10 Years of Early Windows Gaming 1999 - Episode 6

[@andreasg7715]

System Shock 2 was very complex game with amazing script and arc but what it made it really unique was the scares you got. What helped a lot in that was the sound design. You could here EVERYTHING before even seeing it. How many times I got goosebumps listening to the phrase "We are the many" turning around to see a mutant with a wrench going for your head! in my top 5 games of all time for sure

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

This, sir, sounds like a cool memory, and a fun experience! :)

[@J_Stamps86]

I was about 14 when playing through System Shock 2 and the big twist, when it happened, genuinely shocked me. The audio logs are so well acted and performed too and were such an incredible narrative tool. I did enjoy Nocturne too, but man were the camera angles a pain sometimes.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Camera angels were always the pain in 3D games with pre-rendered backgrounds. That's why I hate them with a passion of a blind duck hunter. xD

[@TheVanillatech]

"The Polito form is DEAD .... insect! Are you afraid?" XD Shodan was ruthless.

[@VEC7ORlt]

Nice selection as usual, still waiting for Septerra Core to be included!

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Thanks! It's still on the list, and we're barely at the 6th episode for 1999. :)

[@VEC7ORlt]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames its such a good year for gaming! The list is almost endless!

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

@@VEC7ORlt Yup. I'll try to have another 1 or 2 out this coming week, between the DOS videos. :)

[@rolandschiffmann]

System Shock 2 had an Co-Op mode which was provided through a patch.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

That must've been epic!

[@TheVanillatech]

Back in 99, my friend who was a few years older than me (in his early 20's), he went out and bought System Shock II. Neither of us had seen it before, but he took a punt because it was an FPS game. He had a superb PC and even his machine struggled with that early version, lithtech engine game, but he stopped playing it after just an hour or so because he was TERRIFIED! Biggest guy ever, built like a tank, feared up and down the area where we live ... but he was terrified of horror things. Movies, games, anything. Like a child. And he put the CD back in the box and shelved it. I borrowed it from him the following week and played it through three times in a row. One of my all time favourite video games, a true masterpiece. I tried to tell him, force him to try it again, but he wouldn't. In the end, he let me keep it. TRON 2.0, another early and slightly obscure lithtech game (although from the early 2000's) is also a great title. Once you manage to find reasonable sensitivity settings (difficult), it's a really great use of the license and one of the better single player FPS games of the early 2000's.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Oh, what a great way to get SS2! And what a game to get too! :)

[@TheVanillatech]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames It was always funny watching him get frightened playing games. Remember "Horror Quake"? A Quake I addon / mod set in a haunted house map for 2 players : the "victim" and the "axe murderer". If you spawned as the victim, you had no weapon or way to defend yourself, you had to make it to the front door alive. But the axe murderer had the axe. The map was filled with rooms and dark shadows to hide in. I promise you, my friend ... the big guy ... he used to scream like a girl when he saw me running at him with that axe! I fell off the chair laughing so many times. He took advantage of this and made it to the exit.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

@@TheVanillatech Ha ha ha :) Must've been hella fun! :)

[@alekseev1986]

It has been and still is a hard time but tonight we get it like it's 1999

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

:)

[@AntipaladinPedigri]

4:26 I loved the super funny walk cycles in Nocturne where the chars walked in zigzags with guns outstretched during cutscenes

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

:)

[@vazzeg]

Pirate equivalent of Mr. Bean is the best description I EVER heard of Guybrush hahahahahahahahaha.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Well, he's convinced that he's one, just like Mr Bean's convinced that he's like everyone else. They're both not. But they're both so much more, and it makes them both special.

[@Fastwinstondoom]

The Longest Journey was the first game I played that was good enough that I got post-game blues after finishing it.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Sir, you just made my day. Not because of the Longest Journey, despite it being an amazing game, but because you described in one sentence how I feel after completing an amazing game. One with story that keeps me wanting more even when I know that it's all gone. "Post-game blues". I am definitely stealing that one. ;)

[@danm3570]

also a massive monkey island fan. The new one that came out recently is fun and a great nostalgia trip but way too easy, Never played a 90's adventure game I could get to the end without getting stuck once (although a lot of 90's adventure game puzzles were illogical)

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

You know, I have the new one on Game Pass, but never found time to properly get into it. I get like one day a week on a weekend now to play (and not a whole one either), and I tend do carry on with one game until I finish it now or get tired with it. xD

[@unsaltedskies]

Sam & Max Hit the Road is another classic.

[@danm3570]

@@unsaltedskies believe me I have bought it many times

[@kyleolson8977]

I don't have time to talk about much, but I want to get in one some details about System Shock 2 that are often lost to time. The game was not developed with a blockbuster budget. The first game was a AAA release, this was a B release. The game was developed by a small team of passionate fans of the first game. Why is this important? Occasionally you'll here someone suggest this game was a technical marvel. The first game was, but while System Shock 2 had style, the graphics were regarded as dated in reviews when the game was released. In fact, as odd as it seems, to me this game as always felt a bit like very high quality fan fiction, despite the fact that in both sales and overall popularity, System Shock 2 is the bigger game. Also unlike the first game, System Shock 2 has modern controls and is still very playable without a remaster (control-wise).

