Codex Review RPG Codex Review: Pillars of Eternity II - It's Pretty Alright

[Bohrain]

Ok, the combat is shit so it's not for combatfags, but the story is also shit so it isn't for storyfags either. Who is this game for? Regular old-fashioned faggots?

People who wank to IE-games and somehow aren't disillusioned by the Kickstarter trite we actually got?

 

[BING XI LAO]

Ok, the combat is shit so it's not for combatfags, but the story is also shit so it isn't for storyfags either. Who is this game for? Regular old-fashioned faggots?

Graphicsfags

 

[ArchAngel]

Deadfire, in my opinion, does not hold up as just a combat game to continue playing it

I understand why Josh got rid of attrition (it makes the level designers' job way easier because they always have a rough idea of what power level the party is at and with it most players just rest-spam anyway)

The genre (IE-style RPGs) never had developer imposed attrition, it was all self-restraint by players.

Only savescumming scum played IE games with no restrictions and we ignore those idiots and their opinions.

 

[Prime Junta]

I started a P1 PotD campaign to refresh my memory about it and get rid of any rose-coloured glasses that may be affecting my perception of Deadfire.

One, I had forgotten how brutally hard it is in the early game on PotD. The Caed Nua main hall phantom mob is murderous: stun on hit and freeze damage that goes through plate armour like it was papier mâché. I have to <gasp> use CONSUMABLES to beat that mob without it being blind luck.

Two, oh man what a difference attrition makes. I'm not just spamming every ability every time, I'm conserving them. Deadfire would really have been a completely different game if they had kept per-rest limits for at least the main caster classes.

Three, there are some QoL improvements in DF that I miss, notably the inventory. Too early to say much about other stuff such as the class system. I think I kinda prefer the weapon proficiency system and Armour/Penetration from Deadfire, despite the Armour/Penetration threshold effect problems: I think it would actually be good if they tuned the numbers better and made it less level-bound.

But man, attrition.

Edit: also, the Concentration/Interrupt mechanic is way better in Deadfire than P1. In P1 it's just really mushy; there's no reliable way to interrupt somebody which makes fights pretty random.

 

[felipepepe]

I wonder if this is a "modders will fix it" scenario, or it doesn't have enough interest to draw in such people...

 

[Infinitron]

I wonder if this is a "modders will fix it" scenario, or it doesn't have enough interest to draw in such people...

We should lobby to have one of the god challenge modes fix it. If they're willing to do something as elaborate as create an entirely new item durability mechanic for one of them, then it's not impossible that they'd do that as well.

 

[felipepepe]

I wonder if this is a "modders will fix it" scenario, or it doesn't have enough interest to draw in such people...

We should lobby to have one of the god challenge modes fix it.

Yes, we definitely should.

Still, from what I saw, one does not simply go "no more resting" and then the game is great. You would have to change how skills work and rebalance all battles accordingly. It would need a "Stratagems of Sword Coast"-like mod on top of the God Challenge.

 

[Prime Junta]

Still, from what I saw, one does not simply go "no more resting" and then the game is great. You would have to change how skills work and rebalance all battles accordingly. It would need a "Stratagems of Sword Coast"-like mod on top of the God Challenge.

It would, but just making priest/druid/wizard spells per-rest would already help immensely, without changing anything else. Rest discipline would be self-imposed, just like in P1 and the IE games (except you'd still get to enjoy the food bonuses). This change alone would make me for one a much happier camper.

On top of that, I would rebalance Veteran and PotD. Slash the high-level enemy hit points by half or more (perhaps also some of their defences?) but bump up their attacks to match -- as it is, it takes forever and a day for them to chip away at my defences too. Smarter AI would be the cherry on top.

(The dumb main quest and dopey writing is there to stay of course, but then Baldur's Gate 2 was no Dostoevskian masterpiece illustrating the human condition either.)

 

[ERYFKRAD]

(The dumb main quest and dopey writing is there to stay of course, but then Baldur's Gate 2 was no Dostoevskian masterpiece illustrating the human condition either.)

Of course it wasn't. In a game about krumping gits, and assorted side activities, the best story would be about krumping gits.

 

[Ulfhednar]

Ok, the combat is shit so it's not for combatfags, but the story is also shit so it isn't for storyfags either. Who is this game for? Regular old-fashioned faggots?

Exploration-fags and Athkatla-fags

 

[Parabalus]

Deadfire, in my opinion, does not hold up as just a combat game to continue playing it

I understand why Josh got rid of attrition (it makes the level designers' job way easier because they always have a rough idea of what power level the party is at and with it most players just rest-spam anyway)

The genre (IE-style RPGs) never had developer imposed attrition, it was all self-restraint by players.

Only savescumming scum played IE games with no restrictions and we ignore those idiots and their opinions.

