Editorial RPG Codex Report: Gamescom 2016 - Divinity: Original Sin 2

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[garren]

So you still can't change animation speed? That sucks. Hope they make the combat animations lightning fast this time because it was like 10 times too slow in the original.

 

[Bubbles]

thanks for asking about enemy positioning

since you spent there a while did you have any insight into itemization or crafting mats availability?

Last year they talked about keeping most of the equipment randomized, but making crafting more powerful. Unfortunately, I didn't have the opportunity to check out crafting this time; it would be interesting to see how it "feels" now.

 

[Septaryeth]

Last year they talked about keeping most of the equipment randomized, but making crafting more powerful. Unfortunately, I didn't have the opportunity to check out crafting this time; it would be interesting to see how it "feels" now.

Ev, ev, even more powerful?

Haven't read the interview yet, but this was one thing that went wrong with the un-enhanced version.

For the sake of completion I used all the hoarded materials right before the void dragon.
The crafted equipment were ridiculously powerful, e.g. 100% Fire resistance shirt, 100% Water resistance undies.
The set pretty much made my characters invincible to all damages even with the dragon switching attacks every round.
And they weren't that hard to craft to start with, not when you save up all these blacksmithing+1, crafting+1 equipments.......

Was it any different in the enhanced version?

 

[Sensuki]

Nice piece. Looking forward to the "record-breaking" other ones.

edit: FTFY Excidium

 

[The Bishop]

I still really fucking hate this:

Last year, the writers still described indirect dialogue options as an “experiment”; by now, they've become fully entrenched in the game. The difference between two options like “Who are you?” and *Ask him who he is* seems minimal to me, but passionate role players will probably like it.

Actually I like the idea a lot, and not for the sake of roleplaying. A phrase in a dialogue can be quite ambiguous in its intention. Is is a straight up suggestion, a well intended joke, a jest, an insult? I can't always tell. Indirect speech solves that completely and without help of awkward tags like [truth] [lie] [smart] [aggressive].

And yes, having to choose from:

1. Hello sailor!
2. Greetings, unidentified person.
3. Fuck you.

can be quite frustrating because, even though I understand the intentions of these lines, I don't feel like saying any of that, yet from:

1. Say hello casually.
2. Offer formal greetings.
3. Brush him off angrily.

I can find an option that fits my line of inquiry well enough.

 

[Jedi Master Radek]

That's the kind of treatment that Larian extends to its biggest fan communities, and we highly appreciate it.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

 

[Volourn]

" from the get go, people are perhaps not going to pick the Origin stories; they're going to miss out on all the fun, because they won't realize how deep we went on all of the dialogue options. "

FUKKIN' RETARTET REASONING. The arrogance is HILARIOUS.

 

[SniperHF]

can be quite frustrating because, even though I understand the intentions of these lines, I don't feel like saying any of that, yet from:

I can find an option that fits my line of inquiry well enough.

I don't find it frustrating at all. I'd rather read well written lines. The times where such ambiguity would annoy is massively dwarfed by the loss of potential quality character writing.
Dozens and dozens of good lines from games like Mask of the Betrayer would just be chucked out the window via indirect dialog. No thanks.

 

[The Bishop]

I don't find it frustrating at all. I'd rather read well written lines. The times where such ambiguity would annoy is massively dwarfed by the loss of potential quality character writing.
Dozens and dozens of good lines from games like Mask of the Betrayer would just be chucked out the window via indirect dialog. No thanks.

I don't know, I feel that indirect dialogue offers just as much potential for good writing. I won't be the same, but it doesn't have to be any worse quality wise.

 

[sser]

Looks good. Actually stopped reading because I felt it had some spoilers. The dialogue options being abstracted is an interesting choice. Still serves the same function and (hopefully) avoids any Phelpsi situations. Do they all require the asterisks if they're always in that form, though? Seems unnecessary.

 

[Ivan]

Great read. looking forward to the game.

 

[Konjad]

Larians are bros

 

[a bear named spigot]

dope coverage, great interview. swen is always a great read in these things.

 

[Tigranes]

I trust Larian to get most things right after DOS, the one problem was the absolutely invisible writing. It's interesting to see Bubbles gush at it, though the screenshots are showing the indirect responses so it's harder to tell.

Couldn't care less if the dialogue is direct or indirect or whatever, that's the kind of thing where the creators can make their judgment and what matters is the overall quality in the end.

 

[J_C]

if I would show you the initial dialogues, you'd say “that's shit!”

Swen knows us very well.

Oh yes he does:

I really like the art style. I know there's some Codexers who say “ugh, looks like shit”, but they will always say that.

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Didn't have enough pictures of the writing staff. It's important for us to see who's fighting the good fight with her words.

 

[Vicar]

Good interview! The game sounds amazing and it definitely feels like Larian is always trying to improve and do something new.

 

[Berekän]

Didn't have enough pictures of the writing staff. It's important to see for us who's fighting the good fight with her words.

tfw no cute rpg writer gf

 

[Kem0sabe]

Cautiously optimistic about this, but still too soon... D:OS front loaded all the good parts.

 

[Zeriel]

Bubbles: [pondering the Red Prince's corpse] Can I get rid of him?

Swen: That's a good question, because he stays in the party… that's actually a really good question. We assume that you'd wanna revive him, otherwise you'd have to talk to him and get rid of him.

So he actually committed to that. It really puzzles me. What is the point of these nifty cool conflicting origin stories if when someone dies you're just expected to revive them as if nothing happened? It seems to undermine the whole storyline.

Even if it's the main character dying, I would far prefer a "reload now" screen. The "gamey-ness" of death in D:OS is fine re: combat, but when deaths occur in the story and are similarly trivial and pointless it's so strange.

I still really fucking hate this:

Last year, the writers still described indirect dialogue options as an “experiment”; by now, they've become fully entrenched in the game. The difference between two options like “Who are you?” and *Ask him who he is* seems minimal to me, but passionate role players will probably like it.

Yeah, same. Larian are still my favorite developer of the current RPG crop, regardless, but some of their choices I struggle to understand. I guess that's the side effect of them being creative as fuck--sometimes I like their innovations, sometimes not so much.

 

[Infinitron]

Perhaps Chris Avellone's Undead origin can provide meta-commentary on the triviality of death in the Divinity universe as expressed through its game mechanics.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Perhaps Chris Avellone's Undead origin can provide meta-commentary on the triviality of death in the Divinity universe as expressed through its game mechanics.

Or it's an amnesiac immortal who wants to solve the mystery of his constantly updating journal.

 

[Zeriel]

Perhaps Chris Avellone's Undead origin can provide meta-commentary on the triviality of death in the Divinity universe as expressed through its game mechanics.

I was thinking of that... and while it makes a good joke, it's kind of like when other RPGs smarmily make jokes about the adventuring life. "Ha ha, isn't it funny how they always ask you to kill rats first? Now go clear out my cellar of rats." Implementing stuff that strongly undermines the believability of the world for me doesn't magically become believable when it is explained in-setting.

 

[---]

Didn't have enough pictures of the writing staff. It's important to see for us who's fighting the good fight with her words.