The Gamer's Quarter

dhex · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 10:56 am Post subject: keeping it pc; games, that is

ha!

ok, so i'm low on clever this afternoon. anyway, like i've detailed before i bought halo, far cry and doom 3 on a whim (along with a new graphics card). short version: halo is unplayable with my chipset (anyone want this? anyone?), doom 3 seems kinda cheesy and far cry is enjoyable but so goddamn hard it makes my mind hurt. i have to push through the end of the two morrowind expansions (i'm on bloodmoon currently) and then my plate should be pretty clear, unless i decide to powerplay doom 3.

so i'm looking for stuff made in the past few years for the pc that are worth checking out. i am of a mind to peep on call of duty, and that new stalker game coming out looks neat, etc, but what else? KOTOR? baldur's gate II?

i'd be happy enough to get system shock 2 running, but i don't think that's in the cards because i do not have a soundcard that will emulate SB16 protocol without a lot of pushing, and i'd rather not push it (push it real good).
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Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

I hear Deus Ex is pretty good.

ha. Seriously you might want to give Jedi Outcast 2 a try. It is hard as hell, but I have been told it becomes rewardingly good after a while. I ... still need to get to that part if it even exists. I picked it up for like $6 so I may go back to it eventually.

I don't know... did you miss Starcraft?

dhex · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 12:41 pm Post subject:

i am not an rts type of person.

jedi II was on my short list of things to give a shot to, since dark forces 1+ 2 was pretty hot.
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disneyland · . Joined: 16 Jun 2005 Posts: 131 Location: Shinsei

Recent PC games that I enjoyed spending time with -

Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich (Irrational). Fun, silly, well-voiced. Good length. Best pure RPG on *PC this year.

I'd say Riddick, because it really is quite good, but it would probably destroy your video card.

You'll have to play Guild Wars. Performs very well on lower end machines, and even if you're not into the online thing you'll get 100 hours out of the campaign with NPC henchmen. And there's no subscription. And the multi-class system is excellent. And it's gorgeous.

SWAT 4 is very good. Best of the series. Has a certain darkness to it. I'm a sucker for Irrational (System Shock 2) games lately. I even enjoyed the campaign of their Tribes Vengeance. I'm keeping a close eye on Irrational. BioShock is coming next.

The Pirates! remake <- you'll want the PC version. Clever game. Great vibe.

Edit: * = Yeah, there's KOTOR 2 to play as well. It's hard to knock the depth of either of them.

SuperWes · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 1:49 pm Post subject:

PC Games? What are those? You mean like MAME?

HA!

Seriously, you should check out Indigo Prophecy, which Ryan (Ent Depot) talks about in his blog right here. Looks pretty neat.

-Wes
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dhex · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 2:03 pm Post subject:

now that seems interesting. very interesting. something adult ish, eh?

i'll probably give riddick a try. i like fps's, and i enjoy taunting my wife about mr. diesel's sexuality.
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Tablesaw · . Joined: 29 Jun 2005 Posts: 303 Location: LACAUSA

I've been hooked on the puzzle game Deadly Rooms of Death for years, and it's been updated with better graphics recently.
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It's the saw of the table!

dessgeega · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 2:15 pm Post subject:

Szczepaniak · . Joined: 19 Feb 2005 Posts: 770

Star Control 2, the recent PC port.

http://sc2.sourceforge.net/

Plus, it's totally a free download. You probably need broadband though. Its about 200mb....

Quite a large, and rather enjoyable space adventure with some excellent 1 on 1 spaceship battling. Like the old spacewar.

Give it a whirl. It's free, and you may just like it.

(awaits dessgeega's scathing criticism for placing this above starflight...)

wourme · . Joined: 01 Jul 2005 Posts: 362 Location: Maridia

Planescape: Torment is the one I'd recommend. It has the best writing I've ever seen in a video game, among other things. I also like Baldur's Gate 2, but it doesn't quite have the same level of creativity.

Mister Toups · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 8:12 pm Post subject:

Doom 3 sucks. Don't waste your time with it. The last boss will make you cry, because he is very sad.

I think you'd like Star Control 2, dhex. You... might even like part 3, even though most fans revile it.
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SuperWes · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 8:22 pm Post subject:

Mister Toups · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 8:24 pm Post subject:

All Doom3 makes me feel is annoyed.

I played it to the end out of morbid curiosity. I was planning on reviewing it, but instead I reviewed the flight entertainment system on an airplane.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

Mister Toups · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 8:26 pm Post subject:

To elaborate: all Doom 3 is is a series of cheap shots. The very worst of RE, strecthed out over a whole game. It never really scared me, aside from making me jump a few times. It's sad to say that it's nowhere near as scary as the original game.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

disneyland · . Joined: 16 Jun 2005 Posts: 131 Location: Shinsei

SuperWes · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 10:45 pm Post subject:

NO! We won't have that discussion in here. I played it on the X-box in Glorious 3.1 sound with the 5.1 setting on but no back speakers in sub 640x480 resolution on a 27 inch TV and had the same experience. It's just a very immersive game. The sound design has the effect of pulling you in. It's not a game that you can play while you're doing something else. Something about the way it all works together has the effect of pulling all of your senses in, and while it may not be constantly scary, it does constantly demand your attention despite its straightforward and simplistic gameplay.

