Review RPG Codex Review: Darth Roxor on Disappointment, thy name is Pillars of Eternity

[Zeriel]

That's still more discrete than having one stat that governs any and all kinds of damage.

Is it? How? It's the same thing.

Clearly it isn't, otherwise the Might stat in PoE wouldn't have received literally hundreds of pages of discussion.

It received hundreds of pages of "discussion" because it's a godawful idea, not because it is a uniquely godawful idea.

 

[RK47]

Darth Roxor Please Hab Muh Babies.

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Darth Roxor Please Hab Muh Babies.

My reviewer cannot be this cute...

 

[Darth Roxor]

Darth Roxor Please Hab Muh Babies.

Sure, just let me fetch the mustard

 

[Scroo]

I rate the game 6/10 but this thread is easily a 10/10

 

[Volrath]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

 

[Gangrelrumbler]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

 

[Zeriel]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

"B-but senpai didn't even want to make a successor to the game they made all their nostalgia cash from Kickstarter off of namedropping, they wanted to make shit game all along~"

 

[empi]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Being a video game that is fun to play would be an example probably

 

[Goral]

Let's be honest here: had this game been so flawless and good as some people claim Darth Roxor's arguments would fall on their own. The fact is however they are spot on and the only thing PoE fanboys are doing right now is either calling DR an idiot or saying that the flaws are minor. The thing is, even when you assume that the things DR mentioned are minor, they do stack up and that says something. Sure you can ignore it all but for many people these things ruin the gaming experience.

Another interesting thing: the fact alone that this game brings such controversy shows that Obsidian did something wrong and DR did something right. This game will probably be even more controversial than Wasteland 2 (judging by number of replies in this thread). I'm in the pro-Wasteland camp but I can understand the hate for W2. On the other hand I don't even care about PoE but with the amount of butthurt I'm reading I'll definitely check it out once it's on sale. So again, DR has done something right by advertising this game (I would argue that this kind of review is the best advertisement on the Codex, better than 10/10 review).

And why is it so strange that someone would consider this the worst Obsidian game? If you have the least amount of fun when playing it then it is the worst. Just like someone might ignore Fallout flaws and call it the best cRPG ever, one can dismiss PoE's merits when compared to flaws because they ruin the fun. I think some people have problems with reading with comprehension - DR wrote "worst Obsidian game" and "mediocre/underwhelming game" not "shitty game".

 

[Volrath]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

In what fantasy world did anyone ever expect THAT to happen?

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Being a video game that is fun to play would be an example probably

Fun is subjective

 

[shadow9d9]

I already posted a point-by-point list of where I disagree with the review.



If someone says that POE is the worst Obsidian game ever, then this person has a pretty bad taste. Someone whose favorite Obsidian game is Alpha Protocol is not exactly qualified to write a review for people who like traditional RPG's.

I haven't played POE yet, as I mentioned, but honestly, Obsidian doesn't have a great history with rpgs. They had a few FPSs with rpg trappings here and there, a bioware clone(which I don't like the style of at all), a south park game I have no interest in playing, and nwn 2, which did not impress me. Could the answer to their best game simply be "none"? They are a company that sounded great on paper but never made anything of worth. This is their first foray into a traditional rpg as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Lady_Error]

Still, I don't get what's so innovative about souls in the game

If you haven't noticed, the whole controversy surrounding Animancy is central to the storyline. And Animancers study souls, influence what happens with souls after death, etc. Then you even have machines that accumulate souls.

As for other innovations:
-Animal companion is nothing new, many classes in DnD had them since the third edition.

I compared POE to the IE games.

-Endurance/health split is totally useless in the game because of how it's designed. It's your usual regenerating health system you know from games like Dragon Age, but with forced rest here and there. It could be something new, but because of how the game is constructed it's really not.

No, I don't know Dragon Age and don't care about it. I compared POE to the IE games. We can disagree on the usefulness of the split, but I liked it.

-You just need to go through one level of the dungeon to gain control.

You are told that you are not in full control and can always expect attacks as long as the Master Below is not eliminated.

-WOW had guns over 10 years ago.

I compared POE to the IE games.

 

[Gangrelrumbler]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

In what fantasy world did anyone ever expect THAT to happen?

