Searching for RPGs

Ratty said:
Daggerfall, both great games and both so far ahead of their time that the RPG genre still hasn't quite caught up.

but since I couldn't give two shits about dungeon crawlers

Daggerfall is endless hours of wandering around in randomly generated dungeons and gigantic quest dungeons while slaughtering loads of enemies with terrible AI.

What chu talkin' 'bout.
 
Also any RPGs that take place in a non fantasy like setting?

Yeah, I know about the Buck Roger games by SSI, have them here on the book shelve.
 
Eyenixon said:
Daggerfall is endless hours of wandering around in randomly generated dungeons and gigantic quest dungeons while slaughtering loads of enemies with terrible AI.

What chu talkin' 'bout.
Daggerfall is so much more than a dungeon crawl. Even if I don't derive much entertainment out of the activity itself, I feel that spending hours in a huge-ass dungeon is worthwhile when an entire world awaits you on the topside. Emerging from of a dank labyrinth after several in-game days, low on supplies and traumatized by horrors within, I could almost feel the cool Frostfall breeze upon my cheeks. I would inhale deeply, and the brisk air would be thick with possibilities. There was a world out there, and it was all mine.
 
I'm assuming you played Baldur's Gate II as well. If not, it's quite good.

Temple of Elemental Evil is another must (with the Co8 modpack, of course).

The Witcher was very good.

Disciples I&II are sort of a RPG/TBS hybrid. I'm in love with that game.

Etherlords II is another RPG/TBS, except with a card battle system (akin to M:TG), very fun.

If you don't mind JRPG (even though some people have some issues with jrpg here, it seems), I'd recomment Final Fantasy Tactics Advance(GBA) and Tactics A2(NDS) for fun TB battles, Final Fantasy III (NES/NDS), FFV&VI (SNES), Secret of Mana (SNES), Legend of Mana (PSX), FFVIII, FFIX (PSX), Chrono Trigger (PSX), Valkyria Profile (PSX).

Oh! Almost forgot!

I'm enjoying Last Remnant (PC) quite a bit, it's like a Square RPG with a reduced amount of grind, and with an active timing system. The story is nothing much, and the dialogue/voice acting is decent as long as you switch audio to Japanese. If you don't mind sth graphically intensive, give it a shot.

I'm also hearing the new Drakensang game is pretty good, though I haven't tried it (yet).
 
The Dutch Ghost said:
I have been curious about trying Wasteland but I have difficulty playing it as I am not used to this style.
I'm with you there, having to consult a seperate book for in game text is annoying and the main reason I haven't played much of Wasteland at all. I'm gonna get to it eventually though.

cronicler said:
The fact that you are a "Mercenary" (as in the real sense not the pink glass book sense) really pissed a lot of kiddies. Who wants to play a selfish, womaniser, jerk?
I do, I do!! Oh wait, my computer can barely handle it (wohoo for crap frame rate) so I can't play it at the moment...

Eyenixon said:
Daggerfall is endless hours of wandering around in randomly generated dungeons and gigantic quest dungeons while slaughtering loads of enemies with terrible AI.
A buddy of mine really enjoyed Daggerfall but found Morrowind to be crap (course he quit after 5 minutes after getting stuck in terrain and having to restart twice). Another friend of mine who felt the same way and actually put some time into Morrowind (5-10 hours?) found the same bugs and found the depth that was removed to be frustrating. I'd say that they both have good taste in games except when it comes to MMOs (they enjoy any of them :p) so I take their reccomendation serriously.

Ausdoerrt said:
Temple of Elemental Evil is another must (with the Co8 modpack, of course).
Seeing as I just got ToEE, what's the Co8 modpack?

Ausdoerrt said:
Disciples I&II are sort of a RPG/TBS hybrid. I'm in love with that game.
They are HoMM-esc on the overworld but have a completely different battle system and such. I played Disciples II and it was alright, can't say that it was my favorite but it may have just not been my type of game (HoMM are tweeners for me aswell, though I'd say I probably enjoy them more).

