So the cursor is locked to the center of the screen, and can only be moved by moving the view?
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Beamdog's Infinity Engine and Neverwinter Nights console ports
- Thread starter Fry
- Start date
This looks quite tedious, too much d-padding instead of a tornado of shortcuts. Gamepads are quite good at this, and it's not like it's a brand new solution, console RTS games have been doing this since forever (Red Alert 95 on PS1 for example).
Of course these games will never be the same without a mouse, they should cut the pretenses and remake them all into the Dark Alliance engine. At least give me something new.
Of course these games will never be the same without a mouse, they should cut the pretenses and remake them all into the Dark Alliance engine. At least give me something new.
Sacibengala
Prophet
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- Aug 16, 2014
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- 1,154
What the hell these guys was thinking when they decided to do this atroucious, bizarre, crippled emulation of a game? (Besides money)
Duraframe300
Arcane
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- Dec 21, 2010
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- 6,395
That might take the cake for the shittiest console conversion of a game. And that's saying somethin'
Bioware had a port of the original Baldur's Gate for the Dreamcast in the works prior to the DC getting pulled from the market. Granted, the Dreamcast had mouse and keyboard peripherals. Still, I think this is great. Personally, I can't wait for a version of Icewind Dale that runs on a graphing calculator.
Lilura
RPG Codex Dragon Lady
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- Feb 13, 2013
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- 5,274
If they want to market this is a bit better, they should be showing bigger mobs and fireballs and shit going everywhere.
Instead, it seems like they got someone from PR to load each game up, play the FMVs, and run a newbie party straight into the first mob they see.
But then, maybe the game slows down to 2 FPS when there are more than 7 sprites on-screen, so maybe it's good marketing afterall.
Instead, it seems like they got someone from PR to load each game up, play the FMVs, and run a newbie party straight into the first mob they see.
But then, maybe the game slows down to 2 FPS when there are more than 7 sprites on-screen, so maybe it's good marketing afterall.
At least they learned their lesson in BG2 regarding the intro and chapter videos, I wish they would swallow their pride and restore the old videos in BG1 too, or give us the option to switch them in the menus at least.
Lilura
RPG Codex Dragon Lady
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You play the EEs? lol.
Yeah it's been a while though, they kept the videos from BG2 onward right? In BG1 they changed the whole intro and chapter videos to their own ones.
EDIT: Ah seems I misunderstood you, nwm lol
(i'm on linux and they work out of the box and im too lazy to tinker with wine and mods)
Sailor Woedica
Cipher
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- Oct 8, 2018
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- 1,121
I kind of stopped watching Critical Role because it got boring and like I still love the cast but yeah, I'm kind of over it...but you guys might be interested in this Baldur's gate thing they're doing next month https://critrole.com/hype-fall-programming-schedule/:
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- Jan 28, 2011
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https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2019-10-14-baldurs-gate-and-planescape-torment-on-console-let-a-legend-lieBaldur's Gate and Planescape Torment on console: let a legend lie
Infinity and beyond.
Imagine for a moment you don't know anything about Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment. (And maybe you really don't, they are 20 years old.) But you know they're games and you know they're old, and you probably know they're RPGs. Beyond that, it's scraps you've overhead in conversations. People saying "nothing comes close!" or "philosophical depth!" or "best RPG ever!". They don't talk mechanics, they talk themes. They talk about these games as if they were legends. Does it ever really occur to you what they're like to nuts-and-bolts play?
These games have just arrived on console for the very first time - on PlayStation 4, Xbox one and Nintendo Switch - and that's a pretty big deal. It's true: these are classic RPGs. In Baldur's Gate, you have an enormous adventure that takes you from fantasy hero right through to being a god over the course of two games, and in Planescape: Torment you have one of the most philosophically probing adventures I've ever played, set in one of the most bizarre worlds and supported by one of the most bizarre casts. And, oh my, what a twist.
Package all that up and it's a very enticing proposition, particularly as you get more than one game for your money (they are full-price, £40 packages). There are a few permutations of what you can buy. There's a Baldur's Gate pack, which bundles the two Baldur's Gate games plus their expansions - including the recently made Siege of Dragonspear. There's a Planescape: Torment and Icewind Dale double-pack, which includes expansions, and there's Neverwinter Nights pack coming 3rd December, which includes expansions as well as the best of the community-made campaigns.