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

What you're saying is not only interesting, but also important part of the gaming history. Thanks for finding a minute to send it all. :)

[@2HeadedHero]

System Shock 2 might just be the GOAT imsim. Top five game for sure

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

It's definitely out there.

[@TheVanillatech]

SS2, DeusEX, Total Annihilation, Quake 1 and Quake III are probably my picks. Civilization 2 Advanced will be angry, though...

[@sophiacristina]

Oh man, i played GTA2 so many times, i finished in all ways possible, definitely is worth. The 2D universe (it is 3D in fac) is unique in its own way, it is different and incomparable to the 3D universe, even with lot of similarities. GTA2 is the one that is worth playing for those who want to know how the old GTAs were. Because the GTA 1 is too primitive and hardcore, a cop level does not fade, you die in few shots, missions are pretty brutal, you never expect to be in a mission sometimes (get in a car, and discover the car is a mission). Both are worth, but i think GTA2 is the one that gives me more joy and it is funnier.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

I agree, great game. Underappreciated, no doubt about that. But I also kinda get, why it got little love. It was a bit too torn out from our reality. Like literally a singe step too far. So not far enough to be disliked, but too far to be loved. xD

[@sophiacristina]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames Interesting point, and i think that for the average player, it is kinda hard, that may had made some people scared of it. However, i was not aware that it got little love, maybe a cultural difference, but in Brazil, everyone i met loved this game, ahahaha... Anecdotal, but well, that is it.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

@@sophiacristina :)

[@nicholsliwilson]

Sega Rally 2 was pretty impressive & 1 I played quite bit of back in the day & it’s still fun now. Definitely 1 to play if you haven’t. Oh my gosh, I remember Nocturne being disappointing but I don’t remember a thing about it? Wild Metal was fun & it’s definitely still a fun ‘pick up & play’ game now. System Shock 2 was epic! It pushed the interactivity in an FPS game, it looked fantastic at the time & had an actual story. It’s spiritual successor & some say de facto remake, Bio Shock is great because System Shock 2 was great & I have it to hand for my retro gaming collection. It’s absolutely one to play if you’re interested in the history of games or just enjoy them. *Highly recommended.* I love Curse of Monkey Island is my favourite entry in the series & being easily run in ScummVM I have played it on no end of different devices. It’s absolutely 1 to play if you haven’t. Never played The Longest Journey but from your description I probably should? Wow! The upscaled footage of Outcast you found does not do it any favours but it’s absolutely 1 to play if you’re interested in gaming history & it plays quite well for it’s day. I know it’s heresy to say but I could never get in to the top down GTAs, except for London because it was fun to drive around a familiar city. BTW the correct term for a “fire engine” is actually a “fire appliance,” which is somehow even less helpful as a description. I have a “fire appliance” in my kitchen, we call it the “[gas] oven,” along with a “fire appliance” in my living room, it’s called the “[gas] fire” & it’s at the bottom of my chimney. 😄 A single testicle to you sir! What a cracking list! Thank you! 😄

[@Zontar82]

"h my gosh, I remember Nocturne being disappointing but I don’t remember a thing about it?" you are clearly remebering it wrong

[@nicholsliwilson]

@@Zontar82 you can remember an emotional response without remembering the details. If you like the game that's fine, you don't need to be upset about my opinion, opinions can't hurt you just because they differ from yours. You'll learn that as you grow up.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

A bit of a controversial opinion but despite having all of them, every single one, in both regular and remasters, I'm not much into Bioshock. Can't explain why. Just not my thing. The Longest Journey is as good as Monkey games. Not as fun or out of this World, but as grandiose of an adventure and as captivating. Entirely different theme though, and other than the quality and genre, nothing really connects the two. The whole fire conundrum is getting out of hand... How can we properly call things if not by their functions. Come to think of it, I take that back. I am really not looking for a function-based name for a cond0m. xD

[@nicholsliwilson]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames LOL! Or toilet paper. 😄

[@williamtopping]

I got back into gaming in 1999,. Last time I used to game was with my Amiga in the 80s. I got into raves in the 90s, and that was that for a while. I remember buying a PC in 1999, and picking up System Shock 2. It was such a HUGE jump from the memories of my Amiga. I think I played through System Shock 2 several times. Each time getting better and better and choosing the right build. It was this game that got me back into gaming. The last game I really loved was Dungeon Master on the Amiga. RPG's are my favourite genre of game by far. Currently replaying Divinity Original Sin 2, waiting for Baldur's Gate 3 to go on sale. I still have a soft spot for System Shock 2. Would I go back and replay it. Absolutely not. Some things are far better as memories.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

"I got into raves in the 90s, and that was that for a while." is probably the coolest and most 90s sentence I've read all day today. Thanks for that! :) DOS2 is amazing! But Pillars of Eternity II Deadfire in turn-based mode is excellent too. Both Pathfinder games too, especially the second. I've never had as much fun trying different builds than in that game. There's like literally over 120 basic classes there, that can be mixed into millions of possibilities. It's amazing! BG3 is great too! You'll love them all. :)

