Legend of Grimrock 2

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Any other recent games that capture or build upon this sense of exploration? I really enjoy finding a hidden button on the wall, then figuring out what it does, or coming upon a riddle that isn’t brain dead filler, paired with the general scarcity of loot and the value of what is gained by discovering secrets or solving puzzles.

Grimoire is the best game after LoG I and II for exploration, although it's a turn-based Wizardry-like so even the exploration is considerably different than in a real-time Dungeon Master-like.

The Bard's Tale IV is underrated, but I would hesitate to endorse it since both the combat and the puzzles are different than from what you would find in either Wizardry-likes or DM-likes.

Operencia is a relatively simple Wizardry-like with gorgeous graphics and atrocious dialogue (not that I put much weight on the latter).

I suggest completing Grimoire before Cleve releases either Armoire or Grimoire II: Exemplars of the Heraldic Wings.

 

[cvv]

The only problem with Grimoire is that even tho it came out a few years ago it's actually a very old game and it was an ordeal trying to run it on my modern PC and a widescreen 32" monitor. No idea how other Codexers fared but on my PC it either ran in a small window or as a ghastly wide-stretched fullscreen smear.

It was an even worse experience than trying to run Wizards&Warriors before it came out on GOG. Speaking of which, W&W is another unmissable classic btw. The last D. W. Bradley's masterpiece, before he lost his mind, shaved his head and ran into the woods, never to be seen again.

 

[luj1]

If you like complex combat, deep chardev, labyrinthine dungeons with devious puzzles and a jaw-dropping, NPC-packed world to explore then Wizardry 7 has you covered. 30 years on and it's still the ultimate pinnacle of party-based RPGs.

Also Wizardry 6, Grimoire, Wizards & Warriors and Wizardry 8.

 

[Elwro]

I'm always positive about old-school gaming, but honestly, learning how to play Grimoire is not really pleasant. The important bits of text are tiny, and I don't see from where I could learn stuff about positioning, types of attacks, etc...

 

[V_K]

Xulima is great, just not sure exploration is its main draw. It's a very loot and combat oriented game.

Well, it's one of my favorite games of the decade, and I don't care much about combat or looting. Most random fights in the game are avoidable through IIRC one of Galen's skills and the setpiece encounters are not that numerous. On the other hand, each area is chokefull of puzzles, mini-dungeons and other fun things to do, each major dungeon has some unique gimmicks to it, and the visuals just ooze this fairy rale sense of adventure. At the very least, it's definitely far better than Operencia or MMX exploration-wise.

 

[V_K]

Speaking of Xulima, it's 50% off on Steam right now.

 

[Whisper]

Xulima is one of best crpgs out there. Along with Underrail, AoD and Wizardry 8.

 

[Kaivokz]

I managed to randomly guess one of the pressure plate patterns in the Archives.

Spoiler

correct combo:
right
forward
forward
left
left
forward
back
back
back

sign on the wall:
te.
uhu na.
pala.
uhu na.
pala na.
ar e.
faam ko.
lam ko.

I thought maybe I could use it to cheekily translate part of the language and figure out the other door, but no such luck. The words don't map onto the correct combo in an obvious way to me, though it's pretty clear that there's a main word (e.g. te, uhu, pala) and an optional modifier (e.g. na, e). I'm assuming there are some further hints located somewhere on the island to assist in translation.

I'm having a blast with GRII in a way I haven't enjoyed a game in a long time. I'm actually being stumped in some areas (I've only found two of the figurines required for the Archives puzzle that I assume is hiding the translation primer edit-went back with fresh eyes and solved the last two puzzles in about 15 minutes), but I don't feel "stuck" as there are multiple other parts of the island to explore and a few puzzles I couldn't solve in prior areas that I can go back to. Plus, the two sacks of food I brought into the dungeon were running low, so I had to gather some more rations before trying to complete the archives.
I love how the game teaches you a lot of things in a synthetic way. For example, at a few different points you see projectiles going through teleportation fields and retaining their momentum. Then, later on, there is a puzzle that requires you to throw items through a teleportation field so they land on a switch. You probably could have figured out the later puzzle even without any other information, but the process is very natural when you have been observing the solution throughout the game.

The only disappointing thing is the combat. And the fact that I can't gather my cannon balls after shooting them (maybe they're too brittle to retain but I want my rat alchemist to be a walking cannon).

 

[d1r]

Don't forget to check out the Workshop section if you're done with the game. Some good mods out there.

