Do you like RPG, adventure, strategy and action?

If so, don't miss the chance to play Mount & Blade.

I am so glad that Little Big Adventure...

...can be downloaded for free! (yep, it is abandonware now)

Here: http://www.lbahq.com/download.php

And works on XP too!

Don't miss these 2 wonderful games. They combine graphic adventure with action, and have a superb artistic aspect.

Terraria: no objectives

It was released just two months ago, but Terraria is already one of the most played games on Valve's Steam. Many people would say that the game is in essence similar to Minecraft (the game consists also of "blocks" that can be mined and then stored and used to build your own creations, and of course world are randomly generated, which is great), but it also has a certain Castlevania and Metroid look as well as similar mechanics (or Metroidvania, as we like to say). It is more action based and it has a lot of RPG potential. Of course the sandbox part of the game has caught the attention of many gamers, selling 200,000 copies the week it was released. I guess that the recent Steam summer sale had also something to do with the game selling well.


Don't be fooled by the simple graphics: Terraria has a lot to offer

I've read some people saying that the game has no objectives. I guess some people enjoy games in which you have to put some creativity or use the game just as a tool, while others prefer a story-driven gameplay. Am I the only one who would rather ride a bike across the city in Grand Theft Auto than follow the story line? I think many people do, but luckily the game has space for both. With Terraria, there is some balance regarding objectives, as you have bosses, different areas to explore (there are many layers in the underground) and many objects to collect. However there isn't a story or even a clear guide, you are basically free to start where you want and go at your own pace.

Crafting and mining is also very important. We have many minerals and other materials at our disposal. For example, to make potions you need a table and a bottle, and to craft the bottle you need sand and a furnace. You may also want to put the furnace inside a house. I always found fascinating those games in which you can have a house. It gives you some space which is only your own (well, like in real life) and contributes to the sense of having something "unique" if the game is Online. In Ultima Online many players would spend millions of gold (and hours!) in creating and decorating their house. I think it was the most awesome feature of the game along with the skill based system, and still I think it makes the game very unique.

Anyway, back to Terraria, I think you should try it if you are a bit interested. It is probably the most original game of the year and it is being updated from time to time with big updates (the developers are working really hard, and these updated are free!). The online mode is not very well supported right now, but it is playable. Also, did I mention it sells for $10?

Fable 3: Going backwards?

I am a big fan of Peter Molyneux. He has done excellent stuff, specially god simulation games like Populous, Black & White or the incredible Dungeon Keeper. He recently received an award at Gamelab 2011 (congrats, Peter!). However, his games have a downward trend and I found Fable 3 a bit disappointing.

"Hype, huh?"

Since Black & White, the huge hype around his games has also been a trademark. Don't get me wrong, Fable 3 is not a bad game. But in general every Fable game is not a RPG, let alone a RPG with all the characteristics that were promised prior to the release. Yes, it has some choices and consequences. Yes, it also has some character development. But overall, the game plays more like an action/adventure game. There's nothing wrong with that, many action/adventure games are excellent (Zelda: Ocarina of Time comes to mind. Good game, right?). After all, how are you going to label a game is not important when you play it, but I think is important to have a clear definition of genres, specially when you are about to buy a certain game or when you are discussing the game's mechanics, and so on.

So unfortunately, we are used to Fable games being a bit disappointing with respect to the hype created. Fable 3 aesthetics however are more or less innovative: they are based on the industrial revolution in England, with a magic background (kind of like Arcanum, but not so dark and cyberpunk). But apart from that, I can't think of any aspect in which this game is better than Fable 2: less quests, less weapons, less mystery. There are no quests for instance to find a legendary weapon, because you can buy them from the stores. The experience gain system can be similar in some way to that of Fable 2, but it is less gradual. You can practically specialize on everything (ranged, melee, magic) . Considering you are a hero, it can be okay, but Fable 2 system was better: If you use swords you get better at melee fighting, and so on.



Some parts of the history mode can be very repetitive, and the ending part of the game is very lineal with the action-consequence being pretty evident. It looks like the developers rushed and didn't put so much effort. They had to finish the game quickly and improvised something, or at least that is the feeling I got. Combats are still easy as in Fable 2, but had a bit more variety(in this aspect we can also say they went backwards since the first game). Unfortunately the enemies have no variety whatsoever. It is even worse than the first levels in Diablo.

But still...not everything is so bad in Fable 3. It is a decent action/adventure game as I said before. It has some nice details like the evolution of weapons and some parts of the storyline. You can still buy property and shops, fart in public, and that kind of interesting things. It still has the Molyneux seal and I know I will buy or at least try his next game, Fable Journey (Unless the game is on rails. But it won't be, right?). However if I had to recommend one Fable, it would probably be the second (it should be very easy to get it cheap right now, by the way).

What do you think? Did you enjoy Fable 3? What was your favorite Fable?

Graal Online: still running

I would like to start the blog talking about this MMORPG (or Massively multiplayer online role-playing game for those who don't like abbreviations). It was the first game of its kind that I played, so I remember it fondly.

The game started up in the late 1990's and is still playable today, even though it has gone through a series of changes. Back in the day when I played, in 2000, you could either pay for an account and use an enhanced client and server, or use a free account and play in some free servers. This free servers were kind of supported by the developers, but at the same time they were given some leeway. In fact, some of them were horrible while others where very playable, so I'm not quite sure about the quality assurance. In any case, I was too young to have a credit card and of course, my parents didn't believe that buying something off the internets was safe, so I played on the free servers. Basically everybody played either on the Graal Classic server or on N-Pulse. The game showed some features that were also present in other MMORPGs of the same era (like Ultima Online) for instance full customization of the character's appearance (in this aspect, is even more complete than Ultima Online) and also Plaver versus Player (or PvP) action outside the cities, including full loot. The loot itself consisted on rupees, the currency of the game. Does that name sound familiar? The game was also called Zelda Online for a reason, and we can see that the sprites, combat, design, etc. were the same or pretty similar as the ones in the SNES game The Legend of Zelda: A Link To the Past. The scenarios however showed some new and innovative characteristics thanks to the use of scripts, so the variety didn't only come in the form of character customization.

People used to meet in the cities, where PvP was not allowed

The design was not exactly the same as in Zelda, and as we see those little ying-yangs at the top-right of the screen were used. Apart from that, you could even shed the bushes to obtain rupees, block arrows if the hit on your shield, and so on. Gameplay-wise, the game was not very complex. When you died you just reappeared on either side of the screen and you kept your objects. Your character didn't have any skills, although you could get health boosts and better equipment, but in the end most of the server also had those boosts. The dueling was fun because it was balanced and players relied only on their ability in movement and swordmanship. Many people just logged in to chill and talk, but some players were focused on PvP, like the guild I was part of, HardBlades.

The whole game therefore, revolved around the player's imagination. You had basically no quests or tools, but the game was always alive with the content coming straight from the players. In that regard, this game's community was more advanced than that of many games today, but of course it was a different era of gaming. MMORPGs were starting, and perhaps many players were willing to put a lot of time on a game. It was easy for me because I had a lot of free time back then, but I'm not sure I would do it today. In conclusion, it was a simple game with a lot of hidden potential and a good introduction to MMORPGs, but more of a social game than a RPG.