Thanks a lot Kiya and others for the mature replies. It pretty much killed all my fears of a flame war and restored my faith in this community.
***May Contain Spoilers***Also wish to point out: The Earth Elementals just feel unbalanced to me (my opinion). It would have been more fun and worthwhile in my view, if there was a quest such as the well poisoning in Divine Divinity or something. It just feels I am forced to use every potion I have (Which there are not enough of, imo) just to defeat one area of monsters. it makes me headbutt the wall and repeatedly mumble (ugh... bloo...d...y... eaaa...rth... ele...men...tals.... i... want... my.... te..ddy... bea...r) and I am sure my family will deliver me to a mental institution shortly.
====Start of Impressions====
I'll just list them instead of the huge novella I posted last time.
The Negatives 1)
The Death Knight : Whilst later on in the story, (Act 2 onward) I grew to find humour in some of his speach... he just on a whole does not strike me as an evil character. He seems too happy to be there, too "I luv my hero companion, I really do... gis' a kiss". He obeys my everyword... never once has he decided he won't help someone because he wants to kill them, he just mumbles it. It would of been nice if some quests had an unexpected end or something, where the Death Knight lost his cool and slaughtered the quest givers. He just doesn't seem evil, he actually reminds me more of a spouse... happy to be there, but occassionaly moans or we see differently so argue. Maybe he likes being tied to the hero... who knows? Maybe the chains were really a diamond ring... and this... this 'adventure' is really the honeymoon <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" />
2)
The 'EXP' Quests : They seem random at best... some in act 3 really do not make sense as I stated and my morals have been pushed to the limits. I feel really sorry for my new allies (The Ranaar) because I am a two-faced, double crossing, money-grabbing and two-timing Paladin with attitude. Not only am I working for the Ranaar, but also for the Black Ring... everyone infact and it just seems extremely 'random'. When I roleplay, I like to feel I am that character... I like to be able to use my morals to guide my decisions in game... I feel I have to go against everything I feel, just to progress the story. That is not roleplaying, it is 'action-gaming'. Should I just rename my character "Lara Croft" and go do somersaults and headstands in empty crypts? Divine Divinity had a nice touch... if you didn't want to work for a certain 'species', you could bring peace to them instead. I'm a wee bit confused here... and I feel really two faced.
3)
Battefields I remember someone stating a GOOD gamer wont need to go here, they can complete the game without doing so... well then, I am proud to be a terrible gamer, because without going here in Act 1 and 2, i'd of been dead many many times. Death Knights, Earth Elementals... talking spiders... death death death. I agree with the others... Battlefields feel like an afterthought. Like going to work... some may not wish to be there, but if they didn't go, life would suck incredibly hard. I actually enjoy clearing the dungeons in battlefields however... the enemies there are destroyed by my two-handed fury, refreshing seeing as everything else in act 3 is using me as a human version of 'Pong'. The merchants gold is incredibly low... I have 200 items stuck in every hole possible (on me and my death knight), I feel like a hedgehog, except they are swords not spikes. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/think.gif" alt="" />
4)
Inventory Screens Well, I agree these are worse than Divine Divinity. But then, the whole interface is in my view. I loved the health bars surrounded by snakes/dragons... but that's pure opinion. It just felt more 'Divinity' and less 'main stream'.
5)
Skills I miss Divine Divinity Skills. They gave us freedom, now instead of a jack-of-all-trades (specialist in nothing), we are a specialist-in-one-thing (useless at everything else). In my view, warrior's especially, should specialise in a weapon type, not a damage type. If a warrior (irl) used a [nocando] sword, he would specialise in every form of damage it could possibly do. Hitting with the hilt (crushing), Slicing the body (slashing) or stabbing the enemy to finish him off (piercing). Now I feel like an action figure... I can only move my arm in an "Up and down" motion, because my mechanics wont allow my arm to move "Side to side" or "in and out". Similarly, skills just feel a wee-bit silly... a warrior in full plate could not sneak, end of story. The "CLANG CLANG CLANG... CLANG CLANG CLANG... CLANG CLANG" would king of give them away don't you think? How about lock-picking in a pair of gauntlets? How about specialising in melee abilities, whilst having no strength? Reminds me of the term "swatting flies". At least in Divine Divinity the influx of skill points meant you could add it and forget it for your own sanity... in Beyond Divinity, the low number of skill points makes you a specialist in said area... and I cannot see a paladin/knight being specialist in slashing and lockpicking. It just seems wrong.
