Mac RPG's?

In article <mute.1064857613.TakeThisOut@sidehack.sat.gweep.net>,
mute.TakeThisOut@sidehack.sat.gweep.net (Josh Brandt) wrote:

 > In article <slinberg-E6BC38.00592829092003.TakeThisOut@netnews.attbi.com>,
 > Steve Linberg <slinberg.TakeThisOut@crocker.com> wrote:
  > >In article <mute.1064781831.TakeThisOut@sidehack.sat.gweep.net>,
 >
  > >Yuck! Pthp! Emacs user since 1986 or so. Vi doesn't fit in my brain.
  > >:)
 >
 > Ew!

M-x infect-vi

*LOVE* emacs. I never leave it. Gimme a shell buffer and there's
nothing I can't do. :)

  > >I need the keypad for movement, and all my macros are bound to
  > >ctrl-keypad combos, and my brain can't function without them. :/
 >
 > Wuss! I bet you play with graphical tiles and everything. No more tense
 > battles against little hordes of d's and o's, but little tiny pictures! Man!

Now now, no need to be nasty. :) Graphical tiles and sounds are for
wusses. I am intimately familiar with the terror of a light green 'd' -
or the dark gray 'P', which I've only seen once.

I actually wrote a review of Angband for MacGamer a couple of years
ago... (*digs*)... <http://www.macgamer.com/features/?id=1016>

Hell. Maybe I'll just plug my keyboard in for a few minutes...<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

In article <slinberg-A1DF90.14531129092003.DeleteThis@netnews.attbi.com>,
Steve Linberg <slinberg.DeleteThis@crocker.com> wrote:

 >*LOVE* emacs. I never leave it. Gimme a shell buffer and there's
 >nothing I can't do. :)

Yeah, actually, I watched my boss (who has been using emacs since there's
been emacs to use) do some shell things in a shell buffer, and, yeah. Wow. I
can see why people like that.

 >Now now, no need to be nasty. :) Graphical tiles and sounds are for
 >wusses. I am intimately familiar with the terror of a light green 'd' -
 >or the dark gray 'P', which I've only seen once.

Heh. 8)

 >I actually wrote a review of Angband for MacGamer a couple of years
 >ago... (*digs*)... <http://www.macgamer.com/features/?id=1016>

Ah ha! Neat. I'll go check it out...

Josh

--
J. Brandt / me.DeleteThis@solipsism.net / mute.DeleteThis@sidehack.gweep.net<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

On 9/25/03 9:23 AM, in article BB98648B.23765%txa1265@hotmail.com, "Michael
Anderson" <txa1265.TakeThisOut@hotmail.com> wrote:

 > Hi:
 >
 > I just finished Neverwinter Nights, my first real RPG. I liked it a lot
 > more than I expected (I'm a FPS-er by nature), and was wondering what others
 > were out there and what people thought about them? Obviously Mac, and need
 > to run on OS X, either native or Classic.
 >
 > Thanks,
 >
 > Mike
 >

OK, thanks again for all of the insight. I tried the Fallout Demo, but it
wouldn't run on my 12" PB G4. Oh well... Diablo I and II ... Still not for
me.

Thing is, I really like Neverwinter Nights. I got SoU installed and am
playing that, which is also good. I'm looking for something similar - some
action, but really turn-based. Also, I am not a 'form a party' person
(remember I'm a FPS guy), and the single henchman from NWN works well for
me.

So I'm renewing my .Mac and got the 'free gift' email - I don't want the
Sims or Everquest, so I took the Apple Store coupon. BGII is $30, Dungeon
Siege is $50.

What are the opinions on these?

Thanks again,

Mike<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

Michael Anderson <txa1265 DeleteThis @hotmail.com> wrote:

 > BGII is $30, Dungeon Siege is $50.

Dungeon Siege is pretty much Diablo in the best 3D-World ever (better
than NWN - no loading screens and much more realistic surroundings), you
wade through hordes of enimies while ever improving your weapons/armor.
Your charadcter improves with how he fights (magic, melee or missile
weapons, a nice touch), but whith an absolut linear gameplay and no
story beside "You're destined to get rid of the Evil™ that threatens the
world", DS IMNSHO has aLmost no replay value.

BG II continues the story of BG with (IMHO) better gaphics, a great
story and the best NPC interaction ever - humor, romance, love and
hatred depend on what you "speak" during scripted conversation with your
comrades. Still a fight against almost ultimate Evil™, but much more
interesting and with great replay value. A slight backdraw is that the
final "Throne of Bhaal" add-on was never made available for Mac.

