300+ hours at this point in this game and I love it. Thank you Larian for a truly great game!
I'm struggling with putting it at the top of my list though and, other than the endings being a nothing-burger and your decisions not amounting to a whole lot, there's another thing I believe is hampering this game a lot.
One of my most favorite things, and I think a lot of our favorite things, is hitting that Long Rest button and excitedly hoping for a fun sequence to happen. Either there's an exclamation point over someone's head or when you go to bed, something happens. And throughout Act 1 and a fair amount of Act 2, these happen at a frequency that keeps everything interesting!
But Act 3 drops off a cliff hard.
Not only is it few and far between that you have anything AT ALL happen at camp, but when you just finished a large/important mission and you go around to your companions, they either have nothing to say about it or you get a one-liner and your character doesn't get to ask any questions.
Basically, a decision has been made in this act that we no longer need to get to know these characters and I believe that is a serious error considering this game is all about getting to know them. Especially after the companion missions were "done" and you've "completed" your romance story. I mean, you just did something big for them, wouldn't that mean they'd be more willing to open up to you? Why does this mean they no longer have opinions on your choices?
Example:
I went through The House of Hope after "completing" Astarion's story. Astarion was my romance in this playthrough. Astarion's big thing he emphasized throughout getting to know him was freedom and the ability to have agency over your own body and actions.
A mission to get rid of a contract actively hampering your agency, especially after it's been established that he cares for you in particular, would likely hit a note for him. Additionally, having the Haarlep scene where he basically has to witness you giving over and aspect of your freedom in exchange for a chance at larger freedom I would imagine would also elicit a reaction.
Not just with him, we defeated a devil and broke a contract, this is a big deal!
And....nothing. Not a word. You go to camp and there's no cutscene or anything. You go to your companions and Astarion and...nothing. You broke a contract with devil and you don't even get a snarky comment from Mizora like...why is she even here? To awkwardly proposition you for sex and then say & do nothing the rest of the game??
This isn't even the only example, we fight Auntie Ethel again, destroy the Iron Throne, discover The Emporer is Balduran, dismantle crime syndicates, blow up a factory aaaannnnddd....nothing. I can't get a peep out of my companions. Are they even here anymore?
Larian, it's SO DISSAPOINTING. PLEASE. DO SOMETHING.
I acknowledge it's a huge undertaking. Depending on choice, there could be months worth of new lines for VA's and such. But Act 3 is so boring as a result and you have some of the most amazing story beats set up in that Act! Just implement the same process you did in the previous acts! PLEASE!
Thank you again, we all appreciate you.
