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Other Games, Development, & Campaigns => Other Games => Topic started by: UmaSama on August 29, 2006, 01:21:18 AM

Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 29, 2006, 01:21:18 AM
Well, as said on the title.
I'll post one per week, full reviews for you RPG lovers.
And without further waiting, here's the first on what I hope will be a long list.
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/sidenav/bg_header.jpg) (http://www.bioware.com/games/baldurs_gate/)
This was the best Pc Rpg of all times untill it was beaten to dust by it's sequel, wich by the way it's still the King of pc rpg's (I don't care what you say Neverwinter Nights is not better that BG2).
It was the First of 8 games builted using the Infinity Engine (with minor upgrades) Being Ice Wind Dale II the last.
The sound was really good, and the music did a great job at inmersing you into the game.
As for the gameplay, there's not much to say, it's actually quite easy, with a lot of options and menues you can access using the mouse, or the keyboard. And you don't even have to know a damn thing about D&D to play it.
The game presented an outstanding story that got better by the end of the game, and in the same way continued to improve on the sequel till it became one of the most memorable (If not the most) stories ever on a Pc Game.
From Bioware site: Baldur's Gate Story (http://www.bioware.com/games/baldurs_gate/game_info/story/)

A glimpse to the look of the Infinity Engine:
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/gallery/bg_screens_1/bgscreens_1_1_small.jpg)
(http://www.bioware.com/gallery/index.html?galleryID=28&screensize=2&screenimage=4)
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/gallery/bg_screens_1/bgscreens_1_4_small.jpg)
More pics here. (http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/sidenav/sidenav_screenshots.gif)

Baldur's Gate Reviews
Check out these Baldur's Gate Reviews!
    * Gamecenter - 5/5
    * Adrenaline Vault - 5/5 (Seal of Excellence)
    * Computer Games Online - 5/5
    * Next Generation - 5/5
    * GamePen - 5/5
    * Game Fan - 98/100
    * GameSpot UK - 9.5/10
    * IGNPC - 9.4/10
    * GameSpot - 9.2/10
    * Game Revolution - A grade
"Baldur's Gate largely manages to meet, and even surpass, gamers' high expectations for this ambitious game." GameSpot.

Read the awards Baldur's Gate won! (http://www.bioware.com/games/baldurs_gate/awards/)

And that's why this is a Game every Roleplayer Must own.
Well, hope you've enjoyed it.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Settembrini on August 29, 2006, 02:41:41 AM
Fallout is much, much better than BG.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 29, 2006, 03:26:36 AM
Quote from: Settembrini
Fallout is much, much better than BG.

I agree that Fallout is a Great game, with capital G, but I'm not sure if I agree with you about it being better than BG.
Maybe I'm being a bit subjective, and let myself carry away by my BG fanatism.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: RPGPundit on August 29, 2006, 03:33:50 AM
Stickied with the promise that its going to be a regular feature!

RPGPundit
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JamesV on August 29, 2006, 06:24:55 AM
Nice read UmaSama. I never got the chance to play BG, so it was nice to read more about it.

It may be nostalgia coloring my vision, but I have to nominate the first two gold box games for SSI's Forgotten Realms series. Pool of Radiance and Curse of the Azure Bonds were awesome classic-style AD&D games with a fun story attached.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: jrients on August 29, 2006, 01:19:01 PM
What kind of rig would I need to run Baldur's Gate?  The last machine I owned primarily for gaming was a C64.  I know nothing about video cards and such.

Personally, I found Ultima IV to be a mind-blowingly awesome experience.  I haven't played that many PC games since the 80s, other than the time I nearly hosed my academic career by solving Doom instead of studying for finals.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 29, 2006, 01:27:25 PM
Quote from: jrients
What kind of rig would I need to run Baldur's Gate?  The last machine I owned primarily for gaming was a C64.  I know nothing about video cards and such.

Personally, I found Ultima IV to be a mind-blowingly awesome experience.  I haven't played that many PC games since the 80s, other than the time I nearly hosed my academic career by solving Doom instead of studying for finals.


Baldur's Gate was released on November 30th 1998, so the requirements are Xtremely low:
The system requirements for Baldur's Gate are as follows:
                             Required              Recommended
Processor                Pentium 166 MHz    Pentium 200 MHz with MMX
Operating System    Windows 95/98
RAM                         16 MB*                  32 MB
DirectX                  DirectX 3.0          DirectX 5.0
Video Card    DirectX video card with 2 MB    DirectX video card with 4 MB
Sound Card    DirectX certified sound card
CD-ROM Drive                      4X                         8X
Hard Disk Installation            320 MB                      570 MB
Multiplayer    Modem-to-modem, null modem, IPX, TCP/IP

* 32 MB required for multiplayer
   
As far as I can remember Ultima was an xtremely straighforward hack & slash dungeon crawl, so if you really enjoyed it, you're gonna love BG, because is by no means straighforward. BG did an outstanding work in recreating the fealing of paper & dice RPG's on Video Games.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: jrients on August 29, 2006, 01:31:48 PM
Actually, Ultima IV had some great puzzle elements, nifty overland exploration, and a pretty cool plot.  Even for its time the graphics were a bit crude but the other elements of the game were all top notch.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 29, 2006, 01:37:26 PM
Quote from: jrients
Actually, Ultima IV had some great puzzle elements, nifty overland exploration, and a pretty cool plot.  Even for its time the graphics were a bit crude but the other elements of the game were all top notch.


My apologies then. The fact is that on the Ultima golden era I was on primary school and the only games I cared about were Mortal Kombat, and crappy plataformers.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Yamo on August 29, 2006, 02:36:43 PM
Ultima Underworld and its sequel.

These were the two 3D, first-person, single-character Ultima games released in the early 90s.  I had heard a lot about games being "immersive" up until that time, but this was the first time I really felt like I was there when playing a game. It was like *I was really in that huge dungeon*  Still incredibly immersive, deep and caprivating to this day, if you can stand Doom-era 3D.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Dacke on August 29, 2006, 07:53:59 PM
Dude, you can't mention Baldur's Gate without mentioning the best game to use that engine: Planescape Torment.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 30, 2006, 12:44:38 AM
Quote from: Dacke
Dude, you can't mention Baldur's Gate without mentioning the best game to use that engine: Planescape Torment.


Do not get ahead of yourself buddy, read carefully the first post, I said that BG was the first of 8 games builted using the Infinity Engine, and I also said that I was going to post a game every week. Of course I thought about Planescape Torment, when thinking of games to include in the list, I would never leave one of the greatest games ever outside, so rest assure that you'll get to see Planescape here on the foreseeable future.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JongWK on August 30, 2006, 11:21:43 AM
Tetris.

If you really need an explanation as to why, then you've never played the game for more than 5 minutes.  :p
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 30, 2006, 04:42:18 PM
Quote from: JongWK
Tetris.

If you really need an explanation as to why, then you've never played the game for more than 5 minutes.  :p


I was saving Tetris for the "Games every Obsesive Compulsive must have" thread:D
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JongWK on August 30, 2006, 11:08:54 PM
I love the Game Boy version. It was as close as you can get to monochrome Nirvana.

I remember scoring more than 220,000 points sometimes. :arcade:
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Dominus Nox on August 31, 2006, 12:01:43 AM
Deus Ex, the original PC version.

Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising.

Tron 2.0
 
Homeworld and homeworld Cataclysm, avoid homeworld 2.

Battlezone for the PC.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 31, 2006, 02:14:25 AM
Quote from: Dominus Nox
Deus Ex, the original PC version.


Deus Ex, what an excellent game, one of the best Action/Rpg's ever made for the Pc, do not worry I'll make a review of it on the future, but if you or anyone else is interested here's (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/deusex/player_review.html?id=307968) a short reviw I posted on gamespot.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Lawbag on August 31, 2006, 07:55:10 AM
in its day, Baldur's Gate was demanding of your PC, as well as crucifying your hard drive for a full install.

But these days, a 3 or 4 year old machine could handle it easily
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on August 31, 2006, 01:02:21 PM
Quote from: Lawbag
in its day, Baldur's Gate was demanding of your PC, as well as crucifying your hard drive for a full install.

But these days, a 3 or 4 year old machine could handle it easily


Indeed, the full install demanded 2 to 2.5 gB, wich is a lot considering that in 1998 most HDD had only 10GB capacity.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: S. John Ross on September 01, 2006, 09:30:56 PM
Quote from: jrients
Actually, Ultima IV had some great puzzle elements, nifty overland exploration, and a pretty cool plot.  Even for its time the graphics were a bit crude but the other elements of the game were all top notch.

I remember how thrilled I was ... just thrilled ... the first time I stumbled on one of those sliding-open-when-the-moon-is-right gate things.

And of course: Denis Loubet art!

Which is why Uresia has sliding-open-gate thingies and (in the new edition) even a bit of Denis Loubet art. Both are there for Ultima IV.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: jrients on September 01, 2006, 10:26:13 PM
Ah, man.  Now I'm getting misty-eyed with nostalgia.  I totally agree that the art was fabulous.  Some days I want to run a game set in Britannia just so I can so my players the books and the map.

You know what was almost as cool as the moon-gates?  Discovering and using the balloon.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Settembrini on September 02, 2006, 03:14:42 AM
Final Fantasy Legend I-III on the Game Boy. 'Nuff said.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JamesV on September 02, 2006, 07:02:01 AM
For those old-schooler types, the gaming doesn't get more interesting the Dark Heart of Uukrul. It's mindblowing when you find out that one of the puzzle-mazes you've been navigating is a giant crossword puzzle.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: The Yann Waters on September 02, 2006, 12:13:13 PM
Quote from: jrients
Actually, Ultima IV had some great puzzle elements, nifty overland exploration, and a pretty cool plot.
Not to mention its emphasis on the personality mechanics of the Virtues, which was rather groundbreaking at the time: it's a game in which the goal is not so much to "defeat evil" as "achieve goodness".

My nomination for the list? Darklands.
Title: The King is Back!!
Post by: UmaSama on September 11, 2006, 10:49:17 PM
When Planescape Torment was released on 1999 a lot of people said that it was the best pc rpg ever made, thing said about Baldur's Gate only one year before, and Torment was so excellent that almost nobody could have imagined that only one year later (2000) would be the sequel of the game he had beaten a year before to become the king of pc rpg's that had come to retake the crown, that was how good Baldur's Gate II Shadow of Amn was.
Baldur's Gate II it's an outstanding gaming experience, with an improvement on the Infinity engine that gives a graphic boost from the last installment, with an enhancement on the gameplay, with more spells, more Npc's, more options, a story that got even deeper, and a whole lot of fun.

From Bioware site> "Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn is the critically acclaimed masterpiece that continues the story told in the original. Featuring improved visuals, over 100 additional spells, brand new monsters, and more, Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn is one of the most epic roleplaying adventures for the PC. "

I remember playing BG2 for at least 4 or 5 hours a day for months, I started it several times just to experiment with different characters, and it was outstandingly fun every time, the main plot its absolutly magnificent, and the side quests provide a lot of xtra hours of fun.
I trully recommend everyone who hasn's played it yet to do so, for you won't be dissapointed.

The improved looks on the Infinity engine
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/gallery/soa_screens_1/soascreens_1_1_small.jpg)
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/gallery/soa_screens_1/soascreens_1_2_small.jpg)
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/gallery/soa_screens_1/soascreens_1_4_small.jpg)
(http://www.bioware.com/_global/images/gallery/soa_screens_1/soascreens_1_5_small.jpg)

Baldur's Gate 2 Awards> Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn was named 2001 Game of the Year by the following publications:

    * Game Over Magazine

Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn was named 2001 Role Playing Game of the Year by the following publications:

    * Gamespot
    * Gamespot - Readers Choice
    * Game Over Magazine

Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn was named 2000 Game of the Year by the following publications:

    * MSNBC
    * Electric Playground
    * Gamers Pulse
    * Desslock

Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn was named 2000 Role Playing Game of the Year by the following publications:

    * USA Today
    * GameSpot
    * Voodoo Extreme
    * CNET Gamecenter
    * IGN.com
    * Desslocks Best of 2000
    * GameSpy
    * Gamers Pulse
    * Gamepower

Other Awards won by Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn:

    * 2002 - G4TV - Inon Zur and his music for BG II was highlighted on G4TV as one of the best game soundtracks ever (as voted by the G4TV viewers).
    * 2001 - PC Gamer - Top 100 Games 2001 - BG II at #3
    * 2001 - PC Gamer Mag. (UK - Dec. 2001) - Readers Top 100 Picks - BG I & II at #7
    * 2001 - PC Gamer Magazine (Dec 2001) - 50 Best Games - BG Series at #13
    * 2001 - Game Over Magazine - Best Story of the Year
    * 2001 - Adrenaline Vault - Reviewer’s Choice
    * 2001 - GameSpy -  Gold Gaming Excellence Medal
    * 2001 - 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Award - Winner for Outstanding Achievement in Character or Story Development
    * 2001 - 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Award - Finalists for PC Game of the Year
    * 2001 - 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Award - Finalists for PC RPG of the Year
    * 2001 - 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Award - Finalists for Game Play Engineering
    * 2000 - PC Gamer - Shadows of Amn - Editor’s Choice Award
    * 2000 - Electric Playground - Shadows of Amn - PC Game of the Year 2000
    * 2000 - Desslock - Best Story of the Year
    * 2000 - Desslock - Best Gameplay & Best Interface
    * 2000 - IGNPC’s - Readers Choice Award
    * 2000 - GameSpy - Gamers Choice Award
    * 1999 - Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences - PC RPG of the Year
 
BG2 Reviews
    *  Adrenaline Vault - 5/5 (Seal of Excellence)
    * Computer Games Online - 5/5
    * Computer Gaming World - 5/5
    * GamePro.com - 5/5
    * Next Generation - 5/5
    * Gamezilla - 96/100
    * Electric Playground - 96/100
    * GameSpot UK - 9.5/10
    * Voodoo Extreme - 95/100 (Can-O-Whoop Ass)
    * Happy Puppy - 9.5/10
    * PC Gamer - 91/100
    * GameSpy - 92/100
    * GameSpot - 9.2/10
    * FiringSquad - 93/100 (Editor’s Choice)
    * Gamecenter - 9/10


The Veredict The truthfull King of Pc Rpg's.
Title: I know it's not an Rpg but it beats the crap out of a lot of them!!
Post by: UmaSama on September 20, 2006, 02:39:09 PM
(http://i.i.com.com/cnet.g2/images/2003/all/boxshots2/256222.jpg)

First a little review by me off course:p

 The Best RTS of 2002, and still fighting for 1st place.
Wow, where should I begin?
Well graphics are excellent, sound it's awesome, especially the music, highly immersive, mostly at the end of the game in the final battle, gameplay is extraordinarly easy, and when combining mouse and keyboard you'll get to play at an extremely fast and enjoyable pace. The only flaw (little one) I could encounter concerning gameplay is the fact that when you turn the camera you can only do it by 180º, and it doesn't lock there it goes back to original possition, but as I already said it's a minor flaw.
But the best of this extraordinary game are not the graphics, nor the sound, neither the gameplay, it's the STORY, and what a story, better than most RPG games stories, in fact I liked the story of this game so much that after playing it I managed to get all Warcraft RPG books; well continuing with the story matter, one of the best things about the story is that you get to not only to see all the views of it, but you actually live all the different views, I mean you play the Human part of the story, you play the undead part, the Orc part, and the Night Elf part, and by when the game is over you find that you were part of every single part of this magnificent story, even the "evil" ones.
So I say that this is the best Epic RTS to be released in a lot of years, (at least untill the next Blizzard RTS production).
So if you're thinking on buying this game, think no more...BUY IT!!!

