Eternity Pillars of Eternity II Beta Thread [GAME RELEASED, GO TO NEW THREAD]

[Jenkem]

OMG LOOK AT THE GRAPHICS THIS WILL BE THE BEST GAME EVER OMG

 

[Once more unto the Codex]

Vibrant colours & PoE in the same sentence?
What

Hmmm,not really vibrant,just compared to this video it felt that way. It kind of looks very dry.To me it looks like the art is lacking....sharpness. Here are a few screenshots i took from the first game and few from the video. It could be because it is video,but it kind of looks more murky. And i do know that the inside screenshot is not fair comparison,even if the indoor ship map from the video wasn't that impressive. Anyone that had played the beta have an opinion on the question?

Keep in mind that in PoE, the backgrounds are almost entirely static, save for a few specific locations, while in Deadfire many items in the background are constantly moving in every scene. This affects how they appear in static photographs versus how they look while actually playing the game.

TLDR; in game, Deadfire’s art is a huge jump over PoE

 

[Lacrymas]

PoE2 does indeed look better than PoE1, the huge jump from uncanny valley character models to actually nice ones that blend with the overall aesthetic alone is enough to put it above PoE1.

 

[DeepOcean]

PoE start is way too reliant on coincidence and introduce concepts way too fast, you are hit by some strange magic wind, a soul crystal purple fart wind, are raped by soul magic from crazy cultists and get to a city where all babies are dead on just 30 mins, you know, the usual dream after alot of marijuana.

PoE beginning was excelent, to the point that it managed to fool everyone here. Right from the beginning you find enemies you can’t beat (“don’t go in that cave yet, that bear will kill you”), the first city has a challenging dungeon and Raedric’s hold is easily one of the best parts of the game. These areas are well-thought-of, but unfortunately they don’t reflect the rest of the game, which was obviously rushed and poorly designed.

I was talking more about narrative than gameplay design, PoE narrative didn't need to rush that fast at the start of the game, the Hollowborn plague stuff should be pushed for later and more time allocated into easing you into the world and what the fuck being a Watcher means. PoE world doesn't enjoy the instant recognition of DnD but the writers just didn't seem to ever have noticed it so very important stuff, important to not make you alienated from the story, was completely omitted or relegated to wikipedia style lore, what was a very bad idea.

In terms of design, I agree with you, Raedric's Hold is a cut above the utter mediocrity of the rest of the game.

 

[Blakemoreland Hybrid Boss]

I was talking more about narrative than gameplay design, PoE narrative didn't need to rush that fast at the start of the game, the Hollowborn plague stuff should be pushed for later and more time allocated into easing you into the world and what the fuck being a Watcher means. PoE world doesn't enjoy the instant recognition of DnD but the writers just didn't seem to ever have noticed it so very important stuff, important to not make you alienated from the story, was completely omitted or relegated to wikipedia style lore, what was a very bad idea.

Yes, in that sense I agree. The difference in the way PoE and, let's say, Arcanum handled the narrative is astonishing. PoE intro is heavy handed, introduces a bunch of characters that are disposed twenty minutes later, etc., while Arcanum has intrigue, development and action at the same time. But this is not surprising given the mediocrity that Obsidian has become. They are always playing safe, openly trying to please the lowest common denominator. Fuck them and their popamole isometric games with pretty hand drawn maps.

 

[Quillon]

---

 

[frajaq]

Did they ever answer anything interesting in the past Q/A ? Or do people just repeat the same shit always?

 

[Jezal_k23]

A few decent questions, some of which provide useful information about the current state of the game. Mostly though I think the questions become less interesting over time since we know so much information about the game now.

PoE start is way too reliant on coincidence and introduce concepts way too fast, you are hit by some strange magic wind, a soul crystal purple fart wind, are raped by soul magic from crazy cultists and get to a city where all babies are dead on just 30 mins, you know, the usual dream after alot of marijuana.

PoE beginning was excelent, to the point that it managed to fool everyone here. Right from the beginning you find enemies you can’t beat (“don’t go in that cave yet, that bear will kill you”), the first city has a challenging dungeon and Raedric’s hold is easily one of the best parts of the game. These areas are well-thought-of, but unfortunately they don’t reflect the rest of the game, which was obviously rushed and poorly designed.

I was talking more about narrative than gameplay design, PoE narrative didn't need to rush that fast at the start of the game, the Hollowborn plague stuff should be pushed for later and more time allocated into easing you into the world and what the fuck being a Watcher means. PoE world doesn't enjoy the instant recognition of DnD but the writers just didn't seem to ever have noticed it so very important stuff, important to not make you alienated from the story, was completely omitted or relegated to wikipedia style lore, what was a very bad idea.

