Wasteland 2: Director's Cut

There's a good game in here somewhere, I just couldn't find it. I think there are way too many questionable design decisions that will wear you down and turn the game into a grind. The game is made to be non-linear, but there is so clearly a linear path you need to take or you will get destroyed in combat and with skill checks. A lot of skill checks can be very difficult and also very punishing. That's ok, I guess, but it means every character in your party needs to be perfectly optimized to get by. It's really easy to screw up your skills and you get so few skill points. If you pick up an NPC that overlaps with skills you already have, all of those skill points are completely wasted. There is no system to "help" another character with a skill check. This is a pretty big oversight to me and plain bad design. The way the character creation goes, you can easily screw it up and make a character that is useless in a battle. Action points matter a lot, but so do the weapons you use and their range. You can stumble into a combination where a character rarely gets to be useful. The range of weapons really drives me crazy. The red circles seem way to small for a game that feels so realistic at times. Thrown weapons, for some reason, have incredible range, and can be chucked longer than most guns can shoot. This is a terrible feeling for the player when they get hit by a grenade, but they can't retaliate with their assault rifle. And of course, there is no re-specing, you have to start over to fix any of the mistakes. Starting over isn't bad in some games, but there is so much dialogue in the game, it would be a pain. I didn't even try. The story and dialogue would be a redeeming quality, you might think. Reflecting on it, it felt boring. Compared to other games like Mass Effect or Pillars of Eternity, it's all so plain. The Desert Rangers are exactly what they are, no intrigue, no controversy, one dimensional. Same with many other locations and places. There are contrived "choices" you make about who gets to live and who gets to die, but ultimately it doesn't seem to affect anything other than give you experience points. When I found talking to people to be a boring chore that's when I gave up on this game.

The mechanics of the game are way too visible to the player and it ruins immersion. Basically every map is: if you go left you need 7 lockpick skill to pass, go right for a 6 hack check, go straight for traps that need level 4 skill to disarm. It's fine to have skill checks like this but they should be hidden behind the scenes and masked by the story and atmosphere. You aren't going left because it has a lockpick 7 option, you are going left to help the help the princess. You are going right to fight the dragon, not to use the level 8 hack check. The characters attributes make no sense either. Why is the best melee fighter build not prioritizing all the physical stats over mental? Your characters dont have personality and archetypes like in other RPG games. The dumb but strong tank, the quick but physically weak rogue/sniper, the smart tech user guy. They are just carriers for passing various skill checks that have seemingly nonsensical stat point distributions. I hate constantly thinking about how this map requires skill 7 hack, skill 6 lockpick, and skill 4 disarm to 100% clear. "I just need to gain +2 levels in hacking and +1 level in traps to finish this map". Instead I should be thinking: "Oh nice I think I can rescue the princess if I go to this map and convince the black knight to help me create a diversion. That should distract the dragon enough for me to save her!". Instead its just numbers: skill >6 = win. Skill <6= lose.

[b] [i] Знаєте, коли лікарі лікують наркомана – йому призначають замісну терапію. Це така процедура, за якої звичний герич або морфій замінюють на слабкіший метадон. Його дозування теж з часом зменшують, доки не переходять на плацебо, глюкозу або фізрозчин. [/i][/b] Так ось, Wasteland 2 - це якісна замісна терапія для ольдскульників, які сумували за Пустошами, за ядерним пост-апокаліпсисом і за анархічній безнадії. Для тих самих панів, у яких проходження сучасних казуальних та лінійних рольових ігр викликає блювоту та харкання кров'ю, а у занедбаних випадках – і відмову внутрішніх органів. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=327453249 Я хоч не олдскульник і з ізометричними ролевухами до 2016 року був взагалі не знайомий. Але, тим не менше, перші кілька годин у Wasteland 2 по моїх щоках стікали воістину мужицькі сльози. Сльози людини, яка повернулася до свого коріння. Людину, яку зможе зрозуміти лише хіпстер, що вперше навернув самогону в компанії баті та діда. Це справді якісно зроблена гра. З купою статів, характеристик, перків та білдів. З натовпом цікавих персонажів, більшість яких помре жахливою смертю. З масою квестів, які мають по 4-5 варіантів завершення різного рівня паршивості. І кінцівкою, яку можна запороти просто не вкачав той самий перк. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=316239552 [i][b]До мого улюбленого Fallout 2 - все ще як до Арізони верхи на кротокрисі. Але, хіба у нас такий широкий вибір, щоб відмовлятися від справжньої. Олдскульна. Ізометричної. На всі 100% рольової гри.[/b][/i]

