Mystery GOG countdown (now general GOG discussion)

[raydude]

Starfleet Bridge Commander

I'll take one, please. Seriously I hope they release this. I missed out the first time and I don't want to jump through hoops just to get it to work on my current machine.

[Laner]

A Win7/64-bit/3D accelerator-compatible version of Interstate 76 please...

[Bullwinkle]

Time will tell if this shifts away from the yawn state, but if they're leading with these two, I'm not holding my hopes up.

However, if they get I76 up, I will be gleeful.

[Blackjack]

The 1998 Battlezone game is a "lost classic" I wouldn't mind re-visiting. It probably suffered from over-ambition (RTS meets Wargame meets FPS) and I don't think the audience of the time knew what to make of it.

I believe a lot of interesting shooters like Raven's Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force, Heretic I/II and Hexen were Activision-published titles, though maybe iD has some rights to those now. The MechWarrior games could still be fun.

This Activision-Blizzard Timeline at their Investors' site can give you some idea of what Activision titles might be available through GoG. It doesn't list games so much, but lists various developers that Activision got the publishing rights for.
http://investor.activision.com/timeline.cfm

[raydude]

The 1998 Battlezone game is a "lost classic" I wouldn't mind re-visiting. It probably suffered from over-ambition (RTS meets Wargame meets FPS) and I don't think the audience of the time knew what to make of it.

I completely forgot about that. I had a lot of fun playing that game. Its a shame it didn't take off. I'd buy it and play it again as well.

[Old Negus]

Problem with the announcement is, I didn't (and a lot of other people probably didn't) realize that Activision owns the rights to the Sierra catalog. Activision, sure that's decent. But getting the Sierra games is pretty huge for me at least. Great news overall though. I'd love to get a Leisure Suit Larry game or two. I just may pick up Gabriel Knight.

Oh yeah, wasn't The Incredible Machine Sierra too?

[Huw the Poo]

I was right, the server was down at 11:00.  They did get it back up in a few minutes though, fair play to them.

Apparently GOG have the rights to about 20 Activision titles, all of which will be revealed throughout February.  They have also said that they should shortly be acquiring the rights to many more, and that the floodgates are more or less open now.  Also, signing Activision means it will be a hell of a lot easier signing other major publishers.  2010 is going to be a spectacular year for those of us who love good old games!

[TK-421]

A Win7/64-bit/3D accelerator-compatible version of Interstate 76 please...

Yes please!

[Blackjack]

The 1998 Battlezone game is a "lost classic" I wouldn't mind re-visiting. It probably suffered from over-ambition (RTS meets Wargame meets FPS) and I don't think the audience of the time knew what to make of it.

I completely forgot about that. I had a lot of fun playing that game. Its a shame it didn't take off. I'd buy it and play it again as well.

I really couldn't get into it or even Bridge Commander (I think I still have both boxes and CDs), but I suppose for pocket change and the promise the updated versions would run on my 64-bit Vista system without headaches, I'd be willing to give them a second shot.  

Oh yeah my earliest gaming days were inundated with Sierra, Microprose and Lucasarts titles. I still think the earliest Front Page Sports titles (true, PC-only football titles mind you) would compare favorably with EA's various glitzier football games.

[Razgon]

Battlezone II was one of my all time favorites...would love to replay that

[Crawley]

A Win7/64-bit/3D accelerator-compatible version of Interstate 76 please...

Yes please!

GameTap had (or may still have) Interstate 76, the Nitro pack, and Interstate 82.

<killjoy>

As much as I had fond memories of I76 the game did not hold up well. The graphics are lot worse than I recall and the controls are horribly complex by today's standards. I played a few missions before realizing I just wasn't having any fun and it was better to remember the game as how it was than how it is now.

</killjoy>

[Daehawk]

I loved Battlezone. Not when it was new but years later when I got it in a trade. I remember BZ2 supposed to be even better but I didn't really like it as much.

