Divinity Original Sin 2 Definitive Edition

Threadfin · 09-02-19, 08:52 AM

I had a search through the forum to see if there had ever been a thread about DOS 2. I found a short thread for the first installment from 2014, but nothing on the second game. This game however is so good it deserves a thread of it's own.

I've been playing isometric RPGs for a long time, and have the experiences of classics like Baldur's Gate, Planescape, Fallout, Neverwinter Nights and so on to judge this new wave of old-school gaming goodness against.

I dare say DOS 2 tops them all. Blasphemy right? It's all subjective anyway, but when taken as a whole, I can think of no isometric RPG that I think is better. In DOS 2 the graphics, voice acting, music, story, writing, quests, character building, combat and companions are all top notch. It has a couple of missteps, which I will detail in a moment. But overall, I rate this game the finest of the genre.

The first game was a fantastic game in it's own right. I played through once on Classic difficulty, and then again on Tactician after Larian was kind enough to give owners the Enhanced Edition for free. I loved it, especially the combat, but the rest of the game was great as well. Inventory was a bit of a mess. A few other niggles as well, but overall, a superb game and firmly planted Larian on my gaming landscape.

Combat stood out because it was so much fun and, on Tactician mode especially, challenging. It's turn based, which is what I prefer (over RTwP). The way it incorporates the environment, elements and terrain is masterful. Tactician mode removes the shackles from the AI, and they can and will use all of their abilities. As one example, I've never had a party member teleported by the AI on Classic, but certainly on Tactician, and sometimes straight on to lava, which is insta-death. Cool

Character building is great too. Many RPGs these days have mutli-classing. I've recently also played through Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire and Pathfinder Kingmaker. Both of those game have it, though each handles it quite differently. In Kingmaker, you can multi-class as you go, in Deadfire it's all chosen at character creation. The upshot is in those games, you are class-restricted. The choices you make open some skills and abilities while closing others off. It works well, and each of those games are excellent in my view.

Original Sin however is classless. You choose a starting class, but it's just a template, and itself can be altered at the start. From there, how the character develops is simply limited by you imagination, points and skillbooks. Any character can have or use any ability potentially, if you invest the points. It allows more freedom than other systems. In addition, repecs are free and unlimited. So if you regret the path you chose, made some mistakes, or simply want to try something new, you can do this any time (after unlocking it, not available early on)

In Original Sin 2 just about everything from the first game was improved upon. I say 'just about' because there were a couple of major combat changes that I don't care for. For me the first game's combat was close to perfect. In the second the armor system was changed. Armor was divided in to both physical and magical. In order to reduce an enemy's vitality one or the other type of armor must be stripped away. It's only then too, that certain spells and statuses can be applied, like CC for example. The trouble is that unless you build your party to deal exclusively one damage type of the other, your damage is split between the two types of armor, each working to reduce it, but hardly working together. It encourages a single-damage party instead of a mixed party. On Classic or below it really doesn't matter much. But on Tactician you need all the advantages you can get.

They also made a change to the way initiative works which I don't care for, but I'll spare the details.

Those two niggles aside the rest of the game is epically fantastic. Inventory is still a bit of a mess, just less so and the map and journal could use some work. But the graphics are beautiful, the story is awesome, the writing is top-notch. Voice acting might just be the best I've ever heard. Quests are great. Combat is the best in the genre, in my view.

I could go on about all the finer details, and why I rate this game so highly. But I'll save you the rambling. If you like isometric RPGs, you need to play this game. If you are a RPG vet who is good at character building, party synergy and combat, play on Tactician. It's where the game truly shines, although I wouldn't recommend it for folks new to the genre. Like they did with DOS 1, Larian has made a Definitive Edition, with a myriad of fixes, improvements and new content. It's even better now than before. It's a game well worth your time.

Platapus · 09-03-19, 05:04 PM

Sounds like an interesting game

Threadfin · 09-04-19, 08:45 AM

It is, by my standards anyway. Some folks won't care for it I suppose. But I think if you like this type of game, Divinity Original Sin 1/2 are games that stand out.

