Gangrelrumbler
Arcane
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2014
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- 4,189
It was made by Poles. Czechs only made Mafia and some WW2 tactical shooter or something.
All in all, fantastic work by Aaron Allston (credited for both the overall game story and the game manual) and worth an extra 2 bonus points for afinal score of 48. That's considerably lower than the 68 I gave to Ultima VI, but still in the top 10% of 1990 games, and the third-highest rating I've given in the past year.
I started my series of posts on The Savage Empire praising Origin for re-using a great engine instead of discarding it after a single use. Thus, I was a little surprised and annoyed to find Dennis Owens complaining about the same thing in his March 1991Computer Gaming World review. “Although once upon a time, Ultima stood for innovation and surprise,” he grouses, “[they] seem to have devolved into copies of themselves–all requiring that worlds be explored…monsters be bashed, and objects be found.” I mean, Jesus, Dennis–you could reduce all RPGs to such trite phrasing.Ultimahasn’t lost its innovation just because the creators re-used one engine. Frankly, if they hadn’t, we’d be waiting until Ultima VII for the next game. Would that have been better?
While he does have some positive things to say, his conclusion is mixed: “Compared to any except its own brothers and sisters, The Savage Empire…must be considered dazzling and successful. Compared to its peers, however, the game presents what may be a disturbing view of a possible trend in the Ultima line: caricature.”
In her 1993 “survey” of RPGs on the market, Scorpia was a little more positive, concluding that it was “good for filling in the hours while you wait for the next realUltima,” with which I completely agree.
Finally he's finished with 1990, one of the years with the largest number of forgettable CRPGs made. Unfortunately the other year with the largest number of forgettable CRPGs made is upcoming 1991...
Finally he's finished with 1990, one of the years with the largest number of forgettable CRPGs made. Unfortunately the other year with the largest number of forgettable CRPGs made is upcoming 1991...
Large number of RPGs --> large number of forgettable RPGs. Don't knock the Golden Age
Finally he's finished with 1990, one of the years with the largest number of forgettable CRPGs made. Unfortunately the other year with the largest number of forgettable CRPGs made is upcoming 1991...
Large number of RPGs --> large number of forgettable RPGs. Don't knock the Golden Age
But the good to poor ratio was low in both 90 and 91, with very few really good games. I think 92 and 93 had about the same number of CRPGs released, but the good to poor ratio is much higher.
Hydlide isn't "very obscure", the NES port is well known. AVGN reviewed it (2,6 million views on youtube), as did some guy named ProJared (950k views on youtube).Some very obscure Japanese game that is hardly an RPG, and not even a good game, managed to generate over 100 replies...
People say this. Apparently Hydlide somehow aged worse in five years than Wizardry or Dragon Quest have in the last 30.It didn't fare so well in the West since it was brought over very, very late (5 year after the original release for home computers, 3 years after the Japanese Famicom release), at a point where it seemed (and really was) outdated compared to its competition.
It's not so hard to believe, really. But don't take my word for it - head on over to GOG and try out Akalabeth, then compare THAT to Wizardry.People say this. Apparently Hydlide somehow aged worse in five years than Wizardry or Dragon Quest have in the last 30.
I don't understand why he sees a problem here. First it's a dungeon crawler, so story is just an excuse to send you into the dungeon. More importantly, it's a good thing that the threat is left vague, not to mention it makes perfect sense (if Xanathar is planning a sneak attack, he's not exactly going to advertise this little tidbit, is he). It leaves you to discover the nature of the threat and how to deal with it as part of the game. It works a lot better than a generic "Xanathar plans to invade Waterdeep, go down there and kill him using the Wand of Silvas" blurb in the manual, which would also mean that the entire subplot of the Wand would no longer be optional (IMO one of EOB1's greatest strengths, and one not found in most other DM clones, is how nonlinear and open the dungeon actually is. EOB2 might've improved everything else, but I consider it an inferior sequel for this reason alone).The back story is pretty poor, telling you only that there's a threat (left oddly vague) to Waterdeep and that the Lords want you to solve it. Into the dungeon you go.
Stopped right hereAnyone played Dungeons of Avalon?
I never hears about it before myself, but it was an amateur Amiga RT blobber
I'm going to call both you and the addict out for reaching this conclusion considering the evidence you actually have on hand.But apparently the devs never bothered to make a winning screen, instead making the game unwinnable.
Anyone played Dungeons of Avalon?
I never hears about it before myself, but it was an amateur Amiga RT blobber, with very nice graphics, and seems to have quite good level design.
Look at the blog again. It's obviously not a RT blobber, it's a TB blobber.
Personally I consider #2 to be the most likely, with #1 a close second, and #6 far, far down on the likelihood list. It's telling that this is the one many commenters (including octavius, shame on you) jumped on.