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sprob
Village Dweller
Joined: 04 Apr 2003
Posts: 10
Location: FRANCE |
Hello guys,
I have played a lot to Diablo 2, BG series....and i realise i didn't play to arcanum !!( it's a shame )..
Is it a very good game ? interesting story ? what about the game play ?
Thanks for u impressions !
Steph |
Fri May 23, 2003 9:00 am |
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Dhruin
Stranger In A Strange Land
Joined: 20 May 2002
Posts: 1825
Location: Sydney, Australia |
With the lack of RPG releases so far this year I'm going back to games I'd put aside for various reasons - I'm playing Arcanum as a result right now.
I'm afraid you'll probably get more differences in opinion on this game than almost any other because the quality varies so much.
If you like large, original, complex, stat-heavy traditional RPG's then Arcanum is worth considering. The world is truly unique with a "steampunk" theme and the complex classless character system allows diverse character development of amost any type. The game is well-written with a strong story, good dialogue and some good NPC's.
On the other hand the graphics are ordinary (barely on par with Fallout), although the art direction is good. The animations are horrible, the sound is ordinary and the combat lacks something (partly because of the awful animations). Magic and mages are grossly overpowered so despite the interesting character development it's tempting to just play a mage and unbalanced either way. The interface is also fairly poor.
In the end, I'm really enjoying it, although it starts rather slowly. It's frustrating because this really is a good game underneath an ordinary exterior. Give it a go if you like large, detailed games and don't mind dated graphics and interfaces. |
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Fri May 23, 2003 9:33 am |
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Lintra
Elf Friend
Joined: 23 Apr 2002
Posts: 9448
Location: Bermuda, the triangle place with SANDY BEACHES |
I second most of what Dhruin wrote, with the exception of the comment about mages. Starting as a fighter type is *too* easy. THEN fold magic into the mix and you've got a very unbalanced game - but still fun. When playing you can place self imposed restrictions to make the game play more balanced - at least that is what I did.
I also do not recall the interface as being the clunky. Dhruin, what do you find is wrong with it?
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=Member of The Nonflamers' Guild=
=Just plain clueless= |
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Fri May 23, 2003 1:23 pm |
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Dhruin
Stranger In A Strange Land
Joined: 20 May 2002
Posts: 1825
Location: Sydney, Australia |
@Lintra, well...it's probably not as bad as I made it sound  . The patch that removed most of the interface was a huge improvement I must admit. Still, I don't find it very attractive and some functions are awkward. I use turn-based combat and there's no end-turn facility with the full-screen interface (you have to use all your action-points or switch to the over-sized interface).
The stats screen isn't very intuitive. I know most RPG's make heavy use of abbreviations but I still don't know what it means when a piece of armour says "FT: -10 (+3)" for example (so Fatigue is -10 but what's the +3 ?) and what does "NP" stand for?
I guess it's not as bad as I thought...but...
You're right about fighters, of course. I guess my point is really that for a world where technology is impacting magic (some people have stopped believing in magic) a mage is much more convenient and powerful to play than a technologist. It's a pity that the game is about the balance of magic and technology but the gameplay doesn't really back that up. |
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Fri May 23, 2003 1:42 pm |
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Lintra
Elf Friend
Joined: 23 Apr 2002
Posts: 9448
Location: Bermuda, the triangle place with SANDY BEACHES |
@dhruin - It has been some time since I played ... so don't take my earlier comment too much to heart. I *do* remember some cryptic abbreviations .... and I didn't mind playing with the interface up. The full screen modes never really appeal to me .... lastly, I'd forgotten there was an option for turn based vs real time. I only used turn based.
This was a game I tried very hard to finish, but the gods just would not let me. I figure that when I run out of other games, I will try a fourth time!
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=Member of The Nonflamers' Guild=
=Just plain clueless= |
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Fri May 23, 2003 1:47 pm |
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sprob
Village Dweller
Joined: 04 Apr 2003
Posts: 10
Location: FRANCE |
I think i will play to ARCUNUM.
you seem to have played a lot to this game, and love it !
Thanks to you
steph |
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Fri May 23, 2003 1:56 pm |
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Dhruin
Stranger In A Strange Land
Joined: 20 May 2002
Posts: 1825
Location: Sydney, Australia |
@Lintra, when you asked for more details I suddenly found I couldn't justify my comments as easily as I first assumed! 