I played a lot of hours and really tried to get into this game, as I love games simular to this, like Fallout 2 and ATOM RPG, both which I fully recommend. Wasteland 2 though, other than genre, is lacking in so many ways. For instance I don't feel much if any connection to any of my party members; the storyline is not the greatest; and some of the goals in the log are just to much of a pain or too linear to complete. So even though I played a large number of hours, I wish I had spent that time playing different games or doing something else. Therefore, I have quit playing the game even though I didn't complete it since it really is not that good.

I backed Wasteland 2 back in 2011 and went away disappointed when it finally dropped. Brian Fargo and Co made good on most of their Kickstarter promises, so it should have ended up as the spiritual successor to all the old school RPGs we all love and cherish, but somehow it's so underwhelming and uninspired. It feels like the dev team had no actual ambitions, no plot ideas, no desire to make the best thing ever. They just wanted to make a good game that people craving for old school gameplay would moderately enjoy, and they kind of succeeded. It a decent game and everything about it is decent. The plot is not bad, it's just there. The combat is XCOM-lite. The characters are well written but unmemorable. The advertised freedom of choice is there but the execution is incredibly lame, with an "A or B" scenario for every occasion simply because that's what the target audience apparently wanted and not because it made sense in every case. I haven't played the director's cut but my complaints above can't be resolved by patches or reissues. There's nothing inherently bad about this game, but nothing is amazing about it. It's just moderately good and painfully uninspired.

I have been pushing this review for weeks because I just didn't know how to sum everything up, so I decided to use a list format to make it concise. [h1]Immersion[/h1] [list] [*]You lead a team of fresh recruits of the [b]Desert Rangers,[/b] one of the biggest & most esteemed factions for preserving order in [b]post-apocalyptic Arizona.[/b] [*]Like most RPGs, some NPCs will say [b]cheesy things[/b] or act in ways you can’t relate to. But generally speaking, most dialogues are good enough to make the Wasteland [b]a believable place.[/b] [*]The Wasteland’s [b]believability[/b] largely stems from the world’s consistency. [b]Actions you take[/b] in this game and that players canonically took in the [b]original 1988 Wasteland[/b] have long-lasting ripple effects that shaped & continue to alter Arizona and the [b]Desert Rangers’ reputation[/b] in it. [*]Most central [b]characters are voiced.[/b] General Vargas (the Desert Ranger commander, whom you will talk with a LOT) has a rough voice like Will Arnett’s [b](BoJack Horseman).[/b] [*]Every time you travel on the world map, you will hear [b]General Vargas talking on the radio.[/b] Sometimes he will address fellow Ranger teams working alongside you, while on other occasions he’ll address you directly to update your assignments. [*]You will come across tons of characters with [b]HUGE dialogue trees[/b] that could easily take 5-10 minutes to go through. Most dialogue options are unique, but some are recurring, like their thoughts on the Desert Rangers, which further complements [b]worldbuilding.[/b] [*][b]Wasteland 1 events involving the player[/b] are often referenced. An angry man told me that we (the Rangers) shot an orphan and his dog in his village 15 years ago. I googled "wasteland orphan dog" and got the article about the boy with his original 1988 animated sprite from Wasteland 1. Turns out we killed his dog who had rabies, then accidentally killed the boy as he attacked us too. Now that's some serious world-building material for [b]lore enthusiasts![/b] [*]You will come across tons of these [b]difficult choices[/b] in Wasteland 2. [/list] [h1]Frustrating Mechanics[/h1] [list] [*]Like many RPGs, there’s a fair [b]degree of imbalance.[/b] Loot and economy related skills and perks become obsolete as soon as you have Weaponsmithing & access to the Ranger Citadel (about 2 hours into the game) and some weapons have large power gaps (with assault rifles and snipers at the top). [*]Whether intended or not, the first quarter of the game is best passed with one weapon skill and two non-weapon skills per ranger, which makes it [b]difficult to get all the core skills[/b] before skillpoints become plentiful later on. [*]While world-related challenges have soft skill checks (% success chance with possibility to retry), [b]dialogue-based challenges have hard checks[/b] (min. skill level to pass in one of the three dialogue skills: Hard Ass, Smart Ass & Kiss Ass) for better or for worse. And you [b]can’t predict[/b] when you’re gonna need which level of which, so... [*]Most choices have no right answer, but some have [b]only wrong answers.[/b] You will come across a sick, incapacitated woman that asks you for mercy killing. Leave her be and she'll live in perpetual agony. Or kill her, instantly triggering an event [spoiler]where her caretaker miraculously reappears after a long absence.[/spoiler] [/list] [h1]General Thoughts[/h1] [list] [*]Overall, I think that the game is a rather good take on the RPG elements found in other isometric, turn-based RPGs. [*]As with many RPGs (esp. classless ones), perfectionists will have to do a lot of research and/or do a test run before (re)starting the game with viable builds (I got 100 hours on rec and am only a quarter in because I tested, restarted & went about 1/6 in, then restarted again on Ranger difficulty). [*]There are a lot of routes. Often you’ll be able to walk through the front door or break in from behind, with each route making checks for different skills. [/list]

