Wednesday, August 25, 2004

Demonstone ...

Hello. Today is Wednesday. I have had a nice long night at work tonight where I was short-handed and had to work hand-in-hand with a woman from Honduras (yet again), and although she is a good worker, I am still very tired (mainly because of the shorthandedness). We managed to finish the good majority of everything that was taken care of and whatever.

But, as per the title, I digress. [/endbitchsession]

Demonstone. This games graphics give the game a lot to look forward too... *However* gameplay may not be nearly as good as what the graphics make it look to be. What I mean to say is this. There are many factors that affect whether or not a CRPG or Computer-Role-Playing-Game is any good or not. Graphics. Certainly, this is one of the things that is very important to a CRPG. Sound. Also, very important, and when I state sound, I mean both special effects & background music. Gameplay. When I say gameplay, this is almost all-encompassing... of what you ask?! The control. How well you can control the character, how your character moves, clipping issues, fluttering of your cloaks when you run, twinkling of water as you step in it, stuff like that. But mainly, how you control your character. Many games can be absolutely broken in the graphics & sounds department, but the Gameplay is solid, which makes the game generally good. Good Gameplay can make or break a game. And last, but not least, and probably most important. Story. Without a story, your game is nothing. At least for CRPG. If your game has *Great* visual & audio effects, however it sucks shit in the Gameplay & Story aspect, then, your game isn't worth as much as the toilet paper in my bathroom.

What is the greatest CRPG of all time?!

This is a very difficult question, but first you must understand the full aspects to this question.

1.) Video
2.) Audio
3.) Gameplay
4.) Story

There are many *great* CRPGs out there, but not many can be *great* in all 4 categories. I will list a few examples of some CRPGs that are excellent in all 4 categories (although, some may contain dated graphics, in their time they were *EXCELLENT*)

1980's:
  • Wizard's Crown
  • Demon's Winter
  • Phantasie
  • Phantasie II
  • Phantasie III: Wrath of Nikodemos
  • Temple of Apshai
  • Pool of Radiance
  • Curse of the Azure Bonds
  • Secret of the Silver Blades
  • Champions of Krynn
  • Death Knights of Krynn
  • Dark Queen of Krynn
  • Eye of the Beholder
  • Bard's Tale
  • Bard's Tale II
  • Bard's Tale III
  • Ultima III
  • Ultima IV (although after this one, they went downhill)
  • Final Fantasy (Console - Nintendo, circa. 1989)
  • Phantasy Star (Console - Sega / Sega Genesis, circa. 1989)
  • Dragon Lord
    And more...

    1990's:
  • Baldur's Gate
  • Baldur's Gate 2 (My personal favorite CRPG of all time next to WC)
  • Planescape:Torment (One of my top 10.)
  • Stonekeep
  • Elder Scrolls:Arena
  • Elder Scrolls:Daggerfall
  • Dungeon Hack
  • Final Fantasy 7!!
  • Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen (in the top 10... for pure malice)
    And more...
    ...
    However: I will say that there are not as many memorable games for me as there were from the 80's, and that is just because the stories for games began to not be as big of a deal. Nope, graphics & sound were more of a deal with the advent of new technology, however story & gameplay went in the shitter. So far, in the 2000's, there've only been a few games worth mentioning in the genre. I mean, really seriously worth mentioning.

    2000's:
  • Elder Scrolls: Morrowind
  • Baldur's Gate 2: Throne of Bhaal expansion (Added to BG2: SO...)
  • Final Fantasy 10! *GASP*
  • Knights of the Old Republic
  • Neverwinter Nights***
    And *maybe* a few more, if that.

    *Note, Neverwinter Nights had all the potential to be a mighty kick-ass rocking game. But unfortunately the official campaign was absolute shit, although it was decent enough storied, it was boring, the control is a little shaky (especially for spell-casting classes) but the Graphics & Sound were Phenomenal. The real staying power for this game however, came not from the actual campaign modules put out by Bioware, but rather, user-made modules made by the community. Information can be found here.

    Now that I've gone through and given several examples of *GOOD* games, I can simply only hope that this Demonstone is a good game rather then some horrifyingly pathetic piece of ass.

    Thank you for your cooperation. Have a nice day.

    \Koltur
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