I completely agree with GM4Him that the mechanics should be realistic instead of road runner. Basic mechanics are what will keep this game alive for more then 6 months after release. If people can't take the game seriously, they won't want to play it more then once. The two most successful RPGs I can name without even thinking about are World of Warcraft and Skyrim. Both of these games have odd little quirks in them, but the developers took the mechanics serious as a heart attack. If Larian wants the game to be more than another DoS2, then they should look at what those two games did right. DoS2 is a decent enough game that most people finish it, remember it fondly, or at least not negatively, and move on. Skyrim is a game that people have spent years playing, same with WoW.
I agree that mechanics should aim to be realistic, and that includes removing homing missile devices like immortal kids. But when you then give Skyrim as an example, then I have the impression that "realistic" seems to be very subjective description in the context of this discussion. I've had lots of fun with that game, but only because there were mods to fix its worst non-optional feature: the level scaling. I consider that mechanics to be very unrealistic. Yet I'd hazard a guess most players didn't find that an issue.
My personal opinion as to why Skyrim is popular is not that it's because it is realistic, but it's because the game combines Sims-like elements with a generic ease of combat and exploration (which in turn is due to Bethesda removing challenges such as the complex dungeons from Daggerfal), and is moddable. And I'd say this is a successful strategy, considering the popularity of their Fallout sequels compared to the imo more complex original Fallouts. Tbh, I think if that many players were looking for realistic combat, games like Solasta would be bestsellers instead of remaining indie titles. Instead it is Skyrim, where I seem to recall (admittedly I haven't played it in years) you could become an archmage of the mages guild regardless of your characters magical skill or lack thereof.
