One that comes to mind was the spell creator from Tyranny. Nobody talks about it because that poor game is cursed with a perception filter but it was so much fun to use! Made me think that that kind of devs could make a really cool Mage: The Ascension game.
I love that game. The pacing is so good, the world is really interesting, the role playing immediately starts from a more interesting place than most RPGs. I'd love another from obsidian.
I bought that game as a form of escapism after the 2016 election. Absolutely a game that doesn't get enough credit. Unfortunately, it's also one of those games that feels like it ended just as it was getting really interesting. They were obviously setting things up for a sequel, but it didn't sell well enough, so the story just kind of stops where it stops.
It sort of made me think of if magic were for people who could code. Magic is sort of like compiling where your skill is your processing limit. Such a fun and interesting magic system.
I second this, also Tyranny is easily up there among my favorite rpgs, not only is it not a traditional setting because the bad guys have already won, but it's so good for replaying due to how branching paths are handled.
I’ve always thought the Fallout 4 HP vs Radiation was so elegant too. It’s so tangible and doesn’t rely on the player seeing occasional tooltips or checking their status screen.
I also liked it's idea for a crit system, even though it doesn't really fit into an rpg as well. Instead of randomness, your critical rate builds up a bar, which perhaps we could overflow to bank multiple crits for deliberate use. There's plenty of games that do stuff like that, they just don't call it crits cause it's kind of it's own thing at that point. Still, I'd like to see more games adopt a system like that over crits, which I think are sometimes used in games that could do with more agency while keeping us on our toes through other means instead, which are often already present anyway.
@@Gnurklesquimp2 I absolutely love the crit system in 4 and it's associated perks. When you spec into Agility and Luck it just becomes an entirely different game, it changes the combat so much in so many fun and unique ways.
@@renaigh I'll do you one extra, I think settlement building was a cool endgame activity. Open-ended system that you can do and redo, and it gives you an excuse to continue spending money at vendors by buying supplies.
A game that really impressed me, and still does, is "Populous: The Beginning" by Bullfrog. The land deformation from spells and how this can come into strategies before and during combat is fantastic. Raising a landbridge to cross water or to destroy boats, Erode to sink buildings into the sea or Volcano to cover the sea with lava which later on you can build on. Diablo 1 actually has quite a bit of randomness for the quests you can get. They're arrayed into 6 groups and each game it'll choose 1, or 2 depending on the group, of the quests and not include another. So some games you'll get the Poisoned Water Supply while in others you'll get the Skeleton King quest. Group 6 has 3 quests which are always included.
That's sounds really awesome! I never did play Populous, though. Back in the day, they never had it in stock at my local game stores (we're talking Crown Books and Walden Soft... yeah, I'm "old"!). But I have played two other titles by Bullfrog that had a similar feature... 1) Magic Carpet had several spells that you could cast, which could drastically alter the landscape depending on where you cast them. iirc, there was earthquake spell, a volcano spell, and the spell for creating/growing your castle. But too, things like fireball would cause trees and ground to burn and scorch. 2) Not anywhere as impressive was Powermonger. You could have your army build things, and this would have an effect on the local ecology (trees being cut down and needing time to grow back). Buildings would also be destroyed if you hit them with catapults or canon fire, though I don't recall if those would eventually be rebuilt or not.
I understand completely what you are saying about the Fallout 4 radiation damage system. It's simple, elegant, and visually well represented to be understood. However, I much prefer the way radiation was handled in previous entries. I like the idea that the PC is absorbing radiation slowly in the background without necessarily knowing it. That makes radiation feel more like a lurking threat than an obvious one. Which fits better with the post apocalypse. I also think de buffs to s.p.e.c.i.a.l. AP regen, and derived stats is much more interesting than max health. It's more nuanced and I appreciate that.
@@lonneansekishoku8288 I mean he is semi retired and contracted through Obsidian rn. But he could come on as an advisory role or something similar if they wanted I'd imagine whenever they get around to making another one lol.
To be fair, they are pretty good. They're only a disappointment in relation to what Fallout could be. I played Fallout 3 first coming from Oblivion and genuinely enjoyed it, but when I played New Vegas, I was blown away by what was possible even with the same engine and limited development time. I also played Oblivion before Morrowind and it was my favorite game for a long time, but when I got into Morrowind I realized how Bethesda had started to dumb down the series.
I played each Fallout game in the main series in order and I agree with the things Tim liked in Fallout 3 and 4. There's also plenty to dislike in the Bethesda games. New Vegas is the best game in the series because it combined some of the best aspects from Interplay and Bethesda Fallout and improved on both. I doubt there will ever be another game like New Vegas, but there's always hope.
I also loved the degradation system of fallout 3. And ironically it is the one of the very few degradation systems that was well implemented, fit the setting perfectly but received a lot of critique.
Indeed and I hate that Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 has a ridiculous weapon and armour system. I don't want Epic weapons. I want scarce weapons. In Fallout 3 I go around looking for Sniper Rifles because they're fairly scarce, as are the bullets for them. In Fallout 4 you find weapons everywhere and can upgrade them to silly levels. It's even worse in Fallout 76.
@@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 That is also one of my main critiques of fo4. Too many legendaries, removal of skills, infinite levels and less dialog options. Other than that, it's still a great game in its own right. Survival mode is really well done, the gunplay is a big improvement, base building is a nice addition that fits a transition from post-apocalypse to Post-post-apocalypse.
@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 I agree. A level cap, even if high, gives the player an endgoal for leveling. It feels complete. You also have to manage the character's skills and perks because you can't have everything. Good replay value.
I'm in complete agreement about weapon condition and repairs being very well done in Fallout 3 and New Vegas. I enjoyed how it also made some relatively common enemy weapons, or somewhat rare looted weapons, more exciting than they other wise would be, because they enabled you to keep using a reliable weapon. It also made repeat finds of rare items continuously exciting, because you knew that it was a further life expectancy of your gatling laser or plasma cannon or what have you.
Many old school Fallout fans claim that the radiation was dumb in Fallout 4 but I think it was great. At least in Fallout 3 and NV radiation felt kinda obsolete, outside of places with very high radiation, can't comment on Fallout 1 but in Fallout 2 iirc the same applied, that radiation was never a threat except in toxic tunnels and stuff. Also if you play the survival mode of Fallout 4, pretty sure the tiredness/food/hydration is tied to the AP/Stamina bar, to similar effect as the radiation, IIRC
I haven’t really seen many comment on the radiation system but from my experience fallout 4 is controversial from the perspective a lot of old and new fallout fans it streamlined a lot of what both groups found engaging about the games
@@jess648 Yes, and to an extent they streamlined the radiation system, simplified it so that it doesn't remove SPECIAL stats but HP. I can understand the other criticism but the radiation mechanic I find way better.
@@Voult_Bioy yeah I wasn’t disagreeing with you, you’d think that radiation would be more of an urgent immediate concern. I’m disappointed we don’t see more of the radiation storms that are described in various fallout media, that could be a cool way to add a bit more urgency to the mechanic and exploration but that’s counterbalanced in the games at least on default difficulty you get enough Rad-X and Rad-Away to just nullify it completely
What makes radiation in Bethesda's Fallout games "obsolete" is that they also drop Rad-X and Radaway as though they were candy. Radiation is rarely ever a threat because there's no way you'll ever run out unless you're selling them or passing them over. Were that drop rate, along with stimpacks, scaled back considerably, radiation might feel like the threat it should be in the Wasteland without necessarily going all Dust and Frost on us. As it is, I always had hundreds of stimpacks, Rad-X and Radaway on ice by the time I was just a few hours into the games, even on "survival" difficulty. I could have opened a pharmacy were that a thing and have never once have had to avail myself of a Wasteland doctor's services. I gather they've been made part of the "economic" system of Bethesda's Fallouts and, in fairness, such systems always have been borked in video games. I had to laugh when a Let's Player got his first whiff of a radiation storm and ran around like a chicken with its head cut off looking for shelter. (He'd just played S.T.A.L.K.E.R and perhaps forgot radiation just isn't a problem in Bethesda's Wasteland.) Honestly, I think Bethesda is afraid so-called "casual" players would be turned off by any and all environmental challenges that might be implemented in their systems. Being that I'd hardly consider myself a "hardcore" gamer, I think that fear may be a bit misplaced.
in New Vegas at least I think radiation being a largely obsolete mechanic works for the game's aesthetic, it's only barely a post-apocalyptic game, Nations and Empires are back - Nevada just happens to be the equivalent of Afghanistan or something
I remember the wind mechanic in Pirates! (The exclamation was in the title). I loved the game but my god sailing anywhere against the wind took what felt like hours. Admittedly i was a child so there was probably a better way of doing things than constant tacking up/down/left/right.
