ToEE or AoD or UR

[Sykar]

AoD, no contest. Underrail is only fun in small bursts, I can't play it for more then an hour without getting bored out of my ass. The combat is fun, but all you're really doing in that game, is mindnumbingly plowing through endless trash mobs, while cursing the primitive interface.

Nothing wrong with the interface in UnderRail.

Plenty of wrong, actually. Sorting your inventory is a nightmare, and crafting interface is amateur hour.

Pressing sort and using filters is hard. As is not picking up every piece of crap from the nearest trash bin.

 

[Irenaeus II]

I have to agree with the edgy pig here: Quest compass for you!

About Underrail, comparing it to Fallout 1/2 is preposterous and part of the hype preventing me to begin playing immediately. The lack of story thing also detracts me for wanting to begin playing, but I will eventually. At least no one is complaining about a bad story, which is a plus.

 

[valcik]

.. And neither do I care about NPCs, no matter how well written, if the only exposure is through a few dialogue lines and then it's "beam me up, Scotty" again.

Well, this is exactly how real dungeon master treats you in PnP sessions. Obviously too hardcore for younger folks.

 

[Agesilaus]

.. And neither do I care about NPCs, no matter how well written, if the only exposure is through a few dialogue lines and then it's "beam me up, Scotty" again.

Well, this is exactly how real dungeon master treats you in PnP sessions. Obviously too hardcore for younger folks.

Glad somebody said it; there's the Fallout: Grey Pixels Edition way of doing a CRPG, and then there's the Beam Me Up, 100% quality content method. While the Torment: Arcanum fans are playing with their steampunk goggles and fingerless gloves, I'll be nourishing the soul with character interactions worth remembering.

Darklands did city-exploration best, and AoD did not squander its CRPG patrimony.

 

[hell bovine]

.. And neither do I care about NPCs, no matter how well written, if the only exposure is through a few dialogue lines and then it's "beam me up, Scotty" again.

Well, this is exactly how real dungeon master treats you in PnP sessions. Obviously too hardcore for younger folks.

But of couse, getting teleported between NPCs and solving quests by passing dialogue skillchecks is the very definition of hardcore gaming. If players had to figure out for themselves to whom to talk to, now that wouldn't be hard enough.

 

[Agesilaus]

I was wondering if the Grey Pixel fans could answer a question for me. When your character is walking down corridor after corridor, what do you day-dream about? Do you roleplay and try to imagine what your character would think about as he spends half-a-day strolling down magically-lit tunnels? Or do you just stop playing and day-dream using the full colour spectrum?

 

[Irenaeus II]

I day-dream about shitposting on codex.

 

[Darth Roxor]

About Underrail, comparing it to Fallout 1/2 is preposterous and part of the hype preventing me to begin playing immediately.

People comparing Underrail to Fallout are fucking idiots. The two have literally next to nothing in common, and I'm not even speaking quality-wise here.

 

[Irenaeus II]

Agree, but I swear to you I have seen the comparison being made.

 

[Darth Roxor]

I know. It happens pretty often around here for some reason. Must be some kind of contagious common idiocy.

 

[Excidium II]

It's mostly people who haven't played. Because the similarities are p. superficial.

 

[Somberlain]

Codex is a hugbox for edgy nerds so most users go with what they perceive to be the common consensus, even if they haven't played the game.

 

[Lhynn]

I have to agree with the edgy pig here: Quest compass for you!

About Underrail, comparing it to Fallout 1/2 is preposterous and part of the hype preventing me to begin playing immediately. The lack of story thing also detracts me for wanting to begin playing, but I will eventually. At least no one is complaining about a bad story, which is a plus.

There is a story bro, the game just very slowly builds up to it, and you kinda get involved without meaning to, as the envoy from SGS. Like, stuff doesnt revolve around you, but you are usually the guy, that guy that can do shit everyone else simply cant due to fear or lack of resources. You are the only guy that doesnt really mind risking it (you can be tho, always an option to back out).
What i find intriguing about underrail is how many memorable characters it has, it shouldnt be possibly with the dry and brief style it presents on dialogues, but characters you meet have distinct personalities and motivations. Feels like a DM wrote them for a session, and about 90% of them are optional, and of those which arent, most of their dialogue is.
Too bad that most people wont ever know because its neither mandatory not useful in any way, its just flavor for the most part.