Not much thought for the cranium, but a lot of goosebumps for the arms, which is fine by me.

Besides, dhex already has this game so why are we even talking about it?

-Wes
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Scratchmonkey · . Joined: 02 Mar 2005 Posts: 1439

Half-Life 2 is very interesting in that your brain might explode from trying to figure whether it's a good game or not.

Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:54 am Post subject:

Because I'm trying to keep him from wasting 12 hours of his life?

I thought the sound design sucks. Maybe my speakers aren't fancy enough. All the sound effects sounded alike. Getting armor sounded like you were being attacked by an imp. Stupid things like that. The level design was terrible, too. As was the sad attempt at a plot (and since when does Doom need a plot?)

If you want to play a scary FPS with good sound design play System Shock 2. That's all Doom 3 wants to be and it fails miserably.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

SuperWes · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 8:32 am Post subject:

I think the armor sounding like an imp thing was intentional to put you on the edge of your seat every time you pick something up. And yeah, the plot thing. Who cares! They only really force you to do anything with it at the very, very beginning.

The level design is good in that I really haven't gotten seriously lost at all yet. And I get lost in FPS games. A lot. The Halo single player mode blows ass completely due to this fact and this fact alone.

System Shock 2 I've never played, but I would have to assume from the way people talk about it that it requires more brainpower than Doom. Who wants that?

-Wes
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dhex · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 8:32 am Post subject:

i have pretty fancy speakers, as far as speakers go (pair of event tr8), a very nice soundcard and a total awesome tascam board that everything passes through. but what i took away from doom so far was:

a) it runs very well with a lot of details turned up. far better than halo, better than far cry and almost as good as half-life 2, which i swear has the best optimized engine i've ever seen.

b) the whole flying skulls thing was fucking cheesy

but after i finish far cry...if i finish far cry...i'll get doom3d.
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ApM · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 10:00 am Post subject:

Psychonauts is a game that you can play on your PC.

I can't make a post within 24 hours of playing Psychonauts without mentioning it.

Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 1:38 pm Post subject:

SuperWes · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 2:37 pm Post subject:

Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 3:19 pm Post subject:

Well Doom 3 didn't immerse me at all. Maybe if I had played it on PC.

How much have you played of the original Doom? The levels towards the end get pretty complex. The level design was really pretty damned great. It's just banal in Doom 3.

I found the original Doom to be more immersive and scarier than Doom 3. Discuss.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

SuperWes · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 4:29 pm Post subject:

Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 6:26 pm Post subject:

dhex · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 7:30 pm Post subject:

i want to thank everyone for their input. distributed networks of information are stupid cool.

anyway, i didn't really get into tweaking halo. i'll reinstall it and try again someday, maybe.

half life 2 is one of the most enjoyable games i have ever played. i don't know whether that makes me an asshole or not these days.
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Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 7:34 pm Post subject:

No way, man. Half Life 2 is golden.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

dhex · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 7:59 pm Post subject:

well, i'd been reading gamefaqs and felt a little injured. aparently i'm a fagit.

i can say this, though. no matter what, some people do not like ambiguity in their entertainment.
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Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

Well, should you ever decide to reinstall Halo PC here's a guide I used way back when it first came out that I found handy. There was another one as well but I can't seem to find it anywhere.

Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 8:07 pm Post subject:

dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

I kinda wish they did more with the environmental puzzles in HL2, there was a lot of potential there that they could have tapped. And it's got more seams than the original.

It's still pretty damn hard to fault, though.

Mister Toups · Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 8:14 pm Post subject:

If it has a fault it's that it's too fucking perfect.

Mind you I still haven't finished it.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

Oh. Spoiler. They don't do that much with the environmental puzzles.

Scratchmonkey · . Joined: 02 Mar 2005 Posts: 1439

I actually have more cognitive dissonance with Half-Life 2 than I do with other games because it looks so good.

Let me explain: The game looks so much more realistic than other games that running into walls frustrates me in a way that it wouldn't in a game that was more obviously game-y.

That said, they do a really really good job of hiding how linear the game is. If they hadn't put so much effort into it, it would have been really annoying rather than an itch that you get in the back of your brain.

dhex · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 7:37 am Post subject:

thanks for the tweak link mr. mech'nal.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Now I feel sad I don't have a PC that can play this game

SuperWes · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 10:53 am Post subject:

You will soon...

-Wes
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dhex · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 11:43 am Post subject:

fuck d00d read the previews!

dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

It still would have been nice if they gave you a hint, really. Even that last Twin Peaks episode is interpretable.

dessgeega · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 11:47 am Post subject:

dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

See but that's what I want.

Information.

dessgeega · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 12:08 pm Post subject:

you won't get it.
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dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

We don't know where those steam servers are, come to think of it.

dhex · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 12:17 pm Post subject:

i love the prisoner. the last episode is fucking perfect.
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dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

Absolutely.

Hey, look what google turned up!

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Mister Toups · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 3:22 pm Post subject:

Is the prisoner playable anywhere? It sounds keen.
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where were you when nana komatsu got a wii?

disneyland · . Joined: 16 Jun 2005 Posts: 131 Location: Shinsei