Posted April 13, 2022
Let's face it, some games were held together with duct tape and hope. Some had enhanced editions, some had source ports, others had enhanced rereleases. So, I thought I'd have a bit of casual fun of mentioning several games, the reasons not to play the originals, and what instead to go with.
Deux EX: Don't get me wrong, Deus Ex is a genre defining giant and still plays very well. Getting it to run though, is rather like herding cats. There's also a small laundry list of potential quality of life improvements, so I suggest either using a launcher or the ever popular GMDX.
System Shock: Bearing in mind this originally came out for Floppy Disks on the publisher's insistence, (much to the ire of the developers), and while the Classic edition runs just fine, do bear in mind that the controls are closer to a computer workstation on wheels than an actual person. Night Drive's Enhanced Edition goes a long way towards making the game control as a game, though some are miffed that it did take over the role of several extant mods and source ports.
I would also consider suggesting the Shockolate Source Port, if not for the simple fact that said port is so early into development as to be a "some assembly required" kind of deal.
Descent I & II: Technically speaking, these two are perfectly functional, if a little held back by their DOS based design. While the lead developer of DDX Rebirth recently retired, the source ports are largely mature and code stable.
OpenRCT2 completely replaces the need for the original games. It can be windowed, it can run at modern resolutions, it's made by people who understand you want to have fun (so it isn't cheat resistant), and there's a boatload of bugfixes and enhancements (including a new save format where you'd have to be trying to run out of room.)
The vast majority of IdTech 0-4, & Build Engine games. "Does it Run Doom" isn't an enduring joke of the internet without merit; the innumerable amount of devices running the classic demon slaying FPS is boggling to be sure. And this is largely helped due to the absurd number of source ports for the games running on the various iDtech engines. This may be something of a Super Shotgun approach, but take your pick from the armory. Be it something close to vanilla like Chocolate Doom, or deeply modified like GZDoom.
Caesar III: Impressions games are quite up to their developer's namesake. The thing is, they often have a small handful of baffling issues that were never fixed. Augustus and Julius being sister projects, aim to alleviate the headaches of the system so you can deal with the headaches of the people instead; with Augustus bringing save breaking enhancements (such as roadblocks) to the fore, while Julius strives for purity while enhancing though other means.
X-Com & Terror from the Deep are fairly well made games. With some annoying caveats such as a hidden item limit, nightmarish inventory management, and generally being limited by 8 bit integers. OpenXcom by virtue of not being a DOS based system eliminates not only the majority of the stranger bugs (like grenades vanishing) but also the many irksome limitations, allowing for a more proper global coverage. Plus, OpenXcom is far more open to modding than the originals ever were.
In the future, I'd love to see OpenApoc join these hallowed ranks, but as it stands right now, it's but a pre-alpha.
I feel that covers the random smattering of games I wished to cover, how about you throw in your thoughts and suggestions? Maybe highlight out specific source ports for being awesome?
Deux EX: Don't get me wrong, Deus Ex is a genre defining giant and still plays very well. Getting it to run though, is rather like herding cats. There's also a small laundry list of potential quality of life improvements, so I suggest either using a launcher or the ever popular GMDX.
System Shock: Bearing in mind this originally came out for Floppy Disks on the publisher's insistence, (much to the ire of the developers), and while the Classic edition runs just fine, do bear in mind that the controls are closer to a computer workstation on wheels than an actual person. Night Drive's Enhanced Edition goes a long way towards making the game control as a game, though some are miffed that it did take over the role of several extant mods and source ports.
I would also consider suggesting the Shockolate Source Port, if not for the simple fact that said port is so early into development as to be a "some assembly required" kind of deal.
Descent I & II: Technically speaking, these two are perfectly functional, if a little held back by their DOS based design. While the lead developer of DDX Rebirth recently retired, the source ports are largely mature and code stable.
OpenRCT2 completely replaces the need for the original games. It can be windowed, it can run at modern resolutions, it's made by people who understand you want to have fun (so it isn't cheat resistant), and there's a boatload of bugfixes and enhancements (including a new save format where you'd have to be trying to run out of room.)
The vast majority of IdTech 0-4, & Build Engine games. "Does it Run Doom" isn't an enduring joke of the internet without merit; the innumerable amount of devices running the classic demon slaying FPS is boggling to be sure. And this is largely helped due to the absurd number of source ports for the games running on the various iDtech engines. This may be something of a Super Shotgun approach, but take your pick from the armory. Be it something close to vanilla like Chocolate Doom, or deeply modified like GZDoom.
Caesar III: Impressions games are quite up to their developer's namesake. The thing is, they often have a small handful of baffling issues that were never fixed. Augustus and Julius being sister projects, aim to alleviate the headaches of the system so you can deal with the headaches of the people instead; with Augustus bringing save breaking enhancements (such as roadblocks) to the fore, while Julius strives for purity while enhancing though other means.
X-Com & Terror from the Deep are fairly well made games. With some annoying caveats such as a hidden item limit, nightmarish inventory management, and generally being limited by 8 bit integers. OpenXcom by virtue of not being a DOS based system eliminates not only the majority of the stranger bugs (like grenades vanishing) but also the many irksome limitations, allowing for a more proper global coverage. Plus, OpenXcom is far more open to modding than the originals ever were.
In the future, I'd love to see OpenApoc join these hallowed ranks, but as it stands right now, it's but a pre-alpha.
I feel that covers the random smattering of games I wished to cover, how about you throw in your thoughts and suggestions? Maybe highlight out specific source ports for being awesome?
