Game News Pillars of Eternity II Fig Update #5: A Few Words on Returning Companions

[Thonius]

I really liked POE.

The only thing that i disliked about the first game was the feature that you can talk to spirits.

The idea was great, but the execution was poor.

Most of the time those dialogs/monologs didn't have any effect on you nor the game.

It was just a collection of mini-stories (some are good).

I think it'll be really cool if every time you speak to a spirit it's effect on you in some way.

for example: new quests, XP, clues in some quests, items, riddles or even new abilities...

That's backers npc.

 

[Thonius]

I'm a bit surprised that Kana is below Hiravias or Aloth, I liked his scholar thing and the voice acting is one of the better ones. Eder is my favourite, one of the very few companions in rpgs who are just regular bros, and not either try-hard edgy "hurr durr am bad mercenary!" or "am so angsty!", they got his tone IMO pretty much right. From WM companions I kinda like Zahua and Caroc is at least something a bit different even if the quest is so fucking ridiculously short. Devil of Caroc could've been great with more content.

Eh he got that goofy attitude that turned me off. Eder is a best tanky companion in years, usually they are boring as shit.
Never felt anything for GM( probably because I played cipher), never understood all the fuss about her on dex.

 

[Roguey]

YOUR CHOICES MATTER!

'cept the outcome is the same.

Please preorder our game, it will be epic.

The outcome is not the same if they're dead.

 

[Major_Blackhart]

I did enjoy the banter the Devil of Caroc brought to the party though.
Her backwoodsy way of speaking and pronouncing things with Zahua
Ixamatl
That made me laugh. And was quite memorable.

Edit:
Will we at least get more Godlike races?

 

[Shilandra]

I wonder if I should try playing through PoE or just wait for this game to come out.

I've probably restarted the game like 3 times and I still havent really gotten past that first castle where you're supposed to talk with the other watcher. I dont know why, I was able to get through a few tyranny playthroughs just fine but playing pillars is like a struggle. There's lots of things to do in that first little portion of the game but none of it seems interesting or feels gripping. Maybe its because I chose to play a priest.

Would it be better to just tuck pillars away and see if this one works out any better?

 

[Kalin]

Pillars of Eternity II Fag Update

 

[Rivmusique]

It was strange how some of Aloth's big moments came after his quest was completed. I suspect many would have shelved him after doing the therapy session in DB as the journal suggests you're done with him, never seeing the scene after the hearing or the "suppress/get-along-with Iselmyr" conversation in Twin Elms.

Something to try to avoid doing for Deadfire, I feel.

 

[One-and-a-half-Ivan]

It was strange how some of Aloth's big moments came after his quest was completed. I suspect many would have shelved him after doing the therapy session in DB as the journal suggests you're done with him, never seeing the scene after the hearing or the "suppress/get-along-with Iselmyr" conversation in Twin Elms.

Something to try to avoid doing for Deadfire, I feel.

In my first playthrough I shoveled Aloth in Caed Nua after finishing his quest only to find out in the end slides that he was a Leaden Key spy all along

 

[l3loodAngel]

You Obsidian motherfuckers (I AM LOOKING AT YOU COON) you are trying to SCAM FIG investors. I will produce calculations in your fucking next update. Good fucking JOB.

 

[Roguey]

It was strange how some of Aloth's big moments came after his quest was completed. I suspect many would have shelved him after doing the therapy session in DB as the journal suggests you're done with him, never seeing the scene after the hearing or the "suppress/get-along-with Iselmyr" conversation in Twin Elms.

Something to try to avoid doing for Deadfire, I feel.

It's actually a fine thing to have non-telegraphed stuff like that.

If Pallegina is in your party when you run into the Leaden Key ambush, you get to experience an additional fight at the Vailian embassy, otherwise it never happens. Minor exclusive content like this makes your narrative feel unique only without the choice-agony or massive workload that comes with big branches.

