| What games are only half games? | |
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+3gruefeeder hatshepsut HandsFree 7 posters |
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HandsFree Swashbuckling Globetrotter
Posts : 345 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2009-12-29
| Subject: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 5:16 pm | |
| When I start a new game, obviously I don't want to know how it ends. I've however been caught off-guard a few times by a game the just stopped halfway through the story. I don't mind if this happens when I know about it (as was the case with A Vampyre Story), but otherwise I feel, err mislead in buying a game that's only half a game. Most recently this happened with Secrets of Atlantis that abruptly stopped nowhere near Atlantis, slightly suggesting there might be more adventure later. I'm not talking about ambiguous or open endings, just the games that are clearly only the first part of a story. I much prefer to know I'm starting half a game than to find out afterwards. I don't know if these are considered spoilers, but what are the games that end without finishing the story? The ones I know about: Aura Fate of Ages Dracula Resurrection Legend of the prophet and the assassin Runaway 2 Secrets of Atlantis Syberia Tex Murphy overseer Vampyre Story Zelenhgorm | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 6:39 pm | |
| It is a letdown to play all the way through a game to discover it's not the end. And sometimes the next game is never made so you never know the end.
The Forgotten
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gruefeeder Opportunist Explorer
Posts : 73 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2010-07-28 Location : USA
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 7:51 pm | |
| Actually these are 1/3 games: Aura Fate of Ages Runaway 2
And these are parts of a series, so may be 1/5 games or less: Tex Murphy: Overseer Zelenhgorm The Forgotten
Vampyre Story -- It depends on whether the next installment is the last or not. I think I read somewhere that it was going to be 3 parts, but that may have changed.
Secrets of Atlantis -- Most of the Atlantis games were self-contained, even though they're sort of parts of a series. But I can't remember if the latest one had an ending on it.
And don't forget Dreamfall, which is half a game -- or probably less if they're going to put it out in chapters. | |
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mindysue Daredevil Pioneer
Posts : 582 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2010-02-07 Location : Land of Lincoln, USA
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 9:32 pm | |
| About Syberia, it did have an ending even though not the one that most gamers wanted. We wanted the game to go on with Kate Walker, right? But the story wasn't really about her, it was about Hans finding the Mammoths, and when he did, the story ended. Probably why Benoit Sokol wasn't interested in making Syberia 3 (moving on with Kate getting back home or off on another adventure) and instead went on to make different games. | |
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GreyFuss Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 1948 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2009-12-13 Location : Iron Age
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 9:43 pm | |
| I agree with you total Mindysue in that the whole Syberia story was about Hans and his childhood quest for the mammoths with Kate's help and that the series was wrapped up very well. However when playing the first game, Syberia, I had no idea that it would end so abruptly and that the story was to be continued. My mouth actually dropped when the last scene was Kate running for the train and the end of part 1. That was the longest I ever waited for an ending to a game to appear and was thrilled when Syberia II finally released. Will always have a special place in my gaming heart for this game (counting both 1 & 2 as one game) | |
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HandsFree Swashbuckling Globetrotter
Posts : 345 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2009-12-29
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 11:13 pm | |
| Yes, maybe Syberia 2 had an ending, but Syberia definitely didn't have one. I was so annoyed by it that I never tried Syberia 2 (didn't like the first game anyway).
Gruefeeder: I don't mind if a game is part of a series, as long as the games are self-contained. The first Runaway was, so I was surprised the second stopped in the middle of the story. I assume it is wrapped up in part 3, but I haven't played that one yet. I thought Aura 2 had a satisfying ending, finishing the story of part 1. As far as I know the Tex Murphy games are also self-contained, apart from Overseer that is. I just finished Secrets of Atlantis and that's the cause of this thread. I stops long (?) before your objective is reached. I had no idea that would happen, so that's why I'm asking what games do this. I didn't know about Dreamfall. Is that one unfinished as well?
