What games have I missed?
December 26, 2009 7:30 PM   Subscribe

Just purchased a new desktop computer after years of having a severely underpowered laptop. What games have I missed?

The new computer only has 256mb of onboard video memory, so new games are kind of out of the question. I'm thinking about upgrading the video card and power supply at some point, but, in the meantime, what games (with reasonable system requirements) did I miss while in laptop purgatory?

I like all different sorts of games, but originality is what most often draws me in. Also, Civilization type games tend to lose my interest quickly.

Thanks!

PS--My apologies if this is in the wrong category.
posted by plungerjoke to Computers & Internet (14 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
FPS: Team Fotress 2
Puzzle: Portal
RPG: Oblivion

If you buy the Orange Box, you get the first 2 as well as Half-Life 2 plus expansions.
posted by sah at 7:37 PM on December 26, 2009


2nd Portal. I was in the same situation as you, just got a newish computer, and just played through the Orange Box. It's great!
posted by Gorgik at 7:56 PM on December 26, 2009


Orange Box is far and away the best money I ever spent on a retail game. Be warned, it may lead to a fairly nasty addiction to Steam.

Also, MeFight plug.
posted by D_I at 9:00 PM on December 26, 2009 [3 favorites]


Steam and GOG.com are both having massive sales -- check those out, see if anything grabs you. There's a lot of gaming goodness to be had in the next 48-72 hours!

My multi-genre suggestions: (1) X2 and X3 are fantastic single-player space...everythings. You can go from being a lone pilot to being a full-on space business owner in the course of the massive, massive stories; (2) Shadow Grounds and its sequel are enjoyable top-down shooters, and cost <$2 on Steam currently; and (3) The Witcher, for a decent and enjoyable modern RPG.
posted by ellF at 9:04 PM on December 26, 2009


Response by poster: I forgot to mention---I have a PS3, so I am relatively up on multiplatform titles. I'm mostly concerned with PC exclusives.
posted by plungerjoke at 9:43 PM on December 26, 2009


3D cards are not measured by ram alone. What model is it? It might be fine for your needs. Seconding fallout 3 or dargon age.
posted by damn dirty ape at 10:05 PM on December 26, 2009


If you have an onboard video card your options are way more limited and I'm not sure which of these games you can run, but here are some I've enjoyed:

Portal
Planescape Torment
KOTOR
Fallout 3
Dragon Age Origins
Morrowind
Oblivion and Shivering Isles add-on
posted by meta87 at 10:19 PM on December 26, 2009


Another vote for Fallout 3 - remember those fantasy games where every peasant hut in all the land looked like every peasant hut in all the land. In here, every post-holocaust tin shack is like a little story all its own. I had weeks of fun blowing off the plotted story lines and just exploring.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 10:57 PM on December 26, 2009


Response by poster: Well, I picked up Left 4 Dead off steam, and it runs like garbage... Working on tweaking it but it is still nearly unplayable. Thanks for the recs, ya'll
posted by plungerjoke at 11:00 PM on December 26, 2009


When you only have that much video memory, turning the shader detail down helps tremendously.
posted by ijoyner at 1:41 AM on December 27, 2009


I would suggest World of Goo, AudioSurf, Plants vs. Zombies, Torchlight, and (as mentoned upthread) Team Fortress 2.

All of the above happen to be on sale, and are amazing examples of more recent games. All should run fine on your setup, though you may have to pull down the video settings for TF2.
posted by phredgreen at 3:06 AM on December 27, 2009 [1 favorite]


In all seriousness, I'd forgo buying one game and use it to upgrade your graphics card. You don't need to buy a £200 monster to get all the games listed above.

I know US prices are always cheaper than UK, but you can buy a Sapphire HD 4350 for £25. I'm sure graphics card experts can advise you on better options, but my point is that if you you can afford to buy a game then you can often pay less than that and get something which'll really make it (and most of the other games in the future) play really well.

On games, suggest Orange Box and Call Of Duty 4.
posted by mr_silver at 3:33 AM on December 27, 2009


Response by poster: I went ahead and picked up a power supply and a Radeon 4670 HD from newegg, so my options should be more open now.
posted by plungerjoke at 11:29 AM on December 27, 2009


About Torchlight: when they tell you to begin on hard if you've played action RPGs (like Diablo 1 or 2) before, they mean it. Normal difficulty is very, very easy.
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 1:52 PM on December 28, 2009


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