PS:T was my first rpg ever. It was also the best I ever played. I played many other afterwards because I loved it so much, but I never felt anything even close to the way I felt playing Torment.
I too think that the TNO’s story is finished. But seeing him making an appearance in another game would be a real treat. BG2 should have included him on the short trip to Sigil.
You aren’t the only one. It’s by far my favorite RPG. It really bums me out that it wasn’t more popular.
You aren’t the only one. It’s by far my favorite RPG. It really bums me out that it wasn’t more popular.[/quote]
Planescape is probably the best D&D setting, followed closely by Al-Qadim.
Anyway, what really bums me out is that there’s not more RPGs like it.
I played and enjoyed it, but never finished it. I think I got to just past Morte getting kidnapped and you getting him back.
So, what was the deal with the story? What was his past? And how did all of the NPCs you recruit fit into it?
olaf
Morte getting kidnapped? That didn’t happen in my game. I’m going to have to replay Torment one of these days and act out a different alignment.
If it didn’t happen, you didn’t finish it, or you’ve forgotten (if you’ll pardon the pun). Mortes kidnap is a mandatory plot thread.
Heh, I must have forgotten, because I did finish (and all but wept over the ending). There were a lot of quests in there!
I’ve heard it’s possible to join the Xaositects and other guilds besides the Sensates and the, uh, guys building the magic laser gun for the baatezu; I never got those opportunities, so I know the game can go very differently than it did for me. Yet another thing that sets Torment apart.
Torment is incredible.
The “Quarter to 3” effect strikes again: I loaded my game up after abandoning it for six months because of all the testimonials in this thread. I had to spend the first 20 minutes re-reading my journal to remember all the quests I was in the middle of. Anyone notice that the bandages look like toilet paper? I need TP for my bunghole! Heh heh heh.
I’d like Nordom to show up in another DnD-based RPG, just because.
I was recently told of a little exploit concerning the guilds. Normally you can join any one of them, but no more than one. However, in one of your previous lives you had joined the Sensates. Therefore, even if you joined the Dustmen or Foundry already, you can still go to the Sensates and… I forget what exactly, but you recall a memory or something similar that proves you’re a member of them as well. Thus you’ll be a member of two guilds simultaneously.
I’m still unclear as to what benefits guild membership gave you, aside maybe from getting a place where you could rest for free? Maybe it affected your alignment somehow… dammit, guess I’ll have to play the game for the five billionth time now.
I don’t want a sequel per se, the Nameless One’s story is done. What I want is another game with the same drive, the same focus on story and original vision.
Of course, I honestly doubt that I will see another game surpass Torment in these areas in my lifetime, but one can always hope.
So what was the story? What was your past? What about the NPCs, why were they drawn to you? etc. etc. Obviously tons of people love the game and I am wondering about the payoff. I liked it, but it wasnt compelling enough for me to finish, I guess.
olaf
Yeah, Torment really was a pretty unique RPG experience. And I don’t know about y’all, but I found it pretty hard as well. I had to resort to a walkthrough at certain points, and I even had to exploit a bug that gave me infinte wishes, just so I could get through one sequence near the end.
But anyway, I really love how well written and thought provoking Torment was. And I agree, the story was complete and delivered quite well, which is all the more remarkable given how open ended Torment was.
Any fans of the game who are also collectors should check out my signed copy of the game at www.gamesandwhatnot.com You should see a link for it on the right hand side.
Damn! For some reason, the site is down right now. Aw well. Check it out later if you remember.
Heh. All this talk makes me want to play it again.
-Mark
Olaf, I don’t want to spoil it, but it’s a really well-written treatment of the “amnesiac with a horrible past” storyline.
A little more “safe” detail:
The story takes place in the city of Sigil, the city of doors, arguably the center of the universe. It’s inhabited by a mix of races from all over the planes. They all have their own agendas and goals and their scheming generates so many sub-plots and quest lines that you need a journal to keep your head from exploding. The party you collect around you will reflect the nature of this place. And of you.
Toss in that you can’t remember who you are or anything out of your past, and you are in for a ride.
Torment never really grabbed me either. Maybe all of the writers on this board appreciate the good writing involved, and I just don’t get it. But to me the RPG and tactical elements were sub-par compared to the other Infinity Engine games.