Hatshepsut: now that you mentioned it, I had heard about The Forgotten. Have you played it? | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 11:23 pm | |
| HandsFree yes I have played The Forgotten. It was a very good game play. I liked it very much and enjoyed it but it stopped before finishing the story. Sadly the sequel or sequels were never made and leaves one wondering about the rest of the story. I knew about the game before I played it but I was still surprised it ended so abruptly.
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gruefeeder Opportunist Explorer
Posts : 73 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2010-07-28 Location : USA
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Wed Aug 11, 2010 11:38 pm | |
| - HandsFree wrote:
- I didn't know about Dreamfall. Is that one unfinished as well?
It's got the worst collection of cliffhangers I've ever seen in a game. Every character who you play in the game is left with a cliffhanger. | |
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GreyFuss Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 1948 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2009-12-13 Location : Iron Age
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 12:20 am | |
| I Believe that The Forgotten was billed as an introduction of what the bigger game was to be. Sort of like a feeler or Demo. I enjoyed it as it has many of the elements that I like in a game. I wonder what the developers reasons were for not going ahead with the project. I would be interested in knowing. I think the game could still work if they chose to make a game today or to make it a joint effort.
As far as Tex Murphy Overseer goes wasn't that an updated version of the first (or second) Tex Murphy game? I thought the story was some kind of prequel to Killing Moon and Pandora.
This thread also brings to light the reasons why all these episodic adventure games that seem to be in the works lately aren't a good idea in my book as they are doomed to not be finished to view the complete story. | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 1:34 am | |
| GreyFuss The Forgotten: It Begins was the first episode in a planned episode of games. The rest of the episodes were written. The rest of the episodes could still be made today. The problem was that the game was developed by a two man working in a five man design firm. The two developers parted ways with each other not on the best of terms and with the company. He doesn't own rights to the game, I assume the firm does. He says he would like to finish the game if he could obtain the rights. There is an interesting interview with him Here
I believe you correct about Tex Murphy Overseer.
hatshepsut
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HandsFree Swashbuckling Globetrotter
Posts : 345 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2009-12-29
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 9:12 am | |
| Overseer was a remake of Mean Streets. I haven't played that game (tried but got stuck on the first screen). Does anyone know if Means Streets ends with the same cliffhanger as Overseer? And is the story completed in Martian Memorandum? I always thought it wasn't, because the makers often said they felt bad about how the series ended.
Actually I think Tex met Chelsee in Under A Killing Moon, and she was also in Overseer, so maybe the order of the games was not chronologically? | |
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SuperEdy Speculative Fortune-Hunter
Posts : 160 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2010-01-07 Location : Europe
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 3:47 pm | |
| What about Still Life? It breaks the golden rule of every detective story: the identity of the culprit is revealed at the end. HandsFree, I read "The Tex Murphy Radio Theater" tells how the Overseer story continues, better than waiting for the 6th part | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 4:43 pm | |
| HandsFree yes I have played Mean Streets and it didn't end in a cliffhanger. Let me try to clarify Overseer a bit because you are both correct. Overseer was not actually a remake of Mean Streets it was a different story that involved the retelling of Tex's first case Mean Streets. And it ended in a cliffhanger as a sort of prequel to two other Tex games that were planned at the time ( not Under a Killing Moon and Pandora. But two new games to continue the series)
Overseer was developed because Intel wanted to bundled a Tex game with some of it's software. The bundle was dropped and Acess went ahead and released the game on their own with the intention of quickly releasing the next game. Acess lost the the rights to the Tex Murphy series in a 1998 Microsoft buy out. In 2004 Microsoft sold Acess and the rights to Overseer to Take-Two Interactive who then renamed the studio Indie Built. Indie Built closed their doors in 2005 and rights to Tex Murphy reverted back to some of the Acess team. In 2009 there was talk and hints from Aaron Conners and Chris Jones of continuing the series with the next game but there hasn't been any news in over a year.
