Looking to Get into Serpent Riders, but how?

[shroomie]

So i wanna play myself the Serpent Riders games, but like, i can't really tell which version of the game is which, like hexen i think goes up to 1.3 and heretic 1.1 but there's also the matter of all the DLC and extra stuff in general and i just don't know where to start.

[Not Jabba]

Since you're going to legally purchase the games, they'll be up to date. The commercial versions of Heretic on Steam and GOG already come with the two expansion episodes (this full version of the game, with five episodes, is called "Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders"). I think Hexen and its expansion, Deathkings, are sold separately. Both Steam and GOG also have a collection that includes Heretic/Hexen/Deathkings/Hexen II, for cheaper than if you bought them all separately. So that's all you really need.

Edited January 12 by Not Jabba

[shroomie]

thank you!

[ETTiNGRiNDER]

The final Heretic is v1.3, and contains five episodes of which the first three were the ones present in the original release and the fourth and fifth are a bonus expansion (like Thy Flesh Consumed in Ultimate Doom).

The final Hexen is v1.1, though there are actually two revisions that were labeled as such.  For most purposes, it doesn't matter if you have 1.1r1 or 1.1r2.

Deathkings of the Dark Citadel is the Hexen expansion which was sold separately.  Its final version is also v1.1.

 

So if you want to go all in on it, get Heretic v1.3, play through all of it, then go on to Hexen and then Deathkings.  But if you want just the more casual taste of what they're about, play the first three episodes of Heretic, then Hexen, and skip Deathkings.  The expansion stuff is all just challenge levels for people who want more of what's already in the game but harder, there are no new enemies or even particularly important plot points.

 

However, if you get as far as Hexen 2, do play Portal of Praevus too as it's a full expansion with more than just levels to offer.

[Not Jabba]

Oh, right, Portal of Praevus. Unfortunately, I have no idea where you can get that, as unfortunately it has rights issues and isn't sold commercially anywhere.

Edited January 12 by Not Jabba

[Shepardus]

If you know how to get the hash of a file, you can check your WAD files against the known hashes here:

HERETIC.WAD

HEXEN.WAD

HEXDD.WAD (Deathkings expansion for Hexen)

You can also use those as reference for what the latest version of each is (though it is as the others have already said).

[fruity lerlups]

just don't be like my boyfriend who is like "I'M WAITING UNTIL NIGHTDIVE REMASTERS THEM FOR WIDESCREEN BABE!" when i've told him he can play it with a source port a million times.

[shroomie]

hey tell him that i (some random forum user) think that he's basic and also i think should have a good day in spite of his basic-ness

[Noiser]

If you are keen into presentation\lore\whatever - I recommend focusing on the three episodes first (Heretic). They are like the "official" ones, with 4 and 5 being more a bonus than anything else (similar to how Ultimate Doom expanded the original game with the fourth episode).

Edited January 13 by Noiser

[TheHambourgeois]

I have the GoG versions and they are complete and you can just rip the iwads out to play with your source port of choice

[shroomie]

yeah i've got everything figured out, thanks folks for helping!

[AbeAwesome]

On 1/12/2024 at 8:01 PM, fruity lerlups said:

just don't be like my boyfriend who is like "I'M WAITING UNTIL NIGHTDIVE REMASTERS THEM FOR WIDESCREEN BABE!"

This would be enough for me to break up with him... or at the very least deny him affection for one year.

[PKr]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:47 AM, Not Jabba said:

Since you're going to legally purchase the games, they'll be up to date. The commercial versions of Heretic on Steam and GOG already come with the two expansion episodes (this full version of the game, with five episodes, is called "Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders"). I think Hexen and its expansion, Deathkings, are sold separately. Both Steam and GOG also have a collection that includes Heretic/Hexen/Deathkings/Hexen II, for cheaper than if you bought them all separately. So that's all you really need.

Just fyi the Steam version of Deathkings is unpatched and as a result the music doesn't work out the box there. Refer to https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Deathkings_music to fix it (if you buy the game on Steam that is).

[fruity lerlups]

32 minutes ago, AbeAwesome said:

This would be enough for me to break up with him... or at the very least deny him affection for one year.

look i got my boyfriend (who is 2 years younger than me and grew up on playstation and not PC games) to play through Blood, Half Life, Half Life 2 and DN3D, and he even enjoyed them so much he went on to play Amid Evil all by himself and said its "one of the greatest fps ever made", so that makes up for his lack of interest in playing any of the classic dooms with a source port (yes.. he hasn't played any doom except Doom 2016)

Edited January 14 by fruity lerlups

[shroomie]

4 hours ago, fruity lerlups said:

(yes.. he hasn't played any doom except Doom 2016)

i got into doom with Treasure Tech, maybe try that?