Games I've played, listed by fav

[skull_bearer]

(note, I'm not including Portal 1+2 here as they are mostly casual games that I pick up and put down from time to time. I love them, but they're not the ongoing projects of most games I play)

Mass Effect 2 (by a nose, plot is not as good as 1, but the action and playability and lack of a bloody inventory system makes a win, helped by the facts that with Gibbs savegame editor I didn't have to do any mining)

Mass Effect 1 (so much love it's not even funny)

Star Wars, Knights of the Old Republic 1 (It's everything that's good about Star Wars, with none of the shit. Rated down because the combat mixes the twin cheats of turn based combat and save anywhere, meaning every battle is a cakewalk, and it crashed a lot. A LOT)

Fallout 3 (Finally, a non-bioware game! So much love. So much love. The plot isn't as good as the above, but the fun of wandering around the beautifully rendered post-apocalyptic wasteland more than makes up for it)

Baldur's Gate (Dear god this is old, but I still love it, I played it about a million times and was still finding little Easter Eggs here and there, wonderful).

Jade Empire (An odd one, straightforward in some places, very weird in others. Fun to play if only to see what happens next, a lot of unexpected twists and one REALLY OBVIOUS one).

Baldur's Gate 2 (Again, played a million times. Still love it. The characters, the world, the plot. Love. All Round. Had less of the odd little nuggets of the first, which was a shame).

Icewind Dale (More straightforward than most RPGs, which is a shame, but it's beautiful and strange, which means I played it a lot).

Witcher (Still haven't finished it, but so far it seems like it deserves this spot. A bit too much railroading, a lag in chapter three, penalisation for not acting in a predecided way, made up for by great visuals, engaging world, fun characters and one of the best combat systems I've come across. And allowing me to play as Elric. Always a bonus)

Star Wars KOTOR 2 (Who the hell though of adding gritty realism into the Star Wars franchise? Even Lucas wasn't that dim. A perfectly good game otherwise, but didn't enjoy it so much).

Icewind Dale 2 (Some good things, some bad things, was rooting for the bad guys all the way, which fails in a game. The hacks were the best part)

Oblivion (My baseline for an enjoyable game. Oblivion was fun in places, boring in others, but still engaging enough to keep me going for 100% completion. Don't want to play it again but didn't begrugde the hours I spent on it)

Age of Empires, Age of Mythology (Fun in the same way solitaire is fun. Time killer stuff)

Fallout New Vegas (One of the few games I gave up on almost immediately. Not because it was bad, but because everything it did just reminded me that Fallout 3 had done it miles better. Five minutes in and I switched it off and rebooted Fallout 3, no need to play a pale reflection when you have the real thing)

Prototype (Another one I gave up on. Fun stress relief, but no staying power)

Black and White (Good, but not my thing)

Morrowind (Gave up on it, and it crashed before I could exit it. Haven't gone back since)

Dragon Age (Shit! Only completed it for my love of Bioware and took it back to CEX the same day)

Yeah, I like Bioware. Still not playing Dragon Age 2 though.

Comments

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

*Geek squee at mentioning KOTOR II* I'll admit it can get really depressing at times in terms of grittiness, but it's awesome nonetheless. :3

[skull-bearer.livejournal.com]

It's not terrible on grittiness, not as bad as Dragon Age, but.. it's Star Wars. I don't go into Star Wars for dark and gritty.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

I know what you mean. :) #Still bears some scars from the STAR WARS EU. *Shivers*

[arkan2.livejournal.com]

#Still bears some scars from the STAR WARS EU. *Shivers*

Me too. Seriously, who the fuck ever thought this was an even remotely good idea?

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Yeah. *Shudders* Any..."stand out" parts for you? I definitely know I took issue with the whole Caedus arc. And "compassion is for those who deserve it".

[arkan2.livejournal.com]

Oh, you bet. I like me my main characters alive, thank you*, and not evil or blitheringly stupid or both (looking at you, Darth Recycled-Vader). Oh, and let us not forget, Luke freaking Skywalker saving Lumiya's life just so that he could murder her personally.

*I wasn't so bothered by Chewie's death, but afterward ...

Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

I didn't mind Caedus too much (I think he was one of the saving graces of the series, just because the rest of the characters were just so unlikeable), but...his actions just made no sense. He was more of a plot device than anything else. And yeah -- Character Derailment barely covers it. In fact, everything about LOTF just screams "contrived", IMHO.

Oh, and let us not forget, Luke freaking Skywalker saving Lumiya's life just so that he could murder her personally.

IKR? I mean...*sighs* I doubt even Anakin would stoop that low. I mean, yeah -- dude did some questionable things, but he'd never do something like *that*. It sounds like something *Palpatine* would get -- honestly, Mara was wrong. Jacen wasn't the one who was worse than Palpatine -- Luke was. At least, post-SACRIFICE he became worse than Palpatine. *Sighs* Or maybe I'm overanalyzing? :/

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[skull-bearer.livejournal.com]

Wow, I'm so glad I have no idea what you're talking about.

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Yeah. It sucked. #Understatement.