Ausdoerrt said:
If you don't mind JRPG (even though some people have some issues with jrpg here, it seems), I'd recomment Final Fantasy Tactics Advance(GBA) and Tactics A2(NDS) for fun TB battles, Final Fantasy III (NES/NDS), FFV&VI (SNES), Secret of Mana (SNES), Legend of Mana (PSX), FFVIII, FFIX (PSX), Chrono Trigger (PSX), Valkyria Profile (PSX).
JRPGs are a completely different genre so it's like suggesting TPP hack-n-slash action games to a FPS gamer. I can't reccomend Legend of Mana, I found it pretty average to mediocre myself but Secret of Mana and Seiken Densetsu III (the sequel to SoM, also for SNES) are good, though be sure to download a fan patch for SD3 or a pre-patched version. Haven't played enough of FFIII to say but it looks good and I've heard good things about it. FFIV-IX are good, though V was a low point and VIII's draw system for magic is infuriating (along with the second to last dungeon being unexitable). Chrono Trigger is a must play if you like JRPGs, though Chrono Cross fell on it's face (goal was to have 60 characters, ended up with 30+ and changing the only character carried over from the last game to a new character because they didn't have time to do him justice) and Radical Dreamers was enjoyable, though it's a completely different type of game (think of a choose-your-own adventure book with a few more pictures and some pseudo combat done through choose-your-own-adventure). Heard good things about Valkyrie Profile and enjoyed Valkyrie Profile 2 (other than the ending). Star Ocean: Till the End of Time for PS2 is also quite good, though incredibly long.

TRPGs - Final Fantasy Tactics is good but Tactics Advance's jobs really bothered me (especially having to do them to get some characters). If you like FFT then I'd suggest checking out Disgaea if you have a PS2 (or do check it out first and go the other way). Front Mission for SNES and Front Mission 4 for PS2 are quite fun, haven't played any of the other FM games. Ogre Battle is good, though I really have no clue exactly what genre it falls under, some sort of strategy.
 
UncannyGarlic said:
JRPGs are a completely different genre [...]
If you mean in comparison to western cRPGs, then yes. I believe the OP just said "RPG," so it's not clear to me if he only meant one or the other. In any case, unless you just hate anything produced by Japan by principle, rejecting JRPGs as a rule just closes you off to a good number of really great games.

I'd agree with the recommendation for the original Final Fantasy Tactics. Good (if hard to follow at points) story, and a really great job-system and tactical combat.

Chrono Trigger is certainly one of the must-haves for any fan of JRPGs. I also enjoyed Chrono Cross, myself. Not as much as Trigger, and obviously as a sequel it does fall flat. But taken purely on its own merits, Cross is a pretty enjoyable game as well.

Grandia II is an woefully underrated and undermentioned game. Not only is the story-line engaging (even if somewhat predictable), but the characters are well-done (even if somewhat predictable), and the battle system is simply top-notch. Unfortunately, the Dreamcast version is really the one you'd have to look for. The PS2 port is playable, but it was poorly ported and it shows with occasional slow-down and graphical glitches.

Another gem that's under a lot of people's radars is Skies of Arcadia. The world design is wonderful, the combat system is good (if a little slow), and I personally love the ship-to-ship tactical, turn-based combat. I'm also a sucker for exploration (and SoA is big on exploration). Fortunately, the port to the Gamecube (christened SoA Legends) is not only good but great, being a flawless port with additional content.

As far as the western cRPGs go, I can't really add anything that hasn't already been mentioned numerous times already.
 
Drakensang is anti-intuitive and heavy. Graphics are OK, but the camera sucks donkey balls. It's so frustrating interface-wise, that I wouldn't recommend it. Ever.

