Everyone meeting in a bar is kind of cliche frankly, and there are better ways to hook players.
Originally Posted by kanisatha
Thats an interesting critique of Pillars and is probably one reason why I like it alot more than Pillars 2. You are just a normie travelling down the road and you piece by piece discover more things about yourself.
That's a big topic. I personally always enjoyed the low key beginnings - even BG2 which has more of a dramatic intro comes to life once you are set free in Athkatla. It's more about living in the world, and interacting with stuff, then following an action packed story. I always thought PoE1 opening was really strong and game's later content had issues (as well as thick lore - I enjoyed PoE1 far more on 2nd and 3rd playthrugh, while one the first one I liked it alright, but lacked interest to see more of it). The gold standard for me as far as RPGs go is Fallout1 though. A relatable origins and hook, clear objective, a suggestion to go but not really a linear plot progresson. Also a rather low profile character - yes, we are "a saviour" of our vault (maybe) but it's a thankless, dangerous job, rather then a powerful chosen one journey.
I am somewhat reserved about the opening of BG3. Captured by mindflayers, going to hell and back... it does sound like the game is playing some strong cards from the very beginning, and I feel it might lessen the impact of seeing those kind of worlds later in the game. However, it also might be a clever way of teasing things to come early and make them treatening to show how much we have progressed, when we get to return later in the game.
