3D spells
The first are spells or effects which should manifest as 3D shapes but are only 2D projections on a plane. If the 3D shape encompasses several levels, the 2D projection is often applied incorrectly, which breaks the illusion of the third dimension. Let's file this one under bugs and hope that v1.0 can properly calculate impact areas on all affected z-levels.
I think I have written about that at some point, but if I didn't that is a thing that's been anoyying me for a while. One would hope that spells would be sphere rather than a flat circle, and would catch enemies on different planes that it is being cast. As it is I found the implementation very dodgy - Harpy hill is usually an easy place to test the spells.
Most of combat is turn based, except for surfaces which expire in real time.
Do they really? If so, that is a baffling design indeed.
Unless spoken to by Tav, NPCs will stand in place and bark the same lines over and over and over and over. Unless Tav rests or accomplishes a quest objective, the world is in a holding pattern. Tav commands the sun itself to rise and set, though a handful of NPCs use the cover of night to be proactive.
It wouldn't matter in a setting trying to be less realistic, but this falls into uncanny valley territory, making NPCs feel like actors at a renaissance fair rather than actual people. I applaud any effort to buck that trend, such as little scenes that occur as Tav passes by, but I've a feeling that the fully animated dialogue means that NPCs really do need to stand in place. I don't know if tweaks can fix this, but let's give it a shot and hope that secret systems are in the works (*wink* day/night cycle *wink*).
Yes, this artificiality of the world is very distracting. It's fine in wilderness, but it really kills the atmosphere of populated areas - I wonder how Baldur's Gate will feel.
It is pretty common for interactable NPCs to be static - you don't want the players to struggle finding an NPC they wanna talk to. Usually, though most games have flavour NPCs - ones you can't really interact with, but are there to provide window dressing. I think PoE vs PoE2 where walkable NPCs in the sequel made for a much live enviroment, in spite of the game not being that much more interactable.
Larian doesn't really have such NPCs - or rather it has them but still names them and presents them as important individuals. I am sure, they could take quite a few of grove inhabitants, change their "cutscenes" into barks and have them walk around a bit to make the place feel a bit more live. Constantly repeating barks are just a nail in the coffin for immersion.
