I also think BG2 is an interesting and apt comparison for the current game. Following the story beats there, we got Imoen as basically the main plot driver. Then Jaheira and Misc immediately, then Yoshi, and Aerie before even leaving the promenade. Then at least 1 recruitable companion in like every district of the city. Every class archetype was represented, with at least one other variant with a different race/alignment/gender or stat spread to differentiate them. Some hunks, some babes, some shorties, plenty of elves and wizards and whatnot, some throw aways sure, but enough variety so that choosing a party comp felt more distinct and like a reflection of the MC too in that way.
I think they could go as deep or as shallow as they want with the writing, but you can do a lot with barks and text and script, and not necessarily needing a massive VO acting sweep to prop it up. Most of the Chars in BG2 had just one or two "sequences" where they got the spotlight, or perhaps a little bit more if they were romanceable, but I think it was the variety of types that helped it feel like an epic. Some of those character ideas stood out more than others, even if just as sketches, depending on what one likes out of a D&D game. I kind of prefer an NPC with a little going on the side, but still fairly light on demands, as opposed to a straight Merc system like Pillars, which was really more like building a second custom PC. I think that's a cool feature to have too, but one I didn't make much use of there cause of course its fun to play with companions. I think most times the player is either doing it single player + all companions like BG, or single player custom party like BG LAN or IWD, or else some combo if MP with other actual players. Though there were still a few playthroughs where I rolled with a custom second that I can recall, and it was a good time.
When I say Mercs here I guess I just mean having a few BG2 style companions in BG3, you know something between a Mercenary custom (ala Pillars) and a fully dialed Origin like what we have so far. At this point a dozen companions done up BG2 style as compared to 5 Origins, would be sort of analogous to just having a few BG1 style companions in BG2, which I actually think would have helped flesh out that game a bit more. Like that was one of the first things people wanted to mod in, or which would eventually go into the Enhanced Editions, just more companions. The EE BG characters kind of feel like SW special editions to me, but I can still get why they did it. Cause more companions just makes for a larger sense of scale and grandeur. I wish for the EEs they had just used the BG1 characters when they entered the plot in BG2 (since they all made an appearance) instead of making new ones with no real connection to the official games. The Villain path in BG2 was always short a few slots, so I can see why they wanted a vampire assassin and a half orc blackguard. They were fun. I know everyone says its this huge expense and effort, but how hard is it to hire a bunch of VA actors and just fire off some clutch barks with a few vignette sequences acted out? Like is Halsin's day rate really that crazy, that they couldn't bring him back in the sound booth for a day, and fire off some more lines?
I don't know, I think they should lean into some of this stuff, like if the people are into cringe bards and crazy drow and druid guns, then why not? Just call those actors back for a barks session and hang a laurel on em. Seems like not the craziest thing ever to pull off. Even if its more story driven than crawler, I think it'd work for either really. I think players are just hungry, or maybe thirsty for more, and that's not surprising cause they only gave us the furious five, for like a year now lol. Of course people are looking for someone new to dive in on by now
Last edited by Black_Elk; 22/08/21 10:31 AM.