Probably all these retards who gave $1000 to have themselves included in the game, and all these people who paid ever more to be made into portrait. I wouldn't pay $50 to be put in the PoE, yet I'd surely pay that 1k to be put into BG2.

 

[Volrath]

So is Blaine going to be allowed to post his Wasteland 2 review as well?

 

[commie]

Yet another 'edgy' review to stick a spoke in the eye of most every other review of PoE. Codex stays true to its roots as the place to go to for diametrically opposed views on everything.
I wonder had Angry Joe despised PoE we'd have gotten something else entirely?

I'll pull up a chair though to see if Twitcher 3 wins 2 or 3 Codex GOTY awards instead....

 

[commie]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

Why would you want this game to be the successor of that mediocrity?

 

[Darth Roxor]

Guys, just because I'm kinda curious myself.

Please give me some examples of edginess from the review.

 

[Gangrelrumbler]

Lady Error
If you compare it to only 2 games from 15 years ago then it's obvious that it will bring some innovations. You could have also said that it's innovative because it introduced resolutions over 1024x768, 3D models rendered in real time, developer commentary, viseable cloaks (!!!), elemental races and Steam release on premiere.

 

[Nebuchadnezzar]

I'm surprised the codex endorses such fucking banal storytelling like Baldur's Gate 1 and 2. It must be nice to only want one kind of plot for all of their games. Big Bad guy enters beginning scene 1: rinse, repeat.

 

[Lhynn]

It is true that PoE does not have turn-based combat; otherwise, it has included all the parts one could want: a rich, non-licensed setting; a complex character system with races, classes, skills, stats, talents, feats, etc; dialogue trees with skill-checks and other checks; tactical party-based combat with a large party; an "isometric" camera angle; painted environments; liberal use of text and text adventures; and at least some degree of exploration.

All that shit means nothing if the execution fails. And the execution fails.

Pulling those parts together is hard work. No matter how derivative the setting seems, it's still serious work to build it. Creating the engine is an immense undertaking. Developing your own ruleset is no mean feat. And so on. Making the parts cohere and live is even harder. Obsidian may not have gotten everything right, but they didn't have the pre-existing edifices to work off of that other games like BG2, PS:T, MOTB, KOTOR 2, SOZ, etc. had.

Actually if obsidian had anything is 30+ years of cRPG history plus PnP shit to learn from, plus their own experience in the genre, they had way more than bioware had.

For my money, even on this review, POE seems better than BG: prettier, less goofy, free from a licensed setting, etc.

And yet all that meant nothing in the end when it came to the actual game.

That said, criticism never hurt anything, and I imagine the POE team will read this and get some useful insights.

Having sensuki as an example of how much obsidian listens to people that know what they are talking about, i wouldnt hold my breath.

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Well, unless you think poe was about nice graphics, decent music and Na´Vi rejects im guessing.... everything? from balance, to reactivity, to writing and fun gameplay, it simply isnt very good.
I still think it isnt a bad game, some details ive found in the game design tell me someone at some point cared, and that makes it even more of a disappointment.

 

[Gangrelrumbler]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

Why would you want this game to be the successor of that mediocrity?

According to the kickstarter page, a bunch of people collectively known as Obsidian Entertainment.

 

[TheGreatOne]

Wow, it's like the same gamist mechanic as every other watered down "RPG" after the year 2010!

If that's an innovation, then Diablo 3 is the most Sawyerist game yet.

Where do you think PoE ripped off it's looting&itemization? Trash loot galore.

I'll pull up a chair though to see if Twitcher 3 wins 2 or 3 Codex GOTY awards instead....

This isn't 2009 bub, we've got Serpent, possibly Torment and other games in the horizon. I'd rather play the worst game Sawyer ever made through multiple times than touch a Witcher game.

 

[Nebuchadnezzar]

"inspired by baldurs gate"

 

[Zeriel]

Very good read, fair review for a game that utterly failed at everything it set out to do.

Which is what exactly? Everybody keeps regurgitating this same fucking point over and over again, but nobody seems to explain what they mean by it.

Be a true successor to Baldur's Gate 2.

Why would you want this game to be the successor of that mediocrity?

Codex in a nutshell.

"Man, PoE is a piece of shit. They said it would be BG2, what is this nonsense?"

"No one ever thought it would be BG2, there's no way it could be that good!"

"Yeah, BG2 was shit."

I love each and every one of you black bastards.