Game News KotOR2 official announcement and GameSpot preview

[plin]

So, what are all the CRPGs that use an amnesia plotline?
Planescape, KOTOR... and what else?

Arx Fatalis

never played that one. Is that the first person ultima underworld/stonekeep type game?

 

[plin]

So, what are all the CRPGs that use an amnesia plotline?
Planescape, KOTOR... and what else?

And your character didn't really have amnesia, and didn't know he had amnesia. Wasn't he brainwashed by some jedi?

Fallout 3 and Lionheart used it too, on related RPGs, on non-related, Gothic 2 used it. There's a load more too, I imagine.

the fuck, FO3 didn't use it. And how did gothic 2 use it???

edit: about FO3, people thought the devs said that, but they said you only black out when the bots get you, you still know who you are when you wake up, just not where you are.

How do you know FO3 didn't/wouldn't have used it; this MCA we're talking about.

the other guy seemed pretty sure

 

[Fireblade]

So, what are all the CRPGs that use an amnesia plotline?
Planescape, KOTOR... and what else?

Arx Fatalis

never played that one. Is that the first person ultima underworld/stonekeep type game?

Yep... Not that great a game--unless you're into twitch melee combat and nonsensical puzzles. Anyhow, in AF, you wake up and don't know who you are or how you got there.

 

[Anonymous]

Gothic 2 used it from the get-go...

Your character from Gothic 1 dies and is revived but has amensia.

EDIT: You're correct about Fallout 3, but it does fit the 'OMG IM SOMEWHERE I DONT KNOW, GOTTA GO!' deal that Black Isle used alot and tossed on extra amensia stuff every now and then, Baldur's Gate 2 had that too.

 

[plin]

Gothic 2 used it from the get-go...

Your character from Gothic 1 dies and is revived but has amensia.

EDIT: You're correct about Fallout 3, but it does fit the 'OMG IM SOMEWHERE I DONT KNOW, GOTTA GO!' deal that Black Isle used alot and tossed on extra amensia stuff every now and then, Baldur's Gate 2 had that too.

No in Gothic your character neither dies nor loses his memory. He was stuck under all that rubble, but his armor's magic protected him for the fifteen days up until Xandar or whatever his name is brings you to his new temple. I know in a gamespot or somewhere review they claim that he dies, but I'm pretty positive it NEVER claims he died in the english version of Gothic II. In fact, I do beleive Xandar(whatever the fuck his name is) states that your armor's magic kept you alive. And your character didn't know what was going on because he was stuck under some rubble for 15 days, it's hardly amnesia.

and it seems like you just want to bash FO3 because it's the popular view around here. It seems like the "fuck, I'm in prison for no reason, I need to break out." Not much to do with amnesia... again...

 

[Anonymous]

No, I was bashing Black Isle's repeating 'Wake up somewhere I dont know and FIGHT OUT!' starter that comes up too often, Fallout 3 would of been the newest addition to the line.

It's not my fault it had a shitty story.

 

[The Situationist]

I'm really pissed that everyone at RPGCodex knows what the story to FO3 was and I don't.

Please tell me what it was.

 

[Whipporowill]

In Kotor you weren't amnesiac, you were reprogrammed. But yeah - not knowing your true potential is pretty standard for epic writing... just check your average scifi & fabnasy litterauture.

And yeah, I'm petty much believing a dev more than gamespot.

Situationist> I don't thhink anyone outside of the ex-BiIS'ers knows the story, but the general premise of it as well as the starting location. I think there was a recent discussion on NMA where J E commented on a few things regarding what was known/suspected of the Fo3 story.

 

[StraitLacedDeviant]

Similar to amnesia, but not quite the same, is some lack of recognition of what you are, I guess... Baldur's Gate (didn't know about the Baal thing), Lionheart (didn't know I had a "spirit"), Deus Ex 2 (didn't know I was a clone of Denton) all used that technique. Close, but not the same thing.

You bastard, I hadn't played DEus Ex 2, put up some friggin spoiler warnings next time you evil bastard.

 

[Saint_Proverbius]

Morrowind also used the amnesia thing, IIRC.

