But then they just keep throwing things on top, things that start to erode at what was amazing, and it really comes off as what I'd expect from a streamer. They're just having fun, not really thinking too deeply about the things they do, and getting paid to play around. This can work (Divinity: Original Sin) and really, I can't tell some developers making such a unique game to "stop having fun", I just wish that they would think about what they're putting in the game past whether it's fun to code or not, because with thoughtfulness this could be so much more.
If they didn't keep trying new things, I wouldn't be here. I avoided the first Original Sin primarily because they implemented all the same cliche player species and races I see in the majority of role-play games these days. ( Humans, Elves, Dwarves or similar creatures with funky skin colors ) I grew tired of these races years ago, and they are all too much like being human, which I am for real as much as I hate to admit it. I bought the game instantly when I could be a lizard. That wasn't previously implemented. They would attract more people if they implemented some more unique playable races or species.
The durability thing is upsetting to me. It's obvious what is wrong with it, it's used for immersion, it's not making us immersed, how do we fix that? The fact that they are asking the community says that they don't understand why they put the mechanic in the game in the first place, it says that they put it in because it seemed like a fun idea.
So much of my list is balance and quality of life. 162 topics currently, and probably 70% of them are. Larian needs to talk with its writers, and they need to think about why the things that don't work are in the game, what these broken things were supposed to achieve. And I'll list the biggest offenders for repetitions sake.
Too much Intelligence focus
Too many player made ground effects
Too many actions in a turn
Too much elemental hard cc
Horribly overpowered skills (And not just for intelligence)
A terrible armor system to try and balance everything above
A load of weapons and play styles that have no skill trees
A dissonance between the game design and the story
Gimmicks or jokes being used as puzzles
As for the rest of these things, these all seem to be detail aspects that would normally get adjusted and balanced over time. Considering they have several more visible issues as well as these, it seems to me that the game is still very much in an immature state, and I expect the problems you mention will improve as the game matures.
