TOEE -- my heart laments the missed opportunity

I fired up this game for the first time a few days ago, and during the tutorial...the tutorial, mind you...I literally screamed at my computer "YES ! YES ! THIS IS WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR!"

Seriously that part in the tutorial where I entered a room and was confronted with a locked chest reminded me of why I fell in love with D & D about 7 years ago. Then when I had to fight the undead, and I saw that the turn-based style, I knew this game was what I've been looking for all these years.

So why am I sad ?????


I'm sad because I'm afraid that NO ONE ELSE is going to make a game like this in this day and age.

For two main reasons:

1. TOEE was terribly buggy when it first came out, and therefore got less favorable reviews than it truly deserved and way too many negative reviews.

It never became game of the year or anything like that and consequently did not get as much publicity as it would have gotten if it wasn't so buggy. (I learned that one possible reason why it was so buggy is because the developers were given a short time by the evil Atari overlords. I'd rather not go into the blame game though.)

2. All the new RPG's that come out are 3-D games that require top of the line machines to run on full settings.

Despite being a 2-D , 3-D hybrid, I think TOEE has some of the most beautiful atmospheric graphics I've ever seen, not to mention the stunning spell effects. I think that this 2-D artwork style and the top down view (also seen in the Infinity engine games) is best suited for D&D on the computer. I've played neverwinter nights 2 (with many graphics options turned off since I don't have a monster machine) and I was disappointed there. It's not bad (don't get me wrong) but I don't think it captures that "D &D atmosphere" that I get in TOEE. (I know I'm using really vague language here, but hopefully someone can relate.)

I just find myself thinking about the missed opportunity. Had this game been less buggy when it first came out. Had it gotten more attention and favorable reviews. Imagine sequels, or other companies getting the hint and making their own TRULY TURN-BASED style game in the vein of TOEE.

Alas...:cry:

 

Welcome, poeticco8

Most people here agree with everything you say.

Well, what are you waiting to download the Keep on the borderlands??
It's not a simple mod that adds content to ToEE, it's a full new game, using the same engine.

It's a demo, but a good sneak peek of what will be the final game.

 

if BG I and II and Icewind Dale I and II were true turn based games, they would own and i'd still play them. The mod work has made TOEE the best around though.

 

Well, if one of those had the ToEE engine, or ToEE had the same level of development, we could have had true classics of the genre.

I still play IWD II from time to time...the only thing i didn't like much it's the limitation it has on world development.
If you clean a map, then it would stay clean, so rarely you'll visit two times the same place. Also, the linear-guided story it's a bit tiring; no matter much the type of charcters you have, you'll always get the same outcome.
And i always felt that the story went weaker thru the end, at first there are reasons to fight (or not to), but as the game progresses, the game becomes a chain of fights without much development.

Nonethless, it has awesome details, like the different dialogues depending on attributes, race or class (or all at the same time!), the attack on the fortress, or the construction of the golem using the dragon egg, the gnome crafting armor and cloaks...

 

Ah Icewind Dale 2 - truly a mixed bag. I thought it had a wonderful breadth of character-building options, what with all the subraces, deity choices, orders for paladins and monks etc... And I loved the different dialogue choices they put in.

But I completely agree with Half Knight - the plot just got weaker as you went on, and you were left thinking "Why the heck am I doing this again?" The other problem was that it had the problem which TOEE largely avoids - because IWD2 isn't turn-based you ended up with most fights being the same - i.e. charge at the enemy, run weaker characters in circles when someone tries to hit them etc etc

I don't think I ever found a golem constructed from a dragon's egg!! Care to elaborate?

 

Hehe...yeah, the game has that kind of tricks...i've found it the third or fourth time i've played...

Sorry, it's wasn't a dragon. Now that i think, i dunno if you need the egg, tho been a long time since i've played.
Anyways:
When you arrive at the monk's fortress, you'll have to cross the abyss thru a thigh road. You'll see lots of white...wyrms? I don't remember exactly, they look like small dragons. At some point, you'll see a detour of the road, that leads to the wyrm's nest. Loot and you find a red gem iirc, and a wyrm's egg. You can take evrything inside, but if you take the egg, all the wyrn will attack you inmediately.
Keep the egg.
later, on the underdark, when you have to fight the driders, you'll find the alchemist's lab.
And here's the tricky part.
You need a charcter whit really high intelligence and alchemy iirc. Then you could craft a good bunch of stuff, and transmutate potions too. The higher the alchemy/intelligence, the wider the options.
Usually, if you still have the egg, you can craft some kind of powerful potion, but with the right amount of alchemy (and the right items)you'll be able to craft a golem, specifically one of those that guard the lab. To give it life, there's a nasty last trick...but is not that hard to figure


And of course, if you use a drow, with enough social skills you'll eventually run it some Drizz't related dialogue.
I got huge trees of dialogue with a drow by multyclassing him Bard/wizard. The common knowledge of the bard, plus the spellcraft and int of the wizard grants you a good deal of options, if not all.


Btw, i think too that the orders where an awesome feature of the game. I hope Ted implements something like that in KotB

 

Check it here: http://gamebanshee.com/icewinddaleii/walkthrough/driderlair.php

Under No. 4. there is an explanation on how to use alchemists lab in driders lair.

 

Yeah. Imagine if the Grey-Suited Bean Counters had allowed the developers time to finish what they'd started - they might have had a Game of the Year award instead of a reputation for the buggiest pile of crap in history. You got to speculate to accumulate. I thought everybody knew that?

And then - the sequels - imagine importing your level 10 party from ToEE into - what? The Slavelords? The Demonweb Pits? Castle Greyhawk?

Sadly, we will never know...


~

 

Or maybe we will. Just ask here what will be next Co8 mod for ToEE engine and will u be able to import your characters via save game in that module

 

Copy/paste the players folder to MyDocuments then you can put it in any thing you want to play, like Kotb. You could put the players folder on a floppy also. I've got both. Works good.

 

S3 -- Expedition to the Barrier Peaks or, do I dare mention the dread name -- S4/WG4..THARIZDUN

--thearioch

 

Greetings, TOEE fans.

I loved both TOEE and Dark Sun Shattered Lands. However, I preferred Dark Sun to TOEE for three reasons:
- Dark Sun is much bigger in scope (excepted rule-wise).
- Dark Sun's number of bugs can be counted on your fingers.
- Dark Sun is not sluggish.

I have Icewind Dale 1 and 2 but I never could finish them... I went half-way through Icewind Dale 1 then stopped because every fight is so chaotic, so unlike turn-based combat.

I am developing a cRPG with turn-based combat inspired from TOEE and DS. It's called Knights of the Chalice and the website is www.heroicfantasygames.com. Feel free to check it out.

Most of the programming is done but the artist and musician have much to do still.

 

Hello there,

i bought TOEE today (for a total of 3 Euros!) and I'm about to install the game. Which mods and patches do you consider useful for an enjoyable first playthrough? Thanks for your help.

edit: if you could link them right here, that would be great.

 

Really? Are you sure its genuine?