The "What should I know before I play this game for the first time?" Q&A!

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DominoRBG: Jul 17, 2010; Puppets, dope rhymes, unfaltering irony and support.

I'm about to start Okage. Anything special I should know?

# ? Jul 18, 2010 05:21

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# ? Apr 20, 2024 02:54

Sentient Toaster: May 7, 2007; Not the fork, Master!

Is there anything I should know about Class of Heroes? I knew it was a Wizardry clone, but the instructions aren't especially helpful aside from a few nice charts. Currently running with valkyrie/samurai/monk/ranger/cleric/evoker. I got insanely lucky and found a death scroll on novice's road that sold for a mountain of cash which I used to get new weapons for everyone. I also figured out I should keep rerolling new characters for 19 or 20 bonus points and that the center slot in the front row seems to take the most hits.

Is there any more really useful info like that? Is my party setup ok? Should I ever consider running a second or third party alongside the main group? It seems like I can run multiple parties through a labyrinth at once, which sounds kind of cool. What's the difference between normal and EX maps?

Edit: Also, traps. I imagine my ranger isn't as good at thief-type things as an actual thief, but is there a way to make it better at detecting which trap is on a chest? She's usually wrong and the rest of the party doesn't know jack about it so I can't even get a general consensus on what it could be.

Sentient Toaster fucked around with this message at 10:48 on Jul 18, 2010

# ? Jul 18, 2010 10:41

Xander77: Apr 6, 2009; Fuck it then. For another pit sandwich and some 'tater salad, I'll post a few more.

quote:

Fallout 2

Ignore throwing completely and all forms of thrown explosives (hoard dynamite wherever you can find it though - it's an excellent lockpick / pest exterminator).

Never give your NPC allies a weapon that can splash or spray - you'll be signing an execution warrant for your squad.

Stealing isn't all THAT useful, but lockpicking is near priceless. Remember that you can also lock doors and handle certain bad guy concentrations one room at a time.

# ? Jul 18, 2010 15:08

Caufman: May 7, 2007

Dragon Age Origins question:

When I play an RPG like this, I like to go through all the dialog options with my party mates as soon as I get them. Am I going to burn through all their dialogs at the start, or will more options be available as the story progresses like in Mass Effect?

# ? Jul 18, 2010 15:52

Universe Master: Jun 20, 2005; Darn Fine Pie

Caufman posted:

Dragon Age Origins question:

When I play an RPG like this, I like to go through all the dialog options with my party mates as soon as I get them. Am I going to burn through all their dialogs at the start, or will more options be available as the story progresses like in Mass Effect?

You won't be able to access a lot of the options until you get their approval ratings up.

# ? Jul 18, 2010 16:04

Barudak: May 7, 2007

Caufman posted:

Dragon Age Origins question:

When I play an RPG like this, I like to go through all the dialog options with my party mates as soon as I get them. Am I going to burn through all their dialogs at the start, or will more options be available as the story progresses like in Mass Effect?

Note the way to boost their approval ratings is with specific treasures you collect along the way. For many characters its hard to figure out exactly what it is they are after (Sten) and for others their really isn't any indication. Just look up a guide to see what treasures go with whom, because if you give treasures to the wrong people all subsequent treasures take a hit in their value.

# ? Jul 18, 2010 16:10

Bemis: Jan 5, 2010

Anything to know about Resonance of Fate? Heard it has a high learning curve.

Caufman posted:

Dragon Age Origins question:

When I play an RPG like this, I like to go through all the dialog options with my party mates as soon as I get them. Am I going to burn through all their dialogs at the start, or will more options be available as the story progresses like in Mass Effect?

You can get a lot of the lines out of the way if you pick the right responses or have gifts ready and get high approval, additional lines will pop up as the game progresses.