6)
The Story As I stated in my last post... I have problems with the story. It starts off telling me I was a paladin sent to kill Samuel (with other Paladins) for the Divine One (I believe)... surely this states they have faith in me, which means I am experienced, which means I can kill an enemy without running? A Paladin is trained beyond belief... the whole Paladin image is one of "Divine Warrior", not "Divine Rubbish". Paladin's can repel the undead... they can literally TELL a ghost/skeleton to die again, because they felt like it... yet in BD, this (ex?) Paladin is being raped by anything dead, and also has decided to get the pickpocket skill, breaking every rule the Paladin Code has, just for some... *wink wink* easy money. Could the developers have not just proclaimed "And the Divine One sent a band of adventurers forth to destroy the Necromancer"? I am a Paladin (according to Larian)... a Paladin who has theif skills (Robbing from the rich to feed thyself is an act of evil for starters and the Paladin would be stripped of rank immediately)... I am a Paladin who is fed up of being one so they decide to focus on other skills instead? Who knows, i'm confused. "I shall smite the, unholy entity, but first, I shall steal thy wallet". I love roleplaying as Paladin's... purely because it is one of the hardest classes to RP as. People claim it is easy, but then the entire concept of a Paladin is lost to them. A Paladin would not participate in a drinking contest, a paladin would not work for an entity deemed evil just to progress the story... a paladin would NOT do quests for a necromancer (especially one he was sent to kill in the first place)... he/she would attempt to smite said necro even if it meant they died in the process (im sorry but the whole "I said your name so you cant kill me" thing is wrong... the Paladin would still TRY). Paladin = Enemy of evil, friend to the innocent, champion of the people. Paladin does NOT = wallet stealing, shadow sneaking, tale telling, 'chaotic neutral' warrior. A Paladin would also give running lectures/commentaries to his unwanted ally (The death knight) on the errors of his ways... after all, a Death Knight is usually seen as a form of fallen paladin/warrior. Situation does not grant the destruction of teachings/morals/beliefs. A Paladin would rather die than defy their lord.
7)
Voices I really love Rhinna Pratchett's humour, I just have issues with the actors cast to voice them. The cockney guy who is the voice of most Black Ring guards / humans in Act 2 and 3, is just totally bored. "buy my stuff... I need to sell it" or "you can't come in here... it isn't allowed.". Wheres the feeling? Wheres the frustration? Wheres the humourous undertones that defies their actual speech (saying they feel different to what they say?). It feels like they are reading lines straight from a script and not even putting feelings into it. Anyone can do that, I got an A in school (in Drama) for doing that... but these guys are paid to do more. I just feel the whole cast was bored, none seem to want to be doing it. And EVERYONE has the same voice! Oh my Lord, some woman was a naughty lady, she had so many twins, the whole world is populated with them! Even the imps have the same voice as the humans, granted, they've added a squeak. Then there's the death knight... I love his stupidness, the voice is perfect for a dumb evil warrior (imo)... but again, he seems so bored! "Arhhh... you're awake... woohooo... back to bed... bleh".
8)
Neutral Creatures Couldn't they have kept that warning window for the entire game? I cannot count the times i've clicked a rat or other neutral animal by mistake... and then been royally raped by their brothers and sisters. In chapter 1 a little window pops up "Are you sure you want to click on, rat (neutral) and have all other rats as enemies" or something similar. Why was this taken out of Chapter 2 and onward? It really stopped 'accidental' clicks, whether they be just where your mouse is (whilst your attention is elsewhere) or under the 'fog-of-war' whilst you click inside it. On a side note... how does every cat/rat/frog/dog in the world know I killed one of it's species? What is this? Chinese Whispers? "He killed Margaret!!! Pass it on!!!!"
9)
The Music What was the best feature of the original game, seems boring and uneventful in BD. It's too moody... I feel depressed sitting there for longer than 20 minutes, because it's all so glum. I the original game, I could teleport to Dark Forest when I felt sad, and proceed to jump up and down like a loon to the catchy and fun beat. Now all I get is the feeling something, somewhere, has died and all the musicians look like this <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/puppyeyes.gif" alt="" /> .
10)
Items There are too many, but of what there is... the majority is utter rubbish. In act 3, I am still finding normal leather armor... i've only seen one full-plate, and that was from a Black Ring Merchant. Why don't the Battlefield merchants sell things on an Act basis? Act 3, their stock gets better perhaps? For the later mosters, defence is really important, and so is resistances... yet all I can find at most, is a "Mole's Chain Mail" or a "Rabbit's Leather Armour". I may as well buy "Red Rags" and stand in front of an Elemental shouting "yooohooo, i'm over here... come earthquake me, I can't resist it!!!" (literally).
