Pathologic Classic HD - a Pathologic remaster (not the remake)

[Average Manatee]

Enjoying this at the moment. The translation is well done, still feels somewhat foreign and antiquated but entirely readable. I can actually tell where the puns are rather than needing to read it 5 times over and have a 50/50 chance of understanding that it wasn't serious.

One minor complaint is that the new intro voice actor doesn't have the raspy, frightened voice of the original. Though the new one is arguably more fitting.

Also get a load of this review: https://archive.is/Ijh5P

The narrative, hidden as it is behind hostile NPCs...hard to take interest in

survival mechanics primitive and unchallenging, easy to ignore

multiple mission paths are a given feature of many AAA and blockbuster titles; the feature is no longer a novelty

I got a game over on the first day

Wish I was playing Fallout 4

I feel for you, Ice Pick Lodge.

 

[Owl]

Other nuggets from the review:

bizarre B movie grade music

This one takes the cake:

There is such little style or personality to the game, it feels as if it were built from the stock art included with the game engine

Look, I'm not surprised that some people don't like this game, it's definitely not for everyone, and despite the enhancements, it's still rough around the edges. But holy shit, this person is retarded.

 

[alphyna]

Thank you all for the feedback about the translation! For now, I like what I'm hearing. The Russian text is actually a bit odd, a bit off, and a bit clumsy sometimes—so chances are that everything is working as intended. Gut.

One minor complaint is that the new intro voice actor doesn't have the raspy, frightened voice of the original. Though the new one is arguably more fitting.

Oh, Mr Sukhoverko is irreplaceable. He also passed away some time ago, so now we're actually a bit at a loss. We were planning to change some texts, but we cannot imagine any other Russian narrator voice for the game. It's sad.

As for the review, everyone's entitled to their own opinion.

 

[Owl]

alphyna, maybe you could forward my question to the tech guys, it's about gamepad controls. I'm not sure if this is a bug or intended behavior:

- In most other first/third person games, the walking speed depends on how far I move forward/back/sideways the left analog stick. Here, the walking speed is constant, regardless of the stick's position. If i move the stick forward, there's a large dead zone (nothing happens), and then suddenly I move at full speed. It makes movement a little awkward. Mind you, the analog control works as it should on the right stick (looking around). I have Logitech Dual Action gamepad, using Windows 7 64 bit.

- The strafe/sidestep speed feels unusually slow, this also makes walking around a bit more difficult.

Thanks!

 

[alphyna]

Owl, there's only one walking speed in the game, as it has always been! The same goes for strafes—they've always been sluggish (it's actually advised to turn 90 degrees and make a step forward to avoid something, that works faster). We didn't change the mechanics with this release. So this is all intended.

As for the dead zone, the tech guys said that it's within Microsoft's guidelines on how big dead zones are supposed to be (I have no idea what that is, but sounds metal), but they're kinda hesitant now as to whether they should have followed those. I think your complaint is not the only one. (Although I definitely also saw some people saying that playing with gamepad feels super-perfect to them.)

 

[DosBuster]

Hey, uh, I occasionally see a coin icon on the top left screen. What does that mean? Also, does the game tell me when to eat and drink? I'm kinda afraid I'm going to drop dead.

 

[alphyna]

Hey, uh, I occasionally see a coin icon on the top left screen. What does that mean? Also, does the game tell me when to eat and drink? I'm kinda afraid I'm going to drop dead.

Coins and other trinkets in the upper left corner represent things your characher picks up while walking the streets. They are added to the inventory authomatically.

The game somewhat does... if a status bar is shown on the main screen, that means that status is less than ideal. You can probably do something about it, but you don't have to. Unless it's almost full (hunger, exhaustion, disease) or almost empty (health). Those things herald upcoming death.

 

[Whisky]

Thanks alphyna for everything! I finally got a chance to start playing it and the translation looks perfect! So far it's completely understandable but it still has the character I enjoyed about Pathologic.

You've done the world a great service!

 

[Gentle Player]

As a backer of the Kickstarted Pathologic remake, I've put off claiming my free HD edition Steam key after reading this...

Yup, just wait some more please. We are basically working out a way to provide the keys to those who request them without any mixups. As of now, no specific messages are needed (we were just testing the waters), and I hope there never will be a need for them. Don't take my word for it though, I'm not on the tech team.

...as I'd prefer a GOG key also. However, the website mentions that only Steam keys are available. Am I misunderstanding things? Should I continue to wait?

 

[JudasIscariot]

B grade music

What. I am damn near deaf in one ear and hard of hearing in the other and I can still tell that the music is superb. Hell, it's almost its own character in the game and adds to the overall seething creepiness in the game.

Whoever stated that must be tone deaf or something.

 

[Omgaar]

Rather crappy that they are charging money for this (to people who already had the game), considering it's just a patch that fixes the broken translation that made the game unplayable without some guide for some parts and some widescreen support.

