Archived from groups: rec.games.roguelike.misc,rec.games.roguelike.development (More info?)
Having just purchased a new computer for the first time in eight
years, one of the first things I did was download two bright young
roguelikes which my old computer found a bit too demanding to run at a
good speed. These are my thoughts on them.
H-World is looking good. The last version I'd seen was "not ugly". The
latest graphics are nice and do help set a mood. However, while
H-World has come along nicely as an engine, the Jungle game provided
as a sample of how it can be used is still lacking. (Hajo: I don't
have time to learn to use H-World and actually add stuff to Jungle
myself right now, but if you want, I can send you some detailed ideas
of things I think would be fairly quick to add [not counting graphics
creation time, of course] and would improve things a bit.) There's
several locations, each is distinctive in feel thanks to graphics and
content, but they seem to use the same dungeon generator, which makes
the differences seem superficial once you've spent some time wandering
around different places in the same basic pattern.
One aspect of graphics that may need some improvement is leaving
images of creatures where they were last seen. This only came up with
respect to my mule, but there were a *lot* of mules in some corridors,
visually speaking. Items purchased from traders which don't fit into
my pack seem to just disappear. Missile weapons still need improvement
and magic is still just items (and pretty much stuff we've seen
before, too). What's here is impressive, but it is still very
obviously a work in progress. I liked looking at it and it was
interesting to wander around in for awhile, but it needs more work to
be a game for players to play, rather than roguelike hobbyists to
admire.
GearHead, on the other hand, is very playable, although there are a
few problems. I still find basic movement clumsy compared to other
roguelikes. (The inertial effects are quite appropriate to huge war
vehicles, but humans and rats really don't need facings and such. I'd
prefer a more standard RL behavior when on foot.) The other problem is
chatting is important, but there's so darned many messages, one can
easily miss one that's actually informative. I'd like some more
documentation, please, not just in-game help. Oh, and I've died
several times, only to be rescued by hospitalization. Okay, I can
continue the game, but I'd rather have a game where the balance didn't
require this sort of rescue. Is there any limit to how many times I
can get shreaded by monsters/heavy weapons and return to normal (well,
except for my low morale and loser rep -- nice touches). The tutorial
elements should have a simple way to turn off so I don't have to see
them again.
Okay, that's the whining about bits I don't much like part. Now the
praise. There's tons of stuff here and it all hangs together pretty
well. For having an actual setting, GearHead beats any other roguelike
I've seen, including ADOM, which is often praised in that regard. Lots
of specific detail, a coherent background and a wilderness map that
doesn't look terribly contrived. Objects come in a wide variety in the
various types, so selection of gear for both yourself and your mech is
interesting. Some UI improvement is possible to make it easier to
compare what's on sale to what you have or to find particular items of
interest. Monsters "destroy" gear, but I think it always is
repairable, so you don't have to worry about shops not stocking
something once you've got it -- that's good and bad, really.
Different cities are different in detail and in important ways, but
there are plenty of similarities, which helps give the impression of a
single shared culture. The chat dialog is amusing and cleverly done,
except for there being too much of it. I love a game where I can check
my email! My sister still has a "--" reaction to me after I paid her
tuition and living expenses for school. That's the only problem I've
had with the NPC reaction behavior; I really think that should have
given a significant boost to how she regarded me. Terrain is
well-used, combat is fun, and there's far too much clever detail to go
into in a quickie review. I have some trouble understanding why rats
carry money, but I can live with that. GearHead is a game developers
and players alike should be checking out.
http://www.geocities.com/pyrrho12/programming/gearhead/index.html
Hyolee wants me to recover the Atomic War Club from a location
"Ziggurat L4". Problem is, I've no idea where to find a Ziggurat. I've
explored much of the map, but there are a few corners I haven't been
to. Also, the lower right part of the map is blocked by water -- is
there some way across? Can anyone give me a hint where to find the
Ziggurat location? I really should get on this. I need to wash the
stench of defeat off.
