Please welcome, Cobra...

Shibumi

I respectfully agree. Rogue-like games helped me in attuning to Achaea! I love rogue-like games!

Cobra

Dear @Synbios, @Sylvance, @Shibumi,

  I have been playing games like this since my commodore 64.  My absolute favorite game of all time is Ultima IV...If you guys and gals have a chance to play and win this one and become the Avatar, it's awesome! 16 colors..."4" - 5 and quarter floppies!  I believe it's free to download these days but you'll need something like dos box.

  Otherwise I just found an awesome little game called FTL (Faster Than Light) a couple of months ago.  Amazing and it's only $10. <- worth every penny!  I spent a whole week playing this little gem over and over again.

Anyway, take care of yourselves,

Cobra 

Sylvance

@Cobra - I checked out FTL on <name redacted>, I was an inch away from buying it during a sale, but then read the reviews. It was getting ripped, and not for being too hard, but for being poorly designed, unimmersive and structureless.

How would you reply to these allegations?

Cobra

Dear @Sylvance, 

  I bought it for $5.99.  Loved it to death and then some more and then...played it again and again, still have yet to beat it.  It's a randomly generated game.  Fairly small...it's quick, you can play a game in 10 minutes or 2 hours - if your lucky.  I wouldn't say it's the best game but if you need to burn a few solid hours on mindless drivel...It's a sure fire winner!

  I wouldn't pay more than 10 bucks for it though and you really have to like the rougelike  atmosphere...It's rather unique and it feels like an old birds eye view game.  You get to upgrade your ship like mad and it can get rather suspenseful...

  But really there is NO story and it does get repetitive after 30-50 games...But still...If I pay 2 bucks an hour for entertainment...not bad!  5 hours later. PAID FOR...But you'll want more, 10 hours...more...40 hours..Then put it away for a few months. 

  Just looking at the website makes me want to take a ride in my old trusty ship with my little crew members.  Watching them try to fix the oxygen tank after it is hit and then they can't repair it in time and they all die of asphyxiation...Terrible fate...

  Seriously, what do you expect from a randomly generated rougelike game?  I didn't expect much, but it is very fun to play.

Well I am off to bed,

Cobra

Haldon

Oh no! @Cobra mentioned one of my all time favorites, Ultima IV! My Elephant floppies from back then are still storing the info corruption free. Fun times. Did you ever play Wastelands?

I just bought all the Avernum games for like 10 bucks and I am enjoying that a great deal.

Cobra

Dear @Haldon,

 

  Oh yes I played Wastelands, but not very long as I actually got my hands on it when I was much older and computers where taking a different shape.  I used to search those old computer games in the discount bins for my collection.  Something that is long gone now.  I always enjoyed the bigger boxes the computer games came in and all the cool stuff they would put in them.  Now all you get is a DVD. (I hunt garage sales for older games...but they are hard to come by)

  When I was a kid I would cut all the pages of all the games I wanted and loved out of RUN magazine and staple them to my wall.  My parents would never let me play any SSI games. D&D scared the hell out of my Mom...Like we are all going to start worshiping Satan due to a board /computer game.  Anyway.  She didn't mind me playing Wizardry, or Ultima however...

  Ahh well. That's what disinformation gets you.  If you guys and gals are bored you can read my little story about my "Ole Commodore 64" at my blog...It's rather sad and makes me want to cry...anyway.

  Reaching the "Codex of Ultimate Wisdom"...is like the coolest thing I ever did in any game...maybe because I was young and played that damn game for years.  But it left me with such an impression. 

Not many games are life changing...That's why creations like Achaea are so addicting.  It's changing you, day by day.  And then one day you wake up and your forever not the same.  Forever changed.

  Avernum looks like a blast!  I love RPGs, they were my constant companions.  No matter where I was or were I was going...I could rely on them.  That's why Achaea is so awesome.  18 years later, I am still Cobra and he is still me.  Amazing.

  I could go on all day about this to the right person.  Most people could care less.  Most people never knew.  But there are some of us out here and it's great to find you all. 

Sincerely,

Cobra

Shibumi

Incredible! I played many of those games...Ultima V, I guess, a BIG deal of Wasteland. I played many D&D titles too. My favourite one was Curse of the Azure Bonds.

I still have C64, Intellevision, and the very old Mattel Pong like game. I liked Avernum, and Blades of Avernum a lot. Eschalon Book I is nice too.