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[arkan2.livejournal.com]

With rare but memorable exceptions, I didn't find the cast of LOTF - or as I like to call it, LoBS - terribly unlikeable. I can sort-of appreciate Darth Rehash from a mechanical perspective, but he makes the rest of the cast look like complete idiots for taking so freaking long to tumble to his game, and I'm not at all amused that the authors would have me believe he's the same character as Jacen Solo, whom I actually liked in the New Republic and New Jedi Order eras, though he was never one of my favorites.

And yeah -- Character Derailment barely covers it. In fact, everything about LOTF just screams "contrived", IMHO.

"Legacy of the Force" in a nutshell, right there.

Jacen wasn't the one who was worse than Palpatine -- Luke was. At least, post-SACRIFICE he became worse than Palpatine.

I wouldn't know. There was a time when I thought nothing could drive me away from an Expanded Universe book or series, but Sacrifice was the breaking point. Somewhere between Mara's death, Luke turning into a murderer, and thought of having to spend so much as one more scene in Darth Arrogant Prick's head I hit my limit. I still haven't picked up "Fate of the Jedi," and there's a significant chance I never will.

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Okay, maybe my saying "They're all unlikeable" was a little harsh -- they just grated on my nerves, one could say. "Idiot Plot" is probably the best way to describe it. :/

*Chuckles despite herself at "Darth Arrogant Prick"* I think it was Luke's idiocy that really made me give up in despair -- and even *hearing* about "compassion is for those who deserve it" made me just...lose my sanity, for lack of a better word. XD

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[arkan2.livejournal.com]

"Idiot Plot" is probably the best way to describe it. :/


We're in accord there.

"Idiot Plot" is probably the best way to describe it. :/

We're in accord there.

and even *hearing* about "compassion is for those who deserve it" made me just...lose my sanity, for lack of a better word. XD

Did he say that? Palm, face, do your thing.

Was it after Sacrifice, 'cause I feel like I would've remembered it if I'd read that.

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Did he say that? Palm, face, do your thing.

Was it after Sacrifice, 'cause I feel like I would've remembered it if I'd read that.

It was in FATE OF THE JEDI: ABYSS. Basically...this happens (and "thanks" to TOR Message for it -- basically, I was Googling the phrase after running across it just because of the sheer WTF factor):

A pair of the Sith Chasemaster Frigates had decided to ignore what seemed to Luke as common sense and instead had moved forward at far too great a speed to negotiate such a debris field. Doubtless the hapless captain was hoping to score points with Sith Lord Taalon by gathering some information or perhaps looting a body. Daring, but foolish.
Luke, Ben, and Vestara watched as, too late, the frigate realized its mistake and tried to avoid a collision.

That was when something very large moved into place, as fast as it could but with agonizing slowness. Luke caught a strong hit of determination as the Rockhound activated its extremely powerful tractor beam and tried to catch both frigates with it. One of them slowed, stopped. The other one slowed, but not enough to keep it from its fate.
Ben, Vestara, and Luke all watched, not averting their eyes at the sudden bright flash of light. Luke felt the dozens of lives aboard the frigate wink out, some immediately, some more slowly.

"What a waste," Luke said. "A useless sacrifice. All they've done is create more debris."
He felt a surge of anger, quickly shuttered, from Vestara. "One might expect more
compassion from a Jedi," Vestara said.
"Compassion is for those who deserve it," Luke said.

Yeah...you can verbally abuse me now. XD

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[arkan2.livejournal.com]

Yeah...you can verbally abuse me now. XD

Nah, I try not to make a habit out of shooting the messenger.

As for the message itself ... *loud retching noises* This deal gets worse and worse all the time. Suddenly very, very glad I haven't given Fate of the Jedi a look.

(Also "Sith Lord Taalon"? Pfft.)

Re: Oh Boy...I'm Not Going To Make Any Fans For This One. 0.0.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Thanks. :)

And yeah...pretty much this. :/

[synecdoche-and.livejournal.com]

I'd love to hear your opinion of Amnesia: The Dark Descent. I'm not a gamer, but the internet attention it got fascinated me so much that I made OP get it and play it with me, and it freaked the shit out of. Like, not "scream and run around waving my arms" freaked, but still pretty goddamn unnerved. And I don't scare easily.

[skull-bearer.livejournal.com]

I'll keep an eye out for it. Currently my future playlist goes: Witcher, Witcher 2, Skyrim, Mass Effect 3. Is it a long game? I'll try and squeeze it in.

[synecdoche-and.livejournal.com]

Actually it's not. Or I don't know what constitutes as a long game? But it took us about 18h to play it through, and some of that was because it was basically my first time ever gaming, if you don't count Mario Bros 1-3 :P


Although it's for PC - I think most of the games you listed are for consoles?


Anyway, here's Yahtzee's review of it if you're into that sort of thing (actually this review is pretty much what pushed me over the edge and made me truly want to play it).

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/2092-Amnesia-The-Dark-Descent

[casfic.livejournal.com]

I tried Morrowind but I really didn't like it, so haven't gone back to it after the initial foray.