[skystride]

How is Arcanum?  I was interested in it but the reviews at the time were kinda meh.

[Huw the Poo]

Another major publisher deal coming in March.

[morlac]

How is Arcanum?  I was interested in it but the reviews at the time were kinda meh.

Conceptually it was brilliant.  Great dialogue, oozed atmosphere, interesting character build choices.  Bugs and poor balancing killed it.  It could have been an all time great imo.  That being said it has a good hardcore following that has done some serious modding to it and ironed out some of the issues but I never bothered to revisit.

[MonkeyFinger]

There's a major 'unofficial patch' here and mention of the same author having a High Resolution Patch but all the links I can find so far for it are dead. 

[Blackjack]

Blue's pointed out a Neoseeker interview with GOG about Activision and other things:
http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Games/Features/activision_joins_gog/2.html

I have to ask: you've commented previously on getting titles like Planescape and System Shock on board, saying you're trying your best despite the major legal hurdles. Any updates on the situation for the most wanted titles? Is it a "when not if" or "if not when" situation?

    Like I said before, we're aiming to offer games from every publisher that owns such games, so it's definitely a matter of time when the most wanted titles are going to be offered on GOG.com. As you probably know, some games are really hard to get as the rights are spread over two or more companies. If one of the companies isn't interested in making business with us, we reach an impasse and there's nothing we can do.

Nevertheless such situations are very rare and we're doing everything we can to bring back all the desirable games. The deal with Activision is just [more] proof [of] that.

I don't recall if I bought Arcanum or just played its demo. I remember Sierra hawking it mightily as "from the makers of Fallout," but Arcanum was terribly buggy and probably released way prematurely. The Wikipedia entry gives you an idea of how further messed up it became after its patching, and how fans tried to fill the void:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerghan#Patches
I'd doubt GoG's version includes any of fan Drog Black Tooth's post-release patch work.

[Bullwinkle]

You may be able to find patches (including the hi-res one) in this thread it seems: http://www.rpgcodex.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=37576&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=25

Please let me know how it plays/holds up.

I remember being interested in this game, but got scared away by the difficulty/bugs.

[MonkeyFinger]

You may be able to find patches (including the hi-res one) in this thread it seems: http://www.rpgcodex.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=37576&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=25

Please let me know how it plays/holds up.

I remember being interested in this game, but got scared away by the difficulty/bugs.

I'd found the latest (Christmas) version of the unofficial patch but not the others, however links to everything are in that post. 

Not sure I'll buy and play this again, but at least now I have all of the goodies for it.

[Reemul]

http://www.terra-arcanum.com/downloads/

All arcanum stuff available here.

[Bullwinkle]

http://www.terra-arcanum.com/downloads/

All arcanum stuff available here.

Actually, a lot of links on that site lead to 404 pages.  They also have "one time only" downloads, which is bizarre.

[Reemul]

I downloaded everything (i was after) from there tonight. However last night it was a bit snowed under. Also you can't link the downloads, 1 time only download links.

The unoffical Patch, Hi Res graphics and townmaps.

From gog i got the manual, reference card, map and avatars.

Didn't try any mod stuff yet as i haven't actually played the original game yet 

[Vinda-Lou]

I really couldn't get into it or even Bridge Commander (I think I still have both boxes and CDs), but I suppose for pocket change and the promise the updated versions would run on my 64-bit Vista system without headaches, I'd be willing to give them a second shot.  

Oh yeah my earliest gaming days were inundated with Sierra, Microprose and Lucasarts titles. I still think the earliest Front Page Sports titles (true, PC-only football titles mind you) would compare favorably with EA's various glitzier football games.

Blackjack, please send me your copy of Bridge Commander!   
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ps- seriously!  PM me for trade possibilities!

[ROTC1983]

I will be purchasing Arcanum.  Such fond memories of that game

[EddieA]

They've added the next Activision game - Vampire : The Masquerade : Redemption.