 

[Azael]

Amnesia is a pretty cheap way to let the player start with a blank sheet, the only game that made something interesting out of it was Torment if you ask me.

 

[Limorkil]

Gothic 2 used it from the get-go...

Your character from Gothic 1 dies and is revived but has amensia.

EDIT: You're correct about Fallout 3, but it does fit the 'OMG IM SOMEWHERE I DONT KNOW, GOTTA GO!' deal that Black Isle used alot and tossed on extra amensia stuff every now and then, Baldur's Gate 2 had that too.

No in Gothic your character neither dies nor loses his memory. He was stuck under all that rubble, but his armor's magic protected him for the fifteen days up until Xandar or whatever his name is brings you to his new temple. I know in a gamespot or somewhere review they claim that he dies, but I'm pretty positive it NEVER claims he died in the english version of Gothic II. In fact, I do beleive Xandar(whatever the fuck his name is) states that your armor's magic kept you alive. And your character didn't know what was going on because he was stuck under some rubble for 15 days, it's hardly amnesia.

and it seems like you just want to bash FO3 because it's the popular view around here. It seems like the "fuck, I'm in prison for no reason, I need to break out." Not much to do with amnesia... again...

I am actually playing Gothic 2 at the moment. The guy does not have amnesia because when you meet an NPC from Gothic 1 you can choose to recognize them or to not recognize them, which is not so much amnesia as allowing for people who have played the first game and those who have not (Baldur's Gate 2 does the same thing). However, your guy got pretty much smashed up prior to Gothic 2 starting and he has lost all his skills, spells and fighting prowess, which is a sort of amnesia.

From the point of view of games where the main character has forgotten who he/she is and must discover this through gameplay, Gothic 2 does not count.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Revenant also featured the amnesia thingy

 

[Seven]

On a side note, Bloodlines is not using amnesia.

 

[suibhne]

The amnesia bit doesn't piss me off too royally (though I'm glad, per Avellone, that they're not using it). I thought it worked fine in both KotOR and Torment, as they both had credible plot devices for it. It pretty much sucked in Arx Fatalis, but that's a different matter.

Sometime I'd like to play an RPG allowing you to create a character's past as well as his or her present. It would be nifty to enter the gameworld knowing something of its background and having some idea of how my character fits into that background, but I've never played a game that's been able to pull that off (or even really tried).

 

[Gromnir]

just be a man 'bout it spaz... no need to be defensive. you was taking a shot at vol, and given fact that you had info from a major print magazine, you thought you had good reason. it turned out that vol was right. oops. heck, chances is that we wouldn’t have taken vol’s word, but if we had mocked him and it then turned out that he was right…

*shrug*

is nothing wrong with taking your shot, but be man enough to take responsibility for your actions too. will get you more respect.

oh, and is probably best not to bring up april fools… no doubt some folks is still smarting.

HA! Good Fun!

p.s. your misrepresentation of the kotor2 plot, and the attendant criticism of using the amnesia cliché, is still on the front page o' your "news." woulda' at least thought you had integrity 'nuff to edit in light of new info.

 

[Fireblade]

Similar to amnesia, but not quite the same, is some lack of recognition of what you are, I guess... Baldur's Gate (didn't know about the Baal thing), Lionheart (didn't know I had a "spirit"), Deus Ex 2 (didn't know I was a clone of Denton) all used that technique. Close, but not the same thing.

You bastard, I hadn't played DEus Ex 2, put up some friggin spoiler warnings next time you evil bastard.

That's not a spoiler, even most previews/reviews mentioned it. And BTW, you'd be better off not playing that debacle of a sequel.

 

[Snuffles]

Amnesia i'm ok with, dodgy plot twists that destroy your characters backstory like in KotOR annoy me. Admittedly it was a very small backstory, but it just annoyed me, it made the game feel like a final fantasy style thing where you play a specific character rather than your own.

