Portable Dungeon Corridor Whompers

[Gabriel]

Dungeon Whompers are a genre of game which has been around since the dawn of electronic RPGs. While the original 80s Wizardrys and Bard's Tale trilogy are the classic examples, the square by square, 90 degree corner worlds have also been seen in the early Ultimas, Phantasy Star 1, Shining in the Darkness, and Shining & the Holy Ark. Much more recently, Wizardry made a reappearance on the PS2, and that has been followed by a seeming resurgence of the genre on portables.

 

Recently (within the past 2 years), games such as Class of Heroes, The Dark Spire, and the two Etrian Odyssey games have appearred. Most of these are on the DS, but Class of Heroes is on the PSP. One of the comments I read time and time again about these games are how tough they are. Nearly every review mentions unforgiving difficulty.

 

My question is whether this is really extreme difficulty, or just the unfamiliar nature of corridor whompers in this day and age. Are these games really difficult or is it just the fact they possess non-linear dungeons and permadeath?

 

I cut my RPGing teeth on Wizardry, Bard's Tale, and the Ultimas which featured first person dungeons. Generally speaking, they didn't strike me as having "extreme difficulty." They simply required the common sense of being careful while exploring and a lot of grinding. If these new games are like this, then I'll probably want to pick up one or all of them.

 

If, on the other hand, the "extreme difficulty" being referred to is Wizadry IV: Return of Werdna level of pain, then I'll definitely pass.

[Lord Thag]

I love this style of RPG. It's still one of my favorites, and one of the last that is still a true RPG (i.e. you get to create your own characters from scratch). I like the difficulty, and the intelligence required. There's no hand holding either. There is real puzzle solving, and real difficulty that's scaled as much to using your head, as to what level you are.

 

Even better, I'm not required to play some sixteen year old, whiny, metrosexual weenie who looks more like a chick than the requisite double-d sized boobs sidekick chick.

 

can you tell I don't much like japanese rpgs?

 

Thanks for the heads up for Class of Heroes. Didn't know about that one. I'll have to check it out. Dark Spire was amazingly good.

[Gabriel]

Well, you're welcome.

 

But there's still my question for anyone who has played any of these games as to whether they're unreasonably difficult or if that perception simply comes about because of the current generation's lack of exposure to these types of games.

 

As for games like Wizardry being "true RPGs", I really don't see how they're too different in a general structure sense from JRPGs with pre-scripted metrosexual blonde boys. You could just as easily pre-name all the characters like Phantasy Star 1 does. You could then have cutscenes play when the characters take a new set of stairs for the first time or when they visit a new dungeon, just like Phantasy Star 1 does. Corridor Whompers are just as railroady as JRPGs, it's just that they lack any kind of meaningful plot and are usually much heavier on grinding.

 

Incidentally, the first Persona game is coming to (or has already arrived on) PSP. That one is not only extremely "J" for an RPG, but is also a Wizardry-esque game when it gets right down to it.

 

Beyond all that, I like to be able to name my characters too. I miss that feature in console RPGs.

[Lord Thag]

But there's still my question for anyone who has played any of these games as to whether they're unreasonably difficult or if that perception simply comes about because of the current generation's lack of exposure to these types of games.

 

The 'dungeon whompers', as you call them, are generally perceived as tougher for a reason. Here's why: Most of these type of games to not take you by the hand like a jrpg does. Most jrpgs always tell you, on a linear path, where to go and what to do. There's no real skill involved other than leveling up and mastering the combat system, and occasionally doing a side quest. It's like an interactive movie, really.

 

Now, on something like The Dark Spire or Bards tale III, it's left entirely up to you to figure out where to go, what to do, how to do it, what floor you should be on, and how to fight the monsters you need to get there. Few hints are given, and problem solving, exploration, and trial and error are required skills.

 

They are not any harder, really, if *you understand what's expected of you*. Most gamers nowadays are used to hints, clues, arrows, minimaps etc. that tell you where you should be going next. These style of games require you to DRAW your own maps.

 

In short, they require you to put more into the game to enjoy it, but I find, the enjoyment (and your imagination) is much more involved than your typical throwaway jrpg. They allow you to write yourself into the story with your own characters, rather then depend on a pre-set bunch of characters that you may or may not like. I can tell you a hell of a lot more about my Lvl 60 Samurai/Mage in the original Wizardry that could kill Werdna in one hit, than I can about the gazillion girly-boy FF style characters in most of the jrpgs I've played. Why? Cuz he was *my* character.

 

That's my take anyway.

 

Oh, and since you like these games, google Devil Whiskey. It's a *great* pc bards tale 'spiritual successor'. Demise: Rise of the KuTan is another.