Excellent points, Greyclouds.
Interesting customizability, don't you think? I mean you can actually customize your skill's parameters, something beyond Diablo's foolproof system.
Yes, I presume all the 22 boxes would be used: I am sure you saw all the Survivor skills. Most of them are very useful, hence you might try to use them all.
Indeed, in DD every characters end the same. Sneak was never used (tried sneaking in BD? Not only it doesn't take stamina but also it shows enemy's sensibility zone!) along with several other skills. Also, a character starting with a magic spell had a better chance of survival than even a beefed up warrior.
Playing a survivor character was difficult at the beginning and then ridiculously easy later. Summon a pair of scorpion traps and sit in a corner while they're cleaning the yeti cave/orc camp/wilderness.
I cannot judge from the demo, but the game looks much better balanced.