11)
The Hero Underpowered. It's the only way I can see him/her. An imp Shaman can royally kick thy heroes behind, yet the hero wishes to save the world and kill anything hostile within. Some hope. They can't even defeat a Death Knight without running (which in Divine Divinity were food for my sword, I loved killing them). "Hey, Mr. Hero... my daughters trapped in an Orc hole... do us a favour and rescue her... but make sure you know Sneak and Save the Game a lot, because frankly... you're a wimp!!!". There's difficulty and then there is insanity... which leads me to my final negative;
12)
The Difficulty If you wish to attract main stream gamers, you should make 'Very Easy' actually mean 'Very Easy' and not 'An-Easier-Version-of-Difficult'. The average gamer, does not have the patience for trial and error. Not everyone has the time or staying power to fight one enemy for 30minutes, dying over 12 times and reloading frequently so their PC lags like it was 15 years old. Very easy should mean, "Hit enemy with stick, you win, hoorah". While those of us who love RPG's will play on a hard difficulty, if you wish to make a profit and earn money, you need to make the game playable by all... and that includes kids, old people and people with no hand-eye co-ordination. As it stands, Beyond Divinity actually needs pretty good reflexes, it's not a game for a 'newbie' gamer, nor for a casual gamer. It taps into an extremely elite market and one which, unless they played RPG's before... would be totally lost/clueless. Manuals can only go so far. The reason Divine Divinity wasn't successful was most probably the learning curve/difficulty. I remember playing it the first time and then leaving it until I had the patience to sit there for a weekend and learn it. Mr. Average would leave it and not come back... he'd rather trade it for Halo or something and kill anything moving. Unfortunately, the games industry is very focussed on casual gamers and it will not change anytime soon. Granted, it's just my opinion, but i've seen too many FANTASTIC developers go under, because they appeal only to a specialised market. For example: Two great British developers of all time; Bullfrog and the less known Mucky Foot (Startopia)... gone. It's sad, and I for one don't want to see it happen to Larian. Money talks in our world.
13)
Warriors... I still believe Warrior is Strength and Endurance. If I wanted Martial Arts and spin-kicks, i'd invest in a monk. I really just cannot see a 6'2", 260lbs+ guy dancing the highland fling whilst smiting enemies with a tremendously huge great-axe. It just wouldn't happen... armour and weapons weigh enough to totally void movement in the first place... remember, 'knights in armour' had to be hoisted onto a horse, full-plate armour is extremely hard to move in. I just can't understand why I need to be able to move around like a sugar-plum fairy, just to hit my target. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> Warrior = Biceps are bigger than their heads. Beyond Divinity Warriors are more a variation of a ranger. Like an 'Aragorn' I guess.
----------Really long, I apologise for that, I just like to explain my thoughts (and back them up)----------------
The Positives 1)
The Atmosphere I love Larian made worlds, they are fun and crazy. The imp village made this game for me, it's just hilarious to walk around it and talk to NPC's. Especially the female ones, real classic. Reminds me (no offence) of 'sitcom comedies' on British Television, where the mothers/sisters always moan at the no-hoper males. "Imp Hero" is one of the best characters in the game... especially seeing as he lies about doing anything. The Citadel is cool... if a little long. I really got a bit bored near the end, as it was too long and dull, but overall it was a fun starting environment. The ambient sound really brings out the atmosphere too.
2)
The Humour Simply classic... without this humour, the game wouldn't be anywhere near as enjoyable for me. I just wish, as I said, that the voice-actors did the humour justice. Some of the lines would of been much better, delivered well... instead of 'bored'.
3)
The Combat Nothing beats hitting a critical and hearing that "SQUISH" noise. It just makes all that training worthwhile, to crit a nasty human scumbag with a SQUISH. Especially when they die immediately after with an agonising "ARGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHH". The 3d element has added to the combat greatly and I love how it feels like the training pays off, when you kill a hard enemy, such as an Earth Elemental.
4)
The Difficulty "Woot" it's in both positive and negative...well as I said, I love RPG games so for me difficulty makes the game more rewarding/satisfying. My whole 'impressions' are written on how I view the game in total, not just my own feelings whilst playing. I really love getting beaten up, except if it's by four earth elementals casting earthquake... that's just frustrating.
5)
The Graphics I really love the new character models... it's just a shame all models are the same. I kinda liked how in Divine Divinity each class had a different base model. None-the-less, the new models are nicely detailed and armour looks great now, which is an improvement over Divine Divinity. Females in the first game, looked a little... 'weird' in fullplate imo. I much prefer the new armour. I just wish the backgrounds were a little better when zooming in. They look too blurred.
6)
The Death Knight Some of his comments in later Acts are hilarious. I love his hatred of imps and his want to kill them in suitably horrific ways.
-----------------End--------------
I'll post more positives when I think of them.
I really do not wish to tread on toes but, I just feel if everyone protects Larian too much, it does more harm than good. If some issues are not addressed (which are said by a lot of people in here, and whom all have said they like the game overall), Larian won't get the money they need for Divinity 2. Nor will they address things which stop people playing mid-game. It's nice to have a very strong and close community, but sometimes support can be too much... like sheltering a child, too much protection and they'll never be able to fend for themselves in the real world.
I love Divine Divinity. I like Beyond Divinity. I want to love it, but I can't.
I've seen many posts here in the past few weeks from people defending Beyond Divinity, yet they do not even own the game yet. This in itself puts many people off buying the game as nobody likes a die-hard fanboy. It's the same as butt kissing your boss. As much as I love Larian's games, I really think this whole 'sheltering them' from negative feedback everyone is doing, is doing more harm than good. It's happened to companies before and will happen again, if the money suddenly dries up.
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Thanks for reading again (if you read the first one). Sorry I deleted it, but I don't want to be an 'enemy' of the forum... i'm a fan like everyone else. I just believe Larian need support in BOTH negative and positive forms, if they are going to succeed and get what they DESERVE. Fame, fortune and success.
