Wizardry 8 - Ratts!

Dhruin

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August 30, 2006
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The Rampant Coyote continues his trip through Wizardry 8:
So I'm at a place called Marten's Bluff. As I got there, Vi commented about how she used to play there as a girl - before the T'Rang moved in. I guess she was a real butt-kicker as a little girl, to get past all those monsters along the road and in the swamp to get there. Apparently, the castle was there before the insect-like T'Rang got there, but they went ahead and moved in - mostly in the underground warrens.

My initial meeting didn't go well. The castle entryway is blocked off by some transparent walls, and there's an elevator that takes me down to a room with some T'Rang that insist I'm going to work for them. I just have to agree to do that. The room's only exit is some kind of biometric lock that requires a T'Rang's hand-print to open. They drive a hard bargain.
More information.
 
Joined
Aug 30, 2006
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Another fun entry. The game just sucks you in the more you play, doesn't it? It's quite fun seeing the game thru virgin eyes again, given that my eyes (where Wiz8 is concerned) are somewhere between pole dancer and crack whore.

BTW, 1/3 of the way at best. Closer to 1/4 if you do every possible quest and mow every map. For me, getting to the end game conveniently occurs about the same time I start thinking, "OK, boys, time to wrap this up!"
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
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I do admit to getting a little tired of the constant combat but this castle was one of the highlights of the game. That place was nuts to get through and kudos to the devs for making something so challenging. Getting my though as a scully maid was a nice contrast.

The best part is still how you obtain the orb. I won't spoil that...
 
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Oct 19, 2006
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The Uncanny Valley
Combat in Wizardry 8 can be very frustrating, not so much in the sense of difficulty - although that's present as well - but in terms of the sheer amount of battles one can experience. Sometimes the pace of the game is hurt by this but it *is* part of the charm of the game, being combat centered and all.

One of the highlights truly are these large locations which you can explore, like the Umpani complex, the T'Rang underground network, the Trinnie tree city, and others. They have this charm and uniqueness you don't often found nowadays.

:sad panda tear:
 
They really did do some great stuff with this game. The combat definitely slows stuff down - but to its credit, the first time you encounter a particular creature, you are in for an interesting ride. Many monsters have unique abilities that require you to change your strategy around just to survive. That's kind of a hallmark of Wizardry games (and was borrowed by the jRPG games like Final Fantasy later), but it's nice to see it again. That's one downfall of the D&D-licensed games - and, really, a lot of others (like the Elder Scrolls) - too many encounters play out the same, and are reduced to the same kinds of tactics over and over again.
 
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