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Diablo 2: Resurrected remaster

Lacrymas

Arcane
Joined
Sep 23, 2015
Messages
17,948
Pathfinder: Wrath
Titan Quest I never played, but it always looked second rate to me.

Diablo III is dumbed down, geared towards online play and looks like WoW.

Lost Ark does some things right, but is a furry MMO.

Torchlight games are OK mechanically, but I can't stand the cartoony art direction.

Diablo IV got the art direction right, but is even more dumbed down than Diablo III.


In the end, Diablo II is still the benchmark. Despite being 20 years old, this 2.5D game still feels incredibly crisp and boasts an intricate gothic horror atmosphere with a great attention to detail.
I've heard good things about Last Epoch, but I haven't tried it myself.
 

ArchAngel

Arcane
Joined
Mar 16, 2015
Messages
19,886
The game has changed a lot with expansions, maybe you guys haven't played since release? If you liked Frozen Orb, you can play as Arcanist with Panetti's missiles, which are visually similar. For spin to win, the new Oathkeeper class from the second expansion has Eye of Reckoning. It's a great class in general, especially when paired with Soldier. There's a Blizzard skill, but it's tied to one of the devotions. It's just that you have to make a build around it and choose what items to tie it to carefully. They also added new movement skills in the second expansion. If you haven't played since release, it might be worth trying again. It's quite different.
I don't care for Devotions skills as well as for those components skills. Classes need to be interesting by themselves.
 

Lacrymas

Arcane
Joined
Sep 23, 2015
Messages
17,948
Pathfinder: Wrath
Classes are interesting in GD, I've made like 4 very different builds using the Necromancer as a "base" class and I haven't even scratched the surface of the necro potential.
 

J1M

Arcane
Joined
May 14, 2008
Messages
14,616
I played Path of Exile on and off over 2.5 years and the biggest issues for me were,
  • game is ugly
  • it has no style
  • it's not SP friendly
  • animation is stiff
  • enemy design is shit
Grim Dawn was the same, except that it was SP friendly.

Titan Quest I never played, but it always looked second rate to me.

Diablo III is dumbed down, geared towards online play and looks like WoW.

Lost Ark does some things right, but is a furry MMO.

Torchlight games are OK mechanically, but I can't stand the cartoony art direction.

Diablo IV got the art direction right, but is even more dumbed down than Diablo III.


In the end, Diablo II is still the benchmark. Despite being 20 years old, this 2.5D game still feels incredibly crisp and boasts an intricate gothic horror atmosphere with a great attention to detail.
Some day game designers will sit around sniffing their own farts because "everybody knows" that the key to isometric ARPG 'feel' is grid-based movement. And that you can adjust for your specific design goals by tweaking the size of the grid relative to the character. But for now it will be something a guy talks about on an obscure forum as the key difference between D2 and its sequels.
 

vibehunter

Learned
Joined
Feb 1, 2021
Messages
264
GD was my first serious foray into Diablo-esque ARPGs. Maybe it's because I didn't play on the higher difficulty, or because my build was bad (I think I used Primal Strike Warder), but I got bored about halfway through. Also my loot rng was shit.

Is it just GD or are ARPGs just not for me? Wondering if I should give D2 a go since the lore and atmosphere looks interesting.
 

Tacgnol

Shitlord
Patron
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Messages
1,871,734
Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire Grab the Codex by the pussy RPG Wokedex Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. Pathfinder: Wrath I helped put crap in Monomyth
Grim Dawn used to run like shit before the 64-bit update and before they added deferred rendering, but now it's rock solid. A lot of GPUs would reach 90c while playing, but now the game runs really well.

The complaints about the colors are more due to personal preference. For me at least, Path of Exile is too hectic visually, especially at higher levels when you're zooming through maps. Not to mention all the items and mechanics they added over the years, it's just too bloated now to enjoy. Grim Dawn is more slow paced, so colors don't detract too much from the experience.

Diablo 1 is still the best imo, then D2, then Grim Dawn and TQ.

Path of Exile has an awful issue with visual clutter. The designers also keep adding visual effects to monsters that are almost identically coloured to the floor and other backgrounds.

I don't think it's intentional either, as they tend to agree with complaints and tweak it, but then make the same mistake two leagues later.

I think they just employ complete retards for their graphics designers.
 

d1r

Busin 0 Wizardry Alternative Neo fanatic
Patron
Joined
Nov 6, 2011
Messages
3,577
Location
Germany
Grim Dawn used to run like shit before the 64-bit update and before they added deferred rendering, but now it's rock solid. A lot of GPUs would reach 90c while playing, but now the game runs really well.

The complaints about the colors are more due to personal preference. For me at least, Path of Exile is too hectic visually, especially at higher levels when you're zooming through maps. Not to mention all the items and mechanics they added over the years, it's just too bloated now to enjoy. Grim Dawn is more slow paced, so colors don't detract too much from the experience.

Diablo 1 is still the best imo, then D2, then Grim Dawn and TQ.

Path of Exile has an awful issue with visual clutter. The designers also keep adding visual effects to monsters that are almost identically coloured to the floor and other backgrounds.

I don't think it's intentional either, as they tend to agree with complaints and tweak it, but then make the same mistake two leagues later.

I think they just employ complete retards for their graphics designers.

Your problem is that you don't kill monsters in the first two split seconds you enter the screen. That's Path of Exile's worst design philosophy.
 

Tacgnol

Shitlord
Patron
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Messages
1,871,734
Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire Grab the Codex by the pussy RPG Wokedex Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. Pathfinder: Wrath I helped put crap in Monomyth
Grim Dawn used to run like shit before the 64-bit update and before they added deferred rendering, but now it's rock solid. A lot of GPUs would reach 90c while playing, but now the game runs really well.

The complaints about the colors are more due to personal preference. For me at least, Path of Exile is too hectic visually, especially at higher levels when you're zooming through maps. Not to mention all the items and mechanics they added over the years, it's just too bloated now to enjoy. Grim Dawn is more slow paced, so colors don't detract too much from the experience.

Diablo 1 is still the best imo, then D2, then Grim Dawn and TQ.

Path of Exile has an awful issue with visual clutter. The designers also keep adding visual effects to monsters that are almost identically coloured to the floor and other backgrounds.

I don't think it's intentional either, as they tend to agree with complaints and tweak it, but then make the same mistake two leagues later.

I think they just employ complete retards for their graphics designers.

Your problem is that you don't kill monsters in the first two split seconds you enter the screen. That's Path of Exile's worst design philosophy.

Yeah the zoom zoom is cancerous. It's gotten worse every league as well.

GGG use it as justification to keep adding more and more visual clutter and one shot effects as well. The irony being it has zero impact on those builds that can clear two screens in .1 of a second.

I've been enjoying Last Epoch lately because of the slower pace. It's refreshing after playing POE.
 

ArchAngel

Arcane
Joined
Mar 16, 2015
Messages
19,886
GD was my first serious foray into Diablo-esque ARPGs. Maybe it's because I didn't play on the higher difficulty, or because my build was bad (I think I used Primal Strike Warder), but I got bored about halfway through. Also my loot rng was shit.

Is it just GD or are ARPGs just not for me? Wondering if I should give D2 a go since the lore and atmosphere looks interesting.
You should try D2, it is way superior to stuff like GD.
 

ArchAngel

Arcane
Joined
Mar 16, 2015
Messages
19,886
Classes are interesting in GD, I've made like 4 very different builds using the Necromancer as a "base" class and I haven't even scratched the surface of the necro potential.
I got over 500 h in GD from the time there was no other new aRPG to play. I don't plan to buy expansions to get one better class, that does not fix the game just like expansions for Pillars didn't make Pillars suddenly a good game.
 

ferratilis

Magister
Joined
Oct 23, 2019
Messages
2,224
Classes are interesting in GD, I've made like 4 very different builds using the Necromancer as a "base" class and I haven't even scratched the surface of the necro potential.
I got over 500 h in GD from the time there was no other new aRPG to play. I don't plan to buy expansions to get one better class, that does not fix the game just like expansions for Pillars didn't make Pillars suddenly a good game.
But it's not just about the expansions, but all the patching that comes with them. Pillars of Eternity 3.0 is a very different game from the release version, same with PoE2 5.0, same with Grim Dawn and many other modern games. But if you already have 500 hours, I understand why you might not want to play anymore. Probably, people who only get into GD now might have a better experience than everyone who played the game since release because everything is already there.
 

