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Post by doppelgamer on Jun 3, 2007 23:12:11 GMT -5
What were some games that had now-common features WAY before other games of the genre did? Here are my few:
Quake II - weapon kick, dedicated grenade controls, and grenade cooking. The railgun might count here too. The sci-fi storyline wasn't half-bad either, athough it wasn't really ahead of its time.
Red Faction - the ability to blow holes in walls hasn't been duplicated since (it was so poorly implemented in RF2 that I'm not counting it). Red Faction also set a lot of standards for the rebel-against-an-oppressive-government game too, such as the "sewer level".
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Post by vnisanian2001 on Jun 3, 2007 23:17:32 GMT -5
The original Metal Gear for the MSX2. At the time of its release, no one had heard of the idea of infiltrating a top-secret enemy base in a video game before.
I'd also throw in Shenmue as an honorable mention.
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Post by Weasel on Jun 3, 2007 23:19:52 GMT -5
Terminal Terror and Lethal Tender, while not very good games otherwise, were perhaps the first FPS games to feature reloading weapons and locational damage. If the player took too many hits to one leg, they would slow down and/or walk with a slight veer in one direction.
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Post by vysethebold on Jun 4, 2007 0:12:59 GMT -5
I have to second Red Faction. I have both versions (PS2, PC) and still love to play that game to this day. No other FPS has rivaled the real-time environment damage in that game. I really want it to get a proper sequel.
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Post by dartagnan1803 on Jun 4, 2007 1:27:25 GMT -5
I personally did not care for red faction. the mechanics could have been implemented better, but were not. It felt a little experimental, and many of the levels just felt tedious to me.
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Post by kal on Jun 4, 2007 1:53:51 GMT -5
Realms of the Haunting - No question here, FPS/Adventure interface (granted Normality the engine it runs on was first but this game refines it to the point of being good).
System Shock - An FPS with an ingame story and clever RPG elements (The sequels argurably better but since they run on different engines I'll list the original)
Take No Prisoners - Topdown shooter unique free-form movement between levels (you go to different levels depending on your exit and there's multiple exits).
Elite - Along with the other Pioneer games massive galaxies and space trading and dog fights.
Destrega - Distance sensitive fighting system.*edit* How did Virtual On slip my mind, still due to the control difference I'm leaving this*
Ecstatica - Clever use of Elispoids to produce smooth 3d styled effects at a fraction of the CPU cost. Set piece events similar to those that would appear in hundreds of games to follow.
Gothic - Semi-Open RPG with fractions that actually impacted the player.
The Elderscrolls - Large randomly generated RPG worlds (before it became a lite-Roguelike FPS)
Planetscape Tournament - If I have to explain this...
Trespasser - Largish area to explore, Physics (Box puzzles woo), attempts at Procedual animation and Hud-less gameplay, all of which appear now as standards in FPS.
Severance - Blade of Darkness - Sword and Shield fighting done with resonable efficiency and somewhat realistically in 3d.
Startopia - Before the recent wave of *peaceful* building games (but not before SimXYZ) and The Sims (granted not before Little Computer People) you had to manage a stardock with many unique features including genuine happiness ratings, plant cultivation and most importantly Multiplayer.
Urban Chaos - Did 3d GTA before GTA 3.
X-Com - Mix of different genres Resource management and TBS Squad based combat refined to perfection (Spirit pred to Laser Squad) Giants: Citerzen Kabuto - RTS and FPS before recent games like Maelstrom and Rise and Fall attempted it. Did a damn respectable job, Planet Moon get no respect (MDK also deserves honorable mention).
Alien Vs Predator (PC) - Atmospheric FPS that wasn't a mindless Doom/Quake clone (granted one could mention Unreal here too so consider it mentioned) Also unique in allowing different race/class types in Multiplayer which has become quite standard.
Shogo MAD - Another storyline rich FPS (and also an early Anime based non-japanese game) that began to experiment with alternative gameplay with it's critical shot random reload system.
Deathtrap Dungeon - Often wrongfully dismissed as a silly little Tomb Raider clone this game hold a vast library of enemy types with a mix of puzzle solving and sword combat also the Deathtraps of its namesake.
Project EDEN - Squad based 3rd person shooter that allowed you to switch between the 4 squad members at will.
Die By the Sword - Unique control style which is slowly being contemplated for use again.
Body Harvest - Another before GTA 3 game (infact I'd liken it more to a forerunner to EDF) with a few puzzles and adventure game elements thrown in.