 

[duanth123]

choice-agony

Ugh, what a disgusting little euphemism you've crafted yourself.

 

[Roguey]

Ugh, what a disgusting little euphemism you've crafted yourself.

I got it from Sawyer actually, who was likely inspired by Warren Spector's tyranny of choices.

 

[Sizzle]

Will we at least get more Godlike races?

That would be nice. And maybe a couple of new subraces as well.

 

[duanth123]

Ugh, what a disgusting little euphemism you've crafted yourself.

I got it from Sawyer actually, who was likely inspired by Warren Spector's tyranny of choices.

I don't distinguish between you two.

 

[l3loodAngel]

Decided to post today. Now I remember why I didn‘t support WL 3. I did some investor calcualtions.

For USD 2 mln. „Investors“ receives just 14,29% of revenue from the game sales (note this is max share if you invest maximum amount which currently is USD 2 mln., however, if you invest USD 1 mln., you will receive even less a 7.14%. If the investment decreases further so does the return rate. You have to divide by a USD 14 mln. A number which is not justified anywhere).

1. So you will receive 14.29% if you invest USD 2 mln., and until 670,339 units are sold (Total Wasteland 2 PC sales estimates). At that a point an investor has earned 13% or USD 260K profit. By that time the Developer has earned at least USD 13.5 mln., assuming you are the sole investor.
2. After the 13% payoff the future payoff percentage decreases by 50%. And become 7.14% from future total number of sales. (Note that’s the percentage if you invested USD 2 mln. If you invested less than your lower payoff if also divided by 50%.)
3. That’s assuming USD 23,3 life time sales price. After all discounts. Which seems unlikely with the discounts if the game is not smash hit.
4. Oh and this one is gold. Anticipated dividend rate might not be 100% after all. It might be even lower. Even Obsidian admits it might be as low as 70%.
5. As I understand the numbers of games sales on FIG page are with kickstarter “sales”, thus actual sales are lower.
6. Around 60K for WL2, 74K for POE. So your odds of actual sales might be lower, but that’s OK, because in case you would reach those sales targets, you will start getting less money.
7. Numbers from which you have to divide USD 14 mln. and USD 28 mln. are nowhere explained.

So „Investor“ gets:

1. No collateral.
2. No IP rights.
3. Nebulous dividend rate.
4. Shitty pay-out.
5. And in case the game will become a hit, your pay-out will become even lower.
6. No seniority (meaning that as an investor you don’t get to recuperate your money first).
7. You will only get your initial amount invested + 13% return on investment after Obsidian earns USD 13.5 mln.
8. Overly ambitious sales targets.

 

[Major_Blackhart]

Yep. And that's why they go kickstarter with the masses. Savvy investors look at this and say "fuck that shit".

 

[Rivmusique]

It was strange how some of Aloth's big moments came after his quest was completed. I suspect many would have shelved him after doing the therapy session in DB as the journal suggests you're done with him, never seeing the scene after the hearing or the "suppress/get-along-with Iselmyr" conversation in Twin Elms.

Something to try to avoid doing for Deadfire, I feel.

It's actually a fine thing to have non-telegraphed stuff like that.

If Pallegina is in your party when you run into the Leaden Key ambush, you get to experience an additional fight at the Vailian embassy, otherwise it never happens. Minor exclusive content like this makes your narrative feel unique only without the choice-agony or massive workload that comes with big branches.

I like that Pallegina one, she has another with Hylea that I think is fine too. I don't think they're like Aloth's though.

A player is likely to have her in the party on their way to TE because you've known from meeting her that that is where she needs to be and it's the first time you go there. And taking a godlike to talk to her "mother" is an obvious thing to do. Also, neither event is relevant to her ending state or the main story, they are just little side events that tell you a little about her (I really like the Embassy bit, shows what a Paladin is in PoE).

 

[Trashos]

Who seriously gives a fuck about Pallegina? Except Sawyer and his fangirl\boy №1, of course.