The thing about Pirates! is that winds were seasonal, just like the real world. During certain times of the year, it is more favorable to sail east or west in the old Spanish Main. A, uh, (ahem) competent captain would plan their course as much on the winds as on the destination(s). And this was back in the mid 80s. Pretty amazing!
You’ve mentioned this multiple times and I’m curious about the details - What are some specific mechanics you’ve seen that were good, but not necessarily good for that game?
Would love to hear more behind the scenes info about Vampire the masquerade bloodlines, the lore and story for that game was amazing. Also I’ve just found out you were a programmer for the South Park game “the stick of truth” that’s so cool I loved that game!
I actually liked that radiation wasn't readily visible, it made it a spookier. If anything, I wish the damage from radiation was more exaggerated, and even semi-permanent. That sensation of a vague, mysterious, and powerful threat created such a visceral fear the first time I played Fallout.
Thanks for shedding light on one of my favourite games of all-time: Star Control II! Given how much of the game can be played without engaging in ship combat, I totally agree it’s one of the best RPG’s of the DOS era. And the alien dialogue is so engaging and so funny. Hard to find games that do humour and existential dread so well at the same time!
In the original X-Com, if your soldiers move through long grass they will use up energy quicker. They will also pass out if they inhale too much smoke.
Yeah, until you find out how your immortality works and you end up running from the shadows in the Fortress of Regrets shouting "I'M SO SORRY DUDES! I HAD NO IDEA!!" :)
When I was in elementary school I often drew games on paper as well. I drew a road that had all kinds of enemies and traps and it continued down the paper as a snake and at the end, there was a boss. It kind of looked like those old Metroid games. I loved doing that. Me and my 2 friends always did it during the class and the breaks as well. Good old times for me
8:00 One of the things I liked about New Vegas was the “Armour Repair Kits” that players could make by combining specific junk items. These kits could repair any kind of armour without using up a donor set. I liked these and their sister repair items because it made those “junk” items actually very useful and encouraged the player to really pick through and analyse the junk you’d find around the world. Instead of ignoring it or selling all of it like in Fallout 3.
I would love to see how you would do a small game design document in a video. It’s been 3 days since I am watching your videos. Glad to hear about several game design topics from a legendary game dev.
6:34 This is eerie :) Just before seeing this I had played a coop game with a friend (Generation Zero). We came to talk about how good it felt in different games to find weapons of different quality and how this feeling diminished the better the weapons you already had. And I mentioned to him how much I liked the Fallout 3 system because finding the same weapon again helped you maintain the one you were using. And even better, finding several instances of the same gun let you use that gun with more abandon because you knew you could repair it.
I could recognize Sunless Sea through the whole Star Control part. That’s also a game where you are supposed to be playing the captain, but you only ever see a ship and control a ship. You have hit points in the form of hull points, but you also have a number of crew. Crew can die from enemy fire as well. You lose if either crew or hill falls to zero. If you redline your engine, you can lose crew to fires. Not the same as SC2, but a variant of it. Also, SS does have exotic weapons that use people as ammo, but in this case it’s a very specific type of person called a “doomed monster hunter” which is a rare item you got to acquire.
Tim, can you share your thoughts on fan-made patches for old games like Vampire Bloodlines? Specifically those that fix bugs and those that attempt to restore cut content?
the Survival Difficulty for Fallout 4 makes the Radiation meter even more scary, since using Stimpaks & Radaway lower your immune system against diseases. Encouraging the player to find an alternate means to recovering the lost health. (usually by paying a town doctor)
For me it was stance moves in Fighting Games. My first exposure to it was Soul Calibur. You have a normal set of move but you can go into stance whether by move or as a result at the end of a move. You had a small number of options usually good depending on the situation. Another one was probably going into another world or dimension ala Legacy of Cain: Soul Reaver. There was also this JRPG where they used the save points through the game as a plot device which I thought was cool. Not sure if that counts as Game Design. Another one was SWTOR where if someone dropped rare loot or better loot you'd see a beam of light on the drop. First time I seen that and now everyone copies it. Also first game where I had AoE looting.
Hi Tim, thanks again for the wonderful video! I had a question about some general game design methodology. In conversations between players who don't have the best idea of how game development works, you commonly see the words "asset reuse" or "reskins" thrown around almost like a curse. But it seems like a lot of times when these terms are thrown around, it is by people who either don't really understand what "reskin" really means, or don't understand not everything needs a bespoke asset made from the ground up to work. I play Total War, and I just noticed that conversations in that playerbase in particular get really muddied by these sort of critique buzzwords. So would really love to hear your general thoughts on asset reuse, and what goes into the decision making for what needs new assets and what can reuse or retool existing ones.
I've not seen such terms "thrown around" unless qualified as exhorbitant. Not saying they haven't been, but I've never seen it myself. From Software fans get really testy when a critique points out that every region in Elden Ring contains the exact same assets: ruins w/single cellar w/single chest w/single item, rises, churches, etc. with little to no variation to be found among them whereas the legacy dungeons are quite intricate and beautifully designed. Those assets are pretty obviously there for one reason and one reason only: to drop an item, e.g. a weapon, into the game for players to pick up. It's more than just a little strange that such a "vast, open world" doesn't have any architectural variety to speak of as worlds generally do. It was From's first foray into open world game design and it glaringly shows there. The open world itself exists for no other than the aforementioned purpose. The biomes were very artistic and distinct, but certainly not the structural assets resued in them over and over and over again. In fairness, From is not a super-large studio and, while Elden Ring had more than a descent budget, it's fairly obvious where it was all spent: the unforgettable legacy dungeons and the plethora of weapons and shields and armor sets and assorted other items to be found in it. “More! More! is the cry of the mistaken soul." ~ Nietzsche And "bigger is better" and "more is good" is probably not the prevailing industry design philosophy From really wants to adopt at this point unless, perhaps, it's aiming to lose its hard-won identity.
Metal Gear Solid 2 is the earliest game that left several impacts on me, many firsts. I'm playing video games since the early 90s and there are other examples but this was a turning point. It was the first game that managed to get me emotional, I remember noticing it right away that this is new and important that games "can do that now". Then it predicted a lot of things of the future surprisingly right, one reason why people now turning back to it, it just came out too early. It did the Bioshock twist a lot better than Bioshock and long before that was even created. Here it does make more sense, since you're taking commands from a game / a computer as well as the character and therefore it did include the player more. Then a lot of gimmicks like the cooling spray and especially the sword mechanics at the end, or rather how the controller could be used (at this early stage) left a lasting impact on me. And of course ICO, all of it as a whole, it's perfect.
Star Wars Galaxies had a very similar system to the FO4 radiation system, that used the same UI element. Wounds for the the Health bar, exhaustion for the action bar and fatigue for the mind bar. Wounds were from taking damage, exhaustion from using abilities that drain energy and fatigue from doing mental activities like crafting, researching etc. Each type of wound could be healed by another players with specific skills....doctors healed wounds, entertainers healed fatigue... Pretty cool system that made different types of players need to interact and rely on each other.
in Fallout 4 I also liked the way junk had a use as it contained crafting resources. So with limited inventory space you would loot only junk that had components you needed at that time, instead of collecting everything like a vacuum cleaner.