Graphics were OK, but extremely generic. Couldn't stand the game long enough to get into a fight.
 
patriot_41 said:
Drakensang is anti-intuitive and heavy. Graphics are OK, but the camera sucks donkey balls. It's so frustrating interface-wise, that I wouldn't recommend it. Ever.
How does the level of frustration compare with the camera/interface in NWN 2?
 
I dont mind JRPGS, they are okay for me, i liked some of them.
So,yes you CAN recommend JRPGs, as long as they are available on the PC, as my PSX broke last year, and my NES is a goner too. i have to buy new ones , but NVM that. CRPGs are dying breed...kinda sad that I have already played so many of the best ones.

Icewind Dale , i am now getting into playing that. Witcher enhanced edition is on my buy list anyways. I am now trying to get and find the rest.

Could someone list some good JRPGs ? Because i am not an expert of them.

And Drakensang camera is a BITCH. its cumbersome...very cumbersome. Makes combat kinda annoying. You constantly have to keep turning it... :evil:
 
Patton69
I found BG2 (SoA) wayy better than Icewind Dale. Much more RP - even more so with the extra conversation mods from some of the fan sites such as:
http://www.gibberlings3.net/
But then I'm not much of a hack'n'slash gamer.
 
LULZ Patton69. 69.
O-/----C
/I-----/O

My stupidity aside, i have Baldur's Gate compilation, containing both BGs and the expansions. So i have played both games.
 
UncannyGarlic said:
Ausdoerrt said:
Temple of Elemental Evil is another must (with the Co8 modpack, of course).
Seeing as I just got ToEE, what's the Co8 modpack?

http://www.co8.org/

Go from there. It's a pack that fixes many-a-bug in the game, and provides extra content (new quests, monsters, areas etc. - and you're not forced to use the content if you just want the fixes). Just sign up for the forum, get the pack, and go from there.

TRPGs - Final Fantasy Tactics is good but Tactics Advance's jobs really bothered me (especially having to do them to get some characters).

I found the jobs fun - more fun than just having to wander around endlessly in FFT withot purpose just to power-level. And the story wasn't anything special, so FFT bored me to tears. I also LIKE the law system in FFTA.

Patton89 said:
I dont mind JRPGS, they are okay for me, i liked some of them.
So,yes you CAN recommend JRPGs, as long as they are available on the PC, as my PSX broke last year, and my NES is a goner too. i have to buy new ones , but NVM that. CRPGs are dying breed...kinda sad that I have already played so many of the best ones.

That's what emulators are for. I do not have any of the aforementioned consoles, and played the games I listed on PC.
 
Kyuu said:
UncannyGarlic said:
JRPGs are a completely different genre [...]
If you mean in comparison to western cRPGs, then yes. I believe the OP just said "RPG," so it's not clear to me if he only meant one or the other. In any case, unless you just hate anything produced by Japan by principle, rejecting JRPGs as a rule just closes you off to a good number of really great games.
Course not, I'm not one of those people who hates everything from Japan for unexplained reasons (I really don't hear explanations beyond "Anime crap"), I'm just saying that it's a different bag.

Kyuu said:
Chrono Trigger is certainly one of the must-haves for any fan of JRPGs. I also enjoyed Chrono Cross, myself. Not as much as Trigger, and obviously as a sequel it does fall flat. But taken purely on its own merits, Cross is a pretty enjoyable game as well.
Cross had too many characters, too little character development for almost every character, and the leveling limits were plain stupid (you can only level x many times between x and y point, after which you can only level y more times between points w and z). That said, I think that the game could have been quite good had it's goal been to be a great game rather than a game with sixty characters (which it failed to acchieve), I posted about it in the remake thread :).

Kyuu said:
Grandia II is an woefully underrated and undermentioned game. Not only is the story-line engaging (even if somewhat predictable), but the characters are well-done (even if somewhat predictable), and the battle system is simply top-notch. Unfortunately, the Dreamcast version is really the one you'd have to look for. The PS2 port is playable, but it was poorly ported and it shows with occasional slow-down and graphical glitches.
Occasional slow-down is greatly overselling the game as it has slow down in every town. That said, I enjoyed what I played of it (haven't beaten it because I got distracted with other things).