I think it is time to open a thread about retrogaming, otherwise we will be submerged by Call of Duty.

Thanks for the FTL, I saw it starting on Kickstarter and you reminded me to check it out. It has a Mac version (do not insult me, please). I will buy it for sure.

Cobra

Dear @Shibumi,

  It's amazing to me that all those old games are no longer copyrighted.  You can download as many as you want and play them until the cows come home.  

  Yes a thread about retrogaming would certainly be fun.  I would love to hear stories from a time when computers were something "special" now everything and everyone has one.  But back then. It meant something to find someone with a Commodore...I had an Intellevision, too.  God I would play that football game FOREVER.  Punching in the codes on the keypad...great fun!

  For some reason I was to much of a geek to go Atari.  *shrugs*...most of my other friends had the Atari's, but not me...

  FTL is rather fun, I think it would be even better on a touch screen but I have yet to get one.  I am somewhat behind technology at the moment.  (Probably because I have to pay for it now...)  

  If you want to see some cool images, goto google, type commodore 64 games and then click on Images...I was amazed at how many of those screen shots were familiar to me.

  It's great you guys played Ultima IV and feel the same way about it.  I feel like you know me more than my family.  It took me years to figure out that, stealing the king's gold and robbing that blind magic guy, and fleeing combat..was not the correct way to play.  Better to die in valor then run and live.  Incredible.

  I still resort back to the 8 virtues...it's life changing.  Thank you Lord British!  I have a huge collection of Origin games.  But never tried the Ultima Online...anyone give that a go?

Happy retrogaming,

Cobra

P.S. Ultima V was a huge step forward from the first 4...Really Origin has ALWAYS been ahead of it's time.  Ultima Underworld was WAY ahead of anything.  Most people think Wolfenstein 3d was the first 3d game...NOT TRUE.  Ultima Underworld had them beat by leap years.  

Shibumi

I had Ultima Underworld. In the box there was some metal runes, and a small sack. I kept the runes during all my highschool years, using them to predict when I was about to be examined. It worked, clearly. I love retrogaming!!! I finished Wolfestein 3D, I remember. Those were great days. 

Cobra

Dear @Shibumi,

  I would have killed for the actual box set of Ultima Underworld.  It came with ALL the runes?...To cool.  I used to wear the Ankh as a necklace that came from IV until it finally broke.  I wonder if these things will ever be worth any money?  I always pictured myself being 80 and having all these weird vintage games no one can play anymore.

  @Daeir, I know what you mean, Imagination is somewhat lost in our digital world.  Those old games really make your brain work and this is probably why we love Achaea so much.  It's retro but new age all at the same time. 

 I wonder where the computers and the game are going to go?  Jacked right in your brain...shot directly into your eyeballs?  True stereoscopic 3d is here.  What's next?? 

Gives me something to look forward too,

Cobra 

  

Shibumi

@Cobra no, not all the runes. It came with the runes you had at the beginning of the game. As far as I remember they were 5 or 6, I guess.

Rip

I WILL MISS YOU COBRA!  But I will walk in your shadow forever...

Dear Achaea,
  Well I turned 475 years old and to celebrate I had to completely wipe away my old existence due to hellish - unsolvable - errors with my old name - Cobra. The Divine and myself have came to the understanding that if I ever wanted to play Achaea bug free, I would have to change my name forever.  I know, I know, your like, how come Rip gets to change his name?  (This will be my 4th name change, go figure.)  Does anyone have more than that or am I the record holder?

  So what this means is, that no one will know who I am unless I scream it at the top of my lungs...Already old friends from 15 years ago have no clue who I am, so I have to retell the tragic tale of why you shouldn't name your character, Cobra. (or any snake for that matter.)  But, just to let you all know - We were gong to "Role-Play" something REALLY cool, but, we are all too lazy and who really fucking cares anyway?

  Cobra = Rip | Rip = Cobra.  Role Played enough?  GOOD! -  Now, on to making you all hate me even more.

  To say sorry, the Divine, not going to name any names, gave me a few hundred credits for being bugged for over 120 straight days (since I awoke).  I know some of you had a FUN time killing me, while I was bugged and couldn't fight back 100%, but that is all changed now.  I gleefully passed around ALL those credits that they gave me to my close friends and house members (thank you Divinity!) - so they could buy something nice to remember the old days of Achaea - when names like "Cobra" were rampant and blood soaked every city street. 

Rip

Shibumi

Good luck with your new identity, then.