Now some pics for you to remember greatness:
(http://www.blizzard.com/images/war3/screens/s13-large.jpg)
(http://www.blizzard.com/images/war3/screens/s15-large.jpg)
(http://www.blizzard.com/images/war3/screens/s20-large.jpg)

And lastly the award account (carefull it's long:D )

    *  Computer Strategy Game of the Year - Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences
    * Game of the Year - Gamespot
    * Game of the Year - Macworld
    * Game of the Year - XSages
    * Game of the Year - Fragland
    * Game of the Year - Cinescape
    * Game of the Year - Gaming Illustrated
    * Best PC Game of the Year - GameNOW
    * Best Real-Time Strategy Game of the Year - PC Gamer
    * Best Multiplayer Strategy Game of the Year - Gamespot
    * Best PC Strategy Game of the Year - GameNOW
    * Best PC Strategy Game of the Year - Game Revolution
    * Best PC Strategy Game of the Year - Telefragged
    * Best PC Strategy Game of the Year - OCAddiction
    * Best PC Strategy Game of the Year (Reader's Choice) - GameSpot
    * Readers’ Choice 2002: Best PC Game of the Year - GamePro
    * Strategy Game of the Year - Gamer's Pulse
    * Gamer's Choice: Overall PC Game of the Year - Gamespy
    * Gamer's Choice: PC Strategy Game of the Year - Gamespy
    * Best Non-Interactive 3D Game Cinematics - International 3D Awards
    * Best Cinematic - IGN
    * Best CG Cinematics (tie) - Gamespy's Best of E3 2002 Awards
    * Best Opening Movie - Game Chronicles
    * Editor's Choice (10 out of 10 rating) - Game Chronicles
    * Editor's Choice (9.6 out of 10 rating) - Gaming Illustrated
    * Editor's Choice (9.5 out of 10 rating) - SLCCentral
    * Editor's Choice (9.5 out of 10 rating) - The Entertainment Depot
    * Editor's Choice (95 out of 100 rating) - Action Trip
    * Editor's Choice (94 out of 100 rating) - PC Gamer
    * Editor's Choice (93 out of 100 rating) - Gaming Excellence
    * Editor's Choice (93 out of 100 rating) - Invisible Dream
    * Editor's Choice (9.3 out of 10 rating) - IGN
    * Editor's Choice (92 out of 100 rating) - Gamitopia
    * Editor's Choice (9.1 out of 10 rating) - Firing Squad
    * Editor's Choice (8.7 out of 10 rating) - Strategy Gaming Online
    * 5 out of 5 rating - Games First
    * 5 out of 5 rating (Award for Excellence) - Wargamer.com
    * 5 out of 5 rating (Seal of Excellence) - The Adrenaline Vault
    * 6 out of 6 rating (Drool Award) - Gamers Depot.com
    * 9.7 out of 10 rating (Outstanding Game Award) - GameZone.com
    * 97 out of 100 rating - Wired Play
    * 96 out of 100 rating (Award of Excellence) - The Gamers Temple
    * 95 out of 100 rating (GG Platinum Award) - Gone Gold
    * 93 out of 100 rating - Game Rankings
    * 9.3 out of 10 rating - Geek Haven
    * 9.3 out of 10 rating (Game of the Month July 2002) - GameSpot
    * 92 out of 100 rating (AOG Approved) - All Out Games
    * 9 out of 10 rating (Mindless Choice Award) - Mindless Games
    * 90 out of 100 rating (Gamers' Choice Award) - Game Over
    * 8.9 out of 10 rating (Silver Hell Award) - Gamer's Hell
    * 4 out of 5 rating (Top Game) - Games Domain
    * Best Animation 2003 - Digital Media World
    * Best Cut Scenes 2002 - XSages
    * Best Cinematic/Cut-Scene Audio - Music4Games.net
Title: Those were the days
Post by: UmaSama on October 03, 2006, 03:44:04 PM
Every gamer with at least 15 years old will recognize the next game, and most of them I'm sure will tell you it's one of the best games ever.

Might & Magic VII: For Blood & Honor

First of all I already know that it was M&M VI the one that made this amazing saga Reborn, it marked the end of the old M&M, and the beginnning of the new M&M saga, but I decided to point M&M 7 as the best in series because it took everything M&M 6 had and improved it.
To tell you how great this game was I would only have to say that it was with this game that I broke my record of straight hours playing a single game, you may not believe it but I played it for 18 straight hours!! I kid you not, I ate while playing, and only stopped to go to the bathroom, needless to say I fell unconciouss when done playing.

Anyone remember this??:
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/9/143119/mightan7_screen001.jpg)

or this??:
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/9/143119/mightan7_screen002.jpg)

meteor shower over the undead, that's what I call roleplaying :D
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/9/143119/mightan7_screen004.jpg)

M&M 7 was huge, it had a vast world to explore, over a hundred quests, and a good story, that depending on your actions turned into diferent directions.
It had all the hack & slash, and dungeon crawl you could ever want on a pc rpg, blended with lots of puzzles (good ones, that demanded thinking) unlike most other games out there.
Sadly after that the saga began dying, with an uninspired M&M 8 that went out to the market looking and feeling old, repetitive and often frustrating, but that was not the end, the coup de grace came 2 years later when 3DO finally released M&M 9, a game that every M&M fanboy was waiting, it was meant to be a revolution, just like M&M 6, it was going to revitalize the series, but instead it killed it. :bawling:
Next we heard 3DO went out of business, a dinasty had ended, and in top of that last year when I heard that UBISOFT (one of the major Gaming companies today) was buying the M&M license, I thought "well this could be good", but instead they just took the name and made a medieval FPS that tries to be a poor example of an RPG.

For all of this reasons I say that those were the days, the day of M&M VII, a must in every gamer collection.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Bagpuss on October 04, 2006, 07:54:44 AM
You might want to look at some none fantasy titles, and even some none RPG like Half-life, Deus Ex, System Shock, Resident Evil, UFO, etc.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on October 04, 2006, 09:51:19 PM
Quote from: Bagpuss
You might want to look at some none fantasy titles, and even some none RPG like Half-life, Deus Ex, System Shock, Resident Evil, UFO, etc.

And so I shall.
Funny thing I've already thought on those titles.:p
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Pebbles and Marbles on October 14, 2006, 04:05:00 AM
I feel dreadfully out of touch, as I've only played one of the games (Planescape: Torment) mentioned so far.