# ? Jul 18, 2010 19:02

Largejaroalmonds: Sep 25, 2007

Barudak posted:

Note the way to boost their approval ratings is with specific treasures you collect along the way. For many characters its hard to figure out exactly what it is they are after (Sten) and for others their really isn't any indication. Just look up a guide to see what treasures go with whom, because if you give treasures to the wrong people all subsequent treasures take a hit in their value.

There is actually a mod that changes the item descriptions to reflect the intended recipient. Made the second playthrough a bit easier.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 03:04

zedprime: Jun 9, 2007; yospos

McKracken posted:

I'm about to start Final Fantasy 13.

I've read through the previous tips, I just want clarify about the post end-game, specifically how it works because I can't remember any FF game which has had playable content after finishing the game. Is there anything meaningful to do and did I read correctly that I should wait until this point to upgrade items or do all side-missions?

At the last 1/3 of the game you get access to missions. The difficulty curve kind of expects you do missions 1-28. Its not technically necessary, although you might do a spot of grinding to get up to par, and you'll unlock fast travel if you do the first batch of missions.

When you get to the last dungeon you unlock portals back to various spots of the last 1/3 of the game. These persist after you beat the boss and save. The last dungeon is gone forever after doing it once.

The missions are semi meaningful. You can do a lot before you beat the game, but I saved it for after beating it since you unlock new levels of the sphere grid. The last mission is hard as hell and you'll probably want a 100% finished sphere grid, and there's a bit of grinding involved getting that experience.

After you finish the missions its just grinding for money for the get every item achievement/trophy. Hardly meaningful, but something to do if you like the combat system.

You can safely ignore weapon upgrading until the end of the game, if not post game. There's a robot in the last 1/3 that gives you a shitload of money, and its a valid idea to upgrade weapons to their second form at this point. Before this, if you have an itch to upgrade items, upgrade accessories. Especially early on, upgraded attack and magic accessories can be overpowered.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 03:28

al-azad: May 28, 2009

Sentient Toaster posted:

Is there anything I should know about Class of Heroes? I knew it was a Wizardry clone, but the instructions aren't especially helpful aside from a few nice charts. Currently running with valkyrie/samurai/monk/ranger/cleric/evoker. I got insanely lucky and found a death scroll on novice's road that sold for a mountain of cash which I used to get new weapons for everyone. I also figured out I should keep rerolling new characters for 19 or 20 bonus points and that the center slot in the front row seems to take the most hits.

Is there any more really useful info like that? Is my party setup ok? Should I ever consider running a second or third party alongside the main group? It seems like I can run multiple parties through a labyrinth at once, which sounds kind of cool. What's the difference between normal and EX maps?

Edit: Also, traps. I imagine my ranger isn't as good at thief-type things as an actual thief, but is there a way to make it better at detecting which trap is on a chest? She's usually wrong and the rest of the party doesn't know jack about it so I can't even get a general consensus on what it could be.

You can actually get 40+ bonus points but it's pretty hard to do. The thing to understand about the level up system is that, regardless of how many starting points you pump into characters, their attributes balance of based on their race. Certain races will gradually lose attributes and increase in others even if it goes against their class.

I always kept a second party because it makes things easier. I forget most of the names and details but I always kept around the alchemist who whoever can identify items and there are also certain classes that can cast exclusive spells like float or whatever (makes traps trivial). The best race are the demons or dragon guys because their breath weapon is amazing, hits almost every monster, and levels up with them.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 03:49

Dongattack: Dec 20, 2006; by Cyrano4747

Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker
Starting it rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrright now, what should i know? Already played all the other games except the other PSP games.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 13:03

Spermando: Jun 13, 2009

Dongattack posted:

Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker
Starting it rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrright now, what should i know? Already played all the other games except the other PSP games.