Well, the [b]Wasteland 2: Director's Cut[/b] is definitely a mixed bag. I'm going to keep this review brief, but some key things to know: The story is a fun take on the post apocalypse, and as far as I played, even the side quests were meaningful. The gameplay is your classic isometric CRPG. The graphics are likewise your classic isometric CRPG standard, albeit higher quality than many earlier releases. The voice overs and general sounds of the world are all great. [h1]However[/h1] The game crashes on the overland map loading screen. At first, it's relegated to a few areas on the map, but as you progress through the game, the map progressively gets more broken. There is a small sequence everyone uses to fix this (first you paste this (without the quotation marks): "-force-d3d9" in the launch options (found under properties by right clicking the game in your library), then verify your game files, then give the whole thing a restart. That bought me the 16 or so hours I was able to play, but as mentioned, as I progressed, that fix became less and less consistent, and at this moment, I'm stuck back at the Citadel because everytime I try to leave out to the world again, CRASH (to my desktop). At this point, I've tried leaving the Citadel again probably fifteen times lol. [i]It should go without saying, but if the game isn't stable enough to even handle the transition from local map gameplay to the world map, then it's not something I'm probably going to be able to finish, and I really shouldn't have to put a lot of time into fixing this myself. The game has been out for six years now. [h1]A few other issues of note[/h1] The camera is not great. Plenty of isometric games have managed to make the cameras non obtrusive, but the particular angle the cameras are at in this game leaves plenty of moments, especially when zoomed in at all, where you'll be observing more things off map than what is actually in the game. The tutorial is terrible. It goes through all the basics, but it fails to tell you some key things, such as the fact that you can accidentally heal enemies in combat if you click on the wrong avatar (which will happen often as they end up bunching together at times, and of course, sometimes the camera just doesn't cooperate) or simply don't notice that your targeting option has switched to that. Related to this, targeting is not relegated to enemies. Enemies, objects, and allies can all be highlighted, attacked, healed, etc...lol, and this will definitely lead to some wasted gear and missed opportunities. You definitely learn to adapt to the system, but you'll probably waste some time sorting out the gameplay mechanics on the fly. [h1]Verdict[/h1] The game itself is stellar, and I'm more than a little peeved that it has become unplayable at the point I'm at. I also own a copy of the PS4, and I plan to give it a second and final try there at some point to see if the same issues exist, and hopefully to be able to finish the game. As things stand, you probably already own this game, but if not, I would really look into what you will have to do to get the game to function properly before buying. You might get lucky and have no issues, but the odds are against it. [code]If you found this review helpful and would be interested in supporting my Curator group, Robilar's Reviews, it would be appreciated. Cheers. https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32549618/[/code]

