I have almost diametrically opposed views to most here. Party initiative? Bad. Breaks rule, likely to be imbalanced especially on top of surprise. Smaller team size? Good, especially combined with party initiative where large parties could spike damage and take out enemies with relative ease. DnD 5e is a complex and high micromanage system and less companions will make for less time-consuming battles. I also prefer fewer and deeper characters to explore relationship with. Smaller party makes choices matter more and there is increased replayability (not that I care as a casual gamer). I liked the apparent physical changes to Shadowheart (the headband/tiara thingy was particularly annoying). Larian definitely has my confidence, the writing and the storytelling in D:OS2 was nothing short of superb and it stood out to me as the real spiritual successor of the original BG-series, certainly much more so than anything Bioware produced.