When you're wearing the sneaking suit, enemies can't hear your footsteps.
Fulton as many soldiers and POW as you can. The latter usually have better stats. You will know there's a POW nearby because they groan every once in a while.
If you discard a carboard box from the item menu, you can use it as a makeshift platform.
Always keep your R&D team busy. Although you may think some of the weapons and items are useless, you may regret not having them later on.
When you get to the part where you have to search some trucks, check out all the wrong ones first.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 14:15

Dongattack: Dec 20, 2006; by Cyrano4747

Thanks, thats some good tips. I dont quite get the truck thing, but i have a feeling its one of those things i'll understand when im there.

Is there a point to doing the sidemissions? I never was that interested in marksmanship challenges.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 17:58

Spermando: Jun 13, 2009

Some extra ops have better potential recruits than the story missions you have unlocked so far. Besides, some of them can net you good rewards if you finish them with a high rank.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 19:25

blackguy32: Oct 1, 2005; Say, do you know how to do the walk?

elf help book posted:

I'm getting Saboteur in the mail soon, is anything missable in that game or can I just play however and worry about that at the end?

Just make sure you stealth kill the 5 generals early in the game, because it is actually possible to kill all of them off.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 19:32

YggiDee: Sep 12, 2007; WASP CREW

I've finally figured out that my PSP can download games from the Playstation Network, so I'm going to be playing Metal Gear Solid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for the very first time. I've basically never played any game in either series before, so any advice would be super-awesome.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 19:36

Selane: May 19, 2006

YggiDee posted:

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for the very first time. I've basically never played any game in either series before, so any advice would be super-awesome.

Don't waste money buying the spell scrolls, because you can use the spells even without them, just look up the inputs. Do buy the map, it's cheap and will at least help you find the major areas of the castle before you start looking for the hidden stuff.

You should probably work on mastering the Soul Steal spell as soon as you can afford it. It'll save your life countless times and get you out of all sorts of situations.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 19:44

Bloodcider: Jun 19, 2009

YggiDee posted:

I've finally figured out that my PSP can download games from the Playstation Network, so I'm going to be playing Metal Gear Solid.

- Keeping a ration equipped will automatically use it when you run out of Health. This is much better than dying. You get more health the further you progress in the game, but mostly you want to avoid fights.

- You have two chances to pick up the SOCOM pistol early on before the game automatically gives you one. You can get it in the truck in the heliport, or if you miss it there, the north-east room on the second floor of the tank hanger. Thermal Goggles will be here if you get the Socom outside.

- Cigarettes show hidden lasers but also drain your health (but won't kill you). Thermal goggles also show lasers, and cloaked enemies. Chaff grenades disable your radar but also disable cameras and other electric systems.

- I sort of forget the Playstation controller setup, but I think X is your crouch button and Square is shoot, right? Hold Square to aim without shooting, hold X while aiming to run and aim/shoot at the same time.

- Two punch-punch-kick combos will knock a guard out briefly. Running at them and hitting the Square button will have Snake flip them (this doesn't knock them out in one go and is best for just clearing a path). Standing still behind them and holding Square will put them in a choke hold. You can rapidly slam Square to break their neck. This is probably the best way to kill goons until you get a silencer for your Socom.

- Meryl's codec number is 140.15. Don't worry about looking at the case. Good luck with Psycho Mantis.

- There are two endings, deciding by the outcome to the torture event midway through the game. Each nets you a different, useful reward for a New Game+.

Bloodcider fucked around with this message at 19:51 on Jul 19, 2010

# ? Jul 19, 2010 19:49

Spermando: Jun 13, 2009

YggiDee posted:

Metal Gear Solid

You can run and gun by holding down square and then X.
The handgun fires when you release square.
Try not to use the Socom until you get the supressor.
Everytime you obtain a new keycard, go check out the doors you couldn't open earlier.
Strangle the guards to save ammo (run up to them and tap square repeatedly).
When you have a weapon equiped, tap R1 twice to reload it immediately.
Rations are used automatically when they're equiped.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 19:57

A Real Happy Camper: Dec 11, 2007; These children have taught me how to believe.