I think we tend to apply a bit of a nostaglia filter when remembering games like Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Icewind Dale and Planescape. They were, and still are, fantastic titles. But viewed through the prism of the modern conventions they tend to lose some of that shine, at least in my view. When they were released nearly 20 years ago they were far and above everything else. With the release of the modern wave -- games like Pillars of Eternity, Tyranny, Divinity Original Sin, Wasteland 2 and Pathfinder Kingmaker -- we have much of what made those older games great, but re-imagined. Re-imagined with better graphics, GUIs, inventory systems, sound, voiced dialog and more. So it's old-school goodness wrapped in a modern veneer. That's a nice combination.

Having played most of these newer RPGs, DOS 2 for me rises to the top. I loved Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. Expertly written, robust character building, fantastic story, a unique ship mechanic. The combat was Real Time with Pause (RtwP) at release, but some time later they added a turn-based mode, and that sealed the deal for me and I bought it. It made it more my style, but it was plain that I was playing a RtwP system rigged for turn based. Things as key as initiative and reload times were shunted aside in the TB mode. I paid little attention, but still it was clear. I enjoyed the run all the same.

Kingmaker has some neat ideas. The whole 'run your own barony' mechanic is interesting, even if in practice it was a little underwhelming. This game has a more organic feel to it and I love the teamwork feats. Pacing seemed off to me, but still a really good RPG.

No game is for everyone, and this is obviously my own opinion, but I see no weaknesses In DOS 2. From graphics, to companions, to quests to mechanics it's all so polished and accomplished. If I had a complaint through my first run it was that the final act seemed unfinished. But with the release of the Definitive Edition, this is to have been addressed. Still in the mid-game, so I will see when I get there.

Mechanically it stands out, not just in the normal sense, but because the toolbox you are given is so robust. The myriad of solutions it allows is mind-blowing. Not just combat, but in navigating the world and levels, in puzzle-solving, in just about everything. There are so many ways to go about it. For everything you accomplish, there were probably a half a dozen ways to do it that never even occurred to you. It's a thinking-man's RPG that rewards innovative problem solving.

It's a fairly crowded isometric landscape at the moment, and I don't think a player could go wrong choosing any of the titles I've mentioned in this post. But if I could only choose one of them DOS 2 would be it.

09-02-19, 08:52 AM	#1
Threadfin Ace of the Deep Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 1,070 Downloads: 38 Uploads: 0	Divinity Original Sin 2 Definitive Edition I had a search through the forum to see if there had ever been a thread about DOS 2. I found a short thread for the first installment from 2014, but nothing on the second game. This game however is so good it deserves a thread of it's own. I've been playing isometric RPGs for a long time, and have the experiences of classics like Baldur's Gate, Planescape, Fallout, Neverwinter Nights and so on to judge this new wave of old-school gaming goodness against. I dare say DOS 2 tops them all. Blasphemy right? It's all subjective anyway, but when taken as a whole, I can think of no isometric RPG that I think is better. In DOS 2 the graphics, voice acting, music, story, writing, quests, character building, combat and companions are all top notch. It has a couple of missteps, which I will detail in a moment. But overall, I rate this game the finest of the genre. The first game was a fantastic game in it's own right. I played through once on Classic difficulty, and then again on Tactician after Larian was kind enough to give owners the Enhanced Edition for free. I loved it, especially the combat, but the rest of the game was great as well. Inventory was a bit of a mess. A few other niggles as well, but overall, a superb game and firmly planted Larian on my gaming landscape. Combat stood out because it was so much fun and, on Tactician mode especially, challenging. It's turn based, which is what I prefer (over RTwP). The way it incorporates the environment, elements and terrain is masterful. Tactician mode removes the shackles from the AI, and they can and will use all of their abilities. As one example, I've never had a party member teleported by the AI on Classic, but certainly on Tactician, and sometimes straight on to lava, which is insta-death. Cool Character building is great too. Many RPGs these days have mutli-classing. I've recently also played through Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire and Pathfinder Kingmaker. Both of those game have it, though each handles it quite differently. In Kingmaker, you can multi-class as you go, in Deadfire it's all chosen at character creation. The upshot is in those games, you are class-restricted. The choices you make open some skills and abilities while closing others off. It works well, and each of those games are excellent in my view. Original Sin however is classless. You choose a starting class, but it's just a template, and itself can be altered at the start. From there, how the character develops is simply limited by you imagination, points and skillbooks. Any character can have or use any ability potentially, if you invest the points. It allows more freedom than other systems. In addition, repecs are free and unlimited. So if you regret the path you chose, made some mistakes, or simply want to try something new, you can do this any time (after unlocking it, not available early on) In Original Sin 2 just about everything from the first game was improved upon. I say 'just about' because there were a couple of major combat changes that I don't care for. For me the first game's combat was close to perfect. In the second the armor system was changed. Armor was divided in to both physical and magical. In order to reduce an enemy's vitality one or the other type of armor must be stripped away. It's only then too, that certain spells and statuses can be applied, like CC for example. The trouble is that unless you build your party to deal exclusively one damage type of the other, your damage is split between the two types of armor, each working to reduce it, but hardly working together. It encourages a single-damage party instead of a mixed party. On Classic or below it really doesn't matter much. But on Tactician you need all the advantages you can get. They also made a change to the way initiative works which I don't care for, but I'll spare the details. Those two niggles aside the rest of the game is epically fantastic. Inventory is still a bit of a mess, just less so and the map and journal could use some work. But the graphics are beautiful, the story is awesome, the writing is top-notch. Voice acting might just be the best I've ever heard. Quests are great. Combat is the best in the genre, in my view. I could go on about all the finer details, and why I rate this game so highly. But I'll save you the rambling. If you like isometric RPGs, you need to play this game. If you are a RPG vet who is good at character building, party synergy and combat, play on Tactician. It's where the game truly shines, although I wouldn't recommend it for folks new to the genre. Like they did with DOS 1, Larian has made a Definitive Edition, with a myriad of fixes, improvements and new content. It's even better now than before. It's a game well worth your time. __________________ What? Behind the rabbit? Last edited by Threadfin; 09-02-19 at 09:23 AM.

