PC Game suggestions
Does anybody have any suggestions for the best PC games out there at the moment? (Yes for those of us who still do not own a game system.) Personally, I tend to lean towards turn based or equivalent over real time but short of the few postings on this blog I really am not tuned in to what is available.
Labels: PC Game suggestions; a little help; behind the times
posted by scott @ 8:54 PM
20 comments
20 Comments:
Dragon Age: Origins is supposed to be really good, especially on the PC if you've got decent hardware. If your system is a little outdated, I'd head to the Steam site and pick up an older game with a high Metacritic score.
My brand spanking new Falcon Northwest uber-rig arrived yesterday in a giant black box.... with a large, forklift-style gash in the side. Argh! The PC inside looks unharmed, but I didn't have time to fire it up before heading out of town for a week. Gah! Still, if anyone is in the market for a new rig, other than the shipping (blast you, UPS!), I am very impressed with the experience so far.
Okay.... games that are good that I'd love to play with any SABG members:
Company of Heroes
Dawn of War 1 or 2
Sword of the Stars
Good single player games:
Torchlight
Gratuitous Space Battles
Civ IV (with Beyond the Sword)
Plants vs. Zombies
Defense Grid
BTW, I can't imagine buying another game not on Steam. Instant patches, no CDs to keep track of, killer discounts... I'm a believer.
I'll probably pick up Dragon Age when I get back from this trip.
Civ IV: BTS is still hands down the best PC games I've ever played. But I know you have that already.
If you like Dragon Age Origins, I recommend Knights of the Old Republic (both 1 and 2 are good although I think 1 is more complete).
I still get a kick out of firing up a DOS emulator every once in a while and playing Master of Magic.
Of course if you like Master of Magic, there is Age of Wonders: Shadow Magic to consider. Chris and I have played some AoW coop multiplayer recently, and it holds up, especially with the latest fan community patch.
Is it RTS or TBS?
Turn-based strategy. Very, very similar to MoM, with mana node you capture; lots of different types of armies; your wizard develops over time with both combat and overland spells, etc. Go to Age of Wonders 2 Heaven to see some of the incredible fan-made scenarios.
Unfortunately it is next to impossible to find AoW2: SM for sale anywhere (what up, Steam?). Last time I checked it was $300 on E-Bay. Ahem. I say again. Ahem. Nudge, nudge.
Speaking of Bioware, I did pick up KotoR and Jade Empire via Steam over the holidays, for $2.50 each if I remember correctly. I'll need to do these at some point. I previously attempted KotoR and reached my typical Bioware burnout about 80 hours in...
Any thoughts on Rome Total War Gold or Railroad Tycoon II Platinum? Both sound good; have high metascores, and are inexpensive; so I was curious if they are as good as they sound in addition to those games already mentioned.
Correction. The cheapest place to get a legitimate copy at the moment is German E-Bay. I posteded on the AoW2 Heaven forums asking to see if there are any problems using a German copy in the US. The box cover is in English, so perhaps there is multi-lingual install capability. I picked of Rise of Nations (w/expansion this way), as the European version is around $5 compared to the US version is just ridiculous.
There are many who believe Rome: Total War is the best of the series, feeling the series jumped the rails/shark and became a bloated mess starting with Medieval 2.
I enjoy the Total War series, including Rome, but I find the battles get very repetitive. The AI is good in Rome, at least by my standards, backstabbing me at the appropriate time. I played a few months ago as the Julii and those blasted Gauls invaded Italy through the Alps as I was kicking their butts in France, causing me a lot of problems. For the price right now on Steam, its a good buy.
RR Tycoon 2 Platinum.... now that is old school, and you'll need to brace yourself hard to see past crappy graphics. I've never been much of a fan of computer train games. Economic optimization vs. an AI is just boring to me, but I do see the appeal of driving little trains around the countryside.
If you have some power, go with Empire: Total War, or Fallout 3, or yes... Dragon Age.
Are you finding Total War: Empire to be good? There is a lot very negative talk about the game by some fairly respected reviewers (e.g., Tom Chick of Fidgit) who are complaining that the game AI is just totally lost in the complexity, with Creative Assembly moaning on their official forums that the game didn't sell well enough or metacritic high enough for them to invest resources in a serious patching effort.
BTW, I forgot to mention Sins of a Solar Empire. The new Diplomacy expansion is now in late beta... If you enjoy space opera-style real time strategy, you need to get this one.
Okay, as long as we're geeking out on PC games... Go check out the Developer's Diary for the new Chaos Rising expansion to DoW2. Not only does it include the Chaos faction, but it also includes a full Space Hulk mode. I also like how during the campaign you can choose to allow your Space Marines to take corruption and convert to Chaos.
...and don't forget "Dangerous high school girls in trouble" on sale at Steam site for only $9.99.
but seriously, diablo 2 can't be beat. Torchlight is kind of like diablo and its fun to kill bunches of monsters after a day at work.
Things that have been mentioned that I would agree with unequivocally:
Sins of a Solar Empire
Civ 4
Age of Wonders Shadow Magic
Company of Heroes
Things that I enjoy a lot and are either recent or still hold up:
Torchlight or Titan Quest (on Steam--both good Diablo 2 clones, but you don't need both)
Myst 4 (yes its a bit old but its simply a beautiful game to behold and IMO better than the Myst that came out after it)
I also have Dawn of War 1 and 2. Dawn of War 1 was good. Dawn of War 2 also looks good, but my little laptop computer won't run it at a playable speed, so your mileage may vary.
Most of the other good computer games are getting up there in age. Gaming has largely moved from the PC to the console platforms in the last few years, and the games mentioned above were the last great games for the PC in my opinion.
Of course there is also Master of Orion 2, which still holds up nicely.
Dragon Age is awesome, but if long RPGs are your cup of tea you should know it by now.
I'll put a shout out for Europa Universalis III if you like grand strategy...Not as high-profile as the Civ games but it's got a ridiculous amount of meat to it. I have not tried Hearts of Iron but it's by the same people.
EU3 now drastically altered with the new expansion Heir to the Throne is getting some pretty good reviews. If they ever put the whole mess on sale on Steam I'll probably bite.
Scott, just popping in to totally recommend Railroad Tycoon II. I think I've spent more time with that game than any other (with the possible exception of X-Com). Excellent strategy game...
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