tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post1421217600651216001..comments2023-12-25T02:31:05.991-08:00Comments on Truth, Love, and Courage: Games as Stories: The Gift of TormentGreg Kasavinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022059960212889807noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-73059752882293539852010-08-04T14:39:16.071-07:002010-08-04T14:39:16.071-07:00Loved the article, and LOVED the game - still reme...Loved the article, and LOVED the game - still remember it to this day<br /><br />@HumanityPlague: you said it all...I could have written the 2 first paragraphs myself, exactly the same case and the same thoughtsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-86936110873114954792010-04-15T13:07:26.762-07:002010-04-15T13:07:26.762-07:00Fallout 2 and Planescape: Torment are the best rpg...Fallout 2 and Planescape: Torment are the best rpgs I have ever played. They are gems that no other rpg in the last 10 years came close to in quality.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-27812471855312519032010-03-31T19:37:37.109-07:002010-03-31T19:37:37.109-07:00@Ty -- Install Torment on Vista by following this ...@Ty -- Install Torment on Vista by following this guide:<br />http://thunderpeel2001.blogspot.com/2009/01/planescape-torment-fully-modded.html<br />Runs like a charm.comp1113https://www.blogger.com/profile/03283143948783758627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-83820306247588749582010-03-30T08:53:14.154-07:002010-03-30T08:53:14.154-07:00Torment, along with Arcanum, Baldur's Gate, De...Torment, along with Arcanum, Baldur's Gate, Deus Ex, System Shock 2 and (to a lesser extent) Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines, happens to be a game that can stand the test of time (as well as the test of the-almost-obscene-emphasis-on-realistic-graphics-and-physics). Despite the overall fantastic quality of today's RPGs, there's still a feeling that something is missing, like the sense of wonder or the weird or the uncanny (or am I the only one who feels that?). From the day I bought Torment til now, I've always compared RPGs to Torment and find the majority of them lacking, despite the production quality.Aravindhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08204708764818633357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-14454688163409461722010-03-30T03:44:04.713-07:002010-03-30T03:44:04.713-07:00Great to see you writing about games again, Kasavi...Great to see you writing about games again, Kasavin!<br /><br />This post made me go dig out my copy of Torment and try to get it running on my Vista machine. After a couple hours it became apparent that it wasn't going to work so I looked for an updated version on GOG. They didn't have it, but they did finally have Arcanum. I swiftly bought it, again.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12156365471508298630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-5540960621455879762010-03-30T03:41:32.356-07:002010-03-30T03:41:32.356-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12156365471508298630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-18158334125521655402010-03-29T15:56:21.594-07:002010-03-29T15:56:21.594-07:00@Eric -- I thought Mass Effect 2 handled the issue...@Eric -- I thought Mass Effect 2 handled the issue you're describing pretty well, better than most RPGs with moral choice. There were times when it felt natural to me in that game to do the "Renegade" action even though I was generally playing a good guy. I think this comes from having a plot with grayer choices than "saint" vs. "devil". I'll write about this in more depth at some point because I think it's an interesting issue.<br /><br />@Joe -- Good point. Unintended consequences and things not going as planned are fundamental to storytelling, so on the surface at least, it's surprising how few games deal in it. But yeah, in Torment you really weren't sure about what was going to happen, in a good way. Who can forget that climactic conversation around "what can change the nature of a man?" -- I must have sat there for a good several minutes before I answered. But I don't remember what I said. Either it was "Love" or "Nothing".Greg Kasavinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06022059960212889807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-75291361937826465122010-03-29T10:35:01.418-07:002010-03-29T10:35:01.418-07:00The most important thing that Tempest (and games t...The most important thing that Tempest (and games that it later influenced) brought to gaming was the idea of unintended consequences. Beforehand, games had predetermined or at least easily perceived paths that they would send the player on. When you inject a little bit of uncertainty into the process, it makes the player connect with the gameworld on a whole other level. You will pay much closer attention to your actions if you don't actually know what could happen from them. I know that some of my most memorable gaming moments from games in this vein are the times when things didn't go as I had planned.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14833332453132715785noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-17121126479131058962010-03-29T06:35:20.656-07:002010-03-29T06:35:20.656-07:00The problem I have with dialogue choices like in M...The problem I have with dialogue choices like in Mass Effect is that I feel obligated to stay on one path (Good vs Bad) in order to get certain abilities, gear, consistent storyline. In that sense, it's not much of a choice anymore though I am fully capable of choosing whatever I want. In a way I am screwed by my own freedom to choose what I want to do, which is probably the opposite effect that BioWare wanted.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06851283385570971965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-1774763990342579822010-03-28T21:36:30.280-07:002010-03-28T21:36:30.280-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14833332453132715785noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6082533239875181337.post-16400496210373117332010-03-28T21:27:45.007-07:002010-03-28T21:27:45.007-07:00It was your (and the nature of the casting) review...It was your (and the nature of the casting) review of Planescape: Torment, that got me to buy it, circa 2000, in a EB Games. The funny thing is, it took me a WHILE to get into it. Like, 2 years after the fact. I remember the Mortuary was so boring, and I had un-installed the game at least 3 times, prior to actually making it out of that place.<br /><br />The game is fantastic, and holds up, even today. Hell, I would love a Planescape game, built using the Dragon Age, or Mass Effect engines. While I think the game had a few issues here and there (like, the only playable class being a mage), Planescape made an indelible impression on me, as a gamer. It consistently ranks in my "top 5 games" list, and from this guy's heart, thanks for giving it a good review, and making me take a chance on it.<br /><br />P.S. I dug C&C 3, and Red Alert 3 quite a bit. Good work on both. Especially in light of C&C 4's somewhat lackluster reviewsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com