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Post by geneweigel on Oct 12, 2016 15:21:39 GMT -5
I got this game as a Steam gift PILLARS OF ETERNITY whch seems to be the heir to BALDUR'S GATE.
So far its definitely reminiscent although it has more "skill/feat noise" which is a real downer. Otherwise, its a unique fantasy world similar to D&D dwarves, elves, some kind of weird fairy animal halfling thing, a race that have traits of the deities and a semi-aquatic race. All, even the humans, have subraces.
There a camp button with limited "camping supplies". Lot of pausing for combat. Complications go to a "choose a path" type interaction. There is a story mode with no combat, there is an ultra no save mode, there is an expert mode with fewer resouces, there is a cranked up enemy mode in addition to easy, standard and hard. So its 7 modes.
There is a feeling that they're trying to please old D&D fans so I'm giving it a chance.
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Post by GRWelsh on Oct 13, 2016 7:43:56 GMT -5
Maybe I'll give it a try, then -- I've been looking for the heir to BALDUR'S GATE! I was recently playing BALDUR'S GATE again (the first one), out of nostalgia and also to see if it held up as well as I remembered. It did. Even though it was set in Forgotten Realms, and was emulating 2nd edition AD&D, it was still the most "D&D" of all the video games I've ever played. Well, maybe it's a tie: DIABLO captured the random dungeon generator side, but I thought BALDUR'S GATE captured the campaign in a sandbox side.
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Post by geneweigel on Oct 13, 2016 8:23:04 GMT -5
Its definitely not FR and the story has fantasy weirdness which is like a breath of fresh air. I lost the two free companions as part of a story to go through a weird dungeon forgotten temple type thing so I feel like they were training wheels. I got the shit kicked out of me by bandits but I was still alive the whole time (playing on "average") but this fucking grizzly in a roadside cave. Its insame I've died literally 20 times because I keep thinking that there is a way but I haven't mastered the system. It did help figure it out but I just decided that its not happening and moved on. I made it to a town that seems dead but I left it at that.
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Post by geneweigel on Oct 17, 2016 11:31:39 GMT -5
The feats/skill/spell/upgrade gets a little tiresome and I've just started tapping through and going with whatever. So far everything seems standard. I went away this weekend so I didn't really get a chance to play it much.
From what I'm gathering it seems centered on the POV of someone who started with 2E then put up with 3E and is trying to get back to "D&D" D&D but doesn't quite know how but its a good step in the right direction.
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Post by geneweigel on Oct 18, 2016 8:18:49 GMT -5
Well, its a way better step than 5E at least.
Honestly? I don't think my D&D games have THIS feeling although I've played in games that were like this that weren't that bad.
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Post by geneweigel on Oct 20, 2016 9:46:40 GMT -5
I was just in a rut where I couldn't seem to get ahead and there are no wandering encounters at all so I had to triple over what I did. That was a little annoying.
It doesn't seem like it but there is a story advancement present. The dumpy area that I had neglected once I killed everything that moved turned out to be a big featured area. OOPS!
The in=game information is a little scattered throughout. Game mechanics and monsters are detailed in a "cyclopedia" section with deities and "lore" but spells must be looked at as found unless you're a priest which is under your character sheet HUD.
The classes are still a little mysterious I think the "chanter" is a bard with ability like spells. I'm not sure how this guy is functioning. He is a story character and he looks and sounds terrible like a cheesy alien from BABYLON 5. There is definitely something weird going on here. It mentions donors who funded the development were able to add characters to the game. So it has that 2E era goon feel. I switched on the developers commentary and one person sounded like they were a surfer or a Valley girl. That was bizarre. ```
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Post by geneweigel on Nov 4, 2016 13:22:17 GMT -5
The combats are at the point when they're annoying enough that I don't want to play. Its hard to tell who is who. I don't know if I didn't put enough care into making the characters which just seems pointless and superficial (clothing styles,etc) but its a mess. When paused, you can click on the profile of one character and they're sort of highlighted. Maybe the updated BALDUR'S GATE structure is too limited but it got boring fast once heavy-hitting NPCs and "captain monsters" got into the mix.
Drain all the spellcasters with whatever you can button push. Wait! No! Don't go there. Oh shit! REPEAT SAVED GAME.
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Post by davegibsongreyhawkdm on Nov 4, 2016 20:09:21 GMT -5
Maybe I'll give it a try, then -- I've been looking for the heir to BALDUR'S GATE! I was recently playing BALDUR'S GATE again (the first one), out of nostalgia and also to see if it held up as well as I remembered. It did. Even though it was set in Forgotten Realms, and was emulating 2nd edition AD&D, it was still the most "D&D" of all the video games I've ever played. Well, maybe it's a tie: DIABLO captured the random dungeon generator side, but I thought BALDUR'S GATE captured the campaign in a sandbox side.
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Post by davegibsongreyhawkdm on Nov 4, 2016 20:10:48 GMT -5
Yes I enjoyed first baldur's gate had coop game with each of my three kids at the time best fun I had coop video game!
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Post by geneweigel on Nov 14, 2016 14:46:18 GMT -5
Yeah, it has lost its charm. I tried to get a little in this morning.
Too much concentration for things that aren't D&D enough. The pattern is one that only a well oiled machine party is going to make it through and its just too boring to maintain.
Update equipment with random material and every now and then level up with giant stack of choices.
I think in the case of BALDUR'S GATE and ICEWIND DALE you knew you playing some kind of D&D as stale and derivative the FR flavor was in those. I'm getting the feeling this could have been some FR thing based on some of the semantics. A broken statue of a deity looks like something from a New Age Mardi Gras mask. The unflattering customs and superficialities, etc. The monsters don't seem straightforward either. Everything seems world-centric flavored.
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