[TiLT]

Man, I hated that game. Where Vampire: Bloodlines treated the setting with care, love and respect, Redemption treats it like an obstacle in its quest to provide a Diablo clone. I'm pretty confident they had the design document fully written long before they even knew that the game would be set in the Vampire the Masquerade universe.

Only play this game if you have absolutely no attachment to the setting. Otherwise you'll just end up being frustrated and annoyed.

[baelthazar]

Funny, I actually preferred, in some ways, Redemption to Bloodlines. To me Bloodlines was a FPS with some roleplaying elements and Redemption was more of a straight up roleplaying game. It also pre-dated Neverwinter Nights (at least I think it did) and so it was the first of its kind to have that "DM" multiplayer system.

I may get Redemption and reinstall Bloodlines. I always forget how good both of these games are. To me Bloodlines is the Deus Ex of Vampirism. The community made patch didn't hurt either (anyone have a quick link to that?).

Bael

[MonkeyFinger]

http://www.patches-scrolls.de/vampire_bloodlines.php

[Freezer-TPF-]

I played a bit of Redemption and mostly remember the general clunkiness.  I didn't get very far before something else distracted me.  IIRC the manual for the game is fantastic, with lots of background on the clans.

[Blackjack]

I bought Vampire: The Masquerade in its heyday, and while I appreciated the ambitions as far as "playing as the Dungeon Master," it really didn't come together for me. I remember the rotating camera baffling me on occasion. Plus, I dunno, I think if broadband had been more prevalent back then, the multiplayer might've been a funner experience.

Trivia buffs will remember dev Nihilistic as one of the various failed developers on Starcraft: Ghost
http://www.nihilistic.com/ghost_story.htm

[Huw the Poo]

Christ, that's a disappointing second week.  I thought there'd be a handful of classic games, but all we get is one sub-par RPG?  Bah.  Bah, I say!

[warning]

It was a Diablo-clone but I remember it being relatively story-heavy as well.  I never got out of Vienna to the modern setting.

[Daehawk]

OMG! I just thought of something. What if they bring us a working fixed up Cycberstorm!!??@@@

[CeeKay]

Christ, that's a disappointing second week.  I thought there'd be a handful of classic games, but all we get is one sub-par RPG?  Bah.  Bah, I say!

I'm hoping they make up for it with a couple of releases next week.  still, I did buy Vampire.

[Bullwinkle]

OMG! I just thought of something. What if they bring us a working fixed up Cycberstorm!!??@@@

Sweet.  I would be in for that, too, though I'll bet it doesn't hold up well.

[Atragon]

The graphics were better than X-Com's, which I picked up last weekend on the Steam sale, and from dabbling with it a year or two ago, the gameplay held up pretty well, so it should work out fairly well.

[MonkeyFinger]

OMG! I just thought of something. What if they bring us a working fixed up Cycberstorm!!??@@@

Sweet.  I would be in for that, too, though I'll bet it doesn't hold up well.

I don't recall Cyberstorm needing to be "fixed up". Were there issues with it I'm not remembering? 

[CeeKay]

Speaking of old Activision games I'd love to see the Heavy Gear games.

[Daehawk]

Speaking of old Activision games I'd love to see the Heavy Gear games.

Oh ya forgot those. Never played anything other than the demo for the 2nd one. I loved the first one though. Tried to get it to run recently. Nope.

[kronovan]

Speaking of old Activision games I'd love to see the Heavy Gear games.

Oh ya forgot those. Never played anything other than the demo for the 2nd one. I loved the first one though. Tried to get it to run recently. Nope.

I'd actually love to see a Heavy Gear game that would run on any of my PC's - the last in that series would crash on any computer running a Sound Blaster sound card. Considering it was released at a time when Sound Blaster had about 90% of the audio card market, that isn't saying too much about the quality of the game's development or testing. If GOG managed to get a final fixed version of that game, that would be something to be happy about indeed.