Soldat: I started playing Fallout 2 but I quit once I got to the Den. Does my critique matter? Sounds ridiculous to me but I've heard someone say it. Sure everyone is entitled to their opinion, but it doesn't really mean much in some cases. Some people are very ill informed. As for people jumping to discuss the issue and "defend" Wasteland 2, I think it has more to do with odd reasoning than anything else. The reasons listed thus far are silly. The early game of Wasteland 2 isn't as strong as Fallout 2. It's a given really. It isn't as open in the beginning. Yes there are many corridors and such, but not the whole way through. The game opens up. As we already said.
I feel like you have only played a couple hours of Wasteland 2 at best. That is why the comment seems off. Me personally I felt like stopping Divinity: Original Sin after the first starting zone, but I toughed it out for about three hours and it improved for me. Wasteland 2 isn't an instant gratification type game. Could it have been more expansive? Of course. Considering the budget though, I think they did quite well. People that have very good taste in RPG's are enjoying the game, not without faults mind you, but they are having a blast. I don't consider these people to be the type that enjoys linear railroaded RPG's with no consequences for your actions.
Soldat how extensive is your experience with cRPG's? I can't help but feel like some of your critiques are problems with most RPG's in general. Small incongruities are bound to pop up in games like this. The game still needs a couple of patches before it really shines imo. Soldat if you haven't made it out of Highpool your opinion is worth jack shit as far as RPG reviews go. No offense. That is the way of the beast. One can argue if the mechanics in the game aren't good that it isn't worth playing. I argue that aside from aimed shots and perks being missing the mechanics are sound. Some smoke grenades and flashbangs are fucking vital in tactical games and it pisses me off they aren't available. Most RPG's have some extra layer that adds to the combat and Wasteland 2 is missing that. The camera isn't like Fallouts so people don't like it. Also it seems it makes things difficult or tedious at times. Fair points. All valid criticism but...Wasteland isn't Fallout. The game isn't totally finished yet. It's the closest thing to a legitimate Fallout game you are going to get.
Divinity: Original Sin is comparable to Wasteland 2 in many way. I would argue that Wasteland 2 should follow their lead and release a update that adds shit like Larian did with the new companions. From what Brother None has said, and others as well, I can safely assume that perks would have been in the game but the resources weren't there to finish that in time so it was shelved for later. I would bet money that Fargo and crew will support the hell out of the game post release. What is possible?
New companions.
Perks.
Weapons and hopefully some useful grenades. Smoke and Flash ffs.
Quests.
New Zone, dungeons, or towns.
Bug fixes.
Not all of those are going to happen, but I think perks and tactical addons like smoke and flash grenades should be something they go for. I would reeeaalllyy like a prone too. Wasteland 2 needs more Jagged Alliance 2 really. More companion talking. More random encounters would be nice. Unique random encounters mind you. YOU HEAR THAT KHARN!!!!! Yeah he didn't hear me. The others are just a bonus.
Sea and Brother None are our representatives for this whole thing. Hell I think they are more active over on Codex than here, as far as Wasteland 2 stuff goes. Frankly I trust them to do what they can and let our voice be heard at the very least. It's okay to have problems with the game. Some just might not agree that what you say are problems are in fact legitimate. The star issue for one. Absurd beyond belief.
For one, Rangers would be pretty identifiable out in the wastes. They have radios and considering every single piece of clothing on the rangers portrait isn't represented in their inventory you can safely assume that maybe they have badges. You can use your imagination. One of your big issues with Wasteland 2 is an issue with every RPG I have ever played. Tropes and little quirks are always present. Reactivity is a plus of course. You want the NPC's to accurately react to you right? I agree. Some sort of faction mechanic like the one in New Vegas would work for Wasteland 2. If you wear a certain factions uniform it would work for a disguise. Problem is that is a lot of shit to code into the game. Then they would have to go through and rework dialog and maybe even add more quest to the game to change outcomes even more so. More cash would be required. Thankfully Wasteland 2 is selling fairly well...
Think about the scope of the game. You are examining a small portion of the game compared to the entirety of Fallout. Not a fair comparison. That is why people come to the defense of Wasteland 2, a game which isn't even talked about that much on here. The Wasteland 2 forum is about as dead as the rest of this place is. No one is white knighting the game. It's the reasoning behind the comments. Frankly I never judge a RPG until after the 20th hour. It's a rule I follow. If it doesn't appeal to me by hour 10 in the slightest I will drop it and maybe try to pick it up later. When I hear people quit the game because of twisted logic it irks me since the reasons seem so flawed. Of course your reasons are your own so thats cool.
Its like, do you even RPG dude?
Don't tell me your favorite RPG is Fallout 3 or something....
Wasteland 2 is a different breed of RPG. It's like a X-Com lite mixed with Fallout. If they add grenades and aimed shots the tactical side would truly rock. I always used aimed shots to cripple legs in Fallout. How else do you slow down Deathclaws? The eyes? Bah! It's a shame Wasteland 2 doesn't have that. I still won't stop playing the game a few hours into it no matter what I think. I know my opinion of the game wouldn't be worth shit. That is my opinion of course. I won't try to force that onto anyone.