Kyuu said:
Another gem that's under a lot of people's radars is Skies of Arcadia. The world design is wonderful, the combat system is good (if a little slow), and I personally love the ship-to-ship tactical, turn-based combat. I'm also a sucker for exploration (and SoA is big on exploration). Fortunately, the port to the Gamecube (christened SoA Legends) is not only good but great, being a flawless port with additional content.
Need to try this out, it looked solid from what I saw and read of it and it got pretty good reviews (for what that matters) if I remember right. Actually, if I remember right, Fable sounded a bit like it with the different progressions (look changes based on actions).

Patton89 said:
So,yes you CAN recommend JRPGs, as long as they are available on the PC
FFVII and FFVIII both have PC ports (I own both for PC :D) and are both good, though FFVIII suffers greatly from it's magic acquisition system.
 
UncannyGarlic said:
Course not, I'm not one of those people who hates everything from Japan for unexplained reasons (I really don't hear explanations beyond "Anime crap") [...]
Apologies, I didn't mean to imply you were. But there is something of a stigma regarding JRPGs in general around these parts.
Cross had too many characters, too little character development for almost every character, and the leveling limits were plain stupid (you can only level x many times between x and y point, after which you can only level y more times between points w and z).
All quite true. I still enjoyed it for the music, world/environments, and Kidd (probably the only character with any real development).
Occasional slow-down is greatly overselling the game as it has slow down in every town. That said, I enjoyed what I played of it (haven't beaten it because I got distracted with other things).
I assume you are referring to the PS2 port, as the original Dreamcast didn't have those issues (unless my memory is completely faulty). But yes, you're right, the slow-down in the PS2 version is a bit worse than my use of the word "occasional" probably implied.
Need to try this out, it looked solid from what I saw and read of it and it got pretty good reviews (for what that matters) if I remember right. Actually, if I remember right, Fable sounded a bit like it with the different progressions (look changes based on actions).
I'm wondering if you're thinking of a different game or if maybe you just got something from another game mixed in, as there's really no parallels between Skies of Arcadia and Fable at all that I can think of, other than some basic RPG mechanics. But yes, you really should try it out. One of my all time favs.
Patton89 said:
So,yes you CAN recommend JRPGs, as long as they are available on the PC
Well, asides from the PC ports of FFVII and FFVIII, really quite a lot of JRPGs are available on the PC... in the form of console emulators. >.>
 
Mikael Grizzly said:
Jesus Fucking Christ, Nixon.

Do you actually read what you post?

The gameplay is persistently the same above or below, the outdoors simply utilize a travel map and are completely dull with random scatterings of boring nonsense.

Daggerfall's only real sense of exploration was within dungeons, it's probably the only facet the later Elder Scrolls titles improved, actual exploration beyond simple randomly generated hallways.
The outdoor environments in Daggerfall could just be considered one big dungeon hub that allowed you to travel into other dungeons, there was nothing of interest beyond that.

Why did I have to explain that? I thought condensing it into one simple sentence could have gotten the idea across, "they're both the same, they just look different".

Whereas the dungeons in Oblivion are monster killing affairs with loot everywhere, the outdoors typically have less combat, more walking and exploring landmarks, however dull those may be. Daggerfall consisted of a big expanse of nothing, the randomly generated dungeons were a good idea (usually) but the outdoors presented the same generic environments as those randomly generated dungeons, devoid of character.
Oblivion at the very least gave the outdoors some personality.
 
I like ToEE, but it definitely requires a ton of effort from the player to get going. You have to search out the user-made patches, and then the story starts out really slow. On the other hand, the combat is excellent, and the story picks up once you get past the early parts. If you remain determined and don't give up, you'll be rewarded.

The Avernum and Geneforge games are very good indeed.
 
Back
Top