Recent RPGs that people have enjoyed - looking for a new game to play :)

mr_sir · Post by **mr_sir** » Tue Apr 28, 2009 4:59 pm

I'm a bit stuck at the moment with what to play

I've just finished The Witcher, I've played NWN + expansions, NWN 2, the whole BG series, the whole IWD series, Gothic 1 & 2 (haven't decided if 3 is worth getting or not yet), both VtM games, Planscape:Torment, Arcanum, Divine Divinity, Fable TLC, both KOTOR games, Morrowind, Deus Ex ... to name a few. I've also tried both Oblivion and Drakensang but was not too impressed with them.

Anyone got any suggestions as to recent-ish rpgs that I've not tried that are worth giving a go as I can't find anything at the moment? I'm not interested in MMORPGS though, just single player campaigns as I don't have the time anymore for multiplayer.

rohitnairin · Post by **rohitnairin** » Tue Apr 28, 2009 6:48 pm

King's Bounty:The Legend is one of the recent games i enjoyed.You could also try Mass Effect,its a fairly decent game.

Gilliatt · Post by **Gilliatt** » Tue Apr 28, 2009 6:53 pm

I can't suggest recent titles since I cannot play them on my PC.

But I don't see any Fallout title in your list. Have you played them?

Also, have you ever tried one of the Spiderweb games? I played the Nethergate demo and had lots of fun. I ordered the game even before finishing the demo.

But don't rely on me, try the demo yourself if you have not already done so.

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Tue Apr 28, 2009 7:14 pm

Hah. That's a hard one. I'm used to throwing the default RPG list you provided (plus the Fallouts) at new members that come here looking for suggestions, but this is a toughie.

I do second Fallout 1 and 2 as those games are very fun and addictive, and I might go as far as to say that your actions there matter more than they do in any of the games that you listed.

Unfortunately with games like Mass Appeal advertising inter-species erotica, I think the best I can come up with is the Thief series, though it's more on the combat side.

As far as eye candy goes (because we know that pretty graphics means compensation) I just saw the preview for a new Batman game, though it will probably and Assassin's Creed type game, with dull action and so forth.

If you're willing to deviate from the RPG genre, I'm also going to recommend Grim Fandango and Zork: The Grand Inquisitor. Also, for that category, I'm going to throw Fahrenheit (known as Indigo Prophecy in the U.S.) out there.

If I may ask: What were your personal thoughts on NWN2? I tried playing it, but it bored the life out of me. I'm considering giving it another go, but I'm not sure if it's even worth it.

swcarter · Post by **swcarter** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 12:33 am

It looks like you've been reasonably thorough on the core RPGs. It also looks like you're on a PC rather than a console. Mass Effect and Fallout 3 are possibilities, but if you didn't like Oblivion, then you might not like them either. If you want to try out some hybrids, then Puzzle Quest and Silent Storm are fun games with role-playing elements. If you don't really care if the games are recent, then you might be able to find bundles of Ultima or the gold box games out there, and they're worth a spin.

SWC

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:55 am

You could download an emulator and play some SNES RPGs. Some treasures to be found there. You have to own the SNES games for it to be legal, though.

mr_sir · Post by **mr_sir** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 12:30 pm

Thanks everyone

I think I might see if I can pick up the Fallout games on Ebay and give them ago and try the other suggestions too

@Crenshinibon - I liked NWN2 but unfortunately the camera angle and controls were just getting on my nerves so I stopped playing it for a bit then lost my DVD - I might give it another go if I ever find the DVD again lol. It seemed like a good game, I just wish it had the controls and camera a bit more similar to NWN as I found that much easier to get used to playing.

Edit: Just got The Fallout Collection (1,2 and Tactics) for £5 on Ebay so I'll give them a try when it arrives - just one question, how do people feel that Fallout 3 compares to the originals ... is it a disappointment or a reasonable attempt at modernising the series?

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 12:50 pm

It's more than a disappointment.

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 3:12 pm

Thanks for your response in regards to NWN2.

In case you don't know, I'd like to state that Fallout Tactics is a tactical, strategy game first. That will save you some disappointment. Second, it contradicts the first two Fallout games.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that it's a bad game, it's a very nice strategy game or a tactical shooter, but it's just that many people think of it is an RPG and connect it the first two games, which is probably not a good idea.

