Planescape: Torment

Aaron said:
Sander said:
Not classifying Torment as an RPG because the plot is somewhat linear is ridiculous.
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Those were two separate points. I think it's not an RPG, because you're not freely portraying your character, but trying to do what you would do, and meanwhile you're constantly hit by your background, which obviously affects your choices. So you know, that you must play a specific role, but the game is about finding out what that role is. So it's not like an ultimate sandbox RPG where you're creating you own background. Probably that doesn't makes sense, whatever.
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That's like saying that the Vault Dweller is restricted by his past living in the vault and his quest of finding the water chip and dealing with the Supermutant threat.

You are restricted by your past in the sense of the plot - you're discovering yourself and your past, however, in numerous quests of the game, your decisions are unaffected by your past. There is some railroading, but when you're in Sigil it doesn't feel that way at all, and you really are able to explore different, remarkably deep roleplaying opportunities.
 
Aaron said:
Those were two separate points. I think it's not an RPG, because you're not freely portraying your character, but trying to do what you would do, and meanwhile you're constantly hit by your background, which obviously affects your choices. So you know, that you must play a specific role, but the game is about finding out what that role is. So it's not like an ultimate sandbox RPG where you're creating you own background. Probably that doesn't makes sense, whatever.

Btw, Torment is the most disgusting game I ever played. Sometimes it's not even fun.
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I have no idea what you are going on about. Did you even play this game? This game is *not* about finding out what role you are supposed to play, it is about playing the Nameless One as you want to see him. You can play him as a horrible bastard if you want to, or as goody-two-shoes-McGoodGood, and there are a lot of possible shades in between.

If there's one spot where Torment gives you a lot of freedom it is in determining the personality of your TNO.
 
Yeah, most likely. Anyway, I played it lots of times, and love it for what it is.
 
janjetina said:
That's like saying that the Vault Dweller is restricted by his past living in the vault and his quest of finding the water chip and dealing with the Supermutant threat.

You are restricted by your past in the sense of the plot - you're discovering yourself and your past, however, in numerous quests of the game, your decisions are unaffected by your past. There is some railroading, but when you're in Sigil it doesn't feel that way at all, and you really are able to explore different, remarkably deep roleplaying opportunities.
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I've gotta agree here.

I'd argue that PS:T gives you even more freedom shaping your character than FO1/2, because you get a truly blank slate with barely anything to go on and no real past, and you are free to mold your character in pretty much any way in response to the new challenges and the past you discover. It is different though, in a sense that it's not really the skills that shape your character, but the dialogue.
 
My best friend and I were both playing PS:T at the same time. He thought the game was set up to roleplay a heartless lawful evil character. I just sort of drifted around being a selfish prick unless it wasn't too far out of my way to help someone or if there was something I could gain out of it, the game stamped my playstyle with Chaotic Good. Our discussions of the game with each other as we were playing really emphasized for me how diverse the choices were.

I never felt shoehorned into fitting the nameless one with how he should act based on his part lives, since obviously his past lives all ended badly. I think the game openly invites you to do whatever you want since it can't turn out worse than waking up on a cold slab with all memory gone again.
 
That's one of the beauties of the game outlaw. It really does allow any style of play, from your alignment choices, to your character (mage, fighter, etc) choices. The game is probably one of the few true role playing games out there.
 
The role-playing mechanics of PST and the working relationships between its various components are quite overrated. Granted, it's probably easy to get the wrong idea about its complexity because of its presentation and richness of setting. It's still a game that should be played.
 
Per said:
The role-playing mechanics of PST and the working relationships between its various components are quite overrated. Granted, it's probably easy to get the wrong idea about its complexity because of its presentation and richness of setting. It's still a game that should be played.
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I'm not sure what you're talking.
I agree that the interactivity with the world and its internal responsiveness is rather limited (much of the game world consists of small isolated places within which everything happens, and later on it is a very linear game with few real choices).

However, I think that Planescape: Torment is relatively unique in the choices that it gives you to portray your character's personality.
 
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