Matt Chat 125: Jay Barnson on Frayed Knights and indie CRPGs

[DarkAvatar1313]

11:05 lol. 

[wabba67]

Drama points (~28mins)... didn't Arcanum have something similar to that concept?

Good stuff again, waiting for the next part :)

[ikokujin]

@wabba67 Yeah, Fate points. But they weren't lost upon loading.

[chilledoutbob]

another brilliant video, thankyou for keeping up the good cause.

[CaseofGlass]

I've been playing RPG's on various systems since early '80s and what I loved about these games how immersive they got. Yes, graphics were just pixels, music was only here and there, but (at least for me) they had incredible atmosphere and yes, sense of wonder. I used to plan my every move, had tons of dungeon maps and all of it added to incredible experience. I however still like new games like Skyrim, but it is not same the way it was...maybe I'm just too old...

[juanz888]

thanks for the video

[DOSBoxMom]

Bard's Tale 2 for the C64 was buggy (& EA tech support offered to swap for a different game instead of sending a patch disk - not for me!). I ended up downloading character editors for BT2 & 3 from Q-Link (the C64-specific precursor to AOL). Horrid phone bills each month we used Q-Link, too! (But some great little freeware C64 programs there . . .)

[MaxSpender]

I'm getting tired of all this dumbing down talk. So if you play something like Skyrim, that makes you a dullard, but if you play an indie-developed CRPG with archaic, turn based combat, that makes you intelligent? Previously, developers were restricted by hardware limitations, but with today's technology they can more fully realise their visions, meaning that gamers don't have to use their imaginations as much to fill in the blanks, but that doesn't necessarily mean that gaming has dumbed down.

[blacklily8]

@MaxSpender "dumbing down" is probably not the best way to put it. I think a lot of us older guys want something more like chess, whereas Joe Gamer wants something more like basketball. It's not so much about intelligence as it is mental vs. physical gaming.

[dwcai81]

@blacklily8 Basketball is a bad analogy, Matt. The best of the best NBA players are constantly thinking 4-6 moves ahead. And at 10x the speed of a chess player while incorporating the physical part.

Gaming, to me, is like music. Embrace the new while remembering the old got it to where it was. I love Skyrim. And I love these older games. The makers of Skyrim will probably admit to their love of the older games too.

[ManchildGames]

@blacklily8 A bit late, but I completely agree with this sentiment. Unlike much of your potential viewership, I never grew up enjoying turn based RPG or strategy game. As I get older, I find myself being much less entertained and interested in action oriented games, preferring a slower much more contemplative experience. Apart from computer RPG's, tabletop games like Advanced Squad Leader and Dungeons and Dragons are something I spend quite a lot of time with...love the videos by the way!

[ikokujin]

@MaxSpender

The argument that limited technology was behind turn-based combat is dumb. Do you think Final Fantasy used semi-turn-based combat through its SNES/PSX eras, and went full turn-based in FFX, because their designers were super conservative? Do you think a series like Heroes of Might and Magic uses turn-based combat because its designers are living in the past? No, it's because some people actually enjoy turn-based combat a lot, and the complexity in choice and tactics it allows for.

[MaxSpender]

@ikokujin I never actually argued that limited technology was behind turn-based combat. I mentioned that as an example of the type of game that some may think of as played by intelligent gamers, compared to 'dumbed down' RPGs, like Skyrim. Pardon me for not using a new paragraph for my second point :p

[ikokujin]

@MaxSpender I see. You still refer to turn-based combat as "archaic", however. Action-based gameplay is just as "archaic" as turn-based. In fact, the first computer games were action games.

[marcusmalone]

Max makes a great counter point. Actually, before I watch a Matt Chat vid, I make sure to hide my Call of Duty discs just in case! ; )

[Waage83]

@MaxSpender It is not that EVERY game that is streamlined is dumbed down the issue is a TON of games are because developers are afraid that some gamer's are to fucking stupid to play there game.

Take Dragon age 1 and 2. DA:O was by no means a perfect game, but it had some good ideas and some really interesting encounters.

DA2 on the other hand went full retard and cut out most of the good and put nothing, but stupid back in.

Skyrim is fine game, but it is far from a deep RPG.

[tubeofbryce]

@MaxSpender In a nutshell, yes.

[MaxSpender]

@tubeofbryce Nuts.

