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(re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
I live in San Francisco. The job market sucks here like it does everywhere else.
Check the site below for job listings. They have LA listings too.
(re: re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
Hey emily…
I used to live in Los Angeles… are there any good jobs out there? I’m thinking about moving back, I can’t find work where I am right now.
(re: re: re: re: re: re: re: Don’t call it a comeback!)
i always order/buy games based on reviews. the only other thing you can base a purchase on other than a review is the pictures on the back of the box or the story on the back of the box. the story can usually do a good job of peeking my interest, but is in no way indicative of how great the game will actually be. the pictures on the back of the box are an even worse reason to buy a game, especially in the case of adventure games, because great adventures are story/character/plot driven, not graphics driven. let other adventurers be your guide and trust their opinions as to what great adventures are. i have not been let down by them yet.
(re: re: re: re: re: re: Don’t call it a comeback!)
Ok one thing, these games look nice and all…but I’ve never seen any of them in any game store I live near by. So to me, it seems like they aren’t in Canada….I’m not going to order something based off a review….
(re: User generated links should bring up a new browser window.)
I agree that links to websites should open in a new browser window.
-emily
(re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
ha ha. I have had an unusual run of luck lately. I could give away my secrets, but then I might have to kill you… oh what the hell, it’s Christmas. 🙂
I get most of my old games from Goodwill. I live and work in the bay area in California. So, I’m near silicon valley (and lots of techie people who like games), and there are a lot of people with high disposible income (or at least, there used to be!) Also EA has headquarters nearby, so there are EA employees and former employees living in the area. At some point, these people clean out their closets or garages and donate the stuff they don’t want. I know of at least 6 Goodwill stores in the area (I have a 15-mile commute to and from work, and most of these stores are between home and work) and I just hit them regularly. Usually the games I find are only in jewel cases and the manuals aren’t always there, so they’re not ideal for collectors. They’re also used, but I don’t care about that. Sometimes I strike out, it’s hit or miss. Sometimes I have very good luck and wind up with something in a box. A few weeks ago I got Tex Murphy: Under a Killing Moon, complete in the box, for I think $3. I’ve also gotten a couple of old Sierra games in boxes. One store in particular has been very good for finding games in boxes — I don’t know if the same person keeps donating them, or what.
I hope no one who lives in my area reads this…
🙂 emily
ps Ken – if you’re ever planning on cleaning out your garage, let me know so I can come up to Seattle and troll the thrift shops!!
(re: re: re: re: re: Don’t call it a comeback!)
for those that think Adventure is dead, try this web-site…i would recommend 2 games along the lines of sierra and that would be “The Longest Journey” and “Syberia”. There is a “Syberia 2” in production now. These 2 are truly adventures in the Sierra sense.
(re: re: re: re: Don’t call it a comeback!)
I actually love Half-Life, to me it’s the greatest FPS game of all time. I love the multiplayer as well as the single-player story. I don’t like what their doing with this ‘steam’ business at all….leave the game alone.
I’m pretty sure everyone who ever loved adventure games wants them to come back. Most companies think there is no market….well, I think everyone on this site are good examples of a market wouldn’t you say?
(re: re: re: Don’t call it a comeback!)
Yes I know your talking about. You want Adventure games. That would be cool if more adventure games.
Here’s my point. In your Quest to give an example of games you and the people that you mentioned don’t like you said that Half-life was a hack and slash game. A hack and slash game is a term given to games that point a to point b killing everything along the way without really putting any thought into it.
Well lets just put it this way you were half right Quake was a good example.
(re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?) I know this is off topic, but I’m curious as to where in the world Emily is finding all these old games? I always check the bargain bin at the bookstores and software stores around here. It’s been so long since I’ve seen any Sierra games for sale that I don’t recall the last time I’ve seen one…
LOL, I mentioned sort of the same thing a while ago too. I always look in stores around my area, and don’t find much either. In an unusual bit of luck, I did find GK3 the other day, no box – but the manual + comic in reasonably good condition and the 3 CDs. Even more incredible – I found a bundle of old Sierra hintbooks, some sealed, at a computer shop. But that’s only 2 things within years.(User generated links should bring up a new browser window.)