 

[valcik]

But of couse, getting teleported between NPCs and solving quests by passing dialogue skillchecks is the very definition of hardcore gaming. If players had to figure out for themselves to whom to talk to, now that wouldn't be hard enough.

Have you played AoD actually? You have to find a lot of NPC on your own, transitions are not exclusive mechanics. Domitius Ulpius?

 

[hell bovine]

But of couse, getting teleported between NPCs and solving quests by passing dialogue skillchecks is the very definition of hardcore gaming. If players had to figure out for themselves to whom to talk to, now that wouldn't be hard enough.

Have you played AoD actually? You have to find a lot of NPC on your own, transitions are not exclusive mechanics. Domitius Ulpius?

I have. I had one discussion with VD on these forums about the design of dialogue-driven quests and their difficulty in AoD. His response was that they still have players on their boards complaining about them being too difficult, therefore he can't make it more challenging. And I guess you can't really debate that; ultimately, what players find difficult or not is dependent on them, and it is the developer's prerogative to shape their game however they see fit.

edit: I'm afraid I don't even remember who this domitius guy was anymore.

 

[Kazuki]

Shit, there will be a lot of butthurt if their respective games (AOD or Underrail), if their games didn't win GOTY awards in Codex.

But in other hand, there's a lot entertainment and Massive Butthurt if two respective game didn't win GOTY and to have lost that award to POE or *shudder* FAILout 4.

It will be a fucking glorious day on Codex if that ever happened

 

[mixer]

I would consider myself Underrail fanboy and i'm aware game has a fuckton of flaws as it is. Some are fixable with patches but some are design decisions that will stay forever. Have yet to delve deeper than 1 run through AoD but i guess it's the same. However if any of those two games loses to mediocre game like PoE or something downright terrible i would be a bit butthurt i admit.

 

[hell bovine]

Shit, there will be a lot of butthurt if their respective games (AOD or Underrail), if their games didn't win GOTY awards in Codex.

But in other hand, there's a lot entertainment and Massive Butthurt if two respective game didn't win GOTY and to have lost that award to POE or *shudder* FAILout 4.

It will be a fucking glorious day on Codex if that ever happened

Which is why I think both AoD and Underrail should share the GOTY 2015 award. Otherwise, you are just giving points to companies like Bethesda. They have huge PR machines that are capable of dealing with negative feedback, be it by bribing journalists or spamming fake positive comments. (And this is why I find it disappointing that there is no review for SitS, because for games like this getting even a bit of spotlight on a forum like codex matters.)

I think the reason why you have so many people choose between AoD and Underrail is because those two games follow different designs; it is no surprise that they attract different kind of players. I don't think AoD is a bad game; in my opinion Darth Roxor's review is a very fair assessment of both the good and the bad (and the ugly). But where he enjoyed the game despite the bad points, my experience was the opposite. He stated that his playthroughs were never boring. For me, annoyance and boredom won out in the end. Because what amuses, irritates or bores us are individual things, and, like I wrote before, it is the developer's prerogative to shape their game however they see fit. And that will always alienate some players and attract others. (which is why targeting the fast travel/quest compass group is so popular nowadays; quite a lot of people seem to like it)

I also think Underrail has its own faulty design choices. My main two gripes are 1) that there are two many unnecessary areas, with maybe a few enemies, or a few containers, and the game would be better off without those.
2) That it really under-utilizes its own combat system in encounter design. If my computer skills weren't the equivalent of pressing ctrl+alt+del and hoping for the best, I'd try modding, because there is a lot of potential that I can see in this game, but it is squandered by AI that is terrible at working together.
But I am still having fun playing it.

 

[Aothan]

I'm looking forward to the next content update for TOEE

 

[RhodokMasterRaceOfficial]

Honestly why the hell would you force your players to walk everywhere manually in a game that doesn't even really feature proper open world exploration? It seems like a waste of time in a game like Age Of Decadence, but fine in something like Morrowind.