That's all to do with me, than the choices though.  I think I could tick off all of the PC games I've played with both hands, and have enough fingers left over to count the platform games I've played.  Well, only if you discount Atari 2600 and NES games.  I played a bunch of those in my youth.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Maddman on October 19, 2006, 01:42:45 PM
While I agree more fantasy games are needed (especially half-life), you can't avoid mentioning World of Warcraft.  The number of people that play are staggering, and it is a very fun and well designed game.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: UmaSama on October 19, 2006, 06:24:34 PM
The truth is that I've barely played WoW at all, so I feel Im in no position to make a review of it.
Anyway this week I'm overly busy with school, I got to deliver a Shell Script for next week, and the next monday after that I got to deliver the database for the library, and a program compiled in C, so dont expect to see a new review for the next few days.
Title: Great action game + rpg elements = Deus Ex.
Post by: UmaSama on November 14, 2006, 11:02:34 PM
One of my all time favourites, I loved the skill advancement system wich allowed me to personalize JC (nanoenhanced super-agent protagonist of the game)the way I wanted, meaning that despise having to use the same protagonist every time I played the game I was able to use several different characters based on their skills.
Good Story, great environment, great graphics, good sound.
Not to short nor long, just the right lenght for this game, when I finished it I didn't felt like the game needed to be shorter nor longer.
I really loved the option of changing the course of the game based on the descitions I made in some points of the game such as the final when based upon my choice I was able to see three different finals for the game.
Really one of the best games I've played so far, remember the days when I played it makes me wish there were a new version of this classic besides Deus ex Invisible War.

Some pics:
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/2569318/2569318_screen002.jpg)
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/2569318/2569318_screen005.jpg)
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/2569318/2569318_screen008.jpg)
(http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/gs/rpg/deusex/deusex_screen016.jpg)

Here's the site (http://www.eidosinteractive.com/games/info.html?gmid=50) of the game if any of you want to know more.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Scoundrel on October 07, 2007, 02:41:53 AM
Was I the only one who thought that Planescape: Torment was utter crap?
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: riprock on October 07, 2007, 03:36:01 AM
Quote from: Scoundrel
Was I the only one who thought that Planescape: Torment was utter crap?


I was never able to get interested in P:T.  

Deus Ex, on the other hand, I found addictive even when I couldn't master it.

The original Fallout was IMHO much better than Fallout 2.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: GrimJesta on October 08, 2007, 05:56:54 PM
Deus Ex is one of the best games ever made, hands down. I still play it to this day and still discover new crap in the plot or in the world itself. It's a cyberpunk fan's wet dream. And the plot is amazing.

[/gush mode]

Deus Ex 2 sucked rooster testes. I haven't been that disappointed since the 2004 POTUS election results came in.

I wonder when Arcanum is going to make the list, eh?

-=Grim=-
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JongWK on October 10, 2007, 09:57:36 AM
Europa Universalis 3.. utterly addictive.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Tyberious Funk on December 20, 2007, 01:25:40 AM
Quote from: Scoundrel
Was I the only one who thought that Planescape: Torment was utter crap?


Probably not.  It was an utter flop in terms of sales.

Which was a shame really... it was the most rockin' game EVAH!
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Lancer on March 19, 2008, 08:52:56 PM
Quote from: Tyberious Funk
Probably not.  It was an utter flop in terms of sales.

Which was a shame really... it was the most rockin' game EVAH!


It was an utter flop not because people didn't like it.. Rather, it was marketed so poorly that it didn't have a chance.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: J Arcane on March 22, 2008, 01:07:12 AM
Quote from: Lancer
It was an utter flop not because people didn't like it.. Rather, it was marketed so poorly that it didn't have a chance.
OR maybe because the US isn't a good target market for a visual novel . . .
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Melan on March 22, 2008, 08:13:42 AM
I disagree with the opening post. I have a very low opinion on Baldur's Gate, and would never consider it the king of PC RPGs. I will concede that the world of the Forgotten Realms isn't a turnoff for other people, so I will leave that angle alone... only noting that the story is pretty weak with nothing particularly outstanding. My bigger criticism is that BG doesn't play all that well.

The real time but pausable combat lacked the interesting tactical possibilities of D&D that we got in pure, distilled form in the Gold Box games like Secret of the Silver Blades or Curse of the Azure Bonds. You never had enough control over your dudes or the battle situation. I don't mean that they occasionally got scared and ran (I loved that kind of thing in Jagged Alliance 2), it is that the interface was clumsy and awkward and there weren't enough interesting things to do.

The game process was remarkably dull. The exploration of world areas strip by strip made the experience rather monotonous. Older CRPGs had the challenge of mapping a convoluted wilderness and dungeons on graph paper (a bit of a lost art today); in Ultima VII, you faced navigation challenges and the space of the overland was filled with interesting little details, unique locations, hidden dungeons and NPCs. In comparison, Baldur's Gate gives us wide open areas, but they don't have so much of interest, and again, you just "strip them". The gnoll fortress was the only area I remember as entertaining (and I think some good stuff was also found in Cloakwood).

Baldur's Gate was also full of dull fetch quests. I am not totally against them if they are done smartly, but here, they were very repetitive. Again, Ultima VII. had tasks ranging from fetch through investigation to discovering some mundane, plot-irrelevant but interesting details (like how the high and mighty Lord British is screwing the chambermaid ;) ). Fallout also had involving, not over-complicated but complex quests. BG, in comparison, is as complex as a lump of coal.

Annoying sound acting. "You must gather your party before venturing forth." <Shudder> Professional but soulless graphics.

All in all, I consider BG firmly mediocre. It is not a bad game (the multi-CD interactive movies of the mid 1990s are much more offensive); rather, it is the triumph of average design. I was entertained for a short while, and slogged through the rest of it because if I had already spent (a lot of) money on it, I might as well get something back. I didn't get much, and sold it soon afterwards. :what:
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: signoftheserpent on March 22, 2008, 08:57:50 AM
Quote from: JongWK
Europa Universalis 3.. utterly addictive.
I played one of the EU games and while it seemed a well made strategy game...

I was absolutely swamped trying to learn it (no fucking manual!)
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Lancer on March 22, 2008, 11:08:41 AM
Quote from: Melan
I disagree with the opening post. I have a very low opinion on Baldur's Gate, and would never consider it the king of PC RPGs. I will concede that the world of the Forgotten Realms isn't a turnoff for other people, so I will leave that angle alone... only noting that the story is pretty weak with nothing particularly outstanding. My bigger criticism is that BG doesn't play all that well.

The real time but pausable combat lacked the interesting tactical possibilities of D&D that we got in pure, distilled form in the Gold Box games like Secret of the Silver Blades or Curse of the Azure Bonds. You never had enough control over your dudes or the battle situation. I don't mean that they occasionally got scared and ran (I loved that kind of thing in Jagged Alliance 2), it is that the interface was clumsy and awkward and there weren't enough interesting things to do.

The game process was remarkably dull. The exploration of world areas strip by strip made the experience rather monotonous. Older CRPGs had the challenge of mapping a convoluted wilderness and dungeons on graph paper (a bit of a lost art today); in Ultima VII, you faced navigation challenges and the space of the overland was filled with interesting little details, unique locations, hidden dungeons and NPCs. In comparison, Baldur's Gate gives us wide open areas, but they don't have so much of interest, and again, you just "strip them". The gnoll fortress was the only area I remember as entertaining (and I think some good stuff was also found in Cloakwood).