@sprob, hope you enjoy it. |
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Sat May 24, 2003 2:30 am |
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Rawis
Gorthaur
Joined: 01 Apr 2002
Posts: 1861
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Arcanum is one of the best games I have played... of course, I don't think it would be as fun to play it again now, Im pretty tired of it.  |
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Sat May 24, 2003 4:04 pm |
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dteowner
Shoegazer
Joined: 21 Mar 2002
Posts: 7570
Location: Third Hero of Erathia |
quote:
Originally posted by Dhruin
@Lintra, well...it's probably not as bad as I made it sound . The patch that removed most of the interface was a huge improvement I must admit. Still, I don't find it very attractive and some functions are awkward. I use turn-based combat and there's no end-turn facility with the full-screen interface (you have to use all your action-points or switch to the over-sized interface).
The stats screen isn't very intuitive. I know most RPG's make heavy use of abbreviations but I still don't know what it means when a piece of armour says "FT: -10 (+3)" for example (so Fatigue is -10 but what's the +3 ?) and what does "NP" stand for?
I guess it's not as bad as I thought...but...
You're right about fighters, of course. I guess my point is really that for a world where technology is impacting magic (some people have stopped believing in magic) a mage is much more convenient and powerful to play than a technologist. It's a pity that the game is about the balance of magic and technology but the gameplay doesn't really back that up.
You really had three development paths: mage, fighter, and gunslinger. Mages were overpowered in general. Melee types build up XP too quickly. Gunslingers are terribly underpowered.
The biggest gripe I had was that it was terribly difficult to work with the RPCs. For instance, my melee Ogre picked up the dwarven techie. We found some excellent schematics. The RPC refused to study the schematic. He had all the prerequisite skills- the game simply didn't allow him to make use of it. It seemed kind of stupid to have RPCs that couldn't be developed as you wished.
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=Proud Member of the Non-Flamers Guild=
=Benevolent Dictator, X2/X3 and Morrowind/Oblivion Forums=
Sorry. No pearls of wisdom in this oyster.
RIP Red Wings How 'Bout Dem Cowboys! |
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Sat May 24, 2003 7:25 pm |
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Dhruin
Stranger In A Strange Land
Joined: 20 May 2002
Posts: 1825
Location: Sydney, Australia |
@dte, I fully agree. I'm about 2/3 through and I just use Magnus as a standard fighter. I can't get him to use schematics.
Still, for all these faults I'm still enjoying it. |
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Sun May 25, 2003 12:34 am |
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Kayla
High Emperor
Joined: 26 Nov 2002
Posts: 2114
Location: Australia |
The game itself wasn't bad, but the inventory drove me insane.
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Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.
Robert A. Heinlein |
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Sun May 25, 2003 12:36 am |
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Zakhal
Captain of the Guard
Joined: 13 Oct 2002
Posts: 188
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arcanum
Played it through year ago and it sucked me right in. Couldnt quit before i had finished it. The graphs aint nothing spectacular, but in almost every other aspect the game does shine. |
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Sun May 25, 2003 1:42 am |
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xSamhainx
Paws of Doom
Joined: 11 Sep 2002
Posts: 2192
Location: San Diego |
Disliked it. Half the game IMHO is about being immersed in the "industrial revolution" of some medievel world, yet the technological end of the game totally blows! I liked the concept, and leapt at the game at first ='.'=
But my eagerness soon turned to disappointment when I saw just how underpowered ballistic weapons and tech in general is just not even worth using. I know, I could go Big Dumb Fighter or magic user, but thats not what I bought Arcanum to play, it's BS and wrong. 
And the ridiculous way you get completely mobbed when traveling from one area to the next a` la *random encounters*, even very early in the game. This truly adds the final icing on the cake for me  I spent more time reloading and trying to get to the next area in one piece more than I actually got to play the game. Finally, i uninstalled the 'effin game and threw it in my stack of "games to play when im 80"
_________________
“Then away out in the woods I heard that kind of a sound that a ghost makes when it wants to tell about something that's on its mind and can't make itself understood, and so can't rest easy in its grave, and has to go about that way every night grieving.”-Mark Twain |
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Mon May 26, 2003 8:01 am |
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piln
High Emperor
Joined: 22 May 2003
Posts: 906
Location: Leeds, UK |
Slightly off on a tangent here, but has anyone read the Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling? It's a novel in an "alternate history" setting, based on the asumption that Charles Babbage actually completed his analytical engine (steam-and-cog-driven computer) back in the 19th Century - effectively starting the information age 100 years early. It's a great book - not a totally satisfying story, but the setting is incredibly well-realised. Just thought it might be of interest to some fans of this game, or "steampunk" in general. |
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Mon May 26, 2003 1:17 pm |
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Hexy
High Emperor
Joined: 28 Jun 2002
Posts: 621
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The most annoying thing about Arcanum was the combat. Either you played a horrible hacked RT-style, or you played in TB which gave you FAR too many AP per turn (letting my melee dude kill like 2 people in one turn).
The balance issues between magic and tech were also irritating.
Good concept though... |
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Mon May 26, 2003 1:50 pm |
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