Generic-Giant-Spider

Guest
Too many Diabloclones think adding 400 active skills and 900 passives is enough to make the game stand on its own while the rest of the game looks, sounds and feels as generic as can be.

The biggest issue outside of the core gameplay of Diabloclones today is that they look boring and dull. Even with all the graphical prowess of today they still somehow find a way to come off as cheap imitations than as the next level advancement. In fact the whole Diabloclone sub-genre is probably the most stagnant and uninspired of any game genre out there currently. It's like nobody that makes these games have gotten over the year 2001 coming to an end.
 

Cael

Arcane
Joined
Nov 1, 2017
Messages
20,287
Too many Diabloclones think adding 400 active skills and 900 passives is enough to make the game stand on its own while the rest of the game looks, sounds and feels as generic as can be.

The biggest issue outside of the core gameplay of Diabloclones today is that they look boring and dull. Even with all the graphical prowess of today they still somehow find a way to come off as cheap imitations than as the next level advancement. In fact the whole Diabloclone sub-genre is probably the most stagnant and uninspired of any game genre out there currently. It's like nobody that makes these games have gotten over the year 2001 coming to an end.
I liked Titan Quest's way of doing things, which is quite different from Diablo. The main problem is the psycho HP bloat in the expansion packs. It made things tedious.
 

Tacgnol

Shitlord
Patron
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Messages
1,871,734
Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire Grab the Codex by the pussy RPG Wokedex Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. Pathfinder: Wrath I helped put crap in Monomyth
Too many Diabloclones think adding 400 active skills and 900 passives is enough to make the game stand on its own while the rest of the game looks, sounds and feels as generic as can be.

The biggest issue outside of the core gameplay of Diabloclones today is that they look boring and dull. Even with all the graphical prowess of today they still somehow find a way to come off as cheap imitations than as the next level advancement. In fact the whole Diabloclone sub-genre is probably the most stagnant and uninspired of any game genre out there currently. It's like nobody that makes these games have gotten over the year 2001 coming to an end.
I liked Titan Quest's way of doing things, which is quite different from Diablo. The main problem is the psycho HP bloat in the expansion packs. It made things tedious.

Titan Quest also just never felt very smooth. Things like the movement, animations and responsiveness of combat never felt quite right.

Grim Dawn was a little bit better on that account, though it still never felt quite right.
 

Lacrymas

Arcane
Joined
Sep 23, 2015
Messages
17,948
Pathfinder: Wrath
Titan Quest also just never felt very smooth. Things like the movement, animations and responsiveness of combat never felt quite right.

Grim Dawn was a little bit better on that account, though it still never felt quite right.
Both feel pretty right to me, especially once you get some casting speed on items.
 

Tacgnol

Shitlord
Patron
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Messages
1,871,734
Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire Grab the Codex by the pussy RPG Wokedex Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. Pathfinder: Wrath I helped put crap in Monomyth
Titan Quest also just never felt very smooth. Things like the movement, animations and responsiveness of combat never felt quite right.

Grim Dawn was a little bit better on that account, though it still never felt quite right.
Both feel pretty right to me, especially once you get some casting speed on items.

Attacks never seemed to connect properly in TQ for me. They were better in GD.

Combat always felt a bit floaty, especially melee combat.
 

Baron Dupek

Arcane
Joined
Jul 23, 2013
Messages
1,870,765


Even trans-folks are weirded out with these new "female" NPCs

1022079.jpg
 

Cael

Arcane
Joined
Nov 1, 2017
Messages
20,287
Titan Quest also just never felt very smooth. Things like the movement, animations and responsiveness of combat never felt quite right.

Grim Dawn was a little bit better on that account, though it still never felt quite right.
Both feel pretty right to me, especially once you get some casting speed on items.

Attacks never seemed to connect properly in TQ for me. They were better in GD.

Combat always felt a bit floaty, especially melee combat.
I never noticed that. I played a lot of melee (War/Def) as it is hands down the most powerful combat type in the game, especially with the HP bloat of the expansion pack.
 

Lacrymas

Arcane
Joined
Sep 23, 2015
Messages
17,948
Pathfinder: Wrath
These models aren't meant to be looked at so closely, though. I'd say they even look too detailed for what their job is.
 

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