What's the best computer RPG you've ever played?

[Dundee Slaytern]

Best... is kinda subjective, since as time passes, new innovations in gaming technology enable games to be more and more... interactive? That said, the following CRPGs are CRPGs that I do not mind replaying even today.

• Septerra Core
  THE CRPG that opened my eyes to the very playability of the genre itself. Up until that point, my impression of CRPGs had been that they were all FF-clones, and as I did not like the playstyle of FF, it meant that I usually avoided CRPGs.
  
  Reading about Septerra Core in PC Gamer however, I was sufficiently piqued to give it a try, and it is still the CRPG that I have replayed and completed the most. The story is compelling, and you are never given the impression that your character is some 'Goddess' that can lay waste to entire continents.
  
  The gameworld is also one of the most unique I have ever seen in any story, and with the open-ended ending, one is free to imagine the future possibilities for this storyline, whether in fanfiction or a proper game sequel.
  .
• Fallout 2
  Any game that allows me to strap armed dynamite onto a child and watch him blow up into pieces seconds later is gold to me.
  
  Or selling your spouse into slavery.
  
  Or running around with a flamethrower turning pimps and prostitutes into charred carcasses.
  
  Or shooting out a person's eye before finishing him off with a kick to the groin.
  
  Or gives me the title of Demon-spawn because I had less than -900 reputation...
  
  ... a reputation earned by being a Child-Killer and City-Exterminator, among other things.
  
  Or turn a town into a radioactive wasteland because I purposely caused their nuclear reactor to meltdown.
  
  etc...
  
  You see... sometimes people just want to be the BAD guy in a CRPG. A REALLY BAD guy. An option sorely lacking in most CRPGs.
  .
• Baldur's Gate Trilogy
  If you have been on Ironworks long enough, you will know why.

[Amphetamine Machine]

Wasteland

http://www.the-underdogs.info/game.php?gameid=2425

[Harkoliar]

fallout 1 and 2 for good turnbased action rpg.

Planescape Torrent/Arcanium

[Zaleukos]

Gothic I (can be hard to come by) + Gothic II Gold (should be fairly easy to obtain). Wait for a few patches before getting Gothic III (supposed to be released this autumn).

These are action RPGs with relatively few stats, but cool interactive worlds and the best NPCs I've seen in an RPG. Kinda what Ultima IX should have been.

Gothic II Night of the Raven (the expansion in G2Gold) is a bitch in terms of character building though. Ask for a general building strategy at the rpgdot forums in order to save yourself from hair pulling.

[Hivetyrant]

Originally posted by Zaleukos: Wait for a few patches before getting Gothic III (supposed to be released this autumn).

Went gold yesterday morning [img]smile.gif[/img]

[SideShowRage]

If you can find a way to play it on windows..I would definately recommend the original Bards Tale...Just make your you have your grid paper with you...

[CerebroDragon]

I always interpret 'best' as 'favourite', since its the only logical way to avoid dogmatism.

Some of my favourites then:

For sheer nostalgia:
Bards Tale III: The Thief of Fate. I played the entire series on my C64. Ahh the many moons, many moons spent wandering around Skara Brae and the exploring the wonders of inter-dimensional chronomancy. Finally completing the third game was quite an emotional experience for me (1991-1997 on and off!) I remember calling my mate who introduced the series to me and trembling with excitement whilst looking at the end screen. [img]smile.gif[/img]

For introspection and personal illumination:
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar. Playing this game was so enjoyably thought provoking that it made having a philosophy major seem almost worthwhile.
I made a journal to collect all my notes, which is lots of fun to reflect and read back upon now. These days, there's some neat modern enhancements for the game and added to the fact it is freeware makes it an almost obligatory looksee for even the most casual rpg fan.

For immersion:
The Ultima Underworlds, closely followed by Arx Fatalis and Morrowind.

For great story telling:
Ultima VII: The Black Gate, Planescape Torment and Baldurs Gate series.

For great causality, consequences of choices and uniqueness of its setting and black humour:
Fallout. It took me far too long to get to play this game and it was definitely worth the wait.