Baldur's Gate was also full of dull fetch quests. I am not totally against them if they are done smartly, but here, they were very repetitive. Again, Ultima VII. had tasks ranging from fetch through investigation to discovering some mundane, plot-irrelevant but interesting details (like how the high and mighty Lord British is screwing the chambermaid ;) ). Fallout also had involving, not over-complicated but complex quests. BG, in comparison, is as complex as a lump of coal.

Annoying sound acting. "You must gather your party before venturing forth." <Shudder> Professional but soulless graphics.

All in all, I consider BG firmly mediocre. It is not a bad game (the multi-CD interactive movies of the mid 1990s are much more offensive); rather, it is the triumph of average design. I was entertained for a short while, and slogged through the rest of it because if I had already spent (a lot of) money on it, I might as well get something back. I didn't get much, and sold it soon afterwards. :what:

I've known of someone who played Ultima VII first before playing BG1 and had a similar assessment to you regarding BG1.

Oddly, I enjoy both games tremendously.. Even though I played BG1 first.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JongWK on March 22, 2008, 12:51:24 PM
Quote from: signoftheserpent
I played one of the EU games and while it seemed a well made strategy game...

I was absolutely swamped trying to learn it (no fucking manual!)



Paradoxian.org (http://www.paradoxian.org/) is your friend. :cool:
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Narf the Mouse on October 21, 2008, 06:18:33 AM
...Five pages and no-one's mentioned Daggerfall or Morrowind??
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: StormBringer on October 21, 2008, 11:32:56 AM
Quote from: Narf the Mouse;258939
...Five pages and no-one's mentioned Daggerfall or Morrowind??
You should up your posts per page.  Not even half a page for me.  ;)

Arena was the genesis of that series, of course, and loads of fun.  The lesser known Redguard was fun, in a Tomb Raider way.

EDIT:  And don't forget to install DOSBox and play your old classics:  Planet's Edge and Mechwarrior: Crescent Hawks' Inception!
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: KenHR on October 27, 2008, 06:27:28 PM
Wow, no mention of the Wizardry series....

I've just re-installed Wizardry 8 (I had the first seven games in a shovelware pack, but can't find them...argh!) and am having a blast and a half.  Great system, and good, clean graphic presentation (if not technically awesome).

I miss party-based games like that.  It's the reason my favorite of the old Black Isle AD&D games was Icewind Dale.  The ultimate for me would be a party-based Roguelike....
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: StormBringer on October 27, 2008, 06:35:28 PM
Quote from: KenHR;260870
I miss party-based games like that.  It's the reason my favorite of the old Black Isle AD&D games was Icewind Dale.  The ultimate for me would be a party-based Rogelike....
You've given me a wonderful, Grinchy idea!
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: KenHR on October 27, 2008, 06:37:03 PM
I knew if I said it enough, someone would do it... :)
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Premier on October 27, 2008, 07:47:14 PM
This feature absolutely must include a review of the Thief games, especially the first two.

Also, there need to be some Gold Box titles there, including the two Buck Rogers ones.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Narf the Mouse on October 28, 2008, 05:35:53 AM
Master of Magic, the strategy game.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: boulet on October 28, 2008, 09:04:38 AM
Quote from: Narf the Mouse;260950
Master of Magic, the strategy game.

I'm playing this every once in a while. (abandonware and dosbox anyone ?)
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Narf the Mouse on October 28, 2008, 10:20:58 AM
I bought it. Saw it, snapped it up.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Hairfoot on May 25, 2009, 07:46:56 AM
I'm adding Jagged Alliance 2 to the list.

Excellent modern, squad-level turn-based strategy game with a huge cast of characters, a functioning stat/ability PC system and realistic terrain/cover rules.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: boulet on May 26, 2009, 10:18:41 AM
+1 on Jagged Alliance. I love when my mercenaries behave like prima donnas : "No, I won't work with Joe Joesky. He's a fascist misogynistic pig and he snores".
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Hairfoot on May 28, 2009, 01:18:34 AM
Quote from: boulet;304620
+1 on Jagged Alliance. I love when my mercenaries behave like prima donnas : "No, I won't work with Joe Joesky. He's a fascist misogynistic pig and he snores".

Google found some translations of Ivan's Russian.

When he kills someone gruesomely he says, "and this is why my nephew is an alcoholic!"

I laugh even harder now.
Title: Thank you very much
Post by: mazda on December 06, 2010, 06:27:26 AM
Thank you very much.....
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: North on December 08, 2010, 05:46:40 PM
I'm surprised no one has mentioned The Witcher, which was really fun, and one that should be on any computer rpg list.   A sequel is due out next year, hopefully that will actually happen.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Bestpcrpg on December 11, 2010, 07:40:14 PM
Might and magic 6 and The Witcher (http://bestpcrpg.net) is my favorite. I wonder how it will be The Witcher 2 by the way...
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JasperAK on December 11, 2010, 10:14:55 PM
Pool of Radiance
Curse of the Azure Bonds
Might & Magic 2
Eye of the Beholder
Eye of the Beholder 2: Legend of Darkmoon
Wizardry 1
Ravenloft: Strad's Possession

My favorite CRPGs
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Amalgam on October 28, 2012, 01:54:26 PM
PC RPG's i've played (for more than just a few minutes):
Gothic
Everquest 2
Guild Wars
Guild Wars 2
Dungeons & Dragons Online
NEStalgia
Diablo
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: smiorgan on January 11, 2013, 03:26:06 AM
Surprised no-one's mentioned Arx Fatalis. It's illogical and railroaded to hell, but it does the exploring dungeons thing pretty well--atmosphere is almost as good as the Thief series (just don't expect much gameplay).
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Bill on January 11, 2013, 03:13:44 PM
Quote from: Dacke;20187
Dude, you can't mention Baldur's Gate without mentioning the best game to use that engine: Planescape Torment.


There is a sequel to Torment in the works. They don't have the rights to the name, but it's essentially a sequel by the same people that made Torment.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Sacrosanct on January 11, 2013, 03:45:12 PM
Quote from: Bill;617030
There is a sequel to Torment in the works. They don't have the rights to the name, but it's essentially a sequel by the same people that made Torment.


...puts on flame suit....


I didn't like Torment.  At all.  Granted, I didn't play it until years after it came out, but I did not like that game.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: GameDaddy on January 12, 2013, 12:14:35 AM
In 97 it was all about Half-Life. It's the only FPS I have ever liked, because it had such a great story.

1999 was a great year for PC games. I rather liked Baldur's Gate and Icewind Dale, didn't care much for the rest of it.

Wasteland was full of awesome... and Fallout was really good as well!

Civilization & Civ 2 - Call to Power

Age of Wonders

Earlier games I liked...
 
Rogue, which later became Nethack.

Starflight

Tomb Raider

Empire Deluxe

F-117 Stealth Fighter

I played Keef the Thief, but didn't like it much. I died... a lot!

I did like Bard's Tale though, that was pretty awesome. Straight dungeon crawl with up to 6 in the party. Lots of traps and puzzles.

Never did play the SSI D&D games.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Piestrio on January 12, 2013, 01:47:47 AM
Quote from: Sacrosanct;617032
...puts on flame suit....


I didn't like Torment.  At all.  Granted, I didn't play it until years after it came out, but I did not like that game.


