Gold Box Gold Box & other SSI D&D classics released on Steam & GOG

[Cat Headed Eagle]

Them being good is one thing, but as I said in another thread I'd wait until we get confirmation on the bug situation. I remember Spelljammer being infamous for its bugs. Other than that, it's always nice to have D&D games that aren't FR.... AGAIN.

 

[Mortmal]

Very generic Fantasy makes Midkemia a forgettable realm.

You've read them all and you still think it's generic? There's a very different approach to fantasy and more realistic than usual.

 

[octavius]

Not all. Only the Riftwar trilogy.

 

[Bad Sector]

Games like this always make me wonder "what went wrong?"

In theory this could have been an early action RPG/FPS hybrid, somewhere between Hexen and Ultima Underworld and remembered fondly nowadays. There was clearly some effort put into making it, with all the animations, voice acting, monster variety and (IIRC) 24 large levels where even from the first level you have to use the automap to orient yourself. There is inventory management, spell lists, being able to equip different armor pieces in various body parts, different melee and ranged weapons (magic or not), etc, the core elements were there in some form.

But in practice it all feels so janky, the speed is all over the place even on slow hardware and your immediate threat isn't the enemies but the controls and the very narrow FOV. That the first level has ice floor that slides you around before you even get to familiarize yourself with the - almost broken - controls doesn't help it at all. This weird mix of effort and lack of effort is demonstrated perfectly when you die: on one hand they put the effort to record a laugh track (for the big bad enemy) with several variations, on the other hand after dying and looking upwards you can often just keep turning and walk around while the screen fades out.

I've read some comments from people who played the 3DO version saying they spent a lot of time with the game, so i wonder if it is the PC version that was bad. In which case i wonder if the GOG release will be the PC version or they'll bundle the 3DO version with some emulator.

Though really the best would be to do a Nightdive-like remaster/rework and try to fix the engine with better controls, FOV options and smooth framerate.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

It'll be PC only is my guess. I was also surprised Slayer never hit PC.

I recall feeling a bit let down on Descent to Undermountain and the New Pool of Radiance. I started to think it was just going to be decline from then on. DTU looked pretty good when generating your toon but gameplay tanked. I really laughed at the game breaking speed run I saw. Damn pity considering I own the original pnp ROU.

 

[SpoonFULL]

Spelljammer premise look interesting. The rest look and feel awkward and waste of money and time - done much better in later games.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Well, they are all uh.... well.... meh to say it best.

It would be like watching

THIS!

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

Yeah this selection of games isn't particularly stellar... the best games were already released in the Gold Box series + others like Dark Sun.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

More SSI D&D games coming to Steam this month:

Released; on both Steam and GOG.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Go finish some Spelljammer now.

 

[Erebus]

I played Heroes of the Lance back in the early 90s. It's really not a very good game, though I did finish it.

Dragons of Flame, from what I remember, is pretty much unplayable. You get attacked by huge hordes of monsters right in the middle of nowhere and it gets tiresome really quickly.

In both games, it's really annoying that you have a party of eight characters (you can even have 10 in DoF) but are only able to control one of them at any time, while the rest apparently vanishes into another dimension.

 

[Lt Broccoli]

Though this title is slow as a slug to play, I would like to see Pools of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor released on GOG. God knows it needs the support to work on Windows 10/11.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

 

[Galdred]

More SSI D&D games coming to Steam this month:

Released; on both Steam and GOG.

Is any of these worth playing apart from spelljammer?
I didn't play them back in the days, apart from Heroes of the Lance.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

I enjoyed Fantasy Empires. Honestly, don't expect much out of these. I an going to give DeathKeep a whirl. I dl'd the Slayer rom. Gotta get a 3D0 emulator working.

 

[ColonelMace]

PSA : It's on a 50% sale at the moment.

This is my first time with Eye of the Beholder and I'm having a surprisingly good time.
I doubt I'll play all of the games featured in the package extensively, but I'm fairly certain I'll complete the whole EOTB trilogy, and am all ears about tips and tricks that make the battle go smoothier (I find it tough to manage when a lot of enemies surround the party, the game appears to "lag" due to the many inputs entered at once, for instance).

I wonder

Also, there's an evil wizard on level 6 (?) who spilled the beans about the plot and how to defeat Xanathar, and this fucker is really difficult to take on. Any tips ? Or should I simply come back later ?

