[torifile]

I'm sorta over Guild Wars and I wanted to get a game I could play with my brother-in-law online. He's not into shooters and his computer is pretty old (I think at least a couple of years old), so it'll need to be not so intensive. It'd be great if he could get a PS3 and we could play online that way, but he's a science professor and has 3 kids so it's not exactly in his budget...

So what do you all recommend?

[Swox]

WoW, Neverwinter Nights, Diablo II... can't think of any others offhand. Would he like an RTS? If so, there are a ton of those you can play online together.

[torifile]

Originally Posted by Swox WoW, Neverwinter Nights, Diablo II... can't think of any others offhand. Would he like an RTS? If so, there are a ton of those you can play online together.

I think he's a big RTS fan. I believe we've both got copies of Diablo and he's played it a bunch already. Thanks for the tips.

[Luca]

I was going to say Serious Sam but then I read that he doesn't like shooters. That said, if you can open him up to one, that's the one to get. It's several years old so it'll run on most anything with a 3D card (GeForce 3/Radeon 9xxx) and an Athlon XP/Pentium 4.

Another cool thing about Blizzard games is that you can now register your old serial numbers on Blizzard's site and download digital copies of the games. Very nice if you still have the SNs but aren't sure where all your CDs went.

[bassplayinMacFiend]

Originally Posted by Luca Another cool thing about Blizzard games is that you can now register your old serial numbers on Blizzard's site and download digital copies of the games. Very nice if you still have the SNs but aren't sure where all your CDs went.

Really? That's awesome! I wish other game developers were as cool as Blizzard.

Co-op play seems to be the new checkbox for Xbox 360 games. More and more are being released with co-op multiplayer ability. Most of those games are shooters though (Gears of War, Gears Of War 2, Crackdown, Halo3, Rainbow Six:Las Vegas I & II, GRAW & GRAW2, etc.), so I don't think that would help out too much. You could play Texas Hold 'Em and Uno though if you wanted.

[Kraetos]

Blizzard and Stardock seem to be the only game companies that treat their customers like, you know, customers. It's very refreshing until you realize that it should be the norm.

Valve's pretty good, too. But one always gets the sense from Blizzard and Stardock that you are a valued customer, and not a would-be pirate. I love it and I never hesitate to fork over some cash for their products, unlike some others. Respect is the best anti-piracy tool at any companies disposal.

And speaking of Blizzard, if your brother is into RTS and has a modest rig, try out Warcraft III. It's probably my favorite RTS ever. Better than StarCraft, even. I love the hero aspect of gameplay. It's six years old now, so it runs on basically any rig. But don't let the age fool you, the art direction is so strong for this game that it's still gorgeous.

[Xaqtly]

WC3 is a good call. WoW is also a lot of fun for casual play with a friend. Make some complimentary classes and have at it.

[torifile]

Well, we both also have WC3 and the frozen throne expansion. I'll float the idea of playing those.

[Luca]

Another thing, if you want to play Warcraft 3. Make sure you download some custom game types, especially Defense Of The Ancients (DOTA). Latest version here. If you like playing as the heroes but you want to take a break from having to deal with resource gathering, teching, and building a town, it's perfect. All you do is control a hero and kill enemies and enemy heroes, and use the money you get from killing stuff to buy better items that increase your damage or defense.

Another good custom game type for War3 is Footmen Frenzy. Each player gets a base in a corner of the map and your base automatically generates footmen, which you control. As you take your hero and your footmen out into the center to do battle, you again make money from kills and use the money to upgrade your units.

[Kraetos]

Originally Posted by Luca Another thing, if you want to play Warcraft 3. Make sure you download some custom game types, especially Defense Of The Ancients (DOTA). Latest version here. If you like playing as the heroes but you want to take a break from having to deal with resource gathering, teching, and building a town, it's perfect. All you do is control a hero and kill enemies and enemy heroes, and use the money you get from killing stuff to buy better items that increase your damage or defense. Another good custom game type for War3 is Footmen Frenzy. Each player gets a base in a corner of the map and your base automatically generates footmen, which you control. As you take your hero and your footmen out into the center to do battle, you again make money from kills and use the money to upgrade your units.

DOTA is great fun but I suck at it. Hero recommendations? I like the Dwarven Sniper but I want to try others. But every time I do, I suck.

Also, what items are good? I always go for power treads and some cheap damage multiplier but I still know very little about which items are good.

[Luca]

With DOTA, I always play in all-random games, because I only know a few heroes and I figure if everyone gets a random one, that levels the playing field a bit. It also introduces me to more heroes.

As for items, I was going to suggest just starting an offline game by yourself and looking at all the shops and reading the descriptions, but it turns out there's a much more useful online guide to weapons here.

I never really did much research on strategies myself... basically I just looked at the in-game descriptions and figured out which items you can combine to make better ones, and then bought them. That's the main thing - finding items that combine to get better effects. Not only do they use fewer inventory slots, but they often grant extra effects that can make you really strong.