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[foil]

Custer's Revenge?

[Neonivek]

You know, just because a game takes place in another culture it doesn't mean it falls under this.

For example in Dynasty Warriors... What do you eat in China? Meatbuns, Dohnuts, and Chicken

[Pakhawaj]

Never played it. My first Elder Scrolls game was Oblivion

Get Morrowind. It is the best Elder Scrolls game. You only get to learn about made-up foreign cultures, but as a person who plays games, you have been missing out on one of the best.

@Pakhawaj: Like HoI2, I've heard it's better than the game I play, but haven't gotten around to getting it. Probably would have suggested it myself if I played it, considering how much I hear people making brainlove to it.

I think Europa Universalis III (with expansions) is better game than II, I just found II to be a lot more immersive which seems to be what Neonivek is after.

[RedKing]

You know, just because a game takes place in another culture it doesn't mean it falls under this.

For example in Dynasty Warriors... What do you eat in China? Meatbuns, Dohnuts, and Chicken

Well, yes, actually. 

But beyond that, Dynasty Warriors is pretty heavily steeped in Chinese culture. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms has such a tremendous influence -- it's like the Arthurian cycle, only scaled up to CHINA-SIZE (like having 80,000 named characters).

So really any game that delves into it in any significant way is going to be a cultural learning experience. Even if it's by taking a single character and turning them into a sword-wielding, button-mashing force of nature.

[Virtz]

Aren't there better games that delve into The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, though? Like the turn-based strategy game series sharing the same title?

[Neonivek]

Aren't there better games that delve into The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, though? Like the turn-based strategy game series sharing the same title?

I don't know... This thread has sort of devolved into just listing any game that takes place in another culture.

[Trollheiming]

Romance of the Three Kingdoms... Eh, I stopped reading after the death of Guan Yu. I did like the character of Mi Heng in the Three Kingdoms, though. What an anti-authoritarian nutter. Speaking of the Four Greats, you can always score points with chinese girls if you know something about the Dream of the Red Chamber, too.

This brings us back to my first suggestion, though. Reading the books. These computer titles aren't going to feel very alive without knowing the backgrounds.

[agentorangesoda]

Dynasty Warriors 7 actually follows the book pretty closely, at least I was amazed at how much more they used from the book than the previous titles. The xtreme legends expansion also has some historical scenarios that were not included in the vanilla.

Of course...all of the officers are even more caricatures than they are in the novel.

[pedrito]

Europa Universalis III, if nothing else it'll teach you heaps of geography. And with only a little curiosity and wikipedia at hand you'll find yourself knowing every nation state, and its history, that existed between the Renaissance and the French Revolution.

If that's ancient enough for you.

[puke]

Prince of Qin was really good, and did a fair job at the history and mythology also.

The first Shogun game was also full of good history, most of the generals and named characters (even the random little spy dudes) were historical figures.  You might have to look them up seperatly though, there was not always in game context.

I'll add my voice to the RotTK thing, great games.  Last one I played was probably 20 years ago.  But I think they are still making them.

Nobunaga's Ambition is another great, steeped in history.  Might need an emulator though.

[RedKing]

I think some of the quibble with RoTK/Dynasty Warriors is that it doesn't necessarily teach Chinese history as much as Chinese legendary history.

Obviously, having characters that can rain down fireballs...not historically accurate. But it is *culturally* accurate.

Again, to me it's in the same vein as playing a really good game based on the Arthurian cycle. Of course, the problem there is which version do you use as your basis? if you go with Le Morte d'Arthur, you're going to have an ahistorically Norman-esque Camelot with anachronistic weapons and armor and feudal structures. But it will be drenched in a particular segment of English history/culture.

[Mictlantecuhtli]

I used to LOVE the old Koei company games, like Nobunga's Ambition and Romance of the Three Kingdoms series - the games were nothing super-duper special, but it did get me to read a bunch more about the period, and you can actually play as Cao Cao!   Although for challenge I started with lesser guys with still-decent stats, there was some 1 province guy on the coast I remember using over and over in the one in the series I was playing a lot (probably ROTK III or IV).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koei
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_of_the_Three_Kingdoms_(video_game_series)

I think some of the quibble with RoTK/Dynasty Warriors is that it doesn't necessarily teach Chinese history as much as Chinese legendary history.

Obviously, having characters that can rain down fireballs...not historically accurate. But it is *culturally* accurate.

Again, to me it's in the same vein as playing a really good game based on the Arthurian cycle. Of course, the problem there is which version do you use as your basis? if you go with Le Morte d'Arthur, you're going to have an ahistorically Norman-esque Camelot with anachronistic weapons and armor and feudal structures. But it will be drenched in a particular segment of English history/culture.

Well, the thing is Koei did a good job of translating the ROTK stories into a game world. Sure, it's over the top action in DW, but let's not forget how incredibly awesome the encyclopedia is, and how much depth of info that it gave on every named officer you run across. Some much more historically accurate than others. It's all a great read though, especially the entries about the later Han, [which aren't included in the games] which are the more accurate of the entire readings. The corruption of Sima Yi, the horrible inefficiency of most of the governance.

Kessen? Much better. [Skirting all the made-up bits and magic] ROTK? Incredible. It seems like Koei has such a hard-on for their own mythology that they wouldn't want to muss it up too much.

They are pretty good at base level knowledge of the conflicts of the time, even if it is a bit overglorified in some aspects.


Overglorified: All the made up everything about Lu Bu. But that's why ROTK is heads and shoulders above the others, depiction-wise.

[Gamerboy4life]

Total War games are actually pretty good regarding this.

[Neonivek]

Total War games are actually pretty good regarding this.

Indeed. Like the Warrior Ninjas and Black cloaked Ninajs in Shogun

Robin Hood and his Sherwood Archers in Medieval

and the complete breakdown of all history in Shogun 2.

---

I am starting to think that Broken Sword somehow did this.

[puke]

I think some of the quibble with RoTK/Dynasty Warriors is that it doesn't necessarily teach Chinese history as much as Chinese legendary history.

Obviously, having characters that can rain down fireballs...not historically accurate. But it is *culturally* accurate.

Oh.  The old games were hard core turn based strategy games, and you could start in different eras when different leaders held various lands.  I didn't know they'd added mythological elements to the later games, but it does not surprise me.