Dungeon Siege 2 this week. Anyone interested?

[Creole Ned]

While it isn't the super-greatest game evar, I did enjoy playing through the original Dungeon Siege in co-op (well, the expansion, anyway) and the sequel may be a good enough romp. Anyone planning on getting this game? It's due out sometime this week - Tuesday or Thursday, it looks like.

[pogozorro]

I'll get it once it drops in price or is on sale, whichever comes first.

[jackrabbit]

My intent is to pick it up, but it depends how many other people do. I'd like it just to break up the cycle of only ever playing two games (WoW and GTA:SA) but since I finished GTA last week, it would be the same cycle but just a different game.

I'd really like the see the GUI improved, though. I think the GUI in the original was far better. This one looks like it borrowed the interface graphics right out of 1995.

[Q]

I'll get it once it drops in price or is on sale, whichever comes first
Same here. I expect that sometime in the next couple of weeks, it will go on sale somewhere.

[Creole Ned]

Future Shop is selling it here for $20 off the day it arrives ($40 vs. $60), so I'll be picking it up then. They are saying it will be in stores on the 18th. I can't think of any other PC games coming out anytime soon that I am interested in, which is kind of sad.

[Andri]

I have not even made it through the old dungeon siege although I have it installed. If we are trying to get our entire cartel to play a game together, I'd consider joining in. Other than that, I am still busy enough playing WoW.

[armerius]

i'll probably have it by the end of the week... i'll up for it.. but i didn't get even halfway through the first.. it bored me.

never played co-op though

[jackrabbit]

Arm, the demo should be pretty indicative of the full game, should you want to try before you buy. I liked it, but I also liked the first game enough to buy the expansion. The demo played a lot like the first one but prettier (with the bold exception of the UI).

[Shadowrat]

I liked the first dungeon seige alot, i'd like to get this one, but don't know when i'd have the time to play it :(

[armerius]

first patch already released!!!!

never a good sign.... game shipped before it was finished.

is it REALLY asking too much these days for a company to FINISH A GAME BEFORE RELEASING IT?!?!?!?!

[Tick]

Arm, you shouldn't ask questions you already know the answer to.

[pogozorro]

first patch already released!!!!

never a good sign.... game shipped before it was finished.

is it REALLY asking too much these days for a company to FINISH A GAME BEFORE RELEASING IT?!?!?!?!

Game: Guild Wars

Date released: April 28, 2005.

First patch: May 1, 2005.

:thumbup:


EDIT: Oh, it appears it is Gamespy's charlie foxtrot, not Gas Powered Games.

There is a patch out already for Dungeon Siege 2. It seems to address a few issues with playing Multiplayer via GameSpy:

* Created a segmented file save system for GameSpy file size compatibility.
* Adjusted GameSpy vaulting protocols to compensate for party save files during loss of connection.

[jackrabbit]

Hey Pogo, that's not fair.

Arm is making the generalization that games are shipping before being done. Pretty much every game is guilty of it. He's not saying that Guild Wars is exempt because he likes it. :(

[Circuit]

I think there's a distinct difference between "finished" and "perfect with no bugs". Regardless of developers' intentions, publishers are usually the ones applying the pressure to get games on store shelves. Once the CDs are pressed, there's not really much they can do to correct the problem besides releasing a patch. I'd much rather see an issue get addressed and patched before I even get the game so I don't even have to deal with the bug it fixes, so I don't see the "OMG a patch before release!" as any sort of negative thing. I don't recall many cases of show-stopping bugs in games I've bought on release, but there will probably never be a completely bug-free game put out.

Don't take this as me saying that releaing unfinished games or ones with lots of bugs is completely justified. I'm just saying that just because a game ships before all the issues are addressed doesn't necessarily spell disaster, especially if the developers care enough to release a patch before people even have it installed. The way some people handle patches, such as an unnamed company I'll call Zubi Soft, is absolutely horrendous. They must have programmers that have some sort of patch quota to meet.

[pogozorro]

I never cast aspersions on Guild Wars. It really is a good game, and being an MMO 9sort of) it is subject to a continuous patching process.

The point was, partially, that some games just get patched early and often. While a disquieting trend, I see it as a necessary evil as games grow much more complex and deadlines must be set for publishers to return some profit on multimillion dollar investments.

Granted, any game that is just unworkable or fails to function properly does not get a reprieve; far from it, in fact. (SC3: Chaos Theory's coop was essentially broken at launch, and it was still one of my favorite games in years).

How much of the "games these days" comments are truly accurate? There were plenty of games released "back in the day" that were abysmal at launch and required patch after patch. While it is not uncommon to see a patch near opening day, as long as the game works (as, in the case of DS2 it was an outside party that buggered up), I am okay with a minor patch.

[Shadowrat]

99.9999% of all software requires patches at some point. Even hello world gets patched. It's kind of futile to expect games to be released without bugs, when most web applications can't be released bug free.

on top of that, the games industry is probably one of the most bug tolerant software niches out there. The publishers want the software out the door, the consumers are clamoring to buy it, and i think historically, very few games are ever ruined by bugs.

[Dg3Nr8]

no. although I did enjoy the first one. JR sent me Halo 2 so I have to play that and return it. I also just picked up Fatal Frame 2 that has to be played for underwear staining goodness.

oh, and somehow I've been sucked back into playing Amped 2.

[Circuit]

I bought Amped 2 a while back and I just can't get used to how it controls. I've played lots of good snowboarding games over the years and I just don't like how this one feels. After several hours of play, I just can't tolerate being frustrated with it anymore.

[Dg3Nr8]

I couldnt stand the controls to start with either. I was fine after a while though. It plays a lot like the THPS games to me.

plus, if you have a TV that can do 720p it looks amazing. Its pretty damn nice on a regular TV, but in HD its beautiful.

[Circuit]

Well, I've spent more time playing THPS games than I'm willing to admit, but I don't think Amped 2 controls anything like them. I think maybe I'm just too used to the total freedom of how unrealistic games like the SSX line control to grasp the slightly less arcadey controls in Amped.

[Creole Ned]

In other news, I have picked up Dungeon Siege 2.

[Dg3Nr8]

In other news, I have picked up Dungeon Siege 2.

wut?

[armerius]

played the demo.

i have decided i dislike Dungeon Seige 2 even more than the original

which of course means that Pogo will love it and you guys will start a D.S. 2 series of smackdowns...

ok... commence flames.

[Tai]

I don't plan on trying it :)

[jackrabbit]

For those of you that are interested, now is the time to act (unless you plan to wait till it's on sale in the bargain bin at Wal*Mart).

Gogamer has it on sale for the next 30+ hours for $32.90
http://www.gogamer.com/cgi-bin/GoGamer.storefront/SESSIONID/Product/View/001DUNS2I


I'll probably pick it up at that price.

[jackrabbit]

Okay, at last count the following people owned the game:

Pogo
Myself
Ned
Q

Am I missing anyone? It seems there were 5 people that had it. Postal? Pal?

I didn't see any indication that you guys played coop whilst I was on vacation, so I'd like to elect that we start this week. I'm on the last boss of the game (on the fist difficulty) and would like to start a coop game before I attempt the game on the next difficulty.

***ALMOST SPOILER WARNING FOR Q***
The end boss is a fucking invincible gimmick. I HATE that you spend the whole game collecting gear or building spells and then they don't work on the boss.
***END ALMOST SPOILER***

[Creole Ned]

I am ready and willing and stuff.

And Q refused to play out of courtesy to you, even though you've now finished the game as a result. :p

[pogozorro]

I will be out of town this weekend, but I can play during the week and all the following week, but yes, I am all down with the coop fun.

[jackrabbit]

Q refused to play out of courtesy to you.

He probably just did this to make me feel guilty. Q hates me.