So impose those restrictions on Dumpsterfire and don't rest willy-nilly.

Still, from what I saw, one does not simply go "no more resting" and then the game is great. You would have to change how skills work and rebalance all battles accordingly. It would need a "Stratagems of Sword Coast"-like mod on top of the God Challenge.

It would, but just making priest/druid/wizard spells per-rest would already help immensely, without changing anything else. Rest discipline would be self-imposed, just like in P1 and the IE games (except you'd still get to enjoy the food bonuses). This change alone would make me for one a much happier camper.

On top of that, I would rebalance Veteran and PotD. Slash the high-level enemy hit points by half or more (perhaps also some of their defences?) but bump up their attacks to match -- as it is, it takes forever and a day for them to chip away at my defences too. Smarter AI would be the cherry on top.

(The dumb main quest and dopey writing is there to stay of course, but then Baldur's Gate 2 was no Dostoevskian masterpiece illustrating the human condition either.)

You can make them per-rest yourself, just count the uses and ration them as you see fit.

Is the HP bloat referring to the DLC? When I played PotD on release the late game enemies needed like +50-100% HP more than what they had, they dropped way too fast.

 

[Prime Junta]

You can make them per-rest yourself, just count the uses and ration them as you see fit.

Is the HP bloat referring to the DLC? When I played PotD on release the late game enemies needed like +50-100% HP more than what they had, they dropped way too fast.

Answered elsewhere ITT.

DLC, yes, but also Splintered Reef and Drowned Barrows (plus a couple of optional high-level locations). The crit path is way too easy of course, but even there the problem isn't enemy HP, it's that the enemies don't hit hard enough.

-- Combat pacing is much better in Deadfire than P1, where it is crazy hectic.

 

[Tigranes]

I'm not sure they can restore Vancian even as a God challenge. They'd have to draw up rules to reassign # of per-rest per spell level and character level, and then some of the abilities will get whacky unbalanced in the process, so they'd have the rejig those numbers too, and then the party's effectiveness would be vastly changed too, meaning enemies will have to be modified...

It was a major design change from POE1 and there's no going back, at least not for Deadfire. While I consider the other major changes (island exploration, multiclassing, etc) either positive or lateral, this one is disastrous.

 

[Azarkon]

Combat gameplay is #1, but I just can't stand dumb writing in RPGs or anywhere. I should have gotten used to it by now, but I can't. It just makes me depressed.

On the plus side, I then play some well written RPGs (like some indies, in recent years), and it feels like I am reading Salinger's latest masterpiece. You have to lose yourself into the darkness before you appreciate the light, I guess.

Pretty good review, Roxor. I commend you for taking pity on Obsidian, in such tough times.

The role of story is being underestimated. In a traditional CRPG, the story is usually established as the pay off, and like you, I can't motivate myself to play a game where the pay off is weak. Yes, you can create your own pay off by making exploration your top motivation, but what does it matter when the game doesn't even acknowledge it? It's not that the writing needs to be consistently excellent, but a traditional CRPG should always have an ending that rewards the player in a satisfying manner for having completed the journey. That makes or breaks the game for me, in almost every case. Otherwise, even solid game play comes off as a waste of time. Strange I don't feel this way about other genres, like puzzle games or strategy games, but then again, those genres also don't structure the player experience around their character's journey.

 

[aris]

Not a shit review this time Darth Roxor, good job!

 

[boobio]

Darth Cuckxor has been paid off by )someone(.

click disagree if you agree.

 

[Darth Roxor]

u jelly

 

[Belegarsson]

Ok, the combat is shit so it's not for combatfags, but the story is also shit so it isn't for storyfags either. Who is this game for? Regular old-fashioned faggots?

Exploration-fags and Athkatla-fags

ekera-fags

 

[yes plz]

someone on reddit finally posted a thread for the review

mostly seem butthurt that he called the companions flaming homos

 

[Darth Roxor]

someone on reddit finally posted a thread for the review

mostly seem butthurt that he called the companions flaming homos

IT'S CURRENT YEAR

 

[Bohr]

someone on reddit finally posted a thread for the review

mostly seem butthurt that he called the companions flaming homos

Wait, this wasn't an official review by an employee?

Spoiler

 

[SausageInYourFace]

Cherry picking Codexian jokes in such a large text certainly makes it easy for retards to not even bother reading whats otherwise an eminently reasonable review. I suppose that goes with the territory.

 

[Fairfax]

I wonder if their involvement with Chris Avellone has any effect on their ambivalence.

 

[Tacgnol]

I like how they fixate on one throwaway comment about companions being overly obsessed with sexing the PC, completely ignoring all the valid points about gameplay.

 

[Bocian]

someone on reddit finally posted a thread for the review

mostly seem butthurt that he called the companions flaming homos

Wait, this wasn't an official review by an employee?

Spoiler

WOWZER