Let me preface this post by saying that I don't actually hate Arcanum. To me it is the quintessential 6/10, a game that despite being relatively lame is still worth playing, if only to get inspired by its shortcomings to do better. The prose is good and the game puts forward a lot of interesting ideas. Out of all RPGs I like though I like Arcanum the least by far. So allow me tear into this codex darling and explain to you why it bites...
Click to expand...
Some points are valid but they are insignificant for Arcanum provided more Role playing mechanics/systems in the CRPG genre while no or very few games did before it and even after it. The main/significant/core aspects that make the genre stand out from others:the settings/world and its variety of character and their dynamics. The 1st importance that it is capable of providing them as can or cannot do, 0 and 1. Then one can judge/measure/evaluate how well these aspects are done if there is a game comparable to it. Many other arguments are faulty.
///////////////////////////////////////////////
>"You are a spectator, an errand boy without any substantial motivation."
Is fighting for their own "survival"/life/being or/and to be freed from the constant threat of killers, not a substantial motivation for the player's character? (this is despite the game mechanics and player's control making such threat moot/insignificant/weak)
substantial definition:
Spoiler (Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)
Show Spoiler
Hide Spoiler
adjective
Considerable in importance, value, degree, amount, or extent.
Solidly built; strong.
Ample; sustaining.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
>Virgil is the main fucking character, not you.
If Virgil is the main character then why the game does not end if he is killed or he can be left aside.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
>"So if you insult someone they are justified in killing you? This isn't Albania. If I call that motherfucking constable a coward because he is then he really should not attempt to extrajudicially execute me, unless he's also insane. Same goes for Magnus... who will readily break your neck if you as much as insult his beard. This isn't even understandable behaviour by videogame standards. Once again, Arcanum fails miserably at immersion."
Why one should find it a surprise? There are many events/stories/instances of these happenings in our ancient history less alone in a fictional world portraying a primitive/lesser/older culture compared to ours.
Take animals, cats for example who on a mere passing on territory can result in long constants hissing if not an outright fight with claws and fangs. Consider an insult as transgression/threat/invasion on ones territory and add the tools, the deadly weapons human can have will result in events where one dies to insulting others honor/reputation.
examples:
In Greek mythology there is a story where a mother of many laughed/insulted/mocked a mother who had only birthed one. That very one man in response hunted down and killed all her(10 if memory serves) children.
During the exodus an Egyptian who joined the Hebrew people who due to a fight insulted Yahuha/YHWH/יהוה . For that he was put to death, executed."So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven—except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven" Matthew/מתתיה/matityah 12:31
note:Ancient Greek/Helenic people emphasize the importance of honor(kleos)/reputation, likewise others, such as the vikings and samurai cultures.
One can conclude it was often a standard for these with strength/power/position.
When one insults, one is making an attack,a harm upon's one's reputation. "Character assassination" such as what been done to Trump(such as the orange skin), are insults or serves the objective insults has harming/attacking/injuring reputation/honor which sways other opinion.
It became rarer, happen less often and in hidden/indirect/under-sruface level for we live in time and places where the teaching of Yahusha/יהושע that go against advice's such "guard your reputation with your life" and which emphasizes kindness, mercy, forgiveness(So that Yahuha/YHWH/יהוה will be likewise towards these who are) became widespread.
This an instance which Arcanum does not fail at immersion unless one is ignorant of how mankind behaved in ancient times and at times still do, such as in bar-fights.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
Another point at which Arcanum succeed at immersion, based on your playthrough , is showing one what its like to be an hated/despised do to their race. In that world, Orcs are known and regard to be violent and so are their offspring's , naturally if a fight break out and a half-orc is involved, the surrounding people would by default/automatically/prejudice assume the half-orc is at fault. By Blackshirt description such event as happened and been supported by the games mechanic/rule/system. Who said, or assumed it would be a pleasant experience? but what games are capable of providing such varied race based experience accurately and believably portrayed(based on the context of its world) compared to games before it and after it.
/////////////////////////////////////////////
>"Second of all, it commits another cardinal sin: there is no good villain..."
Do games such as Doom ,Duke3d, Talos Princple and Age of Empires and other renowned games, had a good villain? Were they worse as games because of it?