Ergopad · Post by **Ergopad** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:59 pm

Drakensang: The Dark Eye

Give a shot with Drakensang. It's a RPG where you control a party of four character and it reminds lot of those good ol' rpgs like Baldur's Gate. The ruleset (The Dark Eye) might feel odd at first, compared to D&D, but you should get used to it in few hours of gameplay.

You can find the review and as well as database here on GameBanshee. And there is also demo available in [url="http://www.drakensang.com/"]the official homepage[/url].

EDIT: Oh sorry, missed your comment about Drakensang.

flix · Post by **flix** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 5:00 pm

It sounds like you've hit all the top notch games. I can suggest:
Prince of Qin
Kult: Heretic Kingdoms
Beyond Divinity
Lionheart
Silverfall

These lean towards action-rpg at times but they all have great story and substance.

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Wed Apr 29, 2009 5:55 pm

Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader is the last game Black Isle Studios made before going out of business.

As Flix mentioned, it's an action RPG. There are a handful of choices to be made in the game, all of them two sided, either take this side or that side. The story does have a lot of potential, yes, but you do feel that you are playing an unfinished product. By the time you complete the game, you will feel that it can go on, and if I remember correctly, the current game was supposed to be only the first of three chapters.

Certain character builds are heavily favored over the others and you might even be forced to take them as the combat quickly becomes very difficult to manage. There are companions, yes, but they are more of a novelty as you will eventually struggle to keep them alive whileummons are difficult to maintain due to the heavy strain they place on your mana pool. As you progress farther into the game, you will notice less interaction and more fighting, to the point that it should remind you of Diablo II.

At least that's my take on the game.

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:36 am

Crenshinibon wrote:Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader is the last game Black Isle Studios made before going out of business.

As Flix mentioned, it's an action RPG. There are a handful of choices to be made in the game, all of them two sided, either take this side or that side. The story does have a lot of potential, yes, but you do feel that you are playing an unfinished product. By the time you complete the game, you will feel that it can go on, and if I remember correctly, the current game was supposed to be only the first of three chapters.

Certain character builds are heavily favored over the others and you might even be forced to take them as the combat quickly becomes very difficult to manage. There are companions, yes, but they are more of a novelty as you will eventually struggle to keep them alive whileummons are difficult to maintain due to the heavy strain they place on your mana pool. As you progress farther into the game, you will notice less interaction and more fighting, to the point that it should remind you of Diablo II.

At least that's my take on the game.

I'd like to add to that that the first and second half of the game are practically two different games. The first part is a very good RPG, the second part a decent hack'n slash.

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 5:43 am

I don't know if it's that evenly divided. I thought that the hack and slash dragged on for a very long time. The starting "area" is essentially where most of the roleplaying takes place.

Also, it doesn't appear to be very mod friendly, so you can't spice it up either.

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 10:03 am

"Dragging on" is the right term, though. Still, it was a very enjoyable game, mechanic wise.

Nightmare · Post by **Nightmare** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 12:40 pm

I'd recommend Mass Effect. Its has flaws, but the main story is pretty decent and its graphically quite nice. Its about $20 on Steam right now.

If you want to deviate a bit in adventure games, as Crenshinibon said Grim Fandango is worth a look, and I'd add Psychonauts to that list as well.

If you like strategy, Sins of a Solar Empire is definitely worth a look.

fable · Post by **fable** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 12:58 pm

Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader is the last game Black Isle Studios made before going out of business..

Not to put too fine a point on it, Lionheart wasn't made by Black Isle Studios. It was released by BIS, but actually developed by Reflexive Studios. An easy enough mistake to make, given how highly BIS loomed in RPGers' minds at one time.

A very rushed-out-the-door game, with a split personality and poor follow-through on some intriguing gameplay ideas.

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 1:31 pm

I second Sins of a Solar Empire. Word of warning, though: it's a huge timesink, albeit in a good way.

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 1:35 pm

I apologize for the mistake. I should have remembered it, given that Ricochet Xtreme was on the game disc.

Though I haven't finished the series (and had to restart it because the game didn't sit right with me at first) I'll also add The Longest Journey as well as its' sequel, Dreamfall: The Longest Journey to the list. Supposedly they are good, but the first one didn't captivate me. I'll be giving it another go during the summer, hopefully.

fable · Post by **fable** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 1:42 pm

GawainBS wrote:It's more than a disappointment.

I'm assuming you mean Fallout 3 is much worse than that? I suspected that might be the case, given the philosophy of the studio that was designing it.