Which game company is least deserving of its success?

For me, the difference was that the game world in Halo seemed to be dynamic and in real time. There were stuff happening around you all the time, even if you are just standing around doing nothing.

In most other FPS games I've played, things only happen as you move to new locations and "trigger" events. It's not more than just monsters waiting out there in rooms waiting for you to kill. But in Halo it's like a real breathing world which is constantly moving along.

In a lot of the Halo stages, you are the hunted instead of the hunter, which makes it a completely different experience from most FPS games.

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For me, the difference was that the game world in Halo seemed to be dynamic and in real time. There were stuff happening around you all the time, even if you are just standing around doing nothing.

In most other FPS games I've played, things only happen as you move to new locations and "trigger" events. It's not more than just monsters waiting out there in rooms waiting for you to kill. But in Halo it's like a real breathing world which is constantly moving along.

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This is simply your own delusion. Halo is as chock full of trigger events and scripted actions as the typical FPS, if not more so (more then RtCW? I'd say so).

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In a lot of the Halo stages, you are the hunted instead of the hunter, which makes it a completely different experience from most FPS games.

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How are you the hunted in Halo? You're running around with a rechargable shield that can be increased three-fold armed with an over-powered club attack and all the weapons everyone else has. Master Chief was as much the hunter in Halo in every stage as your typical Q3 player. You wanted hunted? Undying.

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Originally posted by MechDeus
Replace the names and you've just described every single genre as viewed from the casual side. (Although, "Beyond Castle Wolfenstein?" Whazzit?)
And this is different from most other FPS' how?

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Sorry, I meant Wolfenstein 3-d or whatever they called it. Beyond Castle Wolfenstein(actually, Return to Castle Wolfenstein) was the sequel on the Apple II computer, to the original Castle Wolfenstein.

You should have made a Poll. My vote goes to Square.

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Originally posted by gamevet
Sorry, I meant Wolfenstein 3-d or whatever they called it. Beyond Castle Wolfenstein(actually, Return to Castle Wolfenstein) was the sequel on the Apple II computer, to the original Castle Wolfenstein.

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Yeah, there was Wolfenstein 3D, Wolf 3D: Spear of Destiny (there's also Rise of the Triad, designed as the sequel to Wolf3D), and then Return to Castle Wolfenstein.

RoTT was by Apogee/3D Realms, not id. And it sucked! However you are right on all other counts.

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Originally posted by diffusionx
RoTT was by Apogee/3D Realms, not id. And it sucked! However you are right on all other counts.

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Originally posted by Classic Gaming
So in early 1994, "Wolfenstein 3D: Part II" started production. Kinda. The premiere issue of Game Developer's Magazine stated that "Apogee Software was working on a game called "Wolfenstein 3D: Part II," which was to be a totally new game, with completely new actors, and new everything; the only thing the same being the title Wolfenstein 3D." That was partially correct, but the plans for the Wolfenstein sequel dissolved soon after.

"Originally, the project was to be nothing more than new levels for Wolf3D, with a few extra added graphics." Says Joe Siegler (Apogee's Online Support Manager). "It then turned into a Wolf sequel. The original name was 'Wolfenstein 3D II: Rise of the Triad'. (Later on) The Wolf references got dropped, but the work done in that era is easy to see in ROTT."

The project name was then changed to "Rise of the Triad." Often referred to by its initials: "ROTT". Later, a little known 42 level add-on pack to called EXTREME ROTT was released.

If you are confused about the relationship between Apogee and id...don't worry about it. Early id games (like Commander Keen and Wolf3D) were distributed by Apogee and later FormGen (Wolf3D: Spear of Destiny), a company that eventually was bought by GT Interactive. But why would Apogee (3DRealms.. whatever you want to call it) have the right to do a sequel to Wolfenstein?

"Apogee didn't have rights to make the sequel." Explains Tom Hall, the Lead Designer \ Producer of ROTT. "As I moved over to Apogee to start up in-house development (after major creative differences with id), it was sort of a bridge project, but also a horribly constraining one."

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Taken from: http://www.classicgaming.com/rott/

RotT was pretty miserable... it was the second Computer game I ever played. I always thought Id Software was Apogee at one point =/ I guess that honour goes to 3D Realms.

Halo is mostly all triggered events. It makes for a dynamic plot that moves with your pace, not the game moving you invoulentarily.

The First-Person-Shooter is not really a genre, but simply a way of making a kind of game. Most games involve shooting in some form or fashion - some happen to be in First Person Perspective so it's really unusual to say that they're the same. Deus Ex, NOLF, and System Shock are nothing like Quake 3 and Unreal Tournament which are somewhat unlike Halo, Doom and Marathon. Then there's Tribes and other MP only FPS's. Morrowind is in First Person and so is Maken X. You can shoot (not with guns) in both but they are not like any of the aforementioned games or at all like each other. NeoZeedeater illustrated this by pointing out side-scrollers which is basicly like a first-person shooter in 2D and a 'camera' fixed to the side.

If all First Person Shooters are the same then Life Force, Mario, Metal Slug, Kadash and Streets of Rage are the same.

ºTracer

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Originally posted by conrooks
Perhaps on the console side of things things are re-hashed but on the PC end of the spectrum, they are doing a wonderful job. They have released Clive Barker's Undying which is actually the most frightening game ever. Forget RE , Silent Hill and Fatal Frame. This is true horror. If you have a half decent PC rig, you can enjoy it. EA released American McGee's Alice which is awesome. The Medal of Honor series, which speaks for itself, and last but not least
Battlefield 1942. If BF1942 was released on consoles, You people would respect EA much more. On the console side, I agree with you guys , but on the PC end, they are doing a fine job. PC gaming needs to be recognized more fully by console users and vice-versa. Plenty of wonderful experiences to go around!!
out

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WOW!!! You = + 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 cool points! :D

Undying, Alice, and BF1942 all in the same post?! My hat off to you (but remember CnC: Red Alert next time ;) ).

But EA isn't doing so bad on the console front either. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is great (on the Cube), as well as LotR: The Two Towers (PS2). I suppose it's all about perception.

Meant to do this earlier and forgot.

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Originally posted by PhlegmMaster
Blizzard. Not that their games are bad, but I'll never understand why so many people think they're the best PC developer. Diablo, Warcaft, Warcraft 2, and Starcraft were all good for their time (although none of them deserves the praise they got, IMO), but Diablo 2 is unbalanced and not nearly as fun as Diablo, and Warcraft 3 is a step backward when compared to Starcraft.

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Diablo 2 not being as much fun as Diablo is something I know quite a few people will argue you on. I will also stand by that, but I've haven't played either extensively so we're talking only about ten to twenty hours of playtime on each (Druids rock). Might I ask why you think Diablo 2 is unbalanced, so as to pass that onto my many-time addicted roommate?

Warcraft 3 is a step backwards from Starcraft only in terms of single-player, it was designed first and foremost as a faster, more focused multiplayer game. Starcraft was built as a large expansive single-player game, and the distinction works very well.

Many people think they're the best PC developer because they continuously create awesome games that are balanced insanely well with gorgeous design in every area. The music, art, and graphics are all phenomenal while wrapped up in an easy-to-use quick interface that all works well together.

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Baldur's Gate 2 was very good. Neverwinter Nights is one the most overhyped and overrated PC games of all time. Inferior single-player campaign, compared to BG and BG2, and the toolset lacks versatility (the Morrowind TS is much, much better, even though I think the game itself is crap).

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I found BG2 to be often annoying, ugly, not very much fun and (from what I played) badly paced. I found Neverwinter Nights to be way more fun and much more pleasing in most every aspect.