/vr/ - Retro Games

Wizardry, especially 7 & 8

>>4056483
ps1 had some cool Wizardry games too actually

easy one

mitsuda and all the charming character art and all the fun areas with beautiful backgrounds and the fun fights and world map and all the side quests HHHHHHGGGGgggggggg whoever says CC did'nt at least match CT didn't fucking beat it

why the FUCK hasn't Jun Ishikawa done any OSTs for fantasy games since Arcana and Alcahest? they're easily his best work and I can't stand hearing the same twinkly Kirby shit every couple years and nothing else

anyways I love Arcana, great game but mostly phenomenal music
https://youtu.be/Xq_cGF8F6l4

>>4056479
Lunar deffinitely

Phantasy star sms

Atmosphere: The Action RPG.
https://youtu.be/TVcr7yQ9qbY

Ogre Battle

It can involve so much micromanaging that sometimes the only way to play it is to let yourself get absorbed in it.

>>4056495
>tfw a buggy mess that crashes every 30 seconds is better than the real world

Tibia and Ultima online were MMORPGs I used to get completely lost in, exploring every inch of land with friends

Super Metroid in SNES is comfy

>>4056503
This game is so relaxing, I have no idea why everyone hated it

bump

>>4056479
Master Of Magic or any Civ game.

>>4058543

>>4057509
>I have no idea why everyone hated it
Coz it's extremely poor in comparison to Trigger.

>>4056479

>>4056510
I really wish that they would make a sequel for Arcana. I love the game to death but it has some flawed design choices:
-If one human party member dies, game over (even if you have more than Rooks in your party)
-You can't go back to previous areas
-The turn system is kinda random
Honestly, if they made a sequel and hammered out all of these flaws, I'm pretty sure it would be amazing. But yeah the soundtrack is stellar. It really makes me sad that this game was forgotten so quickly just because it's a literal gem in the SNES library waiting to be discovered.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-vD6rIjXrcKY7SqIXkYH9c-b6-47CGB3
>>4057114
I have similar sentiments for Secret of Evermore too. It had a unique plot for an RPG and the Secret of Mana gameplay works pretty great for the most part. I just wish Square of America made another game though instead of being shut down.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcvBW2asWkxjaJ1UjIVhGor4Jt4RD08Bk

Usually immersive sims. Thief, SS2.

>>4057509
>I have no idea why everyone hated it

Decent as a stand alone game, top tier music, like really, the music was fantastic. But the problem was if you're going to be the sequel to one of the best RPG's ever made, being "decent" makes you look like steaming shit. Doubly so if you go out of your way to kill off all of the characters of the original game, and provide basically no plot whatsoever until the final 5 minutes of the game, where they have ghosts info dump paragraphs of story that should've been told throughout the entire game.

It probably would've been better recieved by not being a sequel to CT, as anything less than absolute perfection probably would've been looked down upon.

>>4056510
>>4059492

I loved Arcana as a kid.

Honestly.

I usually feel very immersed in games with atmospheric backgrounds and soundtracks, because i pay a lot of attention to these things.

Demon's Crest is a good example, when i play it, i can almost feel myself wandering through the underworld.

There are more, but i can't remember any right now.

>>4060029
Demon's Crest also has excellent art and a really awesome soundtrack.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qei29E3Q-BU

>>4060000
That and being a poor man's Suikoden.

>>4056479
How do I play taht game?

>>4056479
Time seems to completely disappear when I play Vanguard Bandits for some reason. That game just sucks me in

Darklands. I will never get tired of playing this game.

>>4056479
I don't know this game and I've never played it, but that music immediately fills me with nostalgia.

>>4060801
>>4061316
It's on the Sega Genesis/SMS. Great TBS with a strong atmosphere and addictive but stress-free and relaxing gameplay.
https://youtu.be/3kqCzCACtkw?t=109

>>4061013
That game is hard to get into. I rolled a party and left town and got slaughtered repeatedly. It seems like a really detailed/nuanced game, so I probably should've bought shit n town first. Felt like Baldur's Gate meets Syndicate kinda.

>>4061664
It has a somewhat steep learning curve, but if you read the hint book that comes with the game, you'll have a slightly easier time. I hope you'll give it another try.

Bonanza Bros.

