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The North American ship date is April 17 for both the PC and Xbox versions. I figured I would start the thread now to build anticipation. The first game was great and this looks to be the big title for graphic adventure fans for 2006. Who's interested?
http://a248.e.akamai.net/f/248/5462/...3590_pc_18.jpg
I'm definitely picking this one up. I've never played the first game but I have a soft sport for graphic adventure games. Hopefully the release price will be around $20-30.
Wow, didn't realize this was coming out so soon. This is one of the games I'm really looking forward to this year. I should come clean though, and admit to never finishing The Longest Journey. There are many, many things to love about it, but I lost a save file over halfway in, and there's just so much talking in the game I could never get back into it. I should really try again before this game hits.
The first is my favorite hand-drawn adventure game OAT. And by a wide margin. The voice actress for April was divine. Hope she reprises.
Little scared of the action elements in this follow-up but still pretty damn excited over-all. That Ragnar guy is quite the visionary, not to mention an all-around interesting fellow, at least in interviews.
Here's a new Ragnar interview that talks about various things. It's a good read.
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20...odard_01.shtml
After watching the videos at IGN I'm a bit disappointed with the lack of facial expressions as they make the talking parts look very odd and robotic. They could have avoided that by not going so close up with the camera. The combat doesn't look that great either. Still, aside from those aspects I expect the overall game to be excellent.
Goddamn, I know TNL hates PC games, but even console ports of sequels to STELLAR PC games get the cold shoulder?
Well, I read the interview. The "we're hell-bent on making this game appeal to the maximum number of people, therefore, we must include combat and sneaking sections" attitude really rubs me the wrong way. And this nonsense about adventures being "dead". Just calm down. Companies like DreamCatcher and The Adventure Company have been thriving for years, releasing the vast majority of their games in this "dead" genre.
And damn, Ragnar looks like he's 18.
p.s. Still really looking forward to this. Running around as April again might even make me misty-eyed. I freakin' adored The Longest Journey.
Running around as April, just like in the good old days...snapping necks.
Also, stealth can be super annoying in these types of games. I like stealth-centered games, but when stealth sequences are just quick little interjections they usually suck ass. And I agree about the stony faces and combat looking crappy.
And yet, I am still hopeful. Sounds like a lot went into this game.
I've never played The Longest Journey, but I'm all over this.
I think this game looks interesting. I never played the first, but I'll probably buy this.
Haha.Quote:
Originally Posted by Salsashark
And I agree about the stealth thing whole-heartedly.
Splinter Cell and Thief = :link:
Stealth elements in damn-near every action/adventure game post-MGS = :\
You should. It's still in some stores (usually in budget games) and goes for about $5-10.Quote:
Originally Posted by elfneedsfood
Yeah, I still see TLJ at office supply stores like Staples. I think they reprinted the game last year in those small boxes.
I tried to pre-order this yesterday. Apparently the game isn't even in the local EB's database yet. Has anyone else had this problem?
Ah well, it's probably good that I might not be able to track it down until after exams.
They let me preorder at Gamestop.Quote:
Originally Posted by bVork
So I picked up the original and played through it. It's an amazing game. Honestly, it's one of the best games I've ever played. The characters and dialog in the game are incredible. I'm REALLY looking forward to Dreamfall now. The PC version should be out tomorrow and the Xbox version on Wed.
Damn, you finished it pretty fast. I remember it being fairly long for an adventure game. Did you use a walkthrough at all? I remember getting stuck for like three hours in the beginning. I finally broke down and checked a walkthrough... and it turns out I had run into a bug! So it wasn't even my fault. That still sticks in my craw...
p.s. I agree with your assessment that it may in fact be one of the greatest games ever. It was in my All Time Top 10 for awhile. It's prolly slipped into my Top 15 now. Still, that's prime real estate, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Mischief Makers and Super Mario RPG.
I got to this part where you're in a library and you talk to this old guy and make him go fetch you different books off the shelves. Every time he does this he walks over to the shelf.....REALLY,REALLY SLOWLY......and then there's the picking up the book animation which is moderately slow....and then...he walks all the way back to you SUPER SLOW. And that happened like 4 times and I just couldn't take it anymore.
