Eternity Pillars of Eternity + The White March Expansion Thread

[Roguey]

There isn't a White March review though

I won't be playing the White March, there's no backer disc version.

 

[Infinitron]

There isn't a White March review though

I won't be playing the White March, there's no backer disc version.

Ok, seriously now, is this a data limit thing or are you just being weird? I know you download other games from Steam.

 

[Roguey]

Ok, seriously now, is this a data limit thing or are you just being weird? I know you download other games from Steam.

Both. Additionally, I'm not all that thrilled with how the White March was implemented, which is an incentive not to bother.

 

[Prime Junta]

Roguey don't ever change

 

[Infinitron]

I wonder if the German PoE GOTY box comes with an English version.

 

[Bubbles]

This discussion is especially pertinent when you consider the reports that the current version of the base game might be incorrectly calling on White March assets.

 

[Prime Junta]

Looks to me that entropy has hit critical mass. Every bugfix will spawn 1 + b bugs, where b ≥ 0. Always happens eventually with a messy codebase.

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

Bugged for eternity.

 

[Sannom]

I wonder if the German PoE GOTY box comes with an English version.

That thing will be linked to Steam, right?

 

[vonAchdorf]

I wonder if the German PoE GOTY box comes with an English version.

That thing will be linked to Steam, right?

It's linked to Steam. Only the printed manual is in German, the game is available in the usual languages.

 

[Neanderthal]

Finished that MCA novella, weird little thing in form, but i'd guessed ending long afore it came about. Good read, truth, secrets, an a little subplot about lies we tell ourselves. The whole vibe o the novella though (intentionally so I think) was disturbing an disjointed, which fitted with the narrative. Reminded me of early Moorcock a bit.

 

[Dux]

I finally gave up on PoE today. I didn't even really give it much a chance but I can't stomach it any longer. Any of it. I initially took a break from it while focusing on other games such as Gothic, Fallout, New Vegas and now Fallout 2. I thought that with time I would be more receptive and inclined to continue with the game. So I fired it up again, walked around town some, trying to talk to people yet being unable to do so because of the dream whatever ability. I tried to look past all the dreariness, the washed out colours, the all too familiar quest design, the abject and painfully redundant combat (and that fucking combat music loop); I went into a temple and fought spiders. After a drawn-out fight with the alpha spider my character finally bit the bullet. Normally I would have been frustrated, angry, fired up or something of that ilk. Now, I felt nothing. That's the point. I have played so many great games where I've been legitimately angry. Intense feelings - either positive or negative - have been a staple of my playthroughs of many RPGs. Other than the fiasco involving Aloth, there's been nothing to elicit any kind of emotion from me. I think, ultimately, it must be a grave mismatch between me and this particular game, which is odd considering I could stomach other Obsidian games. This one just seem to repel me, or maybe it's me repelling it.

I had a suspicion that I might be in a serious rut where I just can't seem to find enjoyment in gaming. That's not true, though. I've been enjoying the shit out of Gothic and Fallout, for instance. I had a blast. So I don't know. I followed the Infinity Engine games like a fucking religion but now I seem to be at a crossroads. Maybe Pillars was the final nail, so to speak, and maybe I should be grateful. It's odd, though. Pillars doesn't seem to be that bad, after all. It's nothing special but it's not terrible from what I've experienced. However, if the story or atmosphere doesn't hold up in these types of games I always had the combat to fall back on. Now, the combat is one of the biggest issues. How do you fuck that up? What was so wrong with the combat in the Baldur's Gate games to warrant this shit? I did appreciate the homage to text-based games, though, where you read text and choose different options to solve or bork the situation. That was a nice touch and I hope to see more of it in future RPGs.

 

[Roguey]

This discussion is especially pertinent when you consider the reports that the current version of the base game might be incorrectly calling on White March assets.

Problem solved http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/88124-game-breaking-bug-cannot-change-party-303/page-2#entry1829224

We nailed this issue down. Discovered it has to do with the 'auto-level up' feature with the base game. We mistakenly added px2 abilities to certain characters progression tables when they auto-level up that they do not have access to. If you disable this feature in the options menu you can bypass the bug. We are however trying to get a fix, though I have no exact date when it will release.

I would never use autoleveling, so this issue wouldn't have affected me.

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

I would never use autoleveling, so this issue wouldn't have affected me.

True, you'd have to actually launch the game to use it.

 

[AwesomeButton]

The Confident Aim bug was never addressed because its initials are the same as Chris Avellone's.

 

[Roguey]

True, you'd have to actually launch the game to use it.

I'm speaking of a hypothetical scenario where they released a 3.03 patch for the disc I have.

 

[mitochondritom]

Finished that MCA novella, weird little thing in form, but i'd guessed ending long afore it came about. Good read, truth, secrets, an a little subplot about lies we tell ourselves. The whole vibe o the novella though (intentionally so I think) was disturbing an disjointed, which fitted with the narrative. Reminded me of early Moorcock a bit.

Got round to reading it last night and was surprised that it was actually quite decent. It was oddly formatted, perhaps because it was on my Kindle, with weird inserts about in-game items that I think were supposed to be footnotes. I was also confused if the items mentioned were supposed to make it into the game or not, for instance, the troll carpet or Ondra goblet. Both seemed like they would have worked well, especially the cup, which I could totally see being consumable item. The novella and the world presented in the game don't quite mesh for me though. Waels temple is a crazy place with Avellone clearly channelling some Planescape vibes, but when you meet Wael's priests in PoE they are just generic librarian types in a generic library, oh it has a secret door. Overall I did enjoy it though, for a piece of game related fluff.