Dongattack posted:

Thanks, thats some good tips. I dont quite get the truck thing, but i have a feeling its one of those things i'll understand when im there.

Is there a point to doing the sidemissions? I never was that interested in marksmanship challenges.

There's a final final ending you get for doing all of them. The marksman challenges aren't too important, so you can skip them for now. Also, after the end of Chapter 4, you need to do extra ops to unlock more story missions.

Oh, and when you're managing people in Mother Base, Press Square to select multiple dudes.

Don't stop moving in bossfights unless you're behind cover that you know is good. 90% of the attacks that bosses throw at you can be dodged simply by running.

# ? Jul 19, 2010 20:17

Sentient Toaster: May 7, 2007; Not the fork, Master!

al-azad posted:

You can actually get 40+ bonus points but it's pretty hard to do. The thing to understand about the level up system is that, regardless of how many starting points you pump into characters, their attributes balance of based on their race. Certain races will gradually lose attributes and increase in others even if it goes against their class.

I always kept a second party because it makes things easier. I forget most of the names and details but I always kept around the alchemist who whoever can identify items and there are also certain classes that can cast exclusive spells like float or whatever (makes traps trivial). The best race are the demons or dragon guys because their breath weapon is amazing, hits almost every monster, and levels up with them.

Thanks for this. Also right about the bonus points since I was just given someone with 29 of them. Turns out the evoker is interesting, but way more useful as a second or third class. And yeah, I was a little annoyed when I got to a point where I was required to have so many charges of levitate to make it through an area. It's fortunate that I already had enough.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 00:01

Foxhound: Sep 5, 2007

YggiDee posted:

I've finally figured out that my PSP can download games from the Playstation Network, so I'm going to be playing Metal Gear Solid

Cardboard boxes can be used to quickly ship yourself from one end of the base to the middle and to the other end, remember that you need to have the "return" box if you don't want to walk all the way back though. This can be handy when you get the later security levels of cards to get back and open previously closed doors.

If you have played any other Metal Gear Solid games you probably know this, but call people frequently, do weird stuff to people, call people while you do weird stuff to other people, etc. etc. There aren't as many conversations as in the other games, but the ones that are there are pretty funny nonetheless.
In this vein: Stare down Meryl when you get the chance to stand still with her.

To get safe passage through the wolves: The first time you pass through their lair (or habitat or whatever), punch the girl and quickly equip a cardboard box. A wolf will pee on it and you can run through their lair with it equipped later on without being attacked.

Never be afraid to experiment and bullshit around. The game was released in 1998, but it was still very innovative for its time. It's very satisfying to manage to sneak through a room instead of shooting it up.

Anyone that have any tips for Evil Genius (I read the tips on the wiki)?

Foxhound fucked around with this message at 00:21 on Jul 20, 2010

# ? Jul 20, 2010 00:15

Ainsley McTree: Feb 19, 2004

Foxhound posted:

Anyone that have any tips for Evil Genius?

My only tip is a lame one - find a cheat code and just cheat yourself all the money you need. Scrounging up funds is the most annoying part of that game in my opinion. I had a lot more fun with it when I didn't have to worry about money and I was free to just design my base however I wanted.

I'm playing STALKER - Shadow of Chernobyl for the first time; any tips for that? There seems like there are a lot of things to get used to.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 00:20

Bemis: Jan 5, 2010

Ainsley McTree posted:

My only tip is a lame one - find a cheat code and just cheat yourself all the money you need. Scrounging up funds is the most annoying part of that game in my opinion. I had a lot more fun with it when I didn't have to worry about money and I was free to just design my base however I wanted.

I'm playing STALKER - Shadow of Chernobyl for the first time; any tips for that? There seems like there are a lot of things to get used to.

A lot of people have a hard time and get put off by that first fight. Just take it slow, pick up a shotty, and be patient. Also pay attention to the story, it is easy to miss the true ending.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 00:30

Dr. Video Games 0031: Jul 17, 2004

Foxhound posted:

Anyone that have any tips for Evil Genius (I read the tips on the wiki)?

