any games out there that have a semi-dynamic world but micro-level gameplay that doesn’t allow you to influence the macro that much?
hypothetical example: squad based tactical war game where you fight for a certain faction, but the actual process of the war is simulated behind the curtain and you are forced to make decisions given the constraints of this higher macro process. what i mean by semi-dynamic is that the overall process of the war is not deterministic nor story-dictated. more importantly, since you operate on the periphery of the war and on such a small scale, then you wouldn’t be able to really influence the higher process at all.
I could be wrong, but did King of Dragon Pass do something like that? I think maybe the other clans and factions all develop on their own and the player’s clan only really affects them by trading or attacking them.
I’m playing this at the moment. Did you like the Myst games? Can you handle a lot of backtracking that takes longer than most Myst games?
Because unless this game really shits the bed later, it’s pretty much the best Myst VI I could imagine having at the moment. Absolutely gorgeous graphics and art direction, a pretty cool sci-fi story that has a ton of super bonkers worldbuilding conveyed by books, and a ton of the trademark Cyan Worlds ‘go back a different way to open new paths’ puzzles.
You will want a higher end computer, though. This thing is chugging a bit on my GTX 1080, although I haven’t messed with graphics settings too much. Maybe it scales well?
I am an extremely biased towards the Myst series however, and I love all the Cyan developed ones, so YMMV.
I bought it on PSN a couple weeks ago and played it one night for an hour and a half and haven’t touched it since. I have never finished a Myst game, though.
This is actually a strong disincentive because I’ve got a fairly modest little laptop. I’ve tried to break the habit of buying games for “when I have a better computer someday”
Playing original Myst is pretty tough. Back when I did like maybe 5 years ago it involved finding old versions of Quicktime and shit like that. But I do think it’s probably the best experience. I can’t keep track of all the new versions but the hypercard slideshow style is an absolute requirement to playing the game as intended.
I understand the purist argument but the only version of Myst I’ve played is the free movement realMyst (2000) version and got through it fine and still think highly of it. That was on a PC built in 2003 though and just glancing at the Steam reviews it seems modern systems are not too kind to it so that might not be the way.
Reading the description of this version which I had previously assumed was just a straight graphical upgrade of realMyst does make it sound more interesting though:
If the movement points map perfectly the original Myst angles then that sounds like a pretty optimal remake? Has good reviews too.
Yeah if that works as it says it works that’d be great. I want to say that the early 90’s prerendered graphics are an integral part of the charm but that’s probably just being ornery at that point.
I don’t know about “an essential part of the charm” but I do think that part of Riven’s relative impenetrability in 2018 is that it’s no longer technologically impressive enough to immediately pull you in & without that it can seem ungenerous
Myst and Riven both run in scumm which is definitely the best way to play them. If, like me, you actually still find pre rendered backgrounds attractive then Riven holds up remarkably. Still an all time top ten for me.
Riven isn’t impenetrable at all. It’s far easier to understand than Myst because it has such a coherent vision to its design that you can pretty much play it like a walking sim. I was able to play it ~4 years ago without remembering the solutions to any puzzles and the only thing I got stuck on is… I forgot to close a door.
Well, I think what Felix is saying is that since Riven doesn’t explicitly pose the player questions but leaves them to formulate their own questions, it relies on hangoutitude and graphical+brand power to make that curiosity bloom.
What does SB think about Subnautica? My gf wants to play it real bad and I just noticed that somewhere along the line it entered my steam library. We’re gonna give it a go soon!
Does it have that ecco the dolphin / EVO weird speculative new age marine biology vibe that I crave?
I found the first Ni No Kuni evocative of nothing so much as Dora the Explorer and this one is supposed to be an uninspired imitation at best bbbbbuuut they put Suikoden in it & improved the combat and I’m kind of tempted…
anybody got firsthand experience? it also doesn’t seem to have denuvo, so…