I've tried to convince younger gamers to give Star Control 2 (or, rather, the open source Ur-Quan Masters port) a shot, mostly to no avail. It absolutely holds up, in a way most games of its era do not. And yeah, it used crew as hit points for every ship. And because the star base where you recruited crew only had so many people, the cost of crew would start rising astronomically if you took too many losses. It would also shoot through the roof if you mistreated your existing crew, such as by selling them into slavery, as word would get around and no one would want to serve with you.
That reminds me of mgs3 health system. Everytime you got hurt there would be a chance that you would injured decreasing your max HP. The only way to heal it was through first aid. And you would have different injury typs and it would need different types of first aid.
Hahaha, on the topic of FO4 radiation, just yesterday I watched a 6 yo video about the evolution of Fallout, and as a negative of the FO4 he mentioned its implementation of the radiation, saying how it's too gamey and unrealistic, unlike FO1. I wonder how he'd feel to hear you actually praise it lol. I personally love it, and it was the most threatened I felt by radiation in any Fallout game.
I agree. Radiation is a constant threat in Fallout 4 that needs to be tackled. Especially in 3 and NV it is very rare to have problems with radiation, outside of a few select locations, whereas in Fallout 4 having Rad-Away and Rad-X with you always is a very good idea. I remember the video you're talking about and attacking the RAD system out of all systems seems dumb
Ultima III was my favorite of that series. It started to get weighted down with too many characters with IV, and V came out pretty much simultaneously with Bard’s Tale III and Wasteland (yeah, thank you Electronic Arts for delaying Wasteland’s release to maximize your quarterly profit statement and not letting it get a clear shot by itself). Entirely forgot about the moon gates - but my brother swiftly figured that out at the time, so he made that part easier for me.
The Fallout Boardgame has a similar mechanic for radiation. You have one health track that starts at full, while radiation starts at zero. When you take radiation, you starting adding it from the left of your track, when you take health damage, you reduce it from the max on the right of your track. Your character dies not when your health reaches zero, but when your health and radiation meet.
Have you played Outer Wilds, Tim? I obviously don't mean The Outer Worlds! Many folk think it's one of the best games ever made, due in part to its uniqueness. I was curious whether you felt the same way about it?
For those of us who want to try out Star Control 2, what's the best way? (I know the answer is usually GOG, but gotta figure it's always better to double-check)
It actually isn't GoG. The source code for Star Control 2 was set free years and years ago by the developers, and so a fan team made an updated port for modern systems in the early 2000s. To escape copyright, it's called The Ur-Quan Masters, and it's free to download and has been since 2002. You'll find it at the first link when you do a Google search for The Ur-Quan Masters.
I like that mechanic in Fallout 4. In Mini Ninjas, there is a similar mechanic of two different stats sharing the same bar, where your character uses the magic (chi energy) bar as a stamina bar for sprinting, and the more magic you use the less you are able to sprint
I don't remember the name of the game but there was a period when I was very much into small RPG maker games and one game blew my mind because it pushed the limits of the engine in ways completely unimaginable to the point when I was not sure it was RPG maker anymore.
Haha, packing for your move to Seattle must have been a nightmare. I love the fact you still have a book of graphs of your generated dungeon that you did as what, a high schooler. Does your husband ask periodically: "Do you really need that?" :D The clutter, I love it! I thought Bloodlines was very well designed. The fact that it's a cult classic that is now getting a sequel is testament to that I think. I just wish Troika itself got the sales commiserate to the impact the game has had to the genre and industry that it frankly really deserved. One of the good designs I thought was the clear difference in what sort of persuasion mechanic you were using. The big hulky smash green for Intimidation, the pinkish seduction, etc, etc. It was easy to notice and intuitive imo; you probably didn't even need the tutorial section that spelt it out (other than maybe the blue of Persuasion). Even the powers and effects of the game I thought hit that bar for cool and ease; especially max Celerity when you can see the bullets rip through the air. Nowadays I suspect all that would be Pre-caching shaders for the effects.
8:45 I saw kinda similar use of capping player's max HP in a relatively obscure, but well made action RPG "Kult: Heretic Kingdoms". They used it to workaround the Diablo 2's health potion inventory hassle by giving the player just one infinite medkit that would reduce max health after each use and the health bar can only be fully restored by sleeping in a home or hotel (so it prevents the healing spam and the upgraded medkits would eat away at player character's health bar more slowly) In the same game they've also made some good use of random loot & successfully incentivized the player to equip almost every single piece of equipment they found, because every unique class of weapon and armor, equipped & used under specific conditions - usually killing this many enemies in a certain way - would unlock a perk that the player can later use, whether or not they continue equipping that weapon or a piece of armor. Really cool stuff that no one - not even the same developer that came up with these mechanics - have used in their projects since.
Feel free to not answer if it's too personal, but why did you and your husband move to the PNW? Are you guys liking it up there? I'm from San Diego, and a lot of my family moved up there in the mid-2000s, and they love it up there. Is there anything you miss about SoCal, or are you sorta over it? Thanks!
A Fallout 4 mechanic I can't believe nobody thought of was Quick Loot lol Normally that'd be the type of QoL thing a modder would come up with, but instead after fo4's release, identical quickloot mods started popping up for all of Beth's previous games haha
Won't lie, to see Tim praise Bethesda's fallouts not only once but twice was a surprise. I wonder. If you'd have a chance, would you work with them on a future fallout?
It's not hard to find specific elements to enjoy or appreciate in any studio's games and it would be nice if more non-industry reviewers and critics did so. It's a game in its entirely but perhaps, especially, its direction and marketing that can be difficult or impossible to appreciate at times. Some players themselves are all about a game's mechanical systems just as a game's developers can be. There are RUclipsrs who pretty obviously concentrate solely on a game's mechanics, never minding anything else (e.g. story and characterization) in their reviews and critiques. It's not surprising there's a such a huge emphasis on mechanics over and above (and, often, at the expense of) anything else, all things considered.
What did you think when you first put on a VR headset? I am also curious to know if you have any thoughts on why VR isn't taking off as quickly as perhaps it should.
I'd love to know your opinion about everquest ever raising stats over 20 years and also the effects of pok books over druid/Wiz ports. At least Ultima online had those cool runic book port things that were player made so you needed each other
Really like your appreciation for newer Fallout games. A lot of hardcore fans of the original took what Bethesda did for granted, or dismiss it altogether(
Mr Cain, thank you so much for making these vids and your consistency. It’s always interesting to learn about games development from an insider. Have you thought about doing live stream Q&A with Josh Sawyer with Fallout as general topic? I’m sure fans would love an opportunity to communicate with you directly.
When I first played FO4 I hated that radiation system. It seemed so annoying to lose max HP all the time instead of having thresholds of mutations. illness, etc. After hundreds of hours, though, it just feels natural and logical. I still wouldn't mind some of the secondary effects making a comeback though. I also liked the repair system in FO3 but I think it should have been skill independent. Playing without a decent repair skill can be brutal. Fun video!
What are some games from your generation that are iconic, maybe that inspired you to be a game dev. And why? I'm a elder millennial so I'd say things like: Unreal, Quake, Red Alert 2, Warcraft 2, KKND.
If you could have a bottomless budget and managers that dealt with all the things you didn't want to deal with in business and office politics, what would be a short list of things you'd want to do? Platform, controller, setting, mechanics, features, art style & type, etc
I have a niche question, why do you think rpgs & jrpgs following panzer dragoon saga never adopted or evolved on its combat system? As someone who generally finds turned based combat less satisfying I was really impressed with how much fun combat was in that game & I can't help but wonder why it's the only game with its combat system
I think it FO4 works like the penalties in FONV ´cause in FONV it works in the way as you get poisoned, your SPECIAL atributes are reduced and you get more vulnerable, etc, the genius idea of FO original 1 is: you´re in a wasteland and don´t get access to the technologies that help you until you get to ceirtain pont of the map or missions. It´s still my Favorite Fo1 it should be remake with some features that you mentioned in one of your videos, first person or third person or switch between. God bless you man!!
I know this is an older video, but I felt that BG1 thing, so here's my opinion: BG1 is more enjoyable than 2 because BG1 makes you feel like an adventurer on an adventure. The openness and vastness of the world make you really feel a part of it, whereas BG2 railroads you into going where they want you to go.
