After replaying DOS1 and 2, i noticed few similarities both games had that i disliked.
Both games were somewhat linear in nature.
I vastly prefer somewhat linear games over non-linear sandboxes. Sandboxes are for hardcore gamers who want to lose themselves in a game for extended periods of time, while linear games are for more casual gamers looking to be entertained enough to actually complete a game. In the former, the story becomes a backdrop to the grind; your quest log becomes so long you forget/or don't even bother understanding, individual quests -- and the quest log becomes a shallow tick box checklist. The latter becomes more story driven, and you engage with the story more actively and on a deeper level. This comes at the cost somewhat of replayability, but then again...a majority of players don't even finish a game once.
My ONE BIG worry, is really MANY SMALLER worries commonly referred to as LARIAN CHEESE. These are the many immersion breaking gameplay features, that too often are unbalancing and implemented in a clunky manner, exacerbated by the fact that Larian disregard pre-existing D&D material that have none of these issues. Quite disappointed by this to be honest.
Some of these are the static camp where almost all interactions with companions are rather artificially injected, lack of day/night cycle, weapon dipping, throwing boots, throwing enemies, shove, flanking (and to a smaller extent height advantage), pickpocketing implemented as a gimmicky legalized exploit with complete disregard for any risk vs. reward mechanics. Exploits as gameplay features is a significant step down from even the simplistic law-system of the original games (Flaming Fist; "I am the law!"). I'm largely fine with "barrelmancy", just scale it back to become a situational tactical option rather than the core gameplay mechanics Larian aims for with their cheese. I want a reason why barrels of Alchemist's Fire/oil are present in any large quantity.
Beyond these "Larianisms" I also take issue with the over-focus on loot (particularly "trash loot") incentivizing pack-mule hoarding behavior. I really, really dislike the inventory system. I want more realism than being free to store 10 huge barrels in a shared inventory that can be used freely in any combat. This was my main issue with DOS2 and a significant reason I tired of the game without finishing. I would love a game with a simplified, abstracted system where your limited quick slots are your personal inventory and freely accessible in combat, with a shared orderly auto-sorting inventory reflecting somewhat realistic encumbrance limitations. This would restore some of the focus on the characters again while not feeling like some filthy professional corpse looter/pillager.
