Torment: Tides of Numenera

As a "successor", he dev's clearly stated goal was to bring the best elements of Planescape:Torment into this game. Hmm.. they must have somehow played a different version of PS:T than I did. Because what I remember from PS:T was an adventure in a half-mad city where you never knew what was coming next. Vicious, desperate gangs stalked you in the streets, madmen raved on the corners and in the taverns, charlatans lured you with grand promises, women dazzled you with their sexuality, while there was a knife behind every smile and a fight behind every corner. It was a satisfying yet unsettling feast of madness, in CRPG terms. The world of T:TON? Well... it doesn't really have any of that stuff. I guess none of those things were the "good parts of PS:T". Indeed. if PS:T was the gaming equivalent to a wild night out in the big city nightlife, T:TON is like a quiet night sipping tea with your mild-mannered suburban neighbors. I'm not sure I could come up with a better analogy to sum it up than that. Aside from not meeting its own stated goals re: PS:T, the game doesn't stand on its own either. NPC conversations seem to be one of the main game activities, but are totally unsatisfying. You have really no visual clues whatsoever about the people you're talking to, as the character models, though detailed, are all very generic and similar (its even hard to tell male/female apart often), really only differentiated by the color scheme of their flowing robes or baggy pantaloons. And unlike any other conversation-heavy RPG from the last 30 years, there is no "close up portrait" of the NPCs that comes up along with the conversation window, unless its one of your party members. That makes the conversations feel like some horrible, detached "chat room" type thing with an invisible person on the other end. Yikes. I'm not sure what anyone would get out of playing this, but one thing I know they won't get is anything that feels even the slightest bit like PS:T.

As a devoted Planescape:Torment fan, I awaited for this game with longing. But when it came out, I watched some reviews and gameplays, and decided it was not worth it and not worthy of the legacy. After YEARS, I decided to give it a go, and absolutely loved it! It is so unique in it's options and ability to go through the game almost without fights. No match, really. It has so much potential to be even better, I can see the places where developers intended to expand it, but it seems they will not. The only flaw of this game is that it is too short. But I still love it. Nothing less than the original Planescape: Torment. Yes, it is not easy to live up to it, but this game could have been even better than it, if it was actually finished as intended (that is my feeling at least). Too bad it wasn't. But still, I love it.

I'm going to throw in my opinion b/c dear lord that's a lot of bad reviews. When gamers get it in their heads that something absolutely must be a certain way, god help anyone who dares to try something new. I'm not sure what got everyone's proverbial panties in a bunch, but I really enjoyed the game. It has plenty of flaws... but so did Planescape. There is no such thing as the perfect game if you look close enough, and for something that was made by a small indie studio, Tides plays very smoothly. This is not a tactical combat game. This is barely an RPG. It's a game where you run around talking to people and learning about them, solving puzzles, making choices about what you feel is right and wrong, occasionally getting into fights over those choices. If that's not your idea of fun gameplay, then no you won't like it (why would you be surprised.) If that is what you want, then why are you crying about the combat? I guarantee that half of the people who gave this one star are the same people calling the ambitious but broken Arcanum a masterpiece, which failed in as many ways as Tides succeeded. And the combat is fine, it serves its purpose and there are some good moments with it that serve the story. Which is what it's all about, the story, the world, the characters. The writing can be occasionally pretentious but for the most part I was engaged and had a lot of fun. Don't listen to the haters, go with the flow of what the game is trying to do instead of bringing your own expectations of what it's supposed to be, and don't bring expectations for a AAA title to a game made by an indie studio. If you're a blue tide dominant person you'll enjoy the game.

They sure hyped the game during kickstarter. Rothfuss, Chris Avellone, etc. What game out was..bland. You feel like reading an endless .txt file that's not really cohesive. There are some great ideas along the way, Numenera is a great tabletop rpg setting, but the game falls so short, especially when you consider they used the Torment tag. I'd only recommend this game to game masters who wish to get visual insight into the 9th world. For that, it's pretty cool actually.

Let me be clear from the very beginning; this isn't Planescape: Torment 2.0. And neither it should be. Torment: Tides of Numenera... it's mesmerizing. A true role-playing achievment I haven't had for ages. Actually, it feels more like the second Baldur's Gate than anything. Perhaps people came in with different expectations, hence the low rating. I came in with an open mind. And Numenera delivered. It is deliciously written. It isn't Dragon Age-like - doesn't feel linear at all. I feel like being my character. And best of all, it is different in all the right places. Recently tried Witcher 3, an unpleasant experience with an early quest (the arsonist) made me quit it for good. I was forced into two unpleasant choices. And it's not like the narrative forced me into them; it was the mechanics. Same thing, to a lesser extent, with Skyrim's Civil War storyline. Torment: Tides of Numenera has none of it. You have the option to disagree, even if it is inconsequential in the end. Your choices are your own; other characters have their own choices to make. Which makes them feel oh so alive. Do not view this game as a product. View it as art. Because it is art, and it is unique and it has a journey you want to take. Like the RPGs of old did.