 

[Elwro]

Enjoying the game so far (level 5). However, I managed to exhaust my Lightning Rod; I must've missed the information about charges (or there isn't one). Is it possible to recharge items in the game? Yes / no will suffice!

I love how dipping in water and quick exploration yielded me some interesting bits of info about the world (and a power gem from the bog).

 

[Kaivokz]

Elwro yes, it’s possible.

Glad you’re enjoying the game!

 

[Elwro]

Thanks! Though the combat is shit, there's no going around this fact...

 

[Elwro]

I also appreciate the fact that you can experiment with Alchemy. Almost at the beginning of the game I've discovered how to make Antidotes and now when some blob diseased one of my chars they became useful. [Of course, some would say that the fact the game immediately tells me it's an antidote is dumbing down, but I don't care.]

 

[Humbaba]

Thanks! Though the combat is shit, there's no going around this fact...

Bit harsh innit. I thought combat was almost as stimulating to my balls almonds as the puzzles were.

 

[Voids]

The only problem with Grimoire is that even tho it came out a few years ago it's actually a very old game and it was an ordeal trying to run it on my modern PC and a widescreen 32" monitor. No idea how other Codexers fared but on my PC it either ran in a small window or as a ghastly wide-stretched fullscreen smear.

It was an even worse experience than trying to run Wizards&Warriors before it came out on GOG. Speaking of which, W&W is another unmissable classic btw. The last D. W. Bradley's masterpiece, before he lost his mind, shaved his head and ran into the woods, never to be seen again.

I dont know how active the company is anymore but Heuristic Park Inc has a residential address for the company in some Atlanta suburb. So sorta like the woods.

 

[Fluent]

I'm always positive about old-school gaming, but honestly, learning how to play Grimoire is not really pleasant. The important bits of text are tiny, and I don't see from where I could learn stuff about positioning, types of attacks, etc...

Well, as a newbie playing Grimoire myself, I would suggest reading the manual then jumping in with your created party. The game is not *that* bad to learn, especially after reading the manual, and it's a *fantastic* CRPG. Truly a great experience that I would recommend learning. Cheers!

P.S. Still someday going to play LoG2 user modules like Lost City and others. All in due time! Cheers guys.

 

[Elwro]

So guys, uh, the frogs can just destroy equipment, right? I thought I always picked everything back up but I just noticed my whole supply of shurikens is missing...

 

[Unkillable Cat]

So guys, uh, the frogs can just destroy equipment, right? I thought I always picked everything back up but I just noticed my whole supply of shurikens is missing...

No, they can't. If that happened it's due to a bug.

Things can get weird with the toads if you kill them in mid-jump, as the dropped items will be in a different square than expected.

 

[Elwro]

Well, I checked all the squares and they're not there. I see after some googling that this happens to some people and that it's a bug (in case of single items it is triggered by throwing when moving; then the items can end up in unreachable places)...

 

[slymer]

Finished this last night. I enjoyed it but only because I followed a walkthrough. No way in hell could I figure out some of those puzzles without one.

I'd like this game a lot more if there wasn't some puzzle you had to solve every 5 steps.

 

[Decado]

Chiming in here that Bard's Tale 4 is good and worth playing, but with the caveat that it is a very Brian Fargo game, i.e. it is 20% longer than it should be. Also, the inventory UI is the worst fucking inventory UI in the history of video games. It is worse than Kingdoms of Amalur.

Other than that, good game.

 

[V_K]

Finished this last night. I enjoyed it but only because I followed a walkthrough. No way in hell could I figure out some of those puzzles without one.

I'd like this game a lot more if there wasn't some puzzle you had to solve every 5 steps.

Why on Earth would you play (and finish!) an RT blobber if you don't like puzzles? That's like literally their whole raison d'être.

 

[V_K]

it is a very Brian Fargo game, i.e. it is 20% longer than it should be

I think you've forgotten another zero.

 

[slymer]

Finished this last night. I enjoyed it but only because I followed a walkthrough. No way in hell could I figure out some of those puzzles without one.

I'd like this game a lot more if there wasn't some puzzle you had to solve every 5 steps.

Why on Earth would you play (and finish!) an RT blobber if you don't like puzzles? That's like literally their whole raison d'être.

I like the character creation and the variation of builds. I don't mind the combat. I'd actually like to play again and try other classes/builds but the the puzzles are too much. I don't mind searching for hidden buttons, but some of the solutions to these puzzles are ridiculous. There are plenty of blobbers without puzzles this obtuse. Also the game just looks incredible.

 

[adddeed]

Have you played LoG1? Less tricky puzzles and the scope is smaller so no backtracking. LoG2 is a much larger game.