Arx Fatalis...

I hate the game for being called a "spiritual Ultima Underworld successor". It's far away from being that. Ultima Underworld had dialogues, a larger world, more diversity, a better plot and better characters and so on. I think it's even more atmospheric than Arx Fatalis. I had fun while playing Arx, but it left a stale taste of stupidness. And: Two times I had plotstopper-bugs which forced me to restart the game.
 
txa1265 said:
I agree - it is wildly uneven, but terribly charming and addictive.

I look at it this way - I played a mage and had no dexterity / athletics ability, so there was one jump in an area that you couldn't use Levitate in that was nearly impossible. I actually counted that I did the 'die & retry' at least *125 times* before making that jump - and the solution was to lower my resolution so that the pixel collision would favor me ;)
Click to expand...
Sorry, but this sounds like bullshit to me. Too "It's not a bug, it's a feature"-like. For me the frustration would be overwhelming. Good thing I never came so far...
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
53
Location
Munich
Monolith said:
Sorry, but this sounds like bullshit to me. Too "It's not a bug, it's a feature"-like. For me the frustration would be overwhelming. Good thing I never came so far...
Click to expand...

Bullshit as in I didn't actually do it? I really did, but as I said I played other stuff (shooters and some Sacred) in between ... but I never gave up.

But then if you knew me you'd know the levels of patience and persistance I possess ;)
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
14,953
How can anyone say that Ultima Underworld had a better plot than Arx?? UU (a game I love) had no real plot; it was a dungeon crawl!! Arx had a much deeper and more complex plot!!
 
Joined
Aug 31, 2006
Messages
12,828
Location
Australia
Bah now I'm annoyed again. The game is outrageously difficult. Level 7 was a blast, but some rediculous demon dog came out of the wall in level 8 and somehow disabled all my fireballs and killed me in one swipe. That really sucks because I'm pretty much out of exploration options now. It took me so long to clear out the temple I'm lacking motivation to put the artifacts back together.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
3,593
Location
Boston MA
ToddMcF2002 said:
Bah now I'm annoyed again. The game is outrageously difficult. Level 7 was a blast, but some rediculous demon dog came out of the wall in level 8 and somehow disabled all my fireballs and killed me in one swipe. That really sucks because I'm pretty much out of exploration options now. It took me so long to clear out the temple I'm lacking motivation to put the artifacts back together.
Click to expand...
Getting rid of the dog was the most difficult puzzle in the game, at least for me. After that one it was more of a breeze :).
 
Joined
Aug 31, 2006
Messages
3,754
Yeah I had to give up on that 5th level temple behind the barrier I dispelled. I killed the 3 guards outside the temple but the ones inside are unreal.

Honestly I don't get this game - its fun at times but the puzzles and opponents at times can be downright sadistic. I'm guessing it has a very low completion rate - which contributed to the lack of an Arx 2.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
3,593
Location
Boston MA
You mean the temple Ylsides? Two fireballs/Ylside were enough to down them. I guess playing a battlemage might have been the best approach to Arx... :(
 
Joined
Aug 31, 2006
Messages
3,754
Maybe I'll try Arx again and use that approach…thanks Jaz. I did like the atmosphere of the game. But those guys were insane. Walk into the hall…spot a guard and try anything and BANG! He’s on me quicker than a starved rat in a manhole…and I’m nothing more than a speck of blood on the floor.
 
Joined
Oct 19, 2006
Messages
47
Location
NJ, USA
Jaz said:
You mean the temple Ylsides? Two fireballs/Ylside were enough to down them. I guess playing a battlemage might have been the best approach to Arx... :(
Click to expand...

I'm guessing. Bunch of guys in plate armour running in a blur? I fireballed a few outside but I'm not sure they are all alike. Seems the ones inside are much tougher - but I could be wrong. The thing is I'm out of options. I have 13 Strength and I need ~13K additional XP points to get to level 7 and the all important 14 Strength. EVERY SINGLE goddam decent piece of armor and all decent weapons requires 14 Str. It really sucks. I think I'm screwed frankly.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
3,593
Location
Boston MA
It's a tough game, but don't give up. Jaz is right, a Battlemage type is a necessity. I loved their magic system; it was a bold move which many hated, but I thought it really made the game more realistic!!
 
Joined
Aug 31, 2006
Messages
12,828
Location
Australia
I tried to build a battlemage. I have 65 / 46 close combat and defense. My Strength is 1 point too low because I jacked my magic ability up and left strength a bit light. Seemed like a good decision. Too bad the stats don't RELATE to each other! (meaning, I could have Strength at 9 or 14 and close combat at 65, pretty rediculous). That is pretty much a show stopper now. :(

I don't mind the magic system since I only have enough mana for 3 fireballs anyway. I'll try to XP farm the Ylsides I guess - I don't have much of an option at this point. If I can't beat them then the game is simply over - unless I cheese it up and start killing everyone in town which is pretty pathetic. I think I'd rather quit.

What really irks me is that I don't mind a hard game. G2/NoTR was hard - but if you gave it time and worked carefully it was perfectly doable. This game however, will just stop you dead in your tracks with no options. Poor design!
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
3,593
Location
Boston MA
It was Arkane's first game and yes, there are a few balance type issues, but most people who persisted eventually managed to complete it!!
 
Joined
Aug 31, 2006
Messages
12,828
Location
Australia
Tonight or tommorow I'll take one last crack at it. I'm sure if I restarted I could overcome the stat's issue I have right now and play through it in a few hours.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
3,593
Location
Boston MA
It's one of those games you have to get a "feel" for. Strangely, I tend to play RPG's this way -- I tinker with a bunch of different types of characters, play about a quarter of the way through with them, then start over, until I hit one that "works" for them. Once you hit the right combo for Arx, it becomes very enjoyable. But yeah, it is frustrating as hell if you don't have it right.
 
Joined
Oct 19, 2006
Messages
8,540
I guess i got lucky ... it was very difficult but I stuck it through, and all of a sudden it just worked.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
14,953
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom