Any adventuresque RPGs? (beside Torment)
 

Hi everyone,

I just finished Planescape Torment, and found it quite impressive. It seems this game is well known for some touches of adventure, in particular the very strong main storyline. Even if it's not my favourite genre, I am more than open to playing RPGs if they have such a good plot as Torment. So, any suggestions?

(BTW: the same applies to the action genre: I enjoyed Psychonauts, and I know Beyond Good and Evil is a game to try in this regard.)

I found Baldur's Gate 1 & 2 + expansions to be quite good. They're not as adventureque as Torment, but still heavy on the story. Other games are Deus Ex, Outcast and Omikron - Nomad Soul.

Another rpg that gets nods from adventure gamers is Anachronox.

The story is excellent (its got punch and is cinematically delivered), especially some of the more 'unique' characters.

Its not a completely fun ride though, you have to be able to stomach the battle system which is dyed in the wold "Japanese RPG" fare. By that I mean you wait around a lot for the pretty animations every single round, over and over, your guys, theirs, again and again.

The animations are quite fun to start with but by their very 'in your face' frequency you will always be itching for the next skill/weapon upgrade both for a new animation to (briefly) break the monotony and to quench your desire for faster battles. Set it on easy difficulty, the story is worth the slog alone.

I would also recommend cheating for the sake of the 'character panel' debugger. Its basically the same as party management in Knights of the Old Republic. A very easy to use graphical interface to swap party members in and out of the 2 (you and 2 tag alongs) slots as and when you want to, rather than backtracking across planets just to change your guys... it seems like a feature that got cut its so easy to use. You only really need to do this late in the game though.

I played Anachronox for the first time earlier this year twice in a row back to back and am already starting to itch for another playthrough.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...onoxBricks.jpg

I second the recommendation for Anachronox. Definitely worth the entrance fee (though you might need to search out the patches. If I can find the links I'll post them)

The character panel management tool sounds useful. There is a section of the game where you get different quests based on your companions but the part you had to replay to change companions was too long to make it a save beforehand and quick changeover option. Sounds like this would get around that.

I third the Anachronox recommendation. Seek out my threads if you want to know more about the game or if you have other questions feel free to ask in this one. Many RPG's have adventure elements in them and it is often the case that you can't find RPG without adventure.

I'd say Riviera (for handheld systems). It hasn't got much of a plot, or at least not a memorable one (I don't remember it.). But the part of the gameplay that's for the fiction side of the game (wandering around, character interaction) is the most classical-adventure-ish fiction gameplay I've ever played through in an RPG. I'm not sure why that's a big deal, but there you have it.

Oblivion is a straight RPG, but you can wander all over investigating all kinds of places and having conversations with people and doing just about whatever you feel like. I think it's the best RPG of all time and I know a lot of people agree.
I think that if you like RPGs at all you should give that one a try. It's not much on the story (in my opinion) but there is so much to do. You don't have to follow the main plot. There is so much to do in it that if you don't feel like messing with the main quest you never have to. Just ride around talking to people and collecting quests and working your way up through the ranks of various guilds and things.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will have a look (there are nice pages on wikipedia for each of them). I forgot to mention I am primarily interested in story line, so I'll begin checking Anachronox. I find the usual RPG gameplay a bit distracting (with all the quests and branching), but then again I am not too happy with the usual AG gameplay either...

So why are you babbling about "adventuresqueness"? Just ask for RPGs with good stories!

OK, my bad. It's just taking me some time to realize it was not the genre of AGs that attracted me as such, only the good stories and dialogs one may find in them .

Fallout, Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines, plenty of story and dialogue elements that surpass most Adventure Games.

I've been playing Morrowind lately and have been loving it. I like how you have to dialogue around but it's also stat influenced, not just a simple choice of what to ask. Some characters like you and others don't. Plus you get to fight! A+ in my book :P

Catbert, Oblivion is the sequel to Morrowind. Well, not really sequel I suppose, but the next in the Elderscrolls. You might want to try it when you're done with Morrowind. Both are excellent, though I found Oblivion more enjoyable.
Morrowind is definitely a great suggestion.

Definitely the Fallout series, Arcanum, Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines.

I wouldn't say the Elder Scrolls series is known for its stories. Not in the Planescape: Torment sense.

All the following games pack dialogue and personal choices.

All RPG's from Bioware, Black Isle, Obsidian and Troika are worth looking at. Some of them are weaker than the rest but still better than average of what you can find out there.

Black Isle
Planescape Torment
Baldurs Gate series
Icewind Dale series
Lionheart
Fallout series

Bioware
Knights of the Old Republic
Neverwinter Nights Expansions, Shadows of Undrentide & Hordes of the Underdark (not the main campaign)
Jade Empire

Obsidian
Knights of the Old Republic II
Neverwinter Nights II

Troika
Arcanum
Temple of Elemental Evil
Vampire: Bloodlines

Besides thoose companies you can look at the Gothic series that manages to be what Morrowind/Oblivion never was, a free-roaming experience that is still a real storydriven adventure.

Dungeon Siege 1 is a very weak game, but Dungeon Siege II is quite good, if you can get beyond the action you will find a game packed with content.
Divine Divinity is also a great game that hit 90-95% average in reviews but still few have played it (unfortunally).

Deus Ex does offer a rather unique adventure/rpg experience even if it by first glance is a FPS. If you try it, do not give up until the 2nd level, Deus Ex contains what might be one of the best told stories ever made in a computer RPG.

Yea, what this guy ^ said.

I didn't suggest Oblivion, which I'd love to try out, because none of the three computers I've got at home come near the minimum specs for it ;)

Somebody described the Gothic games as "sort of like Morrowind, but with good gameplay". I would agree Gothic has a more enjoyable feel to it and, I would argue, a great deal more character. Of all the RPGs I've played this is definitely the most adventure-like in terms of story and character interaction. I wrote a review of the second part back when it came out.

Morrowind does have a charm of its own though, so despite its shortcomings it's worth a play, but not so much for the characters or storytelling...

I'll second the recommendation of Vampire Bloodlines too. Great story and characters. There was a long thread about it not long ago if you want to read up on it.

Knight of the Old Republic: also good. I didn't care for the semi-turn-based combat or the emphasis on statistics but still enjoyed it a lot.

Regarding Oblivion... I haven't played it yet, but I found this pretty funny.

I found the Icewind Dale series (completed the original with expansion and up to Chapter 3 in the second0 to be a lot more combat-oriented. The story elements seemed much more "this is where you need to beat up monsters next" rather than adventury story setups. Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 (which you also mentioned) are much better in this regard.

Also, regarding the Neverwinter Nights recommendation (which I also agree with) If you get the game wtih both expansion packs you can find a whole bunch of independently developed modules here, many of which have very well written stories. A lot of them use the content from the expansions so it's worth getting all three if you want to try these out.

Black Isle/Troika games are definitely worth a try, especially the Fallout series and Arcanum. A lot of combat alternatives and great writing there.
But both Icewind Dale and Lionheart are mostly focused on combat, so I'd stay away from those. Icewind Dale is still playable (not my cup of tea tho'). Lionhearts combat on the other hand is pretty damn irritating, a shame too - the setting looked interesting, some cool ideas, but the gameplay rendered it unplayable for me.

Icewind Dale is, according to most reviewers, a pain to understand if you're not into the whole D&D deal. And has a hard start. I'd stay away from it too. Maybe, if you're not disgusted by the graphics, you could try Daggerfall as well. I know I'm only recommending TES games but god damn morrowind is AWESOME

Yup. All the games on my list do not have the same quality, and considering they are old and long it's good to check the reviews on a site like www.gamerankings.com

Follow up to the NWN module recommendation this is a nice little story-based campaign (with a sense of humour and a sequel campaign if you like this one)

But if you want something darker then I've just finished this by the same author. Wonderful piece of work. So much so that I started into the sequel (which has a very nice opening section) almost straight away.

If you get the NWN bug from these then I'm sure there are plenty of people able to recommend other modules and other authors around here. I know these forums house a few other fans of the game.

Fallout games, especially Fallout (the first one) can be played like an adventure game. If you have high enough intelligence and persusion you can finish the game without ever shooting a single shot. Verny nice touch, I think.

I didn't like Arcanum at all. I thought the combat system was horrid (what is the point of magik when you can run up and punch the guy in the face before a spell can be cast?), the story unimpressive, and there are a few game breaking bugs even after the patches. And the music was kind of grating.

But I did get a kick out of the game as I played as an ogre with an itelligence of 1, exploited the hell out of items in the game, beat the crap out of everybody, then won the game by being super evil. I thought that was funny as hell, then I sold the game dirt cheap because I knew I'd never touch it again.

Try Fable.

http://www.firingsquad.com/media/gallery_index.asp/23

There's a great story, beautiful graphics and non-linear gaming all around.
There are even several endings, and you get to choose throughout the game
weather you'll be a good guy or farmer's worst nightmare.

Gothic is also great, but Fable is way better.

Were you playing in real time combat mode or turn based? Real time was raw and difficult to balance even on machines at the time of the release, it is absolutely pointless to try real time mode on modern machines with their faster clock speeds.

In turn based mode its actually a rather good combat system. Not the most polished but one of the few to implement 'backstab' properly...

The story is weak but the setting is exceptional, a shame more wasn't done with it really, the manual is a joy to read. The number of steampunk theme games is far too thin on the ground.

Aye, don't even think about RT combat in Arcanum ;)
I found TB quite enjoyable in both Fallout and Arcanum, but that's definitely not the feature BI/Troika games are renowned for (apart from maybe Temple of Elemental Evil). The writing, original settings and abundance of alternative paths and solutions more than make up for the sometimes "unpolished" gameplay in my book.

I know. I suggested Oblivion. Ha. Sorry about the computer specs. My computer isn't great and it can play it. Not on the highest settings, of course, but it makes due.

It was turn-based. I guess that my complaint with the combat system is that it seemed like a lot of work went into it but if all the magik, mechanics, and special abilities can be countered a by a fist in the face then everything else just seemed pointless. I was usually able to take out a few guys per round. That's just my opinion though, oh well, some people loved the game and the music.

If you both enjoyed Psychonauts and Beyond Good and Evil try
American Mcgees Scrapland.

I would just like to thank you all for the wonderful suggestions. After some research, I have drafted a short list of games that will surely make me happy. Thanks for guiding me in the unknown territory of RPGs.

What's the list?

OK, my short list would be:

• For sure: Vampire TM - Bloodlines, Anachronox.
• Perhaps: Fallout series, Arcanum, Gothic series, Deus Ex
• No-no: Oblivion, Morrowind, Icewind Dale

This is of course based on

• the time I have had to do look around the web (not much, I still need to research some promising games)
• the available time I have to play (again, not much), and
• my particular tastes.

When this thread had started I realized what I wanted was a great story, like what you get in a good novel. This is explains why I am not interested in some games like Oblivion which are surely great in some other ways. For example, I still cannot see how to develop an engrossing story within an "open" world. The later is certainly appealing, but I just want to be told a good story.

Sounds like a good start! You will certainly have a story experience right out of a novel if you begin with your choices on the list. Remember, take your time with these games because the first time around is always the most magical time. If you are interested in a natural experience, as hard as the temptation might be, try to avoid the walkthrough to these games to make the game feel spontaneous and exciting. I hope you don't take my comments as patronistic, but rather as a congratulations that you chose your list well; many of us here in these forums just wish they could be playing their favorite games for the first time and hope you have the kind of experience they did.

Don't put Deus Ex in the maybe bin, it's an awesome game and it should be mandatory to play it at least once in your life. ;)

Anyway I'm open to suggestions too, keeping in mind I can't play really fancy games. I'd say games that came out after 2004 are right out of question. Bloody Athlon XP...

I'm currently playing this now, the gameplay can be frustrating but I wouldn't call it unplayable. The spell and skill system is VERY basic (few options, and little development) while the gameplay is punishing and forces you to be quite intimate with how to build a character that can survive. Add to this, certain spell schools are pure crap (90% of the necromancy tree for example) and you can easily find yourself wondering why you're bothering while playing a pants character.

The easiest character to build seems to be a fighter/mage or shooter/mage. You still need to be careful with stats and traits though. Thankfully there's some good guides on gamefaqs.

I went hours just killing things and picking up new gear just like a Diablo clone before finally picking a guild and starting the 'story' proper. Its not been a memorable experience but with the right character its a passable one.

There are so many exceptional games out there now (new and old, indie and mainstream) that I wonder why anyone would still suffer through hours of 'passable'... Unless a game has other redeeming qualities that elevate it far above its lesser moments I don't see the point.

I agree with you. Although, I have been known to play a game just to check it off on a list. Some games that I play come up in conversation so much that I feel obligated to give it a go in order to contribute to a discussion.

I don't agree with the Icewind Dale games being a no-no. First, they let you create your entire party. If you buy Icewind Dale 1+ Heart of Winter+ download Trials of the Luremaster and Icewind Dale 2, you're in for a real treat, I'd say :)

I agree, however, with the list that hasVampire TM:Bloodlines, Arcanum, Fallout games, Anachronox, Gothic series, Deus Ex, and would just like to add
Planescape: Torment to this list :)

As for Lionheart, I think this could have been a really great game, if it hadn't been for the annoying, hard & frustrating combat. I have tried both the demo & the full game. I have troubles fighting the bees? in the game. There were way too many of them for a level 1 character. On top of that you can't pause the like you can in all other Infinity Engine games. Oh, wait, you can, but just to drink potions and such. Unfortunately, this doesn't mean much as the wolfes etc. hit you really hard, again to much for a level 1 character, I think.

It is pretty clear to me that the developer of this game, Reflexive Entertainment, thought they were meant to make a sort of arcade game, with some stats, dialogues, character creation, character development etc. thrown in for good measure. [Reflexive Entertainment makes arcade type games]. Or maybe the publisher Black Isle/Interplay wanted an arcade type like action game? because they thought that it would generate quick money?

What Black Isle/Interplay apparently failed to realize is that games build with the Infinity Engine have a reputation for beiing high quality rpgs, not action arcade adventures in which your goal is to be fighting and slaying as many enimies and monsters as possible. Infinity Engine games also were highly praised for their ability to let you have a party. This fine thing also were stripped from Lionheart - for reasons best known :rolleyes: to Black Isle.

Maybe they thought people wanted to play an action game, since action games in 2002-2003 were being really popular. However, if people wanted to play a 'real' action game, they would probably rather play Halo 1, Half-Life 1 or any of the FPS games, released in 2002-2003.