This may be obvious, or it may frustrate you for an hour before you figure it out (like it did for me). Use right click to issue orders. As in, if you click on an object that can be moved, don't left click on the destination but right click. This goes with most other orders like interrogation/torture. Since everything else was left click, I just kept on left clicking on stuff and was wondering why nobody was ever getting anything done. "No, you useless fucks, MOVE THE BODY BAG TO THE FREEZER" *shoots someone in frustration*

Also, make sure you have the 1.01 patch (should come with steam or gog versions pre-installed), this unofficial patch, and this Bonus CD that's full of goodies like an extra henchman.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 00:32

Aratoeldar: Mar 21, 2005

Any hints/tips for both Dragon Lore games?

# ? Jul 20, 2010 01:29

ToxicFrog: Apr 26, 2008

Ainsley McTree posted:

I'm playing STALKER - Shadow of Chernobyl for the first time; any tips for that? There seems like there are a lot of things to get used to.

Reposting from a few pages ago:

Install STALKER Complete, if your machine can handle it. It's a graphical overhaul + unofficial patch, and since the last official version is buggy as gently caress, you will want this in order to not go insane.

It's been a while since I played Shadow of Chernobyl, so I don't have a lot of general gameplay advice for you. Use food instead of bandages for healing where possible (bandages also cure bleeding, so if you aren't bleeding you don't want to waste them), remember where you saw lots of anomalies so you can come back later and check for artifacts, don't catch too many bullets with your face...

# ? Jul 20, 2010 02:04

baram.: Oct 23, 2007; smooth.

About to start playing Persona 3 Portable.

anyone able to give me a rough guide? which dates have flags where you need specific stats, dates to not miss starting social links etc.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 02:08

Ainsley McTree: Feb 19, 2004

ToxicFrog posted:

Reposting from a few pages ago:

Install STALKER Complete, if your machine can handle it. It's a graphical overhaul + unofficial patch, and since the last official version is buggy as gently caress, you will want this in order to not go insane.

It's been a while since I played Shadow of Chernobyl, so I don't have a lot of general gameplay advice for you. Use food instead of bandages for healing where possible (bandages also cure bleeding, so if you aren't bleeding you don't want to waste them), remember where you saw lots of anomalies so you can come back later and check for artifacts, don't catch too many bullets with your face...

I don't think my computer could handle it, actually

. Are there any other mods that are must-haves? The head-bobbing is driving me nuts, I found a mod for that already.

I have the steam version, if that complicates anything.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 02:11

champagne posting: Apr 5, 2006; YOU ARE A BRAIN
IN A BUNKER

Foxhound posted:

Anyone that have any tips for Evil Genius (I read the tips on the wiki)?

Get to the second island as soon as possible. Before that you won't be able to kill super agents and they'll cause all sorts of trouble. Also don't think you can trap them, they'll move aside a texture and reappear somewhere inconvenient, like your power plant.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 02:16

FUCK COREY PERRY: Apr 19, 2008

Baram posted:

About to start playing Persona 3 Portable.

anyone able to give me a rough guide? which dates have flags where you need specific stats, dates to not miss starting social links etc.

I've been playing it for just over a week now, and honestly you don't need to know that much. The game seems much more fun when you're not planning things out and rather just going with the flow of whoever is talking to you. Talk to you whoever you like, hang out with who you think is cool. There are some tips that help though, namely that the best ways to raise stats are print club (charm), horror house (courage), and quiz game (academics). One of them appears at the arcade every night except Sunday. Also, dunno if this is your first Persona game or not, but don't be afraid to fuse your Personas.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 03:09

ClearAirTurbulence: Apr 20, 2010; The earth has music for those who listen.

Foxhound posted:

Anyone that have any tips for Evil Genius (I read the tips on the wiki)?