 

[Theldaran]

I finally gave up on PoE today. I didn't even really give it much a chance but I can't stomach it any longer. Any of it. I initially took a break from it while focusing on other games such as Gothic, Fallout, New Vegas and now Fallout 2. I thought that with time I would be more receptive and inclined to continue with the game. So I fired it up again, walked around town some, trying to talk to people yet being unable to do so because of the dream whatever ability. I tried to look past all the dreariness, the washed out colours, the all too familiar quest design, the abject and painfully redundant combat (and that fucking combat music loop); I went into a temple and fought spiders. After a drawn-out fight with the alpha spider my character finally bit the bullet. Normally I would have been frustrated, angry, fired up or something of that ilk. Now, I felt nothing. That's the point. I have played so many great games where I've been legitimately angry. Intense feelings - either positive or negative - have been a staple of my playthroughs of many RPGs. Other than the fiasco involving Aloth, there's been nothing to elicit any kind of emotion from me. I think, ultimately, it must be a grave mismatch between me and this particular game, which is odd considering I could stomach other Obsidian games. This one just seem to repel me, or maybe it's me repelling it.

I had a suspicion that I might be in a serious rut where I just can't seem to find enjoyment in gaming. That's not true, though. I've been enjoying the shit out of Gothic and Fallout, for instance. I had a blast. So I don't know. I followed the Infinity Engine games like a fucking religion but now I seem to be at a crossroads. Maybe Pillars was the final nail, so to speak, and maybe I should be grateful. It's odd, though. Pillars doesn't seem to be that bad, after all. It's nothing special but it's not terrible from what I've experienced. However, if the story or atmosphere doesn't hold up in these types of games I always had the combat to fall back on. Now, the combat is one of the biggest issues. How do you fuck that up? What was so wrong with the combat in the Baldur's Gate games to warrant this shit? I did appreciate the homage to text-based games, though, where you read text and choose different options to solve or bork the situation. That was a nice touch and I hope to see more of it in future RPGs.

You're just one among many that the game didn't impress. Particularly design of the game and the ideas used in it are very wrong. Along the way, Obsidian forgot how to make great games. But hey -as a kickstarter-born game, it's not utter crap like the majority, it *almost* holds up... but sadly no, in the end it doesn't.

Just take a look at Mighty no. 9 and you can laugh off at the wretches who funded it.

Definitely, Kickstarter is a lazy way to do something. If you're aiming to do something memorable, then the chance is ridiculously low.

 

[DosBuster]

How is kickstarter lazy?

 

[Theldaran]

How is kickstarter lazy?

In general, people should be seeking a contract to publish their shit. Be it a record or a videogame.

Now, Obsidian has a contract with Paradox. But that's not the case of PoE.

In this case, the contract with Paradox implies other bad things (potential DLCs), but that's the way it is.

Beware of something flogged heavily, with absolutely no warranties and with no actual contract behind; that's the basis of kickstarter and its fiascos. When I say "contract", I imply a formal one, where the only way to sell the game is commercially and you just take your own risks. PoE had zero risk, since like Mighty no. 9, it earned lots more than was asked for. They had room to be lazy, since they earned the big cheque already.

 

[Prime Junta]

Theldaran you have no idea what's involved in running a successful Kickstarter, and then making sure the aftermath doesn't sink your company, do you?

 

[Theldaran]

Well... Kickstarter for funding videogames is a no-no, for me and probably for a lot of people.

There have been instances of games made with RPG Maker that had good enough looks to trick people into funding it, then the author ran away with the money. It's sad. But it only happens here. Because Kickstarter has weak boundaries.

Bottom line, very few Kickstarter-funded games have been any good, PoE certainly stands in the high tier among them, but as I say, it's still a less preferable way of funding your game.

 

[StrongBelwas]

Bottom line, very few games have been any good

Fixed. While I don't disagree that Kickstater isn't a very good option, your argument is based on the assumption they had other options when they started PoE, which they clearly did not.

 

[Theldaran]

Well... it's not really bad that PoE came out, since quite some people liked it. I'm just not among them. I know that Obsidian was in dire straits and they had to do this. But now? Now they've improved their situation significantly and still talk of doing a Kickstarter for PoE 2. That seems a bit fishy.

The real problem with Kickstarter is that if you ask for a million and get 4 million you still make a game worth a million. That's bad for us consumers, not really for the companies of course. But such a platform should be viewed with suspicion. Most positive thing of this whole mess is that it gave Obsidian a second wind.

 

[Sizzle]

Well... it's not really bad that PoE came out, since quite some people liked it. I'm just not among them. I know that Obsidian was in dire straits and they had to do this. But now? Now they've improved their situation significantly and still talk of doing a Kickstarter for PoE 2. That seems a bit fishy.

In PoE2's case, if they decide to go the KS (or Fig) route, it will be used for additional funding and marketing, not to fund the entire game itself like PoE1. Many Kickstarters operate the same way - "Hey, this game will be finished no matter what, but please donate to help us do it faster and better."

The real problem with Kickstarter is that if you ask for a million and get 4 million you still make a game worth a million. That's bad for us consumers, not really for the companies of course. But such a platform should be viewed with suspicion. Most positive thing of this whole mess is that it gave Obsidian a second wind.

This is only true for really small projects (such as board games - Exploding Kittens, anyone?), but computer games can always be made bigger (and more expensive). PoE reached all of its stretch goals, and what we got was very different than what would have been if they only made the minimal amount of pledge money.

Many Kickstarters are fishy, yes, but companies such as Obsidian, Larian, inXile, Harebrained Schemes and a couple of other regular KS users (disregarding Double Fine :D ), want to stay in the computer games making business as long as they can, and they won't achieve this by embezzling money from their own fans.