Bought the humble bundle. Where to start?

[shane]

I bought the spiderweb humble bundle and have just got around to playing it. I haven't played a spiderweb game since Exile 3 so I've got a lot of games to choose from. Which game do people recommend I start with? I would normally assume that the most recent one is the best and play that but that is not always the case.

 

Thanks

[Randomizer]

You start with the first one that will run on your computer. Some of them might have a problem on Windows computers unless you have an older operating system or compatibility mode. There are lots of differences even within a series.

 

Starting with the oldest game helps you not get frustrated with the older interface. Avernum 1 to 3 remake the Exile games with extra content and Avernum: Escape from the Pit is a remake of Avernum 1 with more new content. Avernum 4 to 6 use a different game engine to continue the story.

 

Nethergate: Resurrection uses the Blades of Avernum/Avernum 3 game engine.

 

Geneforge 1 is considered to have the best story of the Geneforge group.

 

Avadon is the most recent game series. Completely different style with you running your character and having a choice of NPCs that you can control.

 

Welcome back to Spiderweb Software. Please leave any sanity from your Exile days at the door. It won't be needed here.

[Kelandon]

I'd go chronologically, unless the oldest games seem too crude. I'd also probably skip the first Avernum trilogy if you've already played the Exile series, unless you want a refresher. Thus, I'd play:

 

(probably skip Avernum 1-3)

Nethergate: Resurrection

Geneforge 1-5

Avernum 4-6

Avadon 1-2

(maybe Avernum: Escape From the Pit)

 

If you find yourself not liking a game or a series, feel free to skip it. You get a little better sense of plot and world development if you go strictly in order within a series, but it's not truly necessary, and the four series are unrelated to each other except broadly thematically.

 

Also, I think it's nice to follow a series to completion, but Geneforge games alternated with Avernum games in terms of release schedule, and you could follow that (e.g., Geneforge 3, Avernum 4, Geneforge 4, Avernum 5, etc.) if you wanted.

 

By the time you're done with all that, you'll probably have the re-remakes of the Exile trilogy to play, and maybe Avadon 3 as well, because it'll probably take a while to get through all those games.

 

Oh, and have fun! There's a lot of really good stuff in there.

[Rya.Reisender]

If you were new to the series I'd recommend Avernum Escape From The Pit as game to start because it's simply the best and introduces you into the story of Avernum.

 

But as you apparently already played Exile 1-3 you might also just want to continue with the story with Avernum 4?

[shane]

I played Exile a looooong time ago. It sounds like my best move is to start with Avernum 1.

 

Thanks for the replies

[Jawaj]

If you're going to play Avernum 1, you might as well play Escape from the Pit instead. It's a remake with a better interface, better graphics, and new content. And Avernum 2 will be remade in the near future with Avernum 3 probably following in a couple of years, so keep that in mind as well.

[Kelandon]

Eh. Given the timing, I'd say that you may as well start with Avernum 1. The Avernum 2 remake won't be released in time to continue the story smoothly, so you'd have to do A:EftP and then the original Avernum 2, and I think backtracking on the engine is not great.

 

I say this not having played A:EftP, but just on general principle.

[Xaiya]

A1 is awfully, awfully clunky, though, and it doesn't even have a quest log. A:EftP to A2 might not be too jarring if you've been playing games since at least the 90s. If you're a younger gamer, though, just playing the older ones at all might be more difficult depending on your tastes, so you may as well start on A1. A2 and A3 are less clunky than A1 and definitely worth a play even with having older engines and being juxtaposed by the newer SW games, in any case.

[Jawaj]

Yep, the original A1 is really rough. You could start with Escape from the Pit and switch over to Geneforge until the A2 remake comes out, likely 2014. It will probably be awhile before the A3 remake is released though.

 

You could just play an hour or two each of the original A1, the remake, and A2 to help you decide.

[Tyranicus]

A1 is awfully, awfully clunky, though, and it doesn't even have a quest log.

 

I can't fix the clunkiness, but I have a fix for the lack of quest log.