Editorial 2011: The Year in Review

[DarkUnderlord]

Tags: Avadon: The Black Fortress; Deus Ex: Human Revolution; Dragon Age 2; Dungeon Siege III; Dungeons of Dredmor; Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim; Fallout: New Vegas; Frayed Knights; Minecraft; The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings; The Year in Review; Two Worlds II

Once more we look back at the year gone past (... or should that be passed? I'm so confused) and remiss:

If you've ever played Baldur's Gate, Mass Effect or in fact, any BioWare game, you'd realise their intent is to annoy you with silly romances and other annoying tribbles from the NPC's that join your party. Well, imagine taking that concept, dialling it up to 11 and reversing the polarity and you'd have Frayed Knights. After reaching Beta mid-year, it was eventually released 3 months later. Sporting turn-based combat "just like mother used to make", the premise of the game was built more around your interactions with your party than the actual game itself. It was an indie RPG designed in that old-school style (the monsters sat there and stared at you in fake [although this time it's real] 3D-o-vision while you whacked them, as opposed to flipping about and running around and such).

It also took a light-hearted approach to the genre - the title itself for instance, "The Skull of S'makh-Daon" is pronounced "The Skull of Smackdown". Now I personally didn't enjoy the demo (you can take your old-school and you can shove it and any game that makes NPC interaction a core component without having "drown", "murder" and "rape" "kill" NPC options is unforgivable) but the general Codex consensus is "not too bad". If you're into that sort of thing that is, or are looking for something different. It also had an interesting "Drama Stars" system, designed to prevent save-scumming (stars earned were lost if you didn't reload exactly where you left off before). Although I'm not sure if it worked.​

Read the whole thing here: 2011: The Year in Review

 

[SerratedBiz]

So much for being prestigious. It looks like we'll swallow any AAA rated shit just like everyone else.

ETA: Shit, I just finished the ending.

Also, Black Cat has been back for a while.

 

[Brother None]

I lul'd at your realization that the Codex is a cesspool of crazies, good stuff. But uh, then concluding that RPG fans as a whole are crazies is kind of a stretch. Would anyone really say the Codex community is representative of RPG fandom? Even if we narrow it down to the hardcore contingent? The Codex is full of hateful and crazy people because it has an open-door policy for hateful/crazy people and we're on the internet, the perfect area for hateful/crazy people to converge, kind-meets-kind sort of thing. It's more an internet thing than an RPG thing, yeh?

Sucks for the people that got hurt, though. Didna realize much such things were going on. Dark seething underbelly. Seethe.

Also Old World Blues was the best RPG of 2011 >_> <_< The Witcher 2 was a better game, tho.

Anyway yeh. Good stuff.

PS: cancelled indie titles make me sad

 

[Sceptic]

But uh, then concluding that RPG fans as a whole are crazies is kind of a stretch.

Bioware Social. ESF.

Hell CRPG Addict. The guy sat down one day and decided to play through EVERY SINGLE CRPG EVER RELEASED ON THE PC PLATFORM. I mean, I'm glad he did, I do enjoy some of his posts, but try and tell me he's not crazy.

Now I'm off to read the article.

EDIT: Finished it. God that rant at the end
On a more serious note (and now that I can put Brother None's comments in context) I think BN's right and it's more to do with the low-moderation than with RPGs.

Also, I call bullshit on your "I don't know any of you" line. Just count the number of times you've gotten involved in a relationship thread in the past year. Admit it, you're getting softer with age.

 

[kazgar]

mmmmm, bakers delight.

 

[Outlander]

 

[Fezzik]

Jesus Christ, that breaks my heart. Poor Black Cat, I had no idea she'd been through something like that.

 

[TalesfromtheCrypt]

Nice write up, interesting rant at the end.
I agree there are a lot of loonies at the Codex and there is a lot of whacky shit going in here. At the same time however, I always get the impression that the absolute majority of users are perfectly normal joe-averages. In fact, I always felt that we are actually more normal than your typical "hardcore gamer". Just look what is going on at BSF and tell me we are the crazies.

 

[laclongquan]

Gahahahahaaha

I remember the thread but I dont follow it to the gangrape event. Whatever!

 

[Twinkle]

Minor typo: "DA2 has been delayed"

Overall, it's a quality rant like mother used to make. Despite the efforts of the newly inducted staff members to make gullible retards walk a road to disappointment it confirms that this dungpile of a site still sits firmly in the Negative Material Plane where it belongs and steadily drains sanity from all regular (shit)posters.

Also, Sukeban Cho, FFS.

 

[Rivmusique]

Only read the end commentary on Codex posters and looked at the Codex top 5 of 2011 (I don't remember seeing this before for some reason). With Skyrim being third and the shit about VA and BC argument, I can see how you reached your conclusion. I'm sure there are sanies here though.

Entertaining read though, . Will be back for more.

 

[Konjad]

You quoted Vault Dweller's Dragon Age 2 review, but not mine Why, DU, why would you do such a thing? I tried to be nice and VD just poops all over the place. I tried to be a good person. Why am I ignored or despised for that? Why Codex cannot accept anything even mildly positive?

 

[RK47]

Nice read.

