What do we think of Temple of Elemental Evil

[vovan]

Heya, folks.

I was wondering if any of you around here have played this recent RPG...

I've seen some screenies and I kind of liked them. Plus, the reviews were great, but I have learned not to give much weight to them.

I am not a big fan of "action RPG's", like Diablo, but prefer more quest-oriented ones. I think I haven't really played a good RPG since Fallout. Any way, I was wondering if maybe it's about time I got back into RPG's and maybe that ToEE would be the one to get me back in. But to decide on that, I need more opinions: how's the story in the game? How are the quests? What's the ratio of fighting to exploring? And such. That and personal opinions are quite welcome.

[General Ludd]

I haven't played it, because I stayed away from it after hearing bad reviews from players when it was first released. I'm told that it's pretty much hack'n'slash, aswell.

[vovan]

Would those be real-life friends or on some site? And if the latter - which? I'm asking because the couple of my friends that actually played it are saying it's great. And then when I look at player reviews on Gamespot, only one of, like 17, is 4.6 out of ten. All the others are above 8.5... So, I pretty much haven't seen any bad reviews so far. Just having my own doubts though.

I like the fact that fighting is turn-based, but the demo doesn't really give a feel for the story and quality of quests, so I am not sure.

[Dis]

I might be interested, but I haven't seen it.

I take it there is no demo?

I don't doubt many players like this game. Though I have heard of some bugs with the game. But the question is are these players action or more quest/role-playing orientated? We all know there is a difference between games like diablo2 and fallout or baldur's gate 2 or planescape:torment.

although I like all 3 of those games. I do like some action type rpg's. actually Diablo 1 and 2 are the pretty much the only one's I like . Blizzard can make good games.

I didn't like Pool of Radiance at all, I didn't buy it, but my brother did. Pathetic implementation of 3E rules that was. And it was a very linear action game I believe.

I didn't buy dungeon siege either. But I may get that as the exp. pack and original game is bundled at a decent price it looks like. but that is another example of an action orientated rpg.

TOEE is also 3E actually 3.5E rules.

[vovan]

Originally posted by Dissident
I take it there is no demo?

Originally posted by Vovan
the demo doesn't really give a feel for the story

http://www.us.atari.com/games/greyhawk_temple_of_elemental_evil_pc_action/

Down the on the left is a link to the demo. I am not sure why it is not linked on the main site... Atari.

We all know there is a difference between games like diablo2 and fallout or baldur's gate 2 or planescape:torment

Yup. Exactly why I am reluctant about this particular game. I'm much into the quest-oriented RPG's, but the action ones, especially like Diablo, just don't float my boat.

[Snotty]

My friend got it and 3 of us pretty much liked it. I got quite near the end when it bugged both of my saves simultainiously, so I put it away and waited for a patch. Theres some replayability in the form of ironman and going solo. I found character development to be highly enjoyable, much more so than normal due to the feats system. I made a monster whirlwind reach fighter, and experience of development could carry over to PnP.

I followed the plot to a degree, but often got frustrated as I couldnt work it out. I could never tell if I couldnt do the quest due to my ineptitude or because it was bugged. The quests are mostly concentrated in the two towns, but there are a few other plot things in the temple itself. All that said, the turn based combat really appealed to me, and it didnt feel diablo-ish at all.

Get the demo if you havent already. 6 hours is not to be sniffed at.

[Jamski]

Ok, I rushed out and bought it when new so....

GOOD POINTS :

The tactical combat is fun.
The graphics are pretty tasty.
There's some lovely enemies (giant frogs, anyone?)
The game sticks very closely to "offical" 3.5ed D6D rules.

BAD POINTS :

The game is pretty lacking storywise. There's this temple of elemental evil, and if your're good the you have to crash through it and kill everyone. If you're evil you have to crash through it and kill nearly everyone, to show how evil you are. Then you can join the evil temple. YAY! There's a few sub-quests, but they are very short and pointless.
The game is SMALL. There's one big dungeon and one small one, two small towns and a couple of outdoor areas that are not needed. Takes about 10-15 hours.
The game is easy. Very easy. Once your characters get off level one, they start to kick arse very soon. The ability to find two totally over-the-top good weapons that will kill gods and demons kinda makes every fight go your way. (Spoiler : two swords that always hit, do masses of damage, and if YOU are hit damage the enemy that hit you. I mean they ALWAYS hit.)
The game is filled with small bugs, crashes, lags, things that don't work like they should...
Crafting items means you can make your über-party even more über.

OVERALL :

The combat is so good that it cancels out the terrible storyline. The lovely graphics make up for the silly bugs. Role-playing this game ain't. Its a D&D fantasy combat simulator. So overall, I'd say it was fairly average. I'd only buy it if you REALLY have to get every D&D game, oterwise wait till the price drops.

BTW, it is possible to complete the game using the demo. 6 hours is plenty if you know where to go. You CAN complete the game in less than 1 hour, using a solo level-one rogue and avoiding combat. Silly, eh?

-Jam

[The Mad Monk]

How closely does it follow the original TOEE?

[Jamski]

Far too closely.

That is, if you have the original module, then this will have no surprises, nor will you need a walkthrough.

If this is a good thing? Well, the module was great when I played it back in 198x, but its a bit dated now, basically a dungeon crawl with all kinds of unrelated critters mashed in next to each other for no reason.

-Jam

[The Mad Monk]

It was a bit dated then.

For the longest time there was just T1, The village of Hommlet, and it seemed that the rest of the promised series would never come out. It finally came out in that softcover all-in-one format the Slaver/Giants/Drow series were reissued in.

By that time, the I series had already gone through Ravenloft and The Desert of Desolation -- heck, even that miscarried return to Ravenloft, I10, was probably out.

Nevertheless, it was fun subjecting my brother and friends to it.

[Jamski]

Ah, fond memories

If you still have the book, check up on Scather and Fragrach. Just smell that cheese

-Jam

[Grumbold]

I love the new engine, which makes it possible to do the 3e combat. The actual dungeon itself is not brilliant, but that is because the original module was like that. Had Turbine had the time and permission to enhance it more it would have been a better game. Nevertheless, with the fan mods installed its a damn good dungeon romp.

[Jamski]

Its not, its a terrible unstructured kill everything hack of a dungeon romp. Sure the fighting is good, but there SHOULD be more to a D&D game...

Apart from the combat, this is real step back from the depth of Troika's last RPG

-Jam

[Grumbold]

If you read the module, Jam, you'll see its a 99.99% faithful conversion of the published pnp Temple of Elemental Evil. That is the problem.

Troika were paid for a perfect implementation of it with not much extra added then told to remove the adult storylines that they layered on top of it at the last minute. Of course that makes it less colourful than Troika's own world. Still, as kill-everything dungeons go, the temple can't be faulted much imho.

[Dis]

is there an editor?

can it be modded easily?