My favorite aspect of Torment was the take on character development. You weren’t someone learning new things, new skills, you were “remembering” things that you knew in previous lives.
The ending I got was fantastic. It made the countless hours of gameplay worth all the effort. The storyline was gripping in ways that the other titles (Baldur’s Gate, Icewind Dale, Neverwinter Nights) couldn’t touch. Best. RPG. Ever.
And I too recently purchased the twopack (restoring my game library after the loss of my CD case full of games) at Best Buy for 9.99. The additional title was Soulbringer, a Nox-esque game with an interesting combat system and an adequate storyline, but the primary interest there was Torment.
And am I the only one who had memories of Torment spring to mind while watching Memento?
Title: Planescape Torment influences Memento
I’ll introduce myself briefly…
I’m not a movie buff although I see maybe 40 movies a year (mostly Hollywood produced), on historical average. Nowadays its probably more like 20 a year and I try to avoid all but the very good or better movies with the exception of “blockbuster” types like Spiderman or Attack of the Clones.
On Christmas of 2001 some friends and I rented and watched Memento (2001). It was exciting, painful, and intriguing despite some flaws… a great movie.
I play quite a few computer games and in an unrelated incident in the bargain section of a software store a few months later I bought the role-playing game Planescape:Torment, which was released in 1999, two years prior to Memento.
I played about halfway through PT, then quit for several months and only a few days ago started another playthrough.
And… I just realized a few things. I’ll describe Planescape:Torment to you.
The intro sequence has a man, apparently physically dead, wheeled into a building on a cart. He starts having visual flashes (apparently memories or dreams) which clarified by later gameplay are memories based on “past lives”.
The man “wakes up”, gets off the cart… later the player finds out he is immortal and only temporarily “dies”.
The main focus of the entire game is that the character is losing his mind with each successive death… and the main purpose of the character is to regain his memories (and thus his identity).
The character’s name is The Nameless One. He has lost so much of his mind that he can no longer remember his name.
When the man wakes up at the beginning of the game at his side comes Morte, a fast-talking shifty skull, who is later announced (keep in mind I haven’t played more than halfway through the game so I’m not sure of the final outcome) as a liar. Morte’s first action is to read a journal entry which is written on the back of the man, a journal entry which gives the main character some basic instructions about how to operate in the world… he leaves out a small part of that entry (later discovered by the player).
The part he left out?.. “Don’t trust the skull”. Morte, however, by all intents and actions seems to be the main character’s friend… his only true friend, even going so far as telling the main character that he doesn’t trust another party member.
In PT there is a character named Fell who paints tattoos upon the main character’s body, telling of his identity. The main character also frequently finds old body parts of his, which he can reattach to himself.
Now… for the most part this is where the similarities end. Planescape:Torment is an upward spiral as is typical for any role-playing game… the player gains more memories over time and progresses toward the goal of knowing himself.
In Memento the main character gains perhaps NOTHING over time… he gains written messages but those written messages are perilous to interpret.
Also, in Memento the main character is constantly forgetting what he has recently experienced… Planescape:Torment is about the gradual loss of the mind (over centuries of immortality) over time. Short-term memory loss is not an issue in PT.
Also, with the possible exception of Morte the supporting cast in Planescape:Torment seems very non-deceptive. In Memento seemingly ANYONE might be (or clearly is) taking advantage of the main character. Of course, most of this is due to the short-term memory loss which only Memento features.
I’d like to also mention that Planescape:Torment is itself partially inspired by a 1993 computer game called Shadowrun, but I have almost no information on that game.
Memento is certainly a great movie and probably original in several ways, but its less original than most if not all of you think.
I wanted to point out one psychological insight in both Memento and Planescape:Torment.
The “sidekick”… Joe Pantoliano (I forget his character’s name) and Morte, respectively, have similar personalities and relationships to the main character.
Both STRESS their loyalty, both appear (or try to appear) entirely non-threatening to the main character, both stand with the main character through “thick and thin”, etc.
Planescape: Torment is primarily a verbal game, as opposed to Memento which deals heavily on the emotional level. Memento’s main character is paranoid… and what better way to deal with someone like that than to… get under his radar?
Become what he does not suspect. Become his best friend.
Which also means you become his worst enemy.
Well stated. The relationship with the “sidekick” was primarily the thing that triggered said memories.