In terms of design, I agree with you, Raedric's Hold is a cut above the utter mediocrity of the rest of the game.

I don't think it would have felt natural to ease the player into learning about the hollowborn plague, or leaving it to be introduced later... it's a catastrophically traumatic event for pretty much every family who tried to have a baby and it has been happening for years, people are terrified and have no idea what to do and who or what to blame... for it to not come up for you until later would have felt extremely unnatural. It would be impossible not to hear about it fairly quickly upon entering the affected area.

So it's an essential part of the world as you enter it. Introducing it is in and of itself part of the game's world building.

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

This Critical Role garbage makes me understand how all those school shooters feel. Sometimes you just want to see the world burn.

 

[Ivan]

...what is Critical Role?

 

[Background Character]

A role that is critical

 

[DeepOcean]

So it's an essential part of the world as you enter it. Introducing it is in and of itself part of the game's world building.

Yes, it is an important part of the world but protagonist motivation should come first because if you don't give a single shit to the world, why would you care about any part of it? You need to setup the player point of view on this world first or the player will feel like I did, completely detached from everything that was happening. All good RPGs do this, on Fallout 1, you are a vault dweller that need to save your people on a harsh unknown world, on MotB, you are cursed and need to learn about this curse to not lose your soul, on PoE, you are a Watcher and the game just forgets about it as soon as you are named with the title being only a vague excuse to super power, this isn't interesting.

The story should be about the player, on the point of view of the player not about the world, the player should see the world through his character. I don't give a single shit about endless exposition or about the world or about lore, this is just fantasy made up stuff like the other thousands interchangeable fantasy stories around the globe, now if the writer manages to make me feel that the character I control actually has an stake on it, now that become much more interesting.

It was the same mistake NumaNuma did, while NumaNuma was a garbage game and PoE doesn't reach that level of bad, the story was about another character and not the player, the player character was reduced to the camera man role for the actions of the dude. The same way, you as the player is the camera man of Thaos. On PST, Avellone was wise enough to make the motivations of the practical incarnation murky because he knew what was important was the point of the view of the player while NumaNuma was made by writers that didn't understand so they made the story all about the practical incarnation, or on another words, another character that isn't the player with the plkayer reduced to camera man that sometimes makes choices that are really unrelated to him personally.

 

[2house2fly]

Your character not having a concrete goal at the start of PoE feels very much intentional. Whatever goals they had were derailed entirely by the murder of their caravan and nascent Awakening. The game very effectively puts you in the shoes of the character, a stranger in this land who suddenly finds themselves alone, and after the long wearying trudge to Gilded Vale learns that the promised sanctuary is anything but. That moment would have no impact at all if the game had started with a cutscene of the overseer saying "you must find Thaos and end his crusade for the mad goddess Woedica!"

 

[DeepOcean]

Your character not having a concrete goal at the start of PoE feels very much intentional.

You don't need to assign a goal and goad the player right to it on the first minute the game starts but it must not take too long for you to form a descent goal for your character to pursue and one that makes sense on your perspective. The caravan part and your past before that being irrelevant isn't what I'm talking about, I'm talking about when you get to Gilded Vale, it is when you talk with the dead dwarf that she says you are a watcher, this is when the quest for your character actually begins.

There are two questions raised by the game at that point: one about Gilded Vale and its curse and another being about your position as a Watcher. The writer decided to make Gilded Vale, the starting town, be about the Hollowborn plague right on a moment the single most important question for the player and its most important mystery being "What is a watcher?" At that moment, I felt confused and I felt why should I care about all of this? I want to know who am I on this world, dead babies? Those peasants all could die for what I cared. Sure, the starting areas are the best designed areas of the game so that weak storytelling is offset by that but you are only going to get some clue much later on the fortress, and even there, not much of a clue at all.

Just compare this with the start of MotB where pretty much alot of shit that is happening on the town had some connection with your curse and all characters are connected to it on some clever ways. Don't answer questions the player doesn't care, make the player care first about your questions then you try to answer them, no amount of interchangeable whining fantasy peasants, they can cry, cry as they wish, this won't even awake me from my Mark Zuckerberg robot energy economy mode, maybe because of my dark hidden sociophatic tendencies but I think alot of players feel this way.

 

[Pizzashoes]

Interestingly enough, on replays of the beginning, a lot of the introduction makes crystal clear sense. The caravan stops for the night, and you're sick. The sickness now grabs your attention immediately — you, the player, know your soulmate Thaos is nearby. Then you travel with Calisca toward the berries. You know she's going to die and that you have the obligation to aid her sister in the future. You meet some of Galawain's faithful, and they're as crazy as they are later in the game. They're mad about someone entering and disturbing ruins. It's Thaos! The soul-ripper ghost can't rip your soul, because surprise surprise, your soul is ancient and extremely powerful. Thaos' speech indicates he's Woedica's Faithful without actually naming Woedica. Then, you meet Aloth, and everything he says (other than his tranny shit) fits exactly with being a spy with the Leaden Key.

And a few other things. The writers put so much thought into the introduction to integrate it into the story that it's a crying shame people think its subtlety is damnable instead of praiseworthy.

 

[Mexi]

In the last update, Xoti looks better and pretty fuckable.

Pics?

 

[Quillon]

In the last update, Xoti looks better and pretty fuckable.

Pics?

I guess the other two sidekicks have non-celebrity voice actors.

https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/96803-critical-role-meet-pillars-of-eternity-ii-deadfire/

Hello Watchers and Critters alike!

Yesterday we announced the partnership with Critical Role for Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire. We’re excited for this as we’ve seen since Pillars of Eternity that players have tried to make parties that represent Vox Machina in some way, and now you can do so and have their voices!

But that isn’t all that the cast of Critical Role is doing. Along with the returning Matthew Mercer, the entire cast of Critical Role are also voicing major characters in Deadfire. Today, we’re very happy to share with you who the cast will be voicing and a bit about those characters. Enjoy!

Edér and Aloth – Matthew Mercer

Edér - A farmer and veteran of the Saint's War, Edér fought alongside the Watcher in the Dyrwood and now accompanies his old ally to the Deadfire Archipelago. His easygoing manner and dry wit belie a strong sense of responsibility and commitment. Eothas' return into the world raises questions for Edér about the god he once worshipped and later fought against. If he can help restore the Watcher's soul, then just maybe he can get some answers of his own, too.

Aloth - Aloth is a wizard from Aedyr and an old ally from the Watcher's journeys in the Dyrwood. Meticulous, thoughtful, and pragmatic, his experiences in the years since meeting the Watcher have shaped him. They've also brought him to the Deadfire on a mission of his own. With the Watcher's help, he hopes to uncover the truth behind one of the oldest and most secretive organizations in Eora.

Maia Rua – Marisha Ray

Maia is an elite sharpshooter serving a tour of duty for the Royal Deadfire Company. With the help of her bird of prey companion, Ishiza, Maia can scout environments both in and out of combat. Reassigned from her mission and sent to assist the Watcher, she and Ishiza are grateful for the chance to sail the treacherous waters of the Deadfire for some adventure and target practice.

Serafen – Liam O’Brien

As a shiphunter of the Príncipi sen Patrena, Serafen uses his psychic abilities to guide pirates to merchant vessels ripe for plunder. Serafen's captain offers the furry blue pirate's expertise to the Watcher, and Serafen brings with him his unique perspective on the politics and cultures of the Deadfire - as well as a long history of wronged rivals, lovers, and adversaries.

A self-proclaimed expert in all things involving his tongue, Serafen's bawdy humor, felonious tendencies, and strained relationship with the truth don't always endear him to his fellow travelers.

Tekēhu – Travis Willingham

Tekēhu is a marine godlike and accomplished watershaper. While others would harness his talents to intimidate enemy ships and enrich Huana culture, Tekēhu wishes to spearhead an artistic revival and bring change on his own terms. His people have a very rigid idea what it means to be born of a god, so he delights in paddling against the current and defying the wishes of those who seek to control him.

Xoti – Laura Bailey

Xoti is a half meadow, half savannah folk priestess who believes it is her divine duty to shepherd lost souls through the Beyond. As a worshipper of Gaun, the aspect of Eothas associated with harvests and the death side of the cycle of rebirth, Xoti wields a sickle and a lantern in order to reap souls for her god. When she was a young girl, she was one of thousands of Readcerans who came to Deadfire fleeing the devastation that followed the vorlas blight and the Saint's War. Her family, like many others, established themselves as farmers, and it was then that Xoti claims Gaun began to speak to her through prophetic nightmares. Xoti is eager to chase down the manifestation of her god so that she might better understand and aid his mission on Eora.