Looking back, I think I'm probably an idiot because I believe you can skip those animations just by pressing escape or something.
Nah, I don't think you can skip those. I feel the frustration. I am just ridiculously patient with things like that. I get annoyed but never to the point where I'd stop playing an otherwise good game.
As much as I loved it I never beat TLJ. It just happened to be the game I was playing when some virus fucked over my computer and a couple years later my hard drive died while playing it.
I will return to it some time but it's a long game(truth in advertising I guess) and after losing my saves twice I think I'll play Dreamfall first. According to the GS review(they gave it an 8.1 BTW), Dreamfall is about 10 hours long which is much shorter than TLJ was for me.
So will not having played the first matter all that much if I want to just take a jab at this game?
I only used a walkthrough at one part. It was where the guy in the stall kept dropping his synthetic eye, and you had to switch it with something. I couldn't for the life of me figure out what you were supposed to use because I didn't pick up Guybrush the monkey again after I used him to scare the guy outside of the theatre where the shadow is. You had to take the eye off of Guybrush. Yeah, the game is pretty long, but I played it alot last weekend. I got stuck at a couple of parts, but I worked my way though it. And you can use Escape to skip all the animations. I did that often. It really speeds up the game. I'm picking up Dreamfall tomorrow.Quote:
Originally Posted by Compass
Well, Dreamfall has a new main character, so it may not matter all that much.Quote:
Originally Posted by Clash!
IGN hated it too. Well they gave it a 7.5 but in IGN-land thats a horrible score.
GameSpy gave it a perfect score. I havent seen such hot-and-cold reviewing from a single game in years.
Gamespot gave it an 8.1 but lavished much praise on it during the review. It seems to be a love it or hate it affair indeed.Quote:
Originally Posted by diffusionx
I find review scores for the adventure genre are usually varied, especially if action elements are thrown in. I'm usually on the "love it" side with mixed opinion games. I would have bought it day one but being sick at home sucks.
I take it I should play the original first, if anything.
No they haven't. They've been limping along putting out largely sub-standard crap punctuated by rare gems like MISSING: Since January. And despite being amazing, Missing was given a lukewarm response critically and limited commerical success (it made profit, but its sales were nothing stellar. Think of it like a low-budget film that gets a strong cult following).Quote:
Originally Posted by Compass
You look at other DreamCatcher and ESPECIALLY Adventure Company games and they're normally panned by the gaming press and ignored by the public. If the adventure game isn't a dead genre then it's in a persistent vegetative state.
So I've put a few hours into this. It has been really light on puzzles so far. It doesn't really play like the first one. It's always been pretty clear where you are supposed to go and what you are supposed to do with light puzzles sprinkled here and there. The story is fantastic, and is really the number one reason you should play this. Some may feel it's the only reason you should play it. I would say from what I've seen so far, not having played the first could severly hamper your enjoyment of the game. There's quite a bit of stuff you won't pick up on if you haven't played the first. Maybe the game brings you up to speed later, (I'm about 3 hours in), I'm not sure. The art style in the game is also really good. Anyway, I love it, but I see how some people could definately hate it. There's a ton of talking just like the first one, and the game seems to be more about advancing the awesome story than actual gameplay. The game definately has me hooked. The only reason I quit playing is because I have to get up for work in the morning.
Well the Adventure Company/Dreamcatcher is viable and successful in that the games they put out cost nothing to produce and turn a profit. But yes, they are far from quality the vast majority of the time, and certainly nothing that can reclaim the glory days.Quote:
Originally Posted by g0zen
I think there's some hope for the genre. Indigo Prophecy was successful. The problem is the real stigma publisher's associate with the genre limits the kinds of budgets they can get, so a lot of them are these really crude pre-rendered slide shows and stuff that the public will never take seriously. If people holed some money into producing a quality adventure game with solid production values, I think they'd find the audience more receptive than you might think.Quote:
You look at other DreamCatcher and ESPECIALLY Adventure Company games and they're normally panned by the gaming press and ignored by the public. If the adventure game isn't a dead genre then it's in a persistent vegetative state.
The RPG genre on the PC in 1995 or 1996 was as dead as the adventure game genre is today. What it took was a handful of amazing, groundbreaking games (Fallout in 1997 and Baldurs Gate a year later) to kick it into gear. It might take a while but adventure games will get that. Eventually.
The one genre I am afraid is dead, dead and never coming back, is the space sim.
Isn't that around the time Diablo came out?Quote:
Originally Posted by diffusionx
When complete trash like Myst is your recent posterboy, what do you expect?Quote:
Originally Posted by g0zen
This is the first I've heard of that... I actually thought I read somewhere that it was a huge disappointment. I have also yet to see any units moved from our store, and a lot of other stores around here never even bothered to carry it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Frogacuda
This makes me so sad. X3 looks good and all for it is but what I really want is a Freespace 3.Quote:
Originally Posted by diffusionx
As for Dreamfall, I see nowhere around me carrying it (the only store listed by EB/GS as having it in is on the complete opposite side of the city). I would love to support it but I don't really like ordering games off the internet, maybe I'll just have to deal with it this time.
Me either. I looked at several stores today and none had it. EB told me more were coming though. It seems that this game has really shitty distribution.Quote:
Originally Posted by MechDeus
That's what happens when you get a distributor that usually specializes in the release of Mac games.Quote:
Originally Posted by NeoZeedeater
Why do you think that it's never coming back?Quote:
Originally Posted by diffusionx
Actually it's just part of EB's new policy of trying to not get games in at launch to breed a culture of preorders.Quote:
Originally Posted by NeoZeedeater
See, most people who put money down on a preorder forget to come pick it up, so it's EB's most profitable service. So now they get enough copies to meet preorders in, plus maybe 1 or 2 extra, and then they get more in a couple weeks later. Ain't that cute?
Fry's had like a billion copies of this for Xbox yesterday. It was 30 here
I hate to be this way, but I'm not buying it until it is B/C on the 360.
It has more to do with not wanting to have shelves full of games hat nobody wants to buy. Something called "just in time inventory" or something like that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Frogacuda
I finished Dreamfall tonight. It's a great game. The story and characters are amazing just like the characters in The Longest Journey. Because the game is so heavily story driven, I would say not having played TLJ could severly effect your enjoyment of this game. Not only would you miss the many references to the first game, but the ending of this game doesn't exactly wrap things up. There are a ton of questions left unanswered, and if you haven't played the first game, you'll be even more lost. If a sequel isn't made, it would really, really suck. Anyway, I loved the game. I didn't want it to end. Everyone should play both games.
The game finally appeared in a store near me. I'm a few hours in and loving it. It doesn't run as well as I had hoped on my PC and the controls take some adjusting but it's not a big deal. I'm really digging these modern evolutions of the adventure genre like Shenmue, Indigo Prophecy and this. If they were a bit more puzzle oriented they would be perfect.
Yeah, I finally saw copies of this at Best Buy last week. Unfortunately I didn't have the money for it but at least I know where to find it since no one else seems to be carrying it.
I played like half of this when it was new and then E3 and a bunch of other stuff came along and I got pulled away from it. Finally beat it this weak.
I never played TLJ, but I liked this. Some of the stuff felt like extraneous catch up with old characters that weren't really relevant, but by and large it was a really solid story, and still felt like an adventure. The combat was pretty clunky, but there's so little of it, you have to wonder why it was even there. I agree that the ending just seems to be setting up the last game in the trilogy, but as long as they deliver I can deal with that (Don't pull a Shenmue on me!).
I will be buying this at Fry's soon enough.
Just finished Dreamfall. It straddles the line between worst game ever made and most enjoyable electronic experience I've had in years. You don't really 'play' it so much as you live it. Sure, there are a puzzles and the like. But mostly, you're ferrying your character from one conversation to the next (a la, Shenume). However, the story has got to be one of the best I've ever seen in a game. And, not by video game standards. Literary standards.
The dialogue is believable, and at times hilarious. I felt bad when Ryan died. Super bad when that bitch offed Zoe. Those characters really grew on me.
Dreamfall's like an excellent book I couldn't put down. I really, really wish it didn't end.
