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Buying my first computer game

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 7:52 am
by seodevhead
Okay guys... I never bought a game before because I thought it would always be a distraction from my work and I would end up getting addicted to it. But I'm tired of these nights of boredom that only nerds tend to have. And I have succumbed to my pathetic ways and will be purchasing my first computer game.

Problem is, I have no idea what game to get and don't have any clue whats good out there. I was never big into roleplaying games or zelda/mario type stuff. I did play Madden and Tiger Woods before a couple years back and liked that. Also played counter strike and that was fun. But I would gather there are much better games out today. Any suggestions? I am going to pick only 1 game to buy and that will have to hold me over for awhile. :D

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 7:58 am
by feyd
Half-life 2 is typically a good call if you enjoy action games. World of Warcraft, Everquest (2), and Lineage 2 are the big MMO's these days if memory serves. Both of those can often sustain several months of play, depending on how often you can play. Be warned, MMO's are fairly addictive, but they do incorporate a bunch of stuff for more casual gamers.

How much gaming time a day/week are we talking about here?

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 8:29 am
by seodevhead
Hey feyd.. I know of World Warcraft as my friend is addicted to it. And from the looks of it, it really isn't my cup of tea. Mostly because I have played those style games before and I always suck really bad at them. Any non-sport strategy related games I tend to do vary poorly in. I only want to play once in a while... maybe an hour or so every night after work.

Some games I have really enjoyed are (mind you they are very dated)... Madden, Tiger Woods, SimCity, Counter-Strike, Mario-Kart (Super Nintendo), Jeopardy and Oregon Trail (real old).

Oh... and there used to be a game called scorched earth that had 2 tanks on cliffs shooting at each other... that was great. But I am looking for something that can push my new computer and have some good graphics.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 8:44 am
by qads
Hmm...how about FPS (first person shooter)?

I suggest Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 2142.

BF2 review
BF2142 review

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:02 am
by seodevhead
Yea... I like the looks of that Battlefield 2 game. I do like those 1st person shooter ones like counter-strike. I also really like playing other people online. Is it a fairly easy game to pick up on? In other words... is the learning curve realtively small to get started and shooting stuff?

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:07 am
by feyd
It would seem that Half-life is more your ally then.

You may also want to consider waiting for Unreal Tournament 2007, although its strong point will be multi-player, it is supposed to be out in the first quarter of 2007. There's also Far Cry, Battlefield 2142, Rainbow Six: Vegas, and likely others.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:20 am
by seodevhead
I remember when I played counter-strike... that it was free to play online all you wanted against other people. Is this still true for online multi-player games today? Because I was looking at Madden 07 and on the back of the box it said "Requires Paid Subscription To Play Online". I was going to buy it but then I put it back because I am only interested in playing these types of games online against other people. But after looking on EAsports website I was unable to find any information about how much this "subscription" costs or even where to go to sign up for it. I guess you have to have the game to learn all that stuff.

Is the counter-strike that people play today the same ol' CS that I played 5 years ago? In other words... is there a new version of CS out that has better graphics? I don't want to buy any "old" games. :)

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:33 am
by feyd
Many games are free to play in multi-player, however it is up to the game and publisher.

Counter-strike Source can be purchased separately or as part of a Half-life 2 package.

I'd recommend getting a Half-life 2 package such as the 2006 Collection. They can be bought in box form too at many retailers.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:37 am
by jayshields
I'm not a half-life player, so correct me if I'm wrong people.

If you were to buy Half-Life 2, you get Counter Strike: Source bundled with it. Both of these games you can play online for free and they are hugely popular. The old CS is still hugely popular though (although it's gone through many updates), don't know if the new one is more popular yet or not.

You can download a program called Steam which I think is like an online hub for your Valve games. Through this you can buy/play Half-Life 2/Counter Strike: Source, Day of Defeat: Source, etc.

Someone will have to back me up on the above info but if I was you I'd buy Half-Life 2, especially if you enjoyed the original Half-Life and Counter Strike.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:48 am
by Burrito
I have backed off my gaming some but am starting to pick it back up now that my wife has been gone for a bit.

I can't recommend BF2 enough. To answer your question, the learning curve is relatively steep to understand all of the nuances. Sure you can jump in and blow people up in a tank, but to really understand and appreciate the game, it takes a little bit of time investment.

I have BF2142 and I've only played it 2 times...I'm sure it's better than it seemed at first glance, but I wasn't blown away immediately which I hoped I would have been (metaphorically of course :) ).

CSS and HL2 are also very good games. If you're looking for a good RTS game, check out company of heroes.

There really are a lot of great games out there right now for the PC. The ones I listed are games that I used to play regularly, and when I started getting back into it (3 weeks ago), BF2 just seemed to fit like an old shoe...must be my favorite :D

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:48 am
by DaveTheAve
lol wow feyd, you must really like HL2.

Anyway I must agree with Feyd (what a shock eh?); Half-Life 2 with the Counter-Strike: Source package is cheap as well as fun. The graphics are as amazing as the gameplay; has both 32 & 64-bit support and all the while fun as heck. You'r looking at ~$40 for the package which you'll NEVER regret buying.

As far as free CSS, yes it's still free so are the upgrades. The only catch - i'm sure it was back then too - is that you much purchase the game; purchase not needed if bought in a package with Half-Life 2.

Other games I suggest are (Note I never really play games some of these are review only):
Pray
Doom 3 - Fun
Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter. - Really fun but hard and needs good graphics card
Fallout 2
Need For Speed: (Most Wanted or Carbon) - Never played Carbon but if it's a NFS it's always AWSOME.
Battlefield 2
Call Of Duty 2 (or 3)
F.E.A.R. - Great game but heavy on graphics
Obvilion - I never liked RPGs but I can't say no to this one, it has me; awsome graphics too.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:57 am
by Ree
If you have never played Doom 3 + its expansion, by any means do so. It's a piece of art.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 10:38 am
by RobertGonzalez
I once played Roe-Sham-Bo, but the game vanished. I was actually supposed to be winning a RSB tournament, but that never materialized...

* cough * Burr?

/ This is an inside joke and is in now way meant to offer any help to you in selecting games. I found years ago that computer games were really not my cup of tea and have stayed away from them since the early days of the Atari 2600 game system. Sorry.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 10:45 am
by impulse()
Sierra are now offering a free download of F.E.A.R for multiplayer use only. There are hundreds of servers online and the sound and graphics are spot on. You may suffer if you have a standard GFX card.

http://www.joinfear.com/main

Enjoy.

Posted: Fri Dec 29, 2006 10:59 am
by seodevhead
I have a GeForce 7600 GT. Is this a pretty good graphics card for gaming? Though it ain't top of the line... pretty much everything else in my computer is... QX6700 Quad-Core, WD Raptors, 4 GB RAM, etc.