UI, Controls, QoL :
Part 1,
Part 2,
Part 3,
Part 4,
Part 5.
Roleplay, Story, Immersion :
Part 1,
Part 2,
Part 3.
Mechanisms :
Part 1,
Part 2,
Part 3,
Part 4.
CHARACTER CREATION AND LEVEL-UP
The character creation screen and the level-up screen currently do the job, allowing us to choose what we have to choose (mostly —what is wrong or missing will go to the mechanisms section). But there is a lot of room for improvement (see
Niara's post on this for some ideas). I hope it will get properly revised before full release.
Choosing Ability Scores, cantrips, class features, etc. The choice of an archetype should come before any choice that follows from that archetype. Examples :
- When the Ranger reaches level 3, I should not have the types of prey above the Hunter/Beast Master archetype selection.
- When the Fighter reaches level 3, I should not have the manoeuvres above the Eldricht Knight/Battle Master archetype selection.
It is not logical and doesn't do a good job teaching players the game : if I see a choice first and an archetype choice then, it is natural to think that the first choice doesn't depend on the second.
(Note that the same logic should naturally apply at character creation, where the choice of a sub-race should come before any choice that follows from that sub-race. This is currently done correctly though.)
Please don't highlight the (supposed) primary ability score. I can create a Dexterity-using Fighter or a Strength-using Ranger. It's annoying to see that star above the "wrong" ability score all the time.
Beginners will already have the Ability Scores pre-allocated at character creation, which should give them a good sense of what is important for their class if they go vanilla. By the time they reach level 4, they won't need a star to tell them which Ability Scores to increase.
Also, since each class has two 2 ST proficiencies, not one, that's not the function of the star either. So the star doesn't seem to be needed at all.
When gaining the feat "+2 to Ability Scores", please don't auto-allocate the points. This allocation needs to be changed by the player most of the time. So I'd rather allocate directly, rather than de-allocate to re-allocate.
(Note : the auto-allocation of ability scores, skills, etc, at character creation, is good though. New players are able to pick a name, background, race, class and venture forth.)
When I level up and can memorise more spells, please don't auto-memorise something. I can go and edit the choice you made for me. But let me just add a new memorised spell without having to first remove those I don't want. I keep telling Shadowheart I don't want her to memorise Bane.
Choosing class skills at character creation. There is a lot to say about each tab in the character creation screens (again, see ), but the tab where we choose our skills strikes me as being particularly messy. There is redundant information about about the skills we already have, and the tab is cluttered with the irrelevant listing of the skills we can't pick.
Choosing a sub-race : sub-racial features. When a feature is common to all sub-races of a race, it should be listed as part of the race.
The major offender is probably "Base racial speed". If the Dwarf sub-races or the Tiefling sub-races have the same speed, then it's a feature of the race, not the sub-race. Incidentally, the word "racial" really means related to the race, not related to the sub-race.
"Base racial speed". Currently, we have the same phrase, "Base racial speed", which is used to mean different things. More precisely, it means "you can move X meters per round", where X varies from one use of the phrase to another use of the phrase. We have to hover over this feature and read the tooltip to know exactly how much this choice of race or sub-race lets us move per round. As it stands, we might as well have the phrase "A character of this race can move", given how unhelpful this is. That's bad UI design.
Suggestion : simply write "movement per round : 7.5m", "movement per round : 9m", or "movement per round : 10.5m".
Starting equipment and proficiencies. Could Astarion's starting armour not give disadvantage on Stealth checks ? He's a Rogue ! And I like the design of his "armour" (clothes really), so I'd like to keep it for as long as I don't find a really better armour. Right now, it pretty much should be changed for a leather armour as soon as I find one. What a loss of style ! A Rogue PC starts with a better armour ... why ? Is that your way of roleplaying Astarion unexceptional Intelligence ? He doesn't have a 6 !
Universal proficiencies : torches. Could everyone be proficient with clubs/torches ? Gale has no proficiency in clubs. So he apparently knows how to fight with a dagger and do fancy topples with a staff but he cannot properly wield a club ? I'm just asking because, right now, I find that lit torches are actually a decent weapon, at least at the very start. And so I noticed that Gale isn't proficient with them. It's obviously not going to change my game-plan, but it also doesn't make a lot of sense.
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MISCELLANEOUS
Seeing information flashing during cutscenes. It can be hard to make note of all the approvals/disapprovals. When 3 to 5 companions have approval/disapproval at the same time, I find it hard to take note of all the information.