I sensed massive political allusions to the Arabs with the Azadi. Like, western-civilization-in-the-dark-ages allusions.
Also, I didn't play the first game. I saw it in my store for three years and never picked it up. Damn, I'm stupid.
Why do you say it's like the worst game ever made? Everything else you wrote sounds positive.
I said it straddles the line, because you don't do a lot of playing. Have you seen the online reviews. It's getting 10s and 5s. The shit reviews say 'you don't do shit,' which would turn off a lot of gamers expecting more gameplay. The glowing reviews praise the story. Depending on the way you look at it, it could be the worst or best game ever made.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rumpy
The first game has an amazing story as well, and I think the dialogue may be even better than the dialogue in Dreamfall. However, the gameplay is way different. The first game is a traditional point and click adventure. There are a LOT of puzzles, and some of them can be pretty challenging. Most of them are logical enough though. If you liked Dreamfall, I think you'd love The Longest Journey. You get all the background on April Ryan as she is the main character. There are also references in Dreamfall that you won't get unless you've played TLJ.Quote:
Originally Posted by Brisco Bold
Started this over the weekend.
First off, the graphics suck. The combat is just... a joke, and never in a million years should have been included (I have a feeling Ragnar was forced, with a gun to his head, to put fighting in to secure funding -- there is NO WAY anyone associated with actually designing this game would think combat in any form [and certainly not in the raw state you find it here] was a good idea). Puzzles are nearly non-existent. The Ring video rip-off is cheap. Control scheme is pure shite. Whole package feels amateur and devoid of polish.
Regarding the control scheme, have we learned nothing from Grim Fandango? So sad that the graphic adventure genre has been around for... I don't know, twenty years, more, and yet we're regressing, making them less playable. Why? To capture the market of retarded people who can't -- or won't -- point and click? They must have 3D control AT ALL TIMES IN ALL GENRES! And yeah, great gamble. The game really took off, didn't it? Sold millions! Opened the door to a new Adventure Renaissance! Just like we all knew it would...
But I still like it, and I'll see it through. Why? Because it's a sequel to one of the best games (not just adventure games) ever made, and one of my favorites of all time. I actually literally got misty eyed when the name "April Ryan" was first spoken in-game. Really wish its whole nature wasn't intent on breaking my heart.
I’ve had both of these sitting on my hdd for a while now. Guess ill be getting around to them this week.
Is it worth picking up the Longest Journey for PC? It is only $9.99 but I am not a huge fan of adventure games. I want to make sure I didn't miss anything before trying Dreamfall.
The Longest Journey is honestly one of the best games I've ever played. You would be missing a lot by going into Dreamfall without playing it imo.Quote:
Originally Posted by kingoffighters
I read Aspyr is going to re-publish TLJ. I'm sure it sell for more than the $10 copies floating around now but at least it will be easier to find.
Agreed. Also, I don't think I've ever played a sequel that contained more references to the previous game. I only wish I played Dreamfall directly after The Longest Journey instead of six years later. My memory sucks and I know a bunch of connections probably flew right past me.Quote:
Originally Posted by elfneedsfood
So I just finished this up today. Credits are rolling as I type ("Filmed on location in Stark and Arcadia", ha). All in all I loved it. I know I went off there a few posts ago when I first started the game, and all those complaints still hold (and here's another while I'm at it: Developers: Stop showing make-out scenes in your games until -- and not a moment before -- your character models can at least move their lips realistically. Right now, it's like watching two mannequins go at it, taking us all right out of the story and more than likely causing a few unwelcome spine chills in the process). But the good here far outweighs the bad in the end.
The two female characters are so strong, like-able and well-acted, and the story so captivating, complex, and well-told (as far as game stories go anyway), I couldn't help but gladly overlook the flaws and misguided design choices.
Bravo, Ragnar. Bravo. Now get crackin' on TLJ 3 (btw, has this even been announced, or might we all end up Shenmue'd?).
From what I've read, Ragnar obviously wants to do a part 3. But he said that even if he couldn't get the funding for another game, he would finish the story somehow. He mentioned a comic or even just posing it on the internet.Quote:
Originally Posted by Compass
Ah, yes, that sounds very familiar. I think I read that somewhere myself. Ok, thanks. I'd prefer a game obviously, but that's good news that the story will have closure regardless... eventually.
