The importance of side content

[luj1]

I believe the biggest problem with PoE wasnt the dull writing, the boring companions, the lifeless world or the dumb main quest, but....

You started well bro, what happened?

 

[Jedi Master Radek]

You are not doing random chores because you want to fill up some abstract bar of XP but because you are trying to join a camp(a faction) and to do that you need to prove yourself but since you are too weak you are relegated to doing basic chores.

People rationalizing bad formulaic quest design as being "realistic" or "justified" never cease to amaze me.

Sometimes context is enough to elevate content.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Having side content when the main quest is some variant of "SAVE THE ENTIRE WORLD/UNIVERSE RIGHT NOW! SHIT'S ABOUT TO FALL APART!" makes me hate the game.
Let's say, hypothetically, there's a giant sentient statue made of copper inhabited by a god and you have to stop the statue. So what's your first priority? Why, helping people in the slums in a foreign village of course.

It's not that the side content is bad, but the main quest has really shitty pacing.