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GR00T: Yep, no argument: I freely acknowledge that the second is objectively superior in many (most?) ways. But for some reason I do prefer the first. A big part of that is, as I noted, that I like the low level AD&D gameplay far better than high level. I've completed BG1 around a dozen times with several games played up to the last chapter. I've completed BG2 twice. Weird, I know.
Totally agree. Its not weird, to the contrary its mathematically provable! The leap from an iron sword to a +1 flame-tongue is so much greater than a the leap from +4 to Vorpal. Cool and all, but the exhilaration is gone. Part of it is sheer balance of video games. As you progress you get stronger and they have to throw "tougher" things at you. But all to often that simply means more hit points and more damage. The Cloud Giants act no differently than the pack of goblins. So by the time you are kicking Red Dragon butt, its all old hat. Facing 6 goblins with your small party is much more fun than any higher level encounter.
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Caesar.: As an RPG-noob who is playing The Witcher 1 for the first time, I can confirm it is extremely beginner friendly. Controls and interface are easy to manage, combat is straight-forward, so you can focus on the amazing story.
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Leroux: Did you complete the first act yet?
I agree, the boss fight at the end of the 1st act was pretty stupid, bizarre decision to suddenly throw something that difficult into the game. Especially so since the rest of the game was mostly fairly easy (almost primitive at times tbh, I didn't find the combat system that deep).
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GR00T: Yep, no argument: I freely acknowledge that the second is objectively superior in many (most?) ways. But for some reason I do prefer the first. A big part of that is, as I noted, that I like the low level AD&D gameplay far better than high level. I've completed BG1 around a dozen times with several games played up to the last chapter. I've completed BG2 twice. Weird, I know.
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muttly13: Totally agree. Its not weird, to the contrary its mathematically provable! The leap from an iron sword to a +1 flame-tongue is so much greater than a the leap from +4 to Vorpal. Cool and all, but the exhilaration is gone. Part of it is sheer balance of video games. As you progress you get stronger and they have to throw "tougher" things at you. But all to often that simply means more hit points and more damage. The Cloud Giants act no differently than the pack of goblins. So by the time you are kicking Red Dragon butt, its all old hat. Facing 6 goblins with your small party is much more fun than any higher level encounter.
I think it comes with the D&D territory. It's the same in tabletop. Seems like playing a team of powerful demi-gods with super magic weapons and stuff will be great, but really there's nothing more boring in an RPG than being overpowered That's why when I was DMing (though that was Warhammer FRP) I prefered to give my players magic stuff with very particular uses and limitations, rather than just battle gear. Like a scroll that will always appear to have written on it what the players previously claim to be written on it, or an amulet that transforms you into a bird, but has a limited number of uses... and you don't know what the limit is, so it can possibly fail you at any time. Stuff like that makes the game fun, but doesn't remove the challenge.
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Leroux: Did you complete the first act yet?
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morolf: I agree, the boss fight at the end of the 1st act was pretty stupid, bizarre decision to suddenly throw something that difficult into the game. Especially so since the rest of the game was mostly fairly easy (almost primitive at times tbh, I didn't find the combat system that deep).
Actually, the last thing I have done was finishing Chapter I. I didn't find the boss fight extremely difficult, although I am on easy difficulty because this is the first time I play a game like this.
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Caesar.: although I am on easy difficulty because this is the first time I play a game like this.
That's certainly sensible...I don't think many people play the Witcher 1 for the combat anyway. Getting those romance cards is more interesting.
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kevinvhengst: So I've been wanting to get into cRPG games, though I am wary of buying something that might be going way over my head when you have no experience in these types of games.

Which titles do you guys recommend for getting into the genre, I am eager to see the options :-)
If you want to try jRPG - Chrono Trigger.
For wRPG go with The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion if you like fantasy or Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic for sci-fi.
After that it only gets better... :)
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Breja: ...
Exactly. You could account for it in pen and paper. In a digital game, impossible. Not that you couldnt programatically, but you lose the interaction component when you dont know your audience. They simply have no choice but to use the more health, more damage method.

Personally this is exactly why I was so excited about Never Winter Nights so many moons ago. The promise of an active DM involved in the game made it very enticing. But again, sheer force of practicality made it more of an overhead mechanic. The majority of people would rather play than sit watch for appropriate counter actions.

Speaking of which, another good entry RPG title. The original NWN. I always enjoyed the much maligned boxed campaign.
Don't know if someone already mentioned it, but I would recommend Avernum: Escape from the Pit.

