Knocked Planescape off the list a little while ago. Quite good, especially considering when it came out. Combat is obviously a bit of a drag, but the general quality of writing makes up for part of that at least. It also just has a staggering number of unique characters around that you can talk to. The sheer quantity really surprised me.
One thing that struck me as odd was the game's pacing and structure. It throws a lot at you very fast, and the amount of people you can talk to is quite overwhelming. It keeps up that breadth right until like seventy percent into the game, whereupon it funnels you into the endgame for the remaining time. It felt a little jarring. Perhaps if the remaining places you went to were comparably open like the earlier ones? But then there wouldn't be a sense of urgency, I suppose. The introduction of an entirely new companion so late into the game was also a little strange. I didn't pick them up, because I was pretty happy with my team. I did take a moment to read up on them, and they seem kinda cool.
What I enjoyed most was probably the scene-setting, the really imaginative lore and everything about TNO's character. He is one of the more interesting protagonists I've encountered, and the game does the whole amnesiac bit quite well despite it being such a common design trope. Disco Elysium of course comes to mind and how that game also integrated this well-worn concept into the fabric of the story, character and game design. The companions I was not too excited by, personally. Dak'kon is the one standout with his rich history and connection to TNO. He seems to be the most complex character in terms of content about him and interactions with the player-character compared to all the rest. Perhaps that isn't quite true in terms of raw word count, but he feels like the single most meaningful companion that joins you. I generally liked Morte as well. The rest not so much.
I'm glad to have played this. The overall experience is still quite strong after all this time, and it's nice to have a reference point like this when thinking about other RPGs. Disco Elysium in particular feels like it built a lot on the ideas in here, as the designers themselves had said. Having been able to see that and thinking about the stuff that DE doesn't differently and why that may be the case was half the fun. Playing Planescape highlighted just how much thought and expertise went into Disco, and it intensified my appreciation of that game even more. So yeah. Great game. Relevant even today!
One thing that struck me as odd was the game's pacing and structure. It throws a lot at you very fast, and the amount of people you can talk to is quite overwhelming. It keeps up that breadth right until like seventy percent into the game, whereupon it funnels you into the endgame for the remaining time. It felt a little jarring. Perhaps if the remaining places you went to were comparably open like the earlier ones? But then there wouldn't be a sense of urgency, I suppose. The introduction of an entirely new companion so late into the game was also a little strange. I didn't pick them up, because I was pretty happy with my team. I did take a moment to read up on them, and they seem kinda cool.
What I enjoyed most was probably the scene-setting, the really imaginative lore and everything about TNO's character. He is one of the more interesting protagonists I've encountered, and the game does the whole amnesiac bit quite well despite it being such a common design trope. Disco Elysium of course comes to mind and how that game also integrated this well-worn concept into the fabric of the story, character and game design. The companions I was not too excited by, personally. Dak'kon is the one standout with his rich history and connection to TNO. He seems to be the most complex character in terms of content about him and interactions with the player-character compared to all the rest. Perhaps that isn't quite true in terms of raw word count, but he feels like the single most meaningful companion that joins you. I generally liked Morte as well. The rest not so much.
I'm glad to have played this. The overall experience is still quite strong after all this time, and it's nice to have a reference point like this when thinking about other RPGs. Disco Elysium in particular feels like it built a lot on the ideas in here, as the designers themselves had said. Having been able to see that and thinking about the stuff that DE doesn't differently and why that may be the case was half the fun. Playing Planescape highlighted just how much thought and expertise went into Disco, and it intensified my appreciation of that game even more. So yeah. Great game. Relevant even today!