Having just purchased a new computer for the first time in eight
years, one of the first things I did was download two bright young
roguelikes which my old computer found a bit too demanding to run at a
good speed. These are my thoughts on them.
H-World is looking good. The last version I'd seen was "not ugly". The
latest graphics are nice and do help set a mood. However, while
H-World has come along nicely as an engine, the Jungle game provided
as a sample of how it can be used is still lacking. (Hajo: I don't
have time to learn to use H-World and actually add stuff to Jungle
myself right now, but if you want, I can send you some detailed ideas
of things I think would be fairly quick to add [not counting graphics
creation time, of course] and would improve things a bit.) There's
several locations, each is distinctive in feel thanks to graphics and
content, but they seem to use the same dungeon generator, which makes
the differences seem superficial once you've spent some time wandering
around different places in the same basic pattern.
One aspect of graphics that may need some improvement is leaving
images of creatures where they were last seen. This only came up with
respect to my mule, but there were a *lot* of mules in some corridors,
visually speaking. Items purchased from traders which don't fit into
my pack seem to just disappear. Missile weapons still need improvement
and magic is still just items (and pretty much stuff we've seen
before, too). What's here is impressive, but it is still very
obviously a work in progress. I liked looking at it and it was
interesting to wander around in for awhile, but it needs more work to
be a game for players to play, rather than roguelike hobbyists to
admire.
GearHead, on the other hand, is very playable, although there are a
few problems. I still find basic movement clumsy compared to other
roguelikes. (The inertial effects are quite appropriate to huge war
vehicles, but humans and rats really don't need facings and such. I'd
prefer a more standard RL behavior when on foot.) The other problem is
chatting is important, but there's so darned many messages, one can
easily miss one that's actually informative. I'd like some more
documentation, please, not just in-game help. Oh, and I've died
several times, only to be rescued by hospitalization. Okay, I can
continue the game, but I'd rather have a game where the balance didn't
require this sort of rescue. Is there any limit to how many times I
can get shreaded by monsters/heavy weapons and return to normal (well,
except for my low morale and loser rep -- nice touches). The tutorial
elements should have a simple way to turn off so I don't have to see
them again.
Okay, that's the whining about bits I don't much like part. Now the
praise. There's tons of stuff here and it all hangs together pretty
well. For having an actual setting, GearHead beats any other roguelike
I've seen, including ADOM, which is often praised in that regard. Lots
of specific detail, a coherent background and a wilderness map that
doesn't look terribly contrived. Objects come in a wide variety in the
various types, so selection of gear for both yourself and your mech is
interesting. Some UI improvement is possible to make it easier to
compare what's on sale to what you have or to find particular items of
interest. Monsters "destroy" gear, but I think it always is
repairable, so you don't have to worry about shops not stocking
something once you've got it -- that's good and bad, really.
Different cities are different in detail and in important ways, but
there are plenty of similarities, which helps give the impression of a
single shared culture. The chat dialog is amusing and cleverly done,
except for there being too much of it. I love a game where I can check
my email! My sister still has a "--" reaction to me after I paid her
tuition and living expenses for school. That's the only problem I've
had with the NPC reaction behavior; I really think that should have
given a significant boost to how she regarded me. Terrain is
well-used, combat is fun, and there's far too much clever detail to go
into in a quickie review. I have some trouble understanding why rats
carry money, but I can live with that. GearHead is a game developers
and players alike should be checking out.
http://www.geocities.com/pyrrho12/programming/gearhead/index.html
Hyolee wants me to recover the Atomic War Club from a location
"Ziggurat L4". Problem is, I've no idea where to find a Ziggurat. I've
explored much of the map, but there are a few corners I haven't been
to. Also, the lower right part of the map is blocked by water -- is
there some way across? Can anyone give me a hint where to find the
Ziggurat location? I really should get on this. I need to wash the
stench of defeat off.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram