The search for that elusive last Amiga game

[copse]

Originally Posted by Dunny

Your dislike of specific genres will serve you ill. I have an anecdote that may help:

I have a fictional anecdote that may help you

For as long as I can recall, I've detested those kinds of RPGs that present combat as turn-based, where the rest of the game is realtime movement based. The most common of these are Japanese RPGs, such as the abysmal Final Fantasy games and a whole swathe of others. I dislike their art style (let's face it, the only reason you'd put large eyes on a busty female dressed in a school uniform is to appeal to the paedophiles), and I dislike their god-awful storytelling with their dull conversations which require you to press a button to advance one pageful of mindless drivel at a time.

For as long as I can recall, I found the idea that people drank methylated spirits somewhat incomprehensible. Personally, it sounded retarded to me. Sure, it might be cheap, but bad flavour, bad teeth and possible brain damage didn't sound appealing.

A while ago, I was trawling my ROM lists for a game to play. On a whim, I decided that I'd give an RPG a try, and settled on Earthbound. A lot of fuss was made over this game some time ago, and because of the reasons laid out above I'd never really considered it. Well, it couldn't hurt to try it just for a few minutes, no?

A while ago, I dropped some money and it blew around the back of the bike shed, where the hobos were gathered warming their hands around a drum full of burning wood. One of them took the money, but offered me a swig of the communual methylated spirits bottle. It couldn't hurt to try once or twice, right? At least it would ameliorate the pain of losing that money..

I was still playing it four hours later. It was fantastic. It prompted me to try other more serious jRPGs and take them more seriously. They were just as bad as I'd imagined though, so the genre is still tainted for me. But if I hadn't taken the chance, I'd never have found this amazing little gem of a game in amongst all that disturbing garbage of a genre.

Four hours later I was still drinking. It was fantastic. It prompted me to try other wonderful substances and take them more seriously. Weed, riding the white horse, chasing the dragon, speedballs, crank and poor man's cocaine and then onto bath salts and meth mouth. It was as bad as I'd imagined. But if I hadn't taken the chance, I'd never have found the joy that is drinking methylated spirits.

To that end, give the RPGs and Strategy games a try. If what you say is true, then I suspect you've never given Carrier Command (or F/A-18 Interceptor) a fair crack of the whip; what do you have to lose by firing it up and devoting a couple of hours this weekend to it?

To that end, give hard drugs and household cleaning agents a chance... I suspect you've never given them a fair crack of the whip.

On a serious note, there's lots to lose. If someone tries loosely recommended games randomly, unless that's an interest in and of itself, eventually it is going to wear someone's tolerance down. Consider the involved factors of nostalgic rose coloured glasses - I know I am guilty of recommending old games I loved playing, which even I probably wouldn't enjoy playing nowadays. And similarly part of the old game experience was not just playing the game, but basically a research project working out even how to play it. All in all, its an experience that is somewhat akin to work. If someone is wanting to find good games, I think there are modern ways to do so that won't wear you down. The one that I value the most is watching YouTube videos, or browsing lemonamiga and finding similar games in categories that interest me.

That's not to say I don't get misty eyed about how good Carrier Command was. But I also remember how clunky it was, and how difficult it was to play, even in its day. I'd never recommend it to anyone, not unless they said "I'd like a frustrating experience, where I try to play a great game of the older days, which will pay off with a lot of work."

[JudasEZT]

Something similar happent to me with Darkmere. Ive never got fully on RPG, they usually seems attractive to me, but when came with potion with several colours and strange old and magical objects.. well, I got embarassed.

But with Darkmere Ive got hooked. It was like a cross of LastNinja with David Jones games for Mastertronic on the Spectrum ( Finders Keepers, Spellbound, KnightTyme and Stormbringer )

good stuff and pretty graphics too.

[alkis21]

Originally Posted by Dunny

I have an anecdote that may help