I would love to know what your favorite post 2d fallout stories and sub stories in the dlc that you thought were a good fit for the world you and your team made popular and maybe some that you thought weren't as clean of a fit if you won't get in trouble for it lol
I really enjoy Morrowind's rootedness in place. Most of the family names have ancestral tombs somewhere. I am desecrating the actual tomb of the ancestors of some trader, as I pilfer through their burial goods. And the societal structure is much less of a 'planet of hats' than in subsidiary Elder Scrolls titles, as the Hlaalu, Redoran, Telvanni, Imperial and Indoril architectural styles differ from each other. And even better, the native 'Great Houses' featured in-game do not have ideologies that appeal to the player's natural predilections - The Hlaalu are mercantilist, Imperial bootlickers... The Redoran are an anachronistic warrior culture who are dedicated to the Tribunal Temple - The Telvanni are 'might makes right' egoism taken to its logical extremes.
Nothing I heard was particularly overwhelming. To pick up Fallout 4 with radiation reducing max health, that's the least interesting thing to do with radiation. The key is to make radiation mysterious and unpredictable (or at least hard to predict). Having negative effects come and go, getting more severe over time, having random negative effects is what would make it more interesting (which may be the case with FO1/2). So when you encounter a place with radiation, its effects wouldn't be immediately visible - because that would take out the fear of the player to get it. It goes counter to making things understandable to the player, but keeping it somewhat mysterious is still better. Revealing how it works can be done later in the game somehow, but on the other hand, maybe radiation could be done even more extreme as the game progresses. It's a game, why not simply have different types of radiation? Also, what I think is a big problem in FO4 is that it is way too easy to heal yourself or remove radiation. I really dislike the idea of a big city "safe space" in which there is already everything - very strong weapons and armor, and all that is needed is your money to buy things.
I'm a bit surprised you seem to have discovered procedural generation with Diablo. Rogue, and then NetHack and then all roguelikes (angband etc.) were already out at the time Diablo was created. In fact, it was supposed to be a roguelike at the very beginning. Did you ever play roguelikes? By which I mean the old-style ones (NetHack, angband, ADOM...).Not only these games have procedural generation, but the sytems are quite rich (e.g. so many ways you can die creatively with a cockatrice, live or dead).
I played plenty of Rogue back in my Unix days at UCI. I guess seeing Diablo do procedural generation married seamlessly with handmade content in the same level and with nice graphics just made a big impact on me.
Fallout 4 having radiation affect max HP might be a sharp system mechanic and pleasant from a UI standpoint, but I'd argue it's much less interesting than having more unpredictable effects. There is a great game called Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup where there are mutagenic effects, which are a radiation of sorts. You can get all sorts of random mutations and it's rather complicated, but really cool. Radiation has a reputation in comics, movies, etc. for random mutations, really it's the most interesting thing about radiation. Meanwhile damaging max health isn't really all that interesting, and is interchangeable with a lot of other environmental hazards (poison, frostbite from cold, etc.)
Hey Tim great video as always! I was wondering if you could do a video about weapon durability or equipment durability as a game mechanic. Is it an outdated mechanic or is it still valid? PS: Who came up with the weapon destroying golems in Arcanum? The Black Mountain Clan mines golem gauntlet still gives me nightmares
Yeah I transitioned from Gemstone III MUD to Everquest when that first came out. It really did feel like a dream come true to visualize the text like that. But a lot that 2D textual MUD magic got lost in the translation (a lot less RPing).
Hey Tim do you think you could go over your thoughts in a detailed manner about how you feel about Bethesda's Fallout games, both ones you have played and ones you haven't played?
Have you played any games wearing color blind glasses? I have only seen the reaction videos of people seeing nature scenery and being amazed but a game as colorful as Outer Worlds should be seen it all its glory.
@@destroyerrunemo nah it varies which game i rank as best ever but most days it is something like this: Fallout 4 Fallout 2 Fallout New Vegas Fallout 3 Fallout 1 Arcanum Total war warhammer 2 The top t switch places. F4 has nr 1 spot most days though probably, possibly New Vegas...or F2...maybe f3.....yeah tough cookie. Today it is the above list
The spots on my list changes by the days (but it is always these 7 games that are S tier, A tier i could probably have 100 games to list). Arcanum is a very unique game and one that ive been playing the last couple of weeks so perhaps it should hold the nr 1 spot for now. Before that i played f3 a lot. Before that fallout 2. And before that fallout 1.
I haven't played Fallout 4 (beyond the character customization), but I do feel like the system where accumulating a status effect gradually decreases your health pool sounds very familiar. Adjacent to the subject of procedural generation, though, I'm curious about if you're familiar with and have any thoughts on randomizers for games? Can't recall if they've come up in any earlier videos. I'm particularly fond for the fanmade The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past randomizer, but they also exist for a plethora of RPGs.
So, dunno if it's said before or whatnot, but interestingly Fallout 76 made the Rad/health trade off a bit more fun. There are builds that revolve around having low health for higher damage. So how does the community maintain that? Insanely high radiation levels all the time.
Very surprised to hear that you enjoyed Fallout 4's take on radiation. I really love the utility of it as well, but I think a lot of people miss how "menacing" it was to not see it depicted anywhere and rather have it be a "silent" killer you needed to pay attention to. I think both are really good, and it fits Fallout 4 because of the nature and pacing of the game.
I was disappointed by a number of things in Fallout 4's design, especially the dialog. I thought the handling of radiation was clearly an improvement from all earlier games.
Love having these to watch every day. Guest appearance from the dog, too!
Hey, that's me! Very fun response, thanks Tim
One that comes to mind was the spell creator from Tyranny. Nobody talks about it because that poor game is cursed with a perception filter but it was so much fun to use! Made me think that that kind of devs could make a really cool Mage: The Ascension game.
I love that game. The pacing is so good, the world is really interesting, the role playing immediately starts from a more interesting place than most RPGs. I'd love another from obsidian.
I bought that game as a form of escapism after the 2016 election. Absolutely a game that doesn't get enough credit.
Unfortunately, it's also one of those games that feels like it ended just as it was getting really interesting. They were obviously setting things up for a sequel, but it didn't sell well enough, so the story just kind of stops where it stops.
It sort of made me think of if magic were for people who could code. Magic is sort of like compiling where your skill is your processing limit. Such a fun and interesting magic system.
I second this, also Tyranny is easily up there among my favorite rpgs, not only is it not a traditional setting because the bad guys have already won, but it's so good for replaying due to how branching paths are handled.
Classic Obsidian. 😁🤌 Like the Dark Side system in KOTOR 2 turned into an entire RPG. I loved it.
I’ve always thought the Fallout 4 HP vs Radiation was so elegant too. It’s so tangible and doesn’t rely on the player seeing occasional tooltips or checking their status screen.
love the perks that make use of the mechanic, the ones that really encourage a glass cannon build
I also liked it's idea for a crit system, even though it doesn't really fit into an rpg as well. Instead of randomness, your critical rate builds up a bar, which perhaps we could overflow to bank multiple crits for deliberate use. There's plenty of games that do stuff like that, they just don't call it crits cause it's kind of it's own thing at that point. Still, I'd like to see more games adopt a system like that over crits, which I think are sometimes used in games that could do with more agency while keeping us on our toes through other means instead, which are often already present anyway.
@@Gnurklesquimp2 I absolutely love the crit system in 4 and it's associated perks. When you spec into Agility and Luck it just becomes an entirely different game, it changes the combat so much in so many fun and unique ways.
someone having something nice to say about Fallout 4 is rare and welcome sight.
@@renaigh I'll do you one extra, I think settlement building was a cool endgame activity. Open-ended system that you can do and redo, and it gives you an excuse to continue spending money at vendors by buying supplies.
A game that really impressed me, and still does, is "Populous: The Beginning" by Bullfrog. The land deformation from spells and how this can come into strategies before and during combat is fantastic. Raising a landbridge to cross water or to destroy boats, Erode to sink buildings into the sea or Volcano to cover the sea with lava which later on you can build on.
Diablo 1 actually has quite a bit of randomness for the quests you can get. They're arrayed into 6 groups and each game it'll choose 1, or 2 depending on the group, of the quests and not include another. So some games you'll get the Poisoned Water Supply while in others you'll get the Skeleton King quest. Group 6 has 3 quests which are always included.
That's sounds really awesome! I never did play Populous, though. Back in the day, they never had it in stock at my local game stores (we're talking Crown Books and Walden Soft... yeah, I'm "old"!). But I have played two other titles by Bullfrog that had a similar feature...
1) Magic Carpet had several spells that you could cast, which could drastically alter the landscape depending on where you cast them. iirc, there was earthquake spell, a volcano spell, and the spell for creating/growing your castle. But too, things like fireball would cause trees and ground to burn and scorch.
2) Not anywhere as impressive was Powermonger. You could have your army build things, and this would have an effect on the local ecology (trees being cut down and needing time to grow back). Buildings would also be destroyed if you hit them with catapults or canon fire, though I don't recall if those would eventually be rebuilt or not.
I understand completely what you are saying about the Fallout 4 radiation damage system. It's simple, elegant, and visually well represented to be understood. However, I much prefer the way radiation was handled in previous entries. I like the idea that the PC is absorbing radiation slowly in the background without necessarily knowing it. That makes radiation feel more like a lurking threat than an obvious one. Which fits better with the post apocalypse. I also think de buffs to s.p.e.c.i.a.l. AP regen, and derived stats is much more interesting than max health. It's more nuanced and I appreciate that.
I'm glad that Tim has no ill will towards Bethesda and even enjoys the newer Fallout games to some degree!
I second this. I'd like to see him and Beth make a fallout together. Not sure it's possible, but would be interesting.
@@lonneansekishoku8288 I mean he is semi retired and contracted through Obsidian rn. But he could come on as an advisory role or something similar if they wanted I'd imagine whenever they get around to making another one lol.
To be fair, they are pretty good. They're only a disappointment in relation to what Fallout could be.
I played Fallout 3 first coming from Oblivion and genuinely enjoyed it, but when I played New Vegas, I was blown away by what was possible even with the same engine and limited development time.
I also played Oblivion before Morrowind and it was my favorite game for a long time, but when I got into Morrowind I realized how Bethesda had started to dumb down the series.
I played each Fallout game in the main series in order and I agree with the things Tim liked in Fallout 3 and 4. There's also plenty to dislike in the Bethesda games. New Vegas is the best game in the series because it combined some of the best aspects from Interplay and Bethesda Fallout and improved on both. I doubt there will ever be another game like New Vegas, but there's always hope.
@@Ved000000 putting it simply: they're good, but their lack of ambition really hurts them compared to what they used to be.
I also loved the degradation system of fallout 3.
And ironically it is the one of the very few degradation systems that was well implemented, fit the setting perfectly but received a lot of critique.
Indeed and I hate that Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 has a ridiculous weapon and armour system. I don't want Epic weapons. I want scarce weapons. In Fallout 3 I go around looking for Sniper Rifles because they're fairly scarce, as are the bullets for them.
In Fallout 4 you find weapons everywhere and can upgrade them to silly levels. It's even worse in Fallout 76.
@@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 but as a replacement you now can have a Diablo-esque epic loot
𝅘𝅥𝅮epic loot epic loot loot loot𝅘𝅥𝅮
yeah, not a fan of it myself
@@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 That is also one of my main critiques of fo4. Too many legendaries, removal of skills, infinite levels and less dialog options. Other than that, it's still a great game in its own right. Survival mode is really well done, the gunplay is a big improvement, base building is a nice addition that fits a transition from post-apocalypse to Post-post-apocalypse.
@@lonneansekishoku8288 Starfield is getting infinite levels and I feel that's a mistake. They should just cap it.
@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 I agree. A level cap, even if high, gives the player an endgoal for leveling. It feels complete. You also have to manage the character's skills and perks because you can't have everything. Good replay value.
I'm in complete agreement about weapon condition and repairs being very well done in Fallout 3 and New Vegas. I enjoyed how it also made some relatively common enemy weapons, or somewhat rare looted weapons, more exciting than they other wise would be, because they enabled you to keep using a reliable weapon. It also made repeat finds of rare items continuously exciting, because you knew that it was a further life expectancy of your gatling laser or plasma cannon or what have you.
Many old school Fallout fans claim that the radiation was dumb in Fallout 4 but I think it was great. At least in Fallout 3 and NV radiation felt kinda obsolete, outside of places with very high radiation, can't comment on Fallout 1 but in Fallout 2 iirc the same applied, that radiation was never a threat except in toxic tunnels and stuff. Also if you play the survival mode of Fallout 4, pretty sure the tiredness/food/hydration is tied to the AP/Stamina bar, to similar effect as the radiation, IIRC
I haven’t really seen many comment on the radiation system but from my experience fallout 4 is controversial from the perspective a lot of old and new fallout fans it streamlined a lot of what both groups found engaging about the games
@@jess648 Yes, and to an extent they streamlined the radiation system, simplified it so that it doesn't remove SPECIAL stats but HP. I can understand the other criticism but the radiation mechanic I find way better.
@@Voult_Bioy yeah I wasn’t disagreeing with you, you’d think that radiation would be more of an urgent immediate concern. I’m disappointed we don’t see more of the radiation storms that are described in various fallout media, that could be a cool way to add a bit more urgency to the mechanic and exploration
but that’s counterbalanced in the games at least on default difficulty you get enough Rad-X and Rad-Away to just nullify it completely
What makes radiation in Bethesda's Fallout games "obsolete" is that they also drop Rad-X and Radaway as though they were candy. Radiation is rarely ever a threat because there's no way you'll ever run out unless you're selling them or passing them over. Were that drop rate, along with stimpacks, scaled back considerably, radiation might feel like the threat it should be in the Wasteland without necessarily going all Dust and Frost on us. As it is, I always had hundreds of stimpacks, Rad-X and Radaway on ice by the time I was just a few hours into the games, even on "survival" difficulty. I could have opened a pharmacy were that a thing and have never once have had to avail myself of a Wasteland doctor's services. I gather they've been made part of the "economic" system of Bethesda's Fallouts and, in fairness, such systems always have been borked in video games.
I had to laugh when a Let's Player got his first whiff of a radiation storm and ran around like a chicken with its head cut off looking for shelter. (He'd just played S.T.A.L.K.E.R and perhaps forgot radiation just isn't a problem in Bethesda's Wasteland.) Honestly, I think Bethesda is afraid so-called "casual" players would be turned off by any and all environmental challenges that might be implemented in their systems. Being that I'd hardly consider myself a "hardcore" gamer, I think that fear may be a bit misplaced.
in New Vegas at least I think radiation being a largely obsolete mechanic works for the game's aesthetic, it's only barely a post-apocalyptic game, Nations and Empires are back - Nevada just happens to be the equivalent of Afghanistan or something
I remember the wind mechanic in Pirates! (The exclamation was in the title). I loved the game but my god sailing anywhere against the wind took what felt like hours. Admittedly i was a child so there was probably a better way of doing things than constant tacking up/down/left/right.
The thing about Pirates! is that winds were seasonal, just like the real world. During certain times of the year, it is more favorable to sail east or west in the old Spanish Main. A, uh, (ahem) competent captain would plan their course as much on the winds as on the destination(s).
And this was back in the mid 80s. Pretty amazing!
You’ve mentioned this multiple times and I’m curious about the details - What are some specific mechanics you’ve seen that were good, but not necessarily good for that game?
Thank you for mentioning Star Control 2! I loved it for combination of fun shooting interesting stories.
Would love to hear more behind the scenes info about Vampire the masquerade bloodlines, the lore and story for that game was amazing. Also I’ve just found out you were a programmer for the South Park game “the stick of truth” that’s so cool I loved that game!
I actually liked that radiation wasn't readily visible, it made it a spookier.
If anything, I wish the damage from radiation was more exaggerated, and even semi-permanent.
That sensation of a vague, mysterious, and powerful threat created such a visceral fear the first time I played Fallout.
Thanks for shedding light on one of my favourite games of all-time: Star Control II!
Given how much of the game can be played without engaging in ship combat, I totally agree it’s one of the best RPG’s of the DOS era. And the alien dialogue is so engaging and so funny. Hard to find games that do humour and existential dread so well at the same time!
In the original X-Com, if your soldiers move through long grass they will use up energy quicker. They will also pass out if they inhale too much smoke.
Oh yes the "stun" bar fills up the health bar. It's not just smoke but stun grenades also. Easier to stun a wounded alien than a healthy one.
Tim thank you for doing these videos, I can hear your insights to the end of time
For me a big one was from Planescape Torment. Using character death as a deliberate way to advance the story, i thought was brilliant!
Yeah, until you find out how your immortality works and you end up running from the shadows in the Fortress of Regrets shouting "I'M SO SORRY DUDES! I HAD NO IDEA!!" :)
When I was in elementary school I often drew games on paper as well.
I drew a road that had all kinds of enemies and traps and it continued down the paper as a snake and at the end, there was a boss.
It kind of looked like those old Metroid games.
I loved doing that. Me and my 2 friends always did it during the class and the breaks as well.
Good old times for me
8:00 One of the things I liked about New Vegas was the “Armour Repair Kits” that players could make by combining specific junk items. These kits could repair any kind of armour without using up a donor set.
I liked these and their sister repair items because it made those “junk” items actually very useful and encouraged the player to really pick through and analyse the junk you’d find around the world. Instead of ignoring it or selling all of it like in Fallout 3.
I would love to see how you would do a small game design document in a video. It’s been 3 days since I am watching your videos. Glad to hear about several game design topics from a legendary game dev.
6:34 This is eerie :)
Just before seeing this I had played a coop game with a friend (Generation Zero). We came to talk about how good it felt in different games to find weapons of different quality and how this feeling diminished the better the weapons you already had. And I mentioned to him how much I liked the Fallout 3 system because finding the same weapon again helped you maintain the one you were using. And even better, finding several instances of the same gun let you use that gun with more abandon because you knew you could repair it.
These videos are so enjoyable, entertaining, and educational. Thank you.
I could recognize Sunless Sea through the whole Star Control part. That’s also a game where you are supposed to be playing the captain, but you only ever see a ship and control a ship. You have hit points in the form of hull points, but you also have a number of crew. Crew can die from enemy fire as well. You lose if either crew or hill falls to zero. If you redline your engine, you can lose crew to fires. Not the same as SC2, but a variant of it. Also, SS does have exotic weapons that use people as ammo, but in this case it’s a very specific type of person called a “doomed monster hunter” which is a rare item you got to acquire.
Great video, lots of great examples thanks Tim!
MandaloreGaming sent me here, all of these videos are fun as hell.
Tim, can you share your thoughts on fan-made patches for old games like Vampire Bloodlines? Specifically those that fix bugs and those that attempt to restore cut content?
I think he has talked about Cut Content restoration.
We had Joel on Software, and now Cain on Games. Thank you for this great series!
the Survival Difficulty for Fallout 4 makes the Radiation meter even more scary, since using Stimpaks & Radaway lower your immune system against diseases. Encouraging the player to find an alternate means to recovering the lost health. (usually by paying a town doctor)
Games mentioned in this video
Ultima 3
Star Control 2
Diablo
Everquest
Fallout 3
Fallout 4
For me it was stance moves in Fighting Games. My first exposure to it was Soul Calibur. You have a normal set of move but you can go into stance whether by move or as a result at the end of a move. You had a small number of options usually good depending on the situation.
Another one was probably going into another world or dimension ala Legacy of Cain: Soul Reaver.
There was also this JRPG where they used the save points through the game as a plot device which I thought was cool. Not sure if that counts as Game Design.
Another one was SWTOR where if someone dropped rare loot or better loot you'd see a beam of light on the drop. First time I seen that and now everyone copies it. Also first game where I had AoE looting.
Hi Tim, thanks again for the wonderful video!
I had a question about some general game design methodology.
In conversations between players who don't have the best idea of how game development works, you commonly see the words "asset reuse" or "reskins" thrown around almost like a curse. But it seems like a lot of times when these terms are thrown around, it is by people who either don't really understand what "reskin" really means, or don't understand not everything needs a bespoke asset made from the ground up to work. I play Total War, and I just noticed that conversations in that playerbase in particular get really muddied by these sort of critique buzzwords. So would really love to hear your general thoughts on asset reuse, and what goes into the decision making for what needs new assets and what can reuse or retool existing ones.
I've not seen such terms "thrown around" unless qualified as exhorbitant. Not saying they haven't been, but I've never seen it myself.
From Software fans get really testy when a critique points out that every region in Elden Ring contains the exact same assets: ruins w/single cellar w/single chest w/single item, rises, churches, etc. with little to no variation to be found among them whereas the legacy dungeons are quite intricate and beautifully designed. Those assets are pretty obviously there for one reason and one reason only: to drop an item, e.g. a weapon, into the game for players to pick up. It's more than just a little strange that such a "vast, open world" doesn't have any architectural variety to speak of as worlds generally do.
It was From's first foray into open world game design and it glaringly shows there. The open world itself exists for no other than the aforementioned purpose. The biomes were very artistic and distinct, but certainly not the structural assets resued in them over and over and over again. In fairness, From is not a super-large studio and, while Elden Ring had more than a descent budget, it's fairly obvious where it was all spent: the unforgettable legacy dungeons and the plethora of weapons and shields and armor sets and assorted other items to be found in it.
“More! More! is the cry of the mistaken soul." ~ Nietzsche And "bigger is better" and "more is good" is probably not the prevailing industry design philosophy From really wants to adopt at this point unless, perhaps, it's aiming to lose its hard-won identity.
Endless gratitude for developing the best game I've ever played in my life! Fallout 1 & 2 - Forever!
Metal Gear Solid 2 is the earliest game that left several impacts on me, many firsts. I'm playing video games since the early 90s and there are other examples but this was a turning point. It was the first game that managed to get me emotional, I remember noticing it right away that this is new and important that games "can do that now". Then it predicted a lot of things of the future surprisingly right, one reason why people now turning back to it, it just came out too early. It did the Bioshock twist a lot better than Bioshock and long before that was even created. Here it does make more sense, since you're taking commands from a game / a computer as well as the character and therefore it did include the player more. Then a lot of gimmicks like the cooling spray and especially the sword mechanics at the end, or rather how the controller could be used (at this early stage) left a lasting impact on me.
And of course ICO, all of it as a whole, it's perfect.
Now I want to play Star Control 2! So many games, so little time!
It's nice you have some positive things to say about F3 and F4.
Pirates also had crew as hit points.
Never thought it of that way before, but you're right!
Star Wars Galaxies had a very similar system to the FO4 radiation system, that used the same UI element. Wounds for the the Health bar, exhaustion for the action bar and fatigue for the mind bar. Wounds were from taking damage, exhaustion from using abilities that drain energy and fatigue from doing mental activities like crafting, researching etc. Each type of wound could be healed by another players with specific skills....doctors healed wounds, entertainers healed fatigue... Pretty cool system that made different types of players need to interact and rely on each other.
Tim is the platonic ideal of an RPG designer and it's a pleasure to have these insights from him.
I like BG 1 over 2 as well!
As do I. I prefer lower-level RPGs in general. I feel more vulnerable.
Wow youre becoming such a good RUclipsr i cant stop watching these!!?
in Fallout 4 I also liked the way junk had a use as it contained crafting resources. So with limited inventory space you would loot only junk that had components you needed at that time, instead of collecting everything like a vacuum cleaner.
I've tried to convince younger gamers to give Star Control 2 (or, rather, the open source Ur-Quan Masters port) a shot, mostly to no avail. It absolutely holds up, in a way most games of its era do not.
And yeah, it used crew as hit points for every ship. And because the star base where you recruited crew only had so many people, the cost of crew would start rising astronomically if you took too many losses. It would also shoot through the roof if you mistreated your existing crew, such as by selling them into slavery, as word would get around and no one would want to serve with you.
Tim Cain is freaking based af. Amazing.
We need more of this elite quality content on youtube. In all spheres and topics. This is top level s***
That reminds me of mgs3 health system. Everytime you got hurt there would be a chance that you would injured decreasing your max HP. The only way to heal it was through first aid. And you would have different injury typs and it would need different types of first aid.
Hahaha, on the topic of FO4 radiation, just yesterday I watched a 6 yo video about the evolution of Fallout, and as a negative of the FO4 he mentioned its implementation of the radiation, saying how it's too gamey and unrealistic, unlike FO1. I wonder how he'd feel to hear you actually praise it lol.
I personally love it, and it was the most threatened I felt by radiation in any Fallout game.
I agree. Radiation is a constant threat in Fallout 4 that needs to be tackled. Especially in 3 and NV it is very rare to have problems with radiation, outside of a few select locations, whereas in Fallout 4 having Rad-Away and Rad-X with you always is a very good idea. I remember the video you're talking about and attacking the RAD system out of all systems seems dumb
Ultima III was my favorite of that series. It started to get weighted down with too many characters with IV, and V came out pretty much simultaneously with Bard’s Tale III and Wasteland (yeah, thank you Electronic Arts for delaying Wasteland’s release to maximize your quarterly profit statement and not letting it get a clear shot by itself). Entirely forgot about the moon gates - but my brother swiftly figured that out at the time, so he made that part easier for me.
I would love a video talking about the good and bad of everquest, and what you would do differently if you were to make an MMO today!
The Fallout Boardgame has a similar mechanic for radiation. You have one health track that starts at full, while radiation starts at zero. When you take radiation, you starting adding it from the left of your track, when you take health damage, you reduce it from the max on the right of your track. Your character dies not when your health reaches zero, but when your health and radiation meet.
Have you played Outer Wilds, Tim? I obviously don't mean The Outer Worlds!
Many folk think it's one of the best games ever made, due in part to its uniqueness. I was curious whether you felt the same way about it?
For those of us who want to try out Star Control 2, what's the best way?
(I know the answer is usually GOG, but gotta figure it's always better to double-check)
Ur quan masters
It actually isn't GoG. The source code for Star Control 2 was set free years and years ago by the developers, and so a fan team made an updated port for modern systems in the early 2000s.
To escape copyright, it's called The Ur-Quan Masters, and it's free to download and has been since 2002. You'll find it at the first link when you do a Google search for The Ur-Quan Masters.
I like that mechanic in Fallout 4. In Mini Ninjas, there is a similar mechanic of two different stats sharing the same bar, where your character uses the magic (chi energy) bar as a stamina bar for sprinting, and the more magic you use the less you are able to sprint
SC2 is awesome for the stories and the faction, not to say the soundtrack, i still sometimes listen to it.
For me in fallout 4,The walking vehicle Power amor was the GOAT also see them opening like a Delorean was the cherry on top
I don't remember the name of the game but there was a period when I was very much into small RPG maker games and one game blew my mind because it pushed the limits of the engine in ways completely unimaginable to the point when I was not sure it was RPG maker anymore.
Every single level design in Dishonored 2 is mind blowing
Haha, packing for your move to Seattle must have been a nightmare. I love the fact you still have a book of graphs of your generated dungeon that you did as what, a high schooler. Does your husband ask periodically: "Do you really need that?" :D The clutter, I love it!
I thought Bloodlines was very well designed. The fact that it's a cult classic that is now getting a sequel is testament to that I think. I just wish Troika itself got the sales commiserate to the impact the game has had to the genre and industry that it frankly really deserved. One of the good designs I thought was the clear difference in what sort of persuasion mechanic you were using. The big hulky smash green for Intimidation, the pinkish seduction, etc, etc. It was easy to notice and intuitive imo; you probably didn't even need the tutorial section that spelt it out (other than maybe the blue of Persuasion). Even the powers and effects of the game I thought hit that bar for cool and ease; especially max Celerity when you can see the bullets rip through the air. Nowadays I suspect all that would be Pre-caching shaders for the effects.
8:45 I saw kinda similar use of capping player's max HP in a relatively obscure, but well made action RPG "Kult: Heretic Kingdoms".
They used it to workaround the Diablo 2's health potion inventory hassle by giving the player just one infinite medkit that would reduce max health after each use and the health bar can only be fully restored by sleeping in a home or hotel (so it prevents the healing spam and the upgraded medkits would eat away at player character's health bar more slowly)
In the same game they've also made some good use of random loot & successfully incentivized the player to equip almost every single piece of equipment they found, because every unique class of weapon and armor, equipped & used under specific conditions - usually killing this many enemies in a certain way - would unlock a perk that the player can later use, whether or not they continue equipping that weapon or a piece of armor.
Really cool stuff that no one - not even the same developer that came up with these mechanics - have used in their projects since.
Feel free to not answer if it's too personal, but why did you and your husband move to the PNW? Are you guys liking it up there? I'm from San Diego, and a lot of my family moved up there in the mid-2000s, and they love it up there. Is there anything you miss about SoCal, or are you sorta over it? Thanks!
I think you should try Kenshi, if you havent already. Fascinating game if nothing else.
A Fallout 4 mechanic I can't believe nobody thought of was Quick Loot lol
Normally that'd be the type of QoL thing a modder would come up with, but instead after fo4's release, identical quickloot mods started popping up for all of Beth's previous games haha
Oh man, nobody knows what MUDs are any more, let alone understand that MMORPGs are just MUDs with graphics engines. I thought I was crazy. Thanks tim.
Moon gate thing reminds me of SMT :)
Won't lie, to see Tim praise Bethesda's fallouts not only once but twice was a surprise. I wonder. If you'd have a chance, would you work with them on a future fallout?
It's not hard to find specific elements to enjoy or appreciate in any studio's games and it would be nice if more non-industry reviewers and critics did so. It's a game in its entirely but perhaps, especially, its direction and marketing that can be difficult or impossible to appreciate at times.
Some players themselves are all about a game's mechanical systems just as a game's developers can be. There are RUclipsrs who pretty obviously concentrate solely on a game's mechanics, never minding anything else (e.g. story and characterization) in their reviews and critiques. It's not surprising there's a such a huge emphasis on mechanics over and above (and, often, at the expense of) anything else, all things considered.
What did you think when you first put on a VR headset?
I am also curious to know if you have any thoughts on why VR isn't taking off as quickly as perhaps it should.
Money. People don't have enough to spend on VR, so it stays forever niche. Solve late-stage capitalism and you solve the VR growth problem.
Tim! I’m curious what we can do to get longer form videos out of you? I enjoy your content and work 12 hour shifts and would love longer from videos!
I found downloading GDC lectures as background listening on 9 hour shifts
More, please!
I'd love to know your opinion about everquest ever raising stats over 20 years and also the effects of pok books over druid/Wiz ports. At least Ultima online had those cool runic book port things that were player made so you needed each other
Really like your appreciation for newer Fallout games. A lot of hardcore fans of the original took what Bethesda did for granted, or dismiss it altogether(
Sometimes the simplest questions are the best
Mr Cain, thank you so much for making these vids and your consistency. It’s always interesting to learn about games development from an insider.
Have you thought about doing live stream Q&A with Josh Sawyer with Fallout as general topic? I’m sure fans would love an opportunity to communicate with you directly.
When I first played FO4 I hated that radiation system. It seemed so annoying to lose max HP all the time instead of having thresholds of mutations. illness, etc. After hundreds of hours, though, it just feels natural and logical. I still wouldn't mind some of the secondary effects making a comeback though.
I also liked the repair system in FO3 but I think it should have been skill independent. Playing without a decent repair skill can be brutal.
Fun video!
What are some games from your generation that are iconic, maybe that inspired you to be a game dev.
And why?
I'm a elder millennial so I'd say things like: Unreal, Quake, Red Alert 2, Warcraft 2, KKND.
If you could have a bottomless budget and managers that dealt with all the things you didn't want to deal with in business and office politics, what would be a short list of things you'd want to do?
Platform, controller, setting, mechanics, features, art style & type, etc
Yes, Star Control II is a true masterpiece.
I wonder if you played some brilliant tactical strategies like Lord Monarch or Langrisser 1-2.
I also like Baldur's Gate 1 (even) more than 2, but I can't explain exactly why
ULTIMA 3 for NES was so awesome. Absolutely amazing rpg.
I have a niche question, why do you think rpgs & jrpgs following panzer dragoon saga never adopted or evolved on its combat system? As someone who generally finds turned based combat less satisfying I was really impressed with how much fun combat was in that game & I can't help but wonder why it's the only game with its combat system
I think it FO4 works like the penalties in FONV ´cause in FONV it works in the way as you get poisoned, your SPECIAL atributes are reduced and you get more vulnerable, etc, the genius idea of FO original 1 is: you´re in a wasteland and don´t get access to the technologies that help you until you get to ceirtain pont of the map or missions. It´s still my Favorite Fo1 it should be remake with some features that you mentioned in one of your videos, first person or third person or switch between. God bless you man!!
I know this is an older video, but I felt that BG1 thing, so here's my opinion: BG1 is more enjoyable than 2 because BG1 makes you feel like an adventurer on an adventure. The openness and vastness of the world make you really feel a part of it, whereas BG2 railroads you into going where they want you to go.
I would love to know what your favorite post 2d fallout stories and sub stories in the dlc that you thought were a good fit for the world you and your team made popular and maybe some that you thought weren't as clean of a fit if you won't get in trouble for it lol
the radiation thing in fallout 4 is something that i saw a loooot in japanese rpgs. really cool to see it in a western one.
I really enjoy Morrowind's rootedness in place.
Most of the family names have ancestral tombs somewhere. I am desecrating the actual tomb of the ancestors of some trader, as I pilfer through their burial goods.
And the societal structure is much less of a 'planet of hats' than in subsidiary Elder Scrolls titles, as the Hlaalu, Redoran, Telvanni, Imperial and Indoril architectural styles differ from each other.
And even better, the native 'Great Houses' featured in-game do not have ideologies that appeal to the player's natural predilections - The Hlaalu are mercantilist, Imperial bootlickers... The Redoran are an anachronistic warrior culture who are dedicated to the Tribunal Temple - The Telvanni are 'might makes right' egoism taken to its logical extremes.
Nothing I heard was particularly overwhelming. To pick up Fallout 4 with radiation reducing max health, that's the least interesting thing to do with radiation. The key is to make radiation mysterious and unpredictable (or at least hard to predict). Having negative effects come and go, getting more severe over time, having random negative effects is what would make it more interesting (which may be the case with FO1/2). So when you encounter a place with radiation, its effects wouldn't be immediately visible - because that would take out the fear of the player to get it.
It goes counter to making things understandable to the player, but keeping it somewhat mysterious is still better. Revealing how it works can be done later in the game somehow, but on the other hand, maybe radiation could be done even more extreme as the game progresses. It's a game, why not simply have different types of radiation?
Also, what I think is a big problem in FO4 is that it is way too easy to heal yourself or remove radiation. I really dislike the idea of a big city "safe space" in which there is already everything - very strong weapons and armor, and all that is needed is your money to buy things.
I'm a bit surprised you seem to have discovered procedural generation with Diablo.
Rogue, and then NetHack and then all roguelikes (angband etc.) were already out at the time Diablo was created. In fact, it was supposed to be a roguelike at the very beginning.
Did you ever play roguelikes? By which I mean the old-style ones (NetHack, angband, ADOM...).Not only these games have procedural generation, but the sytems are quite rich (e.g. so many ways you can die creatively with a cockatrice, live or dead).
I played plenty of Rogue back in my Unix days at UCI. I guess seeing Diablo do procedural generation married seamlessly with handmade content in the same level and with nice graphics just made a big impact on me.
Fallout 4 having radiation affect max HP might be a sharp system mechanic and pleasant from a UI standpoint, but I'd argue it's much less interesting than having more unpredictable effects. There is a great game called Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup where there are mutagenic effects, which are a radiation of sorts. You can get all sorts of random mutations and it's rather complicated, but really cool. Radiation has a reputation in comics, movies, etc. for random mutations, really it's the most interesting thing about radiation. Meanwhile damaging max health isn't really all that interesting, and is interchangeable with a lot of other environmental hazards (poison, frostbite from cold, etc.)
What did you think of F03 when it came out? How do you think it has aged?
Hey Tim great video as always!
I was wondering if you could do a video about weapon durability or equipment durability as a game mechanic. Is it an outdated mechanic or is it still valid?
PS: Who came up with the weapon destroying golems in Arcanum? The Black Mountain Clan mines golem gauntlet still gives me nightmares
Yeah I transitioned from Gemstone III MUD to Everquest when that first came out.
It really did feel like a dream come true to visualize the text like that.
But a lot that 2D textual MUD magic got lost in the translation (a lot less RPing).
Just read my other post. Nostalgias is nice but I want to get beyond hedonistic similitude between our fond past memories and create new ones.
We're just trading old tropes here.
Hey Tim do you think you could go over your thoughts in a detailed manner about how you feel about Bethesda's Fallout games, both ones you have played and ones you haven't played?
He said he like Fallout 3 and Fallout 4, did not play 76 because it's online.
m.ruclips.net/video/lQwQAMXsTDU/видео.html
Have you played any games wearing color blind glasses? I have only seen the reaction videos of people seeing nature scenery and being amazed but a game as colorful as Outer Worlds should be seen it all its glory.
Yeah F3 is an awesome game. Rad suits are in it. F4 i love, the way they handled rads was good (the rad damage is red like you said).
It's a very bad game, comparing to Fallout 1-2.
@@destroyerrunemo fallout 3 can simultaneously be a good game and inferior to another game in certain aspects.
@@destroyerrunemo nah it varies which game i rank as best ever but most days it is something like this:
Fallout 4
Fallout 2
Fallout New Vegas
Fallout 3
Fallout 1
Arcanum
Total war warhammer 2
The top t switch places. F4 has nr 1 spot most days though probably, possibly New Vegas...or F2...maybe f3.....yeah tough cookie. Today it is the above list
The spots on my list changes by the days (but it is always these 7 games that are S tier, A tier i could probably have 100 games to list). Arcanum is a very unique game and one that ive been playing the last couple of weeks so perhaps it should hold the nr 1 spot for now. Before that i played f3 a lot. Before that fallout 2. And before that fallout 1.
i think i found the easter egg in this video - there's two games on his shelf called Risk and Life. Take risks in life!
I haven't played Fallout 4 (beyond the character customization), but I do feel like the system where accumulating a status effect gradually decreases your health pool sounds very familiar.
Adjacent to the subject of procedural generation, though, I'm curious about if you're familiar with and have any thoughts on randomizers for games? Can't recall if they've come up in any earlier videos. I'm particularly fond for the fanmade The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past randomizer, but they also exist for a plethora of RPGs.
Curse in Dark Souls had a similar mechanic/visualisation
So, dunno if it's said before or whatnot, but interestingly Fallout 76 made the Rad/health trade off a bit more fun. There are builds that revolve around having low health for higher damage. So how does the community maintain that? Insanely high radiation levels all the time.
Considering the way the Fallout fan communities typically discuss the games it refreshing to hear the OG Fallout 1 designer praise the Bethesda games
wonderful video
I hear "Hi everyone, it's me, Tim" and I know it's gonna be a good day^^
Very surprised to hear that you enjoyed Fallout 4's take on radiation. I really love the utility of it as well, but I think a lot of people miss how "menacing" it was to not see it depicted anywhere and rather have it be a "silent" killer you needed to pay attention to. I think both are really good, and it fits Fallout 4 because of the nature and pacing of the game.
I was disappointed by a number of things in Fallout 4's design, especially the dialog. I thought the handling of radiation was clearly an improvement from all earlier games.