I didn't care for it either.

Too wanky.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: MichiGen on April 18, 2013, 02:08:31 PM
You might check out Divinity: Original Sin (http://www.therpgsite.com/showthread.php?t=26286).
IMHO the best looking RPG scheduled for this year.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Rincewind1 on April 18, 2013, 02:12:37 PM
Fallout New Vegas. They've taken the world into the direction I've always loved about good PA stories (the problem that it's the humans that are the biggest enemy of rebuilding the world, etc. etc), and just allow you to explore it and shift it.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Benoist on April 18, 2013, 02:27:42 PM
Quote from: Sacrosanct;617032
...puts on flame suit....


I didn't like Torment.  At all.  Granted, I didn't play it until years after it came out, but I did not like that game.
I tried to play it out of the Anthology with Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale et al and never got really far.

It fails to really grab me the way BG and IWD did and still do, for me.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Bill on April 18, 2013, 02:35:25 PM
Quote from: Benoist;647098
I tried to play it out of the Anthology with Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale et al and never got really far.

It fails to really grab me the way BG and IWD did and still do, for me.


I am overly hopeful that the baldurs/icewind style new game in the works from Obsidian will kick ass.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: The Ent on August 27, 2013, 02:39:39 PM
The first fantasy game I fell in love with: Rogue.

For a somewhat* modernized take: Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup.

*=meaning with skills, classes, spells etc.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JongWK on August 30, 2013, 03:10:24 PM
Dota 2.

It's not just amazing, but its business model is excellent.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Doom on September 09, 2013, 12:42:21 AM
Man, so many games, so little time.

Titans of Steel:Warring Suns. It's battletech with the serial numbers filed off, freeware, and freakin' awesome in its detail. There's nothing like hitting center torso on a recon mech with an AC 20, causing a reactor meltown, leading to an explosion chain reacting to other big robots. It only happened once, but there are lots of "only happened once" events. After many hundreds of hours of play, I just got back to back AC 20 headshots taking down an otherwise perfect mech.

It is an RPG, by the way, as you recruit pilots (humans, clones, androids, cyborgs), and train their skills and abilities.

Too many others, but that's a game I keep coming back to.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: WaveLightGames on August 17, 2015, 11:36:18 AM
Best RPG ever in my view has got to Planescape Torment.  Amazing game with incredibly deep storyline and characters.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Doom on August 21, 2015, 01:42:39 AM
Quote from: WaveLightGames;849434
Best RPG ever in my view has got to Planescape Torment.  Amazing game with incredibly deep storyline and characters.


I still have the signed poster/pic on my wall.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: JesterRaiin on February 06, 2016, 05:08:49 PM
Darkest Dungeon.

It's a dungeon-crawl, taking place in what I think is a setting based on XIV-XV Europe with Lovecraftian scent all over it. It tells the story of a band of ruffians/adventurers of various professions (ranging from common ruffian, through crusaders and witch hunters to lepers), who descend to various dungeons in hope to find treasures, artifacts, and so on, and so forth.

The game is unforgiving, player characters often die, go mad, give in to fear, catch diseases, starve.... Let's just say that they suffer a lot and return (or flee) to the ground only to heal their bodies and minds and face the dungeons again. Yet, in spite of being cruel, it's not frustrating. Yes, losing all your group of die-hard veterans to fear, once lights go dark isn't easy, but there's no feeling of inferiority about that.

I think it's great game, one of those "easy to learn, hard to master", immersive enough to feature "just one turn more" syndrome. One of its strongest selling points is vague, but interesting setting, one that might serve as good introduction to dark fantasy/horror tabletop role-playing games similar to Warhammer, Lamentations of the Flame Princess, or even Call of Cthulhu (providing the scenario takes place in Dark Ages and PCs' survival is an option).

(http://www.destroythecyb.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/DD-Line.jpg)
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: daveyd on June 07, 2016, 11:26:25 PM
The Age of Decadence (https://www.gog.com/game/the_age_of_decadence) is probably my favorite CRPG of all time.

Also highly recommend
Dark Sun: Shattered Lands (https://www.gog.com/game/dungeons_dragons_dark_sun_series)  

HBS' Shadowrun games, particularly Shadowrun: Dragonfall (https://www.gog.com/game/shadowrun_dragonfall_directors_cut).
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: tenbones on August 04, 2016, 04:27:14 PM
Criteria:

1) Nothing before 2005, because if you're doing PC gaming and still stuck on those older games, you're probably not really playing on a rig that supports the latest and greatest. And if you are, you'd probably have to run third-party emulators or other tricks to get older games to work. Not snobbery, just probability.

2) Genre matters. Gaming is tribal and not everyone likes all types of PC games. So the only games that matter are the ones in the genre you care about. That may be only a few, it may be all of them.

3) Assume all expansions are part of the title.

4) Game must be currently published in its final form.

FPS Multiplayer - Battlefield 4/Bad Co. 2, Overwatch OR Team Fortress 2

Single Player Action/adventure - Grand Theft Auto V, Red Dead Redemption, Assassins Creed 2, Arkham City, Dishonored

RPG's - Witcher III, Mass Effect (whole series), Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Dragon Age (whole series), Fallout 3 and 4,

A/RTS - Starcraft 2, Marvel Heroes 2016, Diablo 3, Torchlight 2

MMORTS - DoTA 2, LoL

Tactical Strategy - XCOM 2, Total War: Warhammer

4X Strategy - Civilization IV, Endless Legend, Galactic Civilization III

MMO - /crickets

Casual - Slither.io (it's free!!!!!!)
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: daniel_ream on August 04, 2016, 06:57:37 PM
FPS Multiplayer - PayDay 2.  It's probably the best co-op FPS I've ever seen.  Yes, better than Borderlands.

4X Strategy - Extremely old, but the Space Empires IV/V series for its massive hackability - every aspect of the game is exposed via text config files.  If you want to see how messing with the ground rules of your space setting works, it's a phenomenal tool

Sim - It's a niche, but I've used SimCity and Cities XL to build a natural-seeming city for my super hero campaigns.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: danskmacabre on October 05, 2017, 09:23:44 PM
This is a REALLY old thread, but hey, it's a sticky, so some might still be reading it.

Divinity Original sin 2
This is a very pretty, very immersive, very detailed Fantasy RPG in the style of Baldur's gate, but better.
I'm really into this and enjoying taking it nice and slow and exploring everywhere.
The environment is really immersive as you can interact with lots of the npcs and just "Stuff" around the place and the environment can be used to your advantage in combat. (oil, water, buildings etc).

Divinity Original Sin,  Enhanced edition
The predecessor to Divinity Original sin 2, I didn't enjoy the version of this previous to "Enhanced edition", it seemed clunky, kinda vague and a pain to play.
Since I've been playing DOS2, I've got back into DOSEE and it's great fun.

Grim Dawn
Good fun, Action Dark Fantasy RPG.  You don't need to think much to play and enjoy this. It moves fast, is quite pretty and good violent fun. Nuff said.

Elder Scrolls Online
A fantasy MMORPG.  It feels like an offline RPG, but online. You don't need to play with anyone, but it's nice to see people running about doing stuff.
It's very pretty for a MMORPG and is generally a lot of fun. I tend to play it if I only have a 30 minutes or an hour to spare.

Everspace
Space combat Roguelike. Imagine Elite Dangerous if it was a fast paced Space roguelike and that's pretty much it.
Good fun for a short space combat romp.
 
Civilization 6
I don't play this as much as I'd like to as I'm pretty busy these days. But if I'm doing an all nighter gaming session, then I'll be playing this.
Resource management and empire building game.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Ras Algethi on October 05, 2017, 10:04:58 PM
Quote from: JesterRaiin;877307
Darkest Dungeon.

It's a dungeon-crawl, taking place in what I think is a setting based on XIV-XV Europe with Lovecraftian scent all over it. It tells the story of a band of ruffians/adventurers of various professions (ranging from common ruffian, through crusaders and witch hunters to lepers), who descend to various dungeons in hope to find treasures, artifacts, and so on, and so forth.

The game is unforgiving, player characters often die, go mad, give in to fear, catch diseases, starve.... Let's just say that they suffer a lot and return (or flee) to the ground only to heal their bodies and minds and face the dungeons again. Yet, in spite of being cruel, it's not frustrating. Yes, losing all your group of die-hard veterans to fear, once lights go dark isn't easy, but there's no feeling of inferiority about that.

I think it's great game, one of those "easy to learn, hard to master", immersive enough to feature "just one turn more" syndrome. One of its strongest selling points is vague, but interesting setting, one that might serve as good introduction to dark fantasy/horror tabletop role-playing games similar to Warhammer, Lamentations of the Flame Princess, or even Call of Cthulhu (providing the scenario takes place in Dark Ages and PCs' survival is an option).

  • Trailer on YT (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-mXN3akTPU)
  • Homepage (http://www.darkestdungeon.com/)

Is on sale on Steam if folks are interested. Ends Friday.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Dumarest on October 05, 2017, 11:24:15 PM
I don't think I've ever played a game on my personal computer.  Oh wait, there was a pirate one I got on sale years ago that was kind of fun for a while before it got repetitive and boring. Too many dance parties at the colonial governor's mansion and not enough variation in treasures to find and obstacles to overcome. Not sure what it was called, does anyone know?

There were a couple of others that tempted me at Best Buy way back when but then I saw you had to be online and pay to play and it was "interactive" with other players out in cyberspace and I lost interest.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Krimson on October 12, 2017, 11:02:40 PM
Quote from: daniel_ream;911427
Sim - It's a niche, but I've used SimCity and Cities XL to build a natural-seeming city for my super hero campaigns.


I didn't mind Cities XL but the game to play these days in my opinion is Cities Skylines. It's a very pretty game and you can get some nice screenshots. Plus it has Steam Workshop integration.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Schwartzwald on October 13, 2017, 03:02:37 AM
The original Deus Ex. The revised version is good.
Title: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Ghostmaker on June 30, 2020, 08:22:13 AM
So I fired up DOSBox and have been playing Starflight again. Despite the game being older than some of the forum posters (1986), it still holds up as a well-done open world space sim.

The initial grind of getting your ship upgraded really isn't that bad. Once you're equipped with better engines and systems, you'll be set to leap out into the trackless wastes of space, encountering wormhole fluxes (which speed you along from one point to another), unknown aliens, the lost homeworld of humanity, etc. Hard to believe this was all packed into two 360k diskettes.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Hawkwing7423 on September 02, 2020, 06:58:08 PM
My list of RPGs which are in my "all time" list


Planescape: Torment - probably the best
Baldur's Gate I and II - Loved the characters and interaction, good story
Fallout I and II
Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Pillars of Eternity II
Wasteland - my old school favorite from childhood





Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Sparrowhawk131 on November 05, 2020, 02:17:52 AM
So far the best RPG series is the Witcher trilogy, imo. Well-written characters, engaging storyline with perfectly balanced grey morality
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: consolcwby on December 09, 2020, 12:35:41 AM
So I fired up DOSBox and have been playing Starflight again. Despite the game being older than some of the forum posters (1986), it still holds up as a well-done open world space sim.

The initial grind of getting your ship upgraded really isn't that bad. Once you're equipped with better engines and systems, you'll be set to leap out into the trackless wastes of space, encountering wormhole fluxes (which speed you along from one point to another), unknown aliens, the lost homeworld of humanity, etc. Hard to believe this was all packed into two 360k diskettes.
I absolutely loved Starflight! I liked Elite, but Starflight I played for years! Played them on the C~64 back in the day, along with the PSI 5 TRADING COMPANY! Good times, those ancient games!

-----------------

My picks for BEST RPG EVAR:
1980s Phantasie (SSI Pre-Gold Box Series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantasie
1990s Fallout (Gotta love the LOW INT conversations!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CPijQ_LLGQ
2000s Mass Effect (Just the first one, however don't let the elevators get you down!) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_Effect
201Xs Nier: Automata & Code Vein (I usually don't go for Action JRPGs, but these two hit that sweet spot for me! Loved them both! Nier was a breath of fresh air, and Code Vein's make-ur-own-Wifu was... inmyinterests *cough* I did not just say that!)  ;D
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nier:_Automata
https://youtu.be/CGKY8ApfCxQ

But the best? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_%28video_game_series%29
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: rocksfalleverybodydies on June 09, 2021, 07:36:33 PM
Just to add to the topic, not sure if it counts as one of the best as it is so new but the recently released Solasta: Crown of the Magister is looking pretty good:  D&D 5e rules, single player (which seems rare these days) and not a subscription service, rather an actual one time purchase on GOG as well as Steam if people aren't a big fan of the platform.

So far, the reviews on Steam look very positive and it looks pretty close to the tabletop counterpart in mechanics.
Early access but looks pretty polished.

I'll stick with the Gold Box stuff but for players with decent computers, it might be quite fun to enjoy modern graphics.

One of my old favorites:  SSI's Wizard's Crown.  It would make such a nice tabletop counterpart for the combat.

<edit sp>
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Reckall on October 30, 2021, 11:10:46 AM
Ultima V was better than Ultima IV. The simple idea that every virtue taken to the extreme became a vice made it (the concept, BTW, came from the philosophy of St. Augustine).

Planescape: Torment is my all-time great. After finishing it I went to my FLGS and bought everything Planescape for AD&D 2E. No one wanted the stuff so I bought the four base boxes for a bunch of peanuts. I used the setting heavily in my next campaign.

Ultima Online remains, AFAIK, the only MMORPG where you role-played. It was an addictive alternate life in a fantasy world, with friendships, love stories, raids and even, once, a bank robbery. The creation of instances ruined the original MMORPG concept forever.

Skyrim heavy modded is the best open world out there.

Guild Wars 1 & 2 were not RPGs in a strict sense but they were a ton of fun and excitement. GW1 also introduced the "Buy the game, pay once" model in mainstream MMORPGS.

Fallout: New Vegas: No surprises here - they took Fallout 3 and gave it to the original creators of F1&2.

 
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: PsyXypher on November 04, 2021, 04:21:54 PM
I would absolutely suggest ADOM (Ancient Domains of Mystery) to anyone who likes Dungeons and Dragons as well as Caves of Qud to anyone who likes Gamma World. They're both amazing Roguelikes where you can really feel yourself get into the spirit of your character.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Trond on December 12, 2021, 11:17:41 AM
Quest for Glory (particularly the first one originally called Hero’s Quest). It’s Sierra’s fantasy RPG series, and I think the first one or two were pretty darn decent and entertaining. I have even borrowed a thing or two for my tabletop RPGs
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Sanson on December 12, 2021, 11:06:49 PM
I'm an old fellow...