That's enough for now.

[ 09-14-2006, 10:05 AM: Message edited by: CerebroDragon ]

[Zaleukos]

Originally posted by Hivetyrant: Went gold yesterday morning [img]smile.gif[/img]

I know, I said "this autumn" as the release dates are different in Europe (mid october?) and North America (later than that) [img]smile.gif[/img] Not that it matters to me as the initial state of G1 and G2 makes me a bit weary of buying Piranha titles before a patch or two is out.

And if the OP gets both old Gothics he'll easily be busy well past the release date for G3

[Zarr]

Originally posted by Lavindathar: I dont know how people can give any other answer apart from FF7 for this question. It is the best RPG ever made, out of old games and new. FF8/9/10/10-2 are all good as well, so are the older 1-6. I also like all the BG/IWD/NWN games, and KOTOR/2. All great. But none compare to FF7. And Zell, the game is not too easy. Without a guide, it's downright hard. You can beat Seph in the final battle due to KOTR summon, and either Mime or 4x. A first time player, without a guide will struggle like mad to get them. They'll struggle like mad to beat either Ruby or Emerald. Even getting a Gold Chocobo is very hard first run through. FF7 became easy due to players wanting to have everything, reading guides, and then doing it. Play through without a guide, and this game had no equal.

I have to disagree with your comments that the game is hard without reading guides etc. Yes, if you want to beat the Emerald and Ruby Weapons alot of time will be required. And perhaps some knowledge from an outside source. However in my 1st play through the game, I did very little side quests and had no trouble with the storys fights towards the end of the game.

All the FF games are the same. The fights required to beat the story are always easy. The only thing that is anything approaching a challenge is some of the optional bosses. But I ask you, are these fights hard? No. Are they necessary to complete the game? No. They just require alot of time.

I admit it is difficult to get a Gold Chocobo. But once you have these:

Final attack materia/life2 for all characters
Knights of the Round materia
Mime materia all charcters

It makes things quite easy, especially Emerald.

Most of the console games I play are Japanese RPGS and I have played far harder ones than FFVII. One of the reasons I think Dragon Quest VIII is better than
FFVII is it is much more of a challenge. I struggled with a boss called Empreyea and was stuck for many days on it. The amount of save points also make FF games easy. In Dragon Quest, if you die in a dungeon you have to do the whole thing again as you can only save in towns. FFVII is far more forgiving. Same with the resurection system as you can only resurrect characters in towns until over half way through in DQ.

Most of the optional bosses are also alot harder than in FFVII.

Sorry for this rather long post. And don't get me wrong, I absolutely love FFVII it is about my 4rd favorite game of all time behind Baldur's Gate 2/Dragon Quest VIII and Devil May Cry 3. And I 100% believe Klorox should buy it. But, I disagree with any suggestions that it isn't reasonably easy.

[Lavindathar]

Nice post [img]smile.gif[/img] .

All I'm saying, is first time around, without "information from outside sourcs" it is a difficult game.

The gold choco is very hard to get right. Logic states you would always breed the best pairs - i.e wonderful yellow and wonderful yellow for blue, wonderful yellow and wonderful black for gold. Thats just the way you'd think.

Yet it doesnt work like that. To get a gold you need to breed greats and goods. And like I said, a gamers logic would try and do the best etc.

Did I mention the nuts used for breeding? The best ones you need? Oh yeah you can't buy them in a shop, you have to find one specific enemy on a very small island. An island which you have no need to go too. And theres the greens to buy from the sage, once you've found him. Plus the cost? 2-3million gill, is a lot to save. First time around, gamers will get fed up as they dont know the rewards.

There there is locating KoTR. To find the island you either have to know where it is already, or get lucky.

The the underwater materia, Mime etc.

Getting all final weapons? Level 100 party? All master materia? Doing hidden quests such as the Kalm traveler? etc.

Most of the story bosses can be easy, as overlevling your party is easy. But without KoTR Sephiroth poses a problem.

But i don't think Emerald and Ruby are classed as easy. I just dont.

I stand by my statement. First time around this is a very hard game to clock.