Rainer<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

In article <BBA05F37.2473B%txa1265@hotmail.com>, Michael Anderson
<txa1265.DeleteThis@hotmail.com> wrote:

 >
 > OK, thanks again for all of the insight. I tried the Fallout Demo, but it
 > wouldn't run on my 12" PB G4. Oh well... Diablo I and II ... Still not for
 > me.

The fallout demo is based on the "Classic" fallout. The current version
supported by MacPlay needs OS-X but runs correctly.

Of course, that still won't help you try-before-you-buy.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

In article <021020030654129005%wharris@mail.airmail.net>, Billy Harris
<wharris RemoveThis @mail.airmail.net> wrote:

 > In article <BBA05F37.2473B%txa1265@hotmail.com>, Michael Anderson
 > <txa1265 RemoveThis @hotmail.com> wrote:
 >
  > >
  > > OK, thanks again for all of the insight. I tried the Fallout Demo, but it
  > > wouldn't run on my 12" PB G4. Oh well... Diablo I and II ... Still not for
  > > me.
 >
 > The fallout demo is based on the "Classic" fallout. The current version
 > supported by MacPlay needs OS-X but runs correctly.
 >
 > Of course, that still won't help you try-before-you-buy.

True, but the demo was actually a sales loser, in that it doesn't give
you a real feel for the game. (sort of like the NWN tech demo).

I know I DIDN'T buy Fallout initially because of the demo, but once I
got the full game I loved it!<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

On 10/3/03 1:08 AM, in article blj083$p8v$0@216.39.173.68, "RobertVB"
<nospam RemoveThis @4me.com> wrote:

 > In article <021020030654129005%wharris@mail.airmail.net>, Billy Harris
 > <wharris RemoveThis @mail.airmail.net> wrote:
 >
  >> In article <BBA05F37.2473B%txa1265@hotmail.com>, Michael Anderson
  >> <txa1265 RemoveThis @hotmail.com> wrote:
  >>
   >>>
   >>> OK, thanks again for all of the insight. I tried the Fallout Demo, but it
   >>> wouldn't run on my 12" PB G4. Oh well... Diablo I and II ... Still not for
   >>> me.
  >>
  >> The fallout demo is based on the "Classic" fallout. The current version
  >> supported by MacPlay needs OS-X but runs correctly.
  >>
  >> Of course, that still won't help you try-before-you-buy.
 >
 > True, but the demo was actually a sales loser, in that it doesn't give
 > you a real feel for the game. (sort of like the NWN tech demo).
 >
 > I know I DIDN'T buy Fallout initially because of the demo, but once I
 > got the full game I loved it!

So ... I'm being pushed back to look at Fallout, away from Dungeon Siege
(too Diablo-ish) and towards BGII as well.

How is managing henchmen in Fallout and BGII - I know BG has larger parties,
and I'm much more of the 'solo with helper if I must' from my FPS background
.... I've had to adjust to NWN and SoU as it is ...

Thanks,

Mike<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

Michael Anderson <txa1265 RemoveThis @hotmail.com> wrote in
<BBA2C98B.24CC9%txa1265@hotmail.com>:

 >On 10/3/03 1:08 AM, in article blj083$p8v$0@216.39.173.68, "RobertVB"
 > <nospam RemoveThis @4me.com> wrote:
 >
  >> In article <021020030654129005%wharris@mail.airmail.net>, Billy Harris
  >> <wharris RemoveThis @mail.airmail.net> wrote:
  >>
   >>> In article <BBA05F37.2473B%txa1265@hotmail.com>, Michael Anderson
   >>> <txa1265 RemoveThis @hotmail.com> wrote:
   >>>
   >>>>
   >>>> OK, thanks again for all of the insight. I tried the Fallout Demo,
   >>>> but it wouldn't run on my 12" PB G4. Oh well... Diablo I and II ...
   >>>> Still not for me.
   >>>
   >>> The fallout demo is based on the "Classic" fallout. The current version
   >>> supported by MacPlay needs OS-X but runs correctly.
   >>>
   >>> Of course, that still won't help you try-before-you-buy.
  >>
  >> True, but the demo was actually a sales loser, in that it doesn't give
  >> you a real feel for the game. (sort of like the NWN tech demo).
  >>
  >> I know I DIDN'T buy Fallout initially because of the demo, but once I
  >> got the full game I loved it!
 >
 >So ... I'm being pushed back to look at Fallout, away from Dungeon Siege
 >(too Diablo-ish) and towards BGII as well.
 >
 >How is managing henchmen in Fallout and BGII - I know BG has larger
 >parties, and I'm much more of the 'solo with helper if I must' from my FPS
 >background ... I've had to adjust to NWN and SoU as it is ...
 >

In BGII, you aren't *required* to build a party. Hard-core BGII players run
their main character through solo.

The NPCs, though, add a lot to the game. Most of them have their own quests.
There is a lot of in-game banter between them which adds to the overall feel
of the game.

As for managing them, in BGII, you have complete control over the NPCs, what
armor they wear, what weapons they use, what spells they memorize, etc. Since
that is a lot to manage during combat, you are able to pause the game (hit
spacebar) and issue orders. If you want to play turn-based style, you can have
the game auto-pause at the end of each combat round.

I've found that combat isn't *too* hard in BG2, especially with a full party
of six. I'll probably try soloing a character if I play it again, just to see
how much more challenging it is.

Hound

 >Thanks,
 >
 >Mike
 >
 ><!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

Michael Anderson <txa1265 DeleteThis @hotmail.com> wrote:

 > How is managing henchmen in Fallout and BGII - I know BG has larger parties,
 > and I'm much more of the 'solo with helper if I must' from my FPS background
 > ... I've had to adjust to NWN and SoU as it is ...

In Fallout you can manage the henchmen's inventory and he'll use it
according to his skills, in Fallout 2 there a dialogs which allow you to
tweak his behavior (similar to NWN with SoU installed or the henchman AI
hack). The henchmen will follow you around but interact and fight on
their own, and there's no sprite adaption to the armor he is wearing.
Granted, that is sometimes a bummer, but Fallout makes up with the most
interessting sci/fi RPG plot out there.

In the BG and Icewind Dale series you can handle inventory (sprites are
adapted ) *AND* interaction / fighting. There are some simple scripts
you can assign like "fight enemies on sight", "just fight back attacking
enemies" and "run like the coward you are" ;-) There are 3. party
scripts that tweak this much more,like, your cleric will step in and
heal you if your health drops beneath 40%, but I never used themm. You
can select any henchman, let him walk around or choose a weapon/spell to
let him fire it off at the aim of you select. So BG & Co. are king in
Henchmen (resp. party member) handling with a solid Fantasy story of
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons settings in the Forgotten Realms world.

Rainer<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

In article <BBA2C98B.24CC9%txa1265@hotmail.com>,
Michael Anderson <txa1265 DeleteThis @hotmail.com> wrote:

 >So ... I'm being pushed back to look at Fallout, away from Dungeon Siege
 >(too Diablo-ish) and towards BGII as well.

Fallout is GOOD. Like, really good.

 >How is managing henchmen in Fallout and BGII - I know BG has larger parties,
 >and I'm much more of the 'solo with helper if I must' from my FPS background
 >... I've had to adjust to NWN and SoU as it is ...

Hm.

Particular henchmen in Fallout have an unfortunate tendency to stand behind
you and accidentally machine-gun you. I solved that by not giving my
henchman a machine gun. One in particular, if you give him a good pistol,
he's wicked voodoo in a firefight, and will do lots of nice targeted things.
You don't control him directly, though, although you can talk to him and so
on. It's much like NWN, actually. I suspect that's not a coincidence.

You can also pick up a dog along the way, if you do some things cleverly.
DO SO. Dogmeat kicks all the ass. (Or, really, _bites_ all the ass.) I've
had ol' Dogmeat chomp some pretty nasty things to death for me.

In Fallout 2, crew management is much better, and they're less likely to
shoot you by accident.

Josh
--
J. Brandt / me DeleteThis @solipsism.net / mute DeleteThis @sidehack.gweep.net<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's? 

In article <Xns9409555676323pziselbergerinamecom.RemoveThis@130.133.1.4>,
Hound of Cullen <s2szalbxro001.RemoveThis@sneakemail.com> wrote:

 >In BGII, you aren't *required* to build a party. Hard-core BGII players run
 >their main character through solo.
 >
 >The NPCs, though, add a lot to the game. Most of them have their own quests.
 >There is a lot of in-game banter between them which adds to the overall feel
 >of the game.

Speaking of this sort of thing, I SO wish that somebody would port
Planescape: Torment to the Mac.

Josh
--
J. Brandt / me.RemoveThis@solipsism.net / mute.RemoveThis@sidehack.gweep.net<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Mac RPG's?