The combination of nostalgia, music, graphics, fun gameplay. It's not necessarily "deep", but my mind is clear when playing and I forget about my life for a while.

>>4061676
I definitely will. I hear nothing but good things about it so I know I'm missing something.

All of the King's Field games. Every time I decide to replay one of them, I spend about five minutes marveling at how it's even uglier and slower-paced than I remembered, then I get fully immersed in the game and stop noticing those things. Something about the music and environments really draws me into them.

>>4061703
KF series has a beautifully isolated, claustrophobic atmosphere
https://youtu.be/EbSpOy4gqQo?t=1023

The Western scenario of Live a Live really sold me on the introduction of the characters.

Too bad it's so goddamn short.

>>4056503
Drawn backgrounds are one thing I really wish would come back in great force again.

Even Legend of Dragoon and SaGa Frontier look pretty damn good at points because of them.

>>4060005
I would just let this on the tv in any aquatic stage or any stage that played stickerbrush symphony. One of my favorite ost of all time

>>4061625
This game is to the former Soviet Union what Starcraft is to Worst Korea.

>>4056479
Anything from Koei back then. Especially Uncharted Waters.

bump

the PS1 aesthetic in general just puts me in an immersive comfy zone, probably has a lot of ties to nostalgia but it was also just a good time for graphics that weren't so perfect you wanted to scrutinize them for flaws but were just good enough to spark the imagination

>tfw your only truly soul-stealing game isn't retro

Well, I guess that's not true. Grinding for JP in pic related was a soul well burgled.

Breath of Fire IV for me. Everything from the combat to art to the characters and story just get me like few things in general do. I didn't even play it until a few years ago so it's not even nostalgia, such an amazing game. This is probably my favorite official piece of art for any game, it captures the game perfectly.
>>4056486
Would these be good for a beginner? I never played any of the wizardy games but would love to start them.
>>4067121
Agreed. I think that like atari and earlier nes games their primative nature gives a sort of genuine charm, like this was really the best the developers could do.

>>4062329
is it really? that's amazing

>>4067132
FFT series' core gameplay and art style has changed so little in WotL since the original that it might as well be retro.

>>4067246
7 and 8 are the best Wizardry games to start with if you're not already big into FP dungeon crawlers. 8 is the most accessible, with 7 being sort of the bridge between 8 and the classic style.

I just watched a brief playthrough of BoF4 (never touched the BoF series) and I'm sold. Love the art and music.

>>4067132

So much focus spamming. At least it made your units hit harder.

>>4067287
Thanks, I think I'll start with 8 and maybe work my way backwards.

BoF is a great series. BoFI and BoFII are a little rough and may not be for everyone but BoFIII and BoFIV are excellent games. BoFV isn't retro but don't listen to the online consensus, it is very different from the other games but still excellent in its own right.

>>4056495
Absolutely. I get sucked into this game like a magnet to metal.

>>4057404
I rarely ever have it crash, bugs on the other hand.... i hate getting bugged quests, but tis part of the experience i guess.

>>4056479
It's weird. I don't actually like to play this game (never figured out how) but I like to set all opponents to CPU and watch it play itself. Mostly because of that music.

>>4067931
After the official & fan patches, I hardly have any quest bugs even. Crashes basically never happen.

>>4068013
I totally get that. The music, the sound effects, and the art all make for great ~meditative~ watching and background noise

>>4056479
There is a sequel on Saturn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zhbMYebJxU

I love ambient music comfy music in games.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6GlYv_Tq2M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3830QVwb9cE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_1XFsEJsSA
Haruyoshi Rokudo

Extremely underrated series by Bullfrog that I can lose heaps of time playing

>Game that steals your soul

I got you senpai

>>4067317
>>4067246

Wizardry 6, 7 and 8 form a trilogy that lets you carry over your characters from one game to the next.

>>4056495
The entire series up to Oblivion does this for me. Even Skyrim to a degree.

>>4072514
I've had this forever but never touched it. Seems like a cool futuristic setting. I think I'll install it some time soon.

Pokemon. I'm not even that crazy about the series, but it can draw me in and keep me engaged like no others.

Deus Ex as well. Specifically I think that going to UNATCO is incredible for getting you immersed and involved in the game.

