Coolest thing about Avernum 4?

[Aoslare]

I'll start. My favorite thing is definitely the unlimited bow ammunition, which makes archery the powerful tool it deserves to be.

 

— Slartucker, who felt like being positive this evening

[Inthrall]

Hmmm...

 

From what i've played, i'd have to say the miscellaneous items, like lanterns. They add depth. I always liked miscellaneous items, and searching through them for good stuff.

 

Yay for miscellaneous items!

[Drakefyre]

The new combat effects, like being frozen.

[Delicious Vlish]

Razordisks.

 

They are just... So cool. I mean, the way they fly and the way stuff dies.

[Donald Hebb]

Quote:

Originally written by Slartucker:
I'll start. My favorite thing is definitely the unlimited bow ammunition, which makes archery the powerful tool it deserves to be.

— Slartucker, who felt like being positive this evening

You mean to say that archery WASN'T incredibly powerful since the first Avernum?

[Aoslare]

It was limited before both by having a quantity of good arrows and, more importantly, by the hassle of dealing with them.

[Donald Hebb]

Anyway, coolest part about Avernum- not having to have paid for it.

[Ephesos]

Quote:

Originally written by Drakefyre:
The new combat effects, like being frozen.

I was not a fan of freezing... if my mages can cast all kinds of fire, why does it take Divine Restoration to thaw out an adventurer? But the rest of the combat effects (dazing and stunning were particularly good to see... webs were getting old and weren't universal enough).

Quote:

Originally written by Prometheus:
You mean to say that archery WASN'T incredibly powerful since the first Avernum?

*cough* Alderague *cough*

[Dintiradan]

I'm very happy the job boards from A3 have remained. While I haven't gotten that far yet, I look forward to area-effect spells. The new AP system seems promising: a fighting retreat using your meatshield is now a plausible tactic.

 

EDIT: Nope, no longer like the new AP system. My nephil archer with Fast on Feet can no longer rely on "Take Attack of Opportunity, move four spaces back, shoot". Stupid "slowing down".

 

Now just to master the art of playing with a mouse instead of keyboard & keypad. No 'Look' command? Arghhhhhhhhh!!!

 

--------------------

Stoppus Badguyus!

- Larry Gardener (OotS)

[Alorael at Large]

The best part of A4 is combat in all its many forms. It's challenging and fun.

 

—Alorael, who enjoyed having fights that could maul him for being stupid but collapse like wet tissue paper when treated with a little thought.

[dareva]

The best part, so far, is that when you die (though actually it's more like Pokemon-style fainting), your stuff doesn't drop to the ground in a pile. I love that. And if ammunition is unlimited, well then, cool. I better start keeping bows in that case.

 

I seem to be warming to the game. Good sign.

[Randomizer]

I like that the magic system brought back area effects. In A1 to A3 the only way to truly hit an invisible monster was with a fighter and they were hard to locate without being hit by them.

 

Now if Jeff will bring back Exile's Shockwave to replace Arcane Blow the mages will have an attack like Divine Retribuion. This will keep spellcasters and archers from hanging back from combat.

 

The unlimited arrows for bows unbalances the game. It just is worth training in thrown weapons because they weigh so much for a little extra damage. I only used the razordisks versus Nodicaus because a nephil divine touch can do almost as much damage as lightning spray.

[Aran]

Quote:

Originally written by Ephesos:

Quote:

Originally written by Drakefyre:
The new combat effects, like being frozen.

I was not a fan of freezing... if my mages can cast all kinds of fire, why does it take Divine Restoration to thaw out an adventurer? But the rest of the combat effects (dazing and stunning were particularly good to see... webs were getting old and weren't universal enough).

Quote:

Originally written by Prometheus:
You mean to say that archery WASN'T incredibly powerful since the first Avernum?

*cough* Alderague *cough*

Adlerauge.

In line with the other Canopy names, it's German. Eagle Eye.

I like the way combat begins automatically when you see a hostile monster. It reminds me of--- oh wait, no it doesn't remind me of anything.

[Schrodinger]

I agree with Alorael and think that the variety and variations on combat are among this game's strongest points.

[Alorael at Large]

Actually, the arrows bring up a good point, and it's something that's been happening more and more in Spiderweb games. The tedious parts are getting pared down.

 

You don't need to buy arrows anymore. That's good, because they were never really expensive, just irritating. I remember in E2, before there were weight restrictions, I bought several thousand arrows for all my characters eventually just so that I'd never have to think about arrows again.

 

Torches and Light spells aren't necessary anymore. They were so reflexive that it's not actually a change. A few areas could be made permanently dark for variety, but there's no need for regular dark areas.

 

Food disappeared after Nethergate, and I don't miss it.

 

Even the absence of secret doors is mixed. I miss them, but they were very rarely actually secret. Usually it was a tedious matter of smashing into all the walls until one let you through. Now secret doors don't require wall smashing, and they're consequently more surprising and secret when they turn up.

 

—Alorael, who was ironically convinced that this absence of tedious details is a good thing by one of Jeff's Grumpy Gamer articles. At the time he was fairly big on the need for torches and food, which he explicitly called bad things.

[Alex]

I'll stick with the majority opinion - combat is more challenging and varied, at least in the small part I've seen so far. A couple of previously weak skills, such as First Aid, have been upgraded. Overall, a good turn-based action RPG without much micromanagement.

 

Returning to a fresh incarnation of Exile/Avernum after all these years has charm all by itself.

 

I think the combination of good parts from Avernum and Geneforge worked out, although I must admit I was dismayed when the first screenshots came out.

[VCH]

I like the lanterns and candles too. But I would like to have been able to actually use them. Several times I thought the caves needing a bit more light, but was unable to do anything about it.

[Randomizer]

Finally things that you could use only once a day like first aid were upgraded so it was worth training. I rarely used the old special abilities in A1-3 and usually piled them on one character for use when only one character could go through a portal for the encounter. I do miss those adventures and preparing a character for them like getting Demonslayer in A2.

[Ephesos]

Quote:

Originally written by Randomizer:
Finally things that you could use only once a day like first aid were upgraded so it was worth training. I rarely used the old special abilities in A1-3 and usually piled them on one character for use when only one character could go through a portal for the encounter. I do miss those adventures and preparing a character for them like getting Demonslayer in A2.

You know, I never realized this... but I really miss portals. I mean, there's not a single one in A4, if I recall correctly (not including the Ft. Avernum portal). I miss teleporting across levels, as well as the challenge frequently posed by single-character puzzles.

[dareva]

I've played a lot more, and I'm really liking it. I'm a little surprised. I love the unlimited bow ammunition. It's great. I'm also using food for healing. I love the funky orange mushrooms.

[Solymr]

Probably the best thing about this game is the ability to quit, IMHO.

[Dikiyoba]

Actually, if you only have the demo, the little window that pops up to encourage you to register gets annoying fast.

 

Does anyone know how to get rid of it (besides registering)? It was useful...the first ten times I saw it. Now it's merely annoying.

 

Whatever else happens, Dikiyoba hopes that this "encouragement" does not appear in any future Spiderweb games.

[wz. As]

Quote:

Originally written by Left Outer Join:
In line with the other Canopy names, it's German. Eagle Eye.

Oops. In my head, I'd been rhyming it with "gauge."