It has really detailed, but not painful "introduction", mechanics is easy to understand, and what is really great - your character is levelling quite fast (and every improvement is quite noticeable, at least in first hours of the game), so you're free to experiment and adjust (if necessary) your previous concept of character's development.

It's not the most technologically advanced game (in terms of graphics), but other than that - really nice cRPG to begin your adventure with this genre.

On the other hand - I would recommend to avoid such games as Baldur's Gate or Icewind Dale, due to basing on dice roll combat system it's extremely annoying, that your characters are missing so often, even in later periods of game (I've packed a lot of effort to increase their statistics to hit more often and despite that fact they were missing a lot of times, in both BG and ID).
Post edited October 18, 2017 by MartiusR
I think the Avadon series (at least 1 & 2, don't know about 3 as I haven't tried it) would also be good choices.

The games are linear with side quests, so you don't get overwhelmed with non-linear gameplay. The growth system is designed so that, when you spend level up points, you can't make a character who is too lopsided. The game does generally feel streamlined, and is not as complex as some of the games out there. (Note, however, that there's one boss who you have to fight for one specific ending that is not reasonable, but you can just not go for that specific ending.)

Also, there are a couple nice cheats in these games. Specifically:
* "retrain" allows you to re-allocate your stat and skill points, allowing you to experiment with different builds. I really like having this cheat available (though I would advise not getting *too* carried away; using the cheat during battle might be a bit much, for instance). Note that you do eventually get the ability to do this without using a cheat, but not until rather late.
* If you are playing Avadon 2 and wish the game were a bit gayer, you can use the "scoutswap" cheat. (This cheat is actually mentioned in the manual.)

One more thing: Spiderweb Software makes substantial demos of their games available, so you might want to check out the demo before committing to the full game. (A save from the demo will work in the full version.) This includes, in addition to the Avadon series, the Avernum series (including the game MartiusR mentioned), and the Geneforge series. Feel free to try these games before you put down actual money and commit to them.
Some suggestions:
Might and Magic IV
https://www.gog.com/game/might_and_magic_6_limited_edition

Lands of Lore
https://www.gog.com/game/lands_of_lore_1_2

Quest for Glory series
https://www.gog.com/game/quest_for_glory
QfG II has an excellent fan remake which can be gotten for free following this link: http://www.agdinteractive.com/games/qfg2/
My first suggestion would be Driftmoon, but the OP already got it. Good choice.

Next I agree with Muttly13's recommendation of the first Neverwinter Nights. For all the flaws people find with the boxed campaign it would be a perfect entry point. The story could be deeper of course, but the combat is extremely user friendly, the difficulty isn't high and you have a main quest to ignore while sidequesting or going for monster killings.

I didn't play The Witcher 1 past the first boss, but not because it is not user friendly. It is definitely user friendly and I had no problem with the combat. Killed that boss no problem. But my hard disk was acting up back then and I had to give up my playthrough. By the time I got new hardware I was in the mood for other games. Plus, I was annoyed at how little space I had in my almost spartan inventory. Other than that no complaints, totally okay for a first-timer.

I tried BG1 once. Definitely not the game for me, probably a good game anyway but absolutely as far away from user-friendly as possible.

But I think it may be pointless if we point games that don't go with the OP's tastes. For example what if we keep suggesting real-time and the OP only likes turn-based?

Maybe the OP could clarify their interests more. Real-time, turn-based? One character or a party? Fantasy, Sci-fi, Steampunk? First person or third-person? Naturally "I'm okay with either" may apply at any of these questions but as long as we don't know we have a field too broad of games to consider.
Post edited October 18, 2017 by joppo
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joppo: My first suggestion would be Driftmoon, but the OP already got it. Good choice.

Next I agree with Muttly13's recommendation of the first Neverwinter Nights. For all the flaws people find with the boxed campaign it would be a perfect entry point. The story could be deeper of course, but the combat is extremely user friendly, the difficulty isn't high and you have a main quest to ignore while sidequesting or going for monster killings.

I didn't play The Witcher 1 past the first boss, but not because it is not user friendly. It is definitely user friendly and I had no problem with the combat. Killed that boss no problem. But my hard disk was acting up back then and I had to give up my playthrough. By the time I got new hardware I was in the mood for other games. Plus, I was annoyed at how little space I had in my almost spartan inventory. Other than that no complaints, totally okay for a first-timer.

I tried BG1 once. Definitely not the game for me, probably a good game anyway but absolutely as far away from user-friendly as possible.

