Recommend me an awesome RPG 2005-2012

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MinorityReport

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I'm at a stage where I would like to play another epic RPG, but I'm a bit limited in my hardware/software at the moment. I'll probably upgrade at some point in the near future, but, for now, I'm just looking for an awesome epic (40-60+ hour jobby) RPG to try out from between 2005-2012.

From my memory the following are already in my possession and I've already played them, so no point recommending these:

Neverwinter Nights 2 - original campaign
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Awakenings
Kings Bounty: The Legend
King's Bounty: Crossworlds
Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga
Dragon Age II

As you can tell, I'm mainly interested in cRPGs and it has to be made for the PC (and not even a ported console). I already know about The Witcher series and Fallout series and have already chosen to not try these if that helps give you an extra idea of what kind of thing I like.

So what 'big' game from 2005-2012 have I yet to discover?

(please link a non-spoiler youtube gameplay vid which best represents real gameplay if at all possible & try and describe why it would fit well into the above played list)

Thanks :)
 
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Awesome? I don't know...

But Felipepepe's CRPG list for his book is sorted by years and lists nearly all relevant CRPGs from 1978 to 2014 - have a look.
 
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Can't be bothered to do your research for you, but I highly recommend checking out Vampire Bloodlines - even though it's from 2004.
 
Some people enjoy the opportunity to wax lyrical about something special to them. You don't enjoy waxing, no probs.

Also, no Elder Scrolls, I'm not a fan of First Person scenarios.

Thanks for the list HiddenX, but it doesn't give me any clues as to how the 'overall feeling' of the game is going to be if I just pick a name and watch a vid. There is no greater research than the personal opinion of some who has similar tastes to yourself and actual full game experience :)
 
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Elder Scrolls games since Morrowind can be played in third person mode, FYI.
 
One less known game from 2005-2012, I could think off would be jade empire. It made by bioware, same guy that made dragon age, and there is a lot of similarity between those two game.

I assume from the game you have already mention that you are looking for something with tactical combat as well as good story. I found a video that represent the combat pretty well. It makes it look easy, but on harder difficulty the game can be a challenge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfQcayB5v8o

Also like DArtagnan I would highly recommend Vtm: Bloodlines. I could find a none-spoiler gameplay video, but here is one of the intro movie after you finish character creation. Not really a spoiler, just the first few min of the game. I'm sure you can chose for your self if it something ou want to watch.

Combat in Vtm is pretty fun, but it you don't like the story direction or the mood the game sets. It probably isn't for you.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRdMQpsKKNo
 
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Elder Scrolls games since Morrowind can be played in third person mode, FYI.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I know, I tried, but it's not really optimised for that, it's one of those games where it's optimised for sitting there looking at two outstretched arms for the entire game, like the dude's about to sneak up on someone and grope their ass :)

I guess I prefer it when the character size is proportionally smaller than their surroundings. One of my biggest 'issues' with most modern games, even those listed in the OP is that the characters are just too big on the screen.
 
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My personal recommendations from 2005 to 2012:

Gothic 3 (play with fan patch)
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl (great shooter with CRPG elements)
The Witcher
Mount & Blade (sandbox game with CRPG elements)
The Last Remmant
Knights of the Chalice (Indie game, ugly gfx but great combat)
Risen (game in the tradition of Gothic)
Drakensang: River of Time (Das Schwarze Auge rules)
Fallout: New Vegas (better tan Fallout 3)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (better than Oblivion, watch out for great mods at nexus)
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
Divinity 2: The Dragon Knight Saga
Venetica (Adventure look-alike CRPG)
Legend of Grimrock (Dungeon Crawler)
Telepath RPG: Servants of God (great Indie with turn based combat)
 
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Firestorm said:
One less known game from 2005-2012, I could think off would be jade empire. It made by bioware, same guy that made dragon age, and there is a lot of similarity between those two game.

I assume from the game you have already mention that you are looking for something with tactical combat as well as good story. I found a video that represent the combat pretty well. It makes it look easy, but on harder difficulty the game can be a challenge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfQcayB5v8o

Also like DArtagnan I would highly recommend Vtm: Bloodlines. I could find a none-spoiler gameplay video, but here is one of the intro movie after you finish character creation. Not really a spoiler, just the first few min of the game. I'm sure you can chose for your self if it something ou want to watch.

Combat in Vtm is pretty fun, but it you don't like the story direction or the mood the game sets. It probably isn't for you.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRdMQpsKKNo
Click to expand...

Jade Empire looks like it's kind-of the thing I'm after. It has the right 'look', but the combat seemed a bit aRPGey, if that makes sense? But the reason I've never tried that one is that apparently it was a massive bug-fest. Did you have any bug issues with it or did it work fine for you 'out the box'? Which version did you play? Does it matter which version you try?

But, no, Vampire Bloodlines is another one of those first-persony type games with big people in close-up constantly cut-sceneing and me getting lost in a rat's maze of brown/grey buildings wondering what I'm supposed to look at and what I'm not supposed to look at while making myself sick from spinning the camera round and round and up and down.
 