There was nothing as immersive as when a new TR game came out, spending the whole weekend with just Lara on her own against the tomb.
The balance of calming, methodical gameplay and puzzling levels, the tension of potential enemies being around any corner and death being a misstep away, and then the gloriousness of discovering a new area, secret, or finishing a level.
https://youtu.be/3oYmgx2UM1w

Honourable mentions to Broken Sword 1+2 which also had me hooked around that time.

>>4056479
Mario rpg and FFT without fail

>>4056479

Uncharted Waters 2 - New Horizons.

>Sail that ship
>Buy those goods
>Sell them good
>Meet new people
>Live their life
>Survive those storms
>Discover things
>Meet the king

>>4056479
Super Metroid and Zelda Ocarina of Time made me piss my pants because I couldnt stop playing them, and I was immersed as fuck in them.

My alltime favourite immersive game is Vampire Bloodlines the masquerade, the best game ever made (and I am no vampire fan). Standing on top of the the malkavian house and staring onto the hills around with the cars driving in the distance in the night, watching the snuff tape and investigating the case, investigating the hospital in downtown or just walking around santamonica, just thinking about it makes me immerse in it. That game replaced my real life for many months

>>4074324
>Super Metroid and Zelda Ocarina of Time made me piss my pants because I couldnt stop playing them, and I was immersed as fuck in them.

Are you serious? How old were you? Do you have physical or mental issues?

Strife was amazing for me, and I played it for the first time post 2000. Its a build engine RPG so its got some really interesting layouts to the mapping with interesting interaction instead of just murdering everything that moves. Almost every line is voiced in a 90's campy way which was cool. Everything about it has that saturday morning cartoon vibe in a good way.

>>4074729
rude

>>4074079
such a perfect game.

>>4059460
https://youtu.be/gQSe4kry0RA

>>4074830
>Its a build engine RPG

Lets just pretend you said Doom engine.

>>4060005

Shit son, right there with ya

>>4056479
>>4069175
wikipedia says it's the same game. is it ok to just play the saturn version ?

>>4076570
Gameplay-wise, the MoM games are pretty much the same if not better/more detailed with each one. Atmospherically, many people prefer the Genesis version for its soundtrack and art style, but YMMV.

Compare
https://youtu.be/3kqCzCACtkw?t=237
https://youtu.be/-Tae5yjqErk?t=545

>>4075000
>>4074079
Holy shit, talk about comfy music ... pre-reknown Yoko Kanno, apparently? (I realize this is the inferior DOS version, but I kinda like the PC98-ishness of this version)

https://youtu.be/IOM1_92wXss?t=213
https://youtu.be/NgxgW9f2nmg?t=650

Love the soundtrack, hope Aria of Sorrow is at least half as good

>>4056479
FFVIII once you are done with the story (Disc 3 / Disc 4). The side quest of obtaining all GFs and maxing stats is total end game insanity and its a blast. Triple triad, ton berry hunting, fighting giant cactus, deep sea research etc. All those optional things are the best parts of the game. Especially if you play chocobo world on the pocket station.

>>4076792
good thing it's twice as good. but maybe you'll hate the soundtrack since it sounds more like the older castlevanias

Phelios, especially on a stage when something like this starts playing
https://youtu.be/U69kR5YTIxw

>>4074079
What's the best version of that game?

>>4073383
One of my all time faves desu. I had it for dreamcast and didn't realize there was a PC version. Gonna install now

the moment I heard the starting town theme I KNEW I wanted to connect with this world, it just felt so completely nostalgic and peaceful that I wanted to live there for real.

Turns out connecting with the characters in this game isn't great when the story is so tragic

https://youtu.be/milsKiOiqYE?t=154

>>4076792
You steal men's souls and make them your slaves!

>>4072514
good choice. this and shenmue really made the dreamcast special

>>4072514
googled this ... fucking david cage made this? is it as big a mess as everything else he's done?

>>4078473
>Sword
Does he ever fight with a sword in the game?

>>4061929
True. Drawn backgrounds would look fucking amazing this day and age. The last game I remember doing it the best was REmake.

This song always makes me feel so comfy. The whole game is actually very relaxing and fun to get into, whatever you like fishing or not.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZ0xLHHfYxE

>>4078532
Nope, just staffs & spears, IIRC. Chalk it up to early design concepts.

>>4078524
no, it's actually very good. it's definitely a little too ambitious but it has actual gameplay.