But I think it may be pointless if we point games that don't go with the OP's tastes. For example what if we keep suggesting real-time and the OP only likes turn-based?

Maybe the OP could clarify their interests more. Real-time, turn-based? One character or a party? Fantasy, Sci-fi, Steampunk? First person or third-person? Naturally "I'm okay with either" may apply at any of these questions but as long as we don't know we have a field too broad of games to consider.
Actually I'm okay with either :-) Want to experience as much of the RPG genre in general. Playing Driftmoon as we speak and love it to bits thus far. After this I might start with The Witcher 1 following up with Neverwinter Nights.

In general with other games I like almost all settings game take place in, turn based or real time both require a very different playstyle and haven't experimented with both of them enough to make a clear decision of what I like more. Might be more influenced by the mood I am in :P
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joppo: My first suggestion would be Driftmoon, but the OP already got it. Good choice.

Next I agree with Muttly13's recommendation of the first Neverwinter Nights. For all the flaws people find with the boxed campaign it would be a perfect entry point. The story could be deeper of course, but the combat is extremely user friendly, the difficulty isn't high and you have a main quest to ignore while sidequesting or going for monster killings.

I didn't play The Witcher 1 past the first boss, but not because it is not user friendly. It is definitely user friendly and I had no problem with the combat. Killed that boss no problem. But my hard disk was acting up back then and I had to give up my playthrough. By the time I got new hardware I was in the mood for other games. Plus, I was annoyed at how little space I had in my almost spartan inventory. Other than that no complaints, totally okay for a first-timer.

I tried BG1 once. Definitely not the game for me, probably a good game anyway but absolutely as far away from user-friendly as possible.

But I think it may be pointless if we point games that don't go with the OP's tastes. For example what if we keep suggesting real-time and the OP only likes turn-based?

Maybe the OP could clarify their interests more. Real-time, turn-based? One character or a party? Fantasy, Sci-fi, Steampunk? First person or third-person? Naturally "I'm okay with either" may apply at any of these questions but as long as we don't know we have a field too broad of games to consider.
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kevinvhengst: Actually I'm okay with either :-) Want to experience as much of the RPG genre in general. Playing Driftmoon as we speak and love it to bits thus far. After this I might start with The Witcher 1 following up with Neverwinter Nights.

In general with other games I like almost all settings game take place in, turn based or real time both require a very different playstyle and haven't experimented with both of them enough to make a clear decision of what I like more. Might be more influenced by the mood I am in :P
I see. So there's not narrowing the field. It's not a bad thing, you may have fun with all of them.

Fair warning: most RPGs are huge time sinks, and their heavy story-drivenness means you'll have a problem if you decide to stay away from one for a month. Chances are, once you load an old save you'll have no idea where you are and what are your goals anymore. So you'd better keep a game going until you complete it or give up and uninstall.

OTOH you probably will have a lot of fun exploring so many amazing game worlds. Good luck out there.
I'll go with neverwinter nights, too.

My first rpgs were early might and magic, rings of power on Sega genesis ( naughty dog needs to remake it - best game they ever made), can I count Pirates!?

Then I played quest for glory and some early spiderweb games.

Then the world changed with baldur's gate 2. I went back and played bg1 and I think I like it better. But both are great.

Icewind Dale is also quite spectacular and easy (less banter, more action).

If you want to try something more modern, kingdoms of amalur is really quite fun and basic.

If you want lots of exploration, the Risen series is fun, but a bit tougher.

Lots of story goes to the DnD games.

Best turn-based combat with an in-game comprehensive manual goes to temple of elemental evil.

Most overall fun is Witcher 3. It's ridiculous.

Good luck finding and playing some fun games!


OH - I forgot, Japanese games. Whole different genre. If you're interested, others will answer that better than I. I enjoy them, but never best them.
What about Pillars of Eternity?

It may look complex and difficult because it has different classes and skills and such, but what is beginner friendly about it is that it's really hard, if not impossible, to build a useless character. And the game is rather more modern than some of the classics mentioned, meaning better UI and graphics.

You control a group of up to 6 people, running around questing and killing enemies and whatnot. Combat is of the Baldur's Gate type, meaning real-time with pause (so not turn based).

Other than that, I can warmly recommend Witcher 1. There you only control the one character, so it's easy to keep tabs on everything. Personally I really liked the combat in it. And the story is superior to that of Witcher 2. It's also made with PCs in mind, so you don't have the fugly UI and inventory of the Witcher 2.