Anyway, I recommend the Forgotten Realms pack 1 at the very least.

 

[Berengar]

Though this title is slow as a slug to play, I would like to see Pools of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor released on GOG. God knows it needs the support to work on Windows 10/11.

Give this a shot see if it works for ya https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/pool-of-radiance-ruins-of-myth-drannor.html

 

[ColonelMace]

Turns out copy pasting the save file didn't do the trick, so I had to put my EotB playthrough on pause while on a trip.

Took this opportunity to try another big name I've never laid my hands on before : Pool of Radiance.
I've been greeted with tavern brawls and a really cool jewelry appraisal system, on top of an experience similar to Might & Magic 1&2 (and, I guess, to most other dungeon crawlers of the 80s) with the notable exception of the combat system, which is pretty phenomenal. I also like the adventurer's journal. Both these games still hold up surprisingly well to this day, I understand their reputation.

If you're born later than these games got released and are hesitant about these ancient relics, despite being fond of dungeon crawlers and other blobbers, I can recommend at least Eye of the Beholder and Pool of Radiance. They're really worth a try.

 

[ColonelMace]

Most districts of New Phlan have been duely secured, and the stench of evil has been removed from the former temple of Ilmater.
Securing the Kovel Mansion, where a band of cutthroats had elected domicile, I stumbled upon intriguing notes compiling rumors and verified information about several eminent persons from the civilised area.
Among the rumors of interest : Porphyrys Cadorna is skyrocketing in the city's politics... The same Porphyrys we helped earlier by retrieving ancient family heirlooms in his dynasty's former estates. Bishop Braccio, who sent us on the cleansing of the defiled altar of Ilmater, is but the frontman of a very high tier priest of Tyr who refuses to reveal himself to the profane. "The Boss" who leads the hordes of orcs, hobgoblins and other goblins could be a metallic dragon, which as duly noted by the thieves themselves, wouldn't make much sense.
Some valuable bits of folklore about "The Boss" and the fabled Pool of Radiance was kept intact within the walls of Sage Mendor's derelict library. Most notably, how the interplanar stream of power causing such phenomenons as the pool of radiance are greatly dependant upon the meddling of magic users, altering its course, changing its destination and, maybe, even its very nature.
The plot may not be as straight forward as initially presented...

On the gameplay side, reaching level 5-6 and unlocking the good ol' magical ball of fiery explosion, the combat just got a tad bit more entertaining. The cleric can now instantly gib any low level undead in sight, making taking a stroll in the graveyard less deadly than a couple level earlier, and fighting hordes of enemies a much briefer endeavour. It still is quite deadly though, as an unfortunate encounter with a few mummies meant game over after my whole frontline failed the wisdom throw.

I also got into that wealth category where I just can't carry all that coin, having to thesaurise my fortune in the form of jewels, which I could only resell for half the investment. These fucking merchants, man...

Some remarks on this steam/gog edition :
- Comes with a built in soft which gives extra information. The most notorious and important aspect is the automapping tool. I just discovered, really late in my playthrough, that you can edit information in the map via a mere double click. The other panel offers permanent feedback on the party (hp, status, buffs and debuffs) and makes the whole game MUCH smoothier than it would be otherwise.
- The automapping tool can spoil you some secrets. To name it plainly : it'll reveal secret doors by showing the "Gate" icon on the map. Not huge but to be noted for absolute purists.
- It comes with a few cheats that I don't recommend activating. You can instantly heal on rest for instance (effectively useless, or so it seems to me) or instantly identify any item in your pocket. Nothing necessary, really. The automapping is enough of a cheat imo.
- The Adventurer's journal is really, really enjoyable to read. I discovered George Mcdonald with this game, and I'm eager to find out more about his work. I know Champions by name only, and had no idea it was such an old pnp rpg.
- As with all games of this era : don't read the clue book about an area before thoroughly investigating it. I do however advise to read it after, especially the "Lore" segment, which gives interesting info surrounding the local context. The detailed clues can be ignored for the sake of avoiding any spoiler, even after cleaning a block.

