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Curiosity Test

Started by Crehl 16 replies 2.7k views
Original Post
Crehl
Crehl
Alright, the general idea of this has been in my head for quite a while, but only today I thought I would make a post out of it. I'm going to describe a game, and I want replies about which game best fits the description. I would rather you think a little about it, rather than just name the first one that comes to mind (There is a reason for this). That's it - After a few replies I'll post again as to why I did it, though if you have even a fair knowledge of games you should be able to work out what I'm doing. Here goes: -The game is a FPS. -The game enables you to modify and upgrade your body to a limited extent, using a reward/points system that runs throughout the game. -The game enables you also to modify your weapons - though not through the mentioned points system, instead through upgrades placed around the world. -The game conveys some (But not all) of the storyline through one-way dialogue you receive at particular points in the game. -The game contains automated cameras, alarms and turrets that can be hacked. -The game claimed to offer choice; yet there were no choices that affected the storyline other than alternate endings. That should be more than enough. What I'm trying to do isn't a huge complex idea - but still, I'm curious as to how people answer. Also, please answer before reading other people's posts. That should keep the responses more accurate. Thanks.
ukdeveloper
ukdeveloper
Bioshock.

It fits all the above criteria (I consider research as a reward, and the ADAM is your reward for doing unspeakable things to little girls). The one-way dialogue (you were talked at and told what to do), the equipment hacking too.

The three endings were also a load of tacked-on, rushed shite (which is why I think the next game in the series has to be a prequel because there is nowhere else for the story to go forwards) and the business of "moral choice" was overrated and poorly done - as Yahtzee said, it was "...Mother Theresa or baby eating..." and really it is completely black and white with no middle ground.
Extrarius
Extrarius
I've never played BioShock, so the closest thing I can think of is Deus Ex. It had an experience system where you could upgrade your abilities, but the body upgrades relied on modules that had to be found. However, conceptually, the upgrade modules were generally a reward for something, whether it be looking for secrets or remembering a code from earlier, etc. It did also have weapon upgrades placed around the world, though.
"Walk not the trodden path, for it has borne it's burden." -John, Flying Monk
Koen
Koen
System Shock 2 or Bioshock.
Moe
Moe
I was going to say Deus Ex, but I'm more inclined to say System Shock (even though I haven't played it). The reason I say System Shock is the dialog in Deus Ex was two way - you could pick the responses to question, etc. rather than only having people talk to you and an imagined reply.
JSoftware
JSoftware
I would guess Deus Ex
Sp00n00n
Sp00n00n
Sounds awfully like Deus Ex
Sirisian
Sirisian
yeah Deus Ex was what first came to mind. Bioshock is another one.
Mantrid
Mantrid
deus ex or fallout 3
Crehl
Crehl
Interesting..

I originally thought more people would say Bioshock, because of how much more recent it is, and how much more widespread it currently is than DX.

I did this because I read a fair number of reviews, yet none seemed to mention Deus Ex. At all. After playing through Bioshock, I realised just how many elements seemed to crop up in both. The whole idea was to see if people picked up on this, and I guess people here do attribute (Mostly) Deus Ex/SS2 as being the origin of a lot of elements in Bioshock.

I'm also glad people haven't forgotten the game that, as far as I know, was one of the first FPSRPGs. I haven't played any of the System Shocks, but I gather they were of a similar nature at roughly the same time.

Moe; you're absolutely right - but there was some one-way dialogue in the form of the infolink.

Thanks everyone!

[Edit]Upon reading Wikipedia, it seems that SS2 did indeed come before (And influence), Deus Ex. Now there's a game I want to play more than Fallout3, regardless of graphics.
Koen
Koen
Quote:
Original post by Crehl
Upon reading Wikipedia, it seems that SS2 did indeed come before (And influence), Deus Ex. Now there's a game I want to play

You should. There even are mods for hi-res textures and models to make it prettier. Never tried them though.
This thread seems to indicate I should replay Deus Ex. Don't remember hacking security cameras when I played it...
OrangyTang
OrangyTang
Quote:
Original post by Crehl
At all. After playing through Bioshock, I realised just how many elements seemed to crop up in both. The whole idea was to see if people picked up on this, and I guess people here do attribute (Mostly) Deus Ex/SS2 as being the origin of a lot of elements in Bioshock.

I'm also glad people haven't forgotten the game that, as far as I know, was one of the first FPSRPGs. I haven't played any of the System Shocks, but I gather they were of a similar nature at roughly the same time.

The development of the System Shock games, Deus Ex games and Bioshock are all quite tightly interwoven. Looking Glass Studios developed System Shock, and co-developed the sequel with Irrational (who would later get bought out and be renamed 2k Games and develop Bioshock). After Looking Glass went bust a lot of the staff moved to Ion Storm and developed the Deus Ex games (Theif, another Looking Glass game also had a sequel developed by Ion Storm).

IIRC the timeline is System Shock, System Shock 2, Deus Ex, Deus Ex 2, Bioshock. Although obviously there's a whole lot of overlap in development time.

It's not surprising there's a lot of common ground between the games. [grin] For bonus points, track the evolution of the HUD, GUI and controls from the hideously complicated mess that was System Shock to the refined elegance of BioShock.
Moe
Moe
Quote:
Original post by Crehl
Moe; you're absolutely right - but there was some one-way dialogue in the form of the infolink.


Ah, yes, I had forgotten about that.

One thing you need to keep in mind about the results of your curiosity test is the crowd you are talking to. A lot of people here are probably a lot more familiar with some of the older titles, as well as having more of a perspective of game developers/designers.

Very interesting experiment though.
shurcool
shurcool
The first thing that came to my mind (especially after reading the 2nd point) was Deus Ex.

After reading more points, it was still Deux Ex until I read "-The game conveys some (But not all) of the storyline through one-way dialogue you receive at particular points in the game." That kinda threw me off, although it is true there is *some* one-way dialogue (reading infocubes, newspapers, hacking computers and reading email, etc.). But it's not the main type (at least not what drives the story forward).

Everything else matched up nicely.

I did think of System Shock/System Shock 2 also... But I was still gonna say Deux Ex.

BioShock didn't even come to my mind until I saw the first reply (since it was on my screen). But I wasn't gonna mention it because 1) I didn't like BioShock (only played the demo) 2) that's why I didn't know that much about it.
acemuzzy
acemuzzy
LittleBigPlanet?

Oh no, I haven't published that level yet...
Positronic Arts [blog]

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