Well, I was hesitant to buy Beyond Divinity. I loved the first, with maybe exception at the end when it was all just diablo-esque to make you level up. Right up until you were reborn it was great, after that it was good. However, it remains one of the greatest games I've played (right up there with Neverwinter Nights and KOTOR).
Anyway, I was hesitant and I didn't play much of the demo. I lost interest in that in a minute. However, after bolting down and purchasing it, I can say I am having a lot of fun playing it! My Death Knight is a straight-forward melee fighter and my created character is a spellcaster. I am in Act II and I'm loving it. Sure, it doesn't have the expansive environment that Divine did, but it still is pretty much the same game to me. I love the battlefields and how they are optional, but I find myself doing them anyway as soon as I find the key (and I am not a big Diablo fan...I'm an older time RPG'er from the Ultima 7 and Might and Magic III days).
This game is great, in my opinion. The only thing that I might have preferred is a traditional skill-spell system rather than what they have. I like Divine's much better, however, Beyond's works too.
The voice acting could be nauseating at times (...you have to wonder if they actually listened to the dialogue before it was released), but it doesn't detract from my game experience because I feel the gameplay is that good.
Beyond isn't a step backwards, it is a step sideways with a little step forwards, while we are waiting for Divine Divinity 2. As a game, I have to say "Great Job Larian! Thank you for making a fun game!", unlike the boredom that is Morrowind (which I did beat BTW).
