Which RPG developer do you have the most respect for?

[Xandax]

Originally Posted by DesR85

<snip>
Hmm. That I don't really know. If you're refering to the game controls, I don't really mind. In fact, if the game controls are simple and easy to use, it'll make the game more solid instead of clunky and poorly mapped controls that'll make you want to break both mouse and keyboard.

Controls are only a minor issue, although lately the "RPGs" don't seem to utilize the mouse much less, beign ported over form the controls of a console. Controls which in my view is more clunky - I hated the console like controls of SW:Kotor1. Mouse and keyboard is far superior in my book to a consoles controls.
But what I'm talking about (and fable for that matter I would suspect, seeing as we are often in agreement here) is plot and puzzle - challenges within the game.
Challenges which go beyond simply fighting 5 monsters instead of 3 and calling it harder. Challenges which aren't made to be sovled by a 5-year old in the first 10 minutes or they loose interest which will hamper sales.

It is a continues circle, and it is in my view decying what was once a great genere when it got "reinvented" (or rather became mainstream) by Black Isle with Fallout/Baldur's Gate.
And yes, I blame the console influence for this by attacting a larger market segment of younger players who demand/expect more graphics and more fluff, and apparently not as much content. (I say apparently, because if people still demanded content, we'd not see bland static NPCs or stupid puzzles and plots)

[Damuna_Nova]

Originally Posted by Xandax

But what I'm talking about (and fable for that matter I would suspect, seeing as we are often in agreement here) is plot and puzzle - challenges within the game.
Challenges which go beyond simply fighting 5 monsters instead of 3 and calling it harder. Challenges which aren't made to be sovled by a 5-year old in the first 10 minutes or they loose interest which will hamper sales.

That's why I love Zelda games.

*Prepares to be flamed*

[Monolith]

Originally Posted by elrond321

I'm a long time gamer and I feel that I have played enough RPG's to know a good one when I see it. When it comes down to it. The Baldurs Gate saga is one of the best games ever produced, but lets look at this from a more critical perspective. Bioware has made (not sure) 5 games or so using the infinity engine. This was a grand and flashy system of game play but come on. When it comes to it. You have really only made one game. I have more respect for Blizzard due to the fact that they can take something that they haven't had much experience in and create one of the most well done, and one of the best replay valued games on the market. The main point I am trying to make is that Diablo 2 as well as the online craze World of Warcraft have taken the RPG world to an extreme high. Countless people know of World of Warcraft and Diablo 2. I feel that more people know of these games than the Baldurs gate and Icewindale games. Enlighten me please if I am wrong here.

Diablo 2 isn't a RPG and Icewind Dale was developed by Black Isle Studios. Feel enlightened .

I voted for Piranha Bytes. I liked both Gothic and Gothic 2+Addon and I have really much respect for what they do and did. They added much to RPGs by setting a standard in terms of the simulation of a living game world influenced by the players actions.

Anyway, if Black Isle or Troika still existed, I'd have voted for one of them.

I'd never vote for Bethsoft or the Bioware of today btw. Oblivion and NWN speak for themself. Dumbed down action games - one with less and one with more RPG features than the other one. I don't like the combination of Beth and the Fallout license neither and fear what the result will be.

[kakashi59]

Well, I'd have to say Bioware, one because NWN and KOTOR have consumed more of my waking life than I'd care to let on, and two because I don't know who two-thirds of these developers are T_T0

sighs... i guess i'm one of those kids that need a security blanket and to be spoonfed through everything... well, actually, i've never played a game like baldur's gate 2... i don't actually know what "a game likes Baldur's Gate 2" entails! I've only been into RPGs for a couple of years... I've seen nothing on a higher intellectual level (as it seems to me) - to me, KOTOR and Oblivion can't seem dumbed down, because I haven't any concept of what it was like before the dumbing! Am I making sense here?

It seems I've become a victim... of society... *sobs*
well, hopefully the developers will take note of the dissatisfaction of this particular demonination, and make games less banal in the future.

[Yarr]

I'm not quite sure, honestly..would anyone care to refer me to a list of all the games the respective developers have made?

[Xandax]

Originally Posted by Yarr

I'm not quite sure, honestly..would anyone care to refer me to a list of all the games the respective developers have made?

You could use a search engine, or check out the developers website which often holds such information

[DesR85]

Originally Posted by Xandax

Controls are only a minor issue, although lately the "RPGs" don't seem to utilize the mouse much less, beign ported over form the controls of a console. Controls which in my view is more clunky - I hated the console like controls of SW:Kotor1. Mouse and keyboard is far superior in my book to a consoles controls.

True. Seems like both SW:KOTOR series and Fable: The Lost Chapters apparently have control problems on the XBox. I never played either one on the XBox since I only have a PC as a gaming machine but when I saw the video demonstration for those aforementioned games, they look rather awkward to be honest. I remember when Fable was ported over to the PC, reviewers mentioned how well the game played on the PC rather than the XBox and wondered whether Fable was actually meant to be played on the PC rather than the consoles.

Originally Posted by Xandax

But what I'm talking about (and fable for that matter I would suspect, seeing as we are often in agreement here) is plot and puzzle - challenges within the game.
Challenges which go beyond simply fighting 5 monsters instead of 3 and calling it harder. Challenges which aren't made to be sovled by a 5-year old in the first 10 minutes or they loose interest which will hamper sales.

About that challenge aspect, it seems to be numbers over smarts of an enemy. I've started to see a trend where instead of improving the AI of an enemy, the developers tend to focus on numbers to overwhelm you and that, to me is a rather cheap tactic and unfair to the player, in my opinion.