Anyway, was worried this would be a localization, but looked a video and thankfully that doesn't seem to be the case.

 

[Silva]

First time playing and finding the atmosphere mesmerizing.

But then I died at the end of first day. Is it normal ? It thought the game moved on no matter if I completed the quests or not ( the only thing that could kill me were survival mechanics and actual fights, I thought). Is that right ?

Also, now I got curious with playing the haruspex. Should I keep with the Bachelor or swap ?

 

[Starwars]

If I remember correctly, there is one quest that must be completed or else you will fail when that day ends.

 

[Whisky]

First time playing and finding the atmosphere mesmerizing.

But then I died at the end of first day. Is it normal ? It thought the game moved on no matter if I completed the quests or not ( the only thing that could kill me were survival mechanics and actual fights, I thought). Is that right ?

Also, now I got curious with playing the haruspex. Should I keep with the Bachelor or swap ?

Did you get in touch with Rubin? If you didn't, I believe you get insta killed at the end of the day.

 

[Silva]

Thats what hapenned, Whisky. But I managed to replay it and pass to the second day.

Do someone know if there is some "running" mod or some other way to speed up the game ? All this walking gets really tiresome. (hmm, perhaps increasing the FPS in nvidia control panel ? lets see.. )

 

[Konjad]

Thats what hapenned, Whisky. But I managed to replay it and pass to the second day.

Do someone know if there is some "running" mod or some other way to speed up the game ? All this walking gets really tiresome. (hmm, perhaps increasing the FPS in nvidia control panel ? lets see.. )

It is intended. You are supposed to enjoy the atmosphere and see the slowly changing city every day. But if you don't like it... well, whatever. I guess you won't enjoy the game much either way if you are already annoyed.

 

[Silva]

Ok bros, I've found it. Just bring up the console during play (by pressing that key that precedes the number 1 on your keyboard), and enter this:

uspeed 1.33

Close the console and voilá! This will make the game 33% faster. This speed made the game more enjoyable and feeling even more natural for me. If you want it even faster or a slower just change the decimal digits over there to your liking. One important obsevation though: this makes daytime run a bit faster too, so your day will be over faster than normal. If you want to mitigate this effect, bring console back again and write this new line on it:

gt_speed 3.33

I dont know if this is the exact ratio, but it made the clock pass in a speed pretty close to default game.

 

[Starwars]

Nice job on the translation alphyna. Enjoying diving into this game again, it really is one of a kind.

Will this translation be used for the remake also or are we looking at a different story for that version?

 

[Silva]

Damn, day 4 is batshit crazy stuff! So many things to do. Does anyone managed to accomplish 100% of quests ? I gave up on the bandits, as my health was too low and shit was too difficult. Did I miss something important?

I hope things get calmer in the next days. If things keep frenetic like in day 4, I'll have take some drugs in real life.

 

[Silva]

So, I'm playing the remastered/HD version of Pathologic (my first time with the game) and I'm finding it much more interesting as a game than Planescape ever could. The reason is that the survival mechanics present here actually support the game's core themes in a coherent way (even with its parcel of problems), while in Planescape the mechanics (aka: combat and related miscelanea) is almost an afterthought that dont add anything to its core experience of moral/existential dillemas through conversations. That said, I still find the writing and themes from Planescape more exciting and thought-provoking. So overall, it's kind of a draw so far.

I hope to finish Pathologic by the next week. Then Ill come back and put my final impressions.

 

[sqeecoo]

Pathologic is perhaps my favorite game of all time, and I played it at a "grown-up" age when it's much harder for a game to capture the imagination. It's fucking weird, but everything is awesome including the hypnosis-inducing endless walks around town while time ticks away and the disease spreads.

I don't remember any game that made me identify with my character's perspective so much. For instance, the first character is a doctor and it absolutely never crossed my mind to kill and rob civilians when I was in a tough spot. I'm a fucking doctor, I can't be killing people! The game does nothing to prevent you from doing this other than a tiny and irrelevant reputation hit for killing an innocent. But while I enjoyed a good maniacal rampage in FO while playing a good character (and then reloading because there were negative consequences) in Pathologic this never crossed my mind.

However, when you play the shaman you are this sorta freelance mystical surgeon that has the "birthright" to open up bodies. In that playthrough I suddenly felt it was completely fine to kill a couple of civilians when I was in a tough spot - the greater good and all that.

No artificial barriers, just good storytelling.

All characters have broadly the same ending, but they perspectives differ. In my two playthroughs, I found myself completely agreeing with the perspective of the character I was playing, it was like I saw two different endings while the events were actually the same.

A good review of Pathologic, one of the only truly good reviews on mainstream sites I've read: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2008/04/10/butchering-pathologic-part-1-the-body/

Anyway, the only thing that worries me about this remake/remaster is that they will improve the translation. The original English was so incredibly mangled it was hilarious and part of the game's atmosphere. I'm not sure I can do without it :D
My favorite bit is how the shaman's playthrough suddenly decides to use "wao" instead of "wow". I laughed so hard at that My sis and I still use "wao, big deal" as a dismissive catchphrase.

Another one of my fondest memories is receiving a long letter from Aglaya, this sort of smart police-type woman. The letter was huge and full of flowery and fancy writing but at the same time the English was so bad I didn't understand a single thing. Like literally, I had no fucking idea what she was saying, at all. But the impression of flowery high-brow language was there. It was hilarious and atmospheric, and I'm not sure the same effect can be achieved with comprehensible-but-flowery prose.

I don't know, I'll miss this stuff if it's fixed. I would definitely like to own a GOG copy of the original How different is the "classic" version then?

 

[Whisky]

Another one of my fondest memories is receiving a long letter from Aglaya, this sort of smart police-type woman. The letter was huge and full of flowery and fancy writing but at the same time the English was so bad I didn't understand a single thing. Like literally, I had no fucking idea what she was saying, at all. But the impression of flowery high-brow language was there. It was hilarious and atmospheric, and I'm not sure the same effect can be achieved with comprehensible-but-flowery prose.

I don't know, I'll miss this stuff if it's fixed. I would definitely like to own a GOG copy of the original How different is the "classic" version then?

The new English language translation is great. It does a good job at keeping the bizarre dialogue with characters while being significantly more understandable.

There's also new voiceovers.

Another thing, this might be just me, but when I played the original version there was often a high-pitched whine in the background that would sometimes grow as loud as the music. I thought it was my audio jack failing, but I got a new computer and it also had it. The re-release doesn't have that.

 

[Lucky]

Good news for those that want to play the remastered version in Italian. The original Italian translation of Pathologic will be coming to the Classic HD version likely sometime this year. They're still working on smoothing over all the legal and technical edges, but it's on its way.
https://steamcommunity.com/app/384110/discussions/0/496879865901565198/

 

[Wulfstand]

I'm really enjoying my time with this game. At first the translation still felt a bit off, but I got used to it after a while (except for whenever I see the word 'mate' pop up), and while the graphics have managed to age quite well, it's the soundtrack that really merges the whole experience and makes it so compelling, I think.

The trailer for the remake looks amazing by the way, can't wait to sink my teeth into that as well.

More people need to know about this game, and I feel like the remake might be just what's needed for such a feat to happen.

 

[Drog Black Tooth]

A good review of Pathologic HD:

Pathologic is a quarantine simulation FPS with a bizarre Eurasian setting that’s sure to raise a few eyebrows. The story basically follows one of three characters who end up trapped in a small town due to a mysterious outbreak with no explainable source.

Pathologic combines several gameplay mechanics to keep things challenging for the player. There are survival elements such as health, hunger, and exhaustion, which are managed by fairly obvious means. In addition, you have immunity and infection meters, the first of which is raised by fairly common drugs that will decrease your chance of becoming infected, a status curable only by vary rare drugs. Infection is not a death sentence, however, as you can find many antibiotics and even very dangerous cures to reduce or remove it entirely. Infection will typically occur within quarantined areas by either contact with infected civilians, collision with plague clouds, or bites from plague rats.

Another system of interest are the “bound” NPCs which are initially critical to surviving each day but eventually become expendable beyond a certain point. It’s up to you whether to save them or not. There are additional “bound” that belong to two other characters who can also fall ill or die, potentially effecting your playthrough.

Normally, I’m one for eccentric games, often giving a chance to games that buck the average person due to being too weird or complicated. I lost interest in Pathologic for a different reason: the game is a huge chore.

You will spend FOREVER walking around each day doing all the necessary tasks. This game needed a fast travel system like JFK needed a bulletproof helmet. In fact, some sort of doodle-based system where you draw lines on the main map that “cost” the player time when executed would have been a perfect way to balance the time-based mission mechanic with a convenient movement system. Instead, you spend about 3/4ths of the game just walking between places with the occasional fight or flee moment. Moving through infected areas can also be a pain in the ass due to the fact that your character will clip onto just about anything, getting you stuck on a street corner or building edge right as you’re trying to slip past a dangerous plague cloud or rat.

Speaking of fighting, the combat system is downright bad. Your bullets are wildly inaccurate at totally feasible real-life distances at certain angles, but totally on the mark when everything is on a flat z-plane. Good luck if you try to do any knife fighting, by the way, your character randomly alternates between a single slash and double slash and you have to guess which one he’s going to do as you charge in.

I gave Pathologic HD a fair effort (I also tried the original version before this review) of about 22 hours of gameplay before finally breaking down and asking myself “what the fuck am I doing with my free time?” This game had potential and I really liked the story, but the execution is less than lackluster and downright confusing or boring for most of the game. It’s a shame but I can’t find myself recommending this title even though I really wanted to like it.

 

[Konjad]

The game is 2€ on Steam due to Halloween Sale, so if you've been waiting to get it cheap now's the chance.

 

[Wunderbar]