Author Topic: Computer Game Recommendation?  (Read 2877 times)

arebelspy

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Computer Game Recommendation?
« on: September 15, 2016, 11:29:23 PM »
I'm looking for a game I can play with the wife, while she's not looking at the computer but dealing with the baby.

Some sort of logic game would be ideal.

So, like, we do a lot of Killer Sudokus together (different than regular Sudoku, much better, IMO -- http://krazydad.com/tablet/killer/), but you pretty much need to be looking at the screen for that.

Crossword puzzles sort of work, by me reading out the clues,

We were thinking some sort of old school MUD type game (a text based adventure game), maybe, where I read out the text aloud, maybe?  Are there any good ones of these created in the last decade?

Or any other ideas for a two player computer game with these requirements?

Mandatory: Can work together, but one person can describe for the other not able to look at the screen.
Optional but preferred: free (pay not out of the question though), logic/puzzle type, repeatable or lots of them (e.g. not a "one time" game to run through, but somethign with lots of content/puzzles--e.g. how there are thousands of Killer Sudokus).

Appreciate any suggestions anyone has!  :)
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Lis

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #1 on: September 16, 2016, 11:05:35 AM »
Ooh shoot I have the link at home (I can't access it on my work computer). Google BBC's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy text based adventure. They created a game for the something anniversary (20th? 25th? 50th?) of the book a few years ago.

Just be prepared to die. A lot.

(Edit: if you can't find it, I'll try to remember to copy the link tonight - I have it saved as a post it on my desktop)

Spork

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #2 on: September 16, 2016, 11:14:54 AM »

We were thinking some sort of old school MUD type game (a text based adventure game), maybe, where I read out the text aloud, maybe?  Are there any good ones of these created in the last decade?


As a high school/college age kid, I absolutely LOVED Infocom games.  If you haven't played them, most of them are playable online.

One example: https://pot.home.xs4all.nl/infocom/

The .dat files are also readily available via your favorite google machine.  There are many z-interpreters out there that will play them.  (There are at least 4 or 5 that run on Linux...  I presume this is also true of Win/Mac.)

swick

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #3 on: September 16, 2016, 01:43:23 PM »
It's kinda cheesy and old-school but Mr. Swick and I like "Bookworm Adventures" Lots of replayability, you don't have to both be sitting down as long as you can see what the letters you are working with are.  It's easy for one person to come in and out of or make suggestions. Still using your brain.

With This Herring

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #4 on: September 17, 2016, 10:10:23 AM »
Not quite what you asked, but what about reading a book to her?  If you want something that can be put down and picked up, James Herriot's books are made up of very short chapter-stories.  The first is "All Creatures Great and Small."

I don't really have any game ideas.  Good luck!

Cottonswab

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #5 on: September 17, 2016, 12:44:17 PM »
I don't have any specific game recommendations, but I think a trivia / jeopardy type of game would be a good fit for your objective. 

arebelspy

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #6 on: September 17, 2016, 05:38:14 PM »
Ooh shoot I have the link at home (I can't access it on my work computer). Google BBC's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy text based adventure. They created a game for the something anniversary (20th? 25th? 50th?) of the book a few years ago.

Just be prepared to die. A lot.

(Edit: if you can't find it, I'll try to remember to copy the link tonight - I have it saved as a post it on my desktop)



We were thinking some sort of old school MUD type game (a text based adventure game), maybe, where I read out the text aloud, maybe?  Are there any good ones of these created in the last decade?


As a high school/college age kid, I absolutely LOVED Infocom games.  If you haven't played them, most of them are playable online.

One example: https://pot.home.xs4all.nl/infocom/

The .dat files are also readily available via your favorite google machine.  There are many z-interpreters out there that will play them.  (There are at least 4 or 5 that run on Linux...  I presume this is also true of Win/Mac.)

Cool, thanks.  I'll check them out.  Any particular one of those infocoms?  I see HHGTG on there, which Lis recommended above, but I feel like we should reread the books first (it's been a decade+).  :)

Doesn't have to be text based, that was just an idea.

It's kinda cheesy and old-school but Mr. Swick and I like "Bookworm Adventures" Lots of replayability, you don't have to both be sitting down as long as you can see what the letters you are working with are.  It's easy for one person to come in and out of or make suggestions. Still using your brain.

We just got this, thanks.  Not really my style game (because of my aphantasia, I have trouble with letter games like Boggle because I can't rearrange letters in my head--like if we play Scrabble, I have to constantly rearrange tiles on my tray), but they're like Ali's favorite type of game.  So we'll try it. For some reason it's really laggy on my computer though.  It totally seems like a game from the 80s I would have played in school with Math Blasters and Oregon Trail, too (the graphics and everything)--can't believe it came out in 2006!  :P

Not quite what you asked, but what about reading a book to her?  If you want something that can be put down and picked up, James Herriot's books are made up of very short chapter-stories.  The first is "All Creatures Great and Small."

