Not very sporting of the ol' box to just bring it up without being asked. Oh well, he's young. He's got time to learn.

Comment by Cheez, added Fri, 06 Feb 2015 02:08:26 GMT

He was just trying to be helpful. I think.

Comment by Ste Pickford, added Fri, 06 Feb 2015 09:02:22 GMT

Since when is this in 3 Dimensions when Plok only walked from Left to Right, no matter how illogical it was?

Comment by Guest Nathan, added Fri, 06 Feb 2015 16:47:31 GMT

Thank you for this. I thought I was the only one.

Comment by Guest Nick, added Fri, 06 Feb 2015 17:18:57 GMT

I had no idea those were in enough games now that there was a name for them! I was the other day playing a 1995 game and cursing the vague paths, and then afterward thought "if I had just made a map that would have been easy." I think the only game I ever got held up by enough to go mappy prior to internet access was King's Quest 5.

Comment by Heapinfrimp, added Fri, 06 Feb 2015 22:58:21 GMT

I just want to say, I am ADORING all these tropes you keep lampshading, Pickfords. Being a gamer who grew up on the Atari 2600 and NES and such, these jokes are really hitting home with me!

Comment by Jo Li KMC, added Sun, 08 Feb 2015 19:44:23 GMT

Cheers!

Comment by Ste Pickford, added Mon, 09 Feb 2015 10:25:29 GMT

I have to agree with Plok there. It's fun to explore the place, that way they might find something useful (or fun). Though it's not a bad idea to use it when you really, really need it (what I meant is when you are very, very lost).

Comment by Guest WJC, added Tue, 10 Feb 2015 19:28:14 GMT

I remember when I played Myst that I had to make a map for the underground railway system very near the end of the game, otherwise it would have been impossible.

But now everything is handed to the player, the main reason that games can't keep my interest these days and that I have become largely disillusioned with them.

Then there are modern games with a 'breadcrump trail' (great term by the way!) or an other mechanic where you are *forced* to use the helping devices either because the ingame map is horribly bad (Dead Space) or it is humanely impossible to make out a tiny detail in the environment otherwise (the new Tomb Raider).

Comment by NameThatNobodyTakes, added Thu, 12 Feb 2015 21:46:35 GMT

If only a map was in the original game. But where's the fun in that?

Comment by Guest Possum, added Fri, 13 Feb 2015 00:32:16 GMT

The original game had an occasional blinking arrow pointing to the closest flea so that you weren't forced to scavenge the entire level - for many levels though it was kinda unnecessary as they were rather linear anyway.

Comment by NameThatNobodyTakes, added Fri, 13 Feb 2015 10:09:21 GMT

skyrim

Comment by Goyangi, added Wed, 15 Sep 2021 23:01:17 GMT