Originally Posted by Blackheifer
Originally Posted by Wormerine
Finished Wasteland 3 (meh)
What didn't you like about Wasteland 3? I didn't really like it either, it just felt kind of mediocre.
I have been asking myself that very question through my entire playthrough, and I still don't have a 100% solid answer.

On paper I should like it - I think the campaign has a pretty good structure, and there are quite a few choices to make, with a decent reactivity.

I think the biggest issue for me, is "the story" - in this case, worldbuilding and characters, as I think plot provides a strong framework. No matter how many choices or how much reactivity the game has, it matters little if I am indifferent about the characters and the world I am affecting. I found factions of Wasteland3 to be quirky for the sake of it, without much reason or depth behind them - a group of Reagan-AI worshipers, a gang that dresses up using haloween moster costumes, a dictator with a hammer painted in american flag. With choices coming down to screwing zany faction A over zany faction B, I found it hard to have strong feelings about any of it. No really compelling characters that I can think of either. There was also a certain amount of unpleasantness (profanities, violence & gore), which while not unwelcome in a post-apocalyptic game, I don't think was used effectively.

Gameplay wise, W3 landed it in an awkard spot for me - it was streamlined enough for the systems to feel gamey, but not enough to make for a genuinely good gameplay loop. Not quite an immersive RPG, not quite a compelling tactics game. I found UI and menus generally unpleasant to use throughout.

There were also small things - like chain system, making followers run through hazards or unengaged enemies moving in real time, while turn based combat is in place (I didn't notice that one until DLC2, in which it was painfully visible) - which just made the game feel jankier than it needed to be.

My memories of Wasteland2 are very blurry at this point (I remember not thinking too highly of it either, but enjoying it overall), but I remember that game being more player driven - having to pay more attention, use skill more intentionally, different solutions requiring player input. Wasteland3 felt more like a Bioware RPG in some ways - a very passive experience with A, B, C choice everyonce in a while - and I don't think the ride they took my on was compelling enough for me to not check out mentallly.

Do you have anything specific that made you not like W3 much?