09-03-19, 05:04 PM	#2
Platapus Fleet Admiral Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 18,928 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 0	Sounds like an interesting game __________________ abusus non tollit usum - A right should NOT be withheld from people on the basis that some tend to abuse that right.

09-04-19, 08:45 AM	#3
Threadfin Ace of the Deep Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 1,070 Downloads: 38 Uploads: 0	It is, by my standards anyway. Some folks won't care for it I suppose. But I think if you like this type of game, Divinity Original Sin 1/2 are games that stand out. I think we tend to apply a bit of a nostaglia filter when remembering games like Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Icewind Dale and Planescape. They were, and still are, fantastic titles. But viewed through the prism of the modern conventions they tend to lose some of that shine, at least in my view. When they were released nearly 20 years ago they were far and above everything else. With the release of the modern wave -- games like Pillars of Eternity, Tyranny, Divinity Original Sin, Wasteland 2 and Pathfinder Kingmaker -- we have much of what made those older games great, but re-imagined. Re-imagined with better graphics, GUIs, inventory systems, sound, voiced dialog and more. So it's old-school goodness wrapped in a modern veneer. That's a nice combination. Having played most of these newer RPGs, DOS 2 for me rises to the top. I loved Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. Expertly written, robust character building, fantastic story, a unique ship mechanic. The combat was Real Time with Pause (RtwP) at release, but some time later they added a turn-based mode, and that sealed the deal for me and I bought it. It made it more my style, but it was plain that I was playing a RtwP system rigged for turn based. Things as key as initiative and reload times were shunted aside in the TB mode. I paid little attention, but still it was clear. I enjoyed the run all the same. Kingmaker has some neat ideas. The whole 'run your own barony' mechanic is interesting, even if in practice it was a little underwhelming. This game has a more organic feel to it and I love the teamwork feats. Pacing seemed off to me, but still a really good RPG. No game is for everyone, and this is obviously my own opinion, but I see no weaknesses In DOS 2. From graphics, to companions, to quests to mechanics it's all so polished and accomplished. If I had a complaint through my first run it was that the final act seemed unfinished. But with the release of the Definitive Edition, this is to have been addressed. Still in the mid-game, so I will see when I get there. Mechanically it stands out, not just in the normal sense, but because the toolbox you are given is so robust. The myriad of solutions it allows is mind-blowing. Not just combat, but in navigating the world and levels, in puzzle-solving, in just about everything. There are so many ways to go about it. For everything you accomplish, there were probably a half a dozen ways to do it that never even occurred to you. It's a thinking-man's RPG that rewards innovative problem solving. It's a fairly crowded isometric landscape at the moment, and I don't think a player could go wrong choosing any of the titles I've mentioned in this post. But if I could only choose one of them DOS 2 would be it. __________________ What? Behind the rabbit?