[DragoonBoom]

@MaxSpender It isn't about playing or not playing games, it's about deconstructing the artform and analysing it's viability as a whole game and the wider scope of where it fits in the market.

The issue with Skyrim is that it's a rushed game, and that it's not deep, shallow if you will. It's cannon fodder.

Old school games and indie games tend to be deep, masterful projects where all features are deliberate to work against limitations. Assuming that the games are good, ofc.

[ClassicsRemade]

16:30 Yeah! MM2!! :)

[marcusmalone]

Sorry, last thing: Just used your link to go to Gog. That site's friggin' amazing. I've been looking for a compatible Planescape for ever!!

[blacklily8]

@marcusmalone Hehe, yeah I almost hate to go to the site because I always end up buying a half dozen games from them.

[Hamdar7]

Ah Matt, you're so damn classy and professional.

[marcusmalone]

Simple games have always coexisted alongside more intellectually engaging games and always will. Further, the former will always sell more than the latter. I mean, you have Bat'n'Ball coexisting (sort of) with early text adventures etc etc. Maybe the big publishers are no longer interested in making small market games but, as your vids prove, indie devs will always fill the gap. Same thing in cinema and music. Might have to sift through more crap nowadays but, you know, who cares?

[marcusmalone]

I'm going to write my most controversial comment ever for a Matt Chat video...

I'm enjoying Skyrim immensely! Bethesda have really worked on the cookie cutter, procedural thing. Voice acting still more or less sucks, though.

[RevJesseJackson]

Another amazing interview

[gotrek44]

I cant even conceive of anyone not likeing the Baldurs Gate series. I personaly think its the most perfect CRPG ever made. A bold statement? YesI know nothing is perfect but I mean closest to perfection. I think its the Mona Lisa of CRPGs.

[AphexDash]

The big problem with Skyrim, is that they are trying to cater to people who don't like RPGs. Really annoys me when I hear people playing RPGs that complain that numbers are too complicated or they say the story line is boring and just want to get into the ACTION! The worst part is some of my former favourite developers are now catering to these people. (I'm looking at you BioWare and Bethesda!)

Thank god for indie games I say.

[RyuRanXII]

@djaliplume

Ultima VII is my favorite game of all time as well.

Great interview, Matt. I'm enjoying Frayed Knights a lot.

[ulladullahsen]

I really love when these guys tell about how they learned programming and on which machines. I love it because it gives me a inner portal into the 80ies or 70ies.

[abeheron]

No probs...Matt is da man, just thought to let him know - in case its a bug or something...lol many people harsh on Skyrim here - lol old skool to the max...

[Sinekyre14]

Skyrim *SUCKS* ^^

[Sinekyre14]

I agree with 11:09 Matt - SKYRIM RUCKS!

It's the most generic, boring, slow FPS-adventure I've ever played. It's NOT an RPG. The problem with developers today is that they're trying to make interactive movies, but their actual plots and game world are less developed than The Room. It's sad, and sad that people accept it..

[bman462]

@Sinekyre14 haha I almost missed that, that's great

[blacklily8]

@bman462 If you guys want to hear me ripping on Skyrim, go to Armchair Arcade and check out my podcast about it. :)

[sin1987runescape]

Jay barnson is one of my favorite developers to listen to talk about games so far, looking forward to the next video, good work.

[djaliplume]

Ultima 7, favourite game of all time. Hells yeahs

[BinaryBunyip]

TRIBES FTW - people still play it online. I found it at a flea market for $7.

[abeheron]

Hey Matt, there is no video from about 26:30 (audio is on but no image)

up to about 28:00?

[sin1987runescape]

@abeheron The audio is most important.

[x0n1c64]

@abeheron Looks like he had some encoding problems there as it sounds like he's showing game footage.

[blacklily8]

@abeheron Sigh. Some kind of weird Vegas issue...Not sure what. At any rate, I'll upload a corrected version to Armchair Arcade if you'd like to see the footage--pretty good stuff from Frayed Knights.

[blacklily8]

@blacklily8 All right, I patched it up and made it available in the Armchair Arcade version (see show notes for link). You'll have to stream or download it, but hopefully it's worth it.

[AphexDash]

IIRC the Cirix 486 didn't have a math co-processor (FPU), like the 486SX, where as starting with the 486DX all intel processors did.

*Proud of my 486DX2 66, turbo'd to 88MHZ!*

Really loving the show Matt, thanks heaps mate!