>"The player must be given a personal reason to defeat the villain and he must learn to hate him."
Is an attack, a harm on the character's life should not be a reason for the character to defeat and hate?
What of evil characters?If their is one villain, how would such advice applies to them if the character admire/adore/like the villain's deeds?
There is also the issue of personal, as in person (face to face). How would a villain trapped in another world for being powerful, be able to do that while at the same time plotting/making his escape?
*in Arcanum there is an instance/cut-scene where the villain appears and threatens the player character through an illusion/projection.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
>"Why are ships not affected? Don't they rely on the physical law of buoyancy? How come they don't sink as soon as a wizard steps foot on one?"
"wizards are not allowed to come to close to a steam engine, because their magic chernobyl rays
interfere with it and stop it from functioning ."(stop functioning does not equal sinking)
One can fill the gaps, patching them with logic. Incase of Shrouded Hills' generator machine, the machine is portrayed as very large so size is a factor. A wizard can be allowed on the train but not on the 1st traincar/cart but on the last which visualy (if memory not fualty) is out of 2 carts total. It also takes for wizard to be able to cast higher level spells before some shopkeepers would require them to leave. So size, distance ,frequencies, time and strength can provide some explanation.
Such question can applied to many works/games to tear the holes in it wider such as :
"why do slash & bruise wounds do not appear on exposed skin of a bikini chain-mail warrior chick?"
"why when i shoot through an eyeball of a human character, he doesn't die or affected by it?"
"why are friendly npc are not harmed by my bullets while hostiles npc do and im supposed to escort them? (who here needs the protection?)
"why harm and injury represented by hit points while maintaining top physical health unless they drop to 0?"
Many such question can be answered by: This is the game world, this is its rules, this is what its creators/developer/makers decided or/and were capable of at the time and given tools.
//////////////////////////////////////////
>"Arcanum is objectively a harbinger of decline because it introduced crafting, which is not implemented well."
Introduction in this context implies that Arcanum(2001) was the 1st to involve crafting mechanics. Ultimate online (1997) seems to predate it. It would be not far fetched if their are even older CRPG games with crafting mechanics.
From a mechanical perceptive: if works, it was implanted well.
How many games are there that do portray crafting as realistic/believable way/make sense and similar to how we do or did in our world?
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
>The soundtrack is also so fucking terrible, like holy shit. Are Americans not aware that there were other instruments beside stringed instruments in the 19th century? And why does it sound so melancholic? Am I dying of tuberculosis or what? Companions are garbage as well and badly voiced for the most part.a grasping of straws to demean the works of others.(this can summarize the entire opening post)
while im not expert on voice acting, it is Arcanum's high point for they help highlight the characters, provide a subtle info and when compared to many of these caragorized as JRPG are done skillfully. They depict fitting tune and emotion.
//////////////////////////////////////////
If Arcanum is compared to bodily execration which is produced automatically and even multiply times a day, then why do we not have thousands or more games like Arcanum?!
How many games are their that are comparable to it? That has or providing the things that happen & can be done on both scales:
From minor/micro/small such as having character go through windows(how many games have that depict that systematically?) or if one shrink its character and make him naked and talk to NPC's, they would respond differently(how many games go to such length to portray such detail and far-sight on player's action).
To major/macro/significant ones from racial and physical looks affecting reactions, the relation which is
role-playing to having a the game settings/world portrayed mechanically/
systematicly (contrast to scripts which are 1 time/specific occurrence) in its magic & technology conflicting with each other.(major/significante based on its contribution to the genre and not based whether its needed/essential to complete to game)
It is why "Arcanum of Steamwork and Magica" is among the top CRPG's and is still recommended and mentioned and can be discussed in depth and detail instead of many other games in its genre.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
To Blackshirt and other who think alike, if Arcanum is indeed a bad work, than I challenge you to produce a game providing what Arcanum provides both visually and mechanically while at the same time, side by side developing a game akin to Vampire the Masquerade bloodlines within their time constraints. Both to be of the similar quality or superior to it. If what Arcanum has been compared to is true, than it should be an easy task made easier with the tools available today.
Click to expand...