[@ServantOfOdin]

Dang, going through the 6 episodes, I can say I heard of at least 70% of the games and played about half of them at some point, even if just some demo version.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Well, it's not obscure series, so you were bound to know of many of them. Especially that 1999 was rather packed with hits :)

[@ServantOfOdin]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames Indeed. I do have to admit, in my memory, I somewhat misplaced some of these games to earlier or later years.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

@@ServantOfOdin It's alright. There were so many great games back then, it's easy to mix them up. Or forget, I'm guilty of that latter. xD

[@arkgaharandan5881]

after spending all those years playing games that no one has ever heard of as well as the well known ones, system shock 2 is quite possibly the closest thing to a perfect game ever made. They just dont make games like this anymore.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

They really do. They're just drowned out in the sea of lower quality releases. Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous is an excellent example. :)

[@arkgaharandan5881]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames i dont like medieval fantasy games specially the ones with jokes, so i played encased instead and aside from the fact you can play as a stupid character, it sucks.

[@AntipaladinPedigri]

3:39 Yesterday I commented on a FB post saying that Germany borders on 9 countries. I said that a certain angry painter wanted Germany to not border on any country at all. Had my post immediately removed and restrictions pit on my account, because AI believes I was promoting evil people and T.R. orism. I appealed, but AI basically agreed with itself and congrated itself on a job well done.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Interesting concept. We're nearly there, the dusk of humanity and dawn of AI, is what you're saying?

[@Toon_Pirate]

Does "Rule Britannia" play on a loop when you're near Lord British in Ultima 9, or did they stop doing that this late in the series?

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

LOL :)

[@TeaAndTankControls]

I really really like Curse of Monkey Island. It was one of those magazine demos back in the day and I was so fascinated with it and so clueless about how to play it, I spent a lot of time in that ship trying to get out. I finally played it all many years later. It's a great game! The cartoon graphics work really well too. :) I see now that the game you called one of the most important was System Shock 2. I haven't played it, so can't confirm, but a lot of people swear by it. So I look forward to giving it a go. :) Did Nocturne have tank controls then? :D Lens flares in a horror game? XD Though it was the era when every game just had to have unnecessary graphical gimmicks, like lens flares and bloom, to make it in the ever-increasingly competitive gaming market. Oh, do you suppose the changes in gamephay in Ultima ix were what put an end to the series?

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

There's just nothing like Monkey games. And I would love to replay them all again. Especially the first two, that they got the high definition remixes, just so that I could feel all the iconic locations painted for them. Well, not "just", but "also". Yup, it was System Shock 2. :) Nocturne did in fact had tank controls. :) And I think so too, that when 3D "started off", everyone and their mother tried to pack up as many effects in their titles as they could. Cause they thought that it would sell them. Which is both, correct and incorrect at the same time. Today it would not fly with all the online previews/reviews/early looks/etc. There was actually Ultima X. And I'm like 99.9% sure I have it on something, maybe Steam or GOG, but I think someone else made it. Not sure what exactly killed it, but if I had to guess, I'd bet on EA acquiring ORIGIN Systems. They used closed the studios they bought for IPs only like on a weekly basis back then.

[@TeaAndTankControls]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames I've seen (but not played) the HD Monkey versions of the games and the backgrounds are pretty, but I honestly don't like the character designs. And those closeups in the pixelised versions were very nice. I don't know... The voices are good though. Don't tell anyone, but I'm not too keen on tank controls. I think they're worse than parsers. XD I think at some point games were banking on a reputation of having such high graphics requirements, that they'd become famous for it. Just look at Crisis. :D

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

@@TeaAndTankControls How can you say that? Nothing's worse than parsers? Well, Pro Soccer 2190's gameplay (or lack thereof) is... But other than that, nothing!

[@TeaAndTankControls]

@@OldAndNewVideoGames It's a good thing I didn't name my channel Tea and parsers then. Or Tea and Pro Soccer 2190 XD

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

@@TeaAndTankControls Tea, British thing. Soccer aka Football, British thing. Tea and Soccer 2190 has a potential as a channel name. ;)

[@Zontar82]

outcast unfortunately had a very terrible combat\shooting system

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Unfortunately.

[@lorigulfnoldor2162]

Since comments are always welcome here, I wanted to share the sad news - Jerzy Sthur has passed away. Let all of us who remember him fondly press F for him. He was a great comedic talent, if he was an actor in a rich Western country he would make a great career, but even as it is, he is still a great actor who will be missed. F

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

F

[@BurstingVeins1]

I could never get into System Shock, I always thought it was plain and boring. I could tell Bungie created Halo because I found the original Halo just as plain and boring as System Shock. Luckily the Halo remaster added a ton of detail to the environments that fixed almost all the problems with it.

[@OldAndNewVideoGames]

Well, it's a beauty of gaming in a way. That there's so many unique games, and we don't have to all the same games. :)