RPG Progress Report

[TSTR]

beavisandbutthead.jpg

[Ack]

Shadowrun: Dragonfall

I mentioned in the "What RPG are you playing" thread that I had started this up, and I figured I'd talk a bit about my choices so far. Since Dragonfall started as a DLC for Shadowrun Returns, it's hard to judge it entirely separate, even if it has been expanded into a standalone title. I'm playing the standalone version, the "Director's Cut," but the game feels quite similar. I've been told there are some improvements to the base design, though my previous experience has let me slip back in easily. That said, one thing that I do like is starting off with an actual team this time. It makes it much easier to try out a different class than in the previous game.

That hasn't stopped me from doing the same thing I did last time though. In Shadowrun Returns, I played a white female Dwarf Street Samurai good with pistols named Meat. In Shadowrun: Dragonfall, I'm playing a black female Dwarf Street Samurai good with pistols named Beefstick. I'm not very original. I just hope I don't get screwed by needing a weapon skill I lack for the endgame this time like I did in Returns.

As for where I am in the game, currently I'm running jobs to bring in 50,000 nuyen to pay off Alice for information regarding a vanished scientist who just so happened to make a weapon capable of killing a dragon...or so he thought anyway. The dragon's apparently still alive and has some military-grade badasses backing it. My specific save point is actually in the middle of a mission, taking down a group of racist humans spouting their superiority drivel and planning a massive chemical weapons attack on Berlin. The first shot I fired was into the back of their leader as he tried to flee. Good times.

I also have to give Dragonfall credit, it begins with a tough encounter right off the bat by taking out of one of my troops(my decker! No! I always have use for a good decker) and then forcing me to survive for 9 rounds before manually escaping while under heavy fire from an armored orc armed with a minigun. That was not a pleasant fight. Not pleasant at all. I survived, but it wasn't pretty. I'm making sure to keep my combat skills upgraded, though unfortunately this means there have been some dialogue options I wanted to explore that I was locked out of. Oh well, at least I have a new decker.

[Daria]

Because it's funny?

If you find dick and fart jokes funny I guess so.

Lots of people do.

In the pen and pencil Shadowrun I'm usually drawn to playing a decker - but it's sort of a wasted main character class in the the PC games as they pretty much give you a good one to use. You really only need one, and can never have enough capable fire power.

[MrPopo]

Shadowrun: Dragonfall

I just hope I don't get screwed by needing a weapon skill I lack for the endgame this time like I did in Returns.

No worries there. There's a variety of ways to finish the endgame and they can be solved with a balanced team; no specific need of some specific weapon to damage enemies or anything like that.

I also have to give Dragonfall credit, it begins with a tough encounter right off the bat by taking out of one of my troops(my decker! No! I always have use for a good decker) and then forcing me to survive for 9 rounds before manually escaping while under heavy fire from an armored orc armed with a minigun. That was not a pleasant fight.

My first time through the game I actually got really lucky on my rolls and managed to knock the Orc out; once he hits 1 HP he gets perma stunned but you can't kill him (you might have guessed he's important). It made that section substantially less stressful.

[prfsnl_gmr]

My wife wanted to watch Downton Abbey last night; so, I got in some quality time with King's Field IV. I defeated another boss, and the game's world just keeps unfolding. This is easily the best "metroidvania" game on the PS2, and it is probably the second best "metroidvania" game of its generation. (It is going to have to go a really, really long way to beat Metroid Prime, and I think that some of the game's technical faults are going to hold it back.)

Since I made a lot of progress last night - and since I killed a ton of monsters - I will probably spend some time this evening re-tracing some of my steps and looking for hidden doors and equipment. Before I do that, however, I am going to murder every single creature in the recently-thawed forge...

[Exhuminator]

some quality time with King's Field IV This is easily the best "metroidvania" game on the PS2, and it is probably the second best "metroidvania" game of its generation. (It is going to have to go a really, really long way to beat Metroid Prime

I think King's Field IV is better than Metroid Prime, and that's saying a lot because I really loved Metroid Prime. I never really thought of KFIV as a metroidvania, but I can see how you're making that comparison. I'll say this much for you though, KFIV only gets better and better the deeper in you go. The final area of the experience is just amazing. For me this game was a 10/10. There's not many video games I'd personally score that high.

Edit: Also there are sometimes hidden trapdoors to find, not just hidden doors in the walls. So pay careful attention to floor tiles and such.

[Ack]

I figured I wouldn't be able to kill that orc, Popo, though I did plink him for a little damage. He's popped up a few times in the story, so he seems to be important. I also wasn't sure if there were infinite enemies during that sequence or not. More folks just kept walking through doors, so I decided it would be better to split as quickly as possible. I'm glad to hear Dragonfall did away with Returns problematic endgame run.

In the pen and pencil Shadowrun I'm usually drawn to playing a decker - but it's sort of a wasted main character class in the the PC games as they pretty much give you a good one to use. You really only need one, and can never have enough capable fire power.

True, though there are times where being a decker would be helpful, particularly in Returns. The trade off though is that the first game feels like it was designed with the main character being a tank since combat is so vital, the game has to explain how the Matrix works, and you do eventually get to hire deckers. Plus you can't build the other characters to be the tanks you need to support your fleshy butt if you aren't also a hoss. I always bring a decker, no matter what I'm doing. Everyone else tends to be a tank or support.

My preferred role in most RPGs is to be the tank though, so Street Samurai just fits my playstyle the best. I just like characters built like brick shithouses.

[MrPopo]

Dragonfall and Hong Kong are both good about giving you a really solid Street Samurai in your main team (Hong Kong even gives you two) so it's less necessary to go the meathead route yourself. But then Hong Kong buffed up the cyberware and one of them is a monomolecular whip that does hilarious damage with severe bleeding, so my character in that game ended up being Sonia Belmont.

[Ack]

Are we talking Eiger or Glory here for Dragonfall? Because I really like having Eiger on my team with that rifle of hers.

[prfsnl_gmr]

some quality time with King's Field IV This is easily the best "metroidvania" game on the PS2, and it is probably the second best "metroidvania" game of its generation. (It is going to have to go a really, really long way to beat Metroid Prime

I think King's Field IV is better than Metroid Prime, and that's saying a lot because I really loved Metroid Prime. I never really thought of KFIV as a metroidvania, but I can see how you're making that comparison. I'll say this much for you though, KFIV only gets better and better the deeper in you go. The final area of the experience is just amazing. For me this game was a 10/10. There's not many video games I'd personally score that high.

To me, at least, the RPG elements are fairly light. Certainly, I have to manage equipment and inventory, and my character levels up through combat. I only keep half an eye on anything other than my most basic stats, however, and I really do not have much choice regarding the way my character develops. Moreover, all of the combat takes place in real-time, and it is more dependent on planning and skill than statistics.

The game is also much more focused on exploration and problem-solving. My character is basically alone in a hostile (and somewhat alien) world, and the game provides absolutely no guidance regarding how to navigate it. (In that sense, the game reminds me very much of the first games in the Legend of Zelda and Metroid franchises.) Moreover, the game has multiple branching pathways, and although "bottlenecks" ensure that I do not break sequence entirely, I basically chart my own path through the game.