Eh, she is a black female with no womb. If that doesn't shut up the SJWs, nothing will.

It was strange how some of Aloth's big moments came after his quest was completed. I suspect many would have shelved him after doing the therapy session in DB as the journal suggests you're done with him, never seeing the scene after the hearing or the "suppress/get-along-with Iselmyr" conversation in Twin Elms.

Something to try to avoid doing for Deadfire, I feel.

It's actually a fine thing to have non-telegraphed stuff like that.

If Pallegina is in your party when you run into the Leaden Key ambush, you get to experience an additional fight at the Vailian embassy, otherwise it never happens. Minor exclusive content like this makes your narrative feel unique only without the choice-agony or massive workload that comes with big branches.

Agree with Roguey. It is like the "I beat up Valentino" quest in Gothic II, where I only found out that the quest had one last part after several playthroughs. "Non-telegraphed stuff like that" is what makes games special.

 

[Septaryeth]

I don't think it is out of spite, it wouldn't make much sense to include them when MCA isn't there to write them, now would it?

And their character arcs are nicely wrapped up - it would be better to leave them alone and do some new characters.

Can't say I agree when it comes to Durance.
He went through all that trouble because of Eothas, who invaded his homeland, after all.
And he seems like the kind to come back and finish the job just for the sake of it...

 

[Sizzle]

Durance has directed his hatred to Magran (in the ending where he's still alive, that is, but considering that's the one you get when you finish his quest - I'd say it's the one the majority of the players got), why should he care that Eothas is prancing around in the not-Carribean?

 

[Tigranes]

There would have been hell raised if someone else wrote Durance. The Codex would burst veins combing through the dialogue and showing how MCA's creation had been abused by Carrie Patel / Sawyer / whoever else. Honestly, the characters were MCA's babies, so it's best that they come up with new ones in their stead.

So, it seems that Vancian is gone at the moment, and they're looking into everybody having per-encs + unique power sources per class, like monks and ciphers from POE1. I think mages still get per-rest power source they use to augment spells, but it's not a Vancian system. I love Vancian, but I've long advocated for a more consistent system to avoid the clusterfuck from having some classes with Vancian and not others, and single characters having both per-rest and per-enc. In general, giving every class a power source seems like a good decision; monks and ciphers worked very well in POE1 and it gives design leeway to create unique mechanics for each class while having some consistency. Not so sure if the mage empower thing is going to be a good idea - you don't want too many empowers per rest, because then using them becomes busywork, you don't want mages to be too dependent on empowered spells, which just means they now carry a more messy pseudo Vancian system, but you also don't want to make empowers irrelevant. It might be better to just remove the per-rest schtick altogether - have rests be not quite as important as AD&D, and be forced by harsher health/injury systems, and then have character abilities be controlled through non-rest related power sources.

Edit: I think my gloss here is misleading. Reading further, it seems that per-rest Empower might be for everybody, and isn't designed to be superpowers - e.g. it'd be similar to 3rd edition empower spell. And it seems like spell levels and Grimoires are retained for mages. I'm not 100% sure what it's going to look like, but Sawyer seems to be pretty clear that the old 'mages have per-rest and others have per-encs' is gone.

 

[Bohrain]

Sawyer's Q&A.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3A0BoCI7aI

Some highlight:

- Most abilities are now by default per encounter. Every class has a resource called empowerment that can be used to boost a skill, this resource can be replenished by resting.
- Inter party politics are a thing. However, it seems that the individual party members can't leave for good, but they can refuse to be in a party with a character they hate.
- Obsidian writers themselves didn't know the difference between Watcher and Cipher powers so they were briefed what exactly does what. Watcher powers still have a role in the second game.

 

[Jarpie]

Sawyer's Q&A.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3A0BoCI7aI

Some highlight:

- Obsidian writers themselves didn't know the difference between Watcher and Cipher powers so they were briefed what exactly does what. Watcher powers still have a role in the second game.