so@duke.cs.duke.edu (Steve Owen) (05/04/91)
In article <CMM.0.88.673216757.francis@wolfman.cis.ohio-state.edu> francis@CIS.OHIO-STATE.EDU (RD Francis) writes: >OK, I *know* that the interface sucks *badly*. Taking that as a given, there >are two *other* things I'd like to know: > >1) Theoretically, this is playable on a 1-bit monitor (like my lowly Mac >Plus has). However, is it playable on a 1-bit monitor in practice? > I can't answer this since I have been playing in color on a IIsi. >2) Ignoring the interface, how is the game itself? In particular, how is it >by comparison to Proving Grounds... and Knight of Diamonds? > I've been trying to hide it, but I'm coming out of the closet. Yes, I admit it, I actually LIKE the game. There, I've said it. You're probably going to get a lot of "Just Say No" responses to your question, but I feel that below the terrible interface lies a great game. I haven't played Knight of Diamonds, but I finished Proving Grounds. The Bane gaming system is much more sophisticated. For example, there are multiple modes of attack, various skills that can be developed by practice and level advancement, hiding & backstabbing, different levels of power at which a spell can be cast, etc. There is much more problem solving; Proving Grounds seemed to be mostly hack & slash. Also, the layout of the environment is much more realistic. What I mean by this is that in Proving Grounds, each level fit into a uniform size grid that wrapped from one edge to the opposite edge, and you could always determine where you were in the grid by a coordinate system. In Bane, the maps are much more realistic (it actually looks like a castle) and there is no artificial coordinate system. Also, I like the way you can talk to NPCs. I've never seen this in a role-playing game before. These are some examples of how the game system has "grown up". I'm sure I could think of others (such as the procedures for picking locks and disarming traps), but you get the idea. One nice thing I can say about the interface in comparison to other games I have played (Wiz I, Bard's Tale I, Citadel, Might & Magic I) is that it is in color. By the way, I find the game much more playable in keyboard mode with the annoying sound effects turned off. Disclaimer: I'm not trying to put down Proving Grounds; I just like Bane better. Feel free to disagree, but let's not start a flame war. All of this is IMHO. I hope people who disagree will let me know; I would like to know their thoughts. But remember, we're talking about the game system, not the interface. So far, in all the criticism I've seen of Bane, none of it has been directed at the game system. Summary: I understand that many people can't tolerate the interface. This is reasonable; we in the Mac world have come to expect better. It's a shame that the programmers were so apathetic about this aspect of the game. But if you can tolerate the interface, you'll find the rest of the game to be great! Steve -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+- Steve Owen ARPA: so@cs.duke.edu Department of Computer Science CSNET: so@duke Duke University UUCP: {mcnc,decvax}!duke!so Durham, NC 27706 USA "In a society where everyone thinks alike, very little thinking is done." "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." - Albert Einstein -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
David.Granite@p911.f421.n109.z1.FidoNet.Org (David Granite) (05/05/91)
I haven't played Bane of the cosmic forge, but it did win questbuster's Quest of the year award. The author is the same one who wrote Wizardry 6 (the last of the wizardry games to ever be done apparently) Wizardry 1 and 2 were written by different people (woodhead & greenberg) Wizardry6 has not yet been ported to the mac system, but from the description of Bane it sounds as though they use the same game system. I met Bradley(the author of wiz 6 and Bane) and one thing he mentioned was to always say hello or hail to any new NPC you run into, instead of just attacking blindly as was my habit in the earlier Wizardries. * Origin: The Clone: Macintosh Things - 301-946-8677 (1:109/421.911)