That's an interesting idea.  I don't really like reading aloud to her, which is odd.  I don't know why, because I liked reading aloud to my students. Hmm.

I don't have any specific game recommendations, but I think a trivia / jeopardy type of game would be a good fit for your objective. 

That's a great idea for a genre!  The trouble is one where we can play "together' instead of versus (so I could just read out the Qs and answer choices).
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MoonLiteNite

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #7 on: September 18, 2016, 03:40:51 AM »
Might be a bit advanced, but any of the CIV games you could that with. CIV6 is coming out, and it actually seems kinda fun to "play" while having someone describe to you what is going on, and you give input to your thoughts and ideas!

Spork

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #8 on: September 18, 2016, 10:28:29 AM »


We were thinking some sort of old school MUD type game (a text based adventure game), maybe, where I read out the text aloud, maybe?  Are there any good ones of these created in the last decade?


As a high school/college age kid, I absolutely LOVED Infocom games.  If you haven't played them, most of them are playable online.

One example: https://pot.home.xs4all.nl/infocom/

The .dat files are also readily available via your favorite google machine.  There are many z-interpreters out there that will play them.  (There are at least 4 or 5 that run on Linux...  I presume this is also true of Win/Mac.)

Cool, thanks.  I'll check them out.  Any particular one of those infocoms?  I see HHGTG on there, which Lis recommended above, but I feel like we should reread the books first (it's been a decade+).  :)

Doesn't have to be text based, that was just an idea.


They have a lot of different "styles"... so if one doesn't interest you, try another.  My personal favorites were the Zork series.  I believe they were their original.  (If I recall my trivia, Zork 1 through 3 were originally very large game running on a Vax or a PDP-11.)  If you like the Zork series, the Enchanter series is sort of in the same "universe" and has a lot of subtle and not-so-subtle references to Zork.

ptobest

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #9 on: September 18, 2016, 11:09:13 PM »
Age of Fable might be a great game for you both to try. It's an RPG style text game where you generate or create your own character, and has a very rich (and often funny) storyline with many interesting endings. Completely free too! I did my first playthrough probably 10 years ago and occasionally have returned to it since then, I highly recommend it: 
http://www.ageoffable.net/

Trede

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #10 on: September 19, 2016, 03:11:36 PM »
Yeah, Mr. Trede and I are computer game junkies.  Most of what we play together doesn't sound up your alley (i.e., Mechwarrior Online, World of Tanks, etc.) but your post made me think of the game "Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes."  You can download it on Steam or directly here: http://www.keeptalkinggame.com/   Only one copy is needed.  Fair warning, it is not relaxing and takes attention, so it's not a "while I'm minding the baby I'll describe to my husband how to disarm the briefcase before he dies" game unless you don't really need to mind the baby.  Basically, one person is at the computer looking at a briefcase with puzzles on it.  The other has the manual for how to solve the puzzles and has to describe it.  Neither is supposed to look at the information the other has.  Bombs get progressively harder as you level up.

arebelspy

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #11 on: September 19, 2016, 05:09:52 PM »
Yeah, Mr. Trede and I are computer game junkies.  Most of what we play together doesn't sound up your alley (i.e., Mechwarrior Online, World of Tanks, etc.) but your post made me think of the game "Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes."  You can download it on Steam or directly here: http://www.keeptalkinggame.com/   Only one copy is needed.  Fair warning, it is not relaxing and takes attention, so it's not a "while I'm minding the baby I'll describe to my husband how to disarm the briefcase before he dies" game unless you don't really need to mind the baby.  Basically, one person is at the computer looking at a briefcase with puzzles on it.  The other has the manual for how to solve the puzzles and has to describe it.  Neither is supposed to look at the information the other has.  Bombs get progressively harder as you level up.
Sounds super stressful and like it would take a ton of precise communication while a timer is counting down and trying not to get frustrated.

Now add in a baby. 

Yikes. Awesome.

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Noodle

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Re: Computer Game Recommendation?
« Reply #12 on: September 19, 2016, 07:08:32 PM »
My best friend and I like playing "Escape the Room" or other adventure-type games (think Myst) together. When we started we would sit next to each other at the computer...nowadays I am more likely to have them on the tablet which I can broadcast to the TV so we can hang out on the couch (having reached the age of bad backs). You do have to look at the screen sometimes but can easily wander around while pondering the next puzzle.

A great place to look for computer games is this website: http://jayisgames.com/. They mostly do online games as opposed to download or apps (some of those, though) but there is a huge variety in their archives. Due to finances the site owners are not updating as often nowadays but you could spend years working your way through the archives.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!