If they didn't mess with 5e and incorporate their own version of DoS/D&D into this game, you wouldn't need to add food that heals, change healing spells, have healing potions and revivify scrolls falling from the sky, change short rests per long rest, etc. But when a 1st level caster can now cast a fire bolt cantrip that does more damage in one cast than an eldritch blast cantrip, with an agonizing blast invocation (which requires a level 2 character) that also has a 1st level hex spell on them, then maybe you'll end up with damage and healing issues.
+1 Agree, a whole load of the problems seen so far are either (depending upon your point of view) Larian mixing too much DoS into 5E or too much 5E into DoS. There is a real need to pick a ruleset here, this hybrid version they have at the moment isn't working.
Ok well, thats just like, your opinion man.
You can give food a use beyond being useless clutter by having your characters consume food when long resting. Not necessarily a requirement to long rest.. but if you go a few long rests without food you'll start to suffer exhaustion, as per 5e rules, I think that would be great.
THIS, SO MUCH THIS.
If Larian want to keep Food in the game as a consumable item, let it be a 'currency' that is expended to on each short or long rest, either to heal naturally (long rest) or to voluntarily consume it to expend a hit-dice (short rest). I would even be open to a camp-site 'mini-game' where you could mix some of the miscellaneous ingredient items up to create a 'recipe' that would have different mini buff/debuff effects for a set duration when consumed.