When clicking on links that other users attach to their messages, I would recommend spawning an entirely new browser window to host that link instead of redirecting my current browser window to the link. I have always found this to be a nuisance with web sites. Does anyone else feel the same way?
I say this because I almost always find myself wanting to go back to the page that started the redirection. Let’s say I click on a link on this site and it redirects the main browser. I then get caught up on that site and start surfing all sorts of other pages within that site. Eventually, I will want to get back to the original page that started the whole process. If I am in the same window, I will have to “back button” to death in hopes of finding the original page. If the link had spawned a new window this would never be an issue. Am I making any sense?
(re: re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
I know this is off topic, but I’m curious as to where in the world Emily is finding all these old games? I always check the bargain bin at the bookstores and software stores around here. It’s been so long since I’ve seen any Sierra games for sale that I don’t recall the last time I’ve seen one…
GeoffP
PS – thought I’d mention that this is my first post here! 🙂
(re: re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
ok, i tried to install RAMA on my 2K machine last night and the install worked fine…no problems. when i tried running the game; however, i got the same scripting error that you are seeing on XP. i tried a couple of things to see if i could get it to run, but to no avail. i found the following site on the web that explains how to get RAMA running on XP. maybe this can help you. i will try these same steps and see if it works for 2K.
(Possible bugfix)
I made a patch that is supposed to fix many timer-related problemn in Sierra SCI games. I originally made it for Space Quest 6 (which had a similiar bug), but I could imagine that it would also work for QFG4 (I don’t have that game, so I can’t test it myself). It is for the DOS version only however, not for the Windows version.
If you want to try it, download the attached file and extract it to your game directory. Run the SCI32FIX.EXE program; it will patch SIERRA.EXE. Then run the game as usual (remember that only the DOS version is affected) and tell me if it fixes anything. 🙂
uploaded 12/12/2003 6:19:57 AM(re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
YOU HAVEN’T PLAYED GK2?!
that’s just tragic. it’s the very best game sierra ever did, IMO.
i haven’t played most of the games released around this time because i was in college, not all games were released for mac (which was what i had), and my mac was generally too slow for the ones that were ported. i did play phantasmagoria, and i played GK2 but it was so slow i had to wait to finish it so i could play on my dad’s (slightly newer) mac. i ordered lighthouse and had to send it back because it wouldn’t run on my machine. (just picked up a copy for the PC last week… it’s been a long wait!)
-emily
(re: re: What’s the deal with the birdcage?)
Are you playing the original or the VGA remake? From what I remember in the remake, if you bug the bird more than once the cat will get angry and attack you. I’ve tried breaking into the barracks many times but nothing has ever come of it. That guy can kill you if you attack him..
(re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
These were games that Sierra released when I was about 15-16 years old, when I didn’t have my own computer, and the family computer was one my Dad brought home from work, so it wasn’t fast enough to play these games. I was always interested to see what games from this era are like… including Phantasmagoria, Gabriel Knight 2, Rama, Lighthouse, Shivers, etc. I played Phantasmagoria a couple years ago, but have never played any of the others. These adventure games (for Sierra was developing quite a line of other products / games too at this time) generally seemed to fall into 2 categories – the live action games, and the 3D-rendered “Myst”-like games. Of course, the live action games also used 3D-rendered elements.
(re: Is it legal to copy Sierra games if…)
the AGI version of KQ4 (as well as the Freddy Pharkus demo / minigame) can be downloaded from the site below.
-emily
(re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
Rama wasn’t Sierra’s first adventure game with a 1st person perspective. That distinction goes to Man Hunter NY, I believe, although that also used 3rd person views at times.