Spent most of the 1980's playing the Ultima Series... IV being the first one i played, followed by III,II,I,V,VI,VII in that order... the less said about VIII and IX the better i suppose (IV and VII are my favorites of the series), they still run in DOSbox and i still play them from time to time.  And i'd even
still recommend them!! 

Plenty of agonizing fun with the old Gold Box games... but they're a mess to play without the materials the games themselves used to come with.

Also liked the Zork and Enchanter series (as well as Planetfall and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy), the Wizardry series, and wasted all too much time
playing around with EA's Adventure Construction Set (Back when EA was an excellent software company... hard to remember that these days.)  Along
with a HOST of old C64 RPG games, Bard's Tale and Phantasie being the few whose names i still remember (or still own)

A few computers later... Baldur's Gate I and II, Icewind Dale (The first, in particular i really liked)... and i played the lot of 'em to death over the years.
Planescape: Torment, and the Fallout games as well (I liked all of them up to and including New Vegas) all of 'em are worth playing.

I've spent the requisite time on the Elder Scrolls series, from Daggerfall on up, i'm sure they've been mentioned but they're worth a play as well.

If you have an old playstation console... The Suikoden series (if i remember right) used to be on the store there and it's one of my favorite old games
that never gets much attention.  And one of the only games i really miss playing.  One of these days i hope to see it on PC...  Hope springs eternal.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: I on March 05, 2022, 08:58:17 PM
Even though they're not really RPGs, I think Freedom Force (and its excellent sequel, Freedom Force vs. the Third Reich) have enough good characterization in them that they would appeal to most roleplayers, if those players have an interest in Silver and Bronze Age comic book superheroes.  To this day I have a deep and abiding love for those characters, to the point where my affection for old childhood heroes like Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four is no greater than it became for the Freedom Force.  Years after it came out, a real comic book miniseries featuring the characters was published, and I bought every one of them.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Battlemaster on June 07, 2022, 01:25:59 AM
Deus ex, original. You can get patches, grsaphic updates, etc,  hut the original deus ex despite being 22 years old is still a game for people with brains, not just reflexes.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Reckall on August 01, 2022, 11:34:16 AM
I'm an old fellow...

Spent most of the 1980's playing the Ultima Series... IV being the first one i played, followed by III,II,I,V,VI,VII in that order... the less said about VIII and IX the better i suppose (IV and VII are my favorites of the series), they still run in DOSbox and i still play them from time to time.  And i'd even
still recommend them!! 

You forget "Martian Dreams" (steampunk) and "The Savage Empire" (the lost valley with dinosaurs) based on Ultima VI engine. I still have them in the original boxes. Savage Empire inspired a whole GURPS campaign.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: zircher on August 01, 2022, 02:37:43 PM
If you like rogue-likes and sci-fi, Approaching Infinity is a good one.  The developer is very active and is always producing new content.  Since it is low tech and turn based, it will even run on my potato of a laptop that I use when I'm babysitting or taking the lovely wife to the casino.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Lancer on September 07, 2022, 02:17:24 PM
The best PC RPG ever has to be Planescape: Torment.

Honorable Mentions:
Baldur's Gate I/II
Fallout I/II
Ultima VII
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
KOTOR1
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Lancer on September 08, 2022, 06:18:30 AM
The best PC RPG ever has to be Planescape: Torment.

Honorable Mentions:
Baldur's Gate I/II
Fallout I/II
Ultima VII
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
KOTOR1



Also, if you can get over the graphics, the games by indie developer, Spiderweb Software, are quite amazing.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Cathode Ray on September 15, 2022, 07:17:18 PM
I'm old-school, but I love Sega's Phantasy Star series, especially PS 2.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: AnnA_Frank on November 04, 2022, 02:41:43 PM
I think it's a stalker ;D ;D
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: MeganovaStella on November 04, 2022, 03:34:26 PM
I'll contribute.

Final Fantasy VI to X.

Shin Megami Tensei III to V.

Persona 1 to 5.

Xenogears.

Xenosaga.

Xenoblade.

Final Fantasy Tactics.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: ForgottenF on November 08, 2022, 08:10:03 PM
Just because they don't seem to have already come up, From Software's entire output of fantasy games over the last decade-and-a-half are all worthwhile for the tabletop role-player. The King's Field series and Demon's Souls are a bit difficult to get a hold of these days (unless you have a PS5 for Demon's Souls), but those and the more easily accessible Dark Souls games, Bloodborne, and (to a lesser extent) Elden Ring, are gold mines for monster, environment and item ideas. And also absolute masterclasses in worldbuilding and dungeon design. They're also extremely good action-RPGs, of course.

As a more outside-the-box recommendation, I want to mention OgreBattle 64: A Person of Lordly Caliber. A pretty solid fantasy politics story, and to my mind the gold standard for the criminally underrepresented Strategy-RPG genre. N64 cartridges are hard to get these days, but you can emulate it pretty easily.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: daft on December 30, 2022, 04:58:18 AM
I'll contribute.

Final Fantasy VI to X.

Shin Megami Tensei III to V.

Persona 1 to 5.

Xenogears.

Xenosaga.

Xenoblade.

Final Fantasy Tactics.

I would like to add Final Fantasy XIV to the list as well. It is an MMO, but it is extremely solo friendly and the story is really really good. Unfortunately the first part of it is probably the worst, even if it is still good.

Also, there's an extremely generous free trial letting you play to level 60 with some restrictions.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Klava on February 13, 2023, 10:05:06 AM
to contribute to this thread (which is awesome, btw)

Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
the swan song of Troika games. released in a horrible state, but was excellent nonetheless, imo

Anachronox
kinda the same story as with arcanum. loved the humour in that one
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: squirewaldo on February 13, 2023, 02:05:54 PM
Hopefully nothing from UbiSoft...

https://www.informationliberation.com/?id=63591 (https://www.informationliberation.com/?id=63591)

"We Want To Be On The Right Side Of History": Ubisoft Partners With Police to Jail Gamers For Their In-Game Speech

Ubisoft, the company behind the Assassin's Creed and Rainbow Six franchises, has not only partnered with the Anti-Defamation League to fight "hate" in gaming but is also now working with British police to jail gamers for their speech.
Title: Re: PC Games Every Roleplayer MUST own.
Post by: Psyckosama on August 05, 2023, 01:01:02 PM
Hopefully nothing from UbiSoft...

https://www.informationliberation.com/?id=63591 (https://www.informationliberation.com/?id=63591)

"We Want To Be On The Right Side Of History": Ubisoft Partners With Police to Jail Gamers For Their In-Game Speech

Ubisoft, the company behind the Assassin's Creed and Rainbow Six franchises, has not only partnered with the Anti-Defamation League to fight "hate" in gaming but is also now working with British police to jail gamers for their speech.

Their older stuff is pretty good. These days, they're gone full Unicorn farts.

For example, the last AC game that IMHO was any good plot wise was syndicate. Which mind you also is the last one that actually PLAYS like a proper AC game.

While Far Cry 5 and back are all pretty good. You might dislike some of the politics of FC5 due to being about a fringe religious cult in the US but it's actually a pretty well done breakdown about how groups like that work and if you ever want to have a lunatic cult, it's good playing. FC6 on the other hand is skittles and diarrhea in both plot and game play and can be comfortably ignored.

I'll add Terminator Resistance to the List.

Oh... and just because...

Rimworld.