Rogue is a dungeon crawling video game first developed by Michael Toy and Glenn Wichman around 1980. It is generally credited with being the first "graphical" adventure game, and was a favorite on college Unix systems in the early to mid-1980s, in part due to the procedural generation of game content.

-- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogue_(computer_game)

Friday, October 22, 2010

On the Other Side

This week is Fallout New Vegas. 

Way back when, I watched the closing credits of Fallout 2 after a very fun romp though the NorCal wasteland.  I did my typical "Talkie/Sniper" build which is how I usually play any CRPG.  At least for the first run though.  Then a name popped up on the screen.  It was a name of Warhammer GM in High School.  And I went, is that him. A few months later we met up for our 10 year High School Reunion, and I found out that it was him.  I thanked him profusely for all the time he caused me to waste :)

The Fallout series has had gone though many hands over the past 15 some odd years.  And with Fallout New Vegas it has found its way under the guidance of my old GM from High School once again. 

Like any good Fallout game there is a lot going on, and I have only just begun.  However I thought I would share some of random thoughts on the game.  Hopefully non-spoiler. 

I have poked at some of the reviews of the game and one thing is quite common in most of them.  They use the phase "Built on a two year old engine."  By this most of the reviewers are making comments that the game is "out of date" technologically speaking.  But I would postulate that most CRPG players don't give as much credence to the latest technology.  Fallout 2 was still bucking the trend when it came out still in a crude tile based 2D format.  Even the Bualder's Gate series was pushing the 2D media further.  But it isn't the latest flashy graphics that I want.  I am there to play in the world and make a difference.

Now I come from the old table top era where we were lucky if we painted miniatures on the board.  A good RPG stimulates the mind to create more than what appears.  So I don't need the flash.  I need the story and world.  I still think Spiderweb games are some of the best CRPGs out on the market.  And they are very basic in their graphics. 

I think it is kind of missing the point to talk extensively about the engine of the game being up to date. 

Now being stable and with minimal bugs is a different story. 

Being an old gamer, I started with Bethsoft games with Daggerfall.  And for the most part I have had the same impression of any Bethsoft game.  Great story and world.  Lousy engine :).  But it is always big and fun.  Just quirky at times. 

Fallout New Vegas is much more of that. 

But I would not want it any other way.

Now where is the bloody sniper rifle.

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