Rekke – Sam Riegel

Rekke is the sole survivor of a shipwreck. When the Watcher finds him, he speaks a language none among the party have ever heard before - not that it stops him from speaking his mind. In the Watcher's company, he quickly proves himself to be a capable fighter and easy-going traveling companion. The youngest member of the party, he amuses himself by playing pranks on his newly found friends.

Ydwin – Ashley Johnson

An expert in the metaphysics of Eora and a skilled practitioner of animancy - the wildly controversial science of the soul - Ydwin holds as deep an interest in the Watcher's abilities as in the living god wading across the Deadfire. Analytical, courteous, and possessed of a rapier wit, she seems the ideal compatriot - assuming you don't object to her dangerous avenues of scientific inquiry.

Eothas – Taliesin Jaffe

Eothas is the god of light, redemption, and rebirth. A generation ago, he manifested his power in a farmer named Waidwen to lead what became known as The Saint's War. After the armies of the Dyrwood destroyed St. Waidwen, Eothas disappeared from Eora. He was not heard from again until he restored and animated the statue beneath the castle of Caed Nua. Destroying the castle, drawing the souls out of its residents, and leaving the Watcher of Caed Nua for dead, Eothas then marched into the ocean and made his way for the Deadfire Archipelago. His motives are unknown.

You can pre-order Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire through Critical Role via our publisher, Versus Evil. We will be updating that page up until launch so we can highlight the characters, the cast, and more!

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

Interestingly enough, on replays of the beginning, a lot of the introduction makes crystal clear sense. The caravan stops for the night, and you're sick. The sickness now grabs your attention immediately — you, the player, know your soulmate Thaos is nearby. Then you travel with Calisca toward the berries. You know she's going to die and that you have the obligation to aid her sister in the future. You meet some of Galawain's faithful, and they're as crazy as they are later in the game. They're mad about someone entering and disturbing ruins. It's Thaos! The soul-ripper ghost can't rip your soul, because surprise surprise, your soul is ancient and extremely powerful. Thaos' speech indicates he's Woedica's Faithful without actually naming Woedica. Then, you meet Aloth, and everything he says (other than his tranny shit) fits exactly with being a spy with the Leaden Key.

And a few other things. The writers put so much thought into the introduction to integrate it into the story that it's a crying shame people think its subtlety is damnable instead of praiseworthy.

The beginning is about as subtle as erectile dysfunction. Just because nothing is happening, doesn't mean you haven't failed.

 

[Mexi]

Wow, they really sharpened up those images. They even fixed Ydwin. Nice.

Any pics of Pallegina, though? That one was fucking ridiculous considering her picture in PoE was a beauty.

 

[Quillon]

Wow, they really sharpened up those images. They even fixed Ydwin. Nice.

Any pics of Pallegina, though? That one was fucking ridiculous considering her picture in PoE was a beauty.

Yeah would be a shame if she's actually gonna be Pallechina in Deadfire.

 

[Bonerbill]

In the last update, Xoti looks better and pretty fuckable.

Pics?

I guess the other two sidekicks have non-celebrity voice actors.

https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/96803-critical-role-meet-pillars-of-eternity-ii-deadfire/

Hello Watchers and Critters alike!

Xoti – Laura Bailey

Xoti is a half meadow, half savannah folk priestess who believes it is her divine duty to shepherd lost souls through the Beyond. As a worshipper of Gaun, the aspect of Eothas associated with harvests and the death side of the cycle of rebirth, Xoti wields a sickle and a lantern in order to reap souls for her god. When she was a young girl, she was one of thousands of Readcerans who came to Deadfire fleeing the devastation that followed the vorlas blight and the Saint's War. Her family, like many others, established themselves as farmers, and it was then that Xoti claims Gaun began to speak to her through prophetic nightmares. Xoti is eager to chase down the manifestation of her god so that she might better understand and aid his mission on Eora.

Legit proof that if you think Xoti looks like a man, then you're gay like IHaveHugeNick

 

[Grotesque]

Xoti now is attractive enough

Nose ring is an automatic no.

At least is not between the nostrils!

 

[Thonius]

RPG codex is hit with tranny fever. Every woman npc in game is tranny until proven otherwise!

 

[Ibn Sina]

Obsidian is catering to the Crowd. There is no doubt about it now. I guess that makes sense. Got get dem sweet dollar bills from the sex starved housewifes. Just lol at how they made the characters resemble their voice actors.

Predicting a 90+ page of Shark Boi dedication thread in Obsidian forum filled with fanfic and tumblr images.

 

[Ibn Sina]

None of the portraits looks like the people they are claimed to be modelled on. Just saying.

Go wash your eyes and check again. I mean come on who are we kidding here.