Out of curiosity, I took twenty minutes last night to try out another, unknown to me, title of this collection.
I decided upon Al Qadim, the genie's curse, because it would be a nice change of pace, as screenshots revealed an action oriented game, and it was obviously set in an exotic oriental setting.
Barely played past the first trial, but as soon as I reached the first city's temple, I made a donation of a quarter of my possessions and was granted in return a bunch of XP, and it felt... good ?
These games are making me sick of the subversion and half-assed humour injected in everything nowadays. Feels good to have good and evil be portrayed as such, with little smartass pseudo-innovation slapped on top of it.
Anyway, after PoR and EotB, I'll probably give a serious try to Al Qadim. The little I played seemed fun enough (and, again, surprisingly well written. The manual's introduction was a genuinely nice read).

 

[ColonelMace]

And down goes The Boss...

Well, for a blobber from the 80s, Pool of Radiance proved a really enjoyable experience. Obviously, the whole ordeal is sufferable due to its old age when it comes to pacing. Waiting for the prompt to print before being able to put any command in gets tiring, especially on Stojanow Gate. But it still holds up very well, and this is due to the game's main strength in my book : every single block/map has something interesting, unique or fun going on. Every block is a set piece, carefully crafted to offer an experience at least a bit different from the last. I still think M&M1&2 feature the best exploration (I understand it's kind of what they're known for anyway) but everything else felt superior in Pool of Radiance to me. It even features elements of C&C (had an awful time around Valjevo Castle due to me picking items from the altar of Bane, items that I couldn't even use due to my alignment... or so I think at least, not really clear why I couldn't wield those long swords +3).
The combat is surprisingly indepth, featuring attack of opportunities, backstabs, positioning affected by spells such as Stinking Cloud etc. Fighting monsters takes time, but is not nearly as boring as it could have been, without this care for combat mechanics.
Itemisation is also not that bad for a 1988 game. Your choice will usually be limited by the bonus to THAC0 and Damage bestowed by a weapon, but the devs coded size adjusment in, among other parameters. I didn't even try polearms (despite finding a few magical ones late in the game), but I assume some phalanx formations are also viable, which is to be lauded.

Most notable area for me was the sorcerer's island : cool setting, cool teleport gimmicks, cool lore and cool treasure vaults to pillage.
I must admit the endgame maze leading to The Boss was a tad bit disappointing though. A bunch of snakes within a hedge maze didn't really do the trick to me. The final combat was also a bit lacklustre. They probably could have buffed Tyranthraxus a bit more.

Anyway, time to go back to the castle, read all the intel I couldn't study with all these patrols around and I'll be all set for the sequel.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Have you seen the FRC1-2 paper ad&d modules of the first two games?

 

[ColonelMace]

I didn't know of them. I see Ruins of Adventure is available to read online, I quickly skimmed through it (what a monster of a Graveyard they have over there, goddamn). Is it an adaptation of the video game or were they both planned simultaneously ?

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Both planned relatively simultaneous along with the novels. Now the pools novels are slightly separate from the Azure bonds novels.
Pools Trilogy: Heroes of Phlan Trilogy
Pool of Radiance
Pools of Darkness
Pool of Twilight

Curse game was made after the Novel I believe. I don't have exact timestamps.
Finder's Stone Trilogy:
Azure Bonds
The Wyvern's Spur
Song of the Saurials

And of course later we have the game
Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor

The printed D&D (3e I think) is called:

Pool of Radiance: Attack on Myth Drannor​

Novel:
Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor

Forgive the pic quality; wiki has shit versions.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Both planned relatively simultaneous along with the novels.
...
Curse game was made after the Novel I believe. I don't have exact timestamps.
...

TSR designers worked with SSI on Pool of Radiance, with the adventure module FRC1 Ruins of Adventure published in 1988 more or less simultaneously with the computer game, while the novel was subsequently written and published near the end of 1989.

Curse of the Azure Bonds, by contrast, began life as the novel Azure Bonds by Jeff Grubb, published in late 1988 (one of the better D&D/AD&D novels, though that's a back-handed compliment); the premise was then picked up by SSI for its second AD&D CRPG, while TSR created adventure module FRC2 with more or less the same plot and encounters as the computer game.

FRC2 is also notable for the interior illustrations by Denis Beauvais.

 

[The Limper]

I was reading the FR and Dragonlance novels as they became available as a teen. I always felt they were better than the flak they receive. I also thought they were written to become pnp modules, which is limiting for the writer….. so to me they were pretty solid considering the inherent handcuffs.