Installer Porn!

[Alcom1]

You know, most of the games I get now are through digital distributors, with unobtrusive loading bars for downloading and installation. Even before then, most games I played had installers that simply showed a bare stock menu with a few inserted images of game assets or screenshots of gameplay.

However, there are a few games that I played that put a great amount of effort into their installer. Such installers had fully unique visual assets, wonderful art, music, stuff that perfectly held me over as the loading bar slowly went from 0 to 100%, and helped hype me up for the game. My most favorite installer of all time has got to be the installer for MechCommander 2.

Spoiler

Completely custom, bright interface icons, metallic industrial-mechanical borders with grates and bolts. The screen for the loading bar actually looks like some sort of BattleTech terminal that gives some extra history behind the game's story, with a fake Fantasy browser and Fantasy URL Address I love this so much!

So what's your favorite shiny game installer?

 

[mezorin]

The Command and Conquer series used to have the best one, as it pretended that your computer was uplinking to the GDI or NOD command module as you installed the game, definitely remember getting pumped on the loading screens for that. While I love steam to bits, it sort of took out the magic of the custom installers that gave you something to get psyched about while the game was installing

 

[shrekfan246]

A lot of old Star Trek games did the same thing, some of them like Voyager Elite Force even just used an interface that mimicked the Starfleet "LCARS" system, complete with Star Trek sound effects whenever you moused over or clicked on options.

Starfleet Command III played ominous Borg music during the installation, too.


Man, I wish that franchise hadn't been abandoned...

 

[porous_shield]

I enjoyed the first Circle of Blood (Broken Sword) game's installer which let you play a simple block breaker game while you waited. I definitely was not expecting it so I got quite a kick out of it. Back in the day when I first got it, you could get a couple of games of it in while you were waiting, but now, you don't even see it because the game installs too fast which makes me sad.

I'd put in a screen shot but the version I had was disc based and I no longer have a CD drive and I haven't been able to google one.

 

[Liquidprid3]

I know the installer for Heavy Rain has origami. There's a piece of paper in the case. It's pretty sweet.

 

[DoPo]

The Command and Conquer series used to have the best one, as it pretended that your computer was uplinking to the GDI or NOD command module as you installed the game, definitely remember getting pumped on the loading screens for that. While I love steam to bits, it sort of took out the magic of the custom installers that gave you something to get psyched about while the game was installing

When I saw the title, I immediately[footnote]Erm, to be honest, not THAT immediately. I first thought of other stuff for some reason.[/footnote] thought of Red Alert (2 and Yuri's Revenge, in particular) which did that, too. You would get an encoded transmission, I believe it was, with top secret information. It was rather cool. Nowadays when I think back, I'm doubly impressed, as these are cutscenes otherwise unavailable in the installed game. It's really effort and resources thrown at a part of the games that seen the least amount of times.

 

[Racecarlock]

The simcity 4 installer with screenshots of the game. God that game looks good. Even by today's standards. If I wasn't conserving hard drive space right now...

 

[Kopikatsu]

Yakuza Dead Souls had a really good one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzk0lfVw9hk

 

[IBlackKiteI]

Original Age of Empires. I'd sometimes reinstall it half for the sake of watching the little units wander across the screen.

 

[Blitsie]

I remember Indigo Prophecy had you do a questionnaire while really atmospheric music played in the background, was a pretty nice way to get time passing by as you wait for it to finish loading.

Some games also fired up a short movie to give the game some background while you waited, I think the Act of War games did that and also Soldier of Fortune 2 if I was not mistaken. And Command and Conquer too.

 

[Smooth Operator]

The only one I would really put forth is Red Alert 2, we are talking fully voiced and narrated installer with each step tied into the game setting, and once it was just installing they went ahead and talked you through all the faction background stories as if it is a mission briefing.
There is no other game that did this, neither the old or new C&C games as far as I remember.

 

[antidonkey]

Sigh.......I am now filled with the desire to dig up my old copies of the Mechcommander series to see if they'll work on Windows 7. I hope you're happy OP.

 

[NuclearKangaroo]

i remember the Sims 2 installer had a nice little trivia minigame or something like that

 

[somethingorother003]

Starcraft 2's installer was pretty stylized and really helped me get the story better, as someone whom has never played the first one.

Hell, that's the best possible time to do an exposition dump on the player, it's not like you can really do anything else with your computer anyways.

 

[Weaver]

I know the installer for Heavy Rain has origami. There's a piece of paper in the case. It's pretty sweet.

I remember this! I'm so shit at crafts it actually took me like 30 minutes to fold the fucking bird. The game had finished installing long before I was actually done.

 

[DoPo]

Sigh.......I am now filled with the desire to dig up my old copies of the Mechcommander series to see if they'll work on Windows 7. I hope you're happy OP.

It works - I've played it. It's been a while so I can't quite recall but there may have been a patch required for it. Not sure, still, the game itself had no major hickups.

 

[Barbas]

The only one I would really put forth is Red Alert 2, we are talking fully voiced and narrated installer with each step tied into the game setting, and once it was just installing they went ahead and talked you through all the faction background stories as if it is a mission briefing.
There is no other game that did this, neither the old or new C&C games as far as I remember.

I remember that. The menu had an interesting and detailed design. Lots of intelligence blueprints and photos were shown while this [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vs44mnswak] played. Masterful score on that game. I think Yuri's Revenge did the same thing, but it's the only other example in the series that I can think of.

OT: Freelancer had a neat installer that gave you some slides of background information on the various planets to read while you waited. Age of Mythology did something similar, but my personal favourite was the concept art shown in the Morrowind [http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131113221615/elderscrolls/images/6/6e/Skeleton_Loading_Screen.jpg] installer. I can't recall anything as lavish as Westwood's contribution, though.

 

[generals3]

Red Alert 2 Installer (just noticed it was already mentioned, but i'll add value by adding a link to it ), had nice music and some intro story/screens, basically it gave you a reason to watch it install:

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Original Age of Empires. I'd sometimes reinstall it half for the sake of watching the little units wander across the screen.

Weren't they just still images with hints & tips in the foreground?

 

[Dandark]

I usually really enjoyed RTS game installers, they always had good screenshots of epic looking battles. The first two to come to mind for me are the original Dawn of war + its expansions and Maelstrom which was a game I really enjoyed.