As for the puzzles part, I agree with you fully. Most puzzles I've come across particularly in the SW:KOTOR series, they are mostly made up of simple maths questions and some dumbed down logic questions that really ticks me off sometimes. I'd rather prefer a puzzle system based on logic like trying to find clues as to the combination to a certain lock for example. Not some simple maths question to open a lock.

Originally Posted by Xandax

It is a continues circle, and it is in my view decying what was once a great genere when it got "reinvented" (or rather became mainstream) by Black Isle with Fallout/Baldur's Gate.
And yes, I blame the console influence for this by attacting a larger market segment of younger players who demand/expect more graphics and more fluff, and apparently not as much content. (I say apparently, because if people still demanded content, we'd not see bland static NPCs or stupid puzzles and plots)

Seems so. As of late, there's been a trend among major game developers to focus on the consoles first than the PC. Most probably because in general, console users outnumber those who own PCs and that's the reason why they focus on the consoles as they'll get more returns on the consoles front rather than the PC.

[TonyMontana1638]

Originally Posted by DesR85

Seems so. As of late, there's been a trend among major game developers to focus on the consoles first than the PC. Most probably because in general, console users outnumber those who own PCs and that's the reason why they focus on the consoles as they'll get more returns on the consoles front rather than the PC.

Or rather the console gamers just have no taste whatsoever.

[Dragon Reborn]

I voted for Blizzard manly because of one fact: They take their time when they make a game *glares at Besthesda* I also like them because their old games such as Diablo2 and Starcraft still to this day have a huge fan base and many people still play them and are upsesed by them. I myself was once a rabid player of D2. Plus, just look at world of warcraft; first mmorpg blizzard has ever made and its become more popular than evercrack! But mostly i just respect them for not rusing their games out for a quick buck.

[Mindcircus]

There are obviously some very high profile developers on this list but i'm going to go outside the box a little bit and vote for Snowblind Studios. I'm a huge fan of their console action rpgs and am really looking forward to Justice League Heroes, and whatever the end up cooking up for the next gen. I don't want to discredit what any of these developers have done though.

I have a lot of respect for Snowblind and how they communicate with their fan base. They are fans first and foremost just like us.

[Kolominas]

I voted bioware, but it's a hard choice between them and Bethesda.

[Pekka]

Definitely Bioware. I loved both NWN and Knights of the Old Republic, cant say the same for the sequel put out by Oblivion. Bioware had the TOUCH and thats the only thing that counts in the end.

[Pekka]

Sorry, meant Obsidian, of course, but at the same time was thinking about the latest flop

[Foss]

I must admit I chose Obsidian Ent because many of them represent the former Black Isle, which to me was the best developer team.

With titles like Fallout 1 2 and Planescape Torment.

Obsidian is still new and has only released 1 game, KoTor 2, which was a good game IMO.

But I am looking forward to NWN 2 and think they will do a good job there.

[Carylith]

Hi all,

Im an experienced RPG hardcore fan, and my vote goes straight to Black Isle. To put it simple, they created the best non-teenager, inteligent, sarcastic and beautiful RPG in history: Planescape Torment. They did an amazing job recreating the Dungeons & Dragons world as well with Baldurs Gate (the BEST fantasy RPG out there, even nowadays). I do agree they stretched the engine too much with all those games using it, but anyone rating an RPG from its graphics deserves a Playstation and his PC removed.

Bethesda is my second choice. Not for Oblivion, but for Morrowind. I still cant believe they turned to the greedy side...too bad. I will always remember the first time I played Morrowind...I know many of you know felt the same...freedom, freedom, freedom

On third place, I'd say Bioware. They did a great job taking Dungeons & Dragons to the next level with Neverwinter Nights. Its one of my favorite games and I usualy go back to my Paladin every now and then. I loved KotOR, I think they gave a very personal touch to the Star Wars universe with that game.

The only other developer I'd remark beside those mentioned above is Obsidian. I think they have a nice future ahead, but they need to keep up with the expectations regarding NWN2. I realy hope they will retake the personality of Black Isle, games targeted to a very specific segment of gamers, not weapons of mass-brain-destruction (gas powered, Blizzard and so forth). Im not a big fan of the Gothic series, though Ive played the first two and I will play the third as soon as I can get my hands on it. Still, a great effort considering their origins.

And now, the big loser: Blizzard. Lets be honest, a good RPG is a single player game. Maybe LAN multiplayer, but NWN style at the most. Not a MMORPG. I do like action-RPGs, like Diablo (I really had a lot of fun with the saga some years ago , although they are second-rated when facing heavyweights of the gender like those mentioned above. Anyway, to my point. Blizz, instead of developing Diablo III, will keep on releasing expansion for no-lifers playing WoW...I guess thats the business today...We cant blame them, but they are not anymore the kings, when every title they developed was instantly a must-have. Farewell Blizzard, you are dead.

Im not mentioning any console-based RPG. I admit my PlayStation2 is still attached to my TV, but only for sports game. An RPG can only be played on a PC. I cant imagine playing without my keyboard, or even worse, with a game pad...Its sad but true, developers will focus more and more on consoles since that market is much more attractive than a strictly PC market. The RPG genre was born in early PCs (Gauntlet anyone?) but its future seems more in consoles with green/blue bright colors and dozens of wi-fi game pads....good I have an ISO backup of all my RPGS, just to show to my son how his daddy kicked the butt of the whole Underdark...


Special Note: While waiting for the release of NWN2, I just finished Titan Quest (Iron Lore-THQ). Great Action RPG, Diablo clone. STILL, I was amazed by the beauty of it. Its plain and simple, pure action delivered. Worth mentioning, give it a shot if you can.