Thanks for your impressions Compass. I may pick this up when I get a pc.
I remember a guy named Yu Suzuki saying something like that...Quote:
Originally Posted by elfneedsfood
The makers of the Tex Murphy games continued the plot from the cliffhanger they left in a series of 30s-style "radio dramas" distrubuted for free in MP3 form. It was a cool bit of service for the fans, since they weren't allowed to make their next game.
Definitely start with The Longest Journey. As has been said more than once in this thread, it's an incredible game, and should not be missed under any circumstances -- graphic adventure fan or not. As much as I enjoyed Dreamfall, I loved the first game ten times more. I would prescribe Dreamfall six months to a year after finishing TLJ. :tu:Quote:
Originally Posted by dakidski
Not exactly timely, but for anyone on the fence, they finally put out a demo
http://www.3dgamers.com/news/more/1096486592/
I started playing TLJ over summer but found that I just wasn't in the mood for an adventure game. It might be time to give it another shot, this month.
It seems that the episodic format is the new delivery method for adventure games. Dreamfall is being continued in the form of "Dreamfall Chapters": http://www.funcom.com/wsp/funcom/fro...TENT&item=1004
I approve of this. Just no more fighting.
As long as they don't pull a Valve, this is fine by me.
Hopefully they pull a Telltale and give us really frequent releases.
I was wary of episodic gaming even before Valve and Ritual fucked it up. If Funcom can pull it off properly, I won't complain but I don't think they're going to be able to do Telltale-type frequency. Sam & Max reuses the main neighbourhood while going off to a few new places each time. I can't imagine the Longest Journey series working the same way given the type of story.
Or at least regular. Every 6 months is ok, as long as really is every 6 months right on time. Like Zeed said, to do the monthly thing you need to reuse assets and go for pretty short episode length, so it might not work here. But as long as they can keep a schedule, I think the episodic model still has promise.Quote:
Originally Posted by bVork
Well, I'm glad they're continuing the story. I'm not too big on the episodic thing though.
So started playing through this, but I haven't played the first game which kinda makes me go well shit for reading this thread after not before.
But I have to agree with a few of the things Compass said, the fighting is terribly clunky, I mean the first time you're as April You beat one enemy, go through a 10 second putting your weapon away, and then another enemy takes two steps towards you and you go through another 10 second taking your weapon out. That was fairly "Ugh".
I'll try to track down the original.
It's on Steam.
Oh shit. How much on Steam?
$10
Sold, I haven't loaded steam in ages. Shit son.
How long would you guys say the original is?
42 years.
The game is still buggy on steam so beware.
I tried, I really tried but this game is BORING. So much nonsense every time you have to speak to someone. I might give it another try but I don't see that ridiculously long, boring conversations ending any time soon.
Well I'm halting my progress and playing TLJ In dreamfall I had just gotten to arcadia, so I know a little bit of spoilers
TLJ was amazing.
Dreamfall didn't live up to it.
I beat The Longest Journey a day or two ago. Great game.
Didn't expect this to be even remotely good, from what I've heard about the combat and such. Oddly enough, I'm a few hours in and I'm really enjoying it. You can definitely see that the game's development was a mess and I'm disappointed with how easy the puzzles are, but for me, puzzles are hardly the biggest draw for adventure games in the first place.
This game killed my 360.
WTF @ ENDING
I hope those rumors of an episodic continuation are true. This was *much* better than the reviews let on.
Didn't it get fairly decent reviews? Everyone I know liked it.
I remember lots of sevens, which by most sites' standards = Worst Game Ever
I played this in the original language: norwegian. That was sorta cool.
It got some 9s and 4s, too. Scores were all over the map but there were some pretty high ones.Quote:
Originally Posted by epmode
From what I played I loved it, I put it away so I could play through the first one, but I haven't gotten around to playing it yet.
I might pick up TLJ on steam today, is it still buggy?
I didn't have any problems but there are still a few potential game-breakers. Just keep two or three saves going and check a FAQ if you're *really* stuck.