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Lady Kestrel Daredevil Pioneer
Posts : 672 Reputation : 1 Join date : 2009-12-13 Age : 76 Location : NJ
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 8:07 pm | |
| I think cliff hangers are way over used in all types of media. Every tv series ends with a cliff hanger until the following season, and many books and movies in a series do, too. As a gimmick to get people to continue the series, it's really getting old. If it's well written, people will want to see more. They don't need to be tortured until the next season, book, or movie appears.
Most of the older adventure games I've played, with the exception of The Forgotten, have had self-contained stories, but I have noticed that many of the casual "adventure light" and "adventure HOGs" are using the "to be continued" ploy at the end. Give the story a good, solid ending, but leave the way open to continue. | |
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GreyFuss Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 1948 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2009-12-13 Location : Iron Age
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 8:10 pm | |
| - Lady Kestrel wrote:
- Give the story a good, solid ending, but leave the way open to continue.
I like that...well said | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Thu Aug 12, 2010 9:44 pm | |
| I agree Lady Kestrel when I get to the end I want to know what the end is. So many times with the cliff hangers by the time I see or read or play the second part I have forgotten the first part.
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mindysue Daredevil Pioneer
Posts : 582 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2010-02-07 Location : Land of Lincoln, USA
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Fri Aug 13, 2010 2:18 am | |
| Oh gosh, I'm sorry about not realizing that the wait between Syberia 1 and Syberia 2 could have been frustrating or annoying, because it never happened to me. I didn't know anything about Syberia until my husband's friend phoned and mentioned the game to him in March, 2005. Tom no longer plays any games, and I hadn't played any in about 5 years at that time, so I didn't know anything about it, thought it had something to do with Russia since I only heard the name. So anyway, I decided to try it and when I went to buy it Syberia 2 was already out, and not even knowing anything about the game, I opted to buy both. How lucky was that? Played the games back-to-back and for me it was just like one truly terrific game! I did end up wanting to know more about Kate and somehow continuing her story, but I also read an interview with Benoit Sokol saying that he had no plans for a third game. I kept hoping he would change his mind, but he had other games he wanted to make. Sorry to say I didn't like and never finished either of his next 2 games. Wonder if he is working on another game now? | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Fri Aug 13, 2010 3:38 am | |
| mindysue you were lucky to play Syberia and Syberia II back to back. I also played them back to back and I'm glad that I didn't have that long wait between games.
Of the last three games Benoit Sokal made after Syberia II, which two didn't you like ?
When Microids was developing Syberia III they convinced Sokal to help in development. In April after Anuman Interactive took over Microids Anuman Interactive added Syberia III to it's catalog saying it was being prepared for release. The last news was that Sokal was continuing to work on the project with an expected 2011 release.
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mindysue Daredevil Pioneer
Posts : 582 Reputation : 0 Join date : 2010-02-07 Location : Land of Lincoln, USA
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Fri Aug 13, 2010 4:50 am | |
| I only know of 2 games: Paradise and Sinking Island that were made after Syberia. Those are the 2 that I tried to play, but couldn't finish, and didn't really care for them to try too hard. There is another game that I've read about, Amerzone, I think it is called, but I thought that one was made before Syberia.
As for Syberia 3, I read about it, first as an April Fool's joke and then later as something more serious, but I will only believe it when and if it ever happens. I think it could be just rumors placed to see how much interest there is out there for such a game. Sort of like the talk about making an Indiana Jones 5 movie. Somebody posted that by the time it is made it will be named Indiana Jones and the Nursing Home of Doom. Which shows how much faith I have in ever seeing another Syberia or Kate Walker game. | |
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hatshepsut Adventurer Extraordinaire
Posts : 3922 Reputation : 3 Join date : 2009-12-13
| Subject: Re: What games are only half games? Fri Aug 13, 2010 5:16 am | |
| Amerzone was made before Syberia. I believe that Skoal was only credited with assisting on the design of Amerzone and not the actual development.
After Syberia Sokal developed Paradise, Sinking Island and Nikopol.
I guess only time will tell whether Syberia III is just rumor or not. I do hope that some of the other games Anuman Interactive acquired from Microids get finished and released.
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