 

[Darth Roxor]

ABOOT BLODDY TOIME

 

[Country_Gravy]

The last part of the review sort of puts the whole "tasteful rape" thing going around here in perspective. Putting someone in a coma is totally not tasteful. Never even looked that that thread, so thanks for posting the links so that I could read it and ruin my day. That is probably the most awful thing I have seen on the codex, and this is coming from someone who was around when people were getting tubgirled and goatsed left and right.
2011 sucked huge balls for RPGs and this article just reaffirms that. I did enjoy FO:NV and I am not ashamed to say it and the DLC released last year was for the most part good. The engine still sucks, though.
I don't even mind that the review came when we were over half way through 2012. I do think that there are some really fucked up people at the codex and it makes me wonder who is really fucked up and who is just fucking around. I prefer to think that most of the messed up racism and other obviously terrible stuff is just people making jokes and saying stupid shit because they know that they probably won't get banned. At least that is what I tell myself so that I can keep checking out this site everyday without feeling too dirty.

Overall, a decent YIR article and maybe next year the review will be about how AoD is coming out in 2014 so we would have less than 2 years to wait at that point. Next year will also have the whole kickstarter insanity that has been going on which at least offers hope that the decline is being reversed little by little. Really looking forward to the year in review 2016...I think that is when things are going to really turn around.

 

[sgc_meltdown]

I think all the normal people are in the city building/management community, possibly the spaceflight exploration sims as well

take Angthoron for example

the wholesome guy next door of general gaming

 

[Ulminati]

I lul'd at your realization that the Codex is a cesspool of crazies, good stuff. But uh, then concluding that RPG fans as a whole are crazies is kind of a stretch. Would anyone really say the Codex community is representative of RPG fandom? Even if we narrow it down to the hardcore contingent?

A thousand talimancers on the Bioboards prove otherwise.
And don't even get me started on the Oblivion Bondage Mods or the Garrus porn.

Most pen&paper boards have a small core segment that's even worse. Especially if they're the freakish deviants who also enjoy anything so long as it's japanese.

Roleplayers are all batshit insane.

 

[DarkUnderlord]

I take back anything bad I ever said about you on my blog. Excellent article.

You have a blog? And you write about me on it?

Also, Black Cat has been back for a while.

Yeah well, I don't pay attention to these things.

Minor typo: "DA2 has been delayed"

You quoted Vault Dweller's Dragon Age 2 review, but not mine Why, DU, why would you do such a thing? I tried to be nice and VD just poops all over the place. I tried to be a good person. Why am I ignored or despised for that? Why Codex cannot accept anything even mildly positive?

I had to pick one and VD trumps all.

concluding that RPG fans as a whole are crazies is kind of a stretch. [...] we're on the internet, the perfect area for hateful/crazy people to converge, kind-meets-kind sort of thing. It's more an internet thing than an RPG thing, yeh?

Oh of course, absolutely. Sure it is. But let's talk about that later, right now it's time for your pills.

 

[SCO]

'stuido'
'accessable'
'disgaree'
'menatlly'

 

[Wyrmlord]

But uh, then concluding that RPG fans as a whole are crazies is kind of a stretch.

Bioware Social. ESF.

Hell CRPG Addict. The guy sat down one day and decided to play through EVERY SINGLE CRPG EVER RELEASED ON THE PC PLATFORM. I mean, I'm glad he did, I do enjoy some of his posts, but try and tell me he's not crazy.

Now I'm off to read the article.

EDIT: Finished it. God that rant at the end
On a more serious note (and now that I can put Brother None's comments in context) I think BN's right and it's more to do with the low-moderation than with RPGs.

Also, I call bullshit on your "I don't know any of you" line. Just count the number of times you've gotten involved in a relationship thread in the past year. Admit it, you're getting softer with age.

On the topic of crazy posters...

there are quite many people on the Codex who have admitted to fainting into a coma for months because they were undereating and deliberately starving themselves. And these people will proudly tell you think that is still better than being remotely fat.

Not to name them, but some of these are metrosexual (and sometimes actually gay) posters who have such body image problems that they think it is a good idea to stay on a 2 year old boy's diet and strive toward being 35-40 kilograms at the height of 6 feet. I mean, on top of all the modders/magicians/trannies/aspergers we have here, we also have male anorexics.

I mention this, because these aforementioned anorexics are among the relatively sane, easygoing, and balanced posters here. So even if you disregard the craziest, you will still find more than a fair share of crazy among the rest. Apart from anorexics, you have some people in the bodybuilding threads who may also have some body dysmorphic disorder and obsession with appearance.

 

[SCO]

The 'dicksmoker incident' is still censored

 

[Excommunicator]

Appropriate that the sum up of the last year in RPGs starts with a very short list about RPGs and how crap they are and ends in a long GD style rant about rape and mental disorders

 

[Brotherman Bill]

Still fairly sure the BC drama was Chefe, the timing and shit was just too melodramatic.

 

[Grunker]

Heh. Gooooood stuff.

Black Cat is back though (surprise, surprise - what's that, six times in and out?). And no mention of Dickgate is surprising. Also: Too much praise of DX:HR (which was shit, though too few noticed it). Otherwise hilarious and good write-up.

 

[Spectacle]

Nice rant :D
The number of crazies is still quite low compared to the 10000+ member count on this site, I think. It's just that they're more visible here since they would have been banned anywhere else.

 

[asper]

Speaking of Minecraft, that saw its official release after many years in development. And it too, has sold MILLIONS. About five millions to be precise (current count is 6.5). At $20 a pop, that makes Notch (the game's creator), a very wealthy man. A game he made, pretty much entirely by himself, s

Wasn't Minecraft a complete ripoff from Infiniminer?