"Review too long, and I didn't learn to read complete sentences": Play Wasteland 3 instead. I would estimate that only the most hardcore, masochistic, old-school-gaming purists would argue Wasteland 2 is as good as Wasteland 3, or better. At the time of writing this review, I have 105 hours of playtime on Wasteland 2. I have completed the Arizona mission, have built my characters to be versatile and viable, I've slogged through a hefty chunk of the Los Angeles mission. What I can no longer do is ignore the glaring issues with Wasteland 2, that completely shatter any hope of the storyline justifying the constant frustration and discomfort of the game's UI, RNG, and overall lack of polish. The following is a list of reasons why I just can't keep going with Wasteland 2, despite the sunk cost of over 100 hours of playtime, and a well-honed squad of veteran rangers at my command: 1. "Everything is unmarked": The developers made a token effort to give a vague sense of direction when it came to orienting a player's main quest. Despite that token effort, I still had to rely on maps and guides to figure out where I was supposed to find a specific character... or item... or lever... or key... As for anything that is NOT a main quest? Good luck! The best you can hope for, in terms of being directed, is one vague dialog mention (maybe) that you can't ask an NPC to repeat; you can also count on the side quest items NOT being marked as quest items... They'll be marked as junk, like any normal barter-grade item to be exchanged for currency. There is no distinguishable system of information to determine how to succeed (or even enjoy) anything besides the bones-basic main quest. 2. Pointless, time-wasting mazes: To be fair, this point seems slightly less prominent in the 2nd portion of the game, in Los Angeles (the operative word in this sentence is SLIGHTLY)... But holy hell... Every map in Wasteland 2 is over-complicated, delays travel between points of interest, and punishes you with a ton of wasted time if you don't get all your ducks in order before leaving a location. Get ready to slog through the same. damn. map. over. and. over. and. over. and. over... (you get the point) again just to sell junk items - or just to go get that one unmarked side quest item you forgot to pick up in the back end of a dungeon map (behind the mile-long entrance, and beyond the endless sewer portion of the level). At least the villains don't respawn... small blessing, that. 3. Pointless skills/attributes: It's fairly easy to find web articles and forum posts about W2 players wondering if they've wasted their character points on aptitudes that never seem to be useful. And they should wonder: they're absolutely right! Most skill/attribute combinations are pointless. Get used to having 2-3 clones for characters, with (maybe) space for 1 or 2 specialists that can be fun in the right (extremely rare) circumstances. You can also tell that most players who posted those questions online promptly gave up on Wasteland 2, because it's supremely difficult to find the actual information you need to play the game properly. Honestly, I could save you some time and give you the answer to that in this review, but I won't: you should skip this game altogether. 4. Indie-grade UI (user interface): Wasteland 2 could be studied and dissected in video game design schools as a perfect example of how not to design a user interface. EVERY INSUFFERABLE DETAIL of the UI is bad in one (or multiple) ways. It's absolutely awful. I stopped counting how many times I had to reload my W2 save file because the diffuse, muted, trashy UI caused me to send the wrong ranger forward. This usually results in an entire tactical layout being wasted because "Fumbling Johnny, the cross-eyed minesweeper" was apparently selected to sneak by gang of raiders (by sprinting in a straight line toward them, no less!) to hack a highly sophisticated computer console. I can't stress enough how game-shattering this point alone can be. 5. Ugly: For context, I grew up playing Fallout (on release date), among countless similar isometric RPGs. I fully understand what the standard (even the retro standard) is for this type of game. When I say Wasteland 2 is pug-ugly by 1996 titles, I mean it. There was certainly an over-arching "washed out desert theme" to start, but the developers never bothered to refine that aesthetic into anything recognisable (or remotely interesting). Everything in W2 gives off a "shoddy boiler-plate, tacked-on" vibe that does it no favors. There must be a total of 12 NPC portraits that just get cycled over and over from one location to the next. The items and weapons are ugly. There are (at most) two colors on screen at any given time: beige and dark grey. 6. Obviously unfinished: I have never looked into the production history of Wasteland 2, but I'd bet a week's wages that it was rushed to release. This shows through when you compare the "over-engineered, over-complex labyrinth" of the first Arizona area to the "unpolished, no-nonsense, straight-line-between-point-A-and-B" vibe of the second Los Angeles area. The irony is that the (relative) absence of maze puzzles in LA actually helps the game experience... By then, you'll be 50-70 hours into the game, so it really is too little too late. Another obvious hint at the game being rushed to release: most clothing accessories were only modelled for male characters!!! A large proportion (70%+) of garments aren't modelled for female characters. So your women will look like standard ranchers with the stupidest ♥♥♥♥♥♥ cowboy hat you can imagine for most of the game... Unless you want to clad them in skimpy bras and erotic garters... Somehow the devs found plenty of time to model that s*it first... Pathetic. So go play Wasteland 3, EVEN IF THE STORY ISN'T AS GOOD, because believe me: no story in the history of humanity is worth the trouble Wasteland 2 throws your way.

Not the Fallout 2 itch I was looking for but was the Fallout Tactics I didn't know I still needed.