I know this is a big list and somethings may not deserve to be on it but a lot of these games do and I'd rather mention them then not. I consider Genre mixing games far ahead of their time coincidently because in the past genres were very clear cut now their mixing more and more.
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Post by dai jou bu on Jun 4, 2007 2:13:30 GMT -5
Virtual On?
Earth 2150 and Homeworld. Supreme Commander's using dual-monitor output to see more of the battlefield, not to mentioned a modified version of Homeworld's dynamic switching between tactical and field maps.
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Post by vysethebold on Jun 4, 2007 2:50:43 GMT -5
I actually have the original Aliens vs. Predator on PC and for the life of me can't get it to run on my computer. Every site says I just need to turn on Windows 95 emulation when I right click it but that doesn't work. Every time the game tries to run a movie it has really bad stuttering problems then refuses to work. If I get through them the gameplay is worse. I really want to play it but my computer simply won't let me despite having a descent system.
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Post by kal on Jun 4, 2007 5:14:05 GMT -5
Hmm, turn on the Windows 95 Backward comp, then see if you can change the Render to either SOFTWARE render or something other then whatever the default is, I vaguely recall having that problem and fixing it.
It's great because unlike AVP 2 it has a survival mode where multiple players attempt to survive against a hoard of Alien bots.
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Post by Revolver Ocelot on Jun 4, 2007 8:20:49 GMT -5
The Magic of Scheherazade on NES - 1987, this game had time-hopping and team attacks way before Chrono Trigger. It also had two different battle systems, the first class system on a console RPG, and it was the first console game to have an extensive cast of playable characters beyond what you needed for a battle party (Dragon Quest 2 only had 3 characters).
Ys Book I & II - 1989, although its gameplay was simple, it had incredible presentational values and storytelling that far surpassed all of its contemporaries and set the standard for cutscenes and music in Turbo CD games.
Metal Gear Solid - In a world ruled by CG cinemas, MGS dared to tell its story using real time cutscenes in order to bridge the gap between playing and storytelling. MGS's seamless transitions between play and narrative, and its incredible storytelling, wouldn't be seen again on that level until the next generation.
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Post by evilsamurai on Jun 4, 2007 8:27:18 GMT -5
Two words: Herzog Zwei.
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Post by aggroger on Jun 4, 2007 11:31:35 GMT -5
The first three games that come in my mind are: Dungeon Master - The first realtime dungeon crawler. Mercenary - Not as famous as Elite,but it was very innovative as well.Great use of vector graphics. Forbidden Forest - I still cannot believe this game was released on such an early date...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2007 17:17:02 GMT -5
One word: Herzog For Japanese PC-8801 and MSX2 computer systems.
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Post by Allie on Jun 4, 2007 19:06:39 GMT -5
I typically think of "Ahead of its time" meaning "Good idea, but when the game was made, the hardware in existance just wasn't enough to handle the scope of the game.", or that the execution was somewhat off-kilter (ie : "The world wasn't ready for it yet...") rather than "Amazingly well-executed game that blew people away", but even so, it's hard for me to think of any games that fit that description that haven't already been mentioned... (such as Magic of Scherezade)
Though I almost want to say Omikron (aka "The Nomad Soul"), even though I'll surely be laughed at for it. Everything it tried to do, Shenmue did much better a few years later....
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Post by ahnslaught on Jun 4, 2007 21:05:08 GMT -5
I was under the impression that the original Herzog was nothing like Herzog Zwei, mostly based on the article at 1up a while back that listed HZ as an "Essential Classic" (http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3134179). After reading the wikipedia entry, though, it really does sound like HZ, so I'm pretty confused. Anyone have any actual info on the original? Or is it destined to be yet another forgotten Tecnosoft game like the original Thunder Force which is rarely ever seen, much less discussed?
As for games ahead of its time, you cannot have a list and not have Ultima Underworld. Came out around the same time as Wolfenstein 3d, but was miles ahead in terms of gameplay. Actually, almost any Looking Glass game can be on this list, as I think while financially not the most successful, their games such as UU, System Shock, and Thief set up blueprints for everyone else to follow or at least use as a crutch to head off in different directions. Hell, I'll admit that while I'm not their biggest fan by any stretch (since their games were so innovative, it used unfamiliar control schemes and technology which were later improved by others, thus making it seem...unfriendly for me), their stuff was undeniably revolutionary and anyone can see their impact nowadays.
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