Played it for an hour or two yesterday (had to force myself to), some how it feels like a tablet game in early access if that's even a thing (yet). Everything from the controls to the combat to the NPC's half done interactions seemed unfinished.
Combat is abysmal, it's like there's a 3-4 second delay between every attack. It feels more like playing a novel than a game, it felt like 80% of the time I was reading text and the remaining 20% was lackadaisical gameplay, maybe that's just the beginning but I lost interest. I honestly had more fun doing the conquest than actually playing the game.
Maybe i'm being too harsh and it's actually really good and I should stick it out, i'm just not sure I have the drive. I'm glad some of you are enjoying it though.
The combat is supposed to be like a real time turn based RPG, like most Final Fantasy games, except it takes place on the main map (like Chrono Trigger) instead of in a battle mode screen. That's why there's that seconds of delay in between each action.
Of course, it's probably not everyones' cup of tea these days. The fact that the latest Final Fantasy will be moving away from such combat to a more action-oriented fast paced twitch combat is a sign of the times, I suppose.
I'm pretty pissed at myself for not finishing Pillars of Eternity White March I & II before this game came out. Now I'm behind and woefully unprepared to experience the greatness that is PoE 2.0.
Wait, it sounds like that you only have a limited amount of game time to get things done so you can't go off and do all the side quests and other things, you need to focus on the main objective before it's too late. Is that right?
So, I finished it. There's a lot of good things to say about it, but some not so great things too. I actually liked the combat style, but then, I'm a classic RPG fan in the first place. It felt short, honestly, and that is my number one complaint. The story felt half finished; like I'm waiting on book 3 of the trilogy. Perhaps this is by design, and if so, I loathe this DLC, paid expansion crap that games are pushing these days. It's obvious that's what Obsidian has in mind here, especially given the additions to PoE since its launch. I can't say too much more on that without spoilers, so I'll wrap up my critique of the story by saying that it was enjoyable, and a nice change from the zero to hero save the world crap that we usually see.
Other than the obvious plans for future DLC / Expansions, I disliked the skills system. Wrath / Favor (or new take on influence and reputation) along with the skill makes skill bloat happen fairly quickly, and I didn't much like the UI setup. Mods can fix this in short order though, so not a deal breaker I guess. Companions had only a few trees to choose from, so their skill choices were a touch easier to manage, but you have limited points to spend, and the first point is preselected for the player character and for the companions, so I could never get that "perfect build" on a couple of party members. The players trees are way too bloated. I went with an unarmed build (think D&D Monk) and found I really needed to be spending points across 3 trees to get the best setup, but thanks to tier requirements within the trees themselves, I could only choose one if I wanted to get to the higher tier abilities within that tree. Naturally, that precious first point was wasted in a tree I didn't want to flesh out. It could have been done better.
Party AI was good. I've been playing through a NWN2 campaign though, so Super Mario Bros. AI would have impressed me by comparison. Seriously though, the party members did what they were supposed to, but I would like to have seen a bit more specific customization instead of just a "theme" for party members. Higher difficulties would find the need for a lot more micro-managing, but that's to be expected.
Spellcrafting was a good idea, and ultimately a good addition, but I thought it could have used a bit of tweaking. Looking at the possible combinations midway through the game, my mind was racing with possible combinations, but the lore requirements were insane on some of the combinations. I wanted to craft a huge AoE fireball spell in the spirit of a high level D&D Wizard, but sadly, the game ended before I got my lore skill high enough to make it.
I've talked long enough here, so I'll wrap this up. I agree with the review, but feel it overlooked some of the game's shortcomings. Overall, I was entertained, but felt the $45 dollar price tag was a bit steep considering I'll need 2 DLCs and a paid expansion to finish the story. Buy it on sale. $20 - $25 would have been a perfect price point.
I wanted to craft a huge AoE fireball spell in the spirit of a high level D&D Wizard, but sadly, the game ended before I got my lore skill high enough to make it.
That's awful. I've been holding off getting this game mostly just because I'm playing other things right now but that point you made really drives home the notion that what they released is too short even to fully explore some of the more attractive character development mechanics.
Sounds like I'll be waiting for the enhanced version with more content somewhere down the line.
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I enjoyed Tyranny, the spellcraft system seems half-assed though. Lore requirements really are to strenuous unless you plan your character that way from the get go. Just as the story was getting good ... it was over. I hate cliff hangers like this .. and I hate the cliff hangers which force you to make additional purchases. I.E Matrix 2. Other than that .. It was a great game, but for 26 hours of story .. and I only skipped one side quest ( to my knowledge ) ... I won't be buying another.
Comments
Of course, it's probably not everyones' cup of tea these days. The fact that the latest Final Fantasy will be moving away from such combat to a more action-oriented fast paced twitch combat is a sign of the times, I suppose.
Seaspite
Playing ESO on my X-Box
Other than the obvious plans for future DLC / Expansions, I disliked the skills system. Wrath / Favor (or new take on influence and reputation) along with the skill makes skill bloat happen fairly quickly, and I didn't much like the UI setup. Mods can fix this in short order though, so not a deal breaker I guess. Companions had only a few trees to choose from, so their skill choices were a touch easier to manage, but you have limited points to spend, and the first point is preselected for the player character and for the companions, so I could never get that "perfect build" on a couple of party members. The players trees are way too bloated. I went with an unarmed build (think D&D Monk) and found I really needed to be spending points across 3 trees to get the best setup, but thanks to tier requirements within the trees themselves, I could only choose one if I wanted to get to the higher tier abilities within that tree. Naturally, that precious first point was wasted in a tree I didn't want to flesh out. It could have been done better.
Party AI was good. I've been playing through a NWN2 campaign though, so Super Mario Bros. AI would have impressed me by comparison. Seriously though, the party members did what they were supposed to, but I would like to have seen a bit more specific customization instead of just a "theme" for party members. Higher difficulties would find the need for a lot more micro-managing, but that's to be expected.
Spellcrafting was a good idea, and ultimately a good addition, but I thought it could have used a bit of tweaking. Looking at the possible combinations midway through the game, my mind was racing with possible combinations, but the lore requirements were insane on some of the combinations. I wanted to craft a huge AoE fireball spell in the spirit of a high level D&D Wizard, but sadly, the game ended before I got my lore skill high enough to make it.
I've talked long enough here, so I'll wrap this up. I agree with the review, but feel it overlooked some of the game's shortcomings. Overall, I was entertained, but felt the $45 dollar price tag was a bit steep considering I'll need 2 DLCs and a paid expansion to finish the story. Buy it on sale. $20 - $25 would have been a perfect price point.
Sounds like I'll be waiting for the enhanced version with more content somewhere down the line.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
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