One the one hand, unsurprisingly, the words approval and disapproval look very similar, when glancing. Perhaps an approval arrow up-and-green or down-and-red could help. That or anything, so long as it solves the problem.
On the other hand, I'm not just trying to read text, I'm also trying to make sense of why each character approves or disapproves, learning about their personality and views through their opinions. That takes more processing time than just reading. And I don't want to rush to memorise 5 raw, meaningless, binary pieces of information (approval/disapproval for each companion) and then spend time making sense of it after the information has disappeared. Memorising random information (like a phone number with no pattern) isn't a fun exercise.
Regularly enough, I don't notice when a skill check has happened. This is because they are small, short, and in the upper left corner whereas the subtitles, and my attention with it, are at the bottom. Could you please leave the passive skill checks information be displayed to bottom-left instead of the top-left corner ? And perhaps make them last longer, and make them bigger ? Also, perhaps make a roll sound (or a louder one if there is currently one), to draw attention to this.
Hotkeys, hotbar, and dialogue. Hotkeys for hotbar and dialogue options : not the same thing. I removed the numeric hotkeys for icons in the hotbar. It turns out that doing this removed my ability to use the number keys for dialogue options as well ...
Obviously though, hotbar icons and dialogue options are not the same thing. Please, code this as two separate variables !
Space key for skip cutscene and choose first dialogue option : not the same thing. It is is a bad idea to have the same key skip cutscenes, including and in particular dialogue cutscenes, and select the first dialogue option. I think the real problem is that doing "skip" when there is a choice selects the first choice. Doing "skip" should have no effect when there is a choice.
Turn-based mode. In turn-based mode, it is not clear who has played (used movement/actions) and who has not. At the moment, the turn-based UI does not seem built for a party, but rather more for a single character. It would be great to have the same system as in combat mode, when we can hover over the "pass" button and see who has what resources left.
Banters and skill checks volume. I cannot hear party banter if the camera if far away. Non-cutscene talk (banter) between non-party NPCs is understandably muted when the camera is far from them. But when they are in-party NPCs, banter should probably not be muted.
(Note : I suggest elsewhere to improve semi-fast travel options, and perhaps reduce the radius of action of the camera.)
I cannot hear skills checks (e.g. Perception) if the camera is far away. Same cause as above.
Cosmetic and "realism". Please remove blood and bodies after some time. Striking examples :
- If I died giving blood to Astarion in the camp, could you assume that my PC will clean up the blood eventually ? I don't want to go to sleep in a bloodied bedroll every night. Also, perhaps it wouldn't hurt if at least the PC, if not the whole team, could react to Astarion taking a tiny bit more than just what was needed, instead of acting as if my death was a perfectly normal thing.
- From what I heard in the goblin fortress, the druid grove is supposedly hidden because the entrance is covered with vines. Smart. But keeping the bodies in front of the entrance ? Less smart. It's bound to give away your location to the next goblin patrol.
Note : I'm not saying bodies should disappear everywhere and immediately. The adventurers' bodies on the bridge could stay several days, before Nature does its work. Of course ... this requires that the game starts properly taking into account the passing of time (which I discuss in the next section, and which I feel is much needed).
Please give us the option to hide helmets during cutscenes (not the headbands though, just the helmets). This could be activated in the options menu. We want to enjoy the view of our characters. Most adventurers would remove their helmet when in town and talking to people. Also, it's probably not that comfortable and practical for exploration, so they'd actually don the helmet only at the start of a battle.
Edit (Patch 3) : I've read that some form of this has been implemented. I hope the headbands can still show in cutscenes. It would not be the end of the world otherwise, but it would be nice.
Please allow us to stop concentrating. I have listed this item also in mechanisms, for mechanical reasons. But here, my issue is cosmetic.
Examples :
- If I Friended someone in the Druid Grove, and I have now walked to the Blighted Village, I certainly don't need to see the Friend icon and still be concentrating.
- I don't need Guidance to last forever, and I don't like seeing that glow forever.
- When I have cast Hex once, again, I don't want to glow forever. It's not the icon on the portrait that is a bother, it's the glow.
Could we have an option for not glowing under some spells ? The option could either allow us to turn-off, or reduce the glowing. It's fine to have the icon on the portrait. It's also fine to glow under an effect like Bless, because it's just a few turns. But when I'm traveling, I don't want the glow of a Mage Armour or Recast Hex to become my default look. I don't like it much.
Could we have better visuals for Invoke Duplicity and Minor Illusion ? At the moment, they seem to be practice targets. I find it hard to believe that an enemy would confuse this illusory piece of wood for one of my attackers.
