role-playing « Thistle Games

Final Fantasy XIII

The Final Fantasy series has managed to retain the RPG videogame crown for several years. Early sales of Final Fantasy XIII already suggest that the now familiar mix of glossy graphics and extended RPG gameplay will be another huge success for Square Enix.

Existing fans of the series are likely to be [...]

Heavy Rain

Heavy Rain stood out as a likely winner when we posted our Videogames 2010 page. Plot-centred, point-and-click investigations aren’t exactly new to videogaming but Heavy Rain’s murder mystery ’spin’ looked likely to impress and innovate.

We’re please to find that the title has delivered on much of its promise. So much so [...]

Endless Ocean 2

Diving adventure Endless Ocean was quite successful on the Wii. The diving and exploration side of the game worked well, allowing players to meet a wide variety of marine wildlife. The ‘adventure’ gameplay was more limited and didn’t go beyond looking round some sunken ruins and searching for a mysterious white whale.

Wolfquest

‘Serious Games’ that set out to deliver some form of training or learning have been around for years. Unfortunately, almost all of these games put the ‘learning’ before the fun, which usually involves bolting weak videogame elements on to content-heavy training materials.

There are examples of such games that are so unbelievably [...]

Valentine's Day

Not the most common topic for a games blog but our Free Realms playtester felt we should post. As with Halloween and Christmas, Free Realms has put on a show for Valentine’s Day. Hearts, roses, cards and gifts are all over the place.

Running calendar events seems to be appreciated [...]

Videogames: 2010 Page Posted

Just added a feature length post on this year’s videogame releases here. We don’t doubt that you’ve read a few of these in the last couple of months. However, our suggestions are more to do with finding novelty and good gameplay than simply reporting on the titles with the highest budgets.

The [...]

Tabletop RPGs and Skills: Part 5: Indie Games

Treasure

An Indie RPG can be though of simply as a small press publication. D&D started out Indie and there’s a long list of Indie games which have gone large, alongside a longer list of Indie games which have fallen by the wayside.

Indie RPGs can also be thought of as [...]

Tabletop RPGs and Skills: Part 4: 'Rules Light'

Traveller

Traveller has been around for almost as long as D&D. It arrived as a stripped down set of SciFi rules with streamlined character design and straightforward combat rules. Character advancement was only sketched out, combat often ended badly and there was a distinct shortage of aliens.

There haven’t been a great many [...]

Tabletop RPGs and Skills: Part 3: Storytelling RPGs

Mouse Guard

The Mouse Guard RPG is based on David Petersen’s fantasy books about anthropomorphic mice combating the predators that threaten their territory. Players’ characters join the ‘Mouse Guard’ and play through plot driven adventures using a moderately complicated set of rules.

Mouse Guard Roleplaying Game

Playing the part of [...]

Tabletop RPGs and Skills: Part 2: 'Battle Games'

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition

Like original D&D, AD&D 4e often involves going down dungeons, beating up monsters and taking their treasure. However, 4e is a ‘rules heavy’ game that works differently from original D&D. It uses a ‘battle game’ model where the exact positioning of units, tactical expertise in applying [...]

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