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The Xbox version of Jade Empire received very positive reviews from most critics. IGN praised it as having "a completely original universe, hard hitting combat, accessible controls, and the story in an RPG on Xbox".[18] Regarding the graphics, IGN stated, "Environments are beautiful and the characters are real enough to fall in love with", though IGN criticized the game for slight camera issues. GameSpot stated that Jade Empire's "open-ended role playing involves you in the storyline and fosters replay value", though its combat system and length were criticized.[17]

Like the original version, the Special Edition was also criticized for being too short and for having rather easy battles using a simplistic battle system,[26] getting an average review score of 80% according to Game Rankings.[27] Other criticisms included a lack of cheat codes, and the ease of changing one's alignment (hence changing the ending) at a point near the end-game which effectively discounts any good/evil deeds one has done for the majority of the game.[28]

In 2010, the game was included in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die.[29]
Click to expand...

This is the wiki quote for the game's original reception. I thought there was a reason I hadn't played this game and, yeah, looks like it's a game that was optimised for a console, hence the aRPGey-like appearance of the fights.

A lot of people do recommend it, you don't have to go far to find people gushing about it. But is it 'my kind of thing'? I dunno, looks like it's ticking a fair few of the boxes I'd marked for non-ticking.

Assuming there's a non-buggy PC version available, I'll definitely add it to my 'seriously consider' list, so thanks for the recommendation :)
 
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I think Hiddenx summed up the majority of ones I would list. I really enjoyed Mount & Blade even though it isnt an RPG. Venetica, Risen, Gothic and both Divinity games are all great.
 
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MinorityReport said:
Jade Empire looks like it's kind-of the thing I'm after. It has the right 'look', but the combat seemed a bit aRPGey, if that makes sense? But the reason I've never tried that one is that apparently it was a massive bug-fest. Did you have any bug issues with it or did it work fine for you 'out the box'? Which version did you play? Does it matter which version you try?
Click to expand...
I bought the "special" edition boxed copy for PC back in the days. I didn't have any problems with it or notice any bugs.
I tend to over look smaller bugs though, but there wasn't anything major or game breaking. Maybe it was the xbox version or the newer steam version that had the problems. I can only speak from my own experience, which was great.

I'm sure there are some exploits here and there for more alignment change and extra money, but I tend to ignore those, as I don't consider them fun to use. All in all it have been years since I played Jade empire, so my memory is a little rusty, but I have played it many times, and have had fun with it.
 
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A lot of the mainstream reviews of any game are bound to be flawed. There is a plethora of 'reviews' ofrpg style games written by people who only love FPS. For the cost of any of the games you are considering I'd say skip the review, spend the 2.99 on GOG and make your own choices. When Mount &Blade first came out it got totally hammered by most professional review sites until the user reviews started saying how good it was. Then suddenly the tune changed. Also there are a lot of games that are popular only in Europe and not in US where the majority of reviews come from. Venetica springs to mind. EU reviewers said good things, US hammered it. Turns out it was great.
 
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I'll just second HiddenX's recommendation of Drakensang: River of Time. The combat isn't the greatest (it's Real-time with pause, and clunky even compared to other RTwP games and a bit slow paced at times), but in spite of that it's an enjoyable game. The story is kind of light-hearted and fairy tale-esque and the characters are quirky and likable. I like the Dark Eye rule system, and there's some good quests with opportunities for role-playing. The first Drakensang game is OK but it's far more linear and drags on quite a bit. I'd say try River of Time first and if you really like it then you could try TDE: Drakensang, too.
 
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I'm off to work, I'll check out Mount & Blade when I get back :)

Keep the recommendations flowing while I'm gone guys, I'll do all my replies (if anyone else posts) tomorrow sometime :)

Thanks again
 
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MinorityReport said:
Yeah, I know, I tried, but it's not really optimised for that, it's one of those games where it's optimised for sitting there looking at two outstretched arms for the entire game, like the dude's about to sneak up on someone and grope their ass :)

I guess I prefer it when the character size is proportionally smaller than their surroundings. One of my biggest 'issues' with most modern games, even those listed in the OP is that the characters are just too big on the screen.
Click to expand...

True, Morrowind and Oblivion work best in FP mode. That said, Skyrim works quite well in third person - and with mods I'd say it won't feel like it's designed for FP.

That said, to each his own :)
 
Summoner and, if you're into retro console stuff, Summoner 2. A great amount of lore and interesting characters + ok writing. Summoner 2 was supposed to give more freedom build-wise, but due to the higher difficulty that doesn't mean that there are very many working builds. Be aware that in part 2 especially, characters will be separated from the party at times.

edit: ok, a bit out of your time range, but still.
 
The followups to NWN2 are not listed yet, so if you enjoyed the OC of NWN2, then Mask of the Betrayer, Storm of Zehir, and Mystery of Westgate might be your cup of tea. If you like mods, there is Baldur's Gate and Icewind Dale both remade in NWN2's Aurora engine. Basically, you get an old, old game in newer graphics. I'd love to see Vogel's games in Aurora, but I think I'm in the minority.
 
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