 

[suibhne]

Fyi, today's Penny Arcade news post contains a little reference to KotOR:

The first tendrils of information began to wag their cilia in the latest Electronic Gaming Monthly, and now data can be obtained on the Intertron - Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords is now one hundred percent real. I could see Gabriel's countenance grow dark as he learned the sequel wasn't being produced by Bioware, even though this news has been available for months. I'll admit that it does seem counterintuitive, and it would be a comfort to know more about this Obsidian Entertainment that is behind this new game. The thing is, we do know. The issue is that his enlightenment vis a vis role-playing games doesn't extend to the PC, and it certainly doesn't project backward in time - but Obsidian is made up of ex-Black Isle badasses.

People often ask me what my favorite game is, and I often say Wasteland, which was very good and affirmed gaming as a lifestyle choice. But the best PC game ever, in my opinion, is Planescape: Torment. I can't tell you what a relief it is to just lay that out. Planescape: Torment is the best game on the personal computer platform. And now, the people that made that are doing the sequel to Knights of the Old Republic. So, no - I'm not worried. If anybody should be worried, it's Bioware. Up until now, they looked pretty awesome.

I'm currently about halfway through Torment (I assume - I just got to Curst - no spoilers, please!), and all I can say is "Yep." Well, except for the whole part about Bioware, up until now, looking pretty awesome.

 

[Nightjed]

yeah, if they are going to make a specific character instead of letting you make your own spawn of evil :D they should at least give him/her a real back story and a real personality instead of a maleable brainless puppet with customizable faces (btw, i still wonder why kotor1 had really great female faces yet all the male faces sucked cartman's ass)

 

[Psilon]

Morrowind also used the amnesia thing, IIRC.

No, you always know who you are in Morrowind. You don't immediately realize you're the Nerevarine, but at no point do you pull a "Who am I? Where am I?" routine.

 

[Spazmo]

*stuff*

I already conceded that Avellone knows what's going on in his own game, but I still maintain that Volourn's statement was worthless until it was justified--and justified by you, Gromnir, rather than Volourn himself. I'm all too happy to be corrected (in theory), but if he's just going to go "NO YOU'RE WRONG!" without saying in what way I'm wrong or how he knows I'm wrong, that's not much use to anyone.

As for editing the newspost... I was reporting that GameSpot had a KOTOR preview. They're responsible for what's in that preview. I was just reacting to what I read at GameSpot. The real question here is where the heck GameSpot got that from.

 

[Voss]

Morrowind also used the amnesia thing, IIRC.

No, you always know who you are in Morrowind. You don't immediately realize you're the Nerevarine, but at no point do you pull a "Who am I? Where am I?" routine.

Uh, I did. I never did figure out why I was a prisoner on a boat. Might as well have popped into existence on the boat.

 

[triCritical]

Spazmo definately has a point. Volourn was just touting like an idiot again, saying you're wrong, I'm right, I have insider information. Considering that most people on boards speak out their ass most of the time, why should believe crap like that. He should have posted a link, or something. Until then, its just his reputation that precedes him.

EDIT: And he has it coming, considering he says shit like, tri thinks Turnbase = roleplahing.

 

[Gromnir]

we didn't think you would take responsibility.

*shrug*

"As for editing the newspost... I was reporting that GameSpot had a KOTOR preview. "

and if you had stuck with reporting news, you woulda' never had no problems. instead you started editorializing 'bout how lame it were that obsidian would use the amnesia thing... and that is still showing up as news despite fact that you is fully aware that kotor2 will not be doing the amnesia thing.

if voicing your opinion that amnesia bit is cliché and tried amounts to news, then we cannot help but think that pointing out the fact that chris a has stated that kotor2 won't be using amnesia is as newsworthy if not more so.

as to how gamespot got bad info. is not much of a surprise or a mystery. as you is no doubt aware, the magazine writers is getting info from pr guys who ain't working on the project in question... and chances are that the ziff davis folks got much of their info from lucas' pr folks as 'posed to obsidian's... little kids playing telephone, or companies passing along info not change the results.

HA! Good Fun!

p.s. tri,

your response woulda' had more merit w/o the edit, no?

HA!

nevertheless, vol was right, and spaz was mocking not only how vol replied, but the likelihood that vol would have info better than major publications.