Build lots of lockers. You need a lot more lockers than beds, they're the secret to making money. You'll want a big control room and locker room to get profitable before you start doing a lot of the missions.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 03:14

Scalding Coffee: Jun 26, 2006; You're already dead

Where do I add to the henchmen cap in Evil Genius? The limit for each upgrade is too small.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 06:43

Kruller: Feb 20, 2004; It's time to restore dignity to the Farnsworth name!

Boiled Water posted:

Get to the second island as soon as possible. Before that you won't be able to kill super agents and they'll cause all sorts of trouble. Also don't think you can trap them, they'll move aside a texture and reappear somewhere inconvenient, like your power plant.

You can also use the mod that allows sentry guns inside. Build a jail cell with a hallway of death, and as many guns as you can get pointing right at the jails. Whenever a Super Agent breaks out, they'll get the poo poo shot out of them and can be taken right back to jail. Eventually their on island timer will expire, and they'll basically teleport off the island. This will generate a bunch of heat if they saw anything on their way in, however.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 07:02

Banemaster: Mar 31, 2010

Evil Genius

One more point: All empty floors inside your base need to reachable. There is some agent types that love to dig their way behind your generators and destroying them without giving you change to do anything.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 07:45

ArchRanger: Mar 19, 2007; I'm tired of following my dreams, I'm just gonna ask where they're goin' and meet up with 'em there.

Scalding Coffee posted:

Where do I add to the henchmen cap in Evil Genius? The limit for each upgrade is too small.

http://www.strategyplanet.com/evilgenius/TheGame/populationmod.asp

It's pretty simple. I recommend a maximum of 150 or 200, 500 is absolutely ridiculous.

Kruller posted:

You can also use the mod that allows sentry guns inside. Build a jail cell with a hallway of death, and as many guns as you can get pointing right at the jails. Whenever a Super Agent breaks out, they'll get the poo poo shot out of them and can be taken right back to jail. Eventually their on island timer will expire, and they'll basically teleport off the island. This will generate a bunch of heat if they saw anything on their way in, however.

I could only find indoor sentry guns as part of the unofficial patch, which does some nice stuff, but they seem to be glitched. They'll still shoot someone who I've tagged for interrogation, meaning they can't step more than a foot outside the cell before being knocked unconscious again. Is there another way to add them in that I just couldn't find?

# ? Jul 20, 2010 11:32

tight aspirations: Jul 13, 2009

Ainsley McTree posted:

I don't think my computer could handle it, actually . Are there any other mods that are must-haves? The head-bobbing is driving me nuts, I found a mod for that already.

I have the steam version, if that complicates anything.

AFAIK, the steam version is fully moddable. I'd at least try the Complete mod, as it fixes so much stuff, but apart from that there's a quest/job timelimit extender which is very useful.

\/\/\/\/\/ Complete is vanilla, but better. You lose nothing and gain much more.

tight aspirations fucked around with this message at 12:23 on Jul 20, 2010

# ? Jul 20, 2010 11:52

Prosaic: May 20, 2010

Ainsley McTree posted:

I don't think my computer could handle it, actually . Are there any other mods that are must-haves? The head-bobbing is driving me nuts, I found a mod for that already.

I have the steam version, if that complicates anything.

Actually I'd recommend you play through the vanilla version first and then pick a mod based on your personal preferences.

e: Oh, and aim for the head.

# ? Jul 20, 2010 11:59

Fray Joker: Nov 3, 2007; You can fool too many of the people too much of the time.

Ahh, hoping you guys can help me out. I lost a bunch of bookmarks including the wiki for this thread. Can't seem to relocate the URL. Can anyone help me out here?

# ? Jul 20, 2010 12:02

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# ? Apr 20, 2024 02:54

Smirking_Serpent: Aug 27, 2009

House of the Dead: Overkill?

# ? Jul 20, 2010 12:25

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > The "What should I know before I play this game for the first time?" Q&A!

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