Maladict on 10/9/2007 at 22:11
I'm not such a big fan of linearity when it comes to RPG's. I mean the whole idea behind RPG's is that you get to play a role and play it how you want. It was kind of hard for me to really play my characters with Neverwinter Nights and Baldur's Gate how I wanted to play them. It was like playing pre-made characters. On the other hand with the Elder Scrolls series I can be almost anything, do almost anything ie. break into whatever house I want, kill anyone I want, go wherever I want, etc. But that is neither her nor there for the Thief boards. Different strokes for different folks.
nicked on 11/9/2007 at 07:41
I guess I just felt like Morrowind was more like "The Sims: Fantasy Edition".
Anyway, looking back over those screenshots, it's occured to me that the reason TDS looks the same everywhere is that heinous blue fog and light that appears eeeverywhere!
Rogue Keeper on 11/9/2007 at 08:42
TES may be good for "make your alternate fantasy life" kind of thing, but Baldur's Gates are *SUPERIOR* in story, character and dialogue writing with at least the same degree of variety of character creation and development.
D&D rules are much more sophisticated for an RPG and Forgotten Realms is much more richer world than TES.
One character in BGs represented by small portrait has much deeper and interesting personality than most polygonal Morrowind/Oblivion characters.
Nothing changed the fact that BG2 (and Planescape Torment!) are, still after after long years, the most emotionally and intellectually engaging fantasy stories brought to our PCs.
TES and BGs are just uncomparable. In fact I think they're made for quite different audience groups : BGs are for people who like strong central storyline, TES for people who enjoy more freedom in choice of action.
Not that I want to deliberately bash TES, I know that this 12 years old saga deserves some credit. It's just how I see things - I am one of those who demand strong central storyline which drives me on playing, in addition to certain freedom of action. I like these two things to be balanced.
Mikael Grizzly on 11/9/2007 at 08:58
You can bash Oblivion. It's a 12 years old saga that went downhill after they sacked the only remaining writer who wrote for previous titles and could provide the series with any resemblance of continuity or cohesion.
On topic, I find Thief Deadly Shadows and previous Thieves game on par. Granted, I first tried the third installment and now I'm playing throguh the games from the beginning (never finished DS, by the way).
Thief: Dark Project has a very coherent narrative and stylisation (I love steampunk. Generally all technology/medieval mixes appeal to me, like the Higardi from Wizardry 8) and the gameplay is simply awesome. However, I find sneaking actually less practical in DP, since it's harder to evaluate the shadows for me and thus hide.
Deadly Shadows is a more open experience (which finally introduced equipment and cash transferring from one mission to the other via the City) and I found the City levels absolutely fantasting and spent hours roaming the alleys and blackjacking City Watch and hapless citizens for their possessions.
Plus, the dynamic lighting system helps me find proper shadows fast, which is a big, big advantage. Although it's also it's fault the game looks so gloomy.
Rogue Keeper on 11/9/2007 at 09:04
Quote Posted by Mikael Grizzly
(never finished DS, by the way).
I hope you have been through Shalebridge Cradle at least, otherwise you missed the best thing in TDS and not only that.
Mikael Grizzly on 11/9/2007 at 09:10
Quote Posted by BR796164
I hope you have been through Shalebridge Cradle at least, otherwise you missed the best thing in TDS and not only that.
My brother completed it. I'm older by four years, he was thirteen.
Ugh, the most terrifying experience we had. Halfway through the mission, he had to save and quit and leave it lying around for a few days. The tension was simply too much.
Even though we nuked all the puppets.
Rogue Keeper on 11/9/2007 at 09:14
Right. A perfect combination of creeping dread, uneasiness, shock and depression - a combination which is hard to achieve in horror.
Null is a maniac.
I'm sure Cradle has been written with golden runes into the Book of History of Gaming as one of the scariest levels ever.
Ziemanskye on 11/9/2007 at 17:48
It even got a reference outside of videogames:
In White-Wolf's World of Darkness: Asylum, they credit the Cradle as being a great example of horror in videogames (and, appropriately, an Asylum)
nicked on 12/9/2007 at 07:57
I don't understand the hysterical hype surrounding the cradle. Sure, it's a pretty scary level, but it didn't do anything Return to the Cathedral didn't do. At the end of the day, it's just a bunch of pointless errands set by a ghost again. It's a fun, well-designed, scary level, but it doesn't deserve the fanatical worship it seems to receive.
Mikael Grizzly on 12/9/2007 at 08:53
To each his own. I believe someone gets more influenced by the sheer terror of the Haunted Cathedral while some will get mindraped by the creepiness of the Cradle.