This is Planescape: Torment. I'd forgotten how eccentric some of the writing was. And Morte, the floating skull companion, is still as sharp and brilliant as ever. It's like having Billy Crystal accompany you the whole way.
I tried the BG and PST packs on Nintendo Switch, and they're fine. I didn't notice any load times and the characters moved around the areas quickly and fluidly. Capable radial menus make sense of the enormous amount of tinkering there is to do in a game like this - rifling through bags, looking-up character sheets, swapping equipment, changing spells, etc. More importantly, for a game based so heavily on reading, there are quality of life improvements such as being able to increase the size of the text. At maximum size, it's readable on Nintendo Switch in handheld mode - the ultimate test. It's playable, in other words - it works.
But it's clear these games were never designed with consoles in mind. They are frustrating to play on a pad. I have lost count of the amount of times I've ended up accidentally triggering map zoom-out instead of the command I wanted. Between shoulder-buttoning through characters, trigger-pressing for radial menus, hitting X to enable hotbars and then individually select abilities, my brain was tied in a knot. It got easier with muscle memory but never comfortable, never intuitive.
On top of that, it's hard to see what's going on. I'm romantic about the old look and feel of the games, and the stuttery animation - I get a warm feeling in my heart to see it - but there's no getting away from the lack of clarity, particularly when the environments are darker and muddier in colour. And on the smaller Switch screen, the problem is exacerbated.
Icewind Dale's snow background helps the characters stand out, but inside - particularly on the Switch screen - it's less clear.
This isn't the fault of Skybound games or Beamdog. They have done everything they possibly can to polish these games up - given them all the surgery they can take. The problem is deeper, fundamental: these are old PC games. Mechanically, they creak, and they're out of their element. Frankly, they're not fun to play.
RPGs have improved so much in 20 years (hold your anger, I'll return to this). Underneath every new adventure is years of accrued learning. They have, in other words, progressed. That's not to say you can't enjoy older games - far from it. I love endlessly rerolling character stats (I genuinely do) and I love how unapologetically nerdy RPGs were when they weren't trying to broaden their appeal. But there's an inherent awkwardness to playing them now.
I bet you're fuming. How dare I suggest they're not very good - they're still a hundred times better than a hundred games these days. I'm half with you - I love those old games. But what I think you mean is the story and setting and characters are a hundred times better - the aspects which transcend the creaky old shells they're encased in. The aspects which become legendary in the retelling.
My heart flutters - even now - seeing a screen like this. I love it so!
To me, it's a bit like Pele versus Messi - two of the greatest footballers of all time. Show someone a video of Pele today and clearly you will see a gifted player, but you will be far more dazzled by videos of Messi. It doesn't mean Pele wasn't as good. It means Pele belonged to an era when football was played differently. You can only really appreciate the impact he had if you were there at the time, watching him. To try and understand his genius today, via crude video technology, does him a disservice. Better to trust the legend instead.
That's what I feel about these old RPGs. To play them today, on a platform they weren't intended for, in an era they don't belong to, doesn't feel right. Why not play one of the many other games inspired by them instead - give something new a chance? Look, if you've played these classic RPGs before and you're going back for old time's sake, by all means fill your boots. But if you really don't know anything about Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment, and you're coming at them for the first time, consider trusting the legend instead.
rusty_shackleford
Arcane
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- Jan 14, 2018
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- 50,754
I wonder what he considers more modern, better RPGs to be. Guess I'll go look through his reviews…
ah, here we go
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...2-deadfire-review-a-golden-doubloon-of-an-rpg
ah, here we go
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...2-deadfire-review-a-golden-doubloon-of-an-rpg
They ran out of old games to make enhanced editions of so now they have to port their enhanced editions to other systems.
Sailor Woedica
Cipher
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- Oct 8, 2018
- Messages
- 1,121
Ok maybe I'll just wait for Larian or some other company to remake the original Baldur's Gate in like a couple years before playing it.
Sure, maybe Larian would have the tact and common sense not to wipe the iconc Black Isle logo off the intro screen.
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