What to play after Geneforge?

[askersandask3]

 

I played the Geneforge series, and loved it. I am looking for another of Jeffs series to occupy my time. I was about to get a steam bundle of almost all the still working games but I need offline access that steam does not have available. (I frequently and unexpectedly get several hours of internet interruption) Is it worth getting the original Avernum series (first 6 not including the remade first 3)? or should I get the redone ones and follow the story from there? I mostly like the story being told, is the story expanded/changed with the remake, and do the older ones have issues running at all (I think I am windows 10)

or If you think I should play one of the other games before Avernum let me know.

 

[Ess-Eschas]

Hello askersandask3,
 

Welcome to the forums!
 

As you’re coming from Geneforge, and since you mentioned liking Spiderweb’s storylines, I have a very particular suggestion for you:
 

Nethergate: Resurrection
 

In some senses, I feel this game is the closest in spirit to that of the Geneforge Saga. It has an engaging, thought-provoking storyline, and it might serve as an interesting gateway of sorts to Spiderweb’s other games. It’s a standalone, too, so it’s not a huge investment of your time should it not be to your taste!
 

Story-wise, it deals with the consequences of a repressed group of strong magic-users fighting against a much superior power. You can support whichever side you wish. Sound familiar?
 

Only here, the setting is far closer to home. Nethergate is set on Earth. Specifically, it looks at the Ancient Britons, along with the magical natives of the fair isle, as they fight against the Roman invasion. It’s an interesting game, in some ways quite unique among Spiderweb’s offerings, and it’s well worth your time!
 

Unlike Geneforge, you choose your side at the beginning. So Nethergate is essentially two games in one. The interesting point is that both games are set alongside each other; whichever side you choose, you’ll be competing against a party from the other side. And yes, you even get to meet them!
 

Just to avoid any confusion, ‘Nethergate: Resurrection’ is an updated version of the original ‘Nethergate’, and will run a little more smoothly on modern systems.
 

Also, are you sure that Steam doesn’t allow you offline access? I seem to be able to do that perfectly fine on my end – I can run Steam games offline, and there don’t seem to be any problems with that that I can tell, at least at a simple glance.

[Randomizer]

You might want to download demoes of the games from here to see how much you like them and more importantly see if they will run on your computer. The reason for remakes is older games don't work on some newer computers or players hate the older interface.

 

I agree that Nethergate is a fun choice and is a good transition to the other games.

[askersandask3]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, and the issue is the need for online access to start the offline session through steam.

[Ess-Eschas]

It’s entirely possible that Steam behaves differently on different platforms, so your experience and mine might differ. But it’s probably worth just being clear on this point. Are you absolutely sure?

 

On my version of Steam, if I log in when I have no internet connection, I’m automatically given the option to launch in an offline mode. So I never need an internet connection to access my Steam library. That seems like good design, after all – requiring an internet connection to launch a special mode for when the user has no such connection seems like an odd Catch 22, one that I’m sure the programmers would pick up on.

 

Of course, my version of Steam may behave differently than yours. However, it seems to me there’s no harm in making sure yourself – just in case!

[TriRodent]

21 hours ago, askersandask3 said:

Thanks for the suggestions guys, and the issue is the need for online access to start the offline session through steam.

 

I don't use Steam very much (been a few years actually), but at Good Old Games (GOG.com) you can download all the games & play them completely offline.  They also occasionally have bundles of SW games on sale if you want to keep an eye out for one of those sales while playing Nethergate.

[constructionlaserlevel]

Great idea guy!!

[Falkentyne]

You can try emailing Jeff politely with the proof of purchase of the steam versions and ask him if he can give you a GOG code so you can get the DRM free versions of the games.  But that only makes sense if Steam has some sale going on, otherwise it's just better to buy them on GOG directly.

[Painted Lady]

Regarding your question about which games to play next, I have a slightly different suggestion than others have given. While I have played, and very much enjoyed, Nethergate: R, it is the hardest game for me to really get into because the interface is quite dated.

 

I, too, love Geneforge series. And, after that, I love the Avernum series. And I also really like playing the games in order to keep the story cohesive. So, I play the new versions of Avernum (1-3), then the the older versions of the second part (4-6). Actually A6 was remodeled not long ago, so only 4 and 5 are somewhat outmoded. No matter what you choose to do, you will have a great time.