PS. How long before Deathclaws and other Fallout stuff are modded in?
The Den
If you have played all the content before the Den, I would very much say that you critique could matter just as much as someone who had finished the whole thing.
You have had time the experience what the graphics bring to the game.
You have had time with the inventory and the items.
You have had time to experience questing, dialog, story, bits of the main story quest line.
You have had time to experience talking heads.
You have had time to experience vastly contrasting locations, technology, living conditions, ideologies.
If you played until the Den, and you are disappointed in every step of the way, I could almost with certainty say, that your experience would not get any better if you finished the game.
I grant you, the Den is a tad short, if you had played until Vault city right after the Den, and spoken to the key people in Vault City. I would 100% agree with myself.
But until the Den, you have experienced the major cornerstones in a game, Graphics, sound, music. The overall feel of the gameplay. And from that, I would take all your critique 100% seriously.
The only thing i see improving for the full playthrough, is getting in use with all the things that bother you.
I tried to play Dark Souls, I hated it. I tried again and i hated it. I tried a thrid time and hated it. Then I had a close friend starting to play the game, he did not like it that much either, but he gave me some tips and tricks how to endure it.
So I tried a fourth time, and got with much pain through the whole thing. I got used to it, like a bad smell. And the game seemed alright. But in the end, it was just a let down.
(I don't want to say nothing bad about Dark Souls, it's a fucking cool game, it was just not made for me.)
I have played over 20 hours of Wasteland 2 now.
This thread have had me get going further into the game
This is like therapy and it helps.
I am curious about the game, I want with all my heart for it to be an awesome game, but I just don't see it.
Me and RPG games.
So my gaming started on PC DOS and SEGA master system
Prince of persia, Xcom. Sonic, Mickey mouse and so on.
Then the SNES. Donkey Kong, Mortal kombat....
Then came the Microsoft PC
Stuff like Duke Nuke em, Quake, command and conquer. I liked that stuff. I had never played an RPG before.
But I got a demo of this game called Diablo. It blew my socks off. So I called around game stores, to see if I could get a cheaper used copy, and I was in luck. Diablo became in instant favorite.
Fallout(1997)
I remember reading a game magazine, and me and my brother looked at this game, Fallout. I had no idea what the fuck it was about, I just remember a very distinct art style.
One day, my brother came home, and said: Want to play some Fallout?
I must have been 9-10 years old at that time.
We installed the game, made our character, and had no idea what we were doing. But we were so into it.
At that time I did not even realise what i was playing. It was just this really interesting thing.
Fallout an instant favorite with me.
We finished Fallout. Got our hands on Fallout 2, again the game was just brilliant.
That was my introduction to RPG games, a new favorite genre of mine.
Then I read about Fallout Tactics for the PC. It sounded sort of odd. So I got a demo of it, and was suprised a relived that my beloved Fallout was treated well, an exciting new game that replaced the RPG elements from the first two games with action, and replaced the action from the first to games with RPG elements.
When I saw a let's play I wasteland 1, I thought; oh cool, Fallout Tactics is just a modern version of wasteland.
Then one day, my gaming magazine came with a demo disc with just 1 demo on it. Arcanum. So I installed this Arcanum game, not knowing what it was. I was some dude walking around a blimp crash, I was imidiately hooked and could not wait to get my hands on the full game, beacuse i knew this would be another amazing RPG, and it was very exciting that it was something else than Fallout.
It seemed there was a blackout period between Arcanum and Fallout 3, where I did not experience any super duper RPG games.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R
I played S.T.A.L.K.E.R, despite my gaming magazine giving it a negative review. I played STALKER, and i was fall in love. I have never loved something that scared me that much.
Fallout 3 - Vegas
I saw Fallout 3 was announced. A new company, completely new ideas. I got very very suspicious. But still, I could not wait for this game.
Fallout 3 finaly came, and just like wasteland 2, I was a bit confused. I din't really like, it was all kinds of alright. But it was fun.
Fallout New Vegas came out, it seemed like it was a more clever game than Fallout 3, but something was off.
Primordia
in 2012, I saw a screenshot on steam, for a game called Primordia. The art style looked interesting.
I got the game, and it was love at first site.
Other stuff
I am blanking right now on what else in the RPG genre i might have played.
I played Dragon Age 1, liked it.
I played Mass Effect 1, loved it. Mass Effect 2, just alright. Mass Effect 3, so bored I could not finish it.
I have played through the 2 recent Shadow Run games. A really cool universe. The game itself, seem sort of short on development money and time. Good game.
I have played the first Dark Souls. That game have me confused. It's both awesome and terrible.
I have tried to play Baldurs Gate, it seems like a cool game. But the fault is with me here, and I did not finish it.
I have tried Planescape: Torment. This one seems really cool. But again the fault is with me and I have not finished it.
I tried Divinity: Original sin. I seems to have big issues with tone, It feels very tedious and just plain uninteresting and boring.
I have tried the Beta of Underail. It seems promosing, and I will definetly pickup the full version.
The graphics are bit of a turn-off, but it seem they do the most with the graphics and I understand the choice of graphics.
ps. I hope people mod something else than Fallout things. Something new and exciting.