. Simcity 4 is ok ... but too much like their predecessors to warrent any real affection. I don't like RTS games very much, so I haven't played C&C:Generals, and I don't get much of a kick out of AOM or Warcraft(1,2,3). MM9 was really terrible. I don't like online gaming, so I don't have very much to say about UT2003 and Q3.

[az]

Ah, commander Keen. 1 and 4 were the only really good ones, though

Diablo was what got me really, really hooked to gaming, chatting, and the net in general. It was so fun, athmospheric (great sounds!) and addictive, and it had free battle.net access Too bad diablo II was not nearly as good. And I don't even know why

AZ