I found Rama a good game, despite the “wandering aimlessly” at times. Got stuck at a certain point, but maybe I should try again.
BTW, the game included the Rama 2 novel, which was great as well.
(re: re: Is it legal to copy Sierra games if…)
“I don’t mind links here to sites that have the old games, but wouldn’t put them here for download without Sierra’s permission.”
Really? I happen to have one major link with almost every old sierra game on it. With your permission I could make it available. Shall I?
*Technically its not illegal to post links since you can’t get in trouble for it…only if you post the actual file here*
(re: re: re: Don’t call it a comeback!)
The Hobbit is an action game just like the other LOTR games out there.
As for Larry, I think thats the closest thing to new adventure game we’re going to get for while…
(re: re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
Ran into two problems trying to install on XP. First, I clicked setup.exe, heard the fanfare (didn’t see anything), and then the app hung. This happened to me before with GK2. I haven’t found anyone else who’s had this problem but I know it’s due to some kind of conflict between my computer and a specific file that’s part of the install program. From my GK2 experience I knew how to work around it (if anyone else has this problem, email me and I can tell you what to do).
Okay, then I installed (didn’t install DirectX when prompted!) and tried to launch the game. I got a script error that looked a lot like the script error I got when I tried to run Phantasmagoria II on XP. I tried a few things (changed screen resolution, used compatibility mode) but didn’t put a lot of effort into trying to get it up.
I have a Win98 machine that I’m sure RAMA will run on. I will try it at some point. I need to get a switch box so I can swap between my two computers without it being such a hassle (they share the same monitor). Maybe after I pay off my Christmas bills…
-emily
(re: Is it legal to copy Sierra games if…) I’m not a lawyer… so, this is my opinion, not an official opinion (but, I believe I am right):
is it legal to copy a game from a friend if you own the game yourself ?
I would have to say yes. Even though technically, it could be argued the other way. How could you steal that which you already own? Even if it is illegal, no lawyer would ever want to be on the prosecuting side of this one. I wouldn’t waste a lot of energy worrying about getting sued over this.
does anyone have the KQ4 AGI version, and would it be illegal to send it to the people on this site?
Here I think the law would clearly say that this is copyright infringement. Sierra would win this one if they wanted to fight it. I doubt that they really care, or would ever go out of their way to stop it, and you usually can find the old games floating around the net — but, it’s blatantly illegal to distribute copyrighted material.
I don’t mind links here to sites that have the old games, but wouldn’t put them here for download without Sierra’s permission.
-Ken W(re: re: RAMA: Do any of you remember that one?)
ok, not to beat this RAMA thing into the dirt, but i went out and “googled” for other peoples impressions of the game and i must say that 80-90% of the posting indicate that people really liked the game. i will definitely have to give this one another shot.
i also wanted to say that there were 3 Arthur C. Clarke RAMA books that players would recommend reading before playing the game. just a suggestion.
(re: Play old Sierra Games on new PCs) If you can’t or don’t want to put together an old computer, there are free tools available to help.
1. For sound in old DOS games on Windows 2000 or Windows XP, install
Link: DOSBox(http://ntvdm.cjb.net/” target=blank>VDMSound and VDMS Launchpad.
2. For DOS games that have timer bugs on newer machines, use <A href=”http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/)
, mostly for older, real mode games.
3. For Sierra AGI games, try
Link: FreeSCI(http://www.agidev.com/nagi.html” target=_blank>NAGI
4. For earlier Sierra SCI games, try <A href=”http://freesci.linuxgames.com/download.html)Help can also be found at the Sierra message boards
Link: http://www.sierra.com/forum.do(http://www.sierra.com/forum.do)
, VOGONS
Link: http://vogons.zetafleet.com/(http://vogons.zetafleet.com/)
and NTCompatible
Link: http://www.ntcompatible.com/(http://www.ntcompatible.com/)
