The Perfect Game - Page 2

Grumbold · May 21, 2003, 03:14

A perfect RPG and TBS please. The TBS does not have to be a Civ clone, but your poll doesn't allow that

Static Universe · May 21, 2003, 03:55

Quote:

Originally posted by Osweld

There is a MMORPG that is making this one of it's main features - Dark and Light

Beautifully rendered but I can imagine what it will look like with several hundred or so player characters running around trying to level up, or what the server load will be like.

Grumbold · May 21, 2003, 11:53

Asherons Call has been there and done that ... for the graphical quality available at the time. You could run across the entire continent if you chose with no zone loading to worry about.

General Ludd · May 21, 2003, 12:12

Quote:

Originally posted by Grumbold
Asherons Call has been there and done that ... for the graphical quality available at the time. You could run across the entire continent if you chose with no zone loading to worry about.

Yes, but it looked like crap. More importantly, it was crap.

Dauphin · May 21, 2003, 15:08

TBS is my favourite style of game.

Civ is a great genre, but I would really like to see the Historyline style of game brought upto date and then some. I enjoyed the alternation between move and attack turns - a novel way around the simultaneous play problem.

Boris Godunov · May 21, 2003, 15:58

What is Historyline?

Dauphin · May 21, 2003, 16:40

I would give the link, but the site is abandonware related and full of spy crap from Gator.

Quote:

History Line (released as The Great War: 1914 - 1918 in the US by SSI) is a World War 1 tactical wargame based on an improved and modified engined used in Blue Byte's earlier Battle Isle games. It is one of the few tactical World War 1 wargames to be made for the PC, and is a fun and enjoyable game, although shortcomings and awkward controls will take a while to get used to.
When the game starts, you see the Main Menu, and can change some of the options and the keyboard controls (the game also supports the mouse), and also enter a map code if you have unlocked hidden maps. Starting a new game, you can choose to play the Allies (France) or the Central Powers (Germany). The game starts with a battle in August 1914, with Germany invading France.

Every two months, there is a battle, for a total of 24. You also are encourged to try to preserve your units, for they will gain experience and become more powerful. The game is unique in having a split screen -- one side plays on the left side, and the other on the right. While the computer or the other player (History Line supports 'hot seat' play) is making their moves, you can also make yours on the other side. With the exception of different units or new maps, there is not much of a difference to seperate the two sides. Once you finish the game as one side, there is not much incentive to play the other.

The objective in History Line is simple -- in each battle, destroy the other sides army or take their HQ. Each turn is divided into two phases -- the Move Phase, and the Orders Phase. In the Move phase, you plan your moves, and then both sides move at the same time. In the Orders phase, you plan your attacks, then you see the results in a short graphical clip (which can be turned off once you get bored with them). The battle continues in this fashion until one side or the other is defeated. There are also depots and factories that start of either on your side or netrual. If you occupy them, you can 'use' units that are in them, as well as repair damaged units if you have enough energy points left. Units vary and are historically accurate, ranging from Infantry to Cavalry to various kinds of Artillery. However, they don't need to be resupplied, which reduces the historical accuracy of the game somewhat.

The graphics are simple VGA shapes and design, old looking but still pleasing to the eye and you can see everything clearly and recognize a unit from its graphic alone. The music and sound effects are good but get tedious after a while. One of my biggest complaints about the game is the controls. They are awkward, to say the least. To get a unit to do anything, you place the cursor over it and hold down the mouse button, which brings up a 'X' over the unit. Then, you move the mouse in one direction or the other to excute orders -- down to bring up information on the unit, or up to move it, for example, and then let the mouse button go to excute it. Slow, tedious, and awkward. You also do the same thing to switch from one mode to the other. Bringing units out of depots, factories, and your HQ is a similar process. You also need to press F1 to actually CONFIRM that you are ready to go on, and the only time you can save is by pressing the right key DURING that confirmation phase! Needless to say, you will HAVE to read the manual before you play this game. Its too bad, really, because besides the controls and the keyboard, the learning curve is not that bad.

In summary, this is a fun tactical wargame, unique for being one of the only ones to be set in the First World War. There is not a WHOLE lot to make this game stand out from other tactical wargames, though, although it is historicaly accurate for the most part and challening to play. Once you get used to the awkward controls, the game keeps

Adagio · May 21, 2003, 18:58

Quote:

Originally posted by Boris Godunov
What is Historyline?

Have you played Battle Isle (The first one)... it's kinda the same...

Great game, try to see if you can find it somewhere...

Boris Godunov · May 21, 2003, 22:44

Quote:

Originally posted by ADG

Have you played Battle Isle (The first one)... it's kinda the same...

Great game, try to see if you can find it somewhere...

Nope.

I can probably get History Line at Underdogs, though.

Adagio · May 22, 2003, 05:59

I have recently played a 100% java coded game, that's a little of the same, like HistoryLine and Battle Isle, though I don't remember the name of the game.

It's a free source code game... but still in beta.

Grumbold · May 22, 2003, 06:44

Quote:

Originally posted by Osweld
Yes, but it looked like crap. More importantly, it was crap.

Hey, it was the best looking MMORPG at the time it was released. EQ and UO didn't start overhauling their graphics for nothing

Sure it looks bad now we have 128Mb graphics cards in our machines and every modern MMORPG is doing their best to improve on the standards set (except maybe junk like Dransik.) I only had that much RAM in my PC and a 16Mb card when AC1 came out

Skanky Burns · May 22, 2003, 06:49

Hey, Dransik did update their graphics. Before they used to have graphics that would have been quite at home on an EGA 16 colour screen.

Boris Godunov · May 22, 2003, 12:10

Ultima IX: Ascension also featured the ability to freely roam the countryside without load times. And we all know how well that piece of utter, pestilent garbage turned out.

Urban Ranger · May 22, 2003, 12:17

Why are there 2 RTS choices?

Urban Ranger · May 22, 2003, 12:19

Quote:

Originally posted by Azazel
The perfect game will be a Real time RPG.

That would be very boring, because you'd face with long strentches where nothing happens.

Urban Ranger · May 22, 2003, 12:26

Quote:

Originally posted by Static Universe
Beautifully rendered but I can imagine what it will look like with several hundred or so player characters running around trying to level up, or what the server load will be like.

It should be your computer that does the rendering, not the server. So look for a top end video card.

Az · May 22, 2003, 13:18

Quote:

That would be very boring, because you'd face with long strentches where nothing happens.

MMORPG, but set in a real-life/sci-fi/post apocalyptic setting, rather than a fantazy one.

Boris Godunov · May 22, 2003, 13:44

Quote:

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
Why are there 2 RTS choices?

He's distinguishing between resource management/empire building RTS (Warcraft, AoE, TA, RoN) and purely tactical ones like Myth, wherein resource management doesn't figure into it.

Skanky Burns · May 22, 2003, 19:54

Quote:

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
It should be your computer that does the rendering, not the server. So look for a top end video card.

But the server has to send to each computer the location of other players in their viewing field (which is quite far so increases load), what each player is wearing and it has to continually send updated data on what each player is doing.

DrSpike · May 23, 2003, 08:26

I don't want the perfect game.............because then my lifelong search for it would be over.

A near perfect game with one minor imperfection I can gripe about for years would be preferable.

Urban Ranger · May 23, 2003, 12:51

Quote:

Originally posted by Azazel

Quote:

That would be very boring, because you'd face with long strentches where nothing happens.

MMORPG, but set in a real-life/sci-fi/post apocalyptic setting, rather than a fantazy one.

I still think any real-time RPG is going to be dead boring. The real beauty of RPG's are like that of novels, that time is compressable. It gets compressed when nothing happens, and it gets expanded when actions occur.

Quote:

Originally posted by Boris Godunov
He's distinguishing between resource management/empire building RTS (Warcraft, AoE, TA, RoN) and purely tactical ones like Myth, wherein resource management doesn't figure into it.

Ah, okay. There are all sorts of Civ like games too, which I took it to be some kind of empire-building, 4X type game. Civilization and Colonization are quite different.

Quote:

Originally posted by Skanky Burns
But the server has to send to each computer the location of other players in their viewing field (which is quite far so increases load), what each player is wearing and it has to continually send updated data on what each player is doing.

This is the same thing with Quake or even Warcraft III. The only difference is better graphics, which will be handled by the clients.

Az · May 23, 2003, 13:41

Quote:

I still think any real-time RPG is going to be dead boring. The real beauty of RPG's are like that of novels, that time is compressable. It gets compressed when nothing happens, and it gets expanded when actions occur.

There is a reason Everquest is goddamn addictive. It's good. Now I am not saying that such kind of activity is healthy or beneficial, but when discussing sigars, people don't go for the healthiest, right? a MMORPG, that would be in VR enviroment would be the perfect game, but It will have a devastating effect on society. The real one.

BustaMike · May 23, 2003, 18:41

Quote:

Originally posted by DrSpike
I don't want the perfect game.............because then my lifelong search for it would be over.

A near perfect game with one minor imperfection I can gripe about for years would be preferable.

So true. A perfect game means no one here can complain about it, and what fun is that?

Zero · May 24, 2003, 22:56

Fighting game genre has already been perfected before. Ask gamespot... they gave Soul Calibur a friggin 10.

I personally like Fighting games and RTS games being perfected because those games are all about strategy, skills and competition. Those genres in their finest form can be a work of art.

Im also really big on FPS, FPS is more about skills, not much emphasis on good strategy.

A perfect Sports game could be awesome